The Depth of Speech: Having Mesirus Nefesh for Every Single Letter

Class No. 254 | Cassette No. 254 Night and morning of Tisha B'Av 5760 - at the Beis Midrash in Ido HaNavi Friday morning, Parshas Va'eschanan, 10 Menachem Av 5760 - at the Yeshiva * Sunday morning, Parshas Eikev, 12

Holy speech and the perfect pronunciation of the letters are the conduit for all the abundance in the world. When a person directs his intention into every word and is ready to have mesirus nefesh (self-sacrifice) for every letter, he creates new souls and merits tremendous spiritual illumination.

The Gemara tells of the wife of Rabbi Chanina ben Dosa, and hints at a tremendous secret. The word "Eishes" (wife of) is an acronym for: "Avanim sheleimos tivneh" (You shall build with whole stones). Every word that we bring out of our mouths needs to be whole and perfect. When we speak in a clear language, we can draw down all the abundance to the world, and even resurrect the dead.

The prophet Zephaniah says:

"For then I will turn to the peoples a pure language, that they may all call upon the Name of Hashem."

Rebbe Nachman of Breslov explains that if we have a clear language, the entire world will do teshuvah (repentance) in a single moment. The moment we speak and plead in a clear language, letter after letter, the hearts of the wicked will automatically be transformed to Hashem, may He be blessed. Our entire spiritual work is to speak with intention, letter after letter, with patience.

Whoever perseveres in this work will see miracles. Rabbi Eliyahu Lopian zt"l used to shout: "If your parents ask you: Will Hashem throw you a plate of food from heaven?! Tell them yes! Hashem will throw us a plate of food from heaven!" This is how one must walk, with absolute emunah (faith). If a person is meant to receive money or salvation, it will come to him.

The Breath of the Mouth that Creates Souls

Rebbe Nachman teaches (in Torah 65 and 66) that through a holy melody, one can bring all the heretics back in teshuvah (repentance), because the melody penetrates deep into the hearts. In Torah 31, an additional secret is explained: from every breath of holiness, of hisbodedus (personal secluded prayer) and words of Torah, a soul is created. This soul penetrates into the wicked and suddenly they return in teshuvah. Someone shouted in the field with all his strength to Hashem, may He be blessed, and this breath of the mouth became impregnated within those distant people and brought them back to the good path.

And conversely, Heaven forbid, when one speaks nonsense, souls of harmful entities are created from this, which cause others to sin. Everything depends on what a person brings out of his mouth, because from every letter and every word, a soul is created.

The Letters that Embrace the Person

When a person speaks word by word, every word embraces him. If a person is even slightly pure and holy, he will feel that every letter embraces and captivates his heart, and does not let him leave. He will want to continue more and more. Once, they used to say the verse "Rejoice in Hashem, you righteous ones" for 45 minutes!

When we pronounce every single letter, we are doing the will of the Omnipresent. The tzaddik wants to bestow all good upon us—beautiful homes, abundance, and blessing—but he cannot bestow it without letters. The letters are the conduit of the abundance. When we swallow our words and rush, the tzaddik begins to cry. He prepared tremendous abundance for the person, and the person missed out on it because he swallowed the words. Then the place turns into a "field of weepers," and from this, troubles come upon the person.

The Baal HaTanya writes in his Igros Kodesh that whoever approaches the amud (prayer lectern) and finishes the Shacharis prayer in less than an hour and a half—they should not let him approach! He demands that one pray with strength and shouts, because this is what will illuminate a person's mochin (intellect/mind). Every letter is like a rose, and every word is a bouquet of roses. When a person says "Baruch" (Blessed), the letter Beis grabs him and says to him: "Do not leave me, I will give you all the good of the world!".

The Secret of the Blessing: That Everything Came to Be Through His Word

They tell a story about the one who grew up to be the Rosh Yeshiva of Mir. When he was a five-year-old boy during World War I, German soldiers broke into their home. They stood the whole family against the wall and said: "Within five minutes, if there is no money—there is no life."

The father, who was a Torah scholar, said to his little son: "Run to the kitchen and bring me a glass of water." The boy ran between the soldiers and brought water. The father grabbed the glass and began to recite the blessing with all the mystical intentions and with roars: "Blessed are You, Hashem, our God, King of the universe, that everything came to be through His word (shehakol nihiyah bidvaro)!". As soon as he finished the blessing, artillery shells fell, the Russians arrived, and the Germans fled for their lives.

The children asked: "Father, are you a miracle worker?". He answered them: "No, it is written explicitly in the Gemara: 'And regarding everything, if he said *shehakol* (that everything), he has fulfilled his obligation'—say 'that everything came to be through His word' and you will have all the salvations!". Everything came to be through His word—Hashem does everything. With one blessing, one can save lives and draw down all the healings.

Having Mesirus Nefesh for Every Letter

How does one truly reach such concentration? Rebbe Nachman writes in Torah 80 that one needs mesirus nefesh (self-sacrifice). A person today constantly thinks about money, his wife, his children, and his brain processes a million thoughts a minute. In order to disconnect from this, one needs literal mesirus nefesh for the sanctification of Hashem's Name—to agree to die at that very moment in order to disconnect from the thoughts, and to know that Hashem runs the world. Let the King of the Universe run the world; do not help Him with your thoughts!

The wonderful advice, especially when it is difficult to concentrate, is to remind yourself that you are willing to die Al Kiddush Hashem (to sanctify God's Name). When a person decides that he is ready to disconnect from all worries and have self-sacrifice for every single letter, it is like jumping into the fire.

Even if a person is at the lowest possible level and has committed every spiritual blemish in the world, the moment he prepares to utter a word of holiness, he must think: "I am now born anew." He must agree to sacrifice himself to sanctify God's Name with every letter. The world endures only in the merit of those who have self-sacrifice, in the aspect of the Asarah Harugei Malchus (the Ten Martyrs).

Chananya, Mishael, and Azarya deduced a kal v'chomer (logical deduction) from the frogs in Egypt, which jumped into the burning ovens. Jumping into the fire means speaking with deep intention. Whoever jumps into the fire and has self-sacrifice for every single letter, no mind can possibly grasp the magnitude of his reward. He embodies the concept of "Thus it arose in the Primal Thought"—the foundational genesis of all creation.

Shiur #254