The Daily Chizzuk with our Rebbe, the Gaon and Tzaddik, Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit”a – “One needs to hold by all the tzaddikim – but Rabbeinu is the innerness”
“In what is Breslov Chasidut unique from the rest?”
[From Alim L’Trufah – Rabbi Natan’s letters 174:
Also here is a certain misnaged [opponent of Chasidut, and in this case Breslov in particular] whose son began to draw a little close to Breslov Chasidim and learned much Gemara and Codes, and now worthless men who call themselves Chasidim are forcing him and obstructing him against his will from learning Gemara and Codes, saying that it’s better [that he] talk to them. And his father screamed at his son: “I’ll give you [what] to eat on the condition that you only learn one page of Gemara every day [and] no more, because whoever learns all day is a Breslover, etc.”
The principle is that the misnagdim [not] only stand to prevent the learning of the books of Rabbeinu z”l; only the innerness, meaning the evil, in their hearts is to nullify from the Jewish people the entire Torah, because it’s known to you the behavior of young people, especially in this generation, and there is no means of rescue except through the Torah. And there is no one who will bring the learning and fulfillment of Torah into the world like our Master, our Rebbe, our Teacher z”l through the truth of his holy ways which he revealed through us and in his holy books; and for this they provoked us such much, saying let’s go and exterminate them, G-d forbid.]
The words of Rav Berland shlit”a:
The entire matter of Breslov is to see Hashem face-to-face.
Because the Rebbe says (Likutey Moharan 14) that all the Chasidut’s are kosher. A person needs to humble himself before tzaddikim, and before all the average people, and say “I am worse than all of them,” but tzaddikim are tzaddikim.
Admor’s, Rebbes – all of them are holy of holies, but there is face-to-face. This is something else completely. There is innerness of innerness of innerness – this is Rabbeinu HaKadosh [Rebbe Nachman].
Because all songs are holy, but Shir HaShirim is holy of holies – this is Rabbeinu, this is holy of holies, this is innerness of innerness, that we see Hashem face-to-face.
If we don’t see Hashem face-to-face, then we didn’t see anything. All Gemara study is vessels to see Hashem face-to-face
[Rabbi Avraham] the son of the Rambam brings that they have dervishes, and they have fakirs, and they have ascetics. They go to deserts to meditate, but they don’t see Hashem – to see Hashem is only through learning Gemara.
Hashem revealed this only to the Jewish people – that it’s only possible to see Hashem face-to-face through learning Gemara, learning Kitzot HaChoshen, Netivot HaMishpat, Takfo Kohen, Shach – a person needs to know all the Shach from memory. In Heichal HaBracha (by Rabbi Yitzchak Izik Yehudah Yechiel Safrin of Komarna), he says that one needs to know the Shach like they know from memory “Ashrei Yoshvei Veitecha,” with the Turim, with everything.
A person needs to see, everyone wants to see Hashem face-to-face. Also a blind person wants to see. Therefore, they are ascetics, fakirs, and dervishes – all types of names they have for all their delusions, but they don’t see anything. They’re groping about in darkness. In order to see Hashem, it’s only through learning Gemara.
