In his lesson “Azamra!” Rebbe Nachman teaches how important it is to look for the good in others. Our Sages told this story to illustrate what it means to judge someone favorably: A man from the Upper Galilee hired himself out to an employer in the south for three years. On the day before Yom Kippur he said to his employer, “Give me my wages so I can go back to my wife and children.” “I have no money,” the employer replied. “Then give me fruit,” the man said. “I have none,” came the reply. “Then give me land.” “I have none.” “Then give me livestock.” “I have none.” “Then give me pillows and bedding.” “I have none.” Bitterly disappointed, the man took his belongings and returned home empty-handed. few weeks after Sukkot, the employer took the man’s wages in his hand along with three donkey-loads of food, drink and delicacies, and traveled to the worker’s house. After they had eaten and drunk, he paid the man and asked, “When you said, ‘Give me my wages,’ and I said, ‘I have no money,’ what did you suspect me of?” “I thought that perhaps an opportunity had arisen to buy merchandise cheaply, and you had used the money for that,” the man replied. “And when you said, ‘Give me livestock,’ and I said, ‘I have none,’ what did you suspect me of?” “I thought that perhaps your animals were hired out to others at the moment.” “And when you said to me, ‘Give me land,’ and I said, ‘I have none,’ what did you suspect me of?” “I thought that perhaps your land was being leased out to others.” “And when I said, ‘I have no fruit,’ what did you suspect me of?” “I said, ‘Perhaps his fruit has not been tithed.’“ “And when I said, ‘I have no pillows and bedding,’ what did you suspect me of?” “I said, ‘Perhaps he dedicated all his possessions to Heaven.’” “That is exactly what happened!” the employer said. “I vowed away all my possessions because of Hyrkanus my son, who does not learn Torah. But when I went to my friends in the south, they absolved me from my vows. As for you, just as you judged me favorably, the All-Present will judge you favorably” (Shabbat 127b). ENCOURAGEMENT. 32. When you consider the utter greatness of God and His unfathomable exaltedness, the merest movement of ours that is slightly out of place in relation to the glory of God should make us liable to whatever we should be liable to, God forbid. But He is filled with love and the whole world is filled with His kindness. God desires this world very greatly. So, my beloved friend and brother, take courage and trust in God. He will not abandon you. Whatever you experience is all for your good. … Somehow everything will be transformed to good. Even the intentional sins will be transformed into merits. Only remain firm (Likutey Moharan II, 49). 33. If man had no evil inclination, his service would be worth nothing. This is why God gives the evil inclination such power against men, especially those who genuinely seek to draw closer to Him. The onslaught of the evil inclination brings men to all manner of sin and devastation. But even so, in God’s eyes, all this is acceptable because of the preciousness of the gestures that people make when confronted by the full force of the evil inclination – those gestures of fighting and escaping. In God’s eyes, this is more precious than if a person served him for a thousand years without the evil inclination (ibid.). breslov.org PO Box 5370 • Jerusalem, Israel • 972.2.582.4641 PO Box 587 • Monsey, NY 10952 • 1.800.33.BRESLOV Pathways is a weekly publication. To subscribe, please visit breslov.org/pathways. To make a dedication, please email pathways@breslov.org. © 2018 Breslov Research Institute The photo on the front is a close-up of Rebbe Nachman’s chair, which is displayed in the main Breslov synagogue in Jerusalem. Dedicated in the Me
