What
Are
the
Times
of
Prayer
and
Gratitude
in
the
Work?
Article
No.
7,
1990
Our
sages
said
(Berachot
32),
“One
should
always
establish
the
praise
of
the
Creator,
and
then
pray.”
They
also
said
(Rosh
Hashanah
35),
“Rabbi
Elazar
said,
‘One
should
always
establish
one’s
prayer,
and
then
pray.’”
We
should
understand
why
we
must
first
establish
the
praise
of
the
Creator.
When
a
person
is
in
a
state
of
deficiency
and
wants
to
pray
to
the
Creator
to
satiate
his
lack,
then
he
needs
His
help.
Thus,
why
should
one
first
establish
the
praise
of
the
Creator?
With
a
flesh
and
blood
king,
we
can
understand
that
first
we
must
show
our
respect
for
the
king
so
the
king
will
see
that
we
are
among
those
who
love
him,
and
for
this
reason
the
king
will
grant
our
wish.
But
how
can
this
be
said
with
regard
to
the
Creator?
Does
the
Creator
need
a
person
to
show
Him
that
he
is
among
those
who
love
the
Creator,
and
then
He
will
help
him,
and
otherwise
He
will
not?
After
all,
the
Creator
is
merciful
and
gracious.
Although
one
is
unworthy,
the
Creator
helps
those
who
pray
to
Him,
as
Baal
HaSulam
explained
what
we
say
in
the
Eighteen
Prayer,
“For
You
hear
the
prayer
of
every
mouth,”
meaning
that
it
does
not
matter
what
mouth
prays,
but
the
prayer
of
any
mouth,
even
if
this
mouth
is
unimportant,
still,
the
Creator
hears
it.
Thus,
why
must
we
first
establish
the
praise
of
the
Creator?
In
order
to
interpret
this,
we
should
first
present
the
words
of
The
Zohar
(Chayei
Sarah,
Item
224),
“Come
and
see,
‘And
it
came
to
pass,
before
he
concluded
speaking,
that,
behold,
Rebecca
came
out.’
He
asks,
it
should
have
said,
‘Came,’
as
it
is
written,
‘Rachel
his
daughter
comes.’
Why
does
it
say,
‘came
out’?
He
says
that
this
indicates
that
the
Creator
took
her
out
from
among
the
town’s
people,
who
were
all
wicked,
and
Rebecca
came
out
and
parted
from
the
rest
of
the
people
in
the
city
because
she
was
righteous.”
RASHI
interprets
the
verse
(Genesis
24:39),
“Suppose
the
woman
does
not
walk.”
He
writes,
“It
says,
‘to
me’
[in
Hebrew,
“suppose”
and
“to
me”
are
spelled
the
same].
Eliezer
had
a
daughter.
He
was
looking
for
a
reason
that
Abraham
would
turn
to
him
to
marry
his
daughter.
Abraham
said
to
him:
‘My
son
is
blessed
and
you
are
cursed,
and
the
cursed
does
not
cling
to
the
blessed.’”
We
should
interpret
the
meaning
of
Isaac
and
Rebecca,
as
well
as
the
meaning
of
the
matter
of
the
daughter
of
Eliezer
in
the
work.
The
Zohar
writes
(Chayei
Sarah,
Item
94),
“He
said
to
him,
‘My
master
shall
say
if
he
heard
how
the
authors
of
the
Mishnah
said
this
portion,
which
they
interpreted
concerning
the
soul,
that
Abraham
is
the
soul
and
Sarah
is
the
body.’”
In
this
manner,
we
should
interpret
the
matter
of
Isaac
and
Rebecca,
as
it
is
written
in
The
Zohar
(Chayei
Sarah,
Item
249),
“Rabbi
Yehuda
said,
‘His
mother
Sarah,’
since
as
the
form
of
Isaac
was
as
the
form
of
Abraham,
similarly,
Rebecca’s
form
was
just
as
Sarah’s.
This
is
why
it
is
written,
‘His
mother
Sarah.’”
By
this
we
should
also
interpret
that
Isaac
was
the
soul
and
Rebecca
the
body.
In
the
order
of
man’s
work,
when
he
wants
to
achieve
Dvekut
[adhesion]
with
the
Creator,
he
should
always
walk
on
two
lines—right
and
left.
“Right”
means
wholeness,
when
a
person
feels
satisfaction
in
the
work
and
praises
and
thanks
the
Creator
for
rewarding
him
with
being
among
the
King’s
servants.
