Sparks of Light (book by Zalman Shachter-Shalomi)

These are my own gleanings from the book by Zalman Shachter-Shalomi and Edward Hoffman, Sparks of Light: Counseling in the Hasidic Tradition, 1983, Shambhala, Boulder). I hope they encourage you to buy the book. I have paraphrased in order to clarify my own understanding, but there are also direct quotations from the book. The notes in square brackets are my own thoughts and responses, rather than ideas gleaned from the book itself.

Introduction

8 “The Baal Shem Tov considered no situation in life unworthy of attention; all things contain holy sparks yearning to be uplifted.”

1. The Hasidic World

13 Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berdichov: “Man’s main task in this world is to transform darkness into light. He must therefore raise up these Spakrs, elevating them higher and higher until they return to their Root and Source.”
[Dybbuk is a manifestation of Shadow.]
19 “the gates of heaven lie open all around us”
20 In imitating another, we lose the chance to ‘do good through our own merit’
[Depression is a distance or separateness from God.]
21 Early Hasidism: emotional, ecstatic, magical, story, spontaneous, existential

Rites of passage

[Midwifing through stages]
25 Reparation work for earlier misdeeds
27 Wedding celebrates two souls re-meeting from before birth
28 Farbrengen = fellowship gathering
31 Zohar: ‘the way to the undisclosed is through the disclosed’

The immortal soul

Journey through the beyond

37 Four walls of mikveh = YHVH
38 Every act or omission counts; everything must be put right – “Misdeeds must be rectified; omitted acts must be carried out. No matter how lofty, every soul must reincarnate to make such corrections, to uplift all of its surrounding sparks of light. For all the countless worlds of creation are interrelated; the slightest happening in one realm ripples through all the others.”
39 Use the transcendent to uplift the mundane.
39 The everyday folk need a model of the enlightened
40 Perform a miracle to enhance God’s name
40 Do good to amend for own misdeeds

2. Jews In Need

43 Rabbi Isaac Kalov: “When you find one who can take out your innards, wash them, and replace them—while you are still alive—you have found your rebbe.” [A rebbe helps you cleanse from the inside.]

Meeting the people’s wants

43 Mundane and trivial acts can have far-reaching impact
45 Rebbe might not heal, seeing a particular person’s ailment as spiritually necessary
45 Rebbe might help a hasid with menial tasks
46 Rebbe is there to help you become a real hasid.

The social agenda

46 Rebbe might award damages, then help the offender pay

The spiritual realm

47 Rebbe’s power for good increases with developing own merit
48 Rebbe is the ‘Book of Love and Awe’ we learn from
48 Nachman: chief goal is to know God in our heart, which is aware of fear-awe and motivated to service
[Nothing is off-limits for rebbe’s attention and intervention]

An array of holy masters – judges, scholars, good Jews, seers & healers, kabbalists & miracle workers

53 Give freely, trusting that God will bless the next day
53 special powers a natural by-product of a holy way of life
56 “personal verification is the key to inner advancement”
56 emphasise experiential kabbalah
57 don’t intervene just because you can [consider impact on the web of life]
57 problem may be necessary for a greater good
57 request for chance may imply little faith in God’s ‘plan’

Ancestral merit & the sacred

58 Rebbes thought to be more powerful after death
58 descendants thought to inherit merit of rebbe
58 Nachman = great-grandson of Besht

Occasional helpers

59 Rebbe might find another helper for someone if they felt unable to connect or judgmental towards the hasid
59 Stay with one rebbe, to deepen spiritual discipline and journey
60 Some rebbes specialised in inner awakening through rebuke, ‘confessing’ to a sinner, a melody, or a dance

Moreh derekh: Teacher of the Way

61 Teach core principles and personalised teachings
61 aim to become “deeply rooted, tied with an enduring knot, never to be severed” from divine wholeness

3. Paths To Wisdom

63 A hasid and rebbe must be a Good Jew first
65 be a compassionate listener and counsellor
66 Ability to empathise and identify with the hasid
66 ability to step back from identification to offer insight
66 ethnic ‘fit’ with clients
66 inspire through leading worship
67 develop own teaching model

The Kotzk School

[Zen-like, terse, challenging, unbending, disciplined]
67 intense
68 idiosyncratic; give provocative hints; self-scrutinising; self-demeaning; Talmudic idiom; more intuitive than systematic; seeking wisdom within; unlearning what you’ve mastered; guru-ise nobody; single-minded like Pharaoh (!); hide piety; direct people’s fervour to God
69 not a passionate, large flame, but a small, highly focussed one

The ascetic hero

69 wrestle with personal demons
69 spiritual potency through self-control
69 learn “how to awaken to and master their senses, and how to transform them into holy functions”
70 Wood chopper works in summer and winter; our commitment must be similarly constant
70 Free yourself from being swayed by senses, attraction or aversion
72 Humility more important than accomplishments

The Chabad leader

72 Rabbi Schneur Zalman: “A rebbe’s task is to teach Hasidism according to the spirit of the times and the needs of the people.”
73 Be youthfully open-minded and wise; Discern coolly; imagination; apply all lofty skills to daily life; use stories

Apprenticeship for daily work

74 study Torah; rigorous prayer life; provide otherwise unobtainable kabbalah texts; kabbalistic learning
75 Risk everything for wisdom
75 Written and oral Torah
75 A spoken teaching conveys more
[Rebbe had to model the highest attributes.]
76 Hasid watched all aspects of a rebbe (e.g. the tying of shoelaces)
76 Don’t mimic; be inspired by example
76 “rebbe’s position rested also on his work in prayer, intercession and liturgy, on deeds of kindness and counselling”
77 rebbe’s acts of kindness and attention increased disciple’s self-confidence
77 soul-reading: look at a Jew [or person] as God would
77 secret healing words
78 skill and constraint in working with the paranormal
78 ethical sensitivity
78 apprentice given growing responsibility
[Teacher is a ‘wounded healer’]

Inner tests

79 Nachman: “God is hidden in the obstacle. The wise man knows this; the fool turns back.”
80 Tests of commitment strengthen commitment
81 humility in learning
81 practice humility and selflessness
81 learn to “make the right mythic moves” with “Torah as the mind of God”
81 integrate teaching into daily life
81 don’t expect to become wise
82 can’t be squeamish or moralistic
82 “to rescue a man in quicksand, you must be willing to step into the mud” [and remember that to rescue someone from a hole in the ice, you must stay away from the edge of the hole, lest you fall in also]

Dynastic trainees

84 learn from yetzer hara: never weakens or lets up, and has no yetzer hara!
85 rebbe never laughs at distress of the hasid
[Rebbe sighs – empathically? – at hasid’s slip]

The coronation

86 At graduation, rebbe and hasid become equals
[A true teacher is always learning.]
86 We learn what our teacher has given us when we begin to teach.

4. Yechidut: the Divine Encounter

87 Give counsel that helps body and soul in relation to one another
87 must be able to receive and give equally
88 “all aspects of the world are holy and wait to be redeemed, back to their original Source”
88 all human concerns are legitimate for spiritual counselling
89 Hayom Yom (Hasidic tract): “The intent of yehidut is to clarify one’s position, to define a way of [divine] service”

Time and space for guidance

90 Sessions once a month, or once in 3 years (!)
90 Life cycle moments: reassess and commit to divine service appropriate to life stage, and receive blessing for it
91 yehidut less than half an hour
91 hasid must prepare thoroughly for meeting
91 Knowing we are poor, humble and needy is a good starting point for receiving counsel. Rabbi Shmuel of Lubavitch: “The poor know that they are poor, and their need is clear to them; so we can quickly get to the point. It takes quite a while for a rich man to see his poverty; but once we get to the point where he does, the yehidut takes the same amount of time.”
91 Eve / night time yehidut is more powerful [dream time? nagual?]
92 Ritual feel to the layout of yehidut space; hasid usually stood

