Series: Relationships with Chaya Rivka Zwolinski
For women only.
Rebbe Nachman famously said: My very essence is Rosh Hashana. It’s therefore no surprise that Breslov Chassidut is packed with teachings on the head of the Jewish year. In this class with Chaya Rivka Zwolinski, we focus on the motif of the head, especially as it pertains to making a fresh start to your year—and your life.
Time: Thursday, 8:00 PM EST – 5:00 PST
Date: Oct. 29 – Dec. 17 (6 weeks)
Level: Beginner through Advanced
Text: Kitzur Likutey Moharan Lesson 6, Likutey Moharan Volume II, Lesson 87
Rebbe Nachman’s approach to marriage is eye-opening—and radically different than the rest of the world’s marriage experts.
What is holding you back from experiencing joy? Are you just not as happy as you’d like to be? One block to feeling good about your life and good about yourself is anger. Anger triggers the body’s ‘fight or flight’ response, too and floods the body with stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol. We know that this causes many health problems like digestive problems and worse. Not only is anger toxic to your body, but it also is debilitating to the soul. If anger isn’t managed and worked through, it can lead to anxiety and depression.
Rebbe Nachman of Breslov teaches how anger is at the root of the spiritual maladies which can wreak havoc in our lives. He teaches that anger can even cause you to lose money! Whatever the problem is, there is hope. In Angry? Rebbe Nachman’s Path to Tranquility Chaya Rivka Zwolinski will share insights from Rebbe Nachman’s lessons and stories which will help you understand yourself better as you work through anger towards a calmer you. There will be plenty of time for questions, answers and discussion.
Topics include:
What? Me Angry?
Sweetening Anger
Is Anger an Insult To Your Intelligence?
Peace, Love & Understanding
Protecting Your Money
The Sophisticate’s Arrogance and Anger
Tranquility and Eretz Yisrael
Have you ever been to a Breslov shul? If so, you may have noticed that at some points in prayer, individuals or even the entire congregation, may clap their hands. Hand clapping is one of the special mystical practices that Rebbe Nachman taught his followers. In The Secrets Of Hand Clapping, Reb Meir Elkabas will discuss three lessons on how clapping your hands during prayer may change your life!
Topics include:
28 letters of creation are in the hands
Air of the Land of Israel
Clap your hands and destroy idolatry and atheism
The connection between clapping hands and speech
Hand clapping in prayer improves memory
The Class:
In Walking The Path: The Deeper Meaning Of 5 Halachot, you’ll learn Halachot Orach Chaim and Choshen Mishpat with Reb Eliyahu Hecht as your guide. Together you’ll discover Reb Noson’s discussions on one of Rebbe Nachman’s lessons. They offer many deep and varied insights into the way we think about and apply halacha, Jewish law, in our everyday lives. Last semester we used the same texts to explore Shabbat and Chanukah; this semester you’ll learn the following topics:
Blessing of the Kohanim (priests) during davening; the significance of its placement in our prayers; and what makes Kohanim such a special part of the Jewish people
Mitzvah of helping an enemy unburden his struggling animal, and its practical relevancy to you
Four types of shomrim (guards), and why they must make an oath on their mission
Blessings on food. Enhance this mitzvah we do all the time! Change how you view eating and learn how spiritual a physical act can be
Blessing of HaGomel (thanksgiving), who makes it and why
In this special course for women, Breslov Every Day, Rebbetzin Yehudis Golshevsky will discuss Rabbi Yitzchok Breiter’s (1876-1943) short book, Seder Yom (A Day In The Life Of A Breslover Chassid, BRI English Translation.) Rabbi Breiter was a respected Hasidic leader in the Warsaw Ghetto, and a Breslover who made Rebbe Nachman’s teachings a practical reality. You’ll learn this classic work with particular attention to the aspects of Divine service that speak to our lives as women.
Topics include:
Binding yourself to the Tzaddik
Make a reckoning (taking stock at the end of the day)
Getting up in the morning
Morning prayers
Hitbodedut
Learning Rebbe Nachman’s books
Tehillim (Psalms)
Likutey Tefillot
Eating
Tzedakah
Simcha
Love of friends
And much more…
In Cheshvan, when “our lips are still merachshevan (fluttering) from the tefillos of the yomim noraim” it’s good to renew our connection to prayer. Last semester’s course on the prayers for the Yomim Tovim are now followed by this special course on our daily prayers, just for women, with Yehudis Golshevsky.
