The Sweet Pleasure of Bitachon
Joy in All Circumstances, with Pleasant Serenity
The Chovos HaLevavos concludes his opening to Sha’ar haBitachon by listing the final—and chief—material benefit that comes to the ba’al bitachon. The ba’al bitachon remains joyful regardless of the situation into which the Ribbono shel Olam places him.
The commentaries explain that in general, when a person loses his fortune, he must work mightily so that it shouldn’t affect his serenity. But the ba’al bitachon is above any loss! He succeeds in remaining joyful even if he has lost all his money! This, explains the Chovos HaLevavos, is all due to his great trust that the Ribbono shel Olam will do only what is good for him in every circumstance. He knows that everything that the Ribbono shel Olam does is the very best thing possible for him.
As in a Mother’s Loving Embrace
“The trust that the ba’al bitachon places in the Ribbono shel Olam is similar to the trust an infant places in his loving mother” who does so many things for his good—even though he may not always appreciate it at the time. She bathes him, she bundles him up... even though the child may protest. It is clear to all that she does so out of sheer love and compassion.
The ba’al bitachon feels this level of trust regarding everything that transpires. In every situation in his life, he feels that the Ribbono shel Olam is like a mother who dotes on him and cares for him—as Dovid HaMelech says, אמו עלי כגמול נפשי ודוממתי שויתי לא אם, I swear that I stilled and silenced my soul like a suckling child at his mother’s side (Tehillim 131:2).
Where did Dovid HaMelech draw the strength to endure the painful situations in his life? His strength came from the fact that he always felt like a “suckling child at his mother’s side.” Even when the mother’s action hurts, she is still displaying compassion and love. And this knowledge gave him the kochos to remain truly joyful throughout his ordeals.
Nothing Can Take Away the Serenity of the Soul
The Chovos HaLevavos placed this benefit at the end of his list of benefits—as if to say, “I enumerated a long list of wonderful benefits that come to the ba’al bitachon...but now we’re at the pinnacle: The benefit that nothing in the world can rob you of your joy! Nothing in the world can disturb your serenity and your kirvas Elokim.” No matter what you may endure, you will always have the feeling that your mother is doting upon you. Such pain doesn’t hurt.
Bitachon Brings the Indescribable Pleasure of Closeness to Hashem
The Wonderful Sensation That Hashem Is Always with You
The Chovos HaLevavos is referring to the unique pleasure which the ba’al bitachon merits—far more than simply believing that everything that Hashem does is for the good. The ba’al bitachon is zocheh to sense the close, loving feeling that the Ribbono shel Olam is personally doting on him, like a devoted mother on her beloved child. This gives a person an indescribably pleasant and sweet feeling.
Dovid HaMelech says, יסובבנו חסד בה׳ והבוטח לרשע מכאובים רבים, Many are the agonies of the wicked, but as for one who trusts in Hashem, kindness surrounds him (Tehillim 32:10). The rashah, who is distant from emunah in Hashem, lives in agony. Everything he endures causes him pain. Here his suit got stuck on a nail and ripped... there he got a cut... here he suffered aggravation from financial matters... and there he got into an interpersonal altercation or a painful family saga. Everything hurts him. Many are the agonies of the wicked...
Surrounded by Kindness
But the בה׳ בוטח is surrounded by kindness! He doesn’t sense difficulties, and nothing hurts him, because he lives with the sweet feeling of the pleasantness of Hashem—knowing that Hashem protects and accompanies him, just like a mother who dotes on her child.
With this idea, the Rishonim explain the pasuk לב וטוב רעים עני ימי כל תמיד משתה, all the days of a poor man are bad, but a good-hearted person feasts perpetually (Mishlei 15:15). The poor man, they explain, refers to poverty of the mind—i.e., he lacks emunah and bitachon, and for this reason, all his days are bad and painful, because every triviality hurts him. But the טוב לב, the good-hearted person who’s satisfied with his lot feasts and rejoices. He knows that the Ribbono shel Olam gives him everything he needs, and thus he doesn’t feel the pain that the rashah experiences.
The Erroneous Interpretation of Surrounded by Kindness
Some may think that יסובבנו חסד בה׳ הבוטח means that the ba’al bitachon will never experience a problem, he will be spared all misfortune. He’ll never have to endure challenges, and his life will hum along like a well-oiled machine. He’ll never lose money, he’ll never suffer loss, he’ll have a beautiful family that only brings him nachas, he’ll never struggle with chinuch, he’ll have a beautiful home and peace of mind, and he’ll know how to get along perfectly with everyone, and so forth....
This is a small-minded outlook that views the world as though the pinnacle of fortune that a person can have is never to experience problems or challenges—and it’s rooted in a lack of grasping Hashem. The person thinks that the entire reward for the ba’al bitachon is that he’ll never suffer misfortune.
The True Reward for Bitachon Is the Pleasantness of Hashem
But the Chovos HaLevavos teaches us that there’s something far greater than this—and that is the great feeling of the pleasure of kirvas Elokim in every situation—even when we do experience challenges.
