Questions from A Soul at Peace

By Rabbi Shalom Landau. Each question is answered from that essay alone. Rabbi Landau answers in the words of the essay.

• Q: Why might I feel numb and worn out even though I pray, study and do everything right?
• Q: What does "Each man by his own banner, with the signs of his father's house" teach about each person's mission?
• Q: Why doesn't the advice to study more or pray harder always cure spiritual dryness?
• Q: What should I do if I am still searching for my personal mission?
• Q: How can I find out what gives me real vitality?
• Q: Why does digging deeper inside yourself to heal sometimes make you feel worse?
• Q: What happens to a generation that keeps searching inside itself?
• Q: Is there no value in looking inward, if the Tanya builds a whole path of inner reflection?
• Q: What does the Hanukkah candle in the window teach about the purpose of the soul?
• Q: What simple step can I take today to shine my light outward?
• Q: Why do people put off Torah study, prayer and charity until they feel more inspired, and why is that a mistake?
• Q: What is the difference between a pit and a channel in Rabbi Landau's teaching on giving?
• Q: What does the Hanukkah miracle of the small jar of oil teach about acting before you feel ready?
• Q: Do we need to feel full before we act, or do we become full by acting?
• Q: What should I do when I feel spiritually empty and have no energy to give?
• Q: Why did Noah have to build the ark himself over such a long time, and what do the words “Make yourself an ark” teach?
• Q: Why is a mission from Hashem given to one person and not to the crowd?
• Q: Why was Noah’s greatness that he built the ark before the rain came?
• Q: What is the biggest obstacle to building your own “ark”?
• Q: What should you do about a mission in serving Hashem that the people around you don’t understand?
• Q: What do most people actually feel in the first few minutes of the morning?
• Q: What does "there is no king without a people" teach about our role each day?
• Q: Why is saying Modeh Ani in the morning like accepting a mission?
• Q: What does it mean that waking up each morning is being chosen for another day?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give for saying Modeh Ani in the morning?
• Q: What exactly are you doing when you crown Hashem as King in the New Year prayers?
• Q: What is the personal crown Hashem asks each person to reveal on the New Year?
• Q: What does the Baal Shem Tov's teaching about each soul having its own letter in the Torah mean?
• Q: What does the simple sound of the ram's horn on the New Year express?
• Q: What should you ask yourself before the shofar is blown on the New Year?
• Q: What should a young married man do when he ends the day feeling guilty about everything he missed?
• Q: What does "Each man by his own banner" teach about each soul's mission?
• Q: Does having my own share in the Torah mean the rest of the Torah doesn't concern me?
• Q: What does the image of each Jew as a letter in a Torah scroll teach?
• Q: What should I ask myself at the end of the day instead of adding up what is missing?
• Q: Why was the holy master of Rivnitz filled with quiet joy when he stood trial under Communist rule?
• Q: What should a person do when he feels empty and in a "low place" for no clear reason?
• Q: What did the master of Rivnitz tell himself during his trial, and why does it matter?
• Q: What does a true holy leader do when he goes down to help a person in a low place?
• Q: What should I hold on to when I feel I have nothing left spiritually?
• Q: How could the spies, the great leaders of their generation, say “It is a land that eats up those who live in it” out of plain fear?
• Q: What are the two stages of serving Hashem, the desert and the land?
• Q: What was the spies’ real mistake about entering the land?
• Q: Is leaving full-time Torah study for work and earning a living a spiritual step down?
• Q: Where should you look for spirituality outside the study hall this week?
• Q: How can a young married man know if he is doing what he really needs to be doing in life?
• Q: What do wisdom and talent have to do with finding your mission, as with Bezalel?
• Q: Why does every true mission include giving and kindness to others?
• Q: Are the four signs of a mission separate conditions, and what if one is missing?
• Q: What simple exercise does Rabbi Landau suggest for checking whether you have found your mission?
• Q: Why might someone who prays, studies and works still feel empty and ask why he is really here?
• Q: What does it mean that every Jew is an emissary whose soul came down to do something?
• Q: What are the two kinds of self-worth, and which one comes from the ego?
• Q: Why does living one's mission bring vitality and living someone else's life bring emptiness?
• Q: Where can I find my personal mission, and how does it answer the question of self-worth?
• Q: Does Hashem really need every Jew?
• Q: Isn't it strange to say Hashem needs us when we are the ones who need Hashem?
• Q: Why did Hashem create the world if He lacks nothing?
• Q: Who builds Hashem's home in this lower world?
• Q: Do I need more time, money or strength before I can do something meaningful?
• Q: What does the verse “Let them make Me a Sanctuary, and I will dwell within them” mean?
• Q: What did King Solomon say on the day he dedicated the Holy Temple about the heavens not containing Hashem?
• Q: What did the Baal Shem Tov teach about the inner Temple that was never destroyed?
• Q: Why does the verse say “I will dwell within them” and not “within it”?
• Q: What should you do after crying over the Holy Temple on the fast day?
• Q: Can a Torah school founded years after a holy leader passed away truly be called his school?
• Q: What does the Talmud's teaching "A righteous person decrees, and Hashem fulfills" mean?
• Q: What is a Hasidic Torah school really meant to give its students?
• Q: How does carrying out a holy leader's will create a circle of delight between follower and master?
• Q: What should I tell myself when I feel I have no strength to do something for Hashem's sake?
• Q: When a young man leaves the study hall for work and family life, is he wasting his time?
• Q: What happened when Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai came out of the cave and saw people plowing and planting?
• Q: What does the Tanya mean that Hashem wants “a home in this lower world”?
• Q: What did Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai learn in his extra twelve months in the cave?
• Q: How should a person think about going out to work and handling bills, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: Why does the Talmud say a Levite singer who did the work of a gatekeeper deserves death?
• Q: Is the law about the singer who stood at the gate only about order and discipline in the Temple?
• Q: Why do I feel I have to follow my friend's path to be enough?
• Q: What does "deserves death" for the singer who left his place teach about true holiness?
• Q: What should I ask myself when I feel the pull to compare myself to others?
• Q: Why does a young man who studies Torah and keeps the commandments still feel empty?
• Q: Is not being happy with my lot a sign of arrogance?
• Q: What does the parable of a huge airplane stuck in narrow city streets teach about the soul?
• Q: Why do great souls feel frustrated when they look for fulfillment in small things?
• Q: What should you do the next time you feel a spiritual emptiness?
• Q: If man was meant to work even before the sin, what is the curse in "By the sweat of your brow you will eat bread"?
• Q: What is the "closed circle" of living in order to work?
• Q: How does the curse of bread as the goal show up in a young married man's life today?
• Q: How does the Tanya's idea of hidden love for Hashem relate to serving Hashem through ordinary work?
• Q: What daily question does Rabbi Landau suggest asking to turn work from a curse into a blessing?
• Q: What does the verse “The path of the righteous is like the light of dawn; it keeps going and shining, until the day is full” mean?
• Q: What is the deep difference between telling time by a clock and by the sun?
• Q: What do the exact words “keeps going and shining” teach about the path of the righteous?
• Q: What should a busy family man do when he wonders at night whether his day had any real content?
• Q: How can you make your daily walking give light, not just keep going?
• Q: What is the verse "I said: A world of kindness will be built; in the heavens You set Your faithfulness"?
• Q: Why does a young man who struggles for livelihood and peace at home ask what he is doing wrong?
• Q: What does "a world of kindness will be built" teach about the basic law of reality?
• Q: Is giving a tenth to charity a deal with Hashem, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: How can I stop feeling like I am fighting life, and how much should I give to charity?
• Q: What can one person possibly do when darkness lies over the street, the home and even the soul?
• Q: What does King Solomon mean by “I saw that there is an advantage to light from darkness”?
• Q: Why are you the one who sees a particular darkness and not your friend?
• Q: Why did the soul come down into this world, according to Likkutei Torah?
• Q: What should you do when you meet darkness in your home, in a friend or in yourself?
• Q: Would I be a better Jew if I could escape the pressures of making a living and family life?
• Q: Why did Hashem send the soul into this world instead of above it, according to the Tanya?
• Q: What does the Baal Shem Tov teach about serving Hashem through the material world?
• Q: Why must the Hanukkah lamp be placed less than ten handbreadths from the ground, and what does that teach?
• Q: What should you do when you feel your situation is getting in the way of being close to Hashem?
• Q: What did Rabbi Landau want to tell a man who said depression controls him?
• Q: Why does the Torah say Hashem separated light from darkness rather than that light defeated it?
• Q: Why is fighting sadness head-on the wrong approach, according to Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi?
• Q: What does the Maccabees' single jar of oil teach about overcoming inner darkness?
• Q: What small act of light can someone struggling with darkness do today?
• Q: Why does the story of Judah, the ancestor of kingship, begin with the words "Judah went down"?
• Q: What does the Zohar mean by "There is no light except the light that comes out of darkness"?
• Q: How did Judah's admission "She is more right than I" become the doorway to kingship?
• Q: Why did kingship begin precisely when Judah was broken?
• Q: What should I do when I feel I have reached the end?
• Q: Which verse about the heart of a king being in Hashem's hand is this essay about?
• Q: Is exile a punishment or a mission, according to the covenant with Abraham?
• Q: Why does Rabbi Landau call a wave of hatred against Jews an alarm clock?
• Q: What should a Hasidic Jew do when reading troubling news before searching for solutions?
• Q: What can you do for five minutes when you feel anxious about what is happening in the world?
• Q: Which verse about the splitting of the sea is this essay built on?
• Q: How can the Children of Israel walk on "dry land in the middle of the sea" if those are opposites?
• Q: What was the inner, greater miracle of the splitting of the sea?
• Q: Besides asking Hashem to split the sea, what deeper prayer can a person make in times of trouble?
• Q: What small thing can you do when trouble is pressing and you can't breathe?
• Q: What is the spiritual root of today's confusion about what a man and a woman are?
• Q: Why does the Torah's account of creation begin with separating light from darkness?
• Q: What does "An Aramean tried to destroy my father" teach about Laban as a force that blurs every boundary?
• Q: How does Laban the Aramean show up in our generation's war on the definitions of man and woman?
• Q: What practical step can parents take in the face of confusion about male and female identity?
• Q: Where should a Jew look for the root of antisemitism when he sees hatred in the news?
• Q: What does the Talmud mean when it says hatred came down to the nations from Mount Sinai?
• Q: How can the hatred of the nations be a fence that Hashem built around His people?
• Q: What does Jewish assimilation in 1920s Germany teach about the purpose of antisemitism?
• Q: What should Jews do when antisemitism rises and threatens them?
• Q: Which verse from Deuteronomy about seeking Hashem "from there" is this essay about?
• Q: Why am I in this job, in this test, in a life that seems to have gone off course?
• Q: How does the exile of the Jewish people serve as a model for each person's private exile?
• Q: Why does the verse say "from there you will seek Hashem" and not after you leave the hardship?
• Q: What should you ask about the hardest thing you are carrying right now?
• Q: Which verse from the prophet Micah opens the essay “When I Sit in Darkness, Hashem Is My Light”?
• Q: What does Micah mean by “Do not rejoice over me, my enemy; though I fell, I rose”?
• Q: Why does the verse “Though I fell, I rose; though I sit in darkness, Hashem is my light” teach that rising happens inside the darkness?
• Q: What changes when we realize Hashem goes down with us, as He told Jacob “I will go down with you to Egypt”?
• Q: What should you say out loud when you feel the weight of your situation again?
• Q: What does the verse "On the seventh day Hashem finished the work He had done" say?
• Q: If creation was already finished, what was created on the seventh day?
• Q: Why is the Sabbath more than a passive day off?
• Q: How is the Sabbath a taste of the world to come that prepares us?
• Q: How can I really rest on the Sabbath without measuring everything?
• Q: Which verse about Hashem resting on the seventh day is this essay about?
• Q: Who am I when I get nothing done?
• Q: What does the Tanya's teaching that the soul is "truly a piece of Hashem above" say about simply being?
• Q: Is the Sabbath a reward for six days of work, or training of a different kind?
• Q: How should you sit at the Sabbath table to feel that your worth isn't measured by what you got done?
• Q: When asked "Who are you?", why is answering with your job or role a basic mistake?
• Q: What does Isaac's question "Who are you?" teach about the difference between who you are and what you do?
• Q: What does the Tanya mean when it calls thought, speech and action "garments" of the soul?
• Q: What does it mean that the soul of every Jew is "a piece of Hashem above, truly"?
• Q: What should I ask myself when I feel I have failed?
• Q: What should a young man do when he feels he still hasn't found himself?
• Q: What does the verse "It is not in heaven... the thing is very close to you" teach about finding your mission?
• Q: If I am creating myself, what is the raw material and what needs to be peeled away?
• Q: Why does Rabbi Landau say to stop searching for yourself and start building?
• Q: What practical step can I take if I feel I am not ready yet?
• Q: What is the verse in Isaiah about the people going into exile for lack of awareness?
• Q: Why does Isaiah say the people went into exile "for lack of awareness" rather than because of their sins?
• Q: What is the deepest form of exile, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: What does the Tanya say about the divine soul being free?
• Q: How can I get out of the exile of the mind this week?
• Q: Is it true that if people don't value you, you should change where you are, like a bottle of water priced differently in different places?
• Q: What is wrong with the advice "Change your place and you will change your worth"?
• Q: Why is a person like a gold bar rather than a bottle of water?
• Q: Doesn't the soul's descent into this dark physical world lower its value?
• Q: How can a person stop measuring his worth by his job, success, or honor?
• Q: Which verse in Job speaks of the portion of Hashem from above?
• Q: After I fall, am I the mud, the shoe, or the one walking?
• Q: Why is despair the evil inclination's real victory, more than the sin itself?
• Q: Why does the power of returning to Hashem depend on knowing that I am not my sin?
• Q: What should I tell myself when an inner voice says I am a failure?
• Q: Why does Hashem give Pinchas "My covenant of peace" right after a plague and a desecration of His Name?
• Q: What was Zimri's real claim behind his public sin, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: How did Pinchas answer Zimri, if not with an argument?
• Q: What does the Zohar's teaching that "Pinchas is Elijah" mean for the Pinchas within each of us?
• Q: What should I do when I feel "it's too late, this is what I am, I have no strength"?
• Q: What does "There is nothing new under the sun" say about artificial intelligence and patterns?
• Q: What is "the chain of descent" in Hasidic teaching, and why is the machine at home there?
• Q: How is wisdom, "the power of 'what?'", able to create something truly new?
• Q: Is my daily routine of study, prayer, and kindness just a habit, or does it come from a deeper place?
• Q: How can you check today whether you are acting from habit or from the point above it?
• Q: Why does a young man who decides to be less angry and less cold find himself the same by evening?
• Q: Is it a failure when you try to change yourself and by evening you are the same again?
• Q: What does it mean that the soul is a mirror of the ten divine qualities?
• Q: How can the verse “Serve Hashem with awe, and rejoice with trembling” ask for joy and trembling at the same time?
• Q: What should you ask yourself before calling an inner struggle a “failure”?
• Q: Which verse from Ecclesiastes about toil and envy being "chasing the wind" is this essay about?
• Q: Can it really be that all of a person's toil and effort is empty, nothing but chasing the wind?
• Q: What does the Tanya's "Gate of Unity and Faith" teach about your existence being its own justification?
• Q: What is the difference between serving Hashem out of anxiety and serving Him out of joy?
