The Evil Inclination Tries to Distance You from the Tzaddik

The Daily Chizuk from our teacher, the Gaon and Tzaddik Rav Eliezer Berland shlit"a – The Satan showed them the bed of Moses

Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: When Moses ascended to the heavens, he found Hashem tying crowns onto the letters. Moses said to Him, "Is there no peace in Your city?" He replied, "Does a servant offer peace to his master?" Moses said, "You should have helped me." Immediately, He said to him (Numbers 14:17), "And now, let the power of Hashem be great, as You have spoken." Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: What is the meaning of (Exodus 32:1), "And the people saw that Moses delayed"? Do not read it as 'boshesh' (delayed), but as 'bau shesh' (six hours had arrived). When Moses ascended to the heavens, he told Israel, "At the end of forty days, at the beginning of the sixth hour, I will return." At the end of forty days, the Satan came and confused the world. He said to them, "Where is your teacher, Moses?" They said to him, "He ascended to the heavens." He said to them, "The sixth hour has arrived," but they did not listen to him. "He is dead," but they did not listen to him. He showed them an image of his bed, and this is what they said to Aaron (Exodus 32:1), "For this man Moses, etc." (Masechet Shabbat 89a).

Wednesday, 15 Tevet 5785 – Breslov Chassidim are the Chassidim with the Rebbe who is truly alive.

These are his holy words:

People are talking now as if the tzaddik is doing everything—one must know that it is all illusions; there are no wars and nothing at all; it is all just the Adversary (Baal Davar) acting so that people will not reach the tzaddik.

Just like with Moses our teacher, where the Satan showed them the bed of Moses our teacher. It is written in the Gemara Shabbat (page 89a) that he showed them the bed of Moses our teacher.

Moses brought them to a level where they could have lived forever, so the Adversary showed them the bed of Moses, the funeral of Moses.

a. Moses was alive; it was a lie.

b. Even if it were true, Moses is alive. Even if it is true that Moses passed away at age 120—even then, Moses is alive.

The tzaddik is alive, Moses is alive, our Rebbe is alive. They call Breslov Chassidim 'toite chassidim' (dead chassidim, because their Rebbe passed away), but they are the 'toite'—in their lives they are called dead—we walk with a living Rebbe, a living Rebbe who rules over the entire world.

We are talking now about how the Satan can do anything; he can show the bed of Moses our teacher, he showed a bed, a funeral with angels walking with black candles. He showed them the image of his bed, as they said to Aaron (Masechet Shabbat 89a), "For this man Moses" (Exodus 32:1), they saw him literally on the bed—the Satan can perform a million plays, a stage set.

The people of Israel insisted against the Satan; they told him, "Moses is alive." The Satan says, "No, here is his bed." The Satan argued with them.

The people of Israel made a mistake regarding the day, because the day Moses ascended to the heavens was not counted in the 40-day calculation, therefore, "G-d ascended with a teruah (shofar blast), Hashem with the sound of the shofar" (Psalms 47:6). The blowing of the shofar was so they would know that Moses was descending, so they would not make the same mistake again.

So from the 1st of Elul until Yom Kippur, they blew the shofar every day to announce that Moses is alive, that Moses is descending.

Because for 40 days Moses is gone; it is over, people get confused, how much can one wait? Because "They turned aside quickly from the way which I commanded them" (Exodus 32:8). It is written, they turned aside quickly; come, let us make a calf, Moses ascended, it is over; if Moses ascended, he will never descend again.

Why would he suddenly descend? Why would Moses descend? (They thought Moses would never descend, after all) Why do we come into the world? What are we doing here in the world? We need to eat 3 meals a day; food is the greatest torture. So for 40 days, Hashem released Moses from eating, and another 40 days, and another 40 days.

We read in Parshat Eikev three times, "They turned aside quickly from the way," "They turned aside quickly." What does 'quickly' mean? Within a second! Within a second, Moses just turned his back and they said, "It is over, come let us make a calf."

Every day there are judgments from the sin of Adam, from the generation of Enosh, from the generation of the Flood. The Satan can create wars and all sorts of things, the main thing is not to reach the tzaddik.

When one reaches the tzaddik, one lives until 120; whoever has reached the tzaddik has no illnesses and no weaknesses.