The whole point is to develop some humility

On Wednesday night last week, Rav Eliezer Berland was in the middle of his regular evening routine of visiting different locations across Israel to kiruv rechokim, bring people back to an observant lifestyle, when he suddenly requested that his driver stop the car so that he could recite Kiddush Levana, the blessing over the new moon.

We’re pleased to share this short clip with you, of this special moment.

In the past, Rav Berland had the following to say about the importance of this tremendous mitzvah, which is connected to the moon being ‘humbled’ and diminished in relation to the sun:

“The whole point of coming to hear Torah from the Tzaddikim is so that we’ll receive more shaflut (lowliness / humility). And a person only becomes humble when he’s in awe of Heaven, and when he has true awe of Heaven, he sees Hashem face to face.

Rebbe Nachman’s Torah lessons teach us of the miracles and wonders that can occur by way of shaflut (humility), and by hearing something from His own mouth.

The Rebbe tells us that shaflut, humility, isn’t when someone feels that they are a shlmazelnik (a down-and-out, unfortunate person.) Humility is when you know that Hashem is sustaining you, and that Hashem is talking to you from within yourself.

Rebbe Nachman says in Lesson 58 [of Likutey Moharan] that speech is the ruach (spirit) of the mouth of HaKadosh Baruch Hu. When a person says words of Torah, when a person prayers – this is the ruach of Hashem’s own mouth, it isn’t him who’s doing it at all.

You’re giving your mouth over to Hashem, you’re giving your eyes over to Hashem, and your hands and your eyes – all to Hashem. So that the eyes of Rabbenu are intercalated with mine, and the ears of the Rebbe are joined with my ears, and the mouth of the Rebbe is connected to my mouth.

And then in that moment, a person merits [to great things].

The Rebbe is managing the world [on behalf of Hashem], he’s the head of the house, but he’s doing that by way of our eyes, mouth and hands. We need to pray that the Rebbe’s eyes should be joined with ours, and that the Rebbe’s hands should be connected to our hands, and that the Rebbe’s mouth should speak through our mouth…

This is the lawgiver[1].

The whole point is to attain shaflut, humility.

How can we merit to have the Rebbe ‘connect’ to us in this way? And so that I’ll know I’m really nothing? This is what’s called [the aspect] of the lawgiver. The Rebbe writes that the humility of Moshe the lawgiver should flow through the veins of every single person.

A Jew doesn’t have any arrogance, this is just something external to him. The inner dimension of every Jew is the pinnacle of humility and lowliness, the pinnacle of submission. And shaflut comes from Moshe Rabbenu, the lawgiver.

Thanks to Shahar Eliyahu for the pictures.

[1] A reference to Moshe Rabbenu, the ‘lawgiver’ of Am Yisrael, who was the most humble person on the face of the earth, and for that reason, Hashem spoke to him face-to-face.