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Imagine the worst person in the world: someone who converted Rabbi Nachman told that when he was in the land of Israel and in
to another religion, worshipped idols and persuaded others to do so, the city of Tiberias, a plague broke out, and all of the city residents
murdered, fathered mamzerim, stole billions of dollars without any were in terrible danger. Therefore, the governor closed and locked
way of returning what he stole, and who is filled with cravings and the city gates so that healthy people would not enter the plague
hateful traits. He is entirely evil. But Hashem desires teshuvah—the area from outside the city. There were healthy people in the city
teshuvah of every individual, including him. At the moment that he who wanted to flee and sought all sorts of ways to do so, and
humbles himself before Hashem and desires to do teshuvah, God among them was Rabbi Nachman. He came to the city wall that
loves and desires him in turn and considers him to be righteous (as was alongside the [Kinneret] sea, and climbed onto it. In the end,
we learned earlier). Hashem wants to give even this person physical he found himself hanging onto the wall by his hands with the sea
life and, how much more, spiritual life. below him. He realized his imminent danger, and at every moment
he felt his strength seeping away. At that point, “he cried out in
Jeroboam ben Nebat sinned and caused the nation of Israel to his heart to Hashem, may he be blessed, properly.” Hashem had
sin more than anyone else in history (cf. Avot). He had been a compassion on him and rescued him. This is in keeping with what
phenomenal Torah sage who abandoned the Torah, threw off the we have learned above: that our outcry to Hashem is proper only
yoke of mitzvot and caused the majority of the children of Israel to when it is filled with such an awesome feeling.
engage in idol worship, which is the most abhorrent sin of all. Yet
our holy sages relate that “the Holy One, blessed be He, took hold Rabbi Nachman taught that we must always pray like this: that
of Jeroboam’s garment and told him, ‘If you do teshuvah, then when we pray, we must feel as though we are hanging by our hands
I, you and the son of Jesse [i.e., David] will stroll together in the from a high wall, in terrible danger of falling, that at every moment
Garden of Eden” (Sanhedrin 102a). This passage applies as well to our strength is diminishing, and we feel that we are already falling—
every individual who thinks that he is the most deplorable person and in that way, we cry out to Hashem. That is called, “From
in the world. It tells that Hashem wanted to save even Jeroboam, the belly of Sheol, I cried out” (Jonah 2:3). And so Rabbi Nachman
who was in truth the most immoral of all men, so that he would said that “the main thing is, ‘From the belly of Sheol, I cried out’”
reach a level even higher than that of King David, who constituted (Sichot Haran 302).
the “fourth leg of the heavenly chariot”!
Rabbi Nachman used to urge people about this many times. To
There are many sources for this idea (however, this is not the that end, he would tell the story of the wall in Tiberias. And he
place to expand on this). Hashem wants to bring even the most also used to tell how one time he went to do hitbodedut in a small
debased people close to him, even unprincipled gentiles and boat on the river in order to conceal himself behind a thick growth
heretics. Certainly, He does not desire their death. The entire of reeds. The boat began to shake until it almost overturned. “And
Torah is filled with this concept. Even the wicked Pharaoh—who then he cried out to Hashem, may he be blessed, and he lifted his
tormented the children of Israel, who shed their blood and stiffened hands to Him properly.” Rabbi Natan adds (Sichot Haran 117):
his neck until Hashem prevented him from doing teshuvah—even
he, the midrash states, having survived the splitting of the Sea of He used to tell this because he wanted to make
Reeds, became ruler of Nineveh and inspired the entire nation to us aware in our hearts that everyone must cry out
attain a great level of teshuvah. On Yom Kippur, before Neilah, to Hashem, may He be blessed, and in this way lift
we read about the teshuvah of the wicked Pharaoh. Therefore, you his heart to Him, may he be blessed, as though he
who hope in Hashem, may your heart be strong and firm. As you is in the middle of the sea hanging by a thread, the
stand before Hashem in prayer and desire to do teshuvah, you must storm wind is raging to the heart of heaven, and

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