How can we bring more to our tefillot of Shacharit, Minchah, and Maariv? Using Likutey Moharan as our guide, this course will help you uncover the deeper meanings of prayer and encourage you to invest more energy into davening from your siddur.
Topics include:
The order of the prayers and encountering Hashem.
Preparation for prayer: finding focus and expressing the truth, and simplicity.
The Four Worlds of Shacharit: Asiyah–Korbanot and Berachot
Yetzirah: Pesukei d’Zimra
Beriyah: Shma and its blessings
Atzilus: Shemona Esrei
Tefillah b’tzibbur
Mincha and Maariv
The Class: Are you still joyful from being so close to Hashem during the Yom Tov season? Do you still feel uplifted from feeling that special connection with Hashem? Are you eagerly awaiting your next spiritual encounter? If you’re like most of us, you’ve already highlighted the days of Chanukah on your calendar. But, while it seems that Chanukah is the next holiday, we must remember not to overlook the most precious day of all, the holy day of deep spiritual renewal—Shabbat.
This semester we’ll discuss a lesson Rebbe Nachman taught on Shabbat Chanukah, December 17, 1808, and Reb Noson’s corresponding lesson in Likutey Halachot. We’ll learn the key elements you need to know in order to derive the maximum benefits of Shabbat and Chanukah.
The Series: Reb Noson, Rebbe Nachman’s leading student and scribe, tells us that the depth and breadth of Rebbe Nachman’s unique teachings show us how improve ourselves and get closer to Hashem. In his singular work, Likutey Halachot, Reb Noson extrapolates from Rebbe Nachman’s works to uncover rich insights into the Shulchan Aruch (the Code of Jewish Law), a text that is often misperceived as dry, dusty, or irrelevant. Likutey Halachot is bursting with inspirational explications of halacha (Jewish law), via the light of Breslov Chassidut, scripture, and the Kabbalastic masters.
As we learn the text, students will begin to see the world through the eyes of the ultimate Breslover, Reb Noson. In this series, you will explore the deeper meaning of the Jewish laws and learn the Reb Noson’s advice for achieving spiritual growth. This is halacha the way it was meant to be learned.
Topics include:
Gratitude
Seeking halachic guidance and clarity
Four kinds of speech, and how we can supercharge them for maximum efficacy
The real power of Shabbat
Discovering the Unity of Hashem in our fragmented reality
Legal right of partners sharing a courtyard
Chanukah
We all want it—but do we really have it? Emunah (faith) is a word we hear a lot but are we really sure know what true emunah looks like? And how can we get more of it for ourselves?
Throughout his teachings Rebbe Nachman gives us various insights into what living with genuine emunah looks like and how we can develop our emunah throughout our lives. Using various Breslov texts and stories, Chaya Rivka Zwolinski will discuss many aspects of this essential concept, central to living a life of spiritual connection.
What does emunah look like?
The 4 Aspects of emunah (don’t miss any of these!)
Truth and faith
Applied emunah
See what you believe (chicken and egg)
The emunah-prayer connection
Faith and the end of days
Miracles!
And more
The How to Learn Breslov with BRI Book series of workshops is dedicated L’iluy Nishmat Tzivia bat Chaim v’Esther Gavriel and Chana Sneider.
Are you interested in Rebbe Nachman’s teachings? Would you like to start the new year with a brand-new way of learning that’s designed for you personally? Are you curious about Breslov books, but not sure where to begin? Do you find the ideas within the texts inspiring, but aren’t sure how to apply them to your life?
Then this course is for you.
BRI has published 100 Breslov books—and counting. There are so many great translations and original titles. But it can be daunting to figure out how to approach the books so you get the most out of them. In the two classes in part one of this course, Chaya Rivka Zwolinski will show you a variety of ways in which you can benefit from Breslov texts—and use them as vehicles for personal change. Whether you are a beginner or someone who studies Torah regularly, you’ll benefit from this course which will show you how to apply what you learn from Breslov books, and how to make the teachings a part of you—for life.
Topics include:
An Overview of the Depth and Breadth of Breslov Texts
Rebbe Nachman’s Learning
Day by Day—the Old/New Way to Learn Breslov
Advice
More Advice
Rabbi Nachman’s Wisdom
And more