Prayers Regarding the Love of Friends from "Tefillah L'Ani" for the Festivals

חֲנוּכָּה

יז

Please, Merciful Father, who has compassion on the poor and those impoverished of knowledge, "Who dwells with the crushed and lowly of spirit," send us a tzaddik like Hillel, who will teach us to search with the forty-four candles [of Chanukah] for the good points in every single Jew, which can only be found through the aspect of dam (blood/silence, numerically 44). Forgive us, our Father, for our distance from Ahavas Yisrael (love of fellow Jews) and from the illumination of this love, which the Torah leaders of Israel implanted within us, like Hillel, who held the opinion of "adding and continuing" (lighting an additional candle each night), to say that we must constantly add and bring another new soul closer to her Father in Heaven. Please, forgive us for the blemish of Ahavas Yisrael, and grant us the merit to rise above the blemish of constricted consciousness (katnus hamochin) of dispute and baseless hatred, which caused us to lose the twelve candles corresponding to the twelve tribes. This hints to us that we still do not know how to include these twelve tribes within one another and transform them into the aspect of one, "like one man with one heart," as Moshe Rabbeinu merited when he brought the nation to "And Israel encamped there opposite the mountain," to draw down the Torah to them from within the fire with thunders and lightnings, in the aspect of "And all the people saw the voices," that they saw what is heard. And now we will thank and praise, glorify and exalt our Creator, who therefore gave us these days of Chanukah, which are in the aspect of hearing what is seen, so that through them we may merit to hear anew the Giving of the Torah with thunders and lightnings through the eight candles, which are drawn from the Sefirah of Binah (Understanding), in the aspect of "The children of Binah established eight days of song and praise." And may we merit to increase in song and praise, which is the only way in these generations to reach the aspect of the Giving of the Torah. Grant us the merit of the harp of David, through which he drew down the five books of Psalms, corresponding to the Five Books of the Torah, and through it he merited to reveal and gather all the good points in every single Jew, and through them he drew down the building of the Holy Temple. Please, grant us the merit to be included in the virtues of the tzaddikim, who gather every good point in every Jew, and through this gathering and collecting, they establish the Tabernacle and the Holy Temple. Please, grant us the merit to be included in the virtue of Mattisyahu and his sons, who in this way purified the Holy Temple, with their holy audacity, in the aspect of "the goat that churns with its horns," which is drawn from the light of Chanukah in the Sefirah of Netzach (Eternity/Victory), in the aspect of "I have conquered and I will conquer," which the true tzaddik merits, in such a way that no darkness or any kind of obscurity in the world can hide from him the good point in every single Jew in every single generation. Through this, he draws down anew in every generation the light of the Holy Temple and the light of Chanukah, renewing it every single year with greater uplifting and greater strength, multiplying it tens of thousands of thousands of times from year to year.

סב

Our Father, Merciful Father, who desires and yearns for the prayers and yearnings of Israel, "You desired praise from clods of earth, from those formed of clay," my soul yearns for Your courtyards and pines for Your will to take shelter in Your shadow. Please, grant us these wondrous virtues of supernal humility and wondrous Ahavas Yisrael, through which we will constantly yearn for You with true holy yearnings, until I merit in these days of Chanukah, amidst song, praise, and joy, to reach teshuvah (repentance) out of love, until all my sins are transformed into merits. And may I merit holy consciousness and intellect, a pure, clear, and clean intellect free of any dross or waste, like pure, refined silver purified sevenfold, which is drawn from the seven branches of the holy Menorah. And may I merit to renew my mind at all times in great holiness and purity. Help me and save me always, that I may merit to learn and teach with a clear, pure, and clean intellect, and that I may merit to always understand with great speed in every place that I study, and especially in the thirty-six tractates [of the Talmud], which are influenced by the thirty-six candles of Chanukah. And in the merit of the light of Chanukah, may I not need to delve deeply at all, but rather immediately every single word of our Sages of blessed memory, Rashi, Tosafos, and other commentaries and holy books will illuminate for me. And may my intellect continually grow from day to day, in the aspect of adding and continuing in great holiness and with great alacrity, with clarity and lucidity. And may I merit to be swift in the work of Heaven, in the aspect of "Have you seen a man swift in his work? He shall stand before kings; he shall not stand before obscure men," which was said about Moshe Rabbeinu, who merited in his humility to receive the Torah from the mouth of the Almighty, and to understand every matter properly and truthfully in the words of Your holy Torah with great speed, without any confusion at all.

קלד

Master of the Universe, "Who revives the dead with great mercy," renew our days from Your fresh source, from the source of living waters. Awaken those who sleep and slumber, and revive the miserable and crushed during these days of Chanukah, a time when the dew of the resurrection of the dead descends from the Atika Kadisha (the Holy Ancient One), from the Mocha Stima'ah (the Concealed Brain), about which it is said: "For my head is filled with dew, my locks with the drops of the night." At the time when the dew descends from the heights with which the Holy One, blessed be He, is destined to revive the dead, and it is the Manna that will be in the Future to Come, about which it is said: "I will be as the dew to Israel; he shall blossom as the lily, and strike his roots like the Lebanon" (the final letters of these Hebrew words spell Chanukah). For on Chanukah the dew of the resurrection of the dead is awakened, about which it is said: "And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many peoples, as dew from Hashem, as showers upon the grass, that tarries not for man, nor waits for the sons of men." Please grant us the merit to be soft and gentle to one another like dew, and may the verse be fulfilled in us: "And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the nations, in the midst of many peoples, as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep, who, if he goes through, treads down and tears in pieces, and there is none to deliver." And then we will merit the resurrection of the dead, as it is stated: "For Your dew is as the dew of light, and the earth shall cast forth the dead."

