Transitional times can be quite unsettling. Even natural events such as drifting off to sleep at night or rousing to wakefulness in the morning can give rise to hallucinatory experiences. These are considered a normal phenomenon though and need no treatment.

If this is so physically, our sages teach us to seek parallels emotionally and spiritually. Golut (“exile” and the constraint of the Divine spark within each of us) is likened to sleep in Chassidic thought, and geula (“redemption”) to the most complete waking up possible for each of us and the whole world.

Right now, we are in such a transitional space, so close to the final transformation of darkness to light, exactly like the transition from sleep to wakefulness. No wonder there are times when we may feel confused or uncertain about which way is up and which way is down. Perhaps we might even experience “hallucinations” of distorted perception about what is the real truth—movement towards healing and redemption or the opposite, G‑d forbid?

Let’s not get distracted by these distorted perceptions, as they will soon naturally disappear into a whole new world of positivity.

Sources: Maamar “B’layla ha hu” Purim 5720, Torah Or, Vayeishev 28c and Chassidic commentaries on Psalm 126.