The Library

When Dovid Hamelech was running away from his enemies in the desert he prayed to Hashem Tzama Lecha Nafshi etc. (Tehillim 63) “My soul thirsts for you, my flesh longs for you, in a parched and thirsty land with no water.” Why does Dovid Hamelech feel thirst for Hashem dav...

There’s a famous expression in recovery “Once is too much, and a thousand times is never enough”. This is a profound insight into the nature of addiction, which basically means that giving in even once will send the addict back into the painful cycle of craving and depend...

We’re always hearing about the importance of Simcha, especially from the Chassidic sources, mitzvah gedola leihiyos besimcha, and all the more so in Adar… Meshenichnas Adar Marbim Besimcha… But what does it really mean to be besimcha? And how can Hashem expect us to just ...

Today is the 19th of Kislev, the yahrzeit of the Maggid of Mezritch. I was learning his sefer and he was talking about fearing Hashem and loving Hashem.

"Sadness by itself is no sin, but the apathy (lit. 'numbness of the heart') that sadness brings about, no other sin can bring about. Mikva by itself is no mitzvah - since Tvilas Ezra was annulled - but the goodness that mikva brings, no other mitzvah brings.

The things we absorb in childhood unfortunately continue with us, unless we make efforts to change them. One thing that is universal among children, is that they compare themselves to other children, and are always jealous of what others have that they don’t. You're always looking at what somebody else has that you want. First, it’s a doll, then it’s a dress, then it’s a husband, then it’s a baby carriage, then it’s a vacation.

In Sifrei Rav Tzadok, in the back of chelek bais, there is a section titled Yisroel Kdoshim. On page 28 of the print I was using, he is in the middle of discussing Shimshon, Dovid and Bas Sheva, and Yosef Hatzaddik. He makes a statement, "and so it is with the nisyonos of...

I had written a certain well-known Rabbi about how to deal with lustful thoughts. In several of the Rav's shiurim he had mentioned the Meor Enayim that a person's obstacle is really his path to success. How is being bogged down with lustful thoughts constantly a path to s...

With regards to teshuvah – returning to G‑d – the common notion is that it wholly consists of tears and intense remorse. After all, if one really feels bad for a wrongdoing, it is only natural to cry. Let me tell you a story. Before entering a private audience with the Re...

Rav Klonimus Shapira of Piaseczna related, in connection with the following Posuk: “Adam ki yakriv mikem korban l’Hashem, min habehema min habakar u’min hatzon etc.” If the Torah gives us the ability to sanctify an animal, how much more so, we should realize, it gives us ...

QUESTION: How do I deal with the fact that I keep failing in things that I want to accomplish in Avodas Hashem? I try but it doesn't go. I feel like I just want to give up already. ANSWER: In one of his Seforim, the Breslover Rebbe writes as follows: he says, “when I was...

When the Rebbe of Aleksander, HY”D, was being led to his death, he explained this Possuk: “L'hagid baboker chasdecha v'emunascha baleilos.” Meforshim explain, he said, when it is ‘morning’ - bright and comfortable - we praise Hashem for His kindness; when it is ‘night’ - ...

A great 20-minute analysis by Rabbi YY Jacobson In a nutshell: There are real human needs. If we're missing those needs, we feel a void, which causes us pain. In such a case, we can do one of two things: 1) Address the needs and fill the void and go back to a st...

In the spirit of Purim, I figured I would share a thought of Torah with everyone here. The Bnei Yisaschar (Rav Zmi Elimelech Shapiro of Dinov) points out something very interesting about Purim. In naming the Moadim, the Torah refers to each particular holiday with a name ...

The Holy Ruzhiner Rebbe zy”a interpreted the verse in Tehillim (37:10) “In a little while, the wicked is no more; reflect upon his place, and he is gone.” This means that “in a little while,” - shortly after sinning - “the wicked is no more” - the person no longer wants to be wicked for he regrets his sin. Therefore, it is better that he "reflect upon his place” - he should think before he commits the sin, at the place of the sin - and then “he is gone” - he will not commit the sin at all.

Rabbi Nachman teaches,In order to serve God, you must be obstinate. On no account should you give up and abandon the practices you have begun. Don't give up in any way, no matter what happens. Remember this well, because you will be in great need of it when you start serv...

“And Pharaoh said to Yosef, ‘after G-d let you know all of these things, there is none so understanding and wise as you’.” (Bereishis 41:39) Over the past few months people have witnessed how the high and mighty have been taken down to the lowest depths due to foolish...

BS”D Shalom u’Brachah, to our dear Jewish brothers and sisters in Brazil, This week, before I sent my son, Rabbi Yisochar Dov Taub, shlit”a, on a Chizzuk mission to your country, several of your community activists informed us that a recently enacted law effectively preve...