Rhythms of counsel

93 counsellor prepares himself before work, seeing its sacred intent
94 Hasid: contemplate life and current situation; write petition for rebbe’s intervention; recite psalms; humble penitential attitude; pay pidyon ‘ransom’ to the rebbe [for symbolic rescue]

Moments of splendour

95 Rebbe feels into the soul and searches for the real need
96 Rebbe feels for what hinders flow
96 Rebbe empathises & senses what it is like to be the hasid, finds a correspondence in his own life
96 ask far-reaching questions beyond the presenting problem
96 rebbe reflects words and story back to provide new insight, perhaps framing with Torah quote
97 rebbe gives ideas, directive and blessing of special relevance
97 rebbe intercedes in prayer once he is alone
97 hasid recalls and records the session

The art of diagnosis

98 A client’s briefer account can mean more trust in the process
98 Don’t work your story through in front of the rebbe
99 Rebbe cautious to assume whether a material struggle is necessarily an obstacle
99 Pick up the body language – and respond directly to what it is saying
100 our habitual bearing is observable / discernible even when we assume another bearing
[Be a detective of someone’s manner, apparel & appearance]
100 Sense for energetic aura, soul information
101 Counsel according to the client’s context (environment, culture, ethnicity etc)
102 Rebbe’s counsel depended on hasid’s social context, financial means, family and work obligations
103 Rebbe saw the implications of a hasid’s request & manner
104 work hard to a living, but remember primary loyalty to God
104 Reside in your spiritual & social home, not your work or business
104 Be responsible with whatever level of resources you have
105 Use your resources to benefit others

Spiritual signposts

106 an active mind should be engaged in Torah learning
107 Be creative with Torah. Go as far as your intellect will allow.
107 Commitment prized more than intellect
107 Torah must mean something to our gut
[Torah learning and menschlichkeit must be in harmony.]
108 ‘Prayer: the Divine channel’ – Hasidic prayer transcends duality
108 Prayer must be ecstatic but hasid must also be grounded
109 Prayer as surrender and inner ‘warfare’ with personal temptations
109 The best prayer life makes us better in the world of action.
[Prayer can focus us for specifics, not just for general ‘feel good’ or ‘do good’.]
110 ‘Kavanah: the power of intentionality’ – Schneur Zalman: “Prayer without love and awe is like a bird without wings.” [So make blessings count – aware and sincere.]
110 Master emotions and then trust them.
111 ‘Discerning unfinished tasks’ – Identify the soul’s unfinished business
112 Our talents are to be used to complete tasks and evolve – don’t rest on your achievements
112 If we are truly attracted to a new path, our mind is open, our view is fluid and less structured. Rebbe helped shape the hasid’s new path.
112 Rebbe – conscious diagnosis in early career; later, he would trust ruach hakodesh
113 Rebbe sought to harmonise past, present and future in the hasid’s life.
[If you’re not dead, you have unfinished business to complete – more to explore, learn, understand; more to clean up, fix, heal.

5. Inner Transformations

115 Rebbe’s task to build hasid’s motivation for significant, challenging change
115 Rebbe motivated hasid to Torah, mitzvot and teshuvah

Activating change

116 Use free will and mind to change even the deepest habits
116 Visualise being daily in the presence of the rebbe
116 Be prepared to make significant, socially noticeable change in behaviour and identity
117 Rebbe’s unpredictable [in order to follow stirrings of spirit] was a model of not being bound by social acceptability
117 Rebbe is a chaver-friend in affecting change
118 Rebbe shaped advice so hasid didn’t overdo things

