The Secret of Forgiveness and Silence: The Immense Power of the Gracious One Who Pardons Abundantly
Lesson No. 169 | Tuesday, Parashas Vayeshev, Eve of 20 Kislev 5759 - Awakening Gathering in Be'er Sheva
An in-depth article explaining the virtue of silence and forgiveness, and the obligation to believe with complete faith that Hashem, may He be blessed, forgives us immediately. Through the teachings of the Baal HaTanya and the secrets of the chuppah (wedding canopy), it is revealed how this faith has the power to bring the Geulah (Redemption) and eradicate the forces of impurity.
The Gemara says that if a person sees families quarreling, he should know that it is for his benefit, because from there he can learn about the nature of their lineage. What is true lineage today? The Gemara in Tractate Kiddushin establishes: "Today, lineage is only silence." If you see a person who remains silent, it is a sign that he has pure lineage. Conversely, when a person talks excessively and argues, it is a sign of a mixture and a blemish in his lineage.
When a person truly merits silence, and his entire being becomes an aspect of silence, he reaches a level that is above everything. Rebbe Nachman of Breslov explains (Likutey Moharan, Torah 64) that the secret of silence is the aspect of "Be silent, thus it arose in the primordial thought." The souls that are in the aspect of silence ascend to the root of creation, to the aspect of the highest supernal thought.
The Groom and Bride in the Garden of Eden of Old
These souls, which ascend to the root of creation, are the aspect of the groom and bride who merit to draw down upon themselves the 365 (or 370) supernal lights. The Baal HaTanya, in Igeres HaTeshuvah (Chapter 11), teaches a tremendous foundation: a person must know that there is no blessing said in vain. When we bless under the chuppah, "Bring great joy to these loving friends, just as You brought joy to Your creations in the Garden of Eden of old," we must understand that this is not a blessing in vain.
The groom and bride can literally be in the Garden of Eden right now. If they decide to live their seven days of feasting in the Garden of Eden, they will merit it, and it is possible to draw down this illumination of one day in the Garden of Eden for their entire lives. If we do not believe that the groom and bride have now merited the Garden of Eden of old and are ascending there, then it is as if the blessing is in vain. But in truth, all the 365 lights from before the sin of Adam HaRishon descend upon them.
Absolute Faith in Hashem's Forgiveness
The Baal HaTanya continues in Igeres HaTeshuvah (page 100) and explains the foundation of faith and trust that a person must have. A person must be certain that Hashem desires kindness; He is "gracious, merciful, and abundant in forgiveness." If you ask Hashem, may He be blessed, for forgiveness, know with absolute certainty that He has forgiven you immediately.
Hashem is "the Gracious One who pardons abundantly" (Chanun HaMarbeh Lisloach). It is interesting to note that the words "Chanun HaMarbeh Lisloach" have the same gematria (numerical value) as "Nasan" (Nathan). Moharnat (Rabbi Nasan of Breslov) passed away from the world with these words on his lips, and this is the entire essence of Rebbe Nachman's teachings—to instill within us the faith that Hashem is the Gracious One who pardons abundantly.
We must believe that immediately upon asking for forgiveness, Hashem has forgiven us. If a person says "the Gracious One who pardons abundantly" and thinks that Hashem did not forgive him, this is a lack of faith, and it is as if he is denying Hashem, may He be blessed, and making the blessing a blessing in vain. Therefore, Hashem is, so to speak, "obligated" to forgive you so that you do not stumble into making a blessing in vain.
When we say in prayer: "Forgive us, our Father, for we have sinned; pardon us, our King, for we have transgressed; for You are a good and forgiving God. Blessed are You, Hashem, the Gracious One who pardons abundantly," we must believe that Hashem has immediately forgiven us and wiped away our transgressions. We are forbidden to have even the slightest doubt that perhaps Hashem, Heaven forbid, did not pardon us for our sins.
This is also the secret of the virtue of the groom and bride. How does one dance before the bride? Because all the sins of the groom and bride are forgiven on the day of their chuppah. The groom must know that on the day of his chuppah, he is as pure as the tzaddik of the generation.
Faith in Forgiveness Brings Redemption
Immediately after the blessing of forgiveness in the Shemoneh Esrei prayer, we bless: "Look upon our affliction, champion our cause, and redeem us with a complete Geulah (Redemption) for the sake of Your Name. Blessed are You, Hashem, Redeemer of Israel." Why? Because if we truly believed that Hashem had forgiven us, we would never commit another sin.
Why does a person return and sin? Because he says to himself: "Either way, I am already committing sins; either way, I am falling and despairing." But if you knew that the moment you said "the Gracious One who pardons abundantly," everything was forgiven and you became a completely righteous tzaddik, how could you think that you might stumble again? If we truly believed in 'the Gracious One who pardons abundantly,' the Geulah would come immediately.
The Obligation to Forgive Others
Just as Hashem pardons us, so too are we obligated to pardon our friends. Even if a person severed his friend's hand, he is obligated to pay him all five types of compensation (damages, pain, medical expenses, loss of livelihood, and embarrassment), but afterward—the injured party is obligated to forgive him.
The injured party cannot say: "What good is your compensation? You gave me two million dollars, but I am left without a hand!" However much the offender can compensate—he compensates, and the rest is handed over to Heaven. If the offender paid and asked for forgiveness, the injured party must forgive him.
"And if a person is asked for forgiveness three times and he does not forgive, he is no longer considered a Jew; he is from the Nesinim, from the Gibeonites... This is a soul from a mixed multitude, Heaven spare us; it is not generation after generation from Mount Sinai."
We find this with the Gibeonites, when King David asked them for forgiveness three times and they refused to forgive. Therefore, David decreed upon them that they would be subjects until the end of all generations, and established: "And the Gibeonites are not of the children of Israel." The trait of flesh and blood is that a person asks for forgiveness once, twice, three times. But with Hashem, may He be blessed, there is no limit – He forgives immediately, and His mercy is without limit and without end.
Yearning of the Soul and Subduing the Sitra Achra (the Other Side)
When the true groom and bride merit to ascend to the primordial Garden of Eden and draw down the 365 lights, the verse "For I will make a full end (kalah) of all the nations" is fulfilled. This is the secret of "And the soul of David longed (vatechel)" – the Techeiles (blue thread).
By a person becoming consumed with yearning for Hashem, in the aspect of "My soul yearns, yea, even pines (kalta) for the courts of Hashem; my heart and my flesh sing for joy unto the living G-d," he consumes and destroys all the forces of impurity and all the nations of the world that rise up against us. The moment a person merely yearns for Hashem and his soul pines for Him, he consumes the entire Sitra Achra.
This is the secret of the Techeiles, the aspect of "that consumes everything and destroys everything." The north wind would blow upon David's harp at Chatzos (midnight), to sweeten the judgments. Through the melodies and dances of the wedding, the heavenly Jerusalem and the earthly Jerusalem are connected, and the groom, who is entirely in deveikus (cleaving to Hashem), becomes the aspect of the fire of the altar that consumes all evil and illuminates the world with holiness.
Part 3 of 4 — Lesson No. 169