Chassidic Thought

"It was only a joke!" These are the famous last words of the malicious individuals who laugh and joke at the expense of others. Hashem reads a person's heart and knows exactly what his or her intent was. While exploring Rebbe Nachman's famous tale, "The Humble King," we learn an important lesson about Elul and self-evaluation as we prepare for Rosh Hashanah.

This exciting story is a translation and adaptation of an old Chassidic parable, first told by Rebbe Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev some 250 years ago. Last year, the Melitzer Rebbe shlit'a retold in the original Yiddish at his Shabbat table. Hidden within the parable are the secrets of the shofar, Elul, and Rosh Hashanah.

A Ukrainian villager had a pain in his hand. Three visits to the country doctor didn't help at all. He finally traveled to the big city and scheduled an appointment with the big professor... This is an old Chassidic parable that explains Tisha B'av and exile.

Rebbe Nachman teaches us a lesson about Passover, which is a lesson for life. The bitter herbs are an integral part of the Seder, and of life as well…

Rebbe Nachman reveals the secret of the Tikkun HaKlali, the general remedy. The human body has ten types of pulse, which correspond to the ten types of song. The ten types of song are the key to inner happiness. So is the matzah we eat on Passover…

Many people with acute difficulties in life are worrying that they can't prepare for the upcoming holidays the way they might want to. Yet, we must serve Hashem with all of life's difficulties. Know full well that it's Hashem Who is challenging us with the difficulties...

Now that they have found each other, the Master of Prayer, the Warrior and the Treasurer begin their fateful journey in their search of the King. Will they find him? Will they find their other comrades from the King's Court?

The entire Country of Wealth trembles as the Warrior and his army approach. Their last hope is to send the Master of Prayer on a risky mission to the Warrior's camp. Could this be his old comrade from the pre-storm era in the King's court?
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The Storm Wind confused the entire world, turning the sea into dry land and the dry land to sea, wilderness to settled area and settled area to wilderness. But even worse, it kidnapped the Princess's beautiful child. The chaos in the world created such confusion that different sects of people created their own countries with their own skewed ideology, leaders and false gods...

The Master of Prayer reveals the source of his uncanny powers: he derived them from the King's Hand. All the creases and crevices on the hand formed a detailed map, both geographical and historical. It depicted everything that occurred from the beginning of creation until the end of time…

A bold warrior with an army of the bravest warriors like himself has succeeded in conquering many countries without firing a shot. He is now approaching the Country of Wealth, whose people are terrified. Why? The bold warrior detests money, which is their entire faith and creed.

Imagine a country that glorifies wealth. They worship many different human gods with names like Warren Buffet, Jeff Bezos, Marc Zuckerberg, Bill Gates and Elon Musk. They have other idols too. They even invent their own constellations and stars. They have movie stars, sports stars and all-stars. Rebbe Nachman foresaw all of this over 200 years ago and tells about it in today's lesson.