Nothing is more whole than a broken heart.
-Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotzk
דְּלֵית נְהוֹרָא אֶלָּא הַהוּא דְּנָפִיק מִגּוֹ חֲשׁוֹכָא
There is no greater light that that light which emerges out of the greatest darkness.
A person of flesh and blood, if they have a vessel, so long as the vessel is whole they are happy with it; broken they do not wish it. But not so the Holy One of Blessing. So long as the vessel is whole, G!d does not wish to see it; broken the wish to see it. And what is the favorite vessel of the Holy One of Blessing? The human heart. If the Holy One of Blessing sees a proud heart they do not wish it; as it is said: "Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to YHVH." (Proverbs 16:5). Broken, they said: 'This is mine,' as it is said, "YHVH is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart" (Psalms 34:19).
Midrash HaGadol, Genesis 38:1
trans Nachum N. Glatzer
Midrash HaGadol, Genesis 38:1
trans Nachum N. Glatzer
(A story of the Ba'al Shem Tov, as retold by Irwin Keller)
The Ba'al Shem Tov, already a famous rebbe, a teacher and mystic, asked a rabbi named Zev Kitsis to be the Ba'al Tekiah for the Rosh Hashana service.
Rabbi Kitsis took this very seriously. He studied all the lore about the new year and the shofar blasts and their secret meanings. He studied mystical kavanot – things to meditate on and have filling one's thoughts at the moment of blowing the horn, in order to open the gates and lift the congregation up to the highest possible level. He was diligent and determined and wrote all those intentions, those formulas, down on a piece of paper that he put in his breast pocket, with the intention of looking at them just before the Baal Shem Tov called for the shofar blasts. And as that moment approached he reached into his pocket but there was no piece of paper. He couldn't find it. It was nowhere on his person. He realized he couldn't remember a single word of the mystical formulas he'd written down. In that moment of realization and despair, the Baal Shem Tov called out, tekiah!
Reb Kitzes stood there, hesitating a moment. And then in his despair he blew all of the blasts of the shofar. Tekiah. Shevarim-Teruah. Tekiah Gedolah. He finished and stood there, crushed, tears streaming down his face.
The Baal Shem Tov came over to him, tears on his face too. Reb Kitzes began to apologize for failing at his task. But the Baal Shem Tov interrupted, "No, you don't understand. You didn't fail. You see, God's palace has many doors. And each door has its own unique key. But there is one key that opens every door: the axe. And the axe is the broken heart. You played the shofar with your broken heart and every door of God's palace burst open. And all of our prayers ascended and entered."
The Ba'al Shem Tov, already a famous rebbe, a teacher and mystic, asked a rabbi named Zev Kitsis to be the Ba'al Tekiah for the Rosh Hashana service.
Rabbi Kitsis took this very seriously. He studied all the lore about the new year and the shofar blasts and their secret meanings. He studied mystical kavanot – things to meditate on and have filling one's thoughts at the moment of blowing the horn, in order to open the gates and lift the congregation up to the highest possible level. He was diligent and determined and wrote all those intentions, those formulas, down on a piece of paper that he put in his breast pocket, with the intention of looking at them just before the Baal Shem Tov called for the shofar blasts. And as that moment approached he reached into his pocket but there was no piece of paper. He couldn't find it. It was nowhere on his person. He realized he couldn't remember a single word of the mystical formulas he'd written down. In that moment of realization and despair, the Baal Shem Tov called out, tekiah!
Reb Kitzes stood there, hesitating a moment. And then in his despair he blew all of the blasts of the shofar. Tekiah. Shevarim-Teruah. Tekiah Gedolah. He finished and stood there, crushed, tears streaming down his face.
The Baal Shem Tov came over to him, tears on his face too. Reb Kitzes began to apologize for failing at his task. But the Baal Shem Tov interrupted, "No, you don't understand. You didn't fail. You see, God's palace has many doors. And each door has its own unique key. But there is one key that opens every door: the axe. And the axe is the broken heart. You played the shofar with your broken heart and every door of God's palace burst open. And all of our prayers ascended and entered."
Outpouring of the Soul #37 Avoiding Discouragement
Even if many days and years pass, and it seems that you have accomplished nothing with your words, do not abandon the practice. Every word makes an impression.
It is written, "Water wears away stone," (Job 14:10). It may seem that water dripping on stone cannot make an impression. Still, as we can actually see, after many years, it can wear a hole in the stone.
Your heart may be like a stone, and it may seem that your words of prayer make no impression on it at all. Still, as the days and years pass, even a heart of stone can be penetrated.
(Trans. Aryeh Kaplan)
Even if many days and years pass, and it seems that you have accomplished nothing with your words, do not abandon the practice. Every word makes an impression.
It is written, "Water wears away stone," (Job 14:10). It may seem that water dripping on stone cannot make an impression. Still, as we can actually see, after many years, it can wear a hole in the stone.
Your heart may be like a stone, and it may seem that your words of prayer make no impression on it at all. Still, as the days and years pass, even a heart of stone can be penetrated.
(Trans. Aryeh Kaplan)