Podcasts about nefesh hachaim

Nefesh Hachaim

Nefesh Hachaim

Nefesh Hachaim

Nefesh Hachaim

The more important someone is the greater the impact of their actions. The maneuver of a general changes the course of a campaign; a mistake of the general can imperil the entire army; a brilliant stroke of the general can achieve unexpected victory. A simple foot soldier has a much smaller impact. Adam was created in the image of Elokim. His capacity to impact is enormous. In the third installment of our study of the magisterial work, Nefesh HaChaim, we learn about the frightening and astounding consequences of the outsized leverage bestowed upon Adam and those who spiritually resemble Adam. – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –DONATE: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –NEW TORCH Mailing Address POBox:TORCHPO BOX 310246HOUSTON, TX 77231-0246– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –Email me with questions, comments, and feedback: rabbiwolbe@gmail.com– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –SUBSCRIBE to my Newsletterrabbiwolbe.com/newsletter– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –SUBSCRIBE to Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe's PodcastsThe Parsha PodcastThe Jewish History PodcastThe Mitzvah Podcast This Jewish LifeThe Ethics PodcastTORAH 101 ★ Support this podcast ★

Nefesh Hachaim

Nefesh Hachaim

The 2026 annual TORCH fundraiser is happening right now at giveTORCH.org.Every donation is doubled at giveTORCH.org.Every donation is matched at giveTORCH.orgPlease support TORCH and the TORAH 101 Podcast with a generous contribution right now at giveTORCH.org. Give what you can give at giveTORCH.org and ensure that the TORAH 101 Podcast and the other great work of TORCH continues in 2026.– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –"And God made man in His image. In the image of God (Elokim) He made him.” The majority of the secrets of the Kabbalistic esoterica are hidden in these cryptic words, but the magisterial work, Nefesh HaChaim, authored by Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin, begins by explaining a profound understanding of these words. There is indeed some overlap between man and God. God is the source of all power, the source of all vitality, and He endowed man with some of that power. We have the ability to move worlds. We have the ability to make cosmic transformation. In this very special episode, we begin our study of this fundamental work of Torah philosophy. What we learn radically reshapes our perspective of what man is and what impact man has.– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –DONATE: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –NEW TORCH Mailing Address POBox:TORCHPO BOX 310246HOUSTON, TX 77231-0246– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –Email me with questions, comments, and feedback: rabbiwolbe@gmail.com– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –SUBSCRIBE to my Newsletterrabbiwolbe.com/newsletter– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –SUBSCRIBE to Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe's PodcastsThe Parsha PodcastThe Jewish History PodcastThe Mitzvah Podcast This Jewish LifeThe Ethics PodcastTORAH 101 ★ Support this podcast ★

Nefesh Hachaim

Nefesh Hachaim

Nefesh Hachaim

Nefesh Hachaim

Nefesh Hachaim

Nefesh Hachaim

Nefesh Hachaim

Gemara Berachot 55a, Midrash Tanchuma on Parshat Vayakhel 2, Nefesh HaChaim 4:5- discussion identifying the "chachmei lev" and how to receive chochma from Hashem

Shiur given by Rabbi Bezalel Rudinsky on Nefesh Hachaim. Shiur recorded in Yeshivas Ohr Reuven, Monsey, NY.

Sponsored by the Kolatch Family in honor of the 10th Yahrzeit of Dr. Robin Goldman, Riza bas Tzvi Yaakov