קלו

Merciful and Gracious Father, who desires the love of brothers and the love of all creations, grant us the merit of love and brotherhood, peace and friendship with a whole heart and a willing soul. Purify our hearts from any trace of jealousy and hatred, refine our blood from any blemish of wickedness and cruelty. Purify us from any personal bias, and awaken our hearts with Your love, and let our hearts be an empty space within us, available for the love of Your creations, Your beloved ones, the work of Your hands, until we are ready at every moment to sacrifice our lives for one another. God of all the earth, who loves the creations and chooses His nation Israel with love, please, illuminate in the heart of Your nation Israel the light of mesiras nefesh (self-sacrifice) of a man for his brother. Through this, one merits the impregnation of the angels (Metatron and Sandalphon), who dispatch to us lights from the eight firmaments, and from the supernal Sefiros, which shine like stars sparkling to us from the eighth firmament, from the Sefirah of Binah. Through them, we merit to rectify the blemish of the selling of Yosef, whom they sold for shoes (thinking that Yosef was preventing them from meriting the angels called the "shoes of the Shechinah"). Please, grant us the merit of the love of friends with mesiras nefesh, that our good fragrance may rise before You like the mandrakes of Reuven. Let us practice Hisbodedus (secluded prayer) in the fields and forests, days and nights, to merit this supernal love of friends. Through this, one merits the revelation of the Foundation Stone, the place of the Holy Temple that David merited. [For he said: "Behold, we heard of it in Efrata, we found it in the fields of the forest (Ya'ar)" - the numerical value of Ya'ar equals Sandalphon, for David merited the revelation of the angel Sandalphon, whose revelation is merited in the forest. And in the verse "Her priests I will clothe with salvation, and her pious ones will sing aloud (yeranenu)" (numerically 317 = 1), David hinted at the revelation of the angel Metatron (which is the Name Shaddai, 317 - 3 = 314), which is merited through the 49 faces of the Torah that come in the merit of ron (joyous song) and singing, which is the inner essence of the name Yaakov (Yud Ayin Kuf Beis = Yeshurun = 566). For the name Yeshurun is an abbreviation of the words Shir Ron (song and joyous singing), which is the inner essence of every single Jew, who are full of song and joyous singing to Hashem, may He be blessed]. And through David, who crowned Hashem, may He be blessed, with songs and melodies, David will have the revelation of the King Moshiach, as it is stated: "There I will make a horn sprout for David; I have prepared a lamp for My anointed. His enemies I will clothe with shame, but upon himself his crown shall shine."

ט"וּ בִּשְׁבָט

א

Merciful and Gracious Father, who guards His nation Israel in His love, upon whom is His pride and in whom is His glory, please strengthen me and encourage me in honor of the new year that begins on the fifteenth of Shvat, to reveal in Your great mercy the new glory that rises before You from every single Jew wherever he may be. For You have taught us through Your true tzaddikim that You renew Your world with abundant bounty and new glory, according to the new glory that is revealed in every man of Israel at every time and hour. And the more we reveal and find good points and glorious colors in each and every one, according to their renewal in him every single day constantly, and in revelations that have never existed before, You will open for us openings and gates to exalted worlds of redemption and salvation, and You will reveal to us hidden secrets and new pathways to the supernal palaces.

ב

Our Father, Merciful Father, who loves His nation Israel forever, grace us from Yourself with a good heart and a good eye to find grace, good sense, beauty, and glory in all the wondrous creation that You created and in all Your creations, the work of Your hands, "You made them all with wisdom." And especially may I merit to find and reveal in Your nation Israel, in whom You glorify Yourself, in each one of them, even in the lowest of the low, the majesty of Your glory, the radiance of Your splendor for Your will and Your glory, until we merit to draw down through this to the entire world all the wondrous colors with which You desire to enrich and adorn Your world. Grant us the merit to sanctify our eyes, so that we will see only good, radiance, and splendor in every matter and thing, and especially in our brethren, the House of Israel, so that we may merit all the good and bounty that You desire to bestow upon us according to Your good will to renew Your kingship in the world with Your infinite light every day in new glory, in the majestic beauty of blossoming and flourishing that has never existed before, in wondrous and renewed colors, in such a way that Your world will become more and more beautiful from day to day.

ג

Therefore, grant us the merit, Mighty and Awesome God, "Who dwells in the heavens, who sits above the circle of the earth," whose eyes roam throughout the earth, grant us the merit of a good eye and a loving heart. Plant within our hearts the brotherhood of brothers and the love of friends, so that we may all be renewed together with all our brethren, the House of Israel, to believe in the wondrous good that is renewed every day, a good that has never existed before, which You in Your glory and essence bestow upon us from Your Throne of Glory, from Your very essence literally, which is the root of all the souls of Israel, until we merit in this brotherhood of ours to draw You to us and to rest Your Shechinah (Divine Presence) in our Holy Temple, which will be built speedily in our days, Amen.

