Sefer HaMiddot, A Righteous Person, Part I/ספר המדות·צדיק·חלק ראשון

1Don’t be surprised when you find that the Tzaddik has left something unperfected. This is God’s doing, so that the Tzaddik leaves an area through which his son can later gain prominence.

2There are times when the interruption of Torah study strengthens it.

3[A Tzaddik will] accept gifts from the wicked so that they might repent.

4The Tzaddikim use their merit to benefit the world, but not themselves.

5It is common for one Tzaddik to do something that will make him another Tzaddik’s teacher.

6Seeing the faces of the generation’s leaders is of great benefit.

7A Tzaddik will be punished when he fails to pray for his generation.

8A person who teaches Torah to an unsuitable student is called wicked.

9The manner in which the Sages speak brings prosperity and healing. A person should therefore learn to speak as they did.

10When a person teaches Torah to others, the Torah is revealed to him with minimum effort.

11It is common for a Tzaddik to complain when one of his disciples draws closer to another Tzaddik in order to gain prestige.

12When drawing closer to Tzaddikim requires overcoming difficulties, it is all the more beneficial for serving the Creator.

13There are times when Heaven shows the Tzaddik something that is only imaginary.

14Doing a favor for someone who is unaware of it is like “throwing a stone at Mercury” (a form of idol worship).

15Each person should practice [the Torah] as it was taught to him by his teacher.

16There are times when God will bring a number of Tzaddikim together in one place so that the irritation caused by their mutual infringement brings them to fully mature.

17Anyone who does not delay answering nature’s call merits having students.

18It happens that a Tzaddik’s fame spreads far and wide, yet afterwards he falls. This is because of his desire for wealth.

19Anyone who holds God important will record in a book all the names of the Tzaddikim, the Mishnaic Sages and the God-fearing, in order to remember them.

20“Why do the Tzaddikim accept benefits from others so that their family members can live in affluence and splendor? Wouldn’t it be better to forgo such a lifestyle and not be obliged to take from others?” This should not trouble you. For whatever pleasure and broadness the Tzaddik experiences expands his soul, thereby providing the Holy One’s Divine Presence with a tranquil place to reside. Therefore, one should never come to the home of a Tzaddik empty-handed.

21When you want a Tzaddik to pray for you, go to a Tzaddik who is compassionate.

22You must refer to the most prominent leader of your generation as “my master,” even if you are greater than him.

23When a Tzaddik suffers some misfortune, he should ask another Tzaddik to pray on his behalf.

24Even if those who travel to be with the Tzaddik do not receive any Torah lessons from him, they are rewarded for having made the journey.

25Whoever does not attend to the needs of Torah scholars deserves to die.

26The Tzaddik can elevate the dead to a very high level.

27By journeying to be with a Torah scholar, a person rectifies any spiritual damage he caused by [failing to recite] the Birkhot HaNehenin.

28When a person is in a position to protest [against the actions of the wicked] but does not, he is punished for their sins.

29It is inappropriate to accept the authority of others while in the Tzaddik’s presence.

30One who is apathetic at the eulogy of a Torah scholar will not live long.

31The Tzaddik’s ability to exact punishment is proportional to his mazal.

32When a Tzaddik dies, the void he leaves behind is consistent with the attributes by which he lived.

33The disciples of a Tzaddik earn their livelihood in his merit.

34When a person hears a Torah lesson from the Tzaddik, it is as if he delivered it himself.

35The death of a Tzaddik is as much a tragedy as the burning of God’s Temple.

36If a Torah scholar is fitting, learn from him; if not, part from his company.

37One should not stare at his teacher’s nakedness in the bathhouse, or in any other similar situation.

38There are times when two Tzaddikim are on equal par, yet great mysteries are revealed to only one of them. You should know that the reason the other is not shown is because his merit is needed elsewhere, to protect others.

39It is better to draw close to a Tzaddik who is compassionate.

40In the merit of attending to the needs of a great person, one is saved from death.