Welcome to our daily bitachon . We're going to be talking about Chanukah for the next week. The Ben Ish Chai tells us the first night of Chanukah , hopefully you'll be listening to this on the first day of Chanukah which still has that force, we make three b'rachot : l'hadlik to light the candle, she'asa nisim God made miracles, and shehecheyanu because it's a mitzvah that comes from time to time. He says there's a siman for this: עשה לך שרף ושים אותו על נס וראה אותו וחי. It's talking about the story where the Jewish people were in the desert and God sent the snakes against them, and Hashem told Moshe to make a copper snake, put it on a pole, and whoever looks at it will live. Aseh l'cha saraf , make for yourself a fiery serpent, that's fire is l'hadlik to light the candles. Place it on a pole, a nes , which is a pole because it's high up like a miracle is announced from afar, that's she'asa nisim . And finally, whoever looks at it will live, that's shehecheyanu . The obvious question is what exactly is the connection between this copper snake and the miracle of Chanukah . First we go to the sefer Bnei Yissaschar on the topic of Kislev in his second essay, letter 11, where he tells us about the dream that Daniel had, and in that dream it goes through different kingdoms, and it uses copper as a hint to the Greeks. And we see a specific connection at the end of parashat Terumah , the last word is nechoshet , which as we said hints to Yavan . And the next word is parashat Tetzaveh where it says ויקחו אליך שמן זית, take for yourself olive oil, which is the miracle of Chanukah . And one of the Rishonim , the Rokeach , gives a hint from here that the Greeks will attack the menorah . And nechoshet , copper, is rashei teivot נר חנוכה שם תדליקו, Chanukah candle there you should light it. So this copper snake is the force of the Greeks. The Greeks were the ones that said כתבו לכם על קרן השור, write for yourselves on the horn of the cow, אין לכם חלק באלקי ישראל, you don't have a portion in the God of Israel, which means the Jewish people aren't special, they don't stand out, there's no God of Israel, there's no special divine supervision on Jewish people. That was one of the Greek messages. You have your wisdom, we have our philosophy, you're no better than we are. Yaft Elokim l'Yefet , we have the beauty, Yefet is the Greeks, and we can take you head to head. Our job is to look above the snake. As the Mishnah in Masechet Rosh Hashanah tells us on this pasuk , aseh l'cha saraf , make a serpent, v'sim oto al nes , and whoever is bitten will look at it and live. Asks the Mishnah : וכי נחש ממית או נחש מחיה? Do snakes kill or snakes give life? Rather to tell you that as long as the Jewish people look above, they look above the snake and they subjugate their hearts their father in heaven, they would be healed and if not they would be they would shrivel away. Aviham shebashamayim , it's our father in heaven. We look at the snake, he looks fierce, he looks scary, and we pick our heads up above the snake and see that God's in charge and He's taking care of us. The sefer Nefesh HaChaim in his third gate, twelfth chapter, explains why they had to look at the snake. Just forget about the snake. Why look at the snake? Look up to heavens. Doesn't say that, says look at the snake. And he says look at the snake, look how powerful the snake is, and with all the power of the snake, annul it in your heart and don't pay attention to the force of the snake, and now subjugate your heart to heaven, and that will fix the problem. And this he uses the term is the concept of אין עוד מלבדו, that's what he's talking about. He used the term המתקת כוחות הדינים בשורשם. You could fix the negative forces from their source. What does that mean? When you look at the negative force and you see the source is ultimately coming from God, it looks scary, but all it is is a manifestation of God's will and He's doing it because He wants to bring us back closer to Him and He wants us to eventually come closer to Him. And that's why it's happening. So when you see all the evil and realize that all of it is really rooted in God, and he's sending it, he's the cause of it, then it disappears and it won't hurt you. The Ohr HaChaim HaKadosh on this pasuk tells us why didn't God make it that the snakes disappeared? Doesn't say that. He allowed them to continue biting and they had to look up and be healed. He said, because Hashem wants us to connect to him. And that's why he doesn't just get rid of the problem, he gives us the problem and he is the solution. And that's where we stay constantly connected to him. And that's this message of Chanukah . Chanukah is all about realizing HaKadosh Baruch Hu is taking care of us in a hidden way. The miracle of the light is really not the main miracle. The miracle of the milchama is the main miracle. We won the war. But that war was done in a natural way. So therefore, Hashem needed us to, needed to show us a miracle that would reveal what was really going on. And that's our chizuk of Chanukah on the first day. As we light, make three brachot to remind us of aseh lecha saraf , make for yourself a fiery serpent. That's the first bracha , lehadlik . Put it on a nes , she'asa nisim . Whoever will be bitten will look at it and will live, that's our shehecheyanu , reminding us of that little incident, and that's all the negative force of nechoshet of Yavan , of the Greeks, that wanted us to think that we're disconnected from God and remind ourselves and reconnect through the problem.