נג

Please, Merciful Father, have pity and grace me, for in these difficult times my mind has become very confused because of the baseless hatred that I have stumbled into, and because of my strictness toward my brothers and friends, my good friends who are better than any brother or friend. Please, grant me the merit to review and remember that every single Jew is a unique path and trail through which to be included in the Creator, may He be blessed, for eternity. Therefore, through the blemish of the love of friends, I have lost my ways, and all the paths and trails have been hidden from me, and even those that I knew of have disappeared from me, in the aspect of the falling of the fallen ones. I was almost lost from the world, and there was but a step between me and death due to the multitude of disputes and baseless hatred that I stumbled into. Full of mercy, who has compassion on the poor, "Who saves the poor from one stronger than him, and the poor and needy from his robber," from the multitude of subjugations and confusions my mind is not clear at all, and I have fallen from the faith in the Sages and the love of friends, and I have not merited what is stated: "In all my days I have never transgressed the words of my friends." Because of this, subjugation was drawn upon me, and all my consciousness departed from me, and I do not know what I am saying, and my mind is not clear at all. I have no idea whatsoever how to conduct myself and how to direct my intentions. "I have watched, and I am like a lonely bird on a roof," and I do not know from where my help will come, "For I am more brutish than any man, and I do not have the understanding of a man," for the troubles of my heart have expanded, and dispute and the separation of hearts have covered me and surrounded me from every side. Because of this, all the ways and paths have separated from me, and I do not see the signposts that You set before me at every moment and second. Please, have pity and mercy on me, for I do not know what to do and how to conduct myself, how to chirp and how to hint. I do not know how to pray for the rectification of this terrible blemish. I am confused like a drunkard, and I do not know at all where I am in the world, and what my end and ultimate purpose will be.

נד

Master of the Universe, full of mercy, who has compassion on the poor, "Who saves the poor from one stronger than him, and the poor and needy from his robber," teach me how to express my conversation before You now, how to awaken Your true mercy upon me now. Save me from quarrel and dispute in all ways. Help me and save me so that they will not dispute or quarrel with me, neither physically nor spiritually, neither above nor below. Guard me and save me so that I will not dispute with any upright person in the world. All the more so, and all the more so, that there should not be in my heart any side of dispute against true tzaddikim, and especially against tzaddikim who dwell in the dust, the holy ones who are in the earth. And may I never quarrel with any person, but only merit to love all of Israel and to hold onto peace with everyone, and to truly fulfill the verse that is written: "Turn from evil and do good, seek peace and pursue it," until the verse is fulfilled in us: "And Israel encamped there opposite the mountain" - like one man with one heart. Through this, we will merit to hear the Ten Commandments at every single moment, and our impurity, which comes from the blemish of faith in the Sages and baseless hatred, will cease, and the verse will be fulfilled in us: "Ephraim is joined to idols; let him alone." Please, grant us the merit of what they said: "In the end, everyone will cast away his idols of silver and gold and merit the twelve rectifications of the beard," to the Torah that is expounded through thirteen attributes, and to the Song of Songs which is Solomon's, to the King to whom peace belongs. For through the Song of the Sea they merited the Sabbath of peace, and through the Song of Songs they merited the building of the Holy Temple. And this is: "And Miriam answered them, Sing to Hashem" (Shiru LaHashem), the acronym of which is Shalom (Peace), for through song they merited peace, and through peace they merited song, to "Then he will sing" (Az Yashir), to the song of Shabbos.

סב

Please, grant us the merit, Creator of mountains, grace us with the grace of shepherds, with the love of friends. May we merit "And you shall love your fellow as yourself" with all our heart and soul, to show grace and bestow kindness, to love with mesiras nefesh (self-sacrifice). "Set a guard, Hashem, to my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips," so that I will not stumble with the utterance of my lips, lest I open my mouth against my brothers and friends, upon whose affection my salvations depend. May I merit before prayer to be included in all the souls of Your nation, the House of Israel, until the Redeemer comes to Zion (Keser in the Atbash cipher is Go'el - Redeemer). May I merit to embed in the crown of the King of kings of kings, every precious stone of the sons of kings, until the crown of the letters of the words will fly even to the nations and foreigners, penetrate their hearts and convert converts. For Israel, the Torah, and the Holy One, blessed be He, are one. And when Israel becomes one nation, each man included in his fellow, they are included in the thirteen attributes of mercy that descend to them from Heaven, to sweeten the fire in the water. Then they rectify the letter Vav of the word Gachon (the middle letter of the Torah), the souls of Israel that are among the nations. Conquered and swallowed among the nationalities, the conquered good is the souls of the converts. For at the Giving of the Torah, all the souls were present, the six hundred thousand of all the generations. Those who are here and those who are not - all are standing, and among them are also the souls of the converts. Mighty souls hewn from the supernal pleasantness, like Rabbi Akiva, Onkelos, Shemaya, and Avtalyon. From the soul that the Patriarchs made in Charan, through the love of Hashem and the creations, and through drawing hearts closer.

פּוּרִים

כח

Our Father, Merciful Father, in the merit of the joy of Purim, nullify from us the leaven and sourdough of the evil inclination of man's heart that has remained within us from our youth. And as the Baal Shem Tov said: "'No leaven shall be seen with you, and no sourdough shall be seen with you in all your borders' - that you should not have, Heaven forbid, any thought of finding fault in any Jew in the world." Please, Merciful and Gracious God, grant us the merit to love each and every one with heart and soul, and may we merit to see only the virtues of our friends and not their shortcomings. And may the accusation of "a scattered and dispersed people" be nullified from upon us, and may we merit the aspect of "And Israel encamped there opposite the mountain" - like one man with one heart, where each one will find favor in the eyes of his friend and show him grace. If we merit this, we will be able to hear the Ten Commandments anew. For according to how much we love one another more, so will we merit to see the luminary within the Torah, to receive it anew and to hear again all the Ten Commandments as if from the mouth of the Almighty.