He
sees
that
he
has
achieved
a
degree
in
spirituality,
which
is
not
so
among
the
rest
of
the
workers
of
the
Creator.
Yet,
he
recognizes
his
lowliness
and
does
not
know
why
the
Creator
chose
him
over
other
people,
who
have
not
reached
this
degree.
For
this
reason,
he
thanks
and
praises
the
King
and
can
observe
what
is
written,
“Serve
the
Lord
with
gladness.”
At
that
time
he
has
nothing
for
which
to
pray
to
the
Creator
to
help
him,
since
he
feels
no
lack
in
his
situation.
However,
later,
when
a
person
goes
to
work
on
the
left
line,
when
he
criticizes
the
state
he
is
in
and
sees
that
he
is
flawed
in
mind
and
in
heart,
and
even
worse,
he
sometimes
sees
that
he
is
immersed
in
self-love
more
than
usual,
sometimes
he
comes
to
such
lowliness
that
he
does
not
want
the
Creator
to
help
him
out
of
his
lowliness.
On
the
contrary,
he
is
angry
that
he
is
not
receiving
delight
and
pleasure
from
the
corporeal
life.
It
follows
that
sometimes
the
left
does
not
let
him
even
pray
and
ask
of
the
Creator.
Thus,
how
can
he
feel
himself
as
a
whole
person
and
thank
the
Creator?
However,
we
must
know
that
the
work
is
mainly
during
the
ascent,
for
only
during
an
ascent
can
we
speak
of
man’s
work
in
two
lines—right
and
left.
Conversely,
during
a
descent,
a
person
is
considered
dead.
Can
we
say
that
we
are
speaking
to
the
dead,
or
that
we
want
something
from
the
dead,
that
he
will
do
something?
For
this
reason,
when
a
person
is
in
a
state
of
work,
it
can
be
said
that
a
person
should
work
in
two
ways:
1)
right,
2)
left.
“Right”
means
primarily
that
the
wholeness
in
him
is
built
on
above
reason,
while
the
left
in
him
is
built
on
the
reason
and
intellect.
That
is,
at
that
time
he
sentences
himself
as
he
sees,
as
our
sages
said,
“A
judge
has
only
what
his
eyes
see”
(Baba
Batra
131).
It
turns
out
that
when
he
engages
in
the
left
and
sees
the
truth,
how
lowly
and
immersed
in
self-love
he
is,
how
can
he
then
say
that
he
is
in
a
state
of
wholeness
and
be
grateful
to
the
Creator
for
giving
him
such
a
great
gift
that
he
is
in
Kedusha
[holiness]?
This
is
the
complete
opposite
of
the
truth
he
sees,
and
how
can
one
be
happy
when
he
sees
the
truth?
The
answer
is
in
two
ways:
1)
It
is
written
in
the
essay
from
Tav-Shin-Gimel
(Shamati,
Article
No.
40,
1943)
concerning
faith
in
his
teacher,
that
Baal
HaSulam
said
that
a
person
should
go
with
faith
in
the
sages,
as
they
have
arranged
for
us.
These
are
his
words,
slightly
changed:
The
student
must
believe
as
his
teacher
tells
him,
to
walk
on
the
path
of
“right”
and
wholeness.
The
student
should
depict
to
himself
that
he
has
already
been
rewarded
with
complete
faith
in
the
Creator,
and
already
feels
in
his
organs
that
the
Creator
leads
the
whole
world
as
The
Good
Who
Does
Good.
This
means
that
the
whole
world
receives
from
Him
only
good,
and
although
when
he
looks
at
himself,
he
sees
that
he
is
bare
and
destitute,
and
when
he
looks
at
the
world,
he
also
sees
that
the
world
suffers
torments—each
suffering
according
to
his
own
degree—he
should
say
about
this
what
is
written,
“They
have
eyes
and
see
not.”
That
is,
as
long
as
a
person
is
in
a
state
of
“they,”
that
“they”
have
two
authorities,
“they”
cannot
see
the
truth.
For
this
reason,
a
person
must
believe
above
reason
that
he
is
in
wholeness,
and
so
is
the
whole
world.
It
follows
that
in
this
way
he
can
and
should
thank
the
Creator
for
giving
us
abundance.
This
is
called
the
“right
line,”
which
is
the
complete
opposite
of
the
left
line.
