In Parashat Matot-Masei, we're told about the 42 journeys of the people of Israel in the desert. Many commentators explain that these are the journeys of our lives. We too need to look back, to examine what we've been through, what we learned at each stop, in order to keep moving forward. Rabbi Nachman of Breslov offers us several tools for the journey — "provisions for the road." Here's a taste:
Connection to a tzaddik. On life's journey, we need a rabbi/mentor who provides spiritual backing for our personal work. We need a great person who serves as a channel and connection to God.
Joy — this is the key to progress, to peace of mind. To seek out a good point, even a small one, and to awaken joy within us rather than sadness, heaven forbid.
Prayer, speaking to God from the depths of the heart. Rabbi Nachman wrote extensively about hitbodedut — disconnecting from one's surroundings in order to speak to God directly and openly.
Balanced sleep and eating. Maintaining physical and emotional health. Precisely on a long journey, we shouldn't neglect our bodies or our souls.
Never give up. "Sometimes you need to start a hundred beginnings in a day," said Rabbi Nachman, explaining that descent leads to ascent, that distancing leads to closeness. There is no such thing as despair in the world at all — not in the journeys of the Children of Israel in this Torah portion, and, please God, not in our own personal and national journeys, until we reach our destination.
Good luck. Shabbat Shalom.