ל

Master of the Universe, grant me the merit to remember well that I myself am to blame for all of this. For because I did not strengthen myself in the love of friends, the accusation of "a scattered and dispersed people" overpowered me, which is the accusation of the moon that "two kings cannot use one crown." And because I looked with a narrow eye at the elevation of my friend, I blemished the aspect of Moshiach - "beautiful eyes and goodly appearance," and all my consciousness departed from me. And because I transgressed "He who utters slander is a fool" and I put my mouth before my eyes, the Holy Temple was destroyed, for I suspected and said with my mouth things that my eyes did not see. I returned the entire world to astonishing emptiness (tohu va'vohu), and I darkened the face of the earth. With my own hands, I brought upon the House of Israel all the harsh decrees and renewed the shattering of the vessels instead of rectifying them. Woe to me for the terrible damages that I caused in all the worlds, for instead of nullifying myself to my friends and doing their will and thereby meriting to unify all the Sefiros; instead of being like Aharon the High Priest, loving peace and pursuing peace, and fulfilling the verse "Seek peace and pursue it"; instead of being like Mordechai "seeking the good of his people and speaking peace to all his seed" - I went from one extreme to the other and ignited the fire of dispute. I spoke evil about people who are many times better than me, better than me countless times. I even spoke about Torah scholars and was like Korach and his congregation, who disputed against Moshe and Aharon and against the congregation of the upright Children of Israel, and almost returned the entire world to astonishing emptiness.

לא

Woe to me, for I deviated from the straight path and my tracks wandered outside. Instead of including the left within the right, and believing that I am the left and my friend is the right, I did the exact opposite. I increased the separation of hearts with lies and slander. I lost the Divine image, and the verse was fulfilled in me: "Because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you from being a priest to Me." I lost the aspect of "Avraham My beloved," and I fell from the love of Hashem to evil loves, animalistic loves, for through slander one loses knowledge and falls into foolishness and animalism. Woe to me, for I did the deed of the serpent, and I fell to a level that is lower than the serpent, and I caused "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge." I created false firmaments and a false earth. I destroyed all the worlds and all the Sefiros and returned the world to a state of the shattering of the vessels, until the verse was fulfilled in me: "And it could not be known that they had come into their inward parts." For instead of meriting the good cows, the aspect of the "Red Heifer," the ashes of the heifer that purify from all sin, the aspect of "And I am but dust and ashes," through which Avraham merited for the Children of Israel the ashes of the heifer and the dust of the Sotah (suspected adulteress). Instead of meriting the aspect of "A fruitful bough (ben poras) is Yosef," who merited the clarification of the imagination, the opposite of "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge," and merited the interpretation (pisron) of the cows (paros) and to interpret dreams - instead of this, I fell into interpreting hidden things that never were and never existed. I was like Korach in the story of the widow, and I brought Gehenna down from its concealment, I ignited its fire and blew on its pyre until I denied the entire Act of Creation. For the world was only created for the sake of peace, and it only stands upon peace, and the Name of the Holy One, blessed be He, is called "Peace."

לד

Please, Gracious and Merciful God, grant me the merit to reveal every single detail of the glory in every single Jew, from the glory in a simple Jew who gives a small coin to a poor person, to the glory in a Torah scholar who banishes sleep from his eyes and slumber from his eyelids. Grant me the merit to see in all of them only the infinite glory with which You glorify Yourself in every single Jew, in the aspect of "Israel in whom I will be glorified," "His pride is over Israel, and His strength is in the skies." For all the pride of Hashem, may He be blessed, is over every single Jew, over every proper movement of his. Woe to me, for instead of judging every single Jew favorably and fulfilling "Judge every person favorably" - I acted the exact opposite, and even in the mitzvos that every single Jew fulfills, I found fault, Heaven spare us.

לו

Please, Merciful and Gracious Father, do not forsake me and do not abandon me. Help me to rise at midnight and to practice Hisbodedus properly with song and praise, pouring out my heart like water before Your presence, my Lord. Grant me the merit of true love of friends, to emerge from the aspect of "scattered and dispersed," and my heart will not be divided from any Jew in the world. And may I merit to return in complete teshuvah from anger and enmity, from jealousy and mockery.

לח

Master of the Universe, grant us the merit even now to all the aspects of "sending portions one to another," which every single Jew merited in the days of Mordechai and Esther. Grant us the merit of true self-nullification in the secret of "one to another" (twice the numerical value of Metatron), as everyone merited then and attained the attainment of Metatron, to enter in peace and leave in peace, through true love of friends. Grant us the merit to break the lusts, and primarily the lust for money, for by nullifying them, people can be included in one another and illuminate one another. And this is the secret of "sending portions and gifts to the poor." Grant me the merit of what they merited in the days of Mordechai and Esther, to be included one in his friend, in the secret of "And Israel encamped there opposite the mountain," and through this to receive the Torah anew with love and willingness.

לט

Grant us the merit, our Father, even now to this inclusion, through the power of which each one illuminates his friend from his attainments, his Torah teachings, his advice, and his Divine service, with a generous eye, with a good eye, which is drawn from David King of Israel, "beautiful eyes and goodly appearance," which is in the secret of the illumination of Moshiach ben David (numerically equivalent to K'Das - according to the law). Through which Vashti was wiped out from the world, in the secret of "According to the law, what is to be done to Queen Vashti." Grant us the merit to act according to the law of the day, with song and melodies, dancing and circling, and through this to draw down the illumination of Moshiach.

