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evil inclination of sleep is your primary enemy, that it is absolute evil
and the angel of death, in the simplest sense. Lamentably, people
think that it is good. It clothes itself in mitzvot and tells a person,
“Sleeping is a mitzvah,” “Guarding one’s health is a mitzvah,” and
the like. Be aware that the essential weapon with which to overcome
this evil inclination is prayer. Therefore, devote a minimum of half
an hour a day to plead and cry out to Hashem to help you know
that this is your central struggle in life. Ask Hashem to give you a
strong and completely powerful will with which to desire to cling to
Hashem and not to desire sleep. Ask Him to give you a great deal
of will to pray at length. Address Hashem in the following words:
Master of the universe, I got up late today. I request
forgiveness for that, and I also request forgiveness for the
fact that I do not have sufficient will to get up early, for
the fact that my will remains very weak.
Master of the universe, I want to rectify matters. I want
to live in accordance with Your will. Therefore, I need
to devote at least half an hour a day to the work of the
will on this topic. Help me devote half an hour every
day to the work of the will. Help me set aside time to sit,
focus, pray, and so forth. Master of the universe, give
me resolve. Help me accustom myself to want and pray
for this every day of my life—particularly, before I go
to sleep. Help me acquire a strong and powerful will, so
that I will always get up early to serve You and fear You.
Other resolutions—such as using two alarm clocks, asking a friend
to wake you, imposing fines on yourself, and the like—are all well
and good, and they indeed express your positive resolve to get up,
and they might help you somewhat. But they will not rectify the
problem at its root. The root of the problem is a lack of resolve,
and the only solution is for you to engage in work that will intensify
your resolve, because as long as that is missing, all solutions and
resolutions are like an aspirin that doesn’t deal with the root of the
illness from which the pain proceeds. It is true that you want to get
up, that you feel terrible that you are waking up late—but that isn’t 16
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enough. Remember: “The greatness of a goal must be matched by
the greatness of the desire for it” (Likutei Moharan 66). The spiritual
work of sleep and waking up with alacrity early in the morning—-
which is the foundation of a Jew’s life, and the beginning of every
good and successful day in serving Hashem—requires a great deal of
resolve, a great deal of work. That is a person’s daily test and daily
burden. It requires him to engage in daily prayer and devotion.
Therefore, your sole solution is to devote at least half an hour a day
to the work of the will, and to want and pray to nullify your craving
for sleep and to get up in the morning with alacrity until you attain
the purified and powerful will required for this matter.
Therefore, dear reader, do not afflict yourself with vain accusations:
“I am listless, I am contemptible, I have a strong craving for sleep,
I have no fear of heaven,” and the like. Be aware, dear reader,
that the truth is that Hashem gave you this evil inclination. You
didn’t buy it from the store. The truth is that Hashem gave this
evil inclination the power to overcome you and vanquish you. And
what does Hashem want from you? To have intent and to pray, in
accordance with what you are learning here. And the main thing is
that you set aside time to engage in the work of the will! That is all
of your service: the work of the will and prayer. After you know
this, all of your work begins. Therefore, tell Hashem:
I thank You a great deal, Hashem, for having given
me this evil inclination of craving for sleep, which is so
strong that it has incinerated many years of my life. If
not for Your help, I could not overcome it. But although
I cannot overcome it by myself, I can intend—I can
intend to cling to You properly and serve You when I
lie down properly and get up properly. Creator of the
universe, until now You have given the evil inclination
power over me. Please give me the might to vanquish the
evil inclination of sleep. Since You are all-powerful, You
can help me so that I will be redeemed from the craving
for sleep, and I will overcome it with the strength of a
lion. When I have sufficient intention, You will help me
and guide me, because it is a spiritual law that “in the