That
is,
in
the
left
line,
we
walk
within
reason,
as
was
said,
that
“A
judge
has
only
what
his
eyes
see.”
In
other
words,
it
is
specifically
with
the
intellect
and
not
above
the
intellect.
But
when
shifting
to
work
with
the
“right,”
the
left
is
the
cause
that
the
right
is
built
on
the
basis
of
above
reason.
This
is
as
our
sages
said,
“The
left
pushes
away
and
the
right
pulls
near.”
In
other
words,
the
state
of
“left”
shows
a
person
how
he
is
rejected
and
separated
from
the
work
of
the
Creator.
“The
right
pulls
near”
means
that
it
shows
him
that
he
is
close
to
the
work
of
the
Creator.
This
means
that
when
he
engages
in
the
left,
the
left
should
bring
him
to
see
a
state
of
rejection,
that
he
is
rejected
and
separated
from
the
work.
When
he
engages
in
the
right,
he
should
come
to
a
state
where
he
sees
that
he
is
close
to
the
Creator.
He
should
thank
the
Creator
for
the
“right,”
and
pray
to
the
Creator
for
the
“left,”
for
only
on
two
legs
can
a
person
walk
in
corporeality.
This
extends
from
spirituality,
which
shows
that
a
person
should
walk
on
two
lines.
Concerning
the
wholeness,
there
is
another
manner.
If
a
person
comes
to
a
state
where
he
sees
that
he
is
bare
and
destitute,
since
he
is
behind
both
in
mind
and
in
heart,
meaning
sees
that
he
is
immersed
in
self-love
and
that
he
has
not
a
single
organ
that
has
any
desire
to
work
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator,
now
he
sees
that
he
has
come
to
his
true
state
called
“recognition
of
evil.”
He
says
that
the
fact
that
now
he
sees
the
recognition
of
evil
is
a
gift
from
above
that
he
was
shown
the
truth.
Otherwise,
he
would
deceive
himself
and
think
that
he
need
not
change
his
way,
since
he
is
certainly
walking
on
the
path
of
truth.
Thus,
he
could
remain
with
his
evil
forever.
But
now,
a
revelation
from
above
came
to
him,
to
see
the
truth.
This
is
as
it
is
written
in
The
Zohar
about
the
verse,
“Or
make
his
sin
known
to
him.”
It
interprets
that
the
Creator
notified
him
that
he
sinned,
meaning
he
was
informed
from
above
that
he
sinned.
In
other
words,
recognition
of
evil
is
a
revelation
from
above.
For
this
reason,
he
rejoices
at
the
fact
that
the
Creator
tends
to
him
and
guides
him,
and
shows
him
his
true
state.
This
gives
him
wholeness
from
being
rewarded
with
the
revelation
of
the
truth
at
the
hands
of
the
Creator.
This
discernment,
that
he
receives
wholeness,
means
that
he
says
that
the
Creator
is
bringing
him
closer
and
shows
him
the
truth.
It
follows
that
now
he
is
not
in
a
state
where
he
says
that
the
Creator
has
rejected
him
from
Kedusha
because
he
feels
the
bad.
On
the
contrary,
this
makes
him
feel
that
the
Creator
is
pulling
him
closer.
This
is
called
“the
right
pulls
near.”
Naturally,
in
that
state,
when
he
sees
that
he
is
all
bad,
he
can
overcome
and
seek
advice
how
to
emerge
from
this
bad.
Hence,
he
thanks
and
praises
the
Creator.
It
follows
that
now
he
is
regarded
as
blessed,
in
that
he
sees
that
he
has
received
awareness
from
above
about
the
recognition
of
evil.
When
he
thanks
the
Creator,
he
is
certainly
called
“blessed,”
since
he
received
a
blessing
from
the
Creator,
and
then
he
can
come
to
Dvekut
with
the
Creator
since
“the
blessed
clings
to
the
blessed.”
This
is
as
Baal
HaSulam
interpreted
what
our
sages
said,
“The
world
was
created
either
for
the
complete
wicked
or
for
the
complete
righteous”
(Berachot
61).
He
asked,
“We
can
understand
that
it
is
for
the
complete
righteous,
but
can
it
be
said,
‘for
the
complete
wicked’?”
He
explained
that
when
a
person
knows
about
himself
that
he
is
wicked,
he
will
certainly
do
all
that
he
can
to
repent.