• Q: What should you say to yourself when you feel you need to justify your existence?
• Q: What does the verse “The advice in a person’s heart is like deep waters, and a person of understanding will draw it up” mean?
• Q: What common mistake do young men make when they go to their mentor for guidance?
• Q: Instead of asking your mentor “What should I do?”, what question should you ask?
• Q: What does “The soul of a person is a lamp of Hashem” teach about feeling broken?
• Q: How should you prepare before your next talk with your mentor?
• Q: What does the verse in Isaiah "See, for my own peace I had bitterness upon bitterness" say?
• Q: How does the Tanya's teaching about the two souls explain longing for a destructive relationship?
• Q: After leaving a destructive relationship, why do I miss it if I know it was bitter?
• Q: Does the pain after leaving a bad relationship mean I am weak?
• Q: What should I do when a wave of longing for a past relationship rises?
• Q: Why does honor run away from whoever chases after it?
• Q: Why is "How do I get this?" the wrong question to ask?
• Q: What do the parables of the cup under the faucet and the magnet teach about chasing?
• Q: What does the verse "All these blessings will come upon you and overtake you" teach about chasing success?
• Q: What should I ask myself instead of how else I can make something work?
• Q: Which verse from Proverbs about the power of the tongue does this essay start from?
• Q: How can "death and life are in the power of the tongue" apply to what I say about myself?
• Q: Why can joking about yourself, like "I'm always late", be harmful to your soul?
• Q: What did the Baal Shem Tov teach about the mark that every word leaves?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give about the jokes we make about ourselves?
• Q: What is left for me if a machine can do my work faster and better?
• Q: What does "In a place where there are no people, try hard to be a person" mean?
• Q: How does the Tanya's teaching about the soul's garments relate to artificial intelligence?
• Q: What message is Hashem sending when He sends machines that imitate our thought, speech and action?
• Q: What should I ask myself every day during Torah study and prayer in an age of machines?
• Q: Why do I keep fighting the same battle with the same habits for years despite real effort?
• Q: What is the psalmist asking for in the verse “Open my eyes, so that I may see wonders from Your Torah”?
• Q: Why do sincere decisions to change keep fading by the next week?
• Q: According to the Tanya, which of a person’s two souls is the real “I”?
• Q: What should you say to yourself for three minutes each day, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: How do I deal with the inner voice the morning after I fall and break my resolutions again?
• Q: What does the parable of a poll versus the actual election teach about my past failures?
• Q: Is the inner voice that lists all my past failures telling the truth?
• Q: What does the verse "Watchman, what is left of the night?" and the answer "Morning has come" teach?
• Q: What should I do instead of arguing with the voice that says I'll never change?
• Q: What was wrong with the spies saying "We were like grasshoppers in our own eyes"?
• Q: What is the difference between true self-nullification and false, crushing lowliness?
• Q: Why does the pessimist who points out every difficulty always sound wise?
• Q: How does the builder act when he sees the giants?
• Q: How should I face the real "giants" in my life, like income or raising children?
• Q: What does the verse "Where there is no vision, the people run wild; but one who keeps the Torah, happy is he" say?
• Q: What is the difference between a mirror and a map, and why can't a mirror guide you?
• Q: How is the Torah a map rather than a mirror of what society is doing?
• Q: Why does the verse say "happy is he" about one who keeps the Torah instead of "he will be rewarded"?
• Q: What should I do tomorrow morning before opening my phone?
• Q: What does the verse “And I broke the bars of your yoke and made you walk upright” say?
• Q: Why do we feel so chained, and what yoke does this verse speak about?
• Q: If habit is too strong for us to break alone, what role does Hashem play in breaking it?
• Q: Is the call to break the yoke of habit a call to rebel?
• Q: What one question should you ask yourself before praying or studying today?
• Q: Who am I really living for, behind the worry about what people will say?
• Q: What is the test of imagining your own death, and what does it reveal?
• Q: What does the Tanya call chasing the crowd's opinion of you, and why is it harmful?
• Q: What painful question does Rabbi Landau ask about the purpose of your life?
• Q: How can I take the test of truth about the time I spend managing my image?
• Q: Why can one small remark or cold look make everything inside me fall apart?
• Q: Why do I spend hours spinning over one thing someone said to me?
• Q: What does Jeremiah mean by “Cursed is the man who trusts in people”?
• Q: If being hurt by others is the problem, is getting compliments the cure?
• Q: What should you ask yourself the next time a word or a look sends you into a spin?
• Q: Why did our Sages compare people's minds to their faces in "Just as people's faces are not alike, so their minds are not alike"?
• Q: How does being created in Hashem's image show itself through the face?
• Q: How is my mind my inner face, a reflection of Hashem's image?
• Q: Doesn't setting the self aside mean erasing my own opinion?
• Q: What should I do when my inner voice says "I see this differently"?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs contrasts the fool who is right in his own eyes with the wise man who listens to advice?
• Q: If every compass in the world pointed south, would north have moved?
• Q: What does "The seal of Hashem is truth" mean, and why is the Torah the "north" of reality?
• Q: Should I argue with everyone whose moral compass is broken?
• Q: What should I ask myself when the world tries to convince me that I am the one who is not normal?
• Q: What does the verse "A person sees what meets the eye, but Hashem sees into the heart" teach about the masks we wear?
• Q: What are the four masks, or layers of false identity, that a person wears?
• Q: Are the masks we wear always bad, or is the problem how much we invest in them?
• Q: Is the goal to build a better, more Hasidic mask, or to remove the masks altogether?
• Q: What should you ask yourself before you study or pray to find your mask?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs contrasts truthful lips that stand firm forever with a lying tongue?
• Q: What is the difference between "stand firm forever" and "only for a moment" in "Truthful lips will stand firm forever"?
• Q: How does the evil inclination use branding to make wrong things look good?
• Q: Why must honest self-accounting begin by naming things as they really are?
• Q: What small, hard step should I take before an honest self-accounting?
• Q: What does "Truth will sprout from the earth" mean when the inner spark from prayer or Torah study feels swallowed up?
• Q: What does the struggle between Cain and Abel show about the inner struggle in every Jew?
• Q: Why does the verse say Abel's blood "cries out" from the ground after he was silenced?
• Q: How can being buried in the earth be a planting rather than a death?
• Q: What should a young man do when he feels the evil inclination has buried his inner stirring?
• Q: What does the verse “The quiet words of the wise are heard above the shouting of a ruler over fools” mean?
• Q: Why does a product with real value, like gold, not need loud advertising?
• Q: Why doesn’t a person of real substance need to announce himself?
• Q: Why are the quiet words of the wise heard more than shouting?
• Q: What act of serving Hashem does Rabbi Landau suggest doing this week without telling anyone?
• Q: What does the verse "Abimelech said to Isaac: Go away from us, for you have become much mightier than we are" describe?
• Q: Why does pushback and coldness come exactly at the moment a person rises spiritually?
• Q: What does the story of Isaac digging wells and Abimelech's demand teach about hatred?
• Q: Why is responding and justifying yourself to critics a step down?
• Q: What should I do when I sense jealousy or unfair criticism toward me?
• Q: Is everyone a narcissist, or is there anyone who does not look after himself first?
• Q: Does the Torah allow, or even require, a person to take care of himself first?
• Q: How does the Tanya's view of the animal soul distinguish a holy self from a dark self?
• Q: Why should the word "narcissist" be saved for where it really belongs?
• Q: What question can you ask before making a decision for your own benefit?
• Q: What happens to a person who gives his whole life while waiting for recognition and thanks?
• Q: What reward does Antigonus of Socho mean when he says not to serve the master in order to receive a reward?
• Q: What are the two ways of serving Hashem described in the Tanya?
• Q: How does the Baal Shem Tov's teaching that every encounter is a mission from Heaven change the way we give?
• Q: What is the difference between someone who gives and waits for thanks and someone who gives because it is right?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs tells us to acquire wisdom and, with all we acquire, understanding?
• Q: What does "The beginning of wisdom: acquire wisdom; and with all that you acquire, acquire understanding" say?
• Q: Why does our generation know so much but understand so little?
• Q: What is the difference between wisdom and understanding, according to the Tanya?
• Q: How can I gain real understanding in Torah study rather than just information?
• Q: What happens to the value of a persuasive argument when technology can produce one for any position?
• Q: How does the lesson that printing unlimited money destroys its value apply to arguments in our generation?
• Q: According to the Tanya, why do people really disagree?
• Q: Are the signs of the generation before the Messiah, like "the truth will be missing," only a curse?
• Q: What should I ask myself before I study, pray or make a decision?
• Q: What does Amos's prophecy of "a hunger to hear the words of Hashem" say?
• Q: Why would there be a hunger for Hashem's word in an age when every Torah source is available?
• Q: What is the difference between knowing many things and truly knowing, according to the Tanya?
• Q: How can today's crisis of authority become an opportunity for inner growth?
• Q: What question should I ask myself before a Torah class, video or article?
• Q: Why do I feel smaller after scrolling through other people’s successes on my phone?
• Q: Why should one post by an ordinary person change how a man of Torah feels about his life?
• Q: What does Maimonides’ teaching that one good deed can tip the whole world teach about what we share?
• Q: What should you remember the next time your phone makes you feel worth nothing?
• Q: Why should you share a short Torah thought or melody this week even without many followers?
• Q: What is new about the third night of Hanukkah if we add one candle every night anyway?
• Q: How does the legal rule that three times makes an “established presumption” apply to the third Hanukkah candle?
• Q: What is the “awakening from above” in the Zohar, and where does the Hanukkah light reach?
• Q: Is the third Hanukkah candle really any different from the first two?
• Q: What does the rule that we may not use the Hanukkah light teach about our inner work?
• Q: Why does water put out fire while hydrogen, one of its own ingredients, explodes?
• Q: What does the Baal Shem Tov teach about the letters of Hashem’s speech as the raw material of creation?
• Q: What is the connection between the Hebrew words for a tight place and the “window of light” in Noah’s ark?
• Q: If Hashem gives you the letters of your life, who decides how they are combined?
• Q: What question should you ask yourself the next time you start counting your troubles?
• Q: Why does the verse “See, I am placing before you today a blessing and a curse” use “see” for one person and “before you” for many?
• Q: What verse from Deuteronomy about a blessing and a curse is this essay based on?
• Q: What does “See, I am placing before you a blessing and a curse” teach about how we see events?
• Q: How did the twelve spies see the same land so differently?
• Q: What should you ask yourself the next time something hard happens?
• Q: Which verse in Psalms says "You open Your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing"?
• Q: If reality seems solid and fixed, what is the point of choice and inner work?
• Q: What does the Tanya's Gate of Unity and Faith teach about Hashem creating everything at every moment?
• Q: What did the Rebbe Rayatz mean by "Think good, and it will be good"?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give for how to look at each day?
• Q: Why do we mention the Exodus from Egypt three times a day, and even at night?
• Q: What does "Egypt" mean as a narrow place inside a person?
• Q: What power did Hashem plant in every Jewish soul when He took us out of Egypt?
• Q: What does "From the narrow place I called out to Hashem" teach about the power of speaking?
• Q: What should I think about when I say "in memory of the Exodus from Egypt" in prayer?
• Q: Which verse from Nehemiah about Hashem giving life to everything is this essay built on?
• Q: What does the Tanya teach about Hashem bringing creation into being at every moment?
• Q: What is wrong with asking "the universe" for abundance and success?
• Q: What comfort does the verse "And You give life to them all" offer when things are hard?
• Q: What should you do today when a worry about the market or the situation comes to mind?
• Q: What should I do when I pray and don't feel Hashem at all?
• Q: Is Hashem's light present everywhere, even on the street and in the office?
• Q: Why can't the physical body sense Hashem on its own?
• Q: When someone asks why they don't feel anything spiritual, what is the real question they should ask?
• Q: What daily practice does Rabbi Landau suggest for learning to sense Hashem's presence?
• Q: Why does King Solomon say "I gave my heart to seek and to search out with wisdom" if thoughts come by themselves?
• Q: What are the two levels of a person's thinking?
• Q: What happens when a stray thought arrives in the middle of prayer and you try to fight it?
• Q: What is the "giving of the heart" that King Solomon speaks about in Ecclesiastes?
• Q: What should I do when a stray thought comes in during prayer?
• Q: What does the verse "You have wrapped Yourself in a cloud, so that no prayer can pass through" say?
• Q: Why can someone who understands Hasidic teaching still lie awake at night with worry?
• Q: Why does Jeremiah describe one darkness rather than many separate troubles?
• Q: How is mourning the destruction of the Holy Temple connected to our own lives?
• Q: If reading more doesn't clear the cloud over my heart, what will?
• Q: Why does the verse say "From the narrow place I called out to Hashem" and not "from trouble"?
• Q: How does Rashi's explanation of "They grew weary because of the Children of Israel" show how slavery begins in the mind?
• Q: What does the Haggadah mean that a person must see himself as if he left Egypt?
• Q: What does the verse "From the narrow place I called out to Hashem" refer to in this essay?
• Q: What should I do when anxious thoughts press in and I feel trapped in a narrow place?
• Q: What does the verse “It is not good for man to be alone” teach?
• Q: Why is it significant that the first “not good” in the Torah is about loneliness?
• Q: Why is connection called the oxygen of the soul?
• Q: If the inner exile is being cut off, where does healing begin?
• Q: What simple thing can you do today for someone who is sitting alone?
• Q: What verse from Proverbs about healing for the body does this essay start from?
• Q: What does the parable of a leaking roof teach about dealing with problems?
• Q: Why can a Jew keep the commandments beautifully and still feel stuck with the same weak points?
• Q: What did the Baal Shem Tov teach about illness and hardship as a sign pointing to inner repair?
• Q: What should you do the next time the same weak point comes back?
• Q: What does the verse “Why are you so bowed down, my soul? Hope in Hashem, for I will yet thank Him” say?
• Q: When the pain is real and the darkness is present, how can a person still hope in Hashem?
• Q: What happens in the soul when a person keeps asking why me, whose fault it is, and what will be?
• Q: Why does the verse speak of “the salvation of His face” and not His hand?
• Q: What should you say when your thoughts start to spin with worry?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs compares a fool repeating his foolishness to a dog returning to its vomit?
• Q: Why does a person keep going back to the same foolishness if he doesn't love pain?
• Q: What does Job's statement "the thing I feared has overtaken me" teach about fearing calm times?
• Q: How can a person break the habit of living in chaos and decide he is worthy of peace?
• Q: What should I ask myself when I feel the urge to break what I have built?
• Q: Why can't a person get out of sadness even when he knows it is hurting him?
• Q: What hidden comfort does sadness give a person?
• Q: Should a person fight sadness head-on by telling himself he must be happy?
• Q: How does taking on a mission help a person out of sadness?
• Q: What question should a young married man who feels stuck in sadness ask himself?
• Q: Which verse from Job about fear coming true is this essay about?
• Q: What does Job mean by "For the thing I feared has come upon me, and what I dreaded has happened to me"?
• Q: How can a person's suffering become a kind of home that makes it hard to receive good?
• Q: Why are people sometimes afraid of good things happening to them?
• Q: What can you do each day to build a vessel for receiving blessing?
• Q: Why do some people say they want to heal and grow but stay stuck in the same place for years?
• Q: What is the victim's chair, and why is it comfortable to stay in it?
• Q: What does the teaching "What matters most is the deed" mean for someone stuck in pain?
• Q: How can a person get out of the victim's chair without erasing the pain?
