The Secret of the Morning Watch: How to Turn Judgment into Mercy and Bring About Salvations

Lesson No. 5 | *Thursday and Friday, Parshas Emor, 4th and 5th of Iyar, 5755 (1995).

Why are the hours specifically before neitz hachamah (sunrise) the most auspicious time to change one's fate? Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a (may he live long and good days) explains the secret of ashmores haboker (the morning watch), joining the song of the angels, and the moment when Hashem (the Creator) in His glory and by Himself descends to heal the sick.

The most auspicious time to plead before the Creator of the world and to bring about yeshuos (salvations) is during the hours when the watches change, in the final third of the night. We are speaking about three or four hours before neitz hachamah (sunrise), at the end of the night. The prayer that a person prays during those hours regarding the churban (destruction of the Temple) and the galus (exile) is a most desired and accepted prayer.

When we pray in the morning, we join the song of the angels. It is an obligation upon all of Israel to join this heavenly choir. Rabbi Elazar opened and said: > "O Hashem, in the morning You shall hear my voice; in the morning I will arrange [my prayer] to You, and I will look forward" (Psalms 5:4).

Why is the word "morning" mentioned twice in the verse? It is because Avraham Avinu (Abraham our forefather) created the morning. "And Abraham rose early in the morning" – in the merit of Abraham, there is morning for the world. Without Abraham, the world would be destroyed. Avraham Avinu opened the gates and turned the morning into an eis ratzon (time of favor). One who rises during the ashmores haboker (morning watch) and intends to sing together with the angels can bring about yeshuos (salvations) for every person in the world – not just for himself, but for anyone who asks of him, whether they are a tzaddik (righteous person) or a rasha (wicked person).

Sweetening the Judgments Before They Descend

The choice time for prayer is in the third watch, when all the gates of mercy are open. Those who rose at Chatzos (midnight) have already opened the gates, and in the third watch, they join the song. This is the time when everything can be achieved in that very second.

Every single day, there are "prisoners of the King" – people who have been decreed to suffer afflictions on that day. There are illnesses and decrees hidden within the human body that manifest at different ages as punishment for sins from gilgulim (previous reincarnations) or from this lifetime. Man is entirely made of gilgulim, and every day there is a punishment intended to atone for something.

However, if a person rises during the ashmores haboker (morning watch) – he sweetens this punishment. A person must know that daily decrees may hover over him – suddenly a family member is sick, suddenly a trouble lands, and he asks "Why?". The answer is that you did not sweeten the gezeirah (decree) of that day. Every day at Chatzos (midnight), a trial is held, and whoever rises during the ashmores haboker sweetens the din (judgment) and turns the day into a pleasant day, a day of the pleasantness of Hashem and the ziv haShechinah (radiance of the Divine Presence).

The Time of Teshuvah and Returning the Mochin

The ashmores haboker (morning watch) is the primary time to do teshuvah (repentance). A person wants a good day for himself and his family, but he must remember his sins and ask forgiveness for them. It is impossible to only ask for gifts from the King without asking forgiveness for having hurt Him in the past. The tzaddik waits for the person to ask for sincere forgiveness.

There are people who think that Hashem is "lenient" (waives everything without effort), or that it is enough to travel to the tzaddik and everything is erased as if by a magic wand, like on a computer. But the truth is that sincere teshuvah (repentance) is required. During the ashmores haboker, a person can ask Hashem to forgive him and return the mochin (intellect/consciousness) he lost. When a person sins, he loses his da'as (knowledge/awareness) and the ability to study Torah. Transgressions burn the brain. At this time, the person cries out to Hashem to give him a "new head," a clean head with which he can study Gemara (Talmud).

The Angel Raphael and Complete Healing

When a person sings and dances during the ashmores haboker (morning watch) with the angels, a wondrous thing happens: an angel named Raphael, who is appointed over all matters of healing, comes forth. When you sing during the ashmores, the Angel Raphael stands beside you and asks: "Whom do you want me to heal? This person? That person? I am already healing him." All matters of healing are in his hand at that moment.

But there is a level higher than this. When the time for the Shacharis (morning) prayer arrives and we say: > "Give thanks to Hashem, call upon His Name, make His deeds known among the nations... Sing to Him, make music to Him, speak of all His wonders."

The moment we begin "Hodu" (Give thanks), Hashem Himself, in His glory, appears. Until now, the angels accompanied us, but an angel might sometimes hesitate to heal a complete rasha (wicked person), fearing he might be tainted by his tumah (impurity). The angel is only a messenger, and he fears becoming impure. But when Hashem descends, He says: "I, and not an angel." Hashem is not afraid of any tumah. He says: "Now I Myself will go to heal. Whom do you want? This one and that one? I am going to heal him."

Preceding the "Techeiles" of Judgment

The holy Zohar teaches that the techeiles (blue) color in the sky hints at din (judgment). When dawn breaks and the sky is colored blue, the Heavenly Courts open and begin to judge all the inhabitants of the world. If a person is sleeping at that time, he is judged in his absence, and his sentence for that day is sealed.

But, if a person rises before the techeiles appears in the sky, he already appears in the Heavenly Court. The judges see him standing, singing, praying, wanting to be a good Jew. Immediately, the entire din (judgment) is overturned. Hashem commands the Court not to open the trial at all, and says: "I Myself want to judge him." Hashem takes the trial from their hands, because He is a "King who desires life" and the "Father of Mercy."

One who preceded his prayers, songs, and Torah study before alos hashachar (dawn) arrives with so many merits that the kitrugim (prosecuting accusations) are nullified. Hashem searches for his merits and has mercy on him. Then, all the birds begin to sing. The birds see that Hashem was about to destroy the world because of sins, but in the merit of those people who rose during the ashmores haboker, the din (judgment) was sweetened and the world was saved. The song of the birds is a song of gratitude that we were given another day of life.

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