From deep meditation techniques to successful "firewalkers" to Dale Carnegie's How to Stop Worrying and Start Living, to cognitive psychology, people around the world are searching for ways to cope with and master their thoughts. What is about the mind that is so powerful? We know that our thoughts constantly fill our brain, like the never-ending river that flowed out of Eden. Our thoughts shape our mood, fill our dreams, and embody our desires, hopes, and fears. Why are they so hard to control?
Every person is endowed with three "garments" for his soul: thought, speech, and deed. Of these, thought is so integrated with our being that it's hard to remember that our thoughts are not us.
In this fascinating and source-packed class, Rabbi Avrohom Bergstein raises many provoking questions: why are thoughts of sin worse than sinful deeds? When does thought cease and why is that bad? And the biggest question of all: what is the Torah approach to dealing with unwanted thoughts?
Join us in this enlightening journey through thought and learn about Divine providence, anger management, fear, and a centuries-old internal debate about the Chassidic answer to mastering thought. Hint: It starts with the first of the Twelve Steps popular in AA programs!
This class was given June 4, 2012 - 14 Sivan, 5772 (Parshat Behaalotecha)
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