Series

Today we begin the cycle of e-mails from the book called "Windows of the Soul", by Rabbi Zvi Miller of the Salant Foundation.   The Image of Hashem The beginning of spirituality is the clear recognition of our good and holy souls - the very essence of our being. The more we become aware of our ex...

The Talmud tells ;us that when Alexander the Great reached the gate of ;Gan Eden, he called out, "Open the gate for me!" To his chagrin, he was turned away with the response, "This is the gate to Hashem, only the righ­teous may enter." Alexander retorted, "I am a king of great renown. Since you ...

"I feel burdened by my past conduct. It's hard for me to believe that Hashem will forgive me." If we have ;not properly guarded our eyes in the past, we can change our behavior and Hashem will help us to improve our ways. In fact, Hashem sent us an uplifting and encouraging message through the ...

"And Hashem spoke to Moshe, saying, Speak to all the community of the Children of Israel and say to them: You shall be holy, for I, Hashem your G-d, am holy." (Vayikra 19:2) How can a human being, who has a physical body and earthly desires, become "holy"? At Mount ;Sinai, ;Hashem gave the Tora...

"I sincerely want to improve my Avodat Hashem by mastering my eyes. Where do I start?" AvodatHashem - ;Divine Service - is a general term that embraces a wide range and many levels of To­rah observance. For our purposes, we are defining "Di­vine Service" as compliance with Torah Law (Halachah) an...

Let's now turn ;towards the writings of Rabbi Yisrael Salanter, whose wise counsel will map out a means for mastering our eyes. Rabbi Salanter was the founder of the Mussar Movement, which in many ways revolutionized modern Jewish thought. In the classic work, ;Ohr Yisrael (the writings of Rabbi ...

In recent years, ;many of us have become more aware of Torah laws governing ;Shmirat HaLashon, and now we are careful about what we say and what we hear. When we were first introduced to the laws of ;Shmirat HaLashon, we might have felt overwhelmed. But with study and practice, keeping these laws...

"Common courtesy precedes Torah." (Vayikra Rabbah 9:3) Couldn't not looking at a woman be construed as rudeness? Naturally, every situation ;requires tact and common sense. The law does not expect us to treat modestly dressed women as if they do not exist. We are expected to develop a balance be...

Awareness of Hashem is hard to sustain in today's culture. What tools can I utilize to help me develop and maintain it? Just ;as ;a ;security guard will deter a thief from robbing a store, the awareness that you are in G-d's presence will empower you with the ability to control your eyes. Witho...

"That sounds like a good thing to do, but truthfully, I'm too busy to take the time." When ;the Jewish ;People were slaves in Egypt, Pharaoh was concerned that they would rebel and overthrow his rule. In order to prevent them from organizing a rebellion, he saw to it that they labored under a h...