About raising frum children! If you’re a child, be excited about being a frum child, a child of Hashem. But if a person becomes enthusiastic about his troubles or about his successes, if he invests his enthusiasm in anything else, it detracts from his excitement about Hakadosh Baruch Hu.
Part III. Exciting Yourself
Easier Done When Said
Now, like everything in avodas Hashem, all this is easier said than done. And especially when it comes to emotions, the emotion of excitement, absolutely, that’s true. But I’m going to tell you a secret now; that it’s easier done when said. I’ll repeat that because I want you to remember it: It’s easier done when said. But we’ll see now that if it’s just “said”, that’s not enough. It matters how you say it.
And that brings us to a new pshat in the possuk, ֹלוָלֲהַמ יƒפ¿ל ׁ ̆יƒ‡. Rabbeinu Yonah said that when you see what an ׁ ̆יƒ‡ is excited about, so lefi m’halalo, that’s how you know what type of ish he is. That’s already a sure judgement of who he is.
But included in this peirush is a third peirush. Rabbeinu Yonah doesn’t say it, but it’s implied and included: Not only he is what excites him but he becomes what excites him. ׁ ̆יƒ‡ – A person will become, ֹלוָלֲהַמ יƒפ¿ל – according to what he gets excited about. Not what he talks about—people can talk the talk—that’s nothing yet. It’s what he talks about with excitement, with emotion, with feeling and enthusiasm, that’s what he’ll be.
Changing Yourself
And so if a man is excited about his rebbe in the yeshiva, if he’s excited about tzaddikim, he’s excited about gedolei Yisroel, he’s excited about certain subjects, certain sugyas in the Gemara, so יƒפ¿ל ׁ ̆יƒ‡ ֹלוָלֲהַמ – that person will become what he’s excited about. If you’re excited about yiras Shamayim, excited about middos tovos, about accomplishing in Torah, accomplishing in avodas Hashem, so eventually you’re going to end up there. He’ll become in the future all the things he’s excited about now.
So people who are busy praising tzaddikim, they tell sipurei tzaddikim with excitement, they become tzaddikim. You hear that? When chassidim sit around the table and they’re telling stories about tzaddikim, they’re changing themselves.
A Chassidishe Maaseh
I usually don't repeat Chassidishe stories, but this one has a purpose. Well, I don't vouch for this story. But the mussar haskel, we can use. Rav Levi Yitzchok, zichrono livracha, saw from a distance a light. The light, someplace hovering over homes, over houses. So he followed that light. When he came there, he saw it was a poor little shtiebel, a poor little synagogue of Chassidim.
He went inside. It was after the prayers. They were sitting around the table. There were a few crumbs of cake left and a little bottle, a half-empty bottle, and they were telling stories of tzaddikim. And he said, that's the light that hovered over this place.
Now—this part is not the story; it’s my addition—why should the Shechina come to that place? Sippurei tzaddikim, what’s so important?
And the answer is these people are changing themselves! If they’re excited about tzaddikim, they're going to be tzaddikim too. And so, of course the Shechina comes! It’s a place where people are speaking about ovdei Hashem!
And kol sh’kein people who are busy speaking about Hakadosh Baruch Hu. If people who are busy praising tzaddikim become tzaddikim, if that’s the case, יוָכָר¿ּ„ לָכ¿ּב 'ה ̃יƒּ„ַˆ – Hashem is a real tzaddik. And so people who are busy speaking about Hakadosh Baruch Hu—what He did for me and what He did for our nation, what He does in nature, what He says in His Torah—they’re the ones who will be most successful in becoming tzaddikim.
Empty Thrills
Now, you have to be aware of course that it works both ways. If you’re excited about empty things—you’re excited about a restaurant, about goyim, about sports—so you’re becoming an empty person. That’s why I say, if you're excited about the Yanks and the Mets, quash it! Don’t talk about it! Otherwise you’re ruining yourself. Because that’s what you’ll become. Over time, little by little, you’re transforming yourself into a baseball person. It's a very important point. ׁ ̆יƒ‡¿ו – you become, ֹלוָלֲהַמ יƒפ¿ל – according to what you’re excited about.
Other things too. If you’ll talk with hislahavus about politics, politicians, so that’s the person you’ll become eventually. You hear that sometimes in a shul, even a very frum shul: “You heard what President Nixon did?!” And with aza excitement he says it! Oh no! Even though you're frum, you're a lamdan and a tzaddik, but when your mind is excited about wrong things—maybe it’s not wrong, but it’s unimportant—so you have to know that not only will you be judged according to your excitement but you’ll become that too.
Talk To Yourself
And so, if a person wants to become something, he has to go out of his way to become excited about the right things. Anything that’s pious, anything that’s Torah, anything connected with mitzvos, a big fuss we have to make about it. And only that! All other things, quietly under the table. Nothing to talk about.
And therefore it takes training, but you can train yourself to be excited about Hashem if you learn it. The thoughts go after the dibbur, the words; and the more excited the dibbur, the more excited the thoughts.
That’s why Dovid spoke to himself frequently. If you study Tehillim, the book of Psalms, you see a number of times that he is speaking to himself, encouraging himself. That’s not done by modern people—they don’t understand how valuable it is—but the great men always did that.