We
should
interpret
his
words,
“For
the
complete
righteous,”
who
then
enjoy
the
world
in
that
they
are
rewarded
with
the
delight
and
pleasure
that
the
Creator
wanted
to
give
at
the
time
of
the
creation
of
the
world,
since
they
already
have
Kelim
[vessels]
to
receive
the
light
of
the
Creator
in
order
to
bestow,
for
in
these
Kelim,
the
purpose
of
creation
is
revealed,
which
is
called
“His
desire
to
do
good
to
His
creations.”
Likewise,
when
he
has
already
been
rewarded
with
the
recognition
of
evil,
it
is
Kelim,
for
he
has
an
inner
drive
to
do
what
he
can
to
emerge
from
the
state
of
wicked.
But
when
he
does
not
feel
the
bad,
he
has
no
one
to
awaken
him
to
emerge
from
that
bad
state,
since
he
does
not
feel
so
bad
that
he
must
do
all
that
he
can
in
order
to
emerge
from
it.
It
follows
that
the
fact
that
he
has
come
to
a
state
where
he
sees
that
he
is
all
bad,
already
has
a
great
merit
to
it.
The
evidence
is
that
he
can
already
say
that
the
world
was
created
for
him,
as
was
said,
“The
world
was
created
either
for
the
complete
wicked.”
But
before
he
discovered
the
bad
state,
he
had
no
right
to
exist
in
the
world,
as
was
said,
“The
world
was
created
either
for
the
complete
wicked
or
for
the
complete
righteous.”
It
follows
that
prior
to
the
recognition
of
evil,
he
has
no
right
to
exist
in
the
world.
It
therefore
follows
that
if
he
has
achieved
the
recognition
of
evil,
it
is
regarded
that
he
already
has
a
grip
in
the
world.
In
that
respect,
it
is
considered
that
he
has
wholeness
and
he
can
already
praise
and
thank
the
Creator
for
this,
and
he
already
has
connection
with
the
Creator
and
it
can
already
be
said
that
he
is
called
“blessed,”
and
“the
blessed
clings
to
the
blessed.”
At
that
time,
he
can
be,
and
this
is
the
time
when
he
can
ascend
in
degree,
meaning
that
at
the
time
of
gladness,
he
can
receive
all
the
prayers
he
has
given
over
his
deficiencies.
It
is
as
our
sages
said,
“The
Shechina
[Divinity]
is
present
only
out
of
joy,”
as
it
is
written,
“And
he
will
be
as
a
musician
playing,
and
the
spirit
of
the
Lord
shall
be
upon
him.”
It
follows
that
the
primary
time
when
one
is
rewarded
with
instilling
the
Shechina
is
specifically
the
time
of
wholeness,
for
specifically
at
the
time
of
wholeness
is
the
time
when
he
can
receive
his
soul.
According
to
the
above,
we
can
interpret
what
our
sages
said,
“Eliezer
had
a
daughter.
He
wanted
her
to
be
a
wife
for
Isaac.”
Literally,
this
is
difficult
to
understand.
After
all,
Eliezer’s
daughter
was
the
daughter
of
a
sage,
as
our
sages
said
(Yoma
28b),
“And
Abraham
said
to
his
servant,
the
elder
of
his
house,
who
ruled
over
all
that
was
his.
Rabbi
Eliezer
said
that
the
governor
of
the
teaching
of
his
master
is
of
the
household
of
Eliezer.”
They
also
said
there,
“Eliezer,
Abraham’s
servant,
was
old
and
sat
in
a
seminary.”
Abraham
did
not
agree
to
this
match
and
replied,
“The
cursed
does
not
cling
to
the
blessed.”
This
was
not
so
about
the
match
with
Rebecca,
who
was
the
daughter
of
Betuel
and
the
sister
of
wicked
Lavan.
Our
sages
said
that
Betuel
sought
to
feed
Eliezer
the
potion
of
death
so
they
would
be
left
with
the
wealth.
In
other
words,
he
was
not
merely
wicked;
he
was
also
a
murderer.
Yet,
Gabriel
came
and
replaced
the
bowl
and
gave
it
to
Betuel,
and
he
died.
Rebecca,
too,
came
from
an
environment
of
wicked,
yet,
this
match
is
a
good
match,
as
it
is
written,
“And
Rebecca
came
out.”
In
other
words,
the
Creator
brought
her
out
from
among
all
the
town’s
people,
who
were
wicked.
“Rebecca
came
out”
because
she
was
righteous.
