About the Sefer

The idea for this sefer was inspired when I was learning Ohr Yisrael (Rav Yisrael Salanter’s epistles, written to rile up his students to fight the Mussar war) with Rabbi Akiva Homnick over at Lev Aryeh.
I had just been learning about neuro-programming and the like (affirmations, visualizations etc…), because I like that sort of thing. Anything that helps, do it, as long as it’s mutar, I say. (And if it was assur it wouldn’t really be helping.) So I’d heard of sfasayim dolkos (lips aflame), emotively repeating the same verse again and again. I’d even heard of the stories of gedolim being observed doing it. But I didn’t get it. I mean, I didn’t get it.
Now suddenly, with some sort of context, I understood. The great Mussar founder was teaching a technique to rewire your subconsciousness to work for you in your avodas Hashem, to want the spiritual instead of the physical, and to want it big time. (See Michtav Me’Eliyah Vol. I, pg. 259 in the Hebrew “Eych Yilmod Ha’rachok Me’Musar – How does one far from Mussar learn?” on how this works.) What a great thing!
I wish they would give some sort of serious instructions on this, and how come there isn’t more focus on these techniques?!
So I’m hoping that trying to present this idea in a more expanded version in a yeshivish loshan h’akodesh (Hebrew) kuntress (booklet). The text will be short, but I was thinking to add a whole bunch of pesukim and ma’amarim about particular middos and areas to work on so that a person would have plenty to choose from when he wanted to start working on his area. Rav Shmuel Hominer zt”l has already done this for me on the middah of bitachon in his Sefer HaBitachon.
I think it would be great if we could resurrect and implement Rav Salanter’s amazing Mussar techniques for the yeshivishe oylam. The self-help crowd and the motivational speakers are using it to help people make money, why can’t we use it to make Toyrah! “If you will seek it like jewels and pearls…” Rav Yisrael himself said to look at what the goyim are doing in business to help you in ruchniyus, and here he came up with it first!
If you want to be a part of this project in any way: suggestions, criticisms, Torah sources, ata boys, or financial backing of a publication, let me know on the contact form – dedication available. You can also donate below via Paypal:
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Thanks so much!