אֲהוּבַיי אַחַיי וְרֵעַיי, מֵאַהֲבָה מְסוּתֶּרֶת תּוֹכַחַת מְגוּלָּה:

My beloved ones, my brethren and friends, with hidden love and an open rebuke: Since he wishes to speak to the hasidim – whom he loves like brothers and friends – in a manner that sounds like rebuke, he makes an effort to soften the apparently harsh impression of his words. He makes a play on words on the verse: "Better open rebuke than hidden love" (Prov. 27:5) – instead of the contrast of the verse itself, he connects its two clauses, implying that one stems from the other. In other words, the rebuke he is about to deliver is motivated by love, only the love is hidden while the rebuke is out in the open.

לְכוּ נָא וְנִוָּכְחָה, זִכְרוּ יְמוֹת עוֹלָם בִּינוּ שְׁנוֹת דּוֹר וָדוֹר,

Come now, and let us debate together; remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations, These biblical paraphrases are not merely a stylistic flourish. The author of the Tanya often employs biblical expressions always in order to convey a specific message. Here too, he seeks to emphasize that this is not a singular case of a personal shortcoming of leadership; rather, this characterizes the leadership in Israel since time immemorial, even when there was the highest level of direct divine intervention ever, through the prophets Moses.

הֶהָיְתָה כָּזֹאת מִימוֹת עוֹלָם, וְאַיֵּה אֵיפוֹא מְצָאתֶם מִנְהָג זֶה בְּאֶחָד מִכָּל סִפְרֵי חַכְמֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הָרִאשׁוֹנִים וְהָאַחֲרוֹנִים לִהְיוֹת מִנְהָג וְתִיקּוּן, לִשְׁאוֹל בְּעֵצָה גַּשְׁמִיּוּת כְּדָת מַה לַּעֲשׂוֹת בְּעִנְיְנֵי הָעוֹלָם הַגַּשְׁמִי –

has this ever occurred: Where, where indeed, have you found this custom in any one of all the books of the early or later Sages of Israel, that this is a custom and a remedy, to seek counsel from the tzaddik on the material plane, regarding the proper thing to do involving matters of this physical world – This "remedy" means a rectification for the world. The purpose of life on this world is to improve the world. Accordingly, even if a certain mode of conduct is convenient for a person, if it does nothing to amend the world, he should not follow that path. People live in the natural, physical world, and thus they inevitably encounter problems. The natural state of the world does not seem fair: Uncertainties abound with regard to all aspects of life – one's livelihood, health, marriage and more. Questions constantly arise; what should one do; how should he react, which path he should follow... Moreover, by its very nature this world hides the future; a person cannot grasp with his limited intellect the direction in which the tide is turning because the world is too complex and unpredictable. These questions are not theoretical: They strike at the heart of life, causing each person suffering, anxiety, and stress at his very core. It is therefore reasonable for people to ask and seek counsel on these matters. They will turn to experts, parents and friends, and they especially expect to receive advice from their teacher and rabbi, to whom they attribute a deep and comprehensive understanding and vision, which goes beyond the insight of an ordinary person. Even so, we do not find that people would ask the rabbi, the Rebbe, or the tzaddik, about such issues. This does not include inquiring from a friend, a wise person, or an expert, as every person surely consults such individuals on occasion, but rather approaching someone who represents the Torah and matters involving the service of God. Such an individual is expected, consciously or otherwise, to provide a more profound insight, even a supernatural vision, that penetrates the barrier of materiality. Moreover, like little children, they expect their "father" to take upon himself the responsibility for their lives and destiny.

אַף לִגְדוֹלֵי חַכְמֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הָרִאשׁוֹנִים כְּתַנָּאִים וְאָמוֹרָאִים אֲשֶׁר כָּל רָז לָא אָנֵס לְהוּ וּנְהִירִין לְהוֹן שְׁבִילִין דִּרְקִיעַ,

not even from the early Sages of Israel, like the tanna'im and amora'im , from whom no secret was hidden, and to whom the paths of heaven were clear, The phrase "to whom the paths of heaven were clear" is from a statement of the amora Shmuel (Berakhot 58b), who was one of the greatest of the Sages and was considered knowledgeable in secular studies as well. He claimed that paths of heaven, that is, the orbits of the stars and the various constellations, were as clear to him as the paths of his hometown of Neharde'a. According to hasidic interpretation of this saying, the "paths of heaven" includes the spiritual worlds, and thus the meaning of the statement here is that not even those Sages who were experts in the secrets of the Torah, and the paths of the upper worlds that influence this world, would be approached for advice regarding affairs of this material world.

כִּי אִם לַנְּבִיאִים מַמָּשׁ אֲשֶׁר הָיוּ לְפָנִים בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל, כִּשְׁמוּאֵל הָרוֹאֶה אֲשֶׁר הָלַךְ אֵלָיו שָׁאוּל לִדְרוֹשׁ ה' עַל דְּבַר הָאֲתוֹנוֹת שֶׁנֶּאֶבְדוּ לְאָבִיו.

but only from actual prophets, who were in earlier times in Israel, such as Samuel the Seer, as Saul went to him to seek God over the matter of his father's lost donkeys. A prophet is called a "Seer" (I Samuel 9:9) because he sees what is hidden from others. The plain meaning of this verses is that Saul did not go to the prophet Samuel for spiritual guidance but to ask him see what he, Saul, was unable to perceive within the physical world. There is a type of vision that goes beyond space and time. The great individuals of Israel always possessed this vision, tapping into varying levels of the holy spirit. The prophet was unique in his ability to bring down this vision, which is above time and place, and relate it to a specific hour and locale. He can therefore see simply and actually – as we see the physical reality that is before our eyes –what exists now, and what will happen in the future, all over the globe.