41A person who issues a Halakhic ruling in the presence of his teacher deserves to die, and by right should be bitten by a snake. He is called a sinner and should be removed from a position of status. He will descend into hell, childless.

42Once you’ve made certain that the source from which you draw wisdom—namely, your teacher—is blessed and fitting, don’t substitute or exchange it for another.

43Each person should behave in a manner consistent with the blessing given to his tribe [by the patriarch Jacob].

44The wellspring of Torah departs from the Tzaddik when there is a wicked person in his home.

45In the merit of the Tzaddikim buried in their midst, also those buried outside the Holy Land will merit resurrection without suffering.

46Benefitting the Tzaddik with one’s money is tantamount to performing the service of the Holy Temple.

47There are some Tzaddikim who are never known by the title “rabbi.”

48When the Tzaddik says something that remains unfulfilled because its time has not yet come, his words are engraved on high but lack luster. However, once the time comes for his words to be realized, they begin to shine brightly.

49One who benefits a Torah scholar has to strengthen [his faith] so as not to lose his respect for that scholar.

50Denying one’s student Torah is tantamount to stealing his ancestral inheritance. Even a fetus in its mother’s womb curses such a teacher, whose body will be riddled with holes, like a sieve. Conversely, by teaching his student, he is rewarded with great blessing, like Joseph, and merits teaching Torah in the World to Come.

51A person who does not use his wealth to benefit a Torah scholar will never see a blessing in what he owns.

52One who ridicules the words of the Sages is punished with death.

53Being close to the Tzaddikim is beneficial in both this world and the next.

54The Tzaddik has the power to decree heaven for one person and hell for another.

55It is worthwhile expending even a great deal of time in order to spend but a single hour in the proximity of a Tzaddik.

56When a person begins losing the use of his physical senses, he should worry that death, or some other misfortune, is near.

57There are those who can create beautiful Torah expositions and yet not be in tune with the truth.

58One Tzaddik can elevate the Torah lesson of another Tzaddik.

59The insight that a Tzaddik originates in Torah, God repeats in his name.

60The words of wise Tzaddikim are dearer than the words of Torah and the Prophets. You must hearken to and obey them even if these Tzaddikim do not impress you with any miracle.

61One who praises the Tzaddik will have blessings placed on his head.

62Everything that happens in a town depends on the Tzaddik living there.

63A Tzaddik may have a student of Halakhah attend him, provided he teaches this student something new.

64Whoever brings a boor under the Tzaddik’s influence will be rewarded.

65One who goes out to greet his teacher will never see the netherworld.

66There are times when a person’s prayers help as long as he keeps praying. Once he stops, the Holy One does as He sees fit.

67Giving a gift to a Torah scholar is like bringing a first-fruit offering.

68Do not try to force God’s hand.

69One who loves the Tzaddik must keep him from getting a bad name.

70The Tzaddik despises all the favors of wicked men.

71Do not beseech or bother your Master as long as it is possible to achieve what you seek through your own efforts.

72While a Tzaddik is still in this world, his portion in the Garden of Eden is being used by the Tzaddikim already there.

73There are certain disciples whose very essence is dependent on the merit of the Tzaddik. When the Tzaddik dies, they also die, or are punished.

74Those who were followers of the Tzaddik during his lifetime will be his followers even after his death, or after theirs.

75When a person is close to one Tzaddik and then becomes a follower of a second Tzaddik, the Torah taught to him by the first Tzaddik troubles him.

76There are times when a Tzaddik must die in order to suppress some harsh decree on high.

77Who merits the World to Come? The one whom people honor for his wisdom.

78A person who gives charity is able to turn from evil ways.

79You need not chastise and chase away a student who refuses to follow the proper path. Rather, bring him closer to you. This will benefit your other pupils, and eventually he too will take heed.

80A person sometimes dies before his time because of the Tzaddik’s complaints against him.

81It is possible for a person to be a great Tzaddik even without being very learned.

