Part 2 · Introduction

Introduction to the First Nine Chapters 0:05

So now, we'll give a little introduction about the first nine chapters. The first nine chapters begin as a continuation of קונטרס ההתפעלות. They start off that it was already explained in a special קונטרס, which is קונטרס ההתפעלות, about all the different levels of excitement that a person has from התבוננות.

Now, קונטרס ההתפעלות was written by the מיטעלער רבי almost immediately after the הסתלקות of the אלטער רבי, and it consists of two general letters that the אלטער רבי that that the מיטעלער רבי sent to all the חסידים.

And what he what he explains is first he explains the different problems and spiritual sicknesses, he calls them, that the חסידים had in those days. He says that the אלטער רבי already was, like, told him about these problems, and wanted The אלטער רבי himself wanted to do what the מיטעלער רבי was doing, to write the to both do the different things that the מיטעלער רבי did to to fix it and also write things to explain it, what what the מיטעלער רבי explains.

What he The main thing that he explains there is that there people didn't know how to apply חסידות properly to עבודה, and people saw the two as being, like, disconnected.

And this led to two opposite, like, camps, two two opposite conclusions, and with many different mistakes in between, but there were two main approaches. One approach was that חסידות is supposed to be, is meant to be an intellectual thing, and that any sort of excitement is ישות, that a person's feeling themselves if they get excited.

Two Opposite Approaches: Intellectual vs Excitement 1:55

And they felt that it disturbed their understanding, and they wanted to learn in in almost a cold, intellectual way that was separate from any sort of of excitement. And they thought that that was the עבודה also. That's the way it's supposed to be.

And they would actually ask in יחידות for advice on how to get rid of התפעלות. If they would get excited from what they were being מתבונן in חסידות, they would ask for ways to get rid of it, and they would do different things to try to get rid of it. Yeah, the מיטעלער רבי says that it's so bitter that to hear for him to hear the words of these people that they would come asking for ways to to rid themselves of this excitement that even and this was, like, the main point of חסידות.

Then on the other side, there were people that felt and understood that the main thing was this type of עבודה, that they should be affected and excited about Godliness, and they should have this type of התפעלות in דאווענען and not in דאווענען, but they didn't see how חסידות was useful to accomplish that at all. They felt that חסידות was totally removed from that, and they just learned it out of obligation, and they would ask what what good is all of this חסידות for.

And they didn't see it didn't it didn't bring them to any sort of התפעלות. So, in a way, they were better off because they realized what the point was, but they didn't ever get התפעלות from At least the other people got התפעלות from their understanding, but these people didn't didn't see how it could bring them to that at all.

And the the מיטעלער רבי says how both to the אלטער רבי and to him it's it's so bitter. He says, "מר לי מר." It's so bitter, these two opposite things. And it's a חושך כפול ומכופל. They're taking light for darkness and darkness for light. They think that good is bad and bad is good, and it's totally confused.

Bitter Confusion and the Need for Guidance 3:56

And so he says, "What I Really, I should sit down each person in יחידות and explain to them the proper approach and the חב״ד approach to עבודה and to understanding and how it's supposed to fit together and set everybody straight, but I don't have time to do that. So instead, I'm going to write these general letters to explain it." And so then, then he writes קונטרס ההתפעלות, and there he explains all the different levels of excitement that a person can have in Godliness, and when it's good and when it's bad, and the signs to know what level you're on, and all the mistakes and pitfalls a person can have on each level.

And the main conclusion of that book, of קונטרס ההתפעלות, is that in order for a person's excite- ment to be true, it has to come from התבוננות in Godliness, that if a person is truly excited about something, he's not thinking about himself or how excited he is, he's thinking about whatever is making him excited, and automatically, he gets excited. Like the example he gives is if a person, let's say, wins a lot of money or has some very good news like that, then they're very they're very excited, but they're thinking about the money.

Lottery Analogy for True Spiritual Excitement 5:18

They're not thinking about how excited they are, and automatically, they get very excited. Yeah, like if a person like when a person wins wins like the the sweepstakes, $10 million lottery, and they come with the the camera when they go to tell them, and they give them the check. The reason that they come is they know that they're going to they're going to flip out, they're going to do funny things, so they want to show it.

Because when a person gets the money, they get very they think about the money, they get very excited, but they're not trying to like, oh, now I'm going to get very excited, or wow, this is a great feeling that I get. They're not thinking about the feeling, they're just thinking about the money, and automatically they do these crazy things, they don't even necessarily realize they're doing it.

They're so excited that they forget about themself, they're just totally thinking about the money. The same way, if a person appreciates Godliness, then they're very excited about the Godliness.

And they're so excited that they found that השם gave them the תורה and that they have God, that they'll dance around and everything like the person even more than the person that won the $10 million. But they won't be thinking about how excited they are, how they feel, they'll be thinking about God, and automatically they'll be excited.

So the same so the what what this means is that a person has to his mind has to be full of understanding of Godliness, of התבוננות in Godliness, and then that means that his excitement is a real thing.

Focus on Understanding, Not Highest Level 6:59

That's one point, and the other point is that it's not important what level you're on. He says that even though he explains to you all different levels of excitement, it's not important that you should reach the highest level. What's important is that you do whatever is real and natural for your where you're holding, whatever level you're holding.

So you shouldn't be trying to like reach the highest level of excitement, you should be trying to understand Godliness, and automatically whatever how however much you understand and however sensitive you are based on how refined you are and based on the level of your soul, it will make an effect, a corresponding effect.

And you shouldn't really you should basically the point of קונטרס ההתפעלות is to forget about your התפעלות and just focus on being מתבונן properly in אלקות, and automatically everything else will come. So after this, he continues in the first nine chapters of שערי יחוד with this point, and he says that now that we've explained all the levels of התפעלות that a person can have from התבוננות, now we have to explain what התבוננות is and what to be מתבונן on.

And what he explains in short is that, and later we'll come back and do these chapters in depth, but for now what's what's important to know now is that התבוננות means עיון, means analysis. Like he quotes like in גמרא that there's a way of learning that's called עיון and one that's called גירסא.

Defining התבוננות: Analysis over Meditation 8:39

And התבוננות means עיון. It comes from the word בינה, which means to understand. התבוננות means to make yourself understand. And the double נון indicates that it's an intense form of the verb, which means עיון as opposed to גירסא. And he explains that this is contrary to the popular belief that התבוננות is העמקת הדעת. העמקת הדעת means concentration or meditation in like the popular sense of the word meditation.

And people think that התבוננות means to like picture something or to focus on something for a long time. And what he he explains here that it's true that you have to focus and connect to the idea, which is called העמקת הדעת, but nevertheless, it has to be you have to be focusing on the explanations that you learned. which is the עיון, the התבוננות. And that's why, even when sometimes in they're telling you that you should have העמקת הדעת, that you should concentrate very deeply on an idea, they always call it or they or often call it התבוננות, instead of calling it העמקת הדעת, even when they mean העמקת הדעת, to to point out and and remind remind us that we have to be focusing on what we learn, that it has to the התבוננות and the the contemplation has to preceded and be accompanied by intense study, that a person has to learn all the explanations of חסידות very, very well, with all the details, and understand it just like they understand a piece of גמרא, with all its details and explanations, and the differences between this and that.

And after a person understands it very well and they study it over and over, then they can continue to focus on what it really means and what's the נמשל and how does it apply, but they always have to go back to that to that thinking of of reviewing the explanations and and all the details.