כִּי בֶּאֱמֶת כָּל עִנְיְנֵי אָדָם, לְבַד מִדִּבְרֵי תוֹרָה וְיִרְאַת שָׁמַיִם, אֵינָם מוּשָּׂגִים רַק בִּנְבוּאָה,

For in truth, all of a person's affairs, apart from matters of Torah and fear of Heaven, can be grasped only through prophecy, By "a person's affairs," the author of the Tanya does not mean an ordinary understanding of matters of this world, which every person attains to a greater or lesser degree; rather, he is referring to a grasp of worldly matters like that of prophecy, that is, of absolute certainty: The prophet sees in his mind's eye what will happen in the future in this world and what needs to be done, and so on, with the same clarity and certainty that a person knows what he is seeing with his own eyes. He adds "apart from matters of Torah and fear of Heaven," as these can indeed be attained by Sages with that measure of certainty, which they can then use to guide the people. In this regard it must be noted, as it will be stated below, that the Torah has already been brought down into time and space. The Sage who studies the Torah does not have to be a prophet himself; his very status as one of the Sages of the Oral Torah means that he is reflecting and transmitting the words of the Torah to this time with the same certainty and reality as the words of an actual prophecy. This is not the case for the rest of a person's affairs in this world – here the Sage has no such advantage and is like all other men.

וְ״לֹא לַחֲכָמִים לֶחֶם״ (קהלת ט,יא) כְּמַאֲמַר רַבּוֹתֵינוּ ז״ל: ״הַכֹּל בִּידֵי שָׁמַיִם חוּץ מִיִּרְאַת שָׁמַיִם״ (ברכות לג,ב),

"also not to the wise is bread" (Ecc. 9:11), in accordance with our Rabbis' statement: "All is in the hands of Heaven apart from the fear of Heaven" (Berakhot 32b), The verse from Ecclesiastes is understood to imply that in matters involving bread, which signifies one's sustenance in the world, the Sages do not have a greater grasp than that granted by the relative and limited human intelligence. Of course, they can achieve in this field as much as other people, but they have no inherent advantage and no access to another, esoteric form of knowledge, on account of their wisdom in the Torah. The basic message of the saying from Berakhot is that one has free choice in matters involving the service of God and the fear of Heaven; no decree from heaven forcefully decides for man regarding spiritual matters. However, everything else, all the affairs of the material world, are indeed in the hands of Heaven, and man and his counselors cannot do anything to change them. This statement adds to the previous one – not only do we lack the knowledge; we cannot affect the outcome either. Of course, this does not mean that one should sit and do nothing; on the contrary, it is his duty to do as much as he can to earn a living, to heal himself, etc. However, he should conduct himself by following the ways of this world, with its rules and limitations to which he too is subject. What he is not required to do – and in fact cannot do – is bypass these rules by turning to a higher power, to heaven. Concerning this, it is stated here that "all is in the hands of Heaven," and we and the Sages do not have any way (now that prophecy has ceased) to bring down from heaven the knowledge or guidance on how we should best proceed at the current moment.

וְשִׁבְעָה דְּבָרִים מְכוּסִּים כו׳, אֵין אָדָם יוֹדֵעַ בַּמֶּה מִשְׂתַּכֵּר כו', וּמַלְכוּת בֵּית דָּוִד מָתַי תַּחֲזוֹר כו׳ (פסחים נד,ב). הִנֵּה הוּשְׁווּ זֶה לָזֶה.

and "seven things are concealed…, a person does not know how he will earn a living…, or when the monarchy of the house of David will be restored…" (Pesaḥim 54b). They are thus equated to one another. These seven items include the day of death and the day of comfort. The saying thus equates a person's livelihood to events such as the time of the redemption, which are obviously concealed from us, and which not even the greatest of Sages can know. It follows that secrets involving earning a living and other worldly affairs remain hidden and inaccessible to the Sages.

וּמַה שֶּׁכָּתוּב בִּישַׁעְיָה (ג,ג): ״יוֹעֵץ וַחֲכַם חֲרָשִׁים״, וְכֵן מַה שֶּׁאָמְרוּ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ ז״ל (אבות פרק ו משנה א): ״וְנֶהֱנִין מִמֶּנּוּ עֵצָה וְתוּשִׁיָּה״, הַיְינוּ, בְּדִבְרֵי תוֹרָה הַנִּקְרָא ‘תּוּשִׁיָּה׳,

And with regard to that which is written in the book of Isaiah (3:3), "the counselor, subtle scholar," and similarly the Rabbis' statement (Avot 6:1), "enjoy counsel and sound wisdom from it," that is referring to the words of Torah, which is called "sound wisdom," These sources appear to indicate that someone who is wise, specifically in matters of Torah, can also dispense advice in affairs of the world, and that others will benefit from his counsel with regard to mundane matters. The answer is that this counsel is referring to the Torah, which the Sages call "sound wisdom." Thus, all the advice focuses solely on matters of Torah, not the dealings of the material world.

כְּמַאֲמַר רַבּוֹתֵינוּ ז״ל: ‘יוֹעֵץ׳ זֶה שֶׁיּוֹדֵעַ לְעַבֵּר שָׁנִים וְלִקְבּוֹעַ חֳדָשִׁים כו׳ (חגיגה יד,א), שֶׁסּוֹד הָעִיבּוּר קָרוּי עֵצָה וְסוֹד בִּלְשׁוֹן תּוֹרָה, כִּדְאִיתָא בְּסַנְהֶדְרִין דַּף פ"ז (עמוד א), עַיֵּין שָׁם בְּפֵירוּשׁ רַשִׁ"י.

in accordance with our Rabbis' statement: "The counselor" – this is referring to one who knows how to intercalate years and determine months… (Ḥagiga 14a), as the secret of intercalation is called a counsel and a secret in the language of the Torah, as stated in Sanhedrin 87 a; see Rashi's commentary there. Here the author of the Tanya provides evidence that matters of Torah are also called "counsel." Rashi's commentary on Sanhedrin 87a, to which he directs the reader's attention, reads: "In the intercalation of the year, which is called a secret and a counsel etc."

אַךְ הָאֱמֶת אַגִּיד לַשּׁוֹמְעִים לִי, כִּי אַהֲבָה מְקַלְקֶלֶת הַשּׁוּרָה,

However, I will inform those who will listen to me of the truth, that love upsets the regular order. Here the author of the Tanya addther, more profound reason as to why one should not ask the Rebbe about the affairs of this world: It is not only because of the Rebbe's limitations – as he is not a prophet and it is not in his power – but also because in truth this is not the proper way to serve God. In the well-known saying "love upsets the regular order" (see e.g., Bereshit Rabba 55:8), the "order" refers to the accepted customs and arrangements of affairs in every culture by which people think and perform actions. It is more than simply manners – it is the basic operation of the system. When feelings are running strong, such as passionate love or the opposite, they upset that regular habit, and it is no longer possible to maintain the order. Regular order can be preserved in formal, restrained associations, whereas love by its very nature breaks down boundaries. In one's desire to reach the beloved, a person disregards the orderly mode of conduct, and "upsets the regular order." Love is fashioned, as it were, out of a different fabric, and its wearer refuses to be obstructed by all the normal orders of operations and structures, but treats them as though they did not exist.

וְהִנֵּה הִיא כְּסוּת עֵינַיִם שֶׁלֹּא לִרְאוֹת הָאֱמֶת, מֵרוֹב אַהֲבָתָם לְחַיֵּי הַגּוּף לְשֵׁם שָׁמַיִם, לַעֲבוֹד בּוֹ אֶת ה׳ בְּרִשְׁפֵּי אֵשׁ וְשַׁלְהֶבֶת גְּדוֹלָה מֵאַהֲבַת נַפְשָׁם אֶת ה׳.

This is a covering of the eyes, to avoid seeing the truth, due to their great love of material life for the sake of Heaven, to serve God with it, with flashes of fire and a great flame, out of their soul's love of God. The hasidim, in their love for God and their passion to serve Him, fail to see this truth in the "regular order." Their love becomes like a "covering of the eyes," a phrase from Genesis 9:15. The love and desire to worship God, to feel close to Him and cleave to Him through prayer, Torah and mitzvot, can be replaced by an impatience, an inability to tolerate the series of delays between the stages. The author of the Tanya is not "accusing" his hasidim of approaching him simply for the sake of their material lives. They indeed come to seek the Lord, but their difficulties and troubles – which were truly unbearable – do not allow them to serve God, study and pray in accordance with their desire and love.

וְעַל כֵּן הֵיטֵב חָרָה לָהֶם בְּצַעַר הַגּוּף, חַס וְשָׁלוֹם ה' יְרַחֵם,

They are therefore greatly upset by the suffering of the body, God forbid, may the Lord have mercy, The hasidim are thus "greatly upset" (phrase from Jonah 4:9) by all the material issues, the life and struggles of this world, which appear to prevent them from cleaving to the Divine. The author of the Tanya admits that suffering is hard. He understands that these are not the grievances of spoiled people, but rather cries from broken hearts, which stem from difficult lives full of distress that one does not know how to bear. He adds these words as his own personal expression, beyond what he as the Rebbe knows is the truth of life, and acknowledges that what his hasidim endure is indeed difficult and terrible – "God forbid, may the Lord have mercy."

וְאֵין יְכוֹלִין לְקַבֵּל כְּלָל עַד שֶׁמַּעֲבִירָם עַל דַּעְתָּם, לְכַתֵּת רַגְלֵיהֶם מֵעִיר לְעִיר לִשְׁאוֹל עֵצוֹת מֵרָחוֹק,

and they cannot accept it at all, until they lose their minds, pounding their feet from city to city, to seek counsel from afar, They are unable to accept the tribulations of the world and the state of divine concealment, and "lose their minds," meaning, since they actually know the truth, they therefore bypass their minds to embark on arduous journeys to seek counsel from afar. Although they have the truth right "here," and "afar" is not relevant to them, they still wander from place to place. The problem is not only that the solution is distant and hard to achieve, but that it is not one's own, it is not true for him. For what is true for him is right here; there is no need to search for it, but simply to accept it.

וְלֹא שָׁעוּ אֶל ה׳ לָשׁוּב אֵלָיו בְּרוּחַ נְמוּכָה

and they did not turn to God, to return to Him with a lowly spirit The whole problem is in the form of address, turning one's face to God, which means accepting things as they are. The author of the Tanya explains that a person can achieve this state if he resolves "to return to Him with a lowly spirit." This "lowly spirit" is a necessary condition. When a person has a haughty spirit, that is, he considers himself an important individual, a "somebody," and is unable to turn to God. Since his own being is occupying that space, how can God be there too? In simple terms, turning to God, like addressing another person, involves turning one's will and mind away from himself and his needs, and focusing entirely on God. Someone with a haughty spirit is incapable of this.

