Author Archives: Yitzhak Sasson

I don’t know the origin of the song Ma Sheya Haya but it is probably Breslev and it’s highly connected to Rav Shalom Arush. The words are simple and straightforward: What’s past is past. The important thing is to start anew.What’s past is past. The important thing is to start anew.Father, renew me completely, igniteContinue reading “Going Forward”

Did you know that airplanes and ocean vessels spend about 80% of their time correcting their course? Natural elements like winds, currents, and waves continually push them off course requiring repeated corrective steering measures. We too are no different. The ill influences of family, friends, and workmates push and pull us off course like aContinue reading “An Honest Assessment”

There is an old saying, “Man plans and G-d laughs” implying that G-d has an alternate (and better) plan for us and that His will shall prevail. A few years ago I read there was a Chasidishe Rebbe who would say, “G-d’s greatest attribute is that he doesn’t laugh.” Coming from a Rebbe it wasContinue reading “No Laughing Matter”

Consider these two scenarios… A teenage son rejects dinner lovingly made by his mother and eats box cereal instead. A teenage daughter rejects her father’s offer of a special day shopping, eating out, and the theatre to be with her friends. The loving experiences these parents tried to give their children go undesired and ultimatelyContinue reading “The Cow & The Calf”

Distances like a light-year or the size of a galaxy are unfathomable. Very, very small things like an electron or quark are unfathomably small. Spiritual incentives, like the eternal reward for doing a mitzvah are also unfathomable. Below are three unfathomable — but obtainable — spiritual incentives from the book Inner Work: The Ari HaKadoshContinue reading “Unfathomable Incentives”

Alain de Botton the Swiss-born British author and philosopher said the following: “Anyone who isn’t embarrassed of who they were last year probably isn’t learning enough.” Although de Botton focuses on personal growth and self-improvement, the same principle can apply to teshuvah. Imagine making major behavioral changes like to the point where it’s surprising, sobering,Continue reading “Last Year”

Teshuvah is a positive mitzvah in the Torah and a great gift given to us from G-d. There are four steps in the teshuvah process as outlined by the Rambam in the Mishneh Torah: This teshuvah process is easy to remember and only valid for sins between man and G-d.

The famous teshuvah quote in Mishlei 24:16,says: The tzadik falls seven times and gets up. The popular explanation is that the tzadik continues to get up after falling repeatedly. His unrelenting desire — what makes him a tzadik — is evident by his continual getting up. I recently read a story of someone who wentContinue reading “Ups & Downs”

One of the Six Constant Mitzvot* and the first of the Ten Commandments is the belief in G-d. It is also the first of Rambam’s Thirteen Principles of Faith Belief in the existence of the Creator, who is perfect in every manner of existence and is the Primary Cause of all that exists. Chabad.org :Continue reading “Emunah”

In the world of programming, there is a famous acronym; GIGO which means Garbage In, Garbage Out. In other words, poor coding will produce junk results. This succinct little acronym applies to change, self-improvement, and teshuvah as well. If we put in lackluster efforts, we will typically receive lackluster results. Conversely, in the book, InnerContinue reading “GIGO”