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But it is very important to emphasize that all of this refers only to implement and live the advice and approach that are described
to the words up to the end of the blessing, but not the end there. If he lacks knowledge, he will not understand what he learns,
itself, because it is forbidden to recite the words of the end and he will even disagree with what he learns. Therefore, when a
of the blessing more than once. person recites “He Who graciously gives knowledge,” he must have
in mind his wish to understand every holy book that he learns in
For instance, the fifth blessing of the Shemoneh Esrei reads as line with the truth of the Torah.
follows: “Return us, our Father, to Your Torah, and bring us close,
our King, to Your service, and return us in complete teshuvah With Some People, Nothing Will Help
before You. Blessed are You, Hashem, Who desires teshuvah.”
Note carefully that it is permitted to repeat the words from “Return We can see this in actuality. Hashem has given me the opportunity
us, our Father,” to “in complete teshuvah before You” as many
times as you want. You may repeat them all as a unit, or you may to help Jews who come to me asking for advice regarding all sorts
of problems.
repeat each section separately. Every person should do as he feels.
It makes no difference. But as for the conclusion of the blessing, There are some who, after I advise them with a few short sentences,
“Blessed are You, Hashem, Who desires teshuvah,” you may say immediately understand what they have to do. They leave happy
it only once at the conclusion of the blessing. That is to say, after and satisfied. They take the proper actions and pray at length,
you have repeated the first part of the blessing for as long and for and they solve their difficulties. These people have awareness and
as many times as you want, recite the conclusion beginning with the knowledge, and so it is easy to help them.
word “Blessed” only once, and then continue to the next blessing.
But if a person lacks such knowledge, it makes no difference how
“And Please Make Sweet” much one talks to him and encourages him. That barely lasts half
an hour, and then he immediately reverts to his confused state.
In every blessing that you want to say at length, you may do so Whatever one tells him falls on deaf ears, because he lacks proper
only until the words, “Blessed are You, Hashem…,” because it is knowledge. What can you do with such a person? How is it possible
forbidden to repeat these words. If the name of Hashem appears in to help him?
the middle of the blessing, it is no problem to repeat it a number
of times (up to the words, “Blessed are You”), because you are There are many people who, although they do not know me at
saying Hashem’s name in the course of a supplication. For example, all, have heard my disks or learned my books, and their lives have
as you pray and plead, you may repeat a number of times the become a Garden of Eden. These are people who have knowledge
sentence, “Heal us, Hashem, and we will be healed, save us and we and implement what they learn. Although they don’t come to
will be saved, because You are our praise.” me personally, after they read one of my books, hear one of my
disks or sit in one of my classes, they immediately understand the
I witnessed one of the tzaddikim of the generation as he said solutions to all of their questions. They are invigorated, they go to
the blessing on the Torah, and he repeated the words, “Hashem work and they pray, and their lives flow smoothly and become a
our God, please make the words of Your Torah sweet in our Garden of Eden.
mouths…,” very many times (up to the word “blessed”), because
this is an awesome and wonderful prayer for oneself and for one’s Only Hashem Graciously Gives
offspring (as I wrote in Successful Children). And only after he
repeated this over and over did he recite the conclusion once: On the other hand, some people learn Torah and pray for years,