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To Extinguish the Fires times, he should engage in two hours of personal work a day, so evil inclination that he cannot overcome—and not just an evil
that he can devote two half hour periods to two items. If he can inclination, but an evil inclination that rises up, grows stronger and
When a person is addicted to drugs or alcohol, the first thing he only spend one half an hour on one item, he should spend five is renewed every day. The more a person grows, the more his
must do is devote all of his prayers to overcome that addiction. He or ten minutes every day on the other urgent items in his life, inclination grows—“whoever is greater than another has a greater
may not do the work of the will on anything else because this is since even because even that—when it is done in an ongoing and evil inclination” (Succah 52a). A person’s evil inclination pursues
the most burning issue, and working on this is what heaven wants consistent way—will have an effect, because these few minutes add him and seeks to kill him—no less than that. It is crafty and wily and
him to do. As long as he is addicted to these terrible cravings that up to a large and considerable total over the course of the year. wraps itself in mitzvot, and it works on every person until his final
darken his entire life, any other work is falsehood and deceit, and day, until his final breath, without ever giving up. This is a war that
he will not truly advance in it. The general principle is that there are no general principles, but lasts 120 years. When your enemy has the upper hand and you do
that “every wise person must act with mindfulness” (Proverbs 13:16) not possess any weapon to fight against him, you are lost. And the
If a man has a severe relationship problem with his wife, clearly and understand the fundamental idea that in order to change he principal weapon, the sole counsel and the only power with which
he cannot pray about anything else until he works on that and the requires consistency and tenacity. When a person’s prayer acts like we can conquer the evil inclination and even nullify it entirely is the
Shechinah returns and remains in his house always. Such a person drops of water day after day falling on his heart of stone, in the end work of the will!
must read my book, In the Garden of Peace, in depth and spend it will pierce that heart of stone and split all of its hard sinews. Then
the entire half hour of the work of the will on everything that is Hashem will remove this person’s heart of stone from his flesh and That is principally why people at all stages of spirituality remain
written there. give him a heart of flesh and a proper spirit. Amen—so may it be on the same level and are unable to proceed and rise. For their
His will. entire lives, they stay in the same place without rising from level to
A man on the verge of getting married must first of all, before level and without advancing. They are unable to rise—but they are
anything else, dedicate his time of prayer to establishing his home certainly able to fall. In that direction, the way is wide open, and
on the foundations of peace and love. He must do this for a long tens upon tens of thousands fall like flies, may God help us, because
period before getting married and afterwards as well, devoting the A New Outlook on the World they do not engage in the work of the will, which alone gives a
half hour of work of the will to the topic of a loving home. person the strength to stand firm in this war.
In accordance with everything that you have learned here, you
If a person has a serious anger problem, he must first of all work may understand the depth of the simple truth in Rabbi Natan’s But it does not have to be this way. Everyone has the power to
to eradicate his trait of anger. He does not have the right to choose summarization of Rabbi Nachman’s teaching (Kitzur Likutei Moharan rise from level to level every day of his life. Everyone has the power
to work on anything else. First of all, he must stop hurting people. I 2): to stand firm in this war. But you must do the work of the will.
To that end, he should learn In the Garden of Faith entirely. In Then you will reach every stage and level, because you hold the
particular, every day he should read the chapter dealing with anger. A Jew’s essential weapon is prayer. In all of weapon that gives you the power to stand firm!
This chapter is short and concentrated, and sums up all of the work the wars in which a person must be victorious,
on the trait of anger. When a person reads this and applies its words whether wars of the evil inclination or wars against Who Is the Victor?
to a daily half hour of work of the will, he will see changes occur those who obstruct him and contend with him, he
until he breaks and nullifies his trait of anger. When a person lacks a weapon, even if he has not yet fallen in
engages in prayer. That is the source of all of his
If a person has huge debts and is unable to make the payments, vitality. Therefore, a person who wants to truly battle, even if he is still alive, he is already vanquished. The evil
inclination does not even have to conquer or kill him, because he is
and he is thus harming people, he cannot work on any other issue. attain the holiness of being a Jew must engage in a already in its hand, he is already overcome, he is already defeated.
What right does he have to ask what issue to work on first? First of great deal of prayers, requests and speeches to his It would be the work of five minutes for the evil inclination to
all, he must stop hurting the people to whom he owes money. In Maker, because that is the essence of the weapon completely overcome him. If the evil inclination does not do so,
this case it is clear that his work is to get out of debt. Therefore, he with which to win the war. that is only because it is comfortable with having the person in his
present condition. This person isn’t bothering it. The evil inclination