וְהַכְנָעַת הַגּוּף לְקַבֵּל תּוֹכַחְתּוֹ בְּאַהֲבָה, ״כִּי אֶת אֲשֶׁר יֶאֱהַב ה׳ וכו׳״ (משלי ג,יב).

and bodily submission, to accept His reproof with love, "for he whom the Lord loves He reproves…" (Prov. 3:12). One's body is the center and foundation of his sense of being, both physical and mental, and therefore repentance also involves the subjugation of the body. This does not necessarily entail mortifications and fasts, but rather a mental attitude that one does not consider the body and its desires and lusts important, and that they will not serve as factors in his judgment, but merely as instruments and garments for his divine soul. When one turns to God with a lowly spirit and bodily submission, he can receive even reproof from Him with love. It is easy to accept light and kindness with love, but to receive reproof lovingly, when it is expressed through hardships and suffering – that is difficult. It is possible, however, when one approaches the task "with a lowly spirit and bodily submission," without high expectations, without the sensitivity of someone who has something to lose, and without a conceited self-importance that makes a person quick to take offense. The full verse from Proverbs reads: "For he whom the Lord loves, He reproves, and he reconciles like a father with a son." God's reproof is an expression of His love. One who is aware of this fact can accept the rebuke with love, even though it is hard and unpleasant, because he can relate to its inner meaning, which is love and goodness. In general, a person can accept with love almost any difficulty and suffering if he knows that it is for the best, that it is not a chance occurrence or an expression of indifference or cruelty, but rather that it stems from caring and affection.

וכְמוֹ אָב רַחֲמָן חָכָם וְצַדִּיק הַמַּכֶּה בְּנוֹ,

This is like a merciful, wise and righteous father who strikes his son. In this comparison, the father expresses his love for his son through the very act of striking him. Indeed, a merciful father who strikes his son thereby demonstrates more than his love. In the language of Kabbala, this is described as "Gevura in Ḥesed." As explained in many places, each attribute incorporates in its constituent parts all of the attributes, which allows for combinations of attributes and enables them to relate to each other and to the complexity of real life. It is further explained that this is an even more profound revelation of Ḥesed than "Ḥesed in Ḥesed." The reason is that it is natural for a loving person to bestow love; he is simply doing what he is inclined to do by his benevolent nature, and therefore this is no more than the illumination and extension of his love. By contrast, when a loving person follows the path of judgment, as when a father strikes his son, this is not only an extension and expression of love, but a change in his nature, which reveals the essence and depth of his love. Only the essence of love itself can be displayed as the opposite of love, because true love is expressed in accordance with the needs of the loved one, not the needs of the one who loves, as that is characteristic of a superficial love.

שֶׁאֵין לְבֵן חָכָם לַהֲפוֹךְ עוֹרֶף לָנוּס, לִמְצוֹא לוֹ עֶזְרָה אוֹ אֲפִילּוּ מֵלִיץ יוֹשֶׁר לִפְנֵי אָבִיו, הָרַחֲמָן וְהַצַּדִּיק וְחָסִיד,

A wise son should not turn his back to flee, to seek aid or even someone to plead his case before his father, the merciful, righteous and pious, "Someone to plead his case before his father" is the equivalent, in the case at hand, of the tzaddik who turns to God, "his father," in prayer, requesting assistance and for Him to change a decree. One might flee and try to extricate himself from what he thinks is bad for him, but when he realizes that everything that happens is from his good Father, and is appropriate for him, he will not turn away in an effort to avoid accepting it from Him. Rather, the son must be wise, since although what he feels and sees at the moment is rebuke, hardships, and the like, a wise man sees the outcome; he understands where the reproof is coming from and its purpose, and therefore he can sense the good in what is happening to him.

רַק לִהְיוֹת ״יָשָׁר יֶחֱזוּ פָנֵימוֹ״ (תהלים יא,ז),

but rather one should strive to be "upright who beholds His countenance" (Ps. 11:7), In other words, one should look directly at his situation and not seek out explanations, excuses and rationales, because the truth lies in the situation itself, as it is. When a person trusts in his father, that he is merciful, righteous and pious, it is clear to him that he has no other intention in mind. He realizes that he is not a pawn or a means to some other end, but rather he is his father's main focus, he is the purpose of all other seemingly "secondary actions that his father does." He is aware that everything he experiences is tailor-made for him by his father.

עִם אָבִיו פָּנִים בְּפָנִים,

with his father, face-to-face, "Face-to-face" means that he shares the same "face," with his father with the same thoughts and intention. Just as the father's inner intent is that everything should be for his son's benefit, the son should likewise see things in the same manner, with the same inner intention as his father. Moreover, when the bestower and the recipient are face-to-face, the connection between them does not go through superficial and backhanded aspects of their relationship at all; rather, it goes straight from one face to the other, much like a thought or a feeling which can transfer from one person to the other without the need to speak. Therefore, if they are positioned face-to-face on a high level, it is even possible that the son will not feel the external blows at all, but only the love that is contained within them.

לִסְבּוֹל הַכָּאוֹתָיו בְּאַהֲבָה לְטוֹב לוֹ כָּל הַיָּמִים.

to bear his beatings with love, for his own good always. One should not focus on the unpleasant externality of the beating, but on his father's inner will, which is for his benefit, out of love. "To bear" does not mean that he must suffer, but rather that he must endure the beatings. Indeed, carrying burdens involves difficulty and even pain that must be overcome. This demands work and effort. (As opposed to kindness and love, which are in a sense, weightless, and carry themselves.) However, when a person accepts difficulty with love, knowing that it is for his good, he can bear the burden "for his own good always," that is, in all the vicissitudes of time, even on those occasions when he cannot clearly feel his father's love.