He teaches us that the Ribbono shel Olam gives the ba’al bitachon a far greater gift—the pleasant feeling of closeness to Hashem, and the pleasure of feeling the love of Hashem at every stage of his life. This is a wonderful pleasure—and it doesn’t come because he has no problems, but because he’s filled with the pleasure of kirvas Elokim!
This feeling is an entirely new level of pleasure. This person feels saturated with pleasure always and constantly—morning, noon, and night, whether or not he’s experiencing challenges. He doesn’t feel tzaros because he’s saturated with pleasure! He always feels that the Ribbono shel Olam is here with him and surrounds and protects him. He sees it so clearly and he’s filled with joy because he feels עמדי! אתה כי Automatically, he’s surrounded only by good.
A Pleasant Life
Sometimes, a person is so preoccupied trying to escape problems—because he thinks that the best thing that can happen is never to suffer problems—but he doesn’t realize that the above level of pleasure is much more basic. The ba’al bitachon experiences something far more pleasurable.
The sefer Menoras HaMa’or HaKadmon (authored by Rav Yisrael Elnekave, a student of the Rosh) writes on the pasuk משתה לב וטוב רעים ימי כל תמיד that the person who’s poor in his emunah is always surrounded by worry and depression. But a person who is happy with his lot and who believes that the Ribbono shel Olam will provide his parnassah whenever he needs it, will always experience a pleasant feeling. In every situation, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, this person is joyful and content—because he lives with the feeling of having a set table with everything provided in front of him.
This is the opposite of רעים עני ימי. Someone who has bitachon will always have a happy heart. The Ribbono shel Olam will award him the sweet feeling of pleasure, and he will live a pleasant life.
A Life of Emunah and Wonderful Pleasure
Repeating Passages of Tehillim
A well-known Slonimer chassid once related that in his youth in Teveria, there was a terrible famine. There wasn’t a morsel of food to be had. One day, the chassidim stood around talking about the terrible matzav. “What will happen?” they lamented. “There’s not a piece of bread to be found... and we don’t have a penny with which to buy any food.”
But one chassid, the legendary Rav Noach Weinberg, simply began reciting over and over the following pesukim: לעולם ונחלתם תמימים ימי ה׳ יודע ישבעו רעבון ובימי רעה בעת יבושו לא ,תהיה, Hashem knows the days of the perfect, their inheritance will be forever. They will not be shamed in time of calamity, and in days of famine they will be satisfied (Tehillim 37:18-19).
In these verses, Dovid HaMelech speaks about those who have emunah in Hashem, and he states that the Ribbono shel Olam is always connected with them. They’ll never be ashamed when going through hardship, and they will be satisfied even when there is a famine.
The Sweet Taste That Lasted 70 Years
Reb Noach repeated these verses with so much sweetness and warmth that they brought great chiyus and illumination to all the chassidim who were present. They truly felt the meaning of the words; recognizing that the ba’al bitachon will retain his serenity and pleasant feeling even when there are days of hunger.
The chassid who related the story in his old age testified, “Believe me! More than seventy years have elapsed since then, and every time that I remember the way Reb Noach said those words, I can still taste the sweetness that then penetrated our souls!”
With Bitachon, We Always Have the Serenity of Shabbos
The ba’al bitachon is rewarded with the gift that he always lives with the serenity and the restfulness that we find referenced in the tefillos of Shabbos. This illustrates that the pleasure a Yid feels doesn’t necessarily stem from a lack of problems—but rather from a feeling of closeness to Hashem, as Rabbi Aharon HaGadol wrote in his Zemer Koh Echsof: השבת וביראתך באהבתך להתעדן הרוחות ועדן הנשמות נועם, Shabbos is the pleasantness of the souls and the Eden of the spirit, to take pleasure in our love and awe of You.
This is where a Yid derives his pleasure, and this is what the pleasure of Shabbos is all about. The ba’al bitachon is treated to feeling this pleasure permanently, in all situations.
Unfathomable Light
The holy Komarner Rebbe writes in Heichal HaBrachah that when a Yid invests himself in the belief that there’s nothing in this world but Hashem, that in every movement there’s only the Master of the World, and he accepts everything that comes his way with love—then the doors of compassion will be opened before him, and he will be illuminated with unfathomable light.
The ba’al bitachon merits to receive such a light and pleasantness that it cannot even be described or comprehended with our mortal grasp. The Komarner said about himself that he suffered from terrible poverty and destitution, and he was forced to wander from place to place. He also suffered from scoffing and mockery. “But the emunah brought me such a supernal light, which surrounded me and gave me life—I didn’t even feel all the pain!”
This is the pleasure of which the Chovos HaLevavos speaks. This is the reward that the ba’al bitachon receives in this world. He feels such a tremendous closeness to the Ribbono shel Olam, and he is always surrounded by joy and pleasure due to the feeling of his reliance on Hashem, like a suckling child at his mother’s side.