פג

Master of the Universe, just as You granted Moshe Rabbeinu the merit in the month of Adar, whose astrological sign is Pisces (fish), to pray 515 prayers - numerically equivalent to Shirah (song). For he sang a song before You so that You would hear his prayer. So too, grant us the merit to open every single prayer with songs and praises, dancing and circling, so that it may rise before You for satisfaction and favor. Master of the Universe, grant me the merit to be included in the Ahavas Yisrael of the Faithful Shepherd (Moshe), who pleaded "Let me cross over, please" (E'berah Na) specifically in the month of Adar, in order to save the nation of Israel from all the four future exiles and from the two destructions that passed over us, as hinted in "E'berah Na": the exile of Babylon - Nebuchadnezzar, Achashverosh; the exile of Greece - Antiochus, Nicanor; the exile of Edom - Nero, Vespasian.

פֶּסַח

כט

Pinchas - Eliyahu was commanded to rectify them, with the fire that he would bring down from Heaven in awe and in love. But first he commanded to make a trench, a deep digging, a wide pit, for first one must precede with a lowly spirit, a broken heart, and a humble, crushed soul. He asked Elisha to pour water on his fingers, which were drawn from the fingers of the Long-Suffering One; his fingers dripped and flowed with water, for Eliyahu's essence was nothing but water. Water of Hisbodedus, hundreds of years of roaring and crying, day and night he poured out his heart like water before the Creator of Heaven. His heart melted like water until his body turned into a heavenly torch, which was created from fire and water. But Eliyahu knew that water preceded the fire from the heights, just as Moshe, Aharon, and the greatest of the Sages knew. Water must precede the fire of the Seraphim, to rectify the world and its fullness only with crying and supplications, to melt the heart and all the limbs, to turn them into flowing water, into running water, to subdue all 248 limbs and 365 sinews, so that not a trace of pride remains, no point of ego, only love and brotherhood, peace and friendship. All the hearts will flow like water, even eyes and feet and the fingers of the hands. And when Eliyahu's fingers turned into a source of water, only then did fire descend from Heaven, licking up the trench and all the water, and the nation of Israel trembled and cried out - Hashem is in Heaven. The skies and heavens that You created from fire and water, to there the tzaddikim ascend at every moment, even twice. But Eliyahu whispers their secret to us, by preceding water to fire. Grant me the merit to be like a worm inside a trench, to pour out my heart like water in the trench, to plead before the One who dwells in the heavens, to merit to ascend.

מא

Master of the Universe, grant us the merit of "He showed the knot of the Tefillin to the humble one." Grant us the merit of the level of humility and self-nullification of Moshe, who said: "Please send by the hand of whomever You will send," and he meant by this: Any other person in the world is more worthy than me. Grant us the merit of his awesome submission, when he argued with You, when he saw the soul of Rabbi Akiva in the heights, that it is fitting that the Torah be given through him. Grant us the merit of his immense lowliness, as he humbled himself even before Korach and said to him: I too want this, that you should be the High Priest. Our Father, we know that this is why You chose only him to take the nation of Israel out of Egypt with a high hand, and only he will be able in the Future, through the power of this wondrous humility, to return every soul to the body fitting for it, for the resurrection of the dead depends on humility and lowliness. Please, grant us the merit, our Father in Heaven, to this awesome humility and lowliness, which is the dew of resurrection.

סא

Master of the Universe, grant us the merit in these days of Pesach, which are also the days of the Counting of the Omer, to true love of friends. For according to the mesiras nefesh in the love of friends, You reveal all the secrets of the Torah, its hints and its mysteries. Please, grant us the merit to be like Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and his students, who loved one another with a soul-love, a love in the merit of which You revealed to them all the secrets of the Torah, the Torah of the Concealed Ancient One, secrets that had not been revealed in any generation since the time of the Second Tablets. Grant us the merit to such love and to such wondrous secrets, and in this merit may we merit long days and years, until the root of our soul is revealed to us and what we came to rectify in this generation. May it be revealed to us how we and all Your nation, the House of Israel, will go out from the exile of Egypt, and may we merit to be like Avraham and like Yaakov, like Moshe and like Shmuel, and like the rest of the tzaddikim. For You know that the moment love is blemished, the roots above are blemished, and there is no possibility whatsoever to draw down the advice and the Torah teachings according to the root of the souls. Therefore, You commanded us to eat the Pesach offering in a group and to eat in one house, for all of Israel are fitting to be one group and to sit in one house. Therefore, please grant us the merit to the wondrous peace of the Future to Come: "And the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together... They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of Hashem, as the waters cover the sea."

לַ"ג בָּעוֹמֶר

ו

Please, my Father in Heaven, place in me a heart to cherish and love all Your kosher nation Israel. Place in me a pure heart to connect and draw close to the wholesome and God-fearing ones. Place in me a clean and clear heart to love them with a fierce love, especially Your tzaddikim who sanctify Your Name in the world. Grant me the merit on the day of the Hillula (anniversary of passing) of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai to be rectified and purified from the blemish of the students of Rabbi Akiva, who did not treat one another with respect. For this sin is great and terrible, and deeply hated before the Omnipresent, for because of it, holy ones of the Most High were punished with extreme severity. Because of it, twenty-four thousand students perished over a blemish so incredibly subtle that we have no grasp or comprehension of it.