• Q: What small step can I take today to get out of the victim's chair?
• Q: How can a person suffer so much from something that no longer exists?
• Q: If the painful event is over, where does the pain really come from?
• Q: What does “a time to stay away from embracing” teach about letting go of a painful memory?
• Q: Is it what happened to you that hurts, or your holding on to it?
• Q: What can you say to yourself each day when your thoughts go back to an old hurt?
• Q: If the Jewish people already left Egypt, why did they still need the splitting of the Sea?
• Q: What are the two kinds of redemption in the Torah portion about leaving Egypt?
• Q: What is the “Egypt” that stays inside us after we get out of a hard situation?
• Q: Why did the splitting of the Sea require the Jewish people’s action and self-sacrifice while the Exodus did not?
• Q: How can you tell whether you got out of something or it got out of you?
• Q: Which verse in Psalms says "When you eat from the labor of your hands, you will be happy"?
• Q: What does the verse "When you eat from the labor of your hands, you will be happy, and it will be well with you" promise?
• Q: Why does the verse tie happiness to the labor of your hands and not to the eating?
• Q: Why do our Sages say idleness leads to boredom, and what emptiness does it leave?
• Q: How can I find my own real labor, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: What does the verse "This is the day Hashem has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it" say?
• Q: Where does worry come from, and what soil does it grow from?
• Q: Why does the Torah stress keeping Hashem's commandments "today"?
• Q: Why does the verse say to rejoice "in it", in the day itself?
• Q: What simple question can I ask myself when worry rises?
• Q: Which verse from Ecclesiastes is the essay “What Is Missing Cannot Be Counted” built on?
• Q: What does the verse “What is crooked cannot be made straight, and what is missing cannot be counted” mean?
• Q: How should we relate to missed chances, like a talk that never happened or a moment of closeness that was lost?
• Q: Does returning to Hashem erase the past like a time machine?
• Q: What should you do with the pain of what you missed instead of trying to fix yesterday?
• Q: What does the verse "I will give you places to walk among these who stand" mean?
• Q: Why are angels described as standing, and what is the limit of their perfection?
• Q: Why did the soul come down into a body to walk rather than to stand, and why is routine dangerous?
• Q: What is the gift in "I will give you places to walk"?
• Q: What question should I ask myself at the end of my prayer or learning each day?
• Q: Was the small annoyance that took up my whole hour yesterday really my battle?
• Q: What does the Talmud mean by "Whoever is greater than his fellow, his evil inclination is greater"?
• Q: What did Rabbi Shmuel of Lubavitch mean by "From the very start, go over the top"?
• Q: According to Tanya chapter 27, why is overcoming the evil inclination a real ascent?
• Q: What should I ask myself when I'm getting irritated over something small?
• Q: What is wrong with the saying "Eagles don't fly with pigeons"?
• Q: What does Maimonides teach about a person's ability to change his traits and become righteous?
• Q: How does the Tanya describe the in-between person as a pigeon that forgot it has wings?
• Q: Why is a pigeon that chooses to fly with eagles greater than an eagle?
• Q: What questions should you ask yourself about the "eagles" in your spiritual life?
• Q: What verse from Proverbs says a righteous person falls seven times and rises?
• Q: If he is righteous, why does the righteous person fall in the first place?
• Q: What should you do with the inner voice that says “Again, you’ll never change” after a spiritual fall?
• Q: Why is falling part of Hashem’s plan for the righteous, and not just something he overcomes?
• Q: What should you actually do the next time you fall in prayer or Torah study?
• Q: Does staying away from Hashem's light make the shadow of my flaws go away?
• Q: What does the verse "Hashem is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?" mean?
• Q: How does Psalm 27 continue after "Hashem is my light and my salvation"?
• Q: What is the shadow a person feels inside himself?
• Q: What should I do when I feel my flaws and want to run away from prayer and Torah?
• Q: Why might someone still feel heavy and guilty after truly returning to Hashem?
• Q: What does Maimonides mean when he says that a person who returns to Hashem becomes "a different person"?
• Q: Can sadness that looks holy be a trick of the evil inclination?
• Q: Is staying stuck in guilt after returning to Hashem a form of humility or of ego?
• Q: How can I tell whether my lingering guilt is real regret or ego?
• Q: If a wrong act always leads to a fall and consequences, what is left for a person who has sinned?
• Q: What does returning to Hashem out of fear do, according to the Talmud’s “His deliberate sins become for him like mistakes”?
• Q: How does the phrase “and it was turned around” from the Book of Esther show that turning sins into merits is part of creation’s plan?
• Q: What does the parable of the hidden “picture” of a fall teach about returning to Hashem out of love?
• Q: How can a fall you are hiding become your crown?
• Q: How can Maimonides say that someone who returned to Hashem is no longer the person who sinned, when the wrong is already part of reality?
• Q: What does it mean that Hashem creates the world anew at every moment?
• Q: Why can those who return to Hashem stand where even the completely righteous cannot?
• Q: Why does Isaiah speak of "new heavens and a new earth" at the redemption, rather than repairing the old ones?
• Q: What should I ask myself when I feel my past is holding on to me?
• Q: Why was Lot’s wife punished so severely just for looking back at Sodom?
• Q: What did the look back of Lot’s wife really mean, beyond turning her head?
• Q: What does the Tanya in chapter 26 say about sadness over the past while serving Hashem?
• Q: How does “Do not look behind you” apply to us today, and what role does the past still have?
• Q: What question should you ask yourself when you feel pulled back to an old failure or pain?
• Q: What should a person think when he sits alone and feels he has fallen again and again?
• Q: Why does Hashem want a home in the lower world among human beings rather than angels?
• Q: Why was Moses' prayer to enter the Land of Israel not answered, and what does it teach about what is missing?
• Q: What does "A broken and crushed heart, Hashem, You will not reject" teach about what is missing in us?
• Q: What should I ask myself when I feel the weight of my failures?
• Q: Which verse from Psalms about the gates of righteousness is this essay built on?
• Q: What does the verse "Open for me the gates of righteousness; I will enter through them and thank Hashem" say?
• Q: What about a young married man who fights his evil inclination every day and keeps failing?
• Q: What does the image of pushing a locked door teach about failing in spiritual growth?
• Q: Instead of asking why you keep failing, what question should you ask?
• Q: What did Rabbi Landau tell a man who found it hard to keep the Sabbath because the Knicks were playing?
• Q: What does the basketball story teach about obstacles in serving Hashem?
• Q: Why shouldn't we see distractions and the evil inclination as a breakdown in serving Hashem?
• Q: What does "According to the pain is the reward" teach about the value of struggle?
• Q: What should I tell myself the next time I meet an obstacle in serving Hashem?
• Q: What does the verse "For a righteous person falls seven times and rises, but the wicked stumble into evil" mean?
• Q: What should a person do when he wonders after a hard stretch whether he has already failed?
• Q: Does "a righteous person falls seven times and rises" mean a righteous person never falls?
• Q: What does the parable of life as a book teach about a hard chapter?
• Q: What should I remember after I have fallen in Torah study, prayer, or making a living?
• Q: What does the Torah mean when it says "See, I have placed before you today life and good, and death and evil… Choose life"?
• Q: What picture usually comes to mind when we hear the word "choice", and how does Maimonides describe free choice?
• Q: What happens when you don't make a choice and just wait or stay silent?
• Q: Can a person stand still spiritually, neither going up nor going down?
• Q: How can I make the choices I have been putting off on purpose instead of through silence?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs says a righteous person falls seven times and rises?
• Q: Can the verse "A righteous person falls seven times and rises" be read differently from the usual way?
• Q: What does the Tanya say about the struggle of the "in-between" person with the evil inclination?
• Q: Why is a fall in inner work a beginning and not a step backward?
• Q: What should I do when I feel I have gone down in serving Hashem?
• Q: What does the verse "I have set life and death before you, the blessing and the curse; choose life" say?
• Q: Why does real free choice exist only where there is risk, according to the Tanya?
• Q: What are the two opposite ways people miss the point of free choice?
• Q: Is living under pressure and hard choices a sign that something has gone wrong for a Jew?
• Q: What question should I ask myself at the end of every day?
• Q: Which verse from Ecclesiastes about a time to tear and a time to sew opens this essay?
• Q: Why must a seed be broken for something new to grow, and how does this apply to serving Hashem?
• Q: Why does a person feel stuck in prayer, and what does growing require?
• Q: How does Rabbi Landau read "a time to break down and a time to build" as one single time?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau suggest for breaking one habit that holds you back?
• Q: Why do some people who keep dating and searching for a match still remain alone?
• Q: How does "It is not good for man to be alone" apply to someone who is alone because he keeps searching?
• Q: How does an imagined ideal partner keep a person from choosing a real one?
• Q: Is choosing a real person to marry the same as settling for less?
• Q: What should I ask myself before comparing someone I'm dating to the picture in my head?
• Q: Why does a powerful inspiring gathering often leave my life exactly the same years later?
• Q: If emotion is a real power, why is it not the main thing in serving Hashem?
• Q: What one question turns a moment of inspiration into real action?
• Q: What does making "a home for Hashem in this lower world" have to do with putting inspiration into action?
• Q: What should I ask myself at the end of every class or gathering that moved me?
• Q: What do the verses "Why should a living person complain?" and "Let us search our ways" teach about how to react after a blow?
• Q: What is the difference between the blow itself and the moment after it?
• Q: Why is complaining barren, even when the complaint is justified?
• Q: Does my pain excuse me from moving forward?
• Q: What should I ask myself right after a setback, before building my case?
• Q: What does the verse "In all hard work there is gain, but mere talk leads only to loss" teach?
• Q: Why does Shammai say "say little" so that you can "do much"?
• Q: Why does talking about a hard problem make us feel better but keep us from acting?
• Q: What does the Tanya teach about bringing ideas down into real action?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give for a problem I keep talking about but not solving?
• Q: What is really choking me when life presses in from every side?
• Q: How does the evil inclination use excuses that feel like comfort?
• Q: Why is taking responsibility like oxygen?
• Q: What is the tight place that everyone knows?
• Q: What should I say the next time I feel choked by pressure?
• Q: Which verse from the Song of Songs does the essay on breaking habits start from?
• Q: Why do I keep repeating the same argument with my wife and the same shout at my kids?
• Q: How does the Tanya's idea of a "spirit of folly" compare to what psychology calls repetition compulsion?
• Q: According to the Tanya's Letter on Returning, what is the real work of breaking a bad pattern?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give for breaking one bad reaction this week?
• Q: What did Adam answer Hashem when asked about eating from the tree?
• Q: Was eating from the Tree of Knowledge really the very first sin?
• Q: Why did Adam's words after the sin matter more than the sin itself, compared with King David?
• Q: How is "By the sweat of your brow you will eat bread" a repair and not only a punishment?
• Q: How do we repeat Adam's excuse "the woman You gave me" when prayer, study or home life is hard?
• Q: What does the verse "Choose life, so that you and your children may live" say?
• Q: Which verse in the Torah calls heaven and earth as witnesses and sets life and death before us?
• Q: What is wrong with the victim mindset of always looking for who is to blame?
• Q: What is the difference between taking ownership and feeling guilty?
• Q: What can I do when a situation feels too big for me?
• Q: What happens when a person feels stuck, with no income and no opportunities coming?
• Q: What is new in the Torah's statement "It is not in heaven; the thing is very close to you"?
• Q: How does blaming others put the answer "in heaven", given that everything is in Heaven's hands except awe of Heaven?
• Q: Why is taking responsibility for where I am a moment of freedom rather than shame?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau draw from "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your strength"?
• Q: Why do our Sages need to warn us to "say little and do much"?
• Q: Why does promising "tomorrow I'll be different" make a person feel better right away?
• Q: What does Hasidic teaching say about the vessel that blessing needs in order to last?
• Q: Why does Rabbi Landau call a promise to change a kind of painkiller?
• Q: What should I do instead of promising my wife that I'll change?
• Q: What does the verse about a righteous person who gives way before a wicked one, like a muddied spring, mean?
• Q: What is wrong with being "nice" when it comes from fear of rejection?
• Q: What does kindness that comes from inner strength look like?
• Q: Why do the Zohar and Tanya say love and awe never part?
• Q: How can I tell whether I am giving in out of kindness or out of fear?
• Q: What does the verse “Where there are many words, wrongdoing is never lacking” teach?
• Q: Why does a man feel his words get swallowed up at the Sabbath table and with his children?
• Q: How does the economic rule of supply and demand apply to speech?
• Q: Why do listeners stop hearing a person who talks all the time?
• Q: How can you change your default setting so that your words feel full?
• Q: What verse from Proverbs warns that a flatterer spreads a net?
• Q: At whose feet does the flatterer spread his net, according to the verse?
• Q: Should a person chase after being liked or after being respected?
• Q: Why does the flatterer end up trapping himself?
• Q: What should you do this week about a place where you usually smooth things over?
• Q: Why does a wise person need to take in instruction from others, as in "A wise heart takes in instruction"?
• Q: Why does speaking not make a person grow?
• Q: How is listening the engine of growth?
• Q: What does having two ears and one mouth teach a young man who feels pressure to give advice and speak?
• Q: What does the verse "A fool lets out all his spirit, but the wise one holds it back and values it" mean?
• Q: What does Rabbi Landau mean by the soul's daily budget of inner strength?
• Q: What does the parable of the man who spends his whole paycheck before the Sabbath teach?
• Q: Why doesn't one big outburst of anger cause damage for just one day?
• Q: What should I ask myself when I feel about to burst out in anger?
• Q: Why does a new problem keep coming up every time I fix something in my life?
• Q: What does the verse “Above all that you guard, guard your heart, for life flows out from it” mean?
• Q: Why does the verse say life flows “out from” the heart and not into it?
• Q: If life flows out from the heart, why do we spend so much strength trying to change the people around us?
• Q: What should you do when you feel that familiar sting from a person or situation?
• Q: Is a husband weak if he first says “no” to his wife under pressure and then agrees?
• Q: Who is truly strong, according to the Mishnah and Avot deRabbi Natan?
• Q: What does “A word is worth one coin, silence is worth two” mean?
• Q: Why does a word spoken from pressure lead to a double weakness?
• Q: What does a wife really need from her husband, if not a sharp “strong” reaction?
• Q: What did King Solomon write about not rushing with your mouth before Hashem?
• Q: What does "Do not rush with your mouth... let your words be few" in Ecclesiastes teach about speaking?
• Q: What did our Sages mean by "Wise men, be careful with your words"?
• Q: Why does Proverbs say that one who holds back his words has understanding?
• Q: What should I do when a family member asks me a question I'm not ready to answer?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs says a fool does not want understanding but only to show what is in his heart?
• Q: Why does Proverbs say the fool does not want understanding, rather than that he cannot reach it?
• Q: What does understanding mean, and what makes a person wise according to this essay?
• Q: What is the hidden trap in "constructive criticism"?
• Q: What question should I ask myself before criticizing my child, wife or coworker?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs warns not to answer a fool according to his foolishness?
• Q: Why does answering a fool make you like him, even if your answer is true and wise?
• Q: Why is the urge to correct every twisted opinion a trick of the evil inclination?
• Q: Is refusing to answer a fool a sign of weakness, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: What should I do the next time something invites me into a pointless argument?
• Q: What does the verse “As a person thinks in his heart, so he is” mean?
• Q: Why do two people who see the same event walk away with two different realities?
• Q: What is the real work if you want to change how you experience your life?
• Q: What happens when a person cleans up his inner accounting?
• Q: What should you ask yourself when you feel “the world” is to blame?
• Q: Why do my decisions to stop being angry, sad or arrogant keep failing?
• Q: According to the Tanya, what is the one root of all bad character traits?
• Q: Why does fighting your own "I" only make it stronger?
• Q: How did the Maggid of Mezritch explain "I am Hashem, your Lord" in relation to our sense of self?
• Q: What should I do the next time anger, jealousy or sadness rises in me?
• Q: What does the verse “And you say in your heart: My strength and the power of my hand made me all this wealth” warn against?
• Q: Is it wrong to feel that my prayer worked when Hashem answers me?
• Q: What is “holy ego” in Hasidic teaching?
• Q: Why does Hashem give us income, health and rescue, if not as a reward for our prayers?
• Q: What should you say to yourself when the rescue you prayed for arrives?
• Q: What does Proverbs say about a man who is wise in his own eyes?
• Q: What are the three levels of people when it comes to knowledge and wisdom?
• Q: Why is the feeling of "I already get it" dangerous for someone who has studied Hasidic teaching?
• Q: How should I come to Torah study, prayer and talks with a spiritual mentor?
• Q: What should I say to myself before studying a chapter of the Tanya I have already learned?
• Q: Why does a person who seems so sure of his opinions avoid hard questions?
• Q: What does the verse “A scoffer does not love the one who corrects him; he will not go to the wise” mean?
• Q: What does it reveal when someone smiles at questions and changes the subject when challenged?
• Q: How is the strength of faith really measured?
• Q: Why does Rabbi Landau suggest joining a Tanya class this week?
• Q: What does the verse "Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy come in abundance" say?
• Q: Why would someone who loves you wound you, and why do the enemy's kisses "come in abundance"?
• Q: Who is the true enemy behind "the kisses of an enemy" if not just a flatterer?
• Q: What does "the kisses of an enemy" mean in our generation, when everyone is surrounded by approval like a king?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give for finding a friend who will tell you the truth?
• Q: What does the verse "A heart that plows thoughts of wrongdoing, feet that rush to run toward evil" say?
• Q: Why does King Solomon say the heart, and not the mind, is what plows?
• Q: How does the Tanya explain that the animal soul in the heart uses thought as its garment?
• Q: What does "The mind rules over the heart" mean in the Tanya?
• Q: How can I catch myself explaining a decision my heart has already made?
• Q: What verse did King Solomon write about giving to a wise person so that he grows wiser?
• Q: What does "Give to a wise person, and he will grow wiser still" mean?
• Q: Why does wisdom come from "nothing", according to the Tanya?
• Q: When a "consistent" person refuses to change his mind, what is he really protecting?
• Q: What should I do when my spouse, child or study partner contradicts what I think?
• Q: When a hard, competitive person becomes softer after he succeeds, which is his true face?
• Q: What does the Tanya teach about the animal soul’s hunger for recognition, respect and security?
• Q: What should you ask yourself when you feel irritable, competitive or begrudging toward others?
• Q: How should you treat someone who seems hard, competitive or closed off?
• Q: What question should you ask when you catch yourself judging someone for being hard?
• Q: What exactly is a friend's "place" in "Do not judge your friend until you reach his place"?
• Q: Why do people often judge others because of a strength they don't even notice in themselves?
• Q: What does a person's "place" include beyond his outer situation?
• Q: What is the simple meaning of the Mishnah "Do not judge your friend until you reach his place"?
• Q: What should I ask myself before telling a friend to "just push through it"?
• Q: What does Isaiah mean by "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil"?
• Q: What does it mean that our awareness is in exile when the world turns good and evil upside down?
• Q: What should a young married man do when he is called rigid for keeping his Torah study and boundaries?
• Q: How can a person get out of the exile of awareness without arguing with the world?
• Q: What daily study does Rabbi Landau recommend to build an inner compass?
• Q: Why do I feel frustrated when people judge my actions and not my good intentions?
• Q: Do I ask what others meant when they do the same thing I did?
• Q: What does "The measure a person uses is the measure used for him" mean beyond reward and punishment?
• Q: Should I judge people by their actions or by their intentions?
• Q: What should I do the next time I think "But I meant well"?
• Q: What verse from Psalms speaks of one who walks in wholeness and speaks truth in his heart?
• Q: What is the difference between a liar and an actor?
• Q: Why is the greatest danger when a person’s “show” succeeds rather than fails?
• Q: What does the promise “he will never be shaken” mean for someone who lives from inner truth?
• Q: What question should you ask yourself once a week to find where you are putting on a show?
• Q: What does the verse "Hashem made man upright, but they went searching for many schemes" say?
• Q: What about a Jew who has fought his anger and stubbornness for years without success?
• Q: What does the Tanya teach about the spark of holiness inside the animal soul's traits?
• Q: How can an angry man's fire become a strength in serving Hashem?
• Q: Instead of asking "What is wrong with me?", what question should I ask about my traits?
• Q: What does the verse "And you shall rejoice in all the good that Hashem, your Lord, has given you" command?
• Q: Does the Torah want us to enjoy the good things Hashem has given us?
• Q: When does enjoying Hashem's gifts become a sin?
• Q: Am I really allowed to enjoy my Sabbath meal so much?
• Q: What should I do for a moment before eating my next meal?
• Q: What exactly am I thanking Hashem for when I say Modeh Ani before the day has even started?
• Q: What does King Jehoshaphat sending singers ahead of the army teach about the power of thanks?
• Q: How can giving thanks move me from feeling that life just happens to me to taking action?
• Q: What does Rabbi Landau ask us to notice about saying Modeh Ani each morning before coffee or the phone?
• Q: How should I say Modeh Ani tomorrow morning to make it a real act of thanks?
• Q: Why do so many people wake up with a complaint when a brand-new day is waiting for them?
• Q: What does "They are new every morning" teach about waking up each day?
• Q: Whose faith is meant in the words "great is Your faith"?
• Q: What is the difference between feeling "I got up" and "I was chosen" this morning?
• Q: How should I start the first moment of the morning, before coffee or the phone?
• Q: What does the verse “Cast your burden on Hashem, and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall” mean?
• Q: Why does working hard on trust in Hashem sometimes bring more worry and pressure?
• Q: What does the parable of money in a closed bank on Sunday teach about trust in Hashem?
• Q: If the blessing I need has already been decided from Above, why hasn’t it shown up yet?
• Q: What should you tell yourself when you feel pressure about livelihood or health?
• Q: Which verse in Lamentations says "From the mouth of the Most High come not the bad things, but the good"?
• Q: How could Jeremiah write that nothing bad comes from Above in the middle of destruction and exile?
• Q: Does the blessing come after a hard time, or is it hidden inside the pressure itself?
• Q: Why does the Torah say "See, I have set before you today the good and the bad"?
• Q: What should I ask myself the next time I'm under pressure?
• Q: Why do my prayers for a match or a living seem not to be answered?
• Q: If my marriage partner is decreed forty days before birth, what is the point of praying?
• Q: If everything is decreed, how does prayer still work, as with Rachel who was finally answered?
• Q: What is the difference between bending yourself and trying to bend reality in prayer?
• Q: How can I tell after praying whether my prayer is working?
• Q: Which verse from Psalms about casting your burden on Hashem is this essay built on?
• Q: If I truly trusted Hashem, would I stop feeling afraid?
• Q: What does the wording of "Cast your burden on Hashem" teach about what to do with worry?
• Q: How does the Tanya's Holy Letter 11 explain that pain in the heart and trust in Hashem can exist together?
• Q: What should I do the next time anxiety rises, if I want to trust Hashem?
• Q: How long should I keep praying for something when my prayer is not answered?
• Q: What does the Talmud mean that a sign of an answered prayer is that it "flows easily in his mouth"?
• Q: Can heaviness in prayer be a message from Hashem rather than a failure?
• Q: What should I actually do when my prayer for something feels heavy and closed?
• Q: Why is real prayer also about listening, and what does the extra letter in the Hebrew word for prayer hint at?
• Q: Which verse in Psalms tells us to hope in Hashem and be strong?
• Q: If Hashem's blessing never stops flowing, where do our limits come from?
• Q: Why does the verse "Hope in Hashem. Be strong, and let your heart take courage, and hope in Hashem" say "hope" twice?
• Q: What does the Baal Shem Tov teach about thought creating reality and the power of trust?
• Q: How can I break the inner ceiling I put on the blessing I receive?
• Q: Why does the Torah call the people's complaining "evil in the ears of Hashem" and not a sin?
• Q: What is the difference between praying and complaining?
• Q: Why was asking for meat in the desert so serious if it wasn't idol worship?
• Q: How does complaining shrink Hashem in a person's mind?
• Q: What should I ask myself before I pray tomorrow, according to "Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it"?
• Q: Why does it never feel like enough money, no matter how much I have?
• Q: What does the verse "Whoever loves money will never have enough money" mean?
• Q: What did the Baal Shem Tov teach about divine providence and our money worries?
• Q: What should I do when money worries rise, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give for moments of money worry?
• Q: Which verse from Ecclesiastes about wealth harming its owner is this essay about?
• Q: What is the "painful evil" of "wealth kept by its owner, to his own harm"?
• Q: If wealth is a blessing from Hashem, how can it harm the one who has it?
• Q: What do Korah and Jacob show about what wealth does to a person?
• Q: What should you ask yourself before praying for a generous living?
• Q: What does the verse “One who has a good eye will be blessed, for he gives of his bread to the poor” mean?
• Q: Is making a living like a pie, where someone else’s success leaves less for me?
• Q: What does the parable of the water channel teach about livelihood and a good eye?
• Q: What did our Sages mean when they said to read “he will be blessed” as “he will bless”?
• Q: What should you do when you hear about someone else’s success and feel a pinch of jealousy?
• Q: Which verse says that the poor will never disappear from the land?
• Q: If the poor will never disappear, what good is charity?
• Q: What does "Who is rich? The one who is happy with his share" teach about true wealth?
• Q: Why does the verse say the poor will not disappear "from within the land"?
• Q: What should I do if I worry about making a living all the time?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs calls a rich man's wealth his fortress city?
• Q: Is it true that money changes people when they become rich?
• Q: What holds a person back when he is short on money, and what happens when wealth removes it?
• Q: Is wealth a mirror or a magnifying glass of a person's inner self?
• Q: Should a young married man pray to stay poor so he can stay a good person?
• Q: What does the verse "Do not be afraid when a man grows rich, when the honor of his home increases" say?
• Q: What two questions does the verse "Do not be afraid when a man grows rich" raise?
• Q: How does accepting the yoke of marriage and responsibility bring blessing to a man?
• Q: How does Rabbi Landau read the verse so that a growing household is the very source of wealth?
• Q: What should someone about to get married know about the fear of taking on responsibility?
• Q: Why does Ecclesiastes say "nor bread to the wise"?
• Q: Can wisdom really cause the one who has it to go without bread?
• Q: What happens to all the wisdom a person has gathered once he chooses one point and masters it?
• Q: Which verse from Ecclesiastes about the swift, the mighty, and the wise is this essay about?
• Q: What should a person do instead of adding another class or starting another book?
• Q: Which verse from Ashrei says Hashem opens His hand and satisfies the desire of every living thing?
• Q: What does the story of the man who wanted three million dollars teach about real desire?
• Q: Why must a vessel come before the blessing can be received?
• Q: If Hashem's hand is always open, why don't all our desires get fulfilled?
• Q: What should I ask myself when I pray for something big?
• Q: Which verse in Psalms says "Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it"?
• Q: What does the verse "I am Hashem your Lord, who brought you up out of Egypt; open your mouth wide and I will fill it" say?
• Q: When I want more money, what do I really want, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: What is the difference between craving wealth and longing for it in a holy way?
• Q: What should I ask myself the next time I feel a strong desire for success?
• Q: Which verse from Proverbs about holding back grain opens this essay?
• Q: Why does a hardworking man’s livelihood keep slipping away despite all his running and worry?
• Q: What deeper meaning does Rabbi Landau find in “Whoever holds back grain, the people will curse him”?
• Q: Why is inner calm called a person’s first capital rather than a reward after success?
• Q: What does Rabbi Landau suggest doing for ten minutes before every meeting or decision?
• Q: Why does the thing I want most seem to run away the harder I chase it?
• Q: Why does Hashem's blessing need a vessel, and what kind of vessel matches it?
• Q: What is the difference between acting like a channel for blessing and acting like a beggar?
• Q: How does desperate chasing blind a person to the opportunities he already has?
• Q: If the answer is not to want less, how should I want differently according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs tells us to trust in Hashem with all our heart?
• Q: What is the first "money" a person needs, according to the verse "Trust in Hashem with all your heart"?
• Q: Why do people pull away from neediness and get drawn to someone who is at peace?
• Q: Does trusting in Hashem mean I should sit at home and wait for a miracle?
• Q: What should I remind myself before a business meeting or opportunity?
• Q: Is the saying "A person leaves this world with only half of what he longed for" meant to make us give up hope?
• Q: How does the size of a person's longing determine the "half" he actually achieves?
• Q: What does the example of aiming for a million and reaching half show?
• Q: Why should I not tell myself that great spiritual goals are only for the righteous?
• Q: What kind of goal in serving Hashem does Rabbi Landau suggest setting?
• Q: What does Proverbs say about walking with the wise?
• Q: What happens to someone who keeps company with fools, according to Proverbs?
• Q: How do friends and companions shape a person's views and actions, according to Maimonides?
• Q: How does your environment set a "glass ceiling" on what feels normal in serving Hashem?
• Q: How can I raise what feels normal to me in serving Hashem?
• Q: Which verse says "Where there is no vision, the people run wild"?
• Q: What is the full verse in Proverbs about vision and keeping the Torah?
• Q: Why does the verse say people without vision "run wild" rather than fail?
• Q: Why does hard work sometimes just repeat yesterday instead of moving forward?
• Q: How can I spend twenty minutes a week building inner vision?
• Q: What does the verse "The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is a slave to the lender" say?
• Q: How can a good salary and respectable job become a trap you cannot leave?
• Q: What does Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi say heavy worry about making a living reveals?
• Q: Do I need to quit my job to stop being a slave to my salary?
• Q: What weekly step can show that I am a free man and not a slave to my income?
• Q: What does the saying "If he has a hundred, he wants two hundred" teach about pressure?
• Q: How does pressure over earning a living shrink a person?
• Q: How can the same financial pressure help a person grow and discover hidden strengths?
• Q: What does pressure reveal about who you really are?
• Q: What should I ask myself when I feel pressure coming?
• Q: Which verse from Ecclesiastes about riches a person cannot enjoy is this essay about?
• Q: What happens to people who save their whole lives for later?
• Q: What is the tragedy of "Hashem does not give him the power to enjoy it" in serving Hashem?
• Q: What does a person discover when the "later" he was waiting for finally arrives?
• Q: Why shouldn't you push off Torah study and heartfelt prayer for later?
• Q: Which verse in Ecclesiastes says whoever loves money will never have enough money?
• Q: Why does someone who reached his financial dream keep chasing the next number?
• Q: How does the Tanya's teaching on the animal soul explain why we are never satisfied?
• Q: What is the real solution to never having enough, according to "Who is rich? The one who is happy with his share"?
• Q: What daily exercise does Rabbi Landau suggest for building the inside?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs speaks of a good man leaving an inheritance to his grandchildren?
• Q: What does the parable of the rich man who spends and the man who buys land teach?
• Q: Why don't spiritual highs from prayer or Torah study last?
• Q: Why is a spiritual awakening raw material for inner work rather than a reward?
• Q: What should I do the next time I feel inspired in prayer or Torah study?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs says one man acts rich and has nothing while another acts poor and has great wealth?
• Q: What is the difference between how the animal soul and the divine soul measure the price of something?
• Q: Why can a "cheap" purchase turn out to be truly expensive?
• Q: How does Hasidic teaching explain "Who is rich? The one who is happy with his portion"?
• Q: What question should I ask before my next purchase?
• Q: What does the verse "Better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened ox where there is hatred" say?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs compares a meal of vegetables with love to a fattened ox with hatred?
• Q: What new insight is King Solomon teaching in "Better a meal of vegetables where there is love"?
• Q: Why does the feeling of "just a little more" never satisfy a hard-working man?
• Q: How can I add inner life to something I already bought with money?
• Q: What does the verse “It is useless for you who rise early and stay up late, who eat the bread of worry” mean?
• Q: Why can a man with a good business and income still feel he does not own himself?
• Q: What is the real purpose of money, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: How is true wealth measured, if not by a bank account?
• Q: How can you tell whether your money is working for you or you are working for your money?
• Q: What does "one who rushes to get rich will not be clean" mean in Proverbs?
• Q: What does the parable of turning up the oven to bake a cake faster teach?
• Q: What really happens during the years a successful person waits before wealth comes?
• Q: Why is wealth gained by rushing not "clean"?
• Q: What should a young married man do when he feels pressure to get rich quickly?
• Q: Is a young married man who works for a living failing spiritually?
• Q: Is "Six days you shall work" a command or a punishment?
• Q: When can staying away from the material world actually be a cover for fear of effort?
• Q: What does "Hashem desired to have a home in this lower world" mean for everyday work?
• Q: How should a married man think about going to work in the morning?
• Q: Why would a billionaire keep living in his old house and still wake up asking how to earn more?
• Q: Which verse in Psalms says "You open Your hand and satisfy every living thing with what it desires"?
• Q: When someone says he wants money, what does he really want?
• Q: What is a "rich miser" in serving Hashem?
• Q: How can I put a soul into one commandment this week?
• Q: How can I stop feeling trapped by the "time is money" way of thinking?
• Q: What is wrong with the business saying "Time is money"?
• Q: What does the word "bread" in "By the sweat of your brow you will eat bread" teach about making a living?
• Q: What does "When the Jewish people do Hashem's will, their work is done by others" mean?
• Q: What question should I ask about whether my business can run without me?
• Q: What does Isaiah's question about spending money on what is not bread mean?
• Q: Why do we feel relief rather than joy when we tap "buy" on a screen?
• Q: What are we really getting relief from when we keep shopping and scrolling?
• Q: How is "buy now, pay later" a lesson about putting off our spiritual work?
• Q: What should I do the next time I feel the urge to buy something?
• Q: What does King Solomon mean by “wealth kept by its owner, to his own harm”?
• Q: If the whole point of wealth is to keep it, where is the harm in keeping it?
• Q: What does the name of an ancient coin hint about the purpose of money?
• Q: Why does holding back wealth harm the owner himself?
• Q: How can you tell whether you are holding the money or the money is holding you?
• Q: How big a check could a wealthy man really write, according to Rabbi Landau's story?
• Q: What did Rabbi Landau tell the wealthy man who said the bank would cover fifty million dollars?
• Q: How can a man with fifty million dollars truly be able to give only eight hundred, and who owns whom?
• Q: What does Passover as "the time of our freedom" teach about being free from money?
• Q: How much should you give to help needy families before Passover to become the master of your money?
• Q: Which verse from Psalms about the poor eating and being satisfied is this essay about?
• Q: What does "Let the poor eat and be satisfied; those who seek Hashem will praise Him" say?
• Q: Why is someone who prays for his friend answered first, according to the Talmud?
• Q: How does giving charity create an exact match with what you yourself need?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau suggest for giving charity before Purim?
• Q: What does the verse "Everyone who is counted shall give this: half a shekel" command?
• Q: Why did the Torah ask for a half shekel and not a whole one?
• Q: What kind of power did Haman's ten thousand talents of silver represent?
• Q: How did the Jewish people's half-coins given together defeat Haman's whole sum?
• Q: What should a young man do with the pressure to be complete all by himself?
• Q: What is the "coin" that buys a miracle before trouble comes?
• Q: What do the Sages mean that Hashem made the Jews' coins come before Haman's coins?
• Q: How could the half-shekel overcome Haman's ten thousand talents?
• Q: Why is Purim a yearly window for making deposits?
• Q: How should I give gifts to the poor on Purim?
• Q: What does the rule "Whoever holds out a hand, we give to him" mean?
• Q: Should I give charity without checking whether the person really needs it?
• Q: How do Hashem's qualities of justice and compassion relate to giving charity?
• Q: Why is the question of whether a poor person deserves help really a question about myself?
• Q: What should I ask myself the next time someone holds out a hand to me?
• Q: Which verse does Rabbi Landau open with when teaching about giving on the eighth day of Hanukkah?
• Q: What does the verse “Mine is the silver, and Mine is the gold, says Hashem, Master of all the hosts” mean?
• Q: Why is the Torah reading “On the eighth day, the leader of the tribe of Manasseh” read on the eighth day of Hanukkah?
• Q: What is the meaning of the number eight compared to the number seven?
• Q: What should you give before the Hanukkah candles go out on the eighth day?
• Q: Why did a father’s prayers for his son’s match go unanswered for six years at the grave of a righteous man?
• Q: What does the story of Elisha and the widow’s jug of oil teach about making a vessel for blessing?
• Q: According to the Tanya’s author, how does charity build a vessel for blessing?
• Q: What changes when a person moves from just asking for help to partnering through a real act?
• Q: What should you do if you have been praying for a long time and heaven seems silent?
• Q: How does giving charity make salvation and livelihood grow?
• Q: Is there truth to the saying "Money doesn't grow on trees"?
• Q: What does the way a farmer grows fruit teach about charity and livelihood?
• Q: Is charity a good-luck charm for making a living, or something else?
• Q: When should you set aside charity from your income, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: What does the verse "If your brother becomes poor, you shall strengthen him" command?
• Q: Which word is the world quietly stealing from us, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: Why does the Hebrew word for charity come from justice and not only from kindness?
• Q: What is the highest of Maimonides' eight levels of charity?
• Q: What should I ask first when I meet a fellow Jew going through hard times?
• Q: What is the verse "The soul of a person is the candle of Hashem"?
• Q: Why did King Solomon compare the soul to a candle, and what does a person really give when giving charity?
• Q: How is giving charity the lighting of the soul's candle?
• Q: Why does the vitality given through charity last forever?
• Q: What should I keep in mind the next time I give charity?
• Q: How many times in life do we stand in front of our own “sea”?
• Q: What does “The righteous person decrees, and Hashem fulfills” really mean?
• Q: What does Nachshon jumping into the sea teach about when miracles come?
• Q: What did Nachshon son of Amminadab do at the Red Sea while everyone else waited?
• Q: What does Rabbi Landau suggest doing today about something you have been waiting for from Heaven?
• Q: What does "nor does bread go to the wise" in Ecclesiastes say about someone who keeps learning but never starts?
• Q: Why does King Solomon, the wisest of men, say that bread does not go to the wise?
• Q: Is looking for another book or course really humility?
• Q: How can the thought "I am not worthy" be a trick of the evil inclination?
• Q: What one question should I ask myself about something I keep putting off?
• Q: What does the saying “only dead fish swim with the current” teach about the verse “Do not follow the crowd to do wrong”?
• Q: What is the quiet “current” of habit that sweeps us along in serving Hashem?
• Q: Why is Abraham called “Abraham the Hebrew,” and what does it teach about standing apart from the world?
• Q: If serving Hashem feels like a constant struggle, is that a sign of weakness?
• Q: What small step against the current does Rabbi Landau suggest choosing today?
• Q: Which verse says that a righteous person may fall seven times and rise again?
• Q: Does the righteous person rise despite his falls or because of them?
• Q: What can a rocket company that launches again and again teach about failure?
• Q: What makes someone a righteous person if not that he never falls?
• Q: What should I do the next time I fall in prayer, Torah study or guarding myself?
• Q: Why do people stay quiet in a Torah class instead of asking a simple question they didn’t understand?
• Q: What does “A fence to wisdom is silence” mean, and how can a fence keep you out of wisdom?
• Q: Is the shame of asking a question a form of humility?
• Q: What is the greatest handicap in spiritual life?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau suggest for your next Torah class?
• Q: Which verse in Psalms says "I believed, therefore I spoke"?
• Q: Why is saying "I'll try" or "if only" an escape hatch?
• Q: What does the Zohar learn from the verse "I believed, therefore I spoke" about speech and faith?
• Q: Is speaking the language of weakness a form of humility, according to the Baal Shem Tov?
• Q: What should I say instead of "I'll try"?
• Q: Is it true that when one door closes, five other doors open?
• Q: What are the two kinds of failure when facing a closed door or a wall?
• Q: How can a person tell whether an obstacle is a closed door or a solid wall, according to the Tanya?
• Q: Can even a solid wall be broken through if you change your tools?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give for when you stand before an obstacle?
• Q: What does the verse "Look up at the sky and count the stars, if you are able to count them... So shall your children be" say?
• Q: Who deserves a miracle, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: Why did Hashem tell Abraham to count the stars if, as Rashi explains, the task was impossible?
• Q: What should I do when a big task like studying the whole Talmud feels impossible?
• Q: What is my job if I cannot count all the stars?
• Q: Why does a young man get stuck in endless doubt when facing a decision like taking a job offer or opening a business?
• Q: What does the Baal Shem Tov's teaching that there is no doubt before Hashem mean?
• Q: Does certainty come after success, or does certainty create success, as with Nachshon at the Red Sea?
• Q: Does trusting in Hashem mean I should skip research and advice before deciding?
• Q: How can I make a decision without getting stuck in "maybe"?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs compares the path of the righteous to the light of dawn?
• Q: What is the difference between the darkness of nightfall and the darkness before dawn?
• Q: What does "a righteous person falls seven times and gets up again" teach about falling?
• Q: What does the verse "Though I have fallen, I have risen; though I sit in darkness, Hashem is my light" teach?
• Q: What should I do when I'm going through a dark time, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: Will artificial intelligence really open every door and solve our problems?
• Q: What does Daniel's verse "He gives wisdom to the wise" teach about receiving help from above?
• Q: What does the story of Elisha and the widow's jug of oil teach about "What do you have in the house?"?
• Q: Why shouldn't I wait for the perfect tool or ideal conditions before starting?
• Q: What small step can I take today to receive help from above?
• Q: What does the verse "She seeks out wool and linen, and works them with willing hands" say?
• Q: Why can the same work be a source of strength for one person and suffering for another?
• Q: Do I need to change my life circumstances to break free from feeling chained by work?
• Q: What does "with willing hands" teach about the woman of valor's work?
• Q: What should I tell myself before starting work or carrying the load of an ordinary day?
• Q: Which verse in Ecclesiastes says the end of a thing is better than its beginning?
• Q: Is there real worth in only continuing what others did before you instead of inventing something new?
• Q: Is our job to invent a new way of serving Hashem, or to build on the great Hasidic masters before us?
• Q: What is the difference between someone who only continues and someone who completes?
• Q: How should I approach my study of Hasidic teaching today?
• Q: What does the verse “the one who drinks too much and the one who eats too much will end up poor” mean?
• Q: Why is hunger, the sense that something is missing, the driving force behind every movement?
• Q: Why might someone who keeps everything in order still feel something is missing in his spiritual life?
• Q: How can you turn the hunger of the body into a holy hunger for Hashem?
• Q: How can physical hunger before the morning prayer be used in the silent standing prayer?
• Q: Why does a young man with pure intentions keep getting stuck and saying “I’ll start on Monday”?
• Q: What does “A covenant is made with the lips” teach about how our own words train us?
• Q: What does “Death and life are in the power of the tongue” mean for the words we speak about success?
• Q: How can you retrain yourself to see success as “the strength to achieve success” for serving Hashem?
• Q: What daily exercise does Rabbi Landau suggest for changing how you speak about success?
• Q: What does the verse “The plans of the diligent lead only to plenty, but everyone who rushes comes only to lack” mean?
• Q: What happens when your whole day turns into one long emergency room of urgent demands?
• Q: What is the difference between what is urgent and what is important?
• Q: How does the Tanya’s teaching that “the mind rules over the heart” help you lead your day instead of reacting?
• Q: What one question should you ask in the morning before opening your phone?
• Q: Why does a single day feel so small next to my big dream for ten years from now?
• Q: Why does Ethics of the Fathers say "The day is short, the work is great" and not "life is short"?
• Q: How does the evil inclination use the size of the task to freeze us?
• Q: Why does the question "What did you do today?" matter more than where I will be in ten years?
• Q: What question should I ask myself every night before going to sleep?
• Q: What does the verse "So teach us to count our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom" say?
• Q: What does Rabbi Landau mean by the "silent auction" for every hour of our time?
• Q: How does the Sabbath close the auction for our time and priorities?
• Q: What does it mean to "count our days" in order to gain a heart of wisdom?
• Q: How can I protect one hour a week from competing priorities?
• Q: Which of the Ten Commandments is this essay about, regarding other gods?
• Q: How do my phone, money and other people's opinions compete to rule my life?
• Q: If true freedom is not having no king, what is it?
• Q: What does accepting Hashem as King each morning in the Shema mean for my freedom?
• Q: What question should I ask myself before picking up my phone or deciding under pressure?
• Q: Is it true that I work better under pressure, and what really happens then?
• Q: Does pressure create a strength in you that was not there before?
• Q: What does the example of having forty minutes to catch a flight teach about priorities?
• Q: Does pressure in serving Hashem create new priorities or uncover what was already there?
• Q: What should I do the next time pressure builds up in my life?
• Q: Why do we ask for more years of life if we will live them the same way?
• Q: What is gained by asking for one more year if it is just a copy of the last one?
• Q: What kind of life does the Torah command us to choose with "Choose life"?
• Q: What is the difference between asking for more life in quantity and asking for it in quality?
• Q: How should I phrase my prayer when I ask Hashem for more life?
• Q: Maimonides says a wife should honor her husband greatly, so why don't husbands always feel that honor?
• Q: What is the difference between a king and a ruler in the home?
• Q: What does the Tanya say about an open hand and a wide soul?
• Q: Does honor in marriage begin with the wife or with the husband?
• Q: What should a husband do when his wife buys something that was not on the grocery list?
• Q: Which verse in Psalms says the world is built on kindness?
• Q: Why did Hashem create the world, according to the Etz Chaim?
• Q: What does being created in the image of Hashem mean for a person's purpose?
• Q: Why is selfishness more than just a bad character trait?
• Q: How can a couple build their own "world of kindness" at home?
• Q: What does the verse "Your wife will be like a fruitful vine in the inner rooms of your house; your children like young olive shoots around your table" mean?
• Q: What does "each man by his banner" mean for a husband's mission in life?
• Q: How can a husband's devotion to a higher goal draw his wife closer instead of pushing her away?
• Q: What does Jacob's saying "I am too small for all the kindnesses" teach about building a home?
