Likutei Moharan 2:8/ליקוטי מוהר"ן ב׳:ח׳

18. Rabbah bar bar Chanah recounted: Once, while traveling on a ship, we saw this fish. ChoL (sand) yatva (had settled) on its back and a meadow sprouted up. Thinking it to be dry land we ascended, and we baked and cooked on its back. When its back became hot, it turned over. Were it not that we were near the ship, we would have drowned (Bava Batra 73b). This is the meaning of what Rabbah bar bar Chanah said: we saw this fish — For in our exile the Holy One has, as it were, hidden His countenance. <As is written (Deuteronomy 31:18), “and I will utterly hide My face,” and> as in (Psalms 30:8), “You hid Your face.” <It is known that the face> is an aspect of compassion, <and conversely the back> is an aspect of stern judgment. Thus, all our prayers and petitions are <only> concerned with His having turned His back to us; that He should return His countenance. As <King David requested> (Psalms 86:16), “O turn to me <and show me mercy>,” and as in (Numbers 6:25, 26), “May God make His countenance shine <upon you and grant you mercy. May God turn His countenance to you.>”

2When we see the length of <this bitter> exile and how each day we cry out to Him and yet are not saved, there are those of our people, the Children of Israel, who err in their heart, God forbid. <They say> that all the prayers are for naught. But in truth, <it is not so>. The tzaddikim of each and every generation raise <all the prayers> and erect them, as in, “Moshe erected the Tabernacle.” They raise each and every part to its place and build the structure of the Shekhinah bit by bit, until the full measure of it structure is realized. Then Mashiach, who is Moshe, will come and consummate it, by erecting it perfectly.

3This is the meaning [of Rabbah bar bar Chanah’s statement]:

4we saw this fish — This alludes to the tzaddik of the generation, who is called a fish, <as is known>. This is the aspect of Moshe-Mashiach.

5ChoL, sand, had settled on its back — <“Chol” suggests prayer, as in, “Then Moshe ChaL (began to plead)” (Exodus 32:11). Sand… on its back:> These are the prayers we pray because He has, as it were, turned His back to us.

6yatva, had settled — This is, “They brought the Tabernacle to Moshe.” For it is necessary to bring and bind the prayers to the <tzaddikim> of the generation.

7a meadow sprouted up — These are the souls which accompany the prayers, “her companions who follow her….” For the souls are called grass, as is written (Ezekiel 16:7), “I caused you to increase like the foliage of the field.”

8Thinking it to be dry — That is, that the prayers [are dried out and] do not bear fruit. But in truth, it is not so. Rather:

9We ascended, and we baked and cooked — All the prayers ascend and rise upward. And the more we pray, the more the Shekhinah is built up. She then prepares herself for union. This is we baked and cooked. Baking and cooking are preparations for eating, which is [a metaphor for] union, as is written (Genesis 39:6), “except for the food he himself ate.”

10< When its back became hot — That is,> when the structure of the entire Shekhinah is completed through the multitude of prayers, <then God’s> compassion will warm. The attribute of stern judgment is transformed into the attribute of compassion. This is:

11became hot — When His compassion warmed.

12its back… turned over — That is, the attribute of stern judgment is transformed into the attribute of compassion.

13Were it not that we were near the ship < we would have drowned> — This is (Isaiah 48:11), “For My own sake, for My own sake I will do it.” As is found in the Midrash <concerning the verse,> “Who preceded Me that I should reward him?” (Job 41:3) —who has made a mezuzah for My sake before I gave him a house (Vayikra Rabbah 27:2) ? From this we can conclude that all our good deeds and all the prayers are entirely from Him. Thus, it is not proper to consider receiving reward for any <mitzvah or prayer>.

14And although it appears that through our prayers and study of Torah the redemption will come, even so, we are in need of His kindness; that in His kindness He will redeem us. This is:

15Were it not that we were near the ship. This corresponds to kindness. As our Sages taught: The majority of sailors are benevolent (Kiddushin 482a). Were it not for His kindness, we would, God forbid, have drowned in exile. <But, by means of His kindness, He will soon redeem us. Amen.>