Charity - BOOK TWO

BOOK TWO:

1. Through sexual immorality one falls into imprisonment or diseases causing pain in the feet. Also a student who has not reached the level of being able to rule, and rules, falls into this, also evil spirits attack (dominate) him. Charity has the propitious quality to annul all these punishments.

2. [Learning] Torah, [giving] tithes, and [keeping] the Shabbat give physical life as well [i.e. in addition to other benefits].

3. Through charity, with a simple maneuver he subdues his enemies, and the Holy Blessed One saves him from grand schemes of his enemies.

4. To aid Torah scholars, with this he annuls the ruling of the stars and constellations.

5. Through those who support the poor, the masses are saved from plagues, in their merit. Also in their merit, expanded consciousness precedes constricted consciousness.

6. Through charity, one sweetens the judgment of the Time to Come, that is, the Day of Judgment in the Time to Come. (translator's note: Breslovers understood the awesome import of this entry, because that future judgment will even take into account all the ramifications of that which was caused or triggered by one's deeds, our Sages revealed that even the Prophet Shmuel (Samuel) fears this judgement!)

7. Those who abound in doing kindnesses, but occasionally cause something bad through their kindness, and they pretend not to see the bad that sprouted as a result of their kindness—this is an aspect of the warning to the Cohanim (the Priests), who are the aspect of kindness, that they should not take overly large steps. Through this [failing, one] causes the Judgment Above, God forbid, to be unmoderated. The same is true in the converse, when in performing kindness one is careful that bad should not result, through this the Judgment will be moderated.

8. Those who produce Torah novelty need to learn from the works of the halachic regulators before the novelty and also after, and this learning of the halachic regulators is the protection of the novelty, so that no strangers [people or forces inappropriate to such spiritual Light] touch them. Also, when one wants to give charity, it is necessary to do so – as with the novelty [i.e. to learn halachah before and after].

9. Torah novelty and charity–one elicits the other.

10. Great is the power of tithing that it transforms curses to blessings.

11. Through tithes, illicit sexual thoughts are annulled.

12. One who does kindness does not need ancestral merit.

13. Through doing kindness, one gains longevity.

14. There are prayers that are not accepted Above until one gives sufficient charity, according to the number of letters in the prayer related to the problem about which one is praying. For example, when one prays the words, "Give me children", one needs to give charity according to the number of letters of “Give me children”.

15. Through charity one merits to have children.

16. One who sustains the many, draws blessing from the land of Israel to the rest of the world.

17. Through money one gives to the poor of the Land of Israel, through this one merits to retain his wealth.

18. When a man moves to a city, he should send meat to the poor of that city, and through this he will find favor in the eyes of the city officials.

19. Through the giving of “shekulim” (the currency used in Biblical times) one is saved from the evil inclination.