82A person who does not believe in the words of the Tzaddikim, and certainly one who ridicules them, deserves to be punished.

83The Tzaddik is permitted to discourage a person who wants to get closer to him but raises questions unnecessarily.

84Before publicly delivering a Torah lesson, the Tzaddik may say things that will endear his words to his listeners.

85[Although decreed in heaven,] even a person’s first marriage partner can be changed through prayer.

86In this world, whoever wants to get closer can do so. But in the World to Come, the only ones brought close are those who already were.

87When a person rejects the Tzaddik’s attempts to draw him closer, the Tzaddik has every right to push him away.

88The Tzaddik can punish his offender with death even for a slight offense, and even if that offense was accidental.

89That which you hear directly from the Tzaddik is more beneficial than that which you learn from a book.

90A person is better able to understand when he sees the face of the speaker.

91The Tzaddik’s simple statement opens up a great light, making it easy for common people to understand exalted wisdom.

92When a person behaves improperly, it is permitted to make him your servant.

93The Tzaddik will sometimes elevate a person only to later lower his status. This is for that person’s own good.

94Some Tzaddikim are called good, while others are not. Likewise, some evil men are called wicked, while others are not.

95It is a disgrace and a humiliation for the generation when its leader has no one tending to his affairs.

96Teaching others [to perform mitzvot] is preferable to practicing oneself.

97Be careful not to display piety in front of a great person.

98You can determine a person’s inner character from his affiliation, when you see which Tzaddik he follows.

99A Tzaddik should not endanger himself by being the only one to pray on his behalf. Rather, he should ask a second Tzaddik to pray with him.

100The Tzaddik’s prayer has the power to save a person from sinning.

101The Tzaddik is the image of God for his generation.

102In their time of trouble, the Tzaddik bears the suffering of those who support him.

103A person can be a Tzaddik even if he hasn’t perfected his trust in God.

104The Tzaddik is able to enjoy physical pleasure without fearing the evil inclination, because his Torah study will protect him.

105A person who does not rise in the presence of his teacher is called wicked. He will not live a long life and will forget his learning.

106Do not burden the Holy One when you can find help by some other means.

107Sometimes, pleasing the Tzaddik just once, and only slightly, is enough to earn the World to Come.

108A person who has perfect faith in God is capable of pleasing the Tzaddik.

109One who is free of idolatrous thoughts will always yearn to save the Tzaddikim.

110When a person wants to benefit the Tzaddik, the Holy One gives him the ability to do so.

111A Torah scholar who rejects his teachers has his years shortened.

112A person who assumes the position of rabbi when there is someone greater than himself has his years cut short.

113When a Tzaddik must pray for something but is afraid of those who will dispute his righteousness, he should ask for the very opposite of what he wants.

114When a wicked person who has done some evil comes to the Tzaddik seeking his approval, the Tzaddik may save himself by telling the wicked person that he has done well.

115Preventing others from coming under the wings of the Divine Presence (i.e., serving God) causes a person’s children to fall into servitude.

116There are times when the mercy one must seek for a sick person is that he die.

117The Holy One first reveals a hidden teaching in the Torah to the Tzaddik and then repeats that teaching in the Tzaddik’s name.

118There are times when the fasting and prayers of the Tzaddik are to no avail.

119The Tzaddik may violate the boundaries set by others in order to establish his own path [in serving God].

120There are times when among those who’ve been sentenced to death in heaven is someone whom the Tzaddik loves. The Tzaddik has the power to pray for him and save him by putting someone else in his place.

121The Tzaddik has the power to take from one person and give to another.

122The Tzaddik’s blessing is a pidyon.

123Each Tzaddik has a particular devotion that another Tzaddik, even one greater than him, is unable to match.

124The reason Tzaddikim travel from place to place collecting money is that the words of Torah are poor (concise) in one place and rich (extensive) in another.

125Torah scholars live long when they show each other respect.