In
the
literal,
if
a
person
is
offered
two
matches,
where
one
is
a
daughter
of
a
sage,
and
the
other
comes
from
the
house
of
wicked
people
and
a
city
of
wicked
people,
of
course
he
would
choose
the
daughter
of
the
sage.
But
in
the
work,
we
should
interpret
that
the
state
of
Eliezer
is
a
state
of
“left,”
for
he
was
yelling
all
the
time,
“Eli
[My
God],
Ezer
[help!],
since
I
am
under
the
governance
of
the
evil.”
It
follows
that
this
woman,
the
daughter
of
the
left,
who
prayed
to
be
given
the
quality
of
Isaac,
who
is
called
Neshama
[soul]
as
a
“wife,”
which
is
the
body,
in
order
to
receive
the
soul,
Abraham
did
not
agree
because
when
a
person
is
in
the
left
and
cries
out,
“Lord,
help
me
emerge
from
the
evil,”
that
body
is
in
a
state
of
“cursed.”
He
told
him
that
Isaac,
meaning
the
soul,
was
“blessed,”
and
“the
cursed
does
not
cling
to
the
blessed.”
It
is
written
in
The
Zohar
(Toldot,
Item
49),
Therefore,
although
Eliezer
was
a
sage,
he
felt
that
he
lacked
the
quality
of
truth.
He
was
always
in
the
state
of
“the
left,”
and
always
had
grievances,
why
the
Creator
would
not
hear
him
and
give
him
a
soul,
since
“the
light
in
it
reforms
him.”
Although
the
left
“speaks
to
the
point,”
since
everything
is
built
on
reason,
as
was
said,
that
“the
judge
has
only
what
his
eyes
see,”
but
in
truth,
he
is
cursed.
This
is
why
Abraham
told
him,
“The
cursed,”
meaning
the
body
in
a
state
of
“cursed,”
cannot
receive
the
instilling
of
the
Shechina,
regarded
as
one’s
personal
soul.
This
is
so
because
the
Shechina
is
called
Malchut,
which
is
the
collection
of
the
souls.
For
this
reason,
Malchut
is
called
“the
assembly
of
Israel.”
Hence,
in
this
state,
the
body
is
unfit
to
receive
the
quality
of
Isaac,
who
is
called
a
“soul,”
as
was
said
that
the
body
is
called
“wife,”
and
the
soul
is
called
“husband.”
However,
Rebecca,
means
in
the
work
that
the
body
sees
everything
that
the
left
shows
it,
its
true
state,
that
all
its
organs
are
wicked,
that
it
understands
only
that
which
concerns
self-love,
but
with
regard
to
the
benefit
of
the
Creator,
it
cannot
do
a
thing,
just
as
the
“left”
shows
it.
This
is
the
meaning
of
“all
the
town’s
people
were
wicked,”
since
the
body
is
called
“city,”
as
it
is
written
(Ecclesiastes
9:14),
“A
small
city
with
few
people
in
it.
A
great
king
came
to
it
and
found
in
it
a
poor
wise
man,
who
saved
the
city
with
his
wisdom.”
Rebecca,
who
was
a
single
righteous
woman,
came
out
from
among
all
the
town’s
people.
Why
does
it
say
“came
out”?
He
says
that
“It
indicates
that
the
Creator
took
her
out
from
among
all
the
town’s
people.”
This
means
that
this
body
felt
itself
as
whole,
meaning
as
righteous,
because
the
Creator
notified
it
the
truth.
From
this,
it
is
glad,
and
this
in
itself
is
regarded
as
wholeness,
that
the
Creator
notified
it,
or,
for
the
second
above-mentioned
reason,
that
he
believes
above
reason
that
he
has
wholeness
because
he
believes
in
faith
in
his
teacher
that
we
must
go
above
reason
and
say,
“They
have
eyes
and
see
not.”
In
a
state
of
wholeness,
we
can
be
rewarded
with
the
state
of
Isaac,
who
is
called
a
“soul.”
This
means
that
the
two
opposites
are
in
one
body
but
in
two
times.
We
are
told
that
the
most
important
is
to
walk
on
the
right
line,
once
he
has
a
little
bit
of
the
left
line.
This
is
the
meaning
of
“One
should
always
establish
the
praise
of
the
Creator,”
which
is
called
“right,”
“and
then
pray,”
regarded
as
“left,”
and
then
he
returns
to
the
right.