EXOD1006 See [[GEN1542]] Genesis 43:30 feeling TZADIK 141

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LEV41 [One of the fundamentals of repentance). Confession, as it is written [this verse]: "He shall confess that wherein he has sinned." And he must mention both his own sins and those of his ancestors. Why those of his ancestors? Because he is punished if he continues in their ways; and it is thus written (Ibid. 26:40): "And they shall confess their transgressions and the transgressions of their fathers." And he must take great care during confession to resolve in his heart to forsake his evil ways. For if he intends to return to them and does not forsake them then he is reckoned as one who undergoes [purifying] ritual immersion with a creeping [defiling] thing in his hand (Ta'anis 16a); for confession is analogous to ritual immersion, and the sin, to a creeping thing, and it goes without saying that ritual immersion is of no avail to one who holds such a thing.

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LEV78 See [[LEV929]] Leviticus 23:30 nefesh TZADIK 621

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LEV89 Humility may manifest itself in six ways: … (2) If one suffered a great loss or his children or close relatives die and he vindicates God's justice, accepting all with love, as it is written [this verse]: "And Aharon was silent." This is a strong sign of humility and submissiveness.

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LEV90 Silence it is good in many situations, such as in that of one who has been visited with the attribute of justice, as in the case of Aharon, where it is written [this verse]: "And Aharon was silent." If one hears others insulting him, he should remain silent. Silence in the face of insult is a great virtue. One should also accustom himself to silence in the privy, which is modesty (cf. Berachos 62b). And it requires great zeal to remain silent in the synagogue, to refrain from speaking even in words of Torah; how much more so to refrain in other matters, and all so that he can concentrate his heart on prayer. If one is sitting among the wise, he should be quiet and listen to the words. For when he is quiet, he hears what he did not know, and when he speaks, he does not grow in knowledge. But if he is in doubt as to what the Sages are saying, he should ask them, for remaining silent at such a time is very bad. King Shelomo, may peace be upon him, said (Koheles 3:7): "There is a time to be silent and a time to speak." Sometimes speech is good, and sometimes silence is good. And the Sage has said: "If you cannot find a man to teach you moral instruction, remain silent, lest you speak folly." Because the tongue is extremely light in speaking, one must take great care to "weigh down" the tongue to keep it from speaking. An abundance of words is like a heavy burden, and the heaviness of an abundance of words is greater than that of an abundance of silence. And if one hears his friend speaking, he should keep quiet until the other finishes, for (Mishlei 18:13): "If one answers before he has heard, it is folly to him and shame." One who is accustomed to silence is saved from many transgressions: from flattery, from levity, from slander, from falsehood, and from insults. For if one shames and insults him, if he answers him, he will receive a double portion [in return]. And thus did the sage say: I hear the bad thing and I keep quiet." They asked him, "Why?" He answered: "If I answer my insulters, I am afraid I will hear insults worse than the first." And he said: "When the fool contends with the sage, and the sage keeps quiet, this is a great rejoinder against the fool." For the fool is more distressed by the silence of the sage then if the sage would answer him. And about this it is written (ibid.26:4): "Do not answer the fool according to his folly."

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LEV95 Anger breeds arrogance in a man, and because of it he will not submit and will not acknowledge the truth. The Sage has said, "When you wish to choose a man as your friend, make him angry. If he admits the truth to you in his anger, make him your friend, and if not, leave him." Anger produces error. Who is greater than Moshe our teacher, may peace be upon him, who became angry three times and erred because of his anger? As it is written [this verse]: "And he became angry with Elazar and Isamar," followed by (ibid: 17): "Why did you not eat the Sin Offering in the sacred area?" [A question indicating a misapprehension on Moshe's part], and (Bemidbar 20:10): "Listen, you rebellious ones," followed by (ibid. 11): "And he smote the rock" [instead of speaking to it], and (Bemidbar 31:14): "And Moshe was angry with the commanders of the army," followed by (ibid.:21): "And Elazar the priest said to the men of the army who had gone to war, 'This is the law of the Torah,'" indicating that Moshe had forgotten the law (Sifri, Mattos 31:21) . And now, understand, if this happened to Moshe our teacher, may peace be upon him, the father of the Sages, what happens to fools who become angry? It is for this reason King Shelomo wrote (Koheles 7:9): "Do not be hasty in your spirit to become angry." And take great heed that you do nothing destructive in the midst of your anger, for our Rabbis have said (Shabbos 105b): "If one tears his garments, or scatters his money, or breaks his vessels in his anger, he should be in your eyes as one who serves idols. For such is the craft of the evil inclination. Today he tells a man, 'Do this,' and tomorrow he tells him, 'Go and serve idols,' and he goes! In this connection it is written (Tehillim 81:10): 'Let there not be in you a strange god.' Which is the 'strange god' in a man's body? The evil inclination." Observe how one's evil inclination intensifies in the time of his anger.

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LEV96 See [[LEV95]] Leviticus 10:16 angry TZADIK 241-3

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LEV114 (Continued from [[NUM43]] Numbers 6:11 atonement TZADIK 35). The proper course for a man to follow is to be clean in all of his affairs, for cleanliness is the road to good deeds. What shall he do? Let him wear plain clothing--neither expensive, gaudy attire that everyone stares at nor paupers' clothes that shame the wearer--but plain, pleasant, clean garments, the poor man according to his state and the rich man according to his. And it is forbidden to wear stained or soiled garments. They should not be torn, and they should not be stylized in the manner of the haughty. His food, too, should be clean. He should not eat royal fare, but plain food and plain drink, as he can afford. He should not drink or eat from ugly vessels, lest he transgress [this verse]: "Do not abominate yourselves"--but all should be done with cleanliness. His table and his bed, too, should be clean, and all of his affairs should be clean. [Continued at [[GEN704]] Genesis 9:6 image TZADIK 37]

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LEV185 When the Ten Days of Repentance arrive, every man must arouse his heart and tremble before the Day of Judgment, reflecting that all of his deeds are inscribed in a book and that during that period God brings into judgment every deed and every hidden thing, good or evil. For a man is judged on Rosh Hashanah and his judgment is sealed on Yom Kippur (Rosh Hashanah 16a). When a man is brought before a judge of flesh and blood does he not begin trembling greatly and start devising defenses for himself, and does he think of anything else but finding some merit to rescue himself from judgment? How foolish and simple, then, are those who, unaware of their judgment, occupy themselves with matters other than that of repentance, to the end of finding favor before the Great Judge! Therefore, it befits every God-fearing man to minimize his affairs and humble his thoughts and set aside times in the daytime and in the evening to be alone in his rooms to seek out and examine his ways, and to rise before the morning watches to occupy himself in the ways of repentance. We should not be as those who fast and arise early to pray, but do not wage battle against their sins to eradicate all ugliness from their deeds. For every man who prays and fasts and confesses, but still clings to his former deeds, is not pursuing the path of repentance. A man should rouse himself to complete repentance, for the Ten Days of Repentance are a time of favor (Yeshayahu 49:8): "In a time of favor I have answered you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you." And our Sages of blessed memory have said (Rosh Hashanah 18a): "'Seek Hashem while He may be found (Yeshayahu 55:6) -- these are the ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur." And our Rabbis of blessed memory have said (Yoma 85b) that Yom Kippur atones in conjunction with repentance. Scripture therefore exhorts us to repent and purify ourselves before the Blessed One through our repentance, as it is written [this verse]: "From all of your sins shall you be clean before Hashem." And He will grant us atonement on this day and cause us to be clean.

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LEV205 See [[LEV853]] Leviticus 20:23 walk TZADIK 29-31

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