On Taming the Mind: Rabbi Noson Sternhartz

Sometimes a person experiences a spiritual decline so great that his only tikkun is through the “unification of the Merkava” (see Likutei Moharan II: 5). Each person may accomplish the unification of the Merkava by concentrating his power of thought and fixing it on one place. One’s consciousness should not be scattered, but attuned and intensely bound to God. The unification of the Merkava is brought about by the tikkun of the mind. Evil thoughts correspond to the ritually impure animals, whereas holy thoughts correspond to the animals depicted in the Merkava vision – the lion, ox, and eagle – and man rides upon them all. [In one sense, the human form on the Merkava alludes to the tzaddik; in another sense, it alludes to the essence of the mind.]

Every Jew must become a “Merkava,” or vehicle for the Divine Presence. As our sages say, “The tzaddikim are the Merkava.” This is attained through sanctifying the mind, which is the essence of a person. In this manner, one may become incorporated into the spiritual paradigm of the “man sitting upon the Throne”: the highest level of the Merkava. When one concentrates his thoughts on God, not allowing them to stray beyond the bounds of holiness, one accomplishes the unification of the Merkava. However, it is extremely difficult to tame the mind. One can truly succeed only through the spiritual merit and power of the tzaddikim, who attained these abilities through their perfect simplicity and their willingness to throw themselves into the mud of human confusion for the sake of God.