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prayers—i.e., they do not progress. They pray for many things—or result, one day, Frankenstein’s monster rises up against its maker
if they pray for one thing, they do so for just a few days. They do and Pandora’s box is opened.
not maintain their focused prayer for a sufficient amount of time to
acquire what they want. Instead, they leap from topic to topic and There is no difference between you and all of the tzaddikim.
from trait to trait. Thus, they do not gain anything. In the end, they They too had an evil inclination that they could not overcome,
despair and fall entirely from this elevated practice, ceasing the but Hashem helped them conquer it. Why did Hashem help them
practice of hitbodedut altogether, because they do not see results. prevail when they were tested? The answer is: because they had
intent! The question arises: But everyone has intent…. After all,
However, when we spend half an hour on one topic we see results, who would want to fail? The answer is: That is correct. But they
and that bolsters our adherence to the entire path of hitbodedut. did the work of the will. They prayed and prayed and prayed. Who
When we do hitbodedut, for half an hour we engage in the work of is called a person who “intends”? Someone who devotes time to
the will. That half an hour of work on the will we desire to engage working every day and praying to Hashem to save him from the
in the practice of hitbodedut, and it becomes our regular practice. snare of the evil inclination, to help him attain purity, and to lead
him in the way of the tzaddikim. When a person does this, he builds
Rabbi Baruch Shalom Halevi Ashlag, the son of Rabbi Yehudah vessels. In this way, he overcomes his spiritual imperfections, and
Leib Ashlag, author of the Sulam, defined and summarized this in he is promised that his prayers will not return empty.
precise language:
Hashem wants to give everyone all of the good in the world, to
The difficulty preventing a person from being able to lead everyone on the straight path—the path of the tzaddikim—
pray is that his will is divided into a number of and to guard everyone from all descents. But there are spiritual
components…. That is why the holy books state that principles: i.e., you must prepare vessels, engage in much prayer,
when a person takes the initiative to pray regarding some and set aside time for the work of the will. Then you will receive.
topic, he should only pray for one thing. One may ask: Do not just say “I want”—that is not enough. Ask yourself: what
What is wrong with requesting two things? After, nothing will you do with this intention? Does your intention inspire you to
is lacking in the house of the King! But the answer is that set daily times of prayer? Every lack comes from a lack of prayer!
If you do not engage in this, how will you change? What guarantee
this advice relates to the [limitations of the] person: a do you have? What do you put your trust in: your power? Your
person only has a finite amount of will, and he must character? Know that if you do not stand and plead before Hashem
devote the entire power of his will to the topic of his to guard you so that you will not fall, that means that you think
prayers, and not disperse his will among a few topics. that your life is under your control, and you are relying on yourself
and your own strength. If so, you disagree with the Gemara, which
Everyone has a measure of will that the Holy One, testifies that you do not have the power to conquer your evil
blessed be He, has given him in accordance with his inclination. The mishnah states, “Do not believe in yourself until
needs. By way of illustration, let us say that a person the day you die” (Avot 2:4). If you truly do not want to fall, know
possesses ten kilograms of will. If with one kilogram of that you do not possess any power of your own, and that you need
his will he wants money, with another kilogram he wants the Creator’s help at every moment. Set aside time to engage in
honor, and so forth, his will is divided into a number of the work of the will. Choose a place to pray, and then Hashem will
parts, each of which is weak…. A strong will is a single lead you, save you, and purify you, because Hashem “guards the
feet of His pious one” (Samuel I 2:9). You too will be such a pious
will! For instance, a person sitting in jail has only one will: