Rebbe Nachman teaches: The days of Chanukah are days of thanksgiving, and this is actually the joy of the World to Come!…
What a beautiful holiday. A way of thanking HaShem for His miracles of old and rejoicing with His current miracles of new. For each day contains its own set of miracles which gives us plenty of reason to be thankful.
Rebbe Nachman teaches: The days of Chanukah are days of thanksgiving, and this is actually the joy of the World to Come! (Likutey Moharan II, 2:1). Because being able to thank God is what we will be doing in the Future, when we merit to see what our entire lives have been about. When we merit to understand and know God in a manner which was impossible to do until then.
As such, says Reb Noson, we can and should thank God more often, on a daily basis. But frankly, how can we? Each of us has his own “pekele,” our own, individual set of problems, which stuff our hearts and minds and trap us in the conundrum of difficulties and suffering. So how can we thank God? For what?
Says Reb Noson, that’s exactly the point. Today is not your first encounter with problems. You’ve had them before. Depending on how old you are, you’ve had them several times, perhaps many times. Yet, think about it. Despite having suffered previously, you lived to tell the story, and the solutions that God has wrought for you. You already felt thanks, but then another “manhole” dropped on you. But you survived and it was OK for the next while.
As such, says Reb Noson, we can and should thank God more often, on a daily basis. But frankly, how can we? Each of us has his own “pekele,” so how can we thank God? For what?…
Reb Noson continues: Start with thanking God for the past. Think of all the times things finally worked out for you. You will strengthen your faith that it will happen again now. But now you want to scream and cry out to God! You’re suffering! How can I say, “I’m thankful?” That’s the point. Being thankful for the past shows you that things can work out. I feel more confident that by crying out to God now I certainly will see the salvation that comes to solve this problem! (Likutey Halakhot, Kila’ay Behemah 4).
Reb Noson points out from the Shulchan Arukh and the ARI that Chanukah, the idea of giving thanks to God, is a most powerful vehicle for reaching into our souls and searching for the blemishes we’ve done, in order to rectify them. It is a distinct path of connecting with God—to realize our faults and recognize our strengths—so that we can draw closer to Him. When we learn to appreciate that which we have had and that which we have now, We can truly delve into our inner selves, and thank God for our potential and ability to move forward with our lives. We can then actually rectify the blemishes of our souls.
Giving thanks to God, is a most powerful vehicle for reaching into our souls and hearts…
One of the most effective ways of reaching this goal is by giving charity, and there is a special mitzvah on Chanukah to distribute monies for charity. When we give charity, we are taking of ourselves, our “bottled up” inner selves, our reigned in selfish thoughts and desires, and opening the constraints that have me bound in my own sorrows. Bringing joy to the needy actually brings joy to ourselves.
With joy, we can then truly feel thankful, we can feel confident with our circumstances and appreciate the circumstances we are currently enduring.
So, prepare those Chanukah latkes and other means of celebration. Prepare to sit, sing and enjoy the wonderful holiday we are having. When we light the Menorah, we can think of the light we are bringing to the world with our positive thinking and charity giving. When we give charity, we can think of the joy and happiness that spreads throughout all the recipients, their families and their communities.
We at Breslov Research are presently looking for 148 “Leaders of the Thousands” (see Exodus 18:21). This will help spread Rebbe Nachman’s light and message of thanks, joy, appreciation, and understanding of the miracles that occur daily. For more details please click here.
