Siman 543

(100.) Many times he spoke much with us and greatly admonished us to draw souls close to Hashem Yisburach — to endeavor to speak much with people in order to awaken them and bring them back close to Hashem Yisburach. And his desire was even to speak with worldly people everyday conversations about worldly matters — perhaps from this, words would emerge and roll forth that would awaken them toward Hashem Yisburach. And even if one accomplished only a single movement — that it enter into them... — as is written there: "Fortunate is he who seizes with the hand of a transgressor," etc., "and the Holy One Blessed be He glorifies Himself in her in all the worlds." And he o.b.m. lengthened to speak with us several and many times about this, and urged us to this very much in several kinds of languages. And several times he would demean us with humiliations because we were lazy about this — and once he called us "dry trees," because we did not give birth to souls that would draw close to Hashem Yisburach through us. And once, on the night after the Sabbath, we stood before him with several of his important men, and he rebuked us very much for several hours about this matter, and told much of this matter then. And his will was also that they make journeys for this, in order to speak with people. And when he spoke of striving to draw souls close to Hashem Yisburach as mentioned, he would mock those who strive to draw close to Hashem Yisburach only the very lowliest in level — such as paupers and destitute ones and amei ha'aretz and the like, people lowly in level. For the main thing is to strive to draw to Hashem Yisburach people great in level, who have some importance — for people like these are very hard to draw close, and when one merits to draw them close, fortunate is he. For it is a very great thing when one draws great souls close to Hashem Yisburach — and then these lesser ones, lowly in level, fall and attach themselves by themselves to him and draw close to Hashem Yisburach, for they nullify themselves before the great one among them who has been brought to the path of truth, to Hashem Yisburach. And I asked him o.b.m.: who is the great one? He answered in haste [in the manner of a rebuke, because I asked such a simple thing]: "One who is learned is more important; one who is wealthy is more important; one of lineage is more important." And what was understood from his words was that whoever has some importance and excellence from wealth, or from wisdom and lineage — his soul is certainly greater and higher, and likewise he has a very great evil inclination, and also several souls hang upon him. Therefore the main thing is to strive to draw close, from among the important young men of the city — such as the sons of the wealthy and those who strengthen themselves in study — and then the lesser ones draw close by themselves, as mentioned. Also his way was that he did not strive to draw close the aged, only the young men — as is brought in the Aleph-Beis (Sefer HaMidos): the young are easily returned to Hashem Yisburach, not the aged. And likewise an old man told me about himself: that once, when he was with him at Shavuos in Zaslav, he said to Rabbainu o.b.m.: "Rabbainu, draw me close to you." Rabbainu o.b.m. answered him: "I cannot draw close the aged." Afterward Rabbainu laughed a little and said to him: "Say that this is the truth — that I cannot; certainly I can draw close also the aged." But nevertheless this old man did not draw well close to Rabbainu like the young men. And likewise it is explained in the Torah discourse "Ta'iti k'she ovaid" [I erred like a lost sheep] (Likutey Moharan I, 106) — the difference between an old of days and an aged one; see there. And likewise we heard and saw several times that it is hard to draw close the aged: