דַּרְכֵי הָרְפוּאָה בְּחוֹלִי הַגּוּף בִּכְלָל שְׁנַיִם הֵם: א) לְרַפְּאוֹת אֶת הָאֵבֶר אוֹ הַכֹּחַ הַמְקוּלְקָל חוֹלֶה וְחָלוּשׁ. ב) לְחַזֵק אֶת הָאֵבָרִים וְהַכֹּחוֹת הַבְּרִיאִים, אֲשֶׁר הֵם יִתְגַּבְּרוּ עַל הָאֵבֶר וְכֹחַ הַחוֹלֶה לְרַפְּאוֹתוֹ.

הַדּוּגְמָא מִזֶּה בְּחוֹלִי הַנֶּפֶשׁ הֵם שְׁנֵי דַּרְכֵי הָעֲבוֹדָה: תְּשׁוּבָה וּמַעֲשִׂים טוֹבִים.

There are two general approaches to healing physical illness:1

(a) to treat the particular organ or faculty that is damaged, ailing, or weak; or

(b) to strengthen the healthy organs and faculties so that they will overcome the disability of the ailing organ or faculty and heal it.

Analogous to this in the case of spiritual sickness are two approaches to avodah: (a)teshuvah, and (b) good deeds.2

Probing Beneath the Surface

Teshuvah confronts the spiritual sickness directly. By contrast, the performance of good deeds enhances one’s spiritual health in general, by generating energy that is positive and transformative.

Each of these approaches has its own unique quality.

Teshuvah addresses and corrects a problem at its source. In the absence of teshuvah, problems left to lie dormant may one day resurface and create difficulties in one’s life and hamper one’s Divine service.

Performing good deeds does not deal with the sickness directly. This is its great advantage: all of a person’s energies are directed to positive, light-giving activities — and even “a little light dispels a great deal of darkness.”3 Indeed, whether the darkness is present in oneself or in one’s environment, the characteristically chassidic response is to diffuse light.4 For example, a person who finds his mind wandering while he is praying can either make futile resolves never to daydream — or he can habituate himself to keeping his mind occupied with beautiful, luminous, spiritual subjects, and in that way elevate himself to the desired state of mind. In the picturesque image of the Rebbe Rayatz, “Darkness you don’t drive away with a stick.”

This approach is the antithesis of tackling evil head-on, as is often the approach of the ethical school of thought known as Mussar. For even if one undertakes such a confrontation with the noblest of intentions, the Alter Rebbe warns that “he who wrestles with someone who is filthy is bound to become filthy himself.”5

Moreover, since a chassid as a matter of course sees himself responsible not only for his own spiritual well-being but also for the spiritual well-being of his environment, diffusing light has a significant fringe benefit: good deeds illuminate one’s surroundings wherever he goes.6