וְהִנֵּה לְמַעְלָה בְּחִינַת ‘פָּנִים׳ הוּא הָרָצוֹן וְהַחֵשֶׁק אֲשֶׁר אָבִינוּ שֶׁבַּשָּׁמַיִם מַשְׁפִּיעַ לְבָנָיו

Now, on the higher plane, the aspect of "face" is the will and desire with which our Father in Heaven bestows upon His children Here, the author of the Tanya offers a deeper understanding of the phrase "face-to-face." Opposed to the face, there is a "backside" of influence from above, through which God bestows divine influence upon those to whom He does not desire to give, as it were. We can glimpse this dynamic through our own experiences as well: We have objects and people that we want and desire, and others that we do not want and do not desire. Nevertheless, they have to be present so that what we really want can exist, so that the world which we want to live in, will be sustained. We invest our time and energy in all of those secondary pursuits, not out of passion and desire, but as a kind of necessity, a required routine. This is how the world is built and how one's life is structured – there is always a backside, an aspect of life that can be compared to a chair whose whole purpose is to support the person sitting upon it, the primary purpose. A man's relationship with his son, who is the innermost and essential continuation of the father, is also his most profound relationship. On a higher plane, God's "countenance," His front, so to speak, is how He relates and gives to His children Israel, in general and in particular, in contrast to the "backside," which is His mode of conduct with all the worlds and everything in them.

כָּל טוּב עוֹלָמִים וחַיֵּי נֶפֶשׁ וְגוּף בְּאַהֲבָה וְרָצוֹן חֲשִׁיקָה וַחֲפִיצָה,

all the good of the worlds, and the life of the soul and body, with love and willingness, desire and longing, God bestows upon us "all the good of the worlds" and does not hold anything back from us, as all of this goodness is designated for His children. The term "worlds" in the plural, alludes to the two worlds, this world and the World to Come. The difference between this world and the next is, to a certain extent, the most overarching division of reality and parallels above and below; materiality and spirituality; present and future; the world of service and the world the reward, and so on. On the individual scale, the inner goodness which God bestows upon Israel is directed toward both our spiritual state, "the life of the soul," and toward our material situation, "the life of the body." "Love and willingness, desire and longing" are expressions of the innermost levels of the Divine from which both of these influences, spiritual and material, flow to Israel.

עַל יְדֵי תּוֹרַת חַיִּים שֶׁהִיא רְצוֹנוֹ יִתְבָּרַךְ,

by means of the Torah of life, which is His will that He gave us, as we say: "For with the light of Your face You gave us the Torah of life…," The citation here is from the Amida prayer. The vessel for this deep divine influence is the Torah, which is "His will," as it reveals God's internal desire. Quintessential inner essence, by its very definition, has no vessel other than Torah, which is itself internality. And yet the Torah did not remain up above, in the form of the concealed supreme will of the Creator, but was given to us, Israel, down here below.

לַעֲשׂוֹת בָּהּ רְצוֹנוֹ, וְעַל זֶה נֶאֱמַר: ״בְּאוֹר פְּנֵי מֶלֶךְ חַיִּים וּרְצוֹנוֹ כו׳״ (משלי טז,טו).

with which to perform His will, and it is stated regarding this: "Life is in the light of the king's countenance, and his favor is like a cloud of the late rain…" (Prov. 16:15). This is referring to all of the mitzvot we perform in this world, when the soul is in the body. The Torah is thus the inner light that comes from high above, from the innermost levels of the Divine – the inner desire and delight – down to the personal, physical reality of each member of Israel. Therefore, the same person who fulfills the highest will in the Torah below is the one who receives all the inner abundance, "all the good of the worlds," which is bestowed through the Torah. Not only was the Torah given in the light of God's countenance, as the verse states, but it is the very light of His countenance itself. If you wish to know the focus of God's attention, what He is looking at and to where He is turning His face, so to speak, you have to look in the Torah. The Jewish people, who received the Torah, are destined for it and they uphold it; they are the ones who receive all of this abundant innermost divine connection.

מַה שֶּׁאֵין כֵּן לְעוֹבְדֵי גִילּוּלִים, מַשְׁפִּיעַ חַיֵּי גּוּפָם

This is not the case with regard to idol worshippers, upon whom He bestows the life of their bodies Unlike Israel, God bestows upon the gentiles the life of the body alone, which is an external influence. "The life of their bodies" is the life of this world, the physical abundance that is amply granted to gentiles, especially during the period of our exile. While this influence is also spiritual, it is a spirituality that relates to the life of the body, meaning, it is always channeled into the ego of physical existence.

שֶׁלֹּא בְּרָצוֹן וַחֲשִׁיקָה וַחֲפִיצָה.

without willingness, desire and longing. When God gives to the gentiles, to those who worship idols rather than God, to those who turn their backs to the Lord, He does do so without willingness and desire, unlike when He bestows the internal influence. For in practice, this act of giving serves to amplify the physical being, which is the opposite of holiness and the subsummation of one's internality to the Divine.

לְכָךְ נִקְרָאִים ‘אֱלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים׳, שֶׁיּוֹנְקִים מִבְּחִינַת אֲחוֹרַיִים.