• Q: Should a married man guard his hours of Torah study, and how does that affect his wife?
• Q: Why does a fight with my wife get worse when I try to fix it with logic?
• Q: What goes wrong when a husband gets pulled into his wife's storm?
• Q: What is a husband really asked to do when his wife is upset?
• Q: How is a home with conflict part of "making a home for Hashem in this lower world"?
• Q: What should a husband ask himself before speaking when a storm breaks out at home?
• Q: When a husband acts "strong" at home, whose benefit is that strength really serving?
• Q: What are the two faces of strength in Jewish mysticism and Hasidic teaching?
• Q: What happens when a man brings the ego's "what do I deserve" attitude into his home?
• Q: How does Rabbi Landau say holy strength is measured in a marriage?
• Q: What question should a married man ask himself when he comes home each night?
• Q: What does the line "And the sea sent out its hand" in the hymn Az Rov Nissim teach?
• Q: What is the difference between a leader and a ruler in the home?
• Q: Why does the Torah call a wife "a helper opposite him," and what does the husband bring to her storm?
• Q: How does the sea drawing back to create a path apply to leading a home?
• Q: What should a husband ask himself when things at home get stormy?
• Q: Which verse from "A Woman of Valor" is this essay about?
• Q: What should a husband think when his wife earns more than he does?
• Q: What does Hasidic teaching say about the giver and the receiver in a marriage?
• Q: What new meaning of "providing" does Rabbi Landau draw from the Hebrew word for livelihood?
• Q: If not by income, how should a husband measure himself as a provider?
• Q: What does the saying "Your trust is in Hashem, and the trust of your home is in you" mean?
• Q: What is wrong with answering your wife's request with "There isn't any right now, Hashem will help"?
• Q: How does the Talmud's teaching "Honor your wives, so that you will become wealthy" actually work?
• Q: What vessel does a wife create when she asks her husband for something with simple trust?
• Q: How should I respond the next time my wife asks me for something?
• Q: What happens when someone in a hard, narrow place comes to a friend or spouse and pours out everything?
• Q: What does the Tanya mean that the mind rules over the heart, and how does it apply to helping others?
• Q: What does the parable of the surgeon teach about helping someone in distress?
• Q: Why is a Hasidic master a source of a clear mind rather than a partner in suffering?
• Q: How should I respond when someone close to me comes to me in distress?
• Q: What does the verse "It is not good for man to be alone; I will make him a helper who stands opposite him" say?
• Q: What does the Zohar teach about the husband as giver and the wife as receiver?
• Q: What does a wife's growing independence in marriage really show, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: If the wife as receiver is always ready, what is the real question in restoring the bond?
• Q: What should a husband ask his wife when he comes home tonight?
• Q: Why does a husband who tries to control every detail at home end up feeling more distant?
• Q: What is the difference between the giver and the receiver in Hasidic teaching?
• Q: What does it mean for a husband to lead his home by planting rather than managing?
• Q: What does true leadership in a home look like, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: What one thing does Rabbi Landau suggest a husband choose and share with his wife?
• Q: If you put the best screen from a perfect car into an old broken car, do you get a perfect car?
• Q: Why do some great scholars and community leaders neglect their homes or their character?
• Q: Why is it most dangerous when the one part of life a person treasures is holy?
• Q: Instead of asking what I am good at, what should I ask about my life?
• Q: How can I check each week which parts of my life are working and which are neglected?
• Q: Which verse in the Song of Songs compares the beloved to an apple tree among the trees of the forest?
• Q: Why does the Song of Songs compare the beloved to an apple tree instead of calling him more handsome or stronger?
• Q: What does it mean that when husband and wife are worthy, Hashem's presence dwells "between them"?
• Q: What is a husband's inner work as the giver in the home?
• Q: What should a young married man ask himself about what only he can bring into his home?
• Q: What does the verse "Better to be slow to anger than to be a mighty warrior; better to rule your own spirit than to capture a city" say?
• Q: Is being ready to die for your family harder than being ready to live for them?
• Q: Why is the man who rules his own spirit greater than the warrior who captures a city?
• Q: What does Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi teach about self-sacrifice in everyday life, not just in one supreme moment?
• Q: How can I tell at the end of the day whether I lived a day of real strength?
• Q: What does the verse “Better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened ox where there is hatred” mean?
• Q: How does the verse about a meal of vegetables with love apply to a husband who cannot provide wealth for his home?
• Q: What does the “meal of vegetables” teach about times when our prayer and Torah study feel dry?
• Q: Is spiritual dryness a sign that you are far from Hashem?
• Q: What can you give when you are living on “a meal of vegetables” in prayer, livelihood or Torah study?
• Q: What is real power, if a rich man can give his wife everything but cannot buy her choice?
• Q: What does the Zohar mean by “There is no king without a people”?
• Q: Why did Hashem create a world with free choice instead of a world of obedient angels?
• Q: What can a rich and capable husband do for his wife, and what can he not buy?
• Q: What difference can my one small good deed really make?
• Q: What should a husband do when his wife suddenly reacts sharply over something small?
• Q: Why shouldn't a husband argue with his wife's reaction, like arguing with a smoke detector?
• Q: What is the extra understanding Hashem gave a woman, according to our Sages?
• Q: Why does the verse tell Abraham to "listen to her voice" and not to Sarah's words?
• Q: What should I ask myself the next time the "alarm" goes off at home?
• Q: Which verse from Psalms about suffering and learning is quoted in this essay?
• Q: Why does the same sun melt wax and harden clay?
• Q: What does "It was good for me that I suffered, so that I might learn Your laws" teach about what a trial does to a person?
• Q: Why might a young man who went through hard times be wrong to look for a wife who went through the same?
• Q: What should someone who has gone through trials look for in a marriage partner?
• Q: What does the verse "Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and cling to his wife, and they shall become one flesh" teach about marriage?
• Q: How do I know if we're right for each other when looking for a match?
• Q: What does the parable of the two hands teach about husband and wife?
• Q: What does the Talmud's teaching that a heavenly voice announces a match forty days before a child is formed teach about marriage?
• Q: What question should a couple ask about their differences instead of "how will we get past them"?
• Q: What does Hashem say in Genesis about man being alone and needing a helper?
• Q: How can a wife be both a "helper" and "against him" in Genesis 2:18?
• Q: What is the one question Rabbi Landau says to ask when deciding on a match?
• Q: Why is a peaceful home where the Divine Presence can dwell, according to Nachmanides and the Talmud?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give before saying yes to a match?
• Q: What does the verse "Hashem formed the man from the dust of the earth" say about how man was created?
• Q: What is the difference between man being formed from dust and woman being "bone of my bones"?
• Q: What does Likkutei Torah mean by calling the man the giver and the woman the receiver?
• Q: How did Rabbi Landau answer the young man who asked what a "good girl" has actually done?
• Q: What should a young man ask when he hears "She's a good girl"?
• Q: What does the verse "It is not good for man to be alone; I will make him a helper opposite him" say?
• Q: Why is calling your spouse your "partner" a problem?
• Q: What does it mean that husband and wife are one soul in two halves?
• Q: What happens in a marriage when you start calculating what is fair and equal?
• Q: What should I do when an inner voice starts counting who did more at home?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs about a husband's heart trusting in his wife does this essay explain?
• Q: What is the difference between a connection of usefulness and a deeper connection between husband and wife?
• Q: Why don't my compliments to my wife about what she does reach her heart?
• Q: What does the Tanya teach about loving every Jew, and how does it relate to marriage?
• Q: What should I say to my wife instead of thanking her for what she did?
• Q: What does the verse “Hashem created man in His image… male and female He created them” say about man and woman?
• Q: What happens when someone tries to improve a Swiss watch by changing its parts?
• Q: Why are the differences between man and woman part of Hashem’s design?
• Q: Why is the Torah called “the manufacturer’s instructions” for marriage and life?
• Q: How should you study a teaching about peace in the home this week?
• Q: Which verse about the woman's longing for her husband is this essay built on?
• Q: Is "Your longing will be for your husband" a punishment, or a description of how a woman is made?
• Q: Why can a wife's longing come out as fear or what looks like overreaction when she feels distance?
• Q: How does a wife's yearning for security reflect the bond between Hashem and the Jewish people?
• Q: What should a husband ask himself when his wife's reaction seems exaggerated?
• Q: What did Hashem say to the woman after the sin: “Your longing will be for your husband, and he will rule over you”?
• Q: What happens when a young married man reads about “narcissism” and “borderline” and suddenly thinks he understands his marriage?
• Q: Are “her longing” and “his rule” disorders, or divine traits that need direction?
• Q: How does Maimonides’ teaching that a husband must “honor her more than his own body” repair “he will rule over you”?
• Q: What should you do when you read an article about “narcissism” and feel it is about you?
• Q: Why does King Solomon describe love as “strong as death” and jealousy as “fierce as the grave”?
• Q: Why does anger at a stranger fade in seconds, while anger at a spouse can last?
• Q: What should you do when your spouse comes to you in anger?
• Q: How does “Love is as strong as death” look in a new light after understanding anger in marriage?
• Q: What should you say in your heart the next time your spouse comes to you angry?
• Q: What does the verse “It is not good for man to be alone; I will make him a helper who stands opposite him” teach about marriage?
• Q: How can a wife be both “a helper” and “opposite him” at the same time?
• Q: Are disagreements between husband and wife a sign that something is broken in the marriage?
• Q: Does serving Hashem or being married mean erasing your own self?
• Q: What should a husband ask himself before an argument with his wife?
• Q: What does the verse “A woman of strength is her husband’s crown, but a woman who shames him is like rot in his bones” mean?
• Q: Where does the real damage in a marriage come from, if not from big shouting matches?
• Q: Why does the verse say the shame reaches “in his bones,” and what does that mean for a husband’s inner self?
• Q: Why does the verse say a woman who shames her husband is “like rot in his bones” and not like a wound?
• Q: What is the practical work for a wife who wants to be her husband’s crown?
• Q: Why was a wife upset when her husband fixed the closet on Friday instead of Tuesday as he had said?
• Q: Is a husband keeping his word a day or two late really such a small thing?
• Q: What does the Talmud mean by “Let your yes be true, and your no be true”?
• Q: Why does a wife hear every small promise from her husband as a covenant?
• Q: What should a husband ask himself before he promises to do something at home?
• Q: What does King Solomon mean when he compares starting a fight to letting water out through a crack in a dam?
• Q: Should a person stay quiet in an argument even when he is right?
• Q: What is the real price of winning an argument with your spouse?
• Q: Why did Abraham give way to Lot, and what does that teach about true strength?
• Q: What can I do the next time I have a winning answer in an argument?
• Q: Why didn’t a wife answer when her husband asked her whether she respects him?
• Q: What does the teaching “Whoever runs away from honor, honor chases after him” mean?
• Q: Where does the chase after honor come from, according to Hasidic teaching?
• Q: If not by demanding it, how does a person come to be respected?
• Q: What should a young husband do if he feels his wife doesn’t respect him enough?
• Q: Which verse from Ecclesiastes about every season opens this essay on silence and speech?
• Q: What new insight is there in King Solomon's words "a time to be silent and a time to speak"?
• Q: What does it mean when a spouse's pain keeps coming back after you've explained yourself?
• Q: How can silence be a form of deep inner work rather than just not talking?
• Q: What should you do when your spouse's pain comes up again and explanations aren't helping?
• Q: Why do people say their love burned out, and is love really something that just happens to them?
• Q: Does giving come from love, or does love come from giving?
• Q: What does the Song of Songs' image of love as a flame teach about keeping love alive?
• Q: According to the Tanya, how does giving create a real bond between the giver and the receiver?
• Q: What can a young married man do this week to rekindle love?
• Q: Why does real effort in marriage, livelihood, and serving Hashem take so long to bear fruit?
• Q: What do the Sages mean that everything created in the six days of creation needs to be worked on?
• Q: What is the difference between something that is given to you and something that is built?
• Q: Does joy come only at the finish line, or is it found in the building itself?
• Q: What does "It is not your job to finish the work, but you are not free to walk away from it" mean for daily struggles?
• Q: What does the Torah say about each person being put to death for his own sin?
• Q: Can love heal someone I love who is sinking into addiction or illness?
• Q: Why is it harmful to believe that your love and devotion are the cure for someone else?
• Q: What is the right way to love and support someone who is struggling?
• Q: How can I stand beside someone in a hard struggle without burning out?
• Q: What does "Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are many" teach about marriage?
• Q: Which verse from Proverbs about the wounds of a friend is this essay built on?
• Q: Why can a quiet home without arguments actually be a sign of distance?
• Q: What is true peace between a husband and wife?
• Q: What should you ask yourself when something bothers you and you swallow it?
• Q: Why are there more divorces today even though people date more and research more before marriage?
• Q: Is marriage built on knowing more information about your partner?
• Q: What does Abraham's sending of Eliezer with "Hashem will send His angel ahead of you" teach about finding a match?
• Q: How should dates and research be balanced with commitment when deciding whom to marry?
• Q: What question should I ask myself before deciding to marry someone?
• Q: Which verse teaches that each person dies for his own sin, and not for the sins of others?
• Q: What does the verse "Parents shall not be put to death for their children, and children shall not be put to death for their parents" say?
• Q: Is a wife to blame when her husband keeps falling into his own struggle?
• Q: How do the divine soul and the animal soul explain what it truly means to do a husband's will?
• Q: What should a wife ask herself each day instead of "What does he need from me?"?
• Q: What does the verse in Ezekiel “None of the wrongs he has done will be remembered against him” mean?
• Q: Why did a rabbi tell a husband he should divorce because he told his wife about his past?
• Q: Why does Maimonides say a person who fully returns to Hashem should change his name?
• Q: After the Day of Atonement, how can the wrongs I did be erased so fast?
• Q: After returning to Hashem, should you tell your wife about your past sins?
• Q: What does the verse “Is the tree of the field a man, that it should flee from you into the siege?” say about not cutting down fruit trees?
• Q: Why does Rabbi Landau say your wife is not a “single-use product” to be replaced when things get hard?
• Q: If the first love in a marriage has faded, can a husband love his wife again?
• Q: How do you rekindle love in a marriage without trying to force a new feeling?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give for rediscovering love for your wife?
• Q: If a doctor keeps a patient coming back for years, is that really healing?
• Q: What does it mean that a holy leader is a "healer of souls" who gives strength and advice?
• Q: How should we measure the success of spiritual guidance from a master?
• Q: Does learning to stand on your own mean loosening the bond with your spiritual master?
• Q: How can I tell if guidance I receive is healing me or becoming a crutch?
• Q: Why does the love of the wedding days fade over time?
• Q: What is the difference between a person's outer form and inner essence in marriage?
• Q: What does "And they shall become one flesh" teach about the bond between husband and wife?
• Q: How can a couple feel new to each other every day?
• Q: What one-minute exercise can help me see my spouse's true inner essence?
• Q: What does the verse “As water reflects a face back to a face, so one person’s heart reflects another’s” mean?
• Q: What happened when a divorced young man told Rabbi Landau his divorce was “one hundred percent her fault”?
• Q: What do people say about their old fights after a deep inner jolt breaks their ego?
• Q: What proof from real life shows that the way we see our spouse during a fight is not objective?
• Q: What should you do when you feel completely certain you are right in a fight at home?
• Q: Why does a young husband come home from work feeling that a second shift is just beginning?
• Q: What does "He shall be free for his home for one year, and he shall bring joy to his wife" really command?
