Verbal Best Investment

Free choice begins with one’s thoughts. Nonetheless, if a person fails to guard his speech from slander, profanity and other negative phenomena then his thoughts will become negative as well, for speech profoundly influences thoughts. And, once a person’s thoughts are negative, his deeds and emotions will soon follow suit, as negative thoughts are the ideal growth medium for sadness, depression, anxiety, worry and all other negative emotions. On the other hand, one who is accustomed to speaking positively – words of emuna, encouragement, and finding the good in others – strengthens positive emotions and positive deeds. Sincere words of compassion and kindness readily become deeds of compassion and kindness. One who speaks positively will also speak positively.

Rebbe Nachman of Breslev explains that one’s speech is the fabric of which thoughts are woven. The essence of a human being is the threefold core of thought, speech and deed. Just as thoughts and speech influence deeds, deeds and speech influence thoughts. Knowing this, one can virtually uplift oneself from the abyss of negative thoughts simply by speaking in a positive manner. As such, a quick and effective solution to feelings of disappointment and depression is to begin speaking words of emuna. Words of emuna are capable of dispersing negative thoughts just as a strong breeze can disperse dark clouds.

Our sages say that silence is golden; if speech is worth a gold coin, then silence is worth two gold coins. One who speaks less, sins less. Rebbe Nachman teaches that silence leads to emuna (Sefer Hamidot, emuna, 24). The Gemara says that silence should be a person’s main skill in this world (tractate Chulin, 89a). King Solomon remarks that “words are tiresome” (Ecclesiastes 1:8). On the other hand, silence never causes fatigue. Our wise men also said that one must be silent in order to know how to speak, for the less one speaks, the less one makes mistakes. Just think how many times we were sorry for things we said, and that we would have been better off remaining silent.

Speech, like money, should be invested in the right places. Emuna, our bond of faith with the Creator, depends on one’s speech (see Likutei Moharan II:44). King David says, “I shall tell of Your emuna with my mouth” (Psalm 89:2). By speaking words of emuna, one attains emuna. As such, when a person’s emuna is weak, one can reinforce him and encourage him with words of emuna.

Rebbe Nachman writes (Likutei Moharan I:78) that the Divine Presence is the power of speech that is instilled in a person. In other words, if a person so desires, he or she can speak to Hashem whenever they want, for Hashem is always with them. All they have to do is open their mouths and speak to Him, for every word that a person speaks to Hashem binds him to Hashem. As such the Divine Presence is called “The Mother of every living thing”, for just as a mother carries her babies everywhere, so does the Divine Presence accompany us everywhere, even to the lowest places, and never leaves us, not even in the most trying circumstances. This is just like our speech, which is with us always.

Rebbe Nachman is hereby revealing to us the prodigious power of our speech, especially when we speak with a holy tongue. A person can speak anywhere and anytime with the Creator, even if he is entrapped in a labyrinth of sins and misdeeds. One need never despair, for help is always close by; one must simply speak to Hashem! The words of Torah and prayer that a person speaks are the Divine Presence itself. To connect to the Creator, all we must do is speak to Him.

“Whenever I speak of him, I remember him more and more” (Jeremiah 31:19). Jeremiah the Prophet teaches us that the more we speak of something or someone, the more we are reminded of that thing or person. Our bodily-oriented evil inclination tries to force us to concentrate on physical and material lusts and appetites while neglecting our soul, Heaven forbid. Therefore, the more we speak about Hashem and emuna, the more we remind ourselves of the Divine Presence and our connection with the Divine. This insures a healthy soul, for speaking to Hashem invokes Divine illumination of a person’s soul.

King Solomon expressed metaphorically, “My dove, trapped in the crevices of the rock on a concealed level, show Me your gaze, let Me hear your voice…” (Song of Songs 2:14). Even when a person is trapped in the lowest level of spirituality, where Hashem’s Presence is seemingly concealed, he or she can still call out to Hashem. Hashem promises, “…for your voice is pleasing and your appearance is beautiful” (ibid) – no matter who you are and where you are, Hashem is happy to hear your voice.

Rebbe Natan of Breslev teaches that the great tzaddikim devoted their lives to teaching the masses that Hashem is always with us, even with the worst person among us. King David stressed (Psalm 139:8), “If I descend to the lowest depths, behold, You are there!” The more a person reminds himself that Hashem is everywhere, in Heaven and earth, from the highest spiritual level to the lowest, the easier it will be for him to pursue the path or truth and teshuva, no matter what life’s challenges might be. And the more he or she devotes their speech to holiness – Torah, prayer, Psalms and songs of praise, and especially personal prayer – the more he or she will bring the Divine Presence into their lives.

We can now understand why learning Torah out loud is so beneficial, for speech is like a chisel that engraves the words of Torah onto our souls. When a person learns quietly, his Torah is easier to forget. The words of Torah, especially the spoken words, are the Divine Presence itself. They summon the Divine Presence from concealment, and invoke the revelation of the Divine Presence to each person on his or her own spiritual level. What could be a better investment of our verbal powers? Let’s take advantage of every opportunity to vocalize our prayers and Torah learning, for the dividends are huge.