The Secret of Sweetening Judgments and the True Matchmaker of Lag BaOmer
Lesson No. 141 | Wednesday night, the eve of the 18th of Iyar, Parshas Behar - Lag BaOmer 5758
A profound discourse on the immense power of the Divine Tanna, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, to sweeten all judgments and sufferings. How accepting humiliation with love and nullifying one's ego opens the door to all salvations, to healing, and to finding one's shidduch (marriage match) on the day of Lag BaOmer.
Come and see the works of Hashem, a wondrous revelation from the secret of the greatness of the Divine Tanna, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai zt"l (of blessed memory). Rashbi promised that the Torah would not be forgotten from the Jewish people through him, as explained in the words of our Sages: When our Rabbis entered Yavneh, they said that the Torah is destined to be forgotten from the Jewish people, and Rashbi said that in his merit it would not be forgotten. In the merit of the Book of the Zohar, the Torah will not be forgotten, as it is stated:
"For it shall not be forgotten from the mouth of his offspring."
In the holy Zohar it is explained: "With this composition, which is the Book of the Zohar, they will go out of exile" - only through the Zohar will we emerge from the exile. Come and see the wonders of our holy Torah: The verse upon which Rashbi relied, "For it shall not be forgotten from the mouth of his offspring," itself hints at this secret. The final letters of the Hebrew words "Ki lo tishakach mipi zar'o" spell out the letters Yochai. The verse reveals that specifically from the mouth of the offspring of the Tanna Yochai, who is Rashbi, the Torah will not be forgotten.
Sweetening the Severities Through the Love of Friends
The secret of Rabbi Shimon is also hinted at in another verse:
"An angel and a holy one descended from heaven."
The first letters of these Hebrew words spell the name Shimon (and also Nachman). When all the tzaddikim and all the souls unite together, it creates the reality of "The soul of man is the lamp of Hashem" - a great light of tzaddikim that brings joy to the spiritual worlds.
Every person goes through terrible severities, troubles, and sufferings. If a person wants to sweeten all the severities, all the illnesses, and the sufferings that loom over him, the only way is through love, in the mystical secret of "We depend upon love." During the counting of the Omer, the students of Rabbi Akiva passed away, and this was due to an incredibly subtle spiritual flaw, because they certainly loved each other with a profound soul-love. However, the conclusion is that if a person truly loves another, through this alone he sweetens all the judgments in the world from upon himself. The moment there is love, he will be blessed with children, a shidduch (marriage match), and robust health for himself and his wife.
Diamonds Through the Window
Rebbe Nachman explains that all judgments come from a lack of love among the Jewish people. The moment a person holds a grudge against his friend, a disaster happens to him at that very moment, and he harms himself first and foremost. If, Heaven forbid, a person has a grievance against a friend, he must know that this friend is actually throwing diamonds and precious gems at him.
Imagine a person who takes sacks of diamonds and starts throwing them through his friend's window. In the process, the window breaks, and maybe even a child gets a minor scratch, but he threw treasures at him! Rebbe Nachman says that when a person opposes you and speaks against you, he is simply throwing diamonds and precious gems at you. So what does it matter if it hurt you a little or you got scratched?
People travel across the entire world for a kilo of gold, and here, tons of gold are being thrown at a person without any effort on his part. When people oppose you, they sweeten all the judgments in the world from upon you and elevate you. If a person truly believed the words of the tzaddikim, he would not yell at the one who broke his windowpane; rather, he would understand that he now has a sack full of precious stones in his house.
Lag BaOmer: The Yom Kippur of the Counting of the Omer
Lag BaOmer is exactly like Yom Kippur. The numerical value (gematria) of the word Lag (33) together with the word BaOmer (spelled without a Vav - 312) equals 345, which is the exact numerical value of Moshe. On this day, the soul of Moshe Rabbeinu is revealed. The night of Lag BaOmer is just like the night of "Kol Nidrei," a time when we must forgive everyone with a whole heart.
If a person wants to be completely free of any judgment, he must forgive every person in the world, and specifically those who antagonize him. In truth, the tzaddik says that they are not speaking badly about you at all. King David says:
"By this I know that You desire me, because my enemy does not shout in triumph over me."
When do I know that Hashem desires me? When a good friend suddenly starts talking about me. In reality, they are only speaking praises and good things about you, but your ear is uncircumcised and inverted, and you interpret it as conflict and opposition.
Rebbe Nachman says (Likutey Moharan, Torah 277) that whoever calls this a conflict is in the category of "Whoever utters a slander is a fool." People are digging tunnels under your house to bring you sacks of silver and gold, and you pour sand on them and throw them out? The very moment someone spoke against you, he opened your mind and removed from you the screens that conceal your wondrous intellect.
The Secret of Bittul (Self-Nullification): "I Do Not Exist at All"
The deepest secret, explained in Torah 55, is the realization that you do not exist at all. Who is even thinking about you? Who is talking about you? You are not even here! What does it mean when you feel that people are talking about you? How can anyone talk about a person who does not exist? It all stems from the fact that you make yourself into a tangible entity and a "something" (yeshus).
A person must know how to transform all humiliation and disgrace into honor. This is the secret of Sefiras HaOmer (the Counting of the Omer), during which we clarify and refine all of our character traits down to the smallest levels of mochin (intellect). Specifically during these days, the Seven Shepherds arrive—led by Rashbi (Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai)—and sweeten the dinim (strict judgments). When a person feels that others are talking about him and mocking him, he must remind himself: "No one is talking about you; these are only your own imaginations. You are of no interest to anyone, because you simply do not exist."
Rashbi: The True Matchmaker
During the week of Rashbi's histalkus (passing away), the greatest chassadim (loving-kindnesses) are revealed. On Lag BaOmer, it is possible to draw down all forms of healing and salvation. There is no chesed (loving-kindness) that cannot be drawn down on this day. Everyone can be blessed with children, and everyone can find their shidduch (marriage match).
Rebbe Nachman explains (Likutey Moharan, Part II, Torah 87) that a person's shidduch is located right next to them. However, due to the multitude of pegamey habris (blemishes of the holy covenant) that a person commits, they cause with their own hands for their soulmate to become distant and completely hidden from them. When a person travels to Meron and is pushed among the tens of thousands of people, all of their sins and blemishes of the covenant are sweetened.
Rashbi is the true matchmaker. He splits the sea to open the way, illuminates the spiritual lights, and reveals to a person their soulmate who was created together with them even before the creation of the world. We travel to Rashbi, who embodies the soul-aspect of Moshe Rabbeinu, and there, all the shidduchim are found.
All of this is achieved when a person acquires the mindset of bittul (self-nullification). When a person knows that no one has ever spoken about them and no one has ever opposed them—because they simply do not exist in this world—they attain the aspect of Hashem's Holy Name: "Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh" (I Will Be What I Will Be). They realize that they have not even begun to live at all. Through this bittul, all the dinim (judgments) are sweetened, and they merit to draw down upon themselves the Clouds of Glory, bread from Heaven, and absolutely all forms of salvation.
Part 1 of 3 — Lesson No. 141