Love: energy for wholeness

118 Rebbe must have deep love for the hasid
119 Rabbi Moshe Leib of Sassove taught that a rebbe should be prepared to ‘suck the pus from another’s wound’ – “to love means to know what the other lacks”
[Should an ‘obstacle’ be removed, or used creatively?]
119 Be aware of introjects
120 Deal with introjects of previous advisers
120 Rebbe activated spiritual paths for hasid
[Did a rebbe have boldness in relation to celestial forces? Abraham and Moses did.]
120 Hasid’s predicament not static but potential for the next step
121 ‘Fall’ from one rung to rise to the next – release from attachments and identity
121 “Man is judged anew each day.”
121 We can experience any day negatively or positively – how we read it is entirely up to us. (Story of Besht, and old Yuckel and his family.)
[We judge ourselves differently every day, and God responds with like judgement of us.]

The rebbe’s pain

122 Empathise deeply, but don’t lose yourself
122 Rebbe only gave an ezah-directive and tikkun-rectification when he’d stood in the client’s place; he had to feel it from the inside and identify with it.
123 Helper must not flinch from pain the way the client does.
123 not flinching from the Other takes us closer to God.

Methods of awakening

124 Selfless love and caring: catharsis; confession; shock; restructuring; arrangement-making; dream analysis
124 Confession and expression of regret, pain, loss released the hasid from the burden
125 Tears are good & to be expected even though they’re not analysable
125 Don’t console
125 Weep with
126 Dance & song afterwards for more release
126 Culture where pouring out emotion was accepted
126 Hasid could share their yechidut story at a gathering [thereby taking the process further]
126 Retell and re-enact the session
127 No such thing as coincidence – ‘chance’ moments can unlock the next door
127 Confession was an option, but not a requirement
127 Spend time regularly, alone, in nature, confessing to God
128 Speak out every detail of the problem
128 Compulsions hold power through secrecy and shame – and they leave, when told and heard lovingly
128 Grief, shame & guilt sensitise us to need for personal change
128 Don’t report new resolves until they are well bedded down
129 ‘The ruse of identification’ – Own having the same sins and problems of others or ‘client’
[God wants penitence and return, not self destruction or sacrifice]
129 Start where the client is – an act of grace, clarity and wisdom
133 Restructuring – forced into other roles, we begin to learn
133 Practice hospitality to those you don’t like
[Adversity gives us an opportunity to cultivate a virtue and rectify ourselves.]
134 ‘Arrangement-making’ [Schein’s ‘adaptive moves’?] – Sensitise someone who is too hard; harden someone who is too sensitive. ‘Eggs’ – sharpen and harden the end that was too soft, unboundaried and receptive; soften the end that was too sharp, hard, judgemental and arrogant.
136 Dreams are evidence of conscious preoccupation and focus.
136 Measure thought during the day – these will be your dreams.
137 Counsellor give a specific idea or wording to focus on
137 Check on progress next time
137 “Everyday life is the realm for inner growth.”

6. Remedies of Action

139 An eizah-directive can change the course of events.
139 Eizah is based not on the rebbe’s opinion but his own inner/higher guidance
139 Advice can seem irrational or unconnected, because it’s tapping a deeper reality
140 New out-of-character conduct can restructure personality [fake it till you make it]
141 Reverse psychology – though this has its risks
[Charity reverses poverty consciousness]
141 Mentor doesn’t take credit for behaviour or results of the mentee [NB free choice]
142 rebbe senses the solution in the hasid’s own words and manner
[Clue to the solution lies in the presenting problem. And a dream with a problem also has clues to its resolution.]
142 Recite psalms devoutly [to shift perspective]
142 Deep prayer and faith can affect miracles and change
142 Take no remedies or precautions – just trust God deeply [but … Sufi saying: “Trust in God, but tie up your camel.”]