Shiur given by Rabbi Bezalel Rudinsky on Nefesh Hachaim. Shiur recorded in Yeshivas Ohr Reuven, Monsey, NY.

Shiur given by Rabbi Bezalel Rudinsky on Nefesh Hachaim. Shiur recorded in Yeshivas Ohr Reuven, Monsey, NY.

Shiur given by Rabbi Bezalel Rudinsky on Nefesh Hachaim. Shiur recorded in Yeshivas Ohr Reuven, Monsey, NY.

Shiur given by Rabbi Bezalel Rudinsky on Nefesh Hachaim. Shiur recorded in Yeshivas Ohr Reuven, Monsey, NY.

Shiur given by Rabbi Bezalel Rudinsky on Nefesh Hachaim. Shiur recorded in Yeshivas Ohr Reuven, Monsey, NY.

Nefesh Hachaim

The Essential Theme of Humility in the High Holidays The Bent Shofar: A Symbol of Humility On Rosh Hashanah , we blow the Shofar . The Halacha emphasizes the importance of a bent Shofar. Even if we have a choice between a bent Shofar from a goat and a straight one from a ram ( Ayil ), we choose the bent one. Furthermore, if the choice is between a straight Shofar with a great sound and a bent one with a lesser sound, the bent Shofar is still preferred. Why? The Mishnah Berurah explains that the essential requirement is for the Shofar to be bent, as the Gemara states. The bent shape symbolizes humility ( Anavah ). Rosh Hashanah is a day for humbling ourselves before God, and this principle of "bending" carries through the entire High Holiday period. Ne'ilah and the Essence of Awe This concept of humility extends directly to Yom Kippur , specifically during the concluding Ne'ilah prayer. The Gemara teaches that the core of the Ne'ilah service lies in the words: "Mah anachnu, mah chayeinu, mah kocheinu, mah gevurateinu" — "What are we? What is our life? What is our strength? What is our power?" We are declaring that we are nothing on our own. Why is this fundamental declaration of powerlessness so central to both Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur? The Desire to Be the Boss: The Original Sin The answer goes back to the Original Sin . The Serpent ( Nachash ) told Adam and Eve, "The reason God commanded you not to eat from that tree is because He ate from it and it made Him a boss. He doesn't want you to be a boss, too." We bought into the lie and ate. This event reveals a fundamental human flaw: a person's deep-seated desire to be in charge , to be the boss, and to reject the authority of anyone else. The "Curse" as a Correction ( Tikun ) To fix this innate arrogance, God instituted what is commonly called a "curse," but which the Nefesh HaChaim interprets as a correction ( Tikun ). God told man, "B'zeat apecha tochal lechem"—"By the sweat of your brow you will eat bread." And to the woman, "B'etzev teldi banim"—"In pain you will give birth to children." Why these two specific things? Because when is a person closest to feeling like a creator? When a man plants a seed in the ground and out comes a tree. When a woman conceives a seed in her womb and out comes a baby. In these moments, one is most likely to exclaim, " I'm the boss! Look what I just did! " God's wisdom ensures that precisely in these areas—your business and your family—where you feel most in control, a curveball will appear: a setback in your work or a difficulty in raising your children. The purpose ( Tachlit ) is to force us to cry out to God and declare, "I realize I'm not in charge; You are in charge." This is the meaning of the Tikun —the correction. The entire season of the High Holidays, symbolized by the bent Shofar , is designed to help us internalize this essential truth of humility and dependence on God.

Nefesh HaChaim #6- Shaar 4 Perek 1-2 (5785)

Discover why the Torah's unusual word choice in Parshas Vayikra reveals that your smallest action carries the same cosmic weight as Adam's original sin. This Torah portion study explores profound teachings from the Zohar, Midrash Rabbah, and Nefesh HaChaim about how every mitzvah and every aveirah creates ripple effects through generations and spiritual worlds you cannot see.Why does the Torah call a person bringing a korban "Adam" instead of "Ish"? What happens when neshamos confront Adam HaRishon after death? Through deep Torah commentary and an incredible true story about how one Jew's act of chesed (kindness) during the Russian Revolution ultimately saved 18 yeshiva students—including the Steipler Gaon—this episode transforms how you understand spiritual cause and effect.For Torah students and anyone seeking Jewish wisdom about teshuvah (repentance), personal growth, and the hidden impact of daily choices. Explore how Jewish philosophy views the weight of human action and discover why your good deeds ripple outward with even greater force than your sins.Weekly Torah podcast | Parshas Vayikra | Jewish spirituality and spiritual development

Nefesh HaChaim #5- Shaar 1 Perek 21-22 (5785)

Nefesh HaChaim #4- Shaar 1 Perek 12-14 (5785)

In this Question and Answer session on areas of Judaism and Jewish thought with Rabbi Daniel Rowe at Aish HaTorah Yeshiva, the following questions are raised and discussed: 00:00 How does prayer fit into our other service of Hashem? Why do we pray? 14:35 Can we feel or experience spirituality? 23:30 How do we motivate ourselves to bring God's light into the world? 28:20 Nefesh Hachaim vs Chassidus 37:30 When and how does hashkafah (philosophical perspective) impact Halacha (Jewish law)? 41:30 How is Halacha decided nowadays? Can we decide for ourselves? Be sure to subscribe to the channel for weekly videos on Jewish philosophy, wisdom and world-changing ideas. Rabbi Daniel Rowe is a popular Rabbi, philosopher and educator at Aish, who uses his deep knowledge of Judaism, science, and philosophy to captivate and educate audiences across the globe. Follow Rabbi Rowe on social media for regular new uploads and updates: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2IUE77xD5uF_1xmWxWoBSg Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1qPQn7TIWdQ8Dxvy6RfjyD Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rabbidanielrowe/ Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/cd5debfe-684c-411d-b0bc-223dcfa58a39/rabbi-daniel-rowe LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rabbi-daniel-rowe-23838711/?originalSubdomain=uk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rabbi.daniel.rowe #jewish #rabbi #jewishwisdom #torah #philosophy #prayer #soul #chassidut #halacha

We discuss the Rambam and Nefesh HaChaim's perspectives on Yaakov's Ladder and the purpose of Mitzvos. We also mention that we should look to our parents as examples. This Drasha was given at the Yeshiva of Waterbury in תשפ״ה

Towards the end of this week's parasha, Chukat , there was a tragic incident in which the Jewish People spoke negatively against Hashem and against Moshe. Hashem sent fiery serpents to bite them and a large multitude of the people died. The remainder made teshuva and asked Moshe to pray to Hashem to stop the plague. Hashem then told Moshe to make a fiery serpent and place it on a pole and whoever would look up at it would be healed of his snake bite. The Gemara asks, do snakes have the power to bring life? And it answers, the idea was that the Jews should look up towards Heaven and subjugate themselves to Hashem and that's what would bring about their healing. The sefer Vaveh H'amudim brought a question, if the main thing was looking towards Hashem, then what was the point of putting the snake on the pole? They should have just been told, "look up and subjugate yourselves to Hashem." Rav Chaim Volozhiner answered this question based on the famous segula he brings down in his sefer Nefesh HaChaim , shaar 3. "Indeed, it is a great and wondrous segula to remove and nullify all strict judgments and wills of other people so they can have no power over him and no impact on him whatsoever, when a person decides in his heart, saying, 'Hashem is the true G-d and there is nothing besides Him in this world and the Upper Worlds. אין עוד מלבדו . Everything is filled with only His unity.' As well, the person nullifies in his heart with a complete nullification and does not pay any attention at all to any power or will in this world and submits himself and clings to the purity of his thoughts that the One and only G-d is Hashem. Then, Hashem will nullify for him all the powers and desires in this world so that nothing can be done to him whatsoever." With this in mind we can understand why the Jews had to look at the image of the very snake which bit them. They needed to stare at the object which inflicted harm upon them and then honestly believe that it had no powers of its own. That is how they subjugated themselves towards Hashem and in that merit they were healed. It's very easy to say the words אין עוד מלבדו , but to see in front of one's eyes something which appears to have power and then believe that it is nothing, that is where the great segula lies. When we could truly believe there is no such thing as nature, we could even see miracles. A man recently related that, when he was younger, he heard a powerful class about praying to avoid problems rather than waiting for the problems to come and then praying to get rid of them. He then started praying to get married and have children, way before he became of age. Baruch Hashem, he got married and had his first child within the year. And over the next years, he and his wife were blessed with a few more children. About a year after their last child was born, he went to the doctor because of a pain he was having. The doctor did a number of tests and, when the results came back, he called him and asked if he could come speak to him. The office was close to where he needed to drop off a couple of his children that day, so he brought them along. When the doctor called him in, he asked him when he adopted those children. The man replied they were his own. The doctor was stunned. He said based on the test results that he did, it would have been impossible for him to ever have children. Indeed, since that visit, he did not have another child. Because of his tefilot , Hashem gave him and his wife a miraculous family. Hashem could do anything and when we believe in His powers and nothing else, b'ezrat Hashem, we will see miracles.

In this series, Rabbi Daniel Rowe learns and explains the classic Jewish mystical work, "Nefesh HaChaim" by Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin, touching on many deep Kabbalistic and philosophical truths in Judaism. This episode explores the power of speech and also the 4 Kabbalistic worlds, or layers of relality, known as 'Atzilut' (Emanation), 'Beriah' (Creation), 'Yetzira' (Formation) and 'Asiya' (Action/Completion)'. Subscribe for more videos about Judaism, Jewish Mysticism and Kabbalah. Rabbi Daniel Rowe is a popular Rabbi, philosopher and educator in the UK, who uses deep knowledge of Judaism, science and philosophy to captivate and educate audiences on a daily basis. Follow Rabbi Rowe on Social media for regular new uploads and updates: YouTube: / @rabbidanielrowe. Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1qPQn7T... Instagram: / rabbidanielrowe. . Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/cd5... LinkedIn: / rabbi-dan. . TikTok: / rabbi.daniel.. . #kabbalah #jewishwisdom #jewishphilosophy #jewish

We discuss the opinion of the Nefesh HaChaim regarding how the concept of God's concealment is an idea that can cause disillusionment. We specifically speculate that caution is being taken with the presentation of this concept in the Tanya. This class was given at the Phoenix Community Kollel on 11/29/23.

  In this episode we take a deeper look at the potential benefits of proper Torah learning. How does this have the potential to give us the tools to deal with the challenges of maintaining commitment in our times?    We also look at how there are parallelisms between Tanya and Nefesh HaChaim in their understanding of high level Avodas Hashem.    We also examine if there is a connection between the Chassidic practice of wearing a bekesh or jacket when they learn and the Tanya's definition of Torah Lishma. Or is there another reason for this practice.  Nach Yomi: Join R' Wittenstein's Nach Yomi on WhatsApp. We learn a perek a day five days a week, with a nine minute shiur covering the key issues. Click here to join!  For tours, speaking engagements, or sponsorships contact us at jewishhistoryuncensored@gmail.com PRODUCED BY: CEDAR MEDIA STUDIOS