• Q: How should a well-built marriage work for you after the first year?
• Q: If my home feels exhausting, is it the cause of my struggles or a sign of something else?
• Q: Why does Rabbi Landau call working on peace in the home the most effective investment?
• Q: What verse from Proverbs about building a house with wisdom opens this essay?
• Q: What did Rachel, the wife of Rabbi Akiva, see in him when he was still a simple shepherd?
• Q: How does believing in a person let you meet his true essence instead of his flaws?
• Q: What does “I am dark, and I am beautiful” from the Song of Songs teach about seeing others?
• Q: What is the wisdom that builds a home, and how can a spouse put it into practice?
• Q: What does the verse "A twisted man stirs up strife, and a whisperer separates close friends" say?
• Q: How can a whisperer separate close friends if he only talks and does nothing?
• Q: What is the whisperer's inner voice, and why is it a character trait rather than just gossip?
• Q: Why does the inner awareness of an adviser matter more than the content of his advice?
• Q: Whom should I ask for advice about peace at home?
• Q: Which verse about the spies seeing themselves as grasshoppers is this essay about?
• Q: How could the spies know how they looked in the eyes of the giants if they never spoke with them?
• Q: Why was the spies' report really a confession about their own inner smallness?
• Q: What does the spies' mistake teach about suspecting what others think of us in marriage and friendship?
• Q: What should you notice when you feel sure you know what others think of you?
• Q: What verse from Proverbs is this essay about gentle answers built on?
• Q: What does Hasidic teaching say about the giver and the receiver in every relationship?
• Q: How do the Sages define a strong person when a spouse speaks sharply?
• Q: Is a gentle answer just a way of speaking nicer, or does it come from inner work?
• Q: What should a husband ask himself before answering back in an argument?
• Q: What is the link between the two halves of the verse "The end of a thing is better than its beginning; a patient spirit is better than a proud spirit"?
• Q: What can the difference between an engineer and a telemarketer teach about marriage?
• Q: What makes couples stay married for many years, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: Why did King Solomon join "the end is better than the beginning" with "a patient spirit is better than a proud spirit"?
• Q: What can a husband do tonight to repair small cracks in his marriage?
• Q: What does the verse "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your strength" say?
• Q: Why does Jeremiah say "Peace, peace, and there is no peace" twice?
• Q: What is the thing your hand "finds" in the verse "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your strength"?
• Q: What is the difference between false calm and true peace?
• Q: What should I do about something I keep putting off to "keep the peace"?
• Q: What does the verse "I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine, who leads his flock among the lilies" say?
• Q: What is the secret of relationships and marriages that last for decades?
• Q: Why does "I am my beloved's" come before "my beloved is mine" in the Song of Songs?
• Q: What is the work of the month of preparation before the Jewish New Year, instead of waiting for it to arrive?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau suggest for the month before Rosh Hashanah?
• Q: Where does the wicked son of the Passover Haggadah come from?
• Q: What really breaks a child's soul after he does something wrong?
• Q: How does the idea that a Jew is defined by his soul apply to how we see ourselves?
• Q: What is our task as parents, teachers and friends when someone falls?
• Q: How should I react the next time a child or student falls?
• Q: What verse from Proverbs warns against telling your neighbor “Go away and come back, and tomorrow I will give it to you”?
• Q: What does “Do not say to your neighbor, ‘tomorrow I will give it to you,’ when you have it with you” teach about helping your children now?
• Q: How is money like a seed that must be planted in the right season?
• Q: What does the Tanya’s author teach about “you shall hold him up” and helping someone before he falls?
• Q: When should parents help their son or daughter who is building a life, according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: What two kinds of parents does Rabbi Landau describe, one who always says yes and one who always says no?
• Q: What does the teaching "Always let the left hand push away and the right hand draw near" mean for raising children?
• Q: Why is a parent who cannot say no really abandoning his child?
• Q: How does the quality of harmony blend kindness and strength in raising children?
• Q: How can I say no to my child in a way that also draws him near?
• Q: What does the verse "The soul of a person is a lamp of Hashem" teach about the nature of the soul?
• Q: What should a parent do when the system says his lively, curious child has an attention problem?
• Q: What spiritual concern does Rabbi Landau raise about giving a child medication just to calm him down?
• Q: How can a restless, impulsive child's energy be channeled, as with Reuben being "impulsive as water"?
• Q: What question should a parent or teacher ask about a child who is called challenging?
• Q: Who loves his child more: the strict father or the father who always gives in to him?
• Q: What is the difference between parenting to take and parenting to give?
• Q: Does loving a child without ego mean giving in to him?
• Q: What does Jacob's love for all his sons teach parents?
• Q: What question should a father ask himself before walking into his home?
• Q: Why does a young man who keeps every commandment still feel switched off inside?
• Q: What does the parable of the modern school system and its bells teach about serving Hashem?
• Q: What is the difference between accepting Hashem as King and obeying out of habit?
• Q: How can you serve Hashem from thirst instead of because “the bell rang”?
• Q: What question should you ask yourself before doing a commandment?
• Q: What does the verse “Listen, my son, to your father’s guidance, and do not abandon your mother’s teaching” mean?
• Q: What is the difference between the father as giver and the mother as receiver in Hasidic teaching?
• Q: What does the parable of the blacksmith forging steel with fire and water teach about raising sons?
• Q: Is a young father’s job just earning a living while the children are raised at home without him?
• Q: What should a father ask himself before asking how to improve his son’s upbringing?
• Q: What does the verse "Discipline your son, for there is hope; but do not carry your soul to the point of crushing him" say?
• Q: Why does the verse about disciplining your son connect the danger to the father's own soul?
• Q: How can a parent crush a child's spirit by bringing his own dreams and wounds into the child's world?
• Q: What pressures push parents to project their own unfulfilled hopes onto their children?
• Q: How can I tell whether I am pushing my child for his needs or for mine?
• Q: What is the full verse "Teach a child according to his own way"?
• Q: Why does the verse say to teach a child "according to his way" and not just "the way"?
• Q: What does David's refusal of Saul's armor teach about education?
• Q: What does it mean if the system feels like it is choking you?
• Q: How can I find my own way in serving Hashem if my passion feels like "too much"?
• Q: What does the verse "Just as a father trains and corrects his son, so Hashem trains and corrects you" say?
• Q: Is giving everything at once with no limits really complete giving?
• Q: How can holding back be a deeper form of giving than giving everything?
• Q: How is Hashem's contraction of His light an act of kindness?
• Q: Why do I have to keep praying for the same needs every day?
• Q: Which verse commands us to teach our children diligently when we sit at home and walk on the way?
• Q: Does "teach them diligently" only mean setting aside official study time with your children?
• Q: How does Rabbi Landau read "when you sit in your home and when you walk on the way" as a method of teaching?
• Q: What should parents focus on when they feel pressure about what to tell their children?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give for teaching children a value?
• Q: Why is the commandment “You shall surely rebuke your fellow” so hard to keep the right way?
• Q: Why did our father Jacob wait until his deathbed to rebuke Reuben, Simeon and Levi?
• Q: What did Jacob understand about rebuking someone while there is still a “tomorrow” in the relationship?
• Q: Is “You shall surely rebuke your fellow” a simple commandment?
• Q: What should you ask yourself before you rebuke someone?
• Q: Which verse in Proverbs about teaching a child in his own way is this essay about?
• Q: What is the difference between a builder and a manager, and how does it apply to raising children?
• Q: What does Rashi's explanation that chinuch means a beginning teach about raising a child?
• Q: How can a parent build something in a child that lasts even when the parent is not there?
• Q: What kind of conversation should I have with my child this week?
• Q: What does a child feel at the Sabbath table when something between him and his father is not whole?
• Q: What is the difference between accepting a child and believing in him?
• Q: How can a parent believe in a child who causes him pain?
• Q: What does a Sabbath table look like when a father truly believes in his son?
• Q: What can a father do this Friday night for a child with whom the relationship is hard?
• Q: What verse from Psalms compares children to arrows in the hand of a warrior?
• Q: How does the way a bow works, by pulling the arrow back, teach about raising children?
• Q: Why does the verse say “in the hand of a warrior” and not “in the hand of a strong man”?
• Q: What happens when parents feel they must keep pushing their children forward?
• Q: What simple thing does Rabbi Landau suggest doing with your child this evening?
• Q: What verse about the priests, the sons of Aaron, opens “The Air of the Home”?
• Q: Why do our words to our children so often fail to take root?
• Q: What does the story of Rabbi Yehoshua ben Chananya’s mother bringing his cradle to the study hall teach about the air of the home?
• Q: Why do children absorb what is inside a parent more than what the parent says?
• Q: What question should a parent ask himself tonight before teaching his children something new?
• Q: What does the verse “Serve Hashem with joy; come before Him with songs of gladness” mean?
• Q: If serving Hashem is mainly about the deed, why does joy matter, and what does your child see in your face?
• Q: What is the key difference between serving Hashem with joy and serving out of bitterness?
• Q: What was the spies’ mistake, and why doesn’t anyone want to join a movement of bitter people?
• Q: How can you show your children joy in serving Hashem at the Sabbath meal?
• Q: Why does a boundary like "Don't talk to me like that" so often break?
• Q: Why is a boundary that depends on other people not really a boundary?
• Q: What is the difference between a real boundary and a hope?
• Q: Why is a true boundary about not leaving yourself rather than leaving others?
• Q: What one-minute exercise does Rabbi Landau suggest for building a real inner boundary?
• Q: Why is it a mistake to say "I understand, I went through something similar" when a friend shares his pain?
• Q: What does Hashem's statement "I am with him in trouble" in Psalms teach about being with someone in pain?
• Q: How does the Tanya's explanation of "Love your neighbor as yourself" relate to a friend's pain?
• Q: What can we learn from Job's friends who sat with him in silence for seven days?
• Q: What should I say when a friend opens up about his pain and I don't know what to say?
• Q: Why do I feel alone and why do people keep their distance from me?
• Q: What question should you ask yourself before blaming others for not having friends?
• Q: What does the Baal Shem Tov's teaching that the world is a mirror say about friendship?
• Q: What is the deeper meaning of Hillel's teaching, "If I am not for myself, who will be for me"?
• Q: What practical step can a lonely person take to become a friend?
• Q: What does the verse “I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine, who tends his flock among the lilies” teach about who moves first?
• Q: What does the Zohar mean by “An awakening from below brings an awakening from above”?
• Q: If I take the first step to fix a broken relationship, am I just giving up my position?
• Q: What should you do when your soul feels dry and far from Hashem?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give for a situation where you are waiting for someone else to start?
• Q: What is the story of the Rebbe Rashab sitting on a swing with two young men?
• Q: Why is it striking that a great Chabad leader spent time swinging with two boys?
• Q: Was the Rebbe Rashab's swing just a technique to bring people closer to Torah?
• Q: How can an ordinary person who feels small bring another Jew closer?
• Q: What can I do this week for a Jew who feels far from my heart?
• Q: How can listening, which seems passive, bring us close, as in "Lend your ear and come to Me"?
• Q: Why is trying to be witty and impressive in conversation really work for the ego?
• Q: Why is truly listening to someone the most valuable gift you can give?
• Q: What does "Lend your ear and come to Me" teach about the secret of closeness?
• Q: What should I ask myself when I walk into a room or sit at the Sabbath table?
• Q: Which verse about Hashem as the Power of vengeance opens the essay on the Torah scholar who strikes back like a snake?
• Q: How can the Talmud say a Torah scholar must take revenge like a snake when the Torah says “Do not take revenge”?
• Q: What are the two kinds of revenge?
• Q: Why does the Talmud compare a Torah scholar’s response to a snake?
• Q: How should a young husband respond in the moment someone hurts him?
• Q: What does King Solomon's verse "Do not correct a mocker, or he will hate you; correct a wise person, and he will love you" say?
• Q: Is a friendship based only on agreeing with each other a real friendship?
• Q: Why would correcting a wise person make him love you more?
• Q: What does the Tanya teach in chapter 32 about the true bond between Jews and disagreement?
• Q: How can I test whether a relationship of mine can survive disagreement?
• Q: What is the verse "The first to plead his case seems right, until his fellow comes and examines him"?
• Q: Why do we tend to believe whoever tells the most emotional story first?
• Q: What tactic does someone who hurt another person often use when caught?
• Q: Who is the "fellow" who comes and examines the first speaker's story?
• Q: How should I decide who is right in a conflict?
• Q: What verse from Proverbs is the essay “A Friend at All Times” built on?
• Q: If an old friend now calls only once a month, does that mean the friendship is really over?
• Q: What is the difference between the bond of love itself and how often friends meet or talk?
• Q: If a friend gets married and gets busy, is he now less of a friend?
• Q: What should a Jew do when he feels far from Hashem because life has made him busy?
• Q: What verse from Proverbs warns “When his voice turns sweet and pleading, do not believe him”?
• Q: What does “there are seven horrors in his heart” warn about a pleading voice?
• Q: How can “A broken and humbled heart Hashem will not scorn” and “When his voice turns sweet, do not believe him” both be true?
• Q: What clever trick does the animal soul use in our generation by imitating a broken heart?
• Q: How can you tell whether your “broken heart” is genuine humility or a trick?
• Q: How can you know whether a friend's love depends on something before that something ends?
• Q: How does setting a boundary test whether a friendship is real?
• Q: Why does it hurt when a friend disappears after I set a healthy boundary, and what does it reveal?
• Q: What do the verse "The wounds a friend gives you can be trusted" and the teaching about love that depends on something say together?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give for testing a relationship this week?
• Q: Which verse in Psalms speaks of smooth lips and a double heart?
• Q: Who would you really call if your car broke down at two in the morning?
• Q: What is the difference between an audience and a true friend?
• Q: How does a person become the architect of his own loneliness?
• Q: What simple step can I take to fix loneliness without deleting my social media?
• Q: What does King Solomon mean by "As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another"?
• Q: What does the parable of a car's wheel on ice teach about friction in life?
• Q: How can a spouse be "a helper who stands opposite him" through friction?
• Q: Why does a person need others to see his flaws, according to the Mishnah?
• Q: How can you tell if the friction in your life is good friction?
• Q: What does the verse "And royal wine in abundance, as befits the hand of the king" describe?
• Q: Why does a man who keeps giving to his family sometimes seem closed and without light?
• Q: What does the Talmud mean when Hashem says "Say before Me verses of Kingship, so that you make Me King over you"?
• Q: How can a wife and children open the heart of a husband who gives only out of duty?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give for the eve of Rosh Hashanah and at home?
• Q: What does the verse "There was a king in Jeshurun, when the heads of the people gathered" say?
• Q: Why does it hurt me when my friend succeeds?
• Q: Why is the order of the verse "There was a king in Jeshurun" puzzling, and what does it teach?
• Q: What does the Tanya say about envy, and how can I move from self to emissary?
• Q: What should I ask myself when I feel envious of a friend's or partner's success?
• Q: Can a relationship be built on fear?
• Q: What does the Tanya say about the lower kind of awe, the fear of punishment?
• Q: What does the word “Blessed” have to do with bending the knee?
• Q: What is the daily work of choice of the “in-between person” in the Tanya?
• Q: What should you think for one second before saying “Blessed”?
• Q: If all blessing comes from the Sabbath, why does the Torah say "Six days you shall work"?
• Q: How is the Sabbath like owning the deed to a building, according to the Zohar?
