The Illuminated Face

One of the most agreed-upon concepts in humanity, regardless of age, sex, religion or nationality, is that a person is striving for one thing only – to live a good and sweet life. A person merits a genuinely good life when he is kind to others and brings them joy. When he is an agent of good, his life is good, for the Creator runs the world on a turn-for-turn basis. What you give to other people is exactly what the Creator will give to you.

Anyone can attain this good life, for all the advice of Torah is within arm's reach, in proximity to a person. When a person truly wants something, it is attainable – the more the desire, the closer it gets. Therefore, by way of desire, a person puts himself within reach of the good life, as we will see in the continuation of this pamphlet, with the Almighty's help.

One of the great scholars castigated his student and called him, "a menacing pit (a Hebrew play on words with imbecile) in the public domain". The student didn't understand what damage he was doing to anyone. His teacher said, "You walked in the street with an angry look on your face. Your face is not yours alone, because it's out there in the public domain for everyone to see. Such a sour face can do damage to people; in that respect, it's just like an open pit in the public domain that can also cause damage to people. Rather than looking at passersby with a face that's almost foaming at the mouth, greet them with an illuminated countenance, with a smile. A happy expression on your face enhances love in the world." For that reason, it's important to smile at everyone. Greet other people with gladness. Say hello to them or at least nod your head in polite recognition. Don't ever ignore a person or look through him like he's air. If a stranger comes to your synagogue, tell him, "Welcome! How are you?" A person who is meticulous in honoring other people will find that all gates are open to him. He will succeed in both material and spiritual endeavors, for nothing makes the Creator so happy as a person who makes other people happy. As such, that person receives a generous portion of Divine abundance.

A person who walks around with a smile on his face revitalizes other people. It could be that a depressed individual is contemplating suicide because in his despair, he thinks that he has nothing to live for. All of a sudden, the depressed person meets Mister Smiley. The smile conveys the message that he is not only loved but worth something too! That one smile saved a life and prevented a suicide – one smile!

When we smile, Hashem smiles down on us. Blessings, vitality and abundance flow to the world. Rebbe Nachman of Breslev teaches that when Hashem smiles, good fortune comes to the world (Likutei Moharan I:172). If we want Hashem to smile, then we have to smile too, because the world runs on a measure-for-measure basis. So, if we smile, the Almighty smiles back, and that means an illumination of all sorts of abundance.