Healing the infirm

[Care about and for physical ailments. Has strong impact in other 3 worlds.]
143 ‘May it be God’s will that …’
143 Will to live [and to vitality] is fundamental
143 ‘Do you enjoy pain’ – Talmud answer: “Neither suffering nor its beneficial effects.”
144 ‘dramatising’ strengthens the illness
144 live, get better, and give God joy
144 ambivalent wordings point to multiple levels of reality
145 add a blessing or a Torah verse to influence the patitent’s mind
145 rebbe didn’t ‘fix’; hasid must do the work
146 s’gulot – charms hold symbolic power
147 healing touch
149 rebbe advised on how to die well and prepare for afterlife
149 death necessary for inner development
149 reassure that world beyond death is better than this one
150 death is not the end, but a state of transition

Soothing the troubled soul

151 Mental illness as Godless state, disease of will or pride, evil inclination or folly [OUCH!!!]
152 Depression: lethargy, listlessness, loss of appetite, sleeplessness, inability to cry
152 Connect to course of spiritual joy
152 Amplify the pain until breakthrough
152 Deep crying akin to shofar blasts
153 Getting to very lowest point releases person to reach for life again
[Don’t put on sticky plaster]
153 Hysteria as inner conflict and cry for help
153 Treat as real, so client is not shamed
153 ‘the one who has been healed’ is a status in community that replaces the label of ‘the sick one’ [think of the priest’s personal welcome and physical contact with the healed person after they have had to spend time separated from the community]
154 illness with family dynamic, impose requirements on the family
154 beware scrupulous religious observance
[Antisocial behaviour a sign of intensified negative introjects?]
[Dignify a perspective or feeling by addressing as a sub-personality, and have a dialogue with it.]

Advice for economic and political survival

162 Look for the higher reality to be addressed in the mundane situation
[Holiness can be found—perhaps, rather, created—everywhere.]

The Blessing

168 Blessings gain power when we prepare the way with our own actions
168 Pronounce the blessing very clearly or unclearly, so intent is felt more than the meaning
168 A blessing’s intent may not be comprehensible at the time
169 Client can be insistent just as the rebbe is insistent with God [parallel process?]
169 Pray for the easier step in order to pave the way for the harder step
170 Implication is that rebbe would retain permanent care for the hasid
171 Yechidut infrequent, only at times of great need, or regularly if training someone
171 Hasid might honour a rebbe with song

7. Into The Light

173 Expectation of inner development in relation to community and supporters
173 Spiritual comradeship
173 Sense God behind our everyday acts

8. Intimate Conversation in the Presence of God

174 truth and mirroring
174 anybody, even a stranger in a moment, can give us “shattering yechidut”, like the prophet Elijah in disguise
175 Practitioner gives feedback relevant to themselves as well: “At times, I have felt that all the problems others raised with me were my own—at least on one level or another. My responses have been spoken not only to others, but also to myself. The Talmudic rabbis characterised this situation with their dictum ‘Let your ears hear what your mouth is saying.’ In this process, one person’s intuition enters into harmony with the intuition of the other. As body faces body, empathy attunes to and intertwines with empathy, mind address mind, and soul intuits soul, effects are created in the two destinies. In this way, people experience themselves as two cells of one organic being, parts of an hitherto unguessed, holy, whole, and divine gestalt. There is a flash of ephemeral knowing in search of words to capture the theophany of that here and now.”
176 God-intention; karmically non-polluting service to the client; warmth to the other; self-aware
177 Mothering
177 Teaching and healing with stories
177 Apprenticeship & attunement [no syllabuses]
177 Training in the vertical dimension [hasid to rebbe is like rebbe to God – and the hasid can learn to be a hasid to God, and a rebbe to their own hasid]
178 Yechidut principles and skills can be learned in different spiritual traditions
178 “orchestrate collectivities of persons gathering sparks into holy and cooperating gestalts. In this way, we hope they will contribute to the process of peacemaking and planetary healing.”
178 “May He who makes peace on high make peace for us, and for all Israel, and for all the souls who form the embodiment of the rebbe, the spirit of guidance.”