This is why they are called " elohim aḥerim " (foreign gods), as they suckle from the aspect of the "backside" [aḥorayim ] of God's will. Those who receive this influence and live through it are thus called "foreign gods." Someone who is giving willingly and with desire turns his face to his recipient, because he wants to see him and enjoy his reaction, whereas a person who is giving unwillingly and without desire turns his back on the beneficiary, as he takes no pleasure in the act and sometimes even "suffers" from it. Meanwhile, all of his attention and interest are focused elsewhere. The same applies above, with regard to the divine influence granted to the world. The difference between "front" and "back," as explained here and elsewhere, is the difference between God's bestowal upon Israel, which is internal, and His giving to the nations, which is external and in a "backside" manner. It follows that all the influence that a Jewish person receives, even if it seems bad and comes in the form of suffering, is really good and true kindness. The converse is also true: All the physical influence that reaches the gentiles, even if it appears in the form of giving and kindness, is not internal; it is always external, and therefore in the larger picture it is a manifestation of divine judgment; it is merely the tool and the framework, which carry the inner essence.

וְכָךְ הוּא בָּאָדָם, הָרָצוֹן וְהַחֵשֶׁק הוּא בְּחִינַת פָּנִים,

The same applies to man; the will and desire is the aspect of countenance, The same applies to a Jewish person with respect to how he receives the influence from above. While "the will and desire are the aspect of countenance," the face, the contrary is also the case: When you get something that you don't want, from someone you don't want to receive it from, this is "backside." Accordingly, when a Jew receives from God, from the outset the giving from above is "the aspect of countenance," which means that it depends solely on us – if we receive it in the aspect of countenance, the face, it will be "face-to-face." "Face-to-face" means that the countenance below should be turned towards the countenance above, to unite with a commensurate intention of inner presence. To use a mundane comparison, when people love each other, the truer and deeper their love becomes, the more blurred the difference between the needs of one and the needs of the other become. The line that differentiates between the pleasure they each receive evaporates, since each of them takes delight in the pleasure of the other. Therefore, one does not need anything from the other, except for his very presence, since the enjoyment of the one, is itself the pleasure and fulfillment of the other's love.

וְאִם אֵינוֹ מְקַבֵּל בְּאַהֲבָה וְרָצוֹן, כְּאִלּוּ הוֹפֵךְ עוֹרֶף וְאָחוֹר חַס וְשָׁלוֹם.

and if one does not accept it with love and willingness, it is as though he is turning away his neck and back, God forbid. God gives with love and desire, with "the aspect of countenance." However, it does not always seem this way from the other side. The person on the receiving end may not accept what God is sending him with love and willingness, face-to-face, instead, he may turn his back away from the giver.

וְעֵצָה הַיְּעוּצָה לְקַבֵּל בְּאַהֲבָה, הִיא עֲצַת ה׳ בְּפִי חֲכָמֵינוּ ז״ל, לְפַשְׁפֵּשׁ בְּמַעֲשָׂיו וְיִמְצָא לוֹ עֲוֹנוֹת הַצְּרִיכִין מֵירוּק יִסּוּרִים

The recommended counsel, to accept with love, is the counsel of God, as expressed by our Sages, to examine one's deeds and find transgressions of his that require the cleansing of suffering This is not a complete solution to the problems of this world, an instruction from above on what will happen and how to act, but only advice on how "to accept with love," how to change one's attitude towards those problems. The teachings of our Sages are called "the counsel of God" because the words of the Sages in the Talmud and midrashim are not their own statements but the Oral Law, the word of God clothed in human terms. The Talmud (Berakhot 5a) states that if a person sees that suffering is befalling him, he should examine his deeds. In other words, he should search amongst his previous actions, "and find transgressions of his that require the cleansing of suffering." The sufferings and troubles of this world can be viewed in different ways. When one sees suffering as caused by malicious intent, such as evil events that are the result of someone else's calculations, then they are indeed unbearable. However, when one has the attitude that they are specifically directed at oneself and with good intentions, as the foundation for something good that will occur later, similar to a medical treatment that will save his life and the like, this makes it easier to bear the suffering, to the point where one can even accept them with love. Adjusting one's perspective in this manner is not easy. It involves a change in worldview, in one's entire approach from its very foundation. In order to make such a transformation, one has to find a fulcrum within reality, something real that exists no matter how one looks at life, upon which the new outlook can be constructed. The author of the Tanya's advice is to find transgressions in one's past, even slight sins, each person in accordance with his level, which caused a defect and a deficiency in his soul that has not yet been corrected. This transgression, whose rectification is achieved through suffering, as explained in the sources, can be the axis by means of which one's attitude towards the suffering can change. Misery, and all the difficulties of this world in general, now have a purpose. They are not wholly destructive, as they help a person build on another plane – one that is more fundamental and internal – a better, purer and more stable life.

וְיִרְאֶה לָעַיִן גּוֹדֶל אַהֲבָתוֹ אֵלָיו הַמְקַלְקֶלֶת הַשּׁוּרָה.

and then he will clearly see His great love for him, which upsets the regular order. From now on, not only is he no longer resentful of the suffering which leads him to turn his back on God, as it were, but he actually views it as an expression of God's great love for him. The author of the Tanya reiterates here an expression he used earlier in the letter, "upsets the natural order," which refers to a love that is so great that it changes the normal operation of the worlds. However, unlike the previous mention, the phrase has a positive meaning in this context. Earlier, it referred to upsetting the unique way that God manages the affairs of a man, who, out of love, does not have the strength and patience for what he interprets as concealment and distancing, and instead of accepting things with love, seeks to change them. Here, by contrast, the phrase indicates an even higher recognition, that the way God is treating him is not merely following the correct order, but it involves upsetting the order, a change in his favor from God's regular manner of operating the worlds.

כִּמְשַׁל מֶלֶךְ גָּדוֹל וְנוֹרָא הָרוֹחֵץ בִּכְבוֹדוֹ וּבְעַצְמוֹ צוֹאַת בְּנוֹ יְחִידוֹ מֵרוֹב אַהֲבָתוֹ. כְּמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב: ״אִם רָחַץ ה׳ צוֹאַת בְּנוֹת צִיּוֹן כו׳ בְּרוּחַ מִשְׁפָּט כו׳״ (ישעיה ד,ד).

This is like the parable of a great and awesome king who washes off with his own hands the excrement of his only son, out of his great love, as it is written, "When the Lord will have washed the excrement of the daughters of Zion…, with the spirit of judgment…" (Isa. 4:4). A king has many attendants, who themselves have servants, and these can and should do anything for him. And yet there are things even a king wants to do by himself. What is important to him, what he loves very much, he will want to do personally, even those tasks that in any other situation would be considered difficult and demeaning. Accordingly, all at once a person can view what he is going through in a different light: He is like the only son of the Almighty King; and the sufferings, difficulties, and troubles that he is undergoing serve to absolve him, as he is being cleaned by his Father. As the author of the Tanya explains elsewhere, the Hebrew term for absolution also means "rinsing and scouring." As previously stated, sometimes it is the "Gevura in Ḥesed," the expression of the judgment in love, which reveals the essence of the love itself even more than a display of love and the giving it entails. In terms of the parable brought here, the king can give gifts to others who are not his only son, but he will only wash off the excrement of his son whom he loves. Therefore, although not always apparent, it is precisely when God treats us in this manner, through judgment, trouble, and suffering, that He is demonstrating how much He loves us.

וְכַמַּיִם הַפָּנִים אֶל פָּנִים,

And as water reflects a face to the face, This is a paraphrase of a verse in Proverbs, which continues: "So does the heart of a person to a person" (27:19). Water reflects the image of the face of the person who is looking at it. The human heart is compared to water in this regard – it gives back what is shown. The face and emotion that one person shows to another engenders the same feeling in the other person's heart as well. The same applies to the relationship between man and the "higher Man."

תִּתְעוֹרֵר הָאַהֲבָה בְּלֵב כָּל מַשְׂכִּיל וּמֵבִין יְקַר מַהוּת אַהֲבַת ה׳ אֶל הַתַּחְתּוֹנִים, אֲשֶׁר הִיא יְקָרָה וְטוֹבָה מִכָּל חַיֵּי הָעוֹלָמִים כּוּלָּם,

the love will be aroused in the heart of every intelligent person who understands the precious essence of God's love for the lower creations, which is more precious and better than all forms of life in all the worlds, The "lower creations" are those souls that are situated below, in bodies, enmeshed in the lowly affairs of this world. As explained, God's love for lowly man is considered internal in contrast to His bestowal of all the life of the worlds, both the upper and the lower worlds, which is external. For this reason, it is more "precious," not only in quantity, but also in qualitative, internal terms, than "all the forms of life in all the worlds."

כְּמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב: ״מַה יָּקָר חַסְדְּךָ וכו׳״ (תהלים לו,ח) ״כִּי טוֹב חַסְדְּךָ מֵחַיִּים כו״ (שם סג,ד).

as it is written, "How precious is Your kindness, God, men take refuge in the shadow of Your garment" (Ps. 36:8) and "For Your kindness is better than life…" (Ps. 63:4). The most precious thing is God's kindness which He bestows upon man, the benevolence He personally gives, which is clearly His singular, unique kindness. Likewise, "Your kindness is better than life," than the life of all the worlds. "Life" refers to the illumination as it manifests in practice, which is limited by the parameters of what it gives vitality to, as opposed to "Your kindness," which is the source that illuminates the life of all worlds. Ḥesed expresses the inner essence of life, the life as it pulses in the will and internal pleasure of the One who bestows it. The same dynamic applies to people as well; their Ḥesed is always an expression of an inner feeling of love, as opposed to giving materially, which can also be external and compulsory, as stated above.

כִּי הַחֶסֶד שֶׁהוּא בְּחִינַת אַהֲבָה הוּא חַיֵּי הַחַיִּים שֶׁבְּכָל הָעוֹלָמוֹת,

For Ḥesed , which is the aspect of love, is the infinite source of life in all of the worlds, Life is the spiritual force and being that animates everything in the worlds. However, even life has its own life, a higher and more abstract inner influence that vitalizes it. This life of life is divine kindness, which is an expression of God's internal love for us.

כְּמוֹ שֶׁאוֹמְרִים ״מְכַלְכֵּל חַיִּים בְּחֶסֶד״.

as we say, "who sustains the living with kindness." This phrase, which is from the Amida prayer, means that He provides the needs of living creatures with Ḥesed. In other words, kindness and love are the inner sustenance, the hidden life-force within visible life. Even if life does not appear outwardly kind, even if it seems to be an expression of judgment, the life of life within is always true, divine kindness and love.