ז

Please, my Father in Heaven, give me from the free gift and kindness of the true tzaddikim. Grant me the merit to the love and affection of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, who said: "For us, the matter depends on affection" - until I am included in the Divine honor of the Divine Tanna, who rectified the blemish of those who did not treat one another with respect. Grant me the merit to cleave to the great light of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, which is revealed on this special day. Grant me the merit to the light that redeems the world from the darkness of baseless hatred and the shaming of friends, through the power of which Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai opened all the firmaments and revealed secrets that had never been revealed, until the entire Heavenly entourage, the Faithful Shepherd, Eliyahu the Prophet, and all the rest of the tzaddikim of the generations descended to hear his wondrous revelations, and all the rectifications, the Idra Rabba and the Idra Zuta.

טו

Master of Mercy, have pity on a poor and needy person like me. Draw down upon me all the spirits, from the place where the spirit of life is drawn to Moshiach (from the nostril of the Divine Countenance), about whom it is said: "Wonderful Counselor, Prince of Peace." Grant me the merit to the spirit of life that will purify and refine all my blood, until I stop hating righteous, kosher, and wholesome people who walk in their innocence, and may I merit true love of friends. For as long as the murky blood still flows within me, I stumble time and again into baseless hatred, and true tzaddikim are like thorns in my eyes, for "Men of blood hate the wholesome one." And as long as I falsely accuse and lie about people who are more kosher and upright than me, my blood continues to be murky and I cannot purify it, for "It is impossible for a person to speak a lie until he makes his blood murky." And now, my Father, what shall I do, for I have multiplied so much to sin and transgress in this matter, and I have attached endless lies to Your creations, from the day I gained my understanding until now. And my entire being, my actions, my words, and my thoughts are nothing but falsehood all day long, flattery, making an impression, and seeking publicity. And I think about my own honor at all times, putting on a facade at every moment and second, and deceiving the minds of the creations. How can I lift my face to You, and how can a youth lacking knowledge like me, sunken in all the vanities of the world, merit a pardon? For I have already lost the Divine image, and I have descended to the lowest level, lower than that of the damaging serpent. Woe to me, for I have shamed and disgraced righteous and upright people, holy and pure ones, who walk in their innocence, who never did anything to me. And I was even an ingrate, when I also harmed the honor of those who bestowed goodness and kindness upon me.

טז

Master of the Universe, I still hold onto You, and I do not fall in my mind at all, and I do not despair, Heaven forbid, for You have revealed to us that specifically in these days of the Counting of the Omer it is possible to rectify the blemish of the love of friends. Therefore, I will come now before the exalted level of the awesome tzaddik who dwells here, and I will ask for a pardon for all that I have done and stumbled into with my murky blood. I will ask for forgiveness for shaming people and mocking friends, and especially all the upright and wholesome ones who fulfill the advice of the tzaddikim with wholesomeness and simplicity. For indeed I know well that the mercy of the true tzaddikim is without end, and their only desire is to advocate for us before the Throne of Glory, and to ask for mercy upon us from the Supreme God. I know that they will not spare strength and effort, and they will try very hard to save even a lowly person like me, who gives himself over to be trampled by lusts and bad character traits. Therefore, I support my pegs on the greatness of the tzaddik's mercy, and I come to ask him truly and wholesomely to transform me from bad to completely good, and to refine me in all the inwardness of my heart, my limbs, my senses, and my sinews - not just outwardly from the lips, as I have been until now, but to awaken me truly from the depths of the heart with deep, true regret over the past, and with a resolution to be weaned from all evil for the future, to distance the sourdough from my border completely, so that it shall not be seen and shall not be found, neither in thought nor in action.

כב

Master of the Universe, grant me the merit to be included in the wondrous rectification of the students of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, who, with their supreme mesiras nefesh that they received from their teacher, in their wondrous love of friends, and in their self-nullification to one another with a whole heart - merited to transform the fire of their severity into a pillar of fire, until a pillar of fire surrounded them whenever they engaged in Torah, and thereby they completely rectified the blemish of the students of Rabbi Akiva.

כו

For You have revealed to us through Your awesome tzaddikim, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, the Arizal, the Baal Shem Tov, and their students, that the rectification of the entire world depends only on us. And through supreme love of friends, we will rise above any body, for only the "bodies are divided," whereas the souls are "one." They all emerge from Your Unique Name, they are all bound to the tip of the letter Dalet of Echad (One). And the tip of the Dalet is the soul of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, and within it are included all the souls of the tzaddikim, all the souls from Adam the First until the end of all generations. And if we only direct our intentions in the Dalet of Echad with mesiras nefesh in the nullification of ego, and even accept upon ourselves the four death penalties of the Beis Din - then the entire creation will immediately return in teshuvah and ascend to its root, and all ego will be nullified. A new world of spirituality will be revealed, oppressed souls will ascend from within the Klipah (husk/impurity), the wicked and the Hellenists will do teshuvah, and those who forget the Rock from which they were hewn will return to the bosom of the faith of their fathers, to the merciful Patriarchs and the Seven Shepherds. And all the severities and disputes will be nullified through Yitzchak - Yischak (he will laugh), in whom is hidden the secret of the Geulah (Redemption), who transforms the severities into joy and gladness, who points with a finger and shows the Holy One, blessed be He, to their eyes, and says: "You, Hashem, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old is Your Name."

