Am I Nuts? - Breslov.org

BRI’s NarrowBridge.Org sends out twice weekly inspiration providing a regular dose of hope, meaning and courage. These emails include small doses of Rebbe Nachman’s wisdom, enabling us to get through the week in a more spiritual way.

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Rebbe Nachman of Breslov taught…

Did you ever notice that
the further people are from truth,
the more they consider someone
who turns away from evil
to be a fool?
When there is no truth in the world,
anyone who wants to turn away from evil
has no choice
but to play the fool.
(The Empty Chair, p. 74*)

What does this mean to me?

Rebbe Nachman told a parable about trying to stay spiritually sane in a crazy world—The Tainted Grain (click here to read the tale.) But the root of the idea is found in the words of the prophet Isaiah: “And the truth is absent; and he who turns from evil is considered mad…” The sages taught in the Talmud that this is just one of the symptoms of spiritual ill-health that will descend upon the world as we approach the time of Moshiach. When the world is crazy, I have no choice but to be willing to be considered foolish or mad if I refuse to follow along with the mood and opinions of the time. It requires courage to keep on the right path even when the world around me believes that I am wrong.

A prayer:

O G-d,
grant me clarity
and assurance
in whatever I do.
Teach me to trust in wise teachers-
to learn from their insightful words.
Teach me to trust in true friends-
to treasure their care and concern.
Teach me to trust in myself-
to judge my own course
correctly,
and so to live
with conviction
and hope.
(The Gentle Weapon, p. 77**)

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*“The Empty Chair: Finding Hope and Joy – Timeless Wisdom from a Hasidic Master, Rebbe Nachman of Breslov” by Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, Adapted by Moshe Mykoff and The Breslov Research Institute, 1994. Permission granted by Jewish Lights Publishing, Woodstock, VT, www.jewishlights.com.

**“The Gentle Weapon: Prayers for Everyday and Not-So-Everyday Moments – Timeless Wisdom from the Teachings of the Hasidic Master, Rebbe Nachman of Breslov” by Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, Adapted by Moshe Mykoff & S.C. Mizrahi with the Breslov Research Institute, 1999. Permission granted by Jewish Lights Publishing, Woodstock, VT, www.jewishlights.com.