126The prayers of a Tzaddik who is the son of a wicked person cannot compare to the prayers of a Tzaddik who is the son of a Tzaddik.

127Testing the Tzaddik is like testing God.

128All the demands for money that the gentiles make of the Jews are only on account of the disrespect that the Jews have shown the Tzaddik.

129It is a great honor for the Tzaddik when those who are God’s enemies also speak against and argue with him.

130Faith in the Tzaddik mitigates harsh judgment.

131The Tzaddik uses God’s Torah to teach Him how to act towards us.

132A prayer that a person prays while binding himself to the Tzaddikim will be answered.

133The Holy One pardons the sins of the Jews because of the Tzaddikim.

134A person’s derisiveness prevents him from going to the Tzaddikim

135By giving charity, a person merits coming closer to the Tzaddikim.

136There is no Tzaddik who is free from controversy and scrutiny.

137The wicked person who is too embarrassed to repudiate the Tzaddik himself will instead berate those who follow the Tzaddik.

138Seeing the face of the Tzaddik sharpens the mind.

139Whoever protects the Tzaddik from suffering merits respect and will benefit from the Tzaddik’s righteousness.

140By hearing a Torah lesson from a Tzaddik one receives vitality.

141A wicked person who has sinned often can make amends by doing things that bring vitality to the Tzaddik.

142When a wicked person humbles himself before the Tzaddik, clearly some punishment had been decreed against the Tzaddik, but now that punishment will no longer come.

143When you fear the Tzaddik, you merit turning away from evil.

144When a wicked person prays for mercy on behalf of a Tzaddik who is in pain, he merits standing at the gates of the righteous.

145The Holy One will sometimes ignore the Tzaddik’s prayers in order to push aside the wicked, so that they will remain with their evil ways.

146Those who quarrel with the Tzaddik forget the Torah.

147Praising the Tzaddikim is like praising God.

148Neither the sound of war nor turmoil nor bad news is heard in a city that obeys the Tzaddik.

149Opposition to the Tzaddikim stems from the opposition the Tzaddikim show for each other.

150God makes the Tzaddik dependent upon the masses for his livelihood so that he should have some connection to them. Thus, when God remembers the Tzaddik, He also remembers everyone else.

151Mashiach’s coming is dependent on our getting closer to the Tzaddik.

152The soul’s perfection depends mainly on getting closer to the Tzaddikim.

153When a person’s drawing closer to the Tzaddik lacks sincerity, he will later turn into the Tzaddik’s adversary.

154While in the presence of the Tzaddik, a liar’s heart wonders how he will ever be able to speak afterwards.

155People who speak against the Tzaddik eventually have their words turn on them. They also fall ill.

156Whoever humbles himself before the Tzaddik arouses the Tzaddik’s love for him.

157Telling stories about the Tzaddikim brings a person closer to them.

158The more God rests a spirit of holiness upon a Tzaddik, the more that Tzaddik receives support from the wealthy; and the more support they give him, the better the Tzaddik is able to bring the wicked back to God in repentance.

159The Tzaddikim are made to suffer so that in the World to Come the wicked will have no claim against the good that God will give the righteous.

160When God-fearing people join with the Tzaddik, they cause the Holy One and His Divine Presence to unite face to face; after which, there is no descent [from this elevated state].

161Praising the Tzaddikim causes the wicked to suffer a great downfall.

162The Tzaddik dies on account of the sins of sorcery and immoral behavior.

163People guilty of immoral behavior are usually opponents of the Tzaddikim.

164When the Tzaddik passes away, people are left in a state akin to impurity and their righteousness is repulsive in God’s eyes.

165When people rise up against the Tzaddik, they incite Heaven’s wrath and promote an outbreak of fires.

166There are times when Tzaddikim are made to wander from place to place in order to reveal the existence of some hidden Tzaddik.

167There are times when the Tzaddik is made to suffer in order to lessen the suffering of the Jewish people.

168The masses filling their stomachs brings about the loss of the Tzaddik.