כח

Please, Merciful and Gracious God, through the holiness of the eyes of the tzaddikim, and especially of the holy and awesome tzaddik Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, grant us the merit of "Upon one stone are seven eyes." Help us to return to their root the eyes of Hashem that roam to punish and destroy, and through the guarding of the eyes, may they return to the seven eyes that are upon the Foundation Stone in the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, about which it is stated: "Upon one stone are seven eyes; behold, I will engrave its inscription, says Hashem of Hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day. On that day, says Hashem of Hosts, you shall call every man his neighbor under the vine and under the fig tree." In the merit of the love of friends, in the aspect of "For us, the matter depends on affection" - may we merit to sit under the fig tree to rectify the sin of the fig tree, the sin of the shattering of the vessels, the accusation of the moon that two kings cannot use one crown. For indeed, we rectify this in the Sefirah of Hod within Hod (the day of Lag BaOmer), for then all the Sefiros are included in one another, and everyone merits to see every glory (Hod) that is in every single person, and especially in his friends and those close to him, in whom lies the main test of the stormy wind. Until we merit that all the severities will be transformed into mercy through the song of the Levites in the Third Holy Temple. And then even Kohanim will turn into Levites, and they will engage primarily in song and melodies, for this will be the main Divine service in the days of Moshiach - to transform all the severities of fire and storm into a tranquil spirit of joy and gladness, and of the study of Torah, which is drawn from the oil of the Menorah, the golden Menorah, which comes to sweeten anger and severity. For then we will merit "Its bowl upon its top, and its seven lamps upon it, seven and seven," and the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be sevenfold like the light of the seven days. And the sun will emerge from its sheath, a healing for the tzaddikim, and a fire for the wicked, and the sun of judgment will be included in mercy. And the tzaddikim will merit the sun (Chamah), which is the Garden (Gan) of roses (Shoshanim). Secrets of the Garden (Gan = 53) of Torah portions will be revealed to all creations, and from the Torah of the Concealed Ancient One, the entire Torah will be blessed, and the secrets in every letter and crownlet will be revealed.

נז

Master of the Universe, who bestows goodness upon the guilty, grant me the merit to cleave to the level of Rabbi Shimon and his students, whom fire surrounded due to the intensity of the love and brotherhood between them, from the light of the joy and gladness in their love for one another, because they toiled and labored to find the secrets of the Torah that are in each and every one, until the soul of Rav Hamnuna Sava was revealed to them. And Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai testified about them that secrets were revealed to them that had not been revealed since the time of the standing at Mount Sinai, and it was a wonder in his eyes how they were not burned. He raised his hands over his head and said: "And what of Rav Hamnuna Sava, the light of the Torah! You merited to see face to face, and I did not merit it," until he called them Peniel, as it is written: "For I have seen God face to face." And Rav Hamnuna Sava informed them of the secret of the resurrection of the dead, the Malchus (Kingship) of Adam Kadmon (Primordial Man), when feet reach feet, the secret of Malchus within Malchus, in which there is no life at all. For before the completion of the rectification, it is impossible to draw any illumination there, only when the Yechidah of the Yechidah (the highest level of the soul) is revealed. And nevertheless, Rabbi Elazar and Rabbi Abba merited such a revelation, for they merited to draw down illumination from the Yechidah of the Yechidah all the way to Malchus of Malchus.

שָׁבוּעוֹת

כה

For on the morning of the day of the Giving of the Torah, You sound anew the Ten Commandments, and You bring down the dew of the resurrection of the dead, as Israel merited at the time when they answered: "We will do and we will hear" with one mouth. By hearing the Ten Commandments from Your mouth in one utterance, they were included and became one, like one man with one heart. Oh, that we may merit even now to this wondrous and mighty aspect, until the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be sevenfold like the days of the seven, a time when all the accusations that a man has against his friend will be removed, and everyone will shine with precious light from one end of the world to the other. For on this night You crown all the children of Your nation Israel with 620 crowns, and the heavens declare the glory of God, and all the creations shine like the radiance of the firmament, and their light, which goes and ascends from the depths, shines in all the worlds, piercing the skies. And when the rectification is complete, a Redeemer will come to Zion, to the complete city (Ir Shalem).

לד

Please, Merciful and Gracious One, grant us the merit to be included a man in his brother, as it is stated: "And he encamped" (Vayichan - in the singular). May we merit to always see the grace and the glory that is in every man of Israel, and of everyone who was created in the Divine image. May we be worthy of receiving the Torah.

לה

Kayin then said to his brother in jealousy: Indeed, Hashem turned to the offering of your prayer, but He has not yet let us hear the Ten Commandments - fly into the air, and rectify the 288 broken sparks, return the Yud to its air (Avir to Ohr), and through the Ten Commandments the world and its light will be rectified. But Hevel did not remain silent, and he boldly defied his brother: Take off the garment (Chalotz 134 + 4 + Beged 9 + 1 = Pesach), strip off the garments of skin, for from the days of Pesach one must prepare the light, not with an enthusiasm that is only from the lips outward, we are disgusted with a prayer of false yearning (Chalotz Beged in Atbash cipher equals Kesufah Sheker - false yearning). He did not teach his brother the way of prayer, nor did he act with compassion. The rectifications were pushed off to the coming generations, the soul of Hevel was hidden away for the time being, and Kayin would be avenged sevenfold.

לז

Master of the Universe, full of infinite and unfathomable mercy, please, Merciful and Gracious One, You emanated Your awesome Sefiros in order to let us hear the Ten Commandments, but immediately at the beginning You caused the shattering of the vessels, the secret of the broken tablets, which cannot be joined together except through broken hearts, by removing jealousy and the hatred of friends.

מז

In every generation, Hashem desires to make His truth known, to sound the Ten Commandments from Heaven, but the creations are of uncircumcised ears. The generation of the Flood dared to answer: "Depart from us, for we do not desire the knowledge of Your ways." They were punished severely; the letters of the Torah turned into the waters of the Flood.

מח

The Creator yearned to sound the voice, which calls constantly without ceasing, to sound it after 340 years through Shem to the Generation of the Dispersion. But they too missed the opportunity, they were divided and scattered. Until the Patriarchs arrived, Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov. They began with their deeds to make the crooked straight. Through their cleaving to the supernal worlds, they merited to bring down the Shechinah to the lower realms. Palaces and firmaments split open for them, they heard the Ten Commandments in a great voice, they fulfilled the Torah and all the mitzvos. Even the finest details, even the secondary prohibitions of forbidden relations.

מט

Through mesiras nefesh one merits the Torah. The Ten Commandments were revealed at the Akeidah (Binding of Yitzchak) in purity. Avraham saw the Ten Commandments that would be given for three days. He saw how justice and statute would be given to his seed - "And it was on the third day... and he saw the place from afar."

נ

To do the will of his master, Eliezer sets out on the way. With great desire he transformed his will - a miraculous shortening of the way was made for him. In his self-nullification, in his wholesomeness, he ignores questions, faithful to his mission, he rises above personal motives. He asks and prays to nullify the sin of the serpent, and behold, who could have expected, the daughter of Besuel comes toward him. The waters rise to meet her, the well awakens, with stones of ruby, her soul shines. And behold, suddenly he is elevated to the skies, he hears the Commandments with thunders and lightnings. Moshe appears and the tablets are in his hands, and behold they are shattered because of the Golden Calf. Please, save her children from the corruption, the servant trembles and lifts a prayer. May the golden bracelet nullify the Golden Calf, and may they not exchange the tzaddik for the work of hands. He will attach the bracelet to her hands, two bracelets, corresponding to the two tablets of stone, attached and engraved upon the hearts of the children. And when the children are attached and hold onto one another - they will be worthy of what is written on this side and on that side.

נד

In the days of the wheat harvest, on the day of the first fruits, Leah went out to meet Yaakov - she went out to celebrate the festival, with songs, tambourines, and dances (Shirim Tupim U'Mecholos = 1588 + 1) to hear the Ten Commandments (Aseres HaDibros = 1587 + 2). "For I have surely hired you with my son's mandrakes" (1589), she said, I have been completed in the ten levels (El x 10 = Yesh; Ben x 10 = Sachor). "I am better to you than ten sons" (Ben x 10) a Heavenly Voice echoed. "There is a reward for your work" - it added and encouraged. And with two mandrakes, which are two cherubs, with Metatron (314 + 6) and Sandalphon (280) soaring to the skies, Yaakov and Leah on the wings of eagles (600) to the heights, to the Ten Commandments. Leah with her spirit, the spirit of severities, sweetened the severities with kindnesses (in the first five Commandments which are double, corresponding to the Name El which is in kindness, El x 10, she sweetened the second five double ones which are severities, corresponding to the Name Ben - Ben x 10).

נה

Rachel saw the two mandrakes, Reuven accompanied by the two cherubs. She understood the secret of the matters, toward what a mother and her son were awakening. This time is the Giving of the Torah (Es HaZeh Mattan Torah = 1588 + 1), the world is overflowing with light, the earth is filled with the fragrances of spices, "The mandrakes have given forth fragrance, and at our doors are all precious fruits." In Leah's tent - blossoms and flowers, and the fragrances of the Garden of Eden blow in the space. And as at the time of the Giving of the Torah, the souls fly away, to the pleasant fragrances, to the song of the angels, glorifying and praising. Rachel understood the meaning of the praise, the world is being given the tidings of Moshiach ben David, therefore the universe awakens and sings.

נו

Rachel wondered, how will we complete our world, and my son, Moshiach - is not here. Her soul yearned and her heart longed - for Moshiach ben Yosef. Please, Merciful and Gracious One, hear the voice of supplication, grant me the merit of mandrakes, in their pleasant sweetness. Please, send Your angels the cherubs to me, let them surround me and be close to me, so that I may complete the number of the tribes - for the sake of the chosen of the sons. With Yaakov, Leah, Rachel, Yosef (612 + 1), the 613 mitzvos are completed, with thunders and lightnings the Torah will descend from the heights.

נז

The entire world was filled with the fragrances of the Garden of Eden, the Ten Commandments were heard from Eden, Rachel and Leah were included in one another (the Name Adnus and Mah - Adnus [mandrakes] corresponding to Rachel; and Mah corresponding to Leah). Until Mordechai (numerical value of Rachel and Leah) came and brought the Torah down anew with love.

נח

Yaakov, Rachel, and Leah soar - to Zevul (the Temple) to the firmaments. Three souls descend from the heights, three tzaddikim, transferred from the Ancient One. Zevulun crowned with the letters of the Torah, Yissachar - in the tent of Torah, knowing understanding for the times, Yosef a flame with thunders and lightnings.

נט

And had he not been brought down to Egypt through the hatred of brothers, his sparks would have mowed down all thorns. If the tribes had completed one another, the sun and moon fighting from their courses. They would not conquer the land with arrows and spears, the entire world would be terrified of them, and in their lifetimes - the resurrection of the dead. The Ten Commandments would be echoing in our ears, in all times and festivals.