The Chofetz Chaim
The Chofetz Chaim was known to have spoken to himself. On the roof of the yeshiva, in Radin, there was a little garret where the Chofetz Chaim used to go and have discussions with himself and sometimes a brash youngster used to walk up and stand by the door and listen in. And he heard the Chofetz Chaim speaking to himself. “Yisroel Meir, who do you think you are?” Sometimes he would go like this: “Yisroel Meir,” he said, “Why aren’t you grateful for all the great things that the Almighty helped you achieve in your life?” Or, “Yisroel Meir, is this the way for a decent Jew to behave?”
And that’s what Dovid Hamelech did when he wanted to achieve in this program of ֹלוָלֲהַמ יƒפ¿ל ׁ ̆יƒ‡. He didn’t sit back and say, “It’s easier said than done.” No! He got busy saying. He said, יƒׁ ̆¿פַנ יƒל¿לַה – “My soul, I’m speaking to you now. Don’t be apathetic. I want you to be excited. But what should you be excited about in this world? 'ה ̇∆‡ – Only Hashem!”
So you’ll say, “That’s all?! We can’t be excited about anything else?”
And Dovid says, “Absolutely that’s all. Hallelu-Kah! Go wild only about Hashem!” There’s so much there! Be wild about His Torah! Mesichta Zevachim! Mesichta Menachos! Ho, ho! Mitzvos! Nature, the niflaos ha’Borei! Tzaddikim! Talmidei chachomim! The Am Yisroel! That’s all included.
Dovid’s Table Talk
You think it’s extreme? “I don’t care,” said Dovid. “I’m not ashamed. ׁ ֹ̆בו≈‡ ‡ֹל¿ו יםƒכָל¿מ „∆‚∆נָיך∆ ֹ̇ו„≈ﬠ¿ב הָר¿ּבַ„ֲ‡ – Even in the presence of kings, I shall speak only in Your commandments” (Tehillim 119:46).
Imagine a convention of kings; Dovid came together with kings and each one was speaking excitedly about his interests. This one had a tremendous stable of race horses. This one, his pet interest in life was his army. He loved to speak about his battalions, his generals, his soldiers. This one had a huge harem. Very exciting! They’re all excited about various unimportant things—even if they’re important, they’re not to be excited about—and Dovid was standing among them and he said, “If they’re praising their interests, I’ll talk about mine. And I’ll talk excitedly.”
And he started speaking about the Toras Hashem. “We have a law that G-d gave us, a wonderful law.” And he spoke with feeling. “It’s a law like a storehouse of diamonds! זַּפƒמּו בָהָּזƒמ יםƒ„ָמ¡ח∆ּנַה בָר – It’s more glorious than gold, more than an abundance of fine gold, יםƒפֹוˆ ̇∆פֹנו¿ו – more glorious than the sweetest honey” (ibid.). And he describes it at length with the greatest enthusiasm. “ׁ ֹ̆בו≈‡ ‡ֹל¿ו – I’m not ashamed. I’m proud that this is what I’m excited about.”
Emulating Dovid
It’s like the man who sits at the table at a chasunah, and he starts talking about the sugya he’s studying. He’s excited! “Listen to this beautiful pshat, what Rashi says!” Or he talks about Hashem. “Boruch Hashem, we’re all well! We’re all alive!” And he’s excited. Hodu LaShem that nobody at this table is a cripple! Really we should say hallel for that.”
Are they listening to you? Could be not. Did the other kings listen to Dovid? Did they care? It doesn’t matter because Dovid’s biggest concern was Dovid. And so, he made sure to be excited about what matters because ֹלוָלֲהַמ יƒפ¿ל ׁ ̆יƒ‡ – the more a person is excited about the right things, the more perfection he acquires.
Self-Encouragement
And so we have a way forward. It’s easier done when said! A man has to encourage himself to be excited. If a man spends his life speaking about Hashem—people won’t listen to you, so talk to yourself! As much as you can, talk about Hakadosh Baruch Hu and everything connected to Him with enthusiasm. It’s going to change you. You’ll become ֹלוָלֲהַמ יƒפ¿ל – according to what you are praising.
Try it out. When you’re alone somewhere, or let’s say you’re under the L, the elevated train tracks, and the train is riding by overhead; nobody else could hear you, so if you want to be excited, be excited that Hakadosh Baruch Hu gave you good health. Say “Baruch Atah Hashem I moved my bowels.” Ah! A simcha! You moved your bowels.
You're happy because you have two good kidneys. Ay yah yay! You can dance and sing for that. Do a dance because you have a pi hatabas instead of having a hole in the side. Ah, baruch Hashem! You're so full of joy. You're a normal person. You have to be happy you're not in the insane asylum. Ho ho! Baruch Atah chonen l’adam da’as, that I’m sane! Very many people are wasting their lives in unhappiness because they're not sane. Baruch Hashem, baruch Atah Hashem chonen hada’as, you thank Hashem for sanity.
No Magic Tricks
Now, I have a lot more to say on the subject—I just started—but for tonight that’s all. It’s the great program of ֹלוָלֲהַמ יƒפ¿ל ׁ ̆יƒ‡ – A man is stamped forever by what he’s excited about! And he should therefore use the emotion of excitement to become great, to be stamped forever with greatness.
Now, don't make any mistake about it. You just can't take it easy and think that it will come by itself. We’re not talking about waving a magic wand and suddenly you’re a tzaddik. You expect that just by hearing this lecture, you’re going to be transformed? It’s only a guideline in life. You have to go out from here and practice it. And finally in the course of years and years, you’ll discover it will reward you richly for all the effort that you invested in it. Every individual will rise to greatness according to and because of his or her excitement. Your perfection, your station in the Next World forever, is created lefi m’halalo, according to your excitement!
Have a Wonderful Shabbos