169The suffering of the Tzaddikim atones for all of Israel.

170God grows angry with, and strikes fear into, a person who refuses to accept the authority of the Tzaddik.

171God grants contentment to anyone who brings a gift to the Tzaddik.

172By bringing a gift to the Tzaddik, a person defeats his enemies and nullifies the evil spirit that has rested upon him.

173The Holy One shows favor to a person who prostrates himself on the grave of a Tzaddik, even if he does not deserve it.

174God performs acts of lovingkindness for a person who relates stories about the Tzaddikim.

175The Tzaddik is able to lead people because of the fear of God that he possesses.

176A person must stand while receiving the Tzaddik’s blessing.

177A king may raise the funds needed for his expenditures by taxing his nation.

178The respect shown for the Tzaddik’s offspring awakens the Holy One’s will to bring Mashiach.

179Traveling to visit the Tzaddik subdues one’s enemies.

180Anyone who violates the Tzaddik’s instructions falls from esteem.

181When a person uses his possessions to benefit the Tzaddik, it is as if he benefits all Jews and he will be saved from death.

182Objecting to the words of the Tzaddik is tantamount to seeking advice from a sorcerer.

183When a person possesses genuine wisdom, God is with him and people fear him.

184One who provides all sorts of support for the Tzaddik will be close to and near this Tzaddik in the World to Come.

185Aperson who provokes the Tzaddik will in the end be caught in an evil trap.

186When one relates stories about the Tzaddikim, his own righteousness is remembered [by God].

187A Tzaddik is able to give even something that does not yet exist.

188The Tzaddik takes possession of wherever he sets his foot.

189By offering advice to Tzaddikim at a time they face opposition, a person’s achievements will be established and will never be undone.

190While observing the Tzaddik, a person should gaze with reverence so that he will not be punished by Heaven.

191A person’s fear of Heaven makes him yearn to draw closer to the Tzaddik.

192Sitting at the table of the Tzaddik eliminates war.

193A fraudulent person eventually joins those who oppose and quarrel with the Tzaddik.

194There are times when the Tzaddik will contract leprosy because he has recently gotten some person to repent.

195Whoever says of the Tzaddik that he is wicked, and of a wicked person that he is a Tzaddik, will fall ill. Through this he also causes an eclipse of the sun, and of the moon.

196Binding oneself to the Tzaddik is a great healing.

197It is very difficult for a person to achieve the assistance he needs when there is a Tzaddik in his city and he does not ask the Tzaddik to pray for him.

198It sometimes happens that although a person is very close to the Tzaddik, he doesn’t feel any fear of God. He should know that were he not close to the Tzaddik, he would not even deserve to be alive.

199There are times when the Tzaddik is too embarrassed to ask God to relieve his suffering. What does God do? He brings similar suffering upon a wicked person so that he comes to the Tzaddik and asks the Tzaddik to pray for him. In this way, the Tzaddik, too, is relieved of his suffering.

200Whoever disagrees with a Tzaddik to his face clearly has no fear of Heaven.

201Sometimes, the strife a Tzaddik encounters is definite proof of his righteousness.

202There are wicked people who are successful. But when they persecute the Tzaddik, the evil forces themselves take revenge against them.

203The difference between a Tzaddik and a person who fears God is that the God-fearing person is not given permission to reveal God’s secrets, whereas the Tzaddik is.

204Whoever speaks against the Tzaddik clearly is arrogant.

205When the Holy One wants a Tzaddik to teach the proper path to people, He indicates this to the Tzaddik through his livelihood.

206TheTzaddik, while praying for a person, isable to understand which sin is the cause of that person’s particular misfortune.

207One who guards his sexual purity certainly cherishes the Tzaddik.

208When the Tzaddik serves God but shows no concern for teaching the common people, he will fall from his spiritual level.

209By financially supporting the Tzaddik, all a person’s sins are pardoned, just as when the Kohanim eat from a sacrifice and the sins of the animal’s owners are atoned.