• Q: If the abundance is already decided above, what does our work during the week accomplish?
• Q: Does running and worrying create our livelihood?
• Q: How should I prepare for the Sabbath so that I go to work as an owner and not as a servant?
• Q: How can I rest on the Sabbath when my head is full of worries about livelihood and health?
• Q: What do the Sages and Rashi mean that Jacob wanted to live in calm and then the trouble of Joseph came upon him?
• Q: What does the parable of the man carrying a heavy load teach about Sabbath rest?
• Q: How is the Sabbath a weekly training in trusting Hashem rather than a vacation from problems?
• Q: What should I do on the Sabbath when a worried thought comes up?
• Q: What did Rabbi Landau tell a father whose son stopped keeping the Sabbath?
• Q: Why does the Torah connect "Six days you shall work" and "the seventh day is a Sabbath" with the word "and"?
• Q: Why does the Sabbath feel like a cage to someone whose week is empty?
• Q: How did finding work help the son return to keeping the Sabbath?
• Q: What should I do if my Sabbath feels like a burden instead of a gift?
• Q: Why might a Jew who keeps the Sabbath properly still feel the blessing is not reaching him?
• Q: What does the Zohar mean when it calls the Sabbath the source of all blessings?
• Q: What does Malachi's promise to "open the windows of heaven" teach about giving charity?
• Q: How is the relationship between the Sabbath and charity like the relationship between Torah and awe of Hashem?
• Q: What should I check if I keep the Sabbath but feel the blessing is not reaching me?
• Q: Why do I go into the Sabbath with my body at home but my head still at work?
• Q: How can a person rest on the Sabbath "as if all your work were done"?
• Q: What is the condition for truly "selling" your work for the Sabbath?
• Q: What does someone gain when he truly hands over his business to Hashem on the Sabbath?
• Q: What can I say before the Sabbath to let go of business worries?
• Q: Why do we sometimes feel during the week that life is running us instead of us running it?
• Q: What do the Sages mean when they say that someone who says "And they were finished" on Friday night becomes a partner in creation?
• Q: How does the parable of a cashier invited into the boardroom explain the Sabbath?
• Q: What does it mean in practice to be a partner with Hashem in creation on Friday night?
• Q: How should I prepare myself before making Kiddush on Friday night?
• Q: Why is the Torah so strict that whoever breaks the Sabbath shall be put to death?
• Q: What does the strong nuclear force holding atoms together teach about the Sabbath?
• Q: What does Rashi's explanation of "He rested, and He was refreshed" teach about the Sabbath?
• Q: Why is the death penalty for breaking the Sabbath a result rather than a punishment, according to the Tanya?
• Q: How should a busy working man think about the Sabbath after a week of pressure?
• Q: Is the Sabbath a reward you earn after a hard week of work?
• Q: What does “Hashem blessed the seventh day and made it holy” teach about the Sabbath as a root of blessing?
• Q: Why is the Sabbath compared to a printing press rather than a bank or gas station?
• Q: Why can’t you come to the Sabbath worn out and passive and expect it to draw down blessing?
• Q: What question should you ask yourself before the next Sabbath?
• Q: Why is striking a match forbidden on the Sabbath while climbing a mountain for hours is allowed?
• Q: Where do the thirty-nine kinds of work forbidden on the Sabbath come from?
• Q: Is resting on the Sabbath just doing nothing, or is it an active choice?
• Q: What is the real challenge of the Sabbath: can the world survive without my work, or can I survive without managing it?
• Q: How can I put down the burden of the week when the Sabbath begins?
• Q: Why do people get excited when a political leader mentions the Sabbath, more than by Hashem's own command?
• Q: Why doesn't the heart always feel what the mind knows about Hashem's command?
• Q: How does respect for "the law of the land" compare to recognizing the authority of the Torah?
• Q: What is the deeper exile of needing outside approval to value the Torah?
• Q: How should I hear "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy" according to Rabbi Landau?
• Q: Why is it so hard to reach depth in Torah study and prayer even when the books are open and the time is there?
• Q: What does the Midrash “He looked into the Torah and created the world” teach about creating?
• Q: What does constant noise and stimulation do to the mind?
• Q: What new idea does Rabbi Landau draw from “He rested, and was refreshed” about the Sabbath?
• Q: How should the Sabbath be kept so that the mind returns to its clarity?
• Q: What does Rashi learn from the verse "Keep My Sabbaths, and hold My Holy Place in awe" about the holiness of time?
• Q: Why was the first thing Hashem called holy a day, the Sabbath, rather than a place?
• Q: Why has the holiness of the Sabbath never gone into exile?
• Q: What does the verse "For the thing is very close to you, in your mouth and in your heart" teach about holiness?
• Q: What should I tell myself as the Sabbath begins?
• Q: If the Sabbath is a day of rest, why does it have so many prohibitions?
• Q: What does "Fenced in like a rose" in the Sabbath song teach about the Sabbath's rules?
• Q: What is the difference between guarding the Sabbath out of duty and guarding it out of love?
• Q: Why is a day of rest packed with so many prohibitions?
• Q: What practical step can I take before next Sabbath to guard it?
• Q: Why does a Jew who keeps the Sabbath sometimes still feel tense and restless at the Sabbath table?
• Q: Why is the rest of the Sabbath described as the result of finding what the soul searched for all week?
• Q: What does it mean that the Sabbath is a presence, “the Queen,” and not just an idea or unit of time?
• Q: What should you do with tension on the Sabbath instead of trying to relax?
• Q: What can you say to your soul this Sabbath when the restlessness rises?
• Q: Is something wrong with me if Friday night makes me tense instead of restful?
• Q: Why is the Sabbath a bond between Hashem and Israel and not only a break from work?
• Q: What is “running and returning,” and why does running come first?
• Q: What does the prayer phrase “a rest of love, freely given” mean?
• Q: How should someone new to keeping the Sabbath understand the restlessness of Friday night?
• Q: Is the Sabbath mostly a list of what is allowed and forbidden?
• Q: Are the commandments outside the soul, or are they its garments?
• Q: What can the forbidden work of sorting on the Sabbath teach about the soul?
• Q: What does it mean for each person to find his own way in keeping the Sabbath?
• Q: What should I ask myself when a Sabbath law feels purely technical?
• Q: Why does the Friday night Kiddush call the Sabbath both a remembrance of Creation and a remembrance of leaving Egypt?
• Q: What is "Egypt" as a state of mind in Hasidic teaching?
• Q: How is stopping work on the Sabbath itself an act of leaving Egypt?
• Q: How is the Sabbath a weekly chance to leave your own Egypt?
• Q: What can I say in my heart before Kiddush to feel free on the Sabbath?
• Q: What does the verse "Return, my soul, to your rest, for Hashem has been good to you" say about the Sabbath?
• Q: Why do some people find the Sabbath hard, and is the problem really the Sabbath itself?
• Q: How does the image of a haircut help someone who feels uncomfortable on the Sabbath?
• Q: How can the Sabbath become a home rather than a prison, as in "Return, my soul, to your rest"?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau suggest during the week to stop fearing the Sabbath?
• Q: What did the young married man tell Rabbi Landau about not feeling anything on the Sabbath?
• Q: What does the Mekhilta mean by "Let it seem to you as if all your work is done"?
• Q: What is the extra soul given on the eve of the Sabbath, according to the Talmud and the Zohar?
• Q: Why is the Sabbath not a courtroom for the week that passed?
• Q: What can you say to yourself as the Sabbath begins to set down the burden of the week?
• Q: If Hashem never grows tired, what did He rest from on the seventh day?
• Q: How can Hashem "rest" on the seventh day if Isaiah says He does not grow tired or weary?
• Q: What does it mean that the Hebrew word for "world" comes from the word for "hiding"?
• Q: Why did Hashem say "Enough" during creation, and what does it teach about the Sabbath?
• Q: How can I notice Hashem's presence on the Sabbath?
• Q: Which verse about the seventh day is the starting point for why we wish each other a peaceful Sabbath?
• Q: What does the verse “On the seventh day Hashem finished the work He had done, and on the seventh day He rested” say?
• Q: Why do we wish each other a “peaceful Sabbath” if the world is no more peaceful than on Friday?
• Q: How does the Sabbath make peace between the body and the soul?
• Q: What should you think about when you eat the Sabbath bread this week?
• Q: Why do we treat the week as real life and the Sabbath as just a break?
• Q: Why does Rabbi Landau say the working week, not the Sabbath, is the new thing?
• Q: What does the Talmud mean that whoever delights in the Sabbath is given an inheritance without boundaries?
• Q: Is the Sabbath just a rest from the real week?
• Q: What should I tell myself as the Sabbath begins?
• Q: What does the verse "Blessed is Hashem, day by day; He carries our load" mean?
• Q: What did Shammai and Hillel each do when they found fine food for the Sabbath?
• Q: How can a person live like Hillel, trusting that each day is blessed, according to the Tanya?
• Q: What does Rabbi Landau mean by a hallway that is itself the grand hall?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau give for saying "Blessed is Hashem, day by day"?
• Q: Why might someone feel that something slipped away after keeping the Sabbath exactly by the law?
• Q: If he kept every law of the Sabbath, what was missing, and what does "Remember and Keep were spoken in a single utterance" teach?
• Q: What is the "extra soul" of the Sabbath, and when do you feel it?
• Q: What is the real test of whether you truly entered the Sabbath?
• Q: What can I do before the Sabbath and at Havdalah to take the Sabbath into the week?
• Q: When was the last time I sat completely with myself, without my phone or noise?
• Q: What does resting from work on the Sabbath really mean on a deeper level?
• Q: How is the Sabbath's rest actually a kind of inner movement of the soul?
• Q: What is true life and vitality, according to this teaching on the Sabbath?
• Q: What should I ask myself before next Sabbath instead of "What are we going to do?"?
• Q: Why can't a vacation quiet the inner noise of someone who runs all week?
• Q: If the Sabbath is "a taste of the World to Come," why do so many Sabbaths pass without us feeling rest?
• Q: How is a person different on the Sabbath than during the week?
• Q: If peace arrives every Friday night, what is the real question we should ask about rest?
• Q: What can I ask myself when the Sabbath candles are lit?
• Q: What does "The Sabbath is one sixtieth of the World to Come" really mean?
• Q: Why do some Sabbath-observant Jews feel emptiness on the Sabbath instead of delight?
• Q: What happens to a person when the Sabbath takes away the screens and noise of the week?
• Q: How is the way I feel on the Sabbath a test of my soul?
• Q: What should I do if the Sabbath feels empty to me?
• Q: Why is the eighth day of Hanukkah called "This is Hanukkah"?
• Q: What does the number eight represent compared to the number seven in Hasidic teaching?
• Q: What is the relationship between light and vessel in holy things?
• Q: How does the light work by itself on the last day of Hanukkah?
• Q: What should you do in front of the candles on the last night of Hanukkah?
• Q: What is the meaning of the seventh candle of Hanukkah compared to the eighth?
• Q: What is special about the number seven on Hanukkah?
• Q: Why do things simply open up for some people, and what is their secret?
• Q: What is grace, as in "Esther found grace in the eyes of all who saw her", and how is it different from persuasion?
• Q: What should I do when I light the seventh candle of Hanukkah?
• Q: What makes the fifth night of Hanukkah different from the other nights?
• Q: What are the two kinds of light, based on "light has an advantage over darkness" in Ecclesiastes?
• Q: What is the inner darkness that Hasidic teaching speaks about?
• Q: How is every descent for the sake of a higher ascent, as the Baal Shem Tov taught?
• Q: What should I do when I light the fifth Hanukkah candle?
• Q: What is special about the fourth night of Hanukkah, the middle point of the candles?
• Q: What does “Hope that drags on makes the heart sick” say about waiting for help that is slow to come?
• Q: Why can some kinds of healing not be rushed?
• Q: What is the difference between passive waiting and waiting as inner work?
• Q: What does Rabbi Landau suggest doing tonight before putting out the Hanukkah candles?
• Q: What does the second Hanukkah candle represent?
• Q: What are the two forces of judgment and mercy inside a person?
• Q: Why is the inner work of the second Hanukkah candle about letting go rather than doing?
• Q: What does the second Hanukkah candle say about the heavy load you carry to bed every night?
• Q: What should you do in front of the candles on the second night of Hanukkah?
• Q: Why do we need the festival of Sukkot right after the Day of Atonement has already purified us?
• Q: What does the parable of the three stops at the King's court teach about Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot?
• Q: What does the sukkah prove that Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur cannot?
• Q: Why does the Zohar call the sukkah "the shade of faith"?
• Q: How should I enter the sukkah after Yom Kippur?
• Q: How could the generation that stood at Mount Sinai make the golden calf just weeks later?
• Q: What was the cry behind the people's reaction when Moses was late coming down from the mountain?
• Q: What did the sin of the golden calf reveal about the Jewish people?
• Q: What can a fight between a loving couple teach about the golden calf?
• Q: What should I do when I feel Hashem is silent and I stumble out of panic?
• Q: How can I face Rosh Hashanah when I feel heavy with what I did this year?
• Q: What does the Talmud's teaching "Say before Me the verses of Kingship" have to do with a coronation?
• Q: What is the sound of the shofar really about, according to Likkutei Torah?
• Q: Is forgiveness on Rosh Hashanah something we must earn, or does it come from crowning the King?
• Q: How should I say the blessing of Kingship in the Rosh Hashanah Musaf prayer?
• Q: Why do some people avoid eating nuts on Rosh Hashanah?
• Q: What does the parable of confessing your betrayal at a king’s coronation teach about Rosh Hashanah?
• Q: What is our main work on Rosh Hashanah, according to the Sages’ teaching about verses of Kingship?
• Q: What teaching of the Baal Shem Tov, brought in the Tanya, explains why we should not dwell on sins on Rosh Hashanah?
• Q: If Rosh Hashanah is not a day for confession, when does the private reckoning come?
• Q: Why is it hard to cry over the destruction of the Holy Temple when I have troubles of my own?
• Q: How are the destroyed Temple, Hashem's Presence in exile, and the exile itself really one loss?
• Q: What is the inner work of mourning the Temple if I shouldn't force myself to cry fake tears?
• Q: What does the verse "Hashem will wipe away the tear from every face" teach about my own tears?
• Q: What can I do during the Three Weeks when a moment of personal sadness comes?
• Q: How is a politician before an election different from the King who goes out to the people?
• Q: What does it mean that "the King is in the field" in the month before the Jewish New Year?
• Q: If Hashem doesn't need our vote, why does He go out into the field?
• Q: What does the image of a politician just before an election illustrate in this teaching?
• Q: How can I "vote" for the King in the days before Rosh Hashanah?
• Q: What does the day after a presidential election teach about the difference between a campaign and real government?
• Q: What is the "campaign" feeling we experience on the Jewish New Year and the Day of Atonement?
• Q: Is the crowning of Hashem as King on the New Year the end of our work or the beginning?
• Q: What does the Tanya say about the purpose of moving from inspiration to action?
• Q: How can I bring an inspiration from the Days of Awe into my daily life?
• Q: What does "The glory of a king is in a great crowd of people" teach about praying together?
• Q: Why would someone who needs something personal from a king ask for a private meeting rather than a big gathering?
• Q: How is a big public gathering different from a private room with the King?
• Q: Why does Rabbi Landau say real inner change happens in private, not in the crowd?
• Q: What practical step does Rabbi Landau suggest after praying in the synagogue?