וְאָז, ״גַּם ה׳ יִתֵּן הַטּוֹב״ וְיָאֵר פָּנָיו אֵלָיו בִּבְחִינַת אַהֲבָה מְגוּלָּה אֲשֶׁר הָיְתָה תְּחִלָּה מְלוּבֶּשֶׁת וּמְסוּתֶּרֶת בְּתוֹכֵחָה מְגוּלָּה וְיִתְמַתְּקוּ הַגְּבוּרוֹת בְּשָׁרְשָׁן,

Then "indeed, the Lord will bestow the good," and He will shine His countenance toward him in a manner of an open love that was initially enclothed and hidden in an open rebuke, and the gevurot will be sweetened at their root, When an individual accepts the inner kindness and love from his side, when he transforms the externality that appears as judgment and suffering into inner essential kindness and love, then "indeed, the Lord will bestow the good," and "He will shine His countenance toward him in a manner of an open love." He will show us the love within the difficulties and sufferings we felt, the love "that was initially enclothed and hidden in an open rebuke." "As water reflects a face to the face" is an unfolding process, which moves from side to side and back and forth, penetrating deeper each time. This is how interpersonal relationships develop: A countenance on one side evokes a countenance on the other side, which in turn induces even more inner connection and even more trust and closeness. Here too, at the initial stage the inner light shining from above transforms the exteriority of below into a "countenance" of loving acceptance of the open reproach, and subsequently the inner loving acceptance below also transforms the exteriority of above – the rebuke and suffering – until it resembles the inner, revealed kindness and love. What might appear to be gevurot and judgment is actually love and kindness at its root. Sometimes there is a need to set a boundary, to reprimand, to enact some kind of cleansing, precisely out of love and caring. When the root of that strictness, which is love, is revealed, this is the mitigation of the gevurot at their root.

וְיִתְבַּטְּלוּ הַדִּינִין, נֶצַח סֶלָה וָעֶד.

and the harsh judgments will be nullified, eternally, Selah, forever. This is an even more significant stage than the sweetening; it is an absolute negation, that there will be no judgments at all. In other words, the cancellation will not be merely temporary, or to a certain extent, but rather the judgment will be nullified at its root, and there will be only kindness and love both within and without. Continuing with the metaphor of "sweetening the gevurot," a bitter or spicy food can be sweetened by mixing sugar into it. However, even though one can even add so much sugar that the bitter taste is no longer noticeable, that would not lead to a change in its essence: The bitter will remain bitter, and likewise the judgment will remain judgment; it has simply been mixed with other substances. In contrast, sweetening at the root constitutes a change in the very properties of the substance. At that time, the judgments are entirely abolished, and the judgment ceases to be a judgment at all. The terms "eternally; Selah; forever," which serve to indicate the conclusion of the discussion, signify the reinforcement of the previous claims: "So it should it be truly, forever, without a pause." This is the mark of the truth: It does not change with the vagaries of place or time. The same will apply to the abolition of judgments – truly and forever – when the gevurot are sweetened at the root. The meaning of the mitigation of the gevurot and the nullification of the judgments, as expressed by the terms "eternally; Selah; forever," is that this will be the eternal state of affairs not only with regard to the future, but in a certain sense with respect to the past as well. When an object breaks, it can be fixed in such a manner that it is no longer smashed. However, such a repair job, which rectifies only the future, is not a true and complete amendment at the root of the object, since the past remains broken. It is not accounted for, so to speak, and there is no justification for why the item was in its previous state. By contrast, the repair referred to here (which is how the act of rectification works in general, according to Hasidic teachings) sweetens the past as well. It clarifies why everything occurred, as it shows that in fact, all the bitterness was nothing but goodness and kindness from the very outset, only it was hidden, similar to a "chair," the means to achieve perfection and a greater level of the visible good and sweetness. The sweetening of the gevurot in this manner is, in fact, the topic of this letter. It began with the gevurot, the difficult situation, the troubles and tribulations that Jews have endured in their daily lives, until they could bear them no longer and came to the Rebbe to seek help. The Rebbe's answer can be divided into two parts: The initial reply appears at first glance to be the Rebbe's personal reaction – an expression of his own pain for the plight of the hasidim, a virtual apology for his inability to provide an adequate response to them and something almost approaching anger that they are turning to him with such requests. However, when everything he says is taken into account, there is not even a hint of helplessness here. His answer is, fundamentally, the reply of a "Rebbe" – not a personal, human response but an illumination of the truth in relation to the questioner. His statements should be understood as follows: It is correct that in these circumstances the truth seems difficult, demanding for the hasid and hard and painful for the Rebbe who has to deliver this truth to the hasid whom he loves. This explains the shakiness of the tone at the beginning of the letter. Nevertheless, one can discern from the very start how the Rebbe, with public and personal heroism – for he surely accepts his personal responsibility for it all, as he feels what the hasid is feeling – directs the problem towards the only solution he sees. The issue become even clearer in the second part of the letter (from the words "like a merciful, wise and righteous father etc."), where he explains both the theoretical basis for this path and its practical fulfillment. This is not the solution that every Rebbe would offer, but it is characteristic of the author of the Tanya. After all, it is also possible to sweeten the gevurot in a temporary, external manner, such as when the Rebbe intervenes and halts the oppression, by taking the issue upon himself and changing that reality or the hasid himself. However, if the Rebbe were to do this, the hasid will be left with something unfinished, unsweetened gevurot that he merely does not feel at the moment. For the author of the Tanya, however, there are no shortcuts or compromises. A person can and must work with the actual reality of his life, and he must travel the whole path himself. The Rebbe will accompany him, he will be alongside him in all his difficulties, to offer explanations, encouragement, and support – but he cannot go in his place. The sweetening is not external but internal, performed by the man himself, by thinking and attending to the whole and to each and every detail. The author of the Tanya portrays this path through his maxim from the start of the Tanya: "A long and short path." It is "long" because there are no shortcuts or skipping of stages, but it is also "short" because this sweetening is at the root, and one will not have to repeat anything that has been sweetened in this manner in another cycle of life.