Rav Moshe Weinberger, Shlit”a Aish Kodesh NY
10/12/2004 | Bilvavi I (1) Introducing Ourselves To Hashem This is a mysterious sefer…that only a small group of individuals know about it. There is something very unusual about itt…There is big “raash’ (excitement) among the tzadikim in Yerusalayim about it … I looked at it a little and fell in love with it! …It is not hard- that is the beauty about it. It is very very clear, simple to the point. If you tell people who have not yet heard about it- they will be hearing about it. The author is anyamonous…it is called Bilvavi Mishkan Evneh. The point is to introduce us to Hashem … to help us to attach ourselves to HaKadosh Baruch Hu. It is not a work on philosophy and it is not quoting from 100 different seforim. … His intention was to introduce us to HaKadosh Baruch Hu. … Now I know that sounds ridiculous…it sounds crazy!. When I learned this sefer i felt that it speaks directly to the inner point. It is not “litvishe,” its not “chassidish,” it is not “sephardish.” It’s everything. It was written in such a hidden way with the approbations of some of the great mekubalim in Yerushalayim. … It is the “dvar Hashem” . We can live with and take with us … it is a tiny little sefer that we can grow together with. Audio class
07/05/2005 | A Life Of Emunah (1) Clarifying Our Goals In Avodas Hashem A tzaddik…a young man in Eretz Yisrael who last Ellul came out with a small sefer Bilvavi Mishkan Evneh … that has a big Rebono shel Olam hidden in it. It’s made an unbelieve roshem (impression). Learning in chaburas throughout the world. It’s hard to describe how unique these seforim are … How clearly written they are and how sweet and simple they are and how straight forward and important they are for us. Audio class
09/08/2005 | Bilvavi II (1) The Foundation Of Avodas Hashem There is a mechaber who is un-named … I know who it is but he prefers that his name not be publicized. Raban Gamiel Rabinovitch is very close to him and Raban Gamiel Rabinovitch said that he is a yid who thinks about haKadosh Baruch Hu 24 hours a day. He has put out a number of seforim over the last year and a half. These 7 seforim have caused a revolution in Eretz Yisrael and here as well. There is a yid in Brooklyn that paid to print 5000 of the first volume of Bilvavi Mishkan Evneh to give them out to people free. I think we were the first ones to learn Bilvavi Mishkan Evneh in our shul. How do you describe this? This is something that can’t be described… It’s simply the clearest and most direct and sweetest presentation of how to be a Jew in my life. His seforim have caught on and are being used in yeshiva and schools …This is a sefer that basically tells us what we needed to hear ever since we have been in this world and no one ever quite said it. Audio class
05/08/2008 | Getting To Know Me (1) An Introduction To Self Knowledge And Self Repair It is hasgacha pratis and very clear to me that haKadosh Baruch Hu has sent into my personal life and into our lives a Jew who is able to write seforim that have the most incredible way of opening up the most difficult inyanim (subjects) and laying them out before our eyes in a very beautiful and clear way. I am grateful to haKadosh Baruch Hu who sent us this particular sefer- Da-Es Atzmecha by the author of Bilvavi Mishkan Evneh. It is very different from all of his other seforim …The author is basically introducing ourselves to ourselves.
In the words of Rav Weinberger, “I believe that klal Yisrael has been waiting for this sefer since Ma’amad Har Sinai. The author here is basically introducing us to ourselves and who we are. Without having that information, that ability to enter into ourselves, our avodas Hashem (divine service) and the years that we spend in this world could chalilah (Heaven forbid) be a waste”.
“There are some of you who might find this intro a bit odd- you have to keep in mind two things. The first is that the Rav comes from a different background from most of us. He never read a secular book in his life. … Secondly, we have a lot of problems. We are very mixed up- we were raised very far from kedusha and even the best of us have been infected and affected by things that are not pure Torah. Sometimes we come across a view that’s expressed from that perspective of pure Torah by a contemporary person. So, not coming from a perspective of pure Torah, hearing something that comes from pure Torah does not always click.”
02/12/2009 | The Bilvavi On Mesilas Yesharim (1) There Are No Shortcuts To Better Midos (Character Traits) Everyone has learned Mesilas Yesharim…but not one of us has learned it properly and even if we learned it our entire lives we would not have cracked it open. We have a big zchus (merit) that in these last few days before Moschiach comes, Hashem has sent special mechanchim, madrichim and mashpi’im into the world to uncover the beauty and the depth of sefroim such as Mesilas Yesharim so that even people like us can truly change and grow …The mechaber’s (author’s) entire goal is to help us to practically change our lives to think and live differently… Audio class
01/01/2011 | The Bilvavi On Bayit haYehudi At the end of the Hebrew version of Da Es Atzmecha is a small section on the subject of the Jewish home. We have to keep in mind two things. The first is that the Rav comes from a different background from most of us. He never read a secular book in his life. … Secondly, we have a lot of problems. We are very mixed up- we were raised very far from kedusha and even the best of us have been infected and affected by things that are not pure Torah. Sometimes we come across a view that’s expressed from that perspective of pure Torah by a contemporary person. So, not coming from a perspective of pure Torah, hearing something that comes from pure Torah does not always click.]… Audio class
12/2017 | Da Es Middosecha “In all of Rav Schwartz’s sefarim he is begging us to try to understand the Torah’s way of understanding who a Jew is. …In order to really fix any of the middos we have to fix the shoresh – we have to get to the root – to the yesod. Da Es Middosecha is a very remarkable sefer. …As Rav Sharwtz has been emphasizing over and over we cannot begin to speak about fixing our middos until we understand what a middah is. A middah itself is only the chitonius– mamash the surface. We have to enter into the world of the yesodos– earth, water, wind and fire. Audio classes
Rav Yossi Michalowicz Westmount Shul Toronto
10/01/2006 | Bilvavi – I will build a sanctuary in my heart Part 1 (66 audio & PDF files) Section 1: Clarifying the Purpose of Life: Aleph – 1 – Knowing what Hashem wants from us – building our souls: 1. Every Jew knows that there is a Creator Who created the world, created himself, gives life to the entire world, including himself.
05/02/2008 | Bilvavi – I will build a sanctuary in my heart Part 2 (114 audio & PDF files) Chapter 1 – The righteous One Lives by his Faith “Indeed, You are a Hidden God” To begin, we will present an introduction. In every new endeavor, especially when it relates to clarifying the ways for a person to serve his Creator, one must strive to do it for the sake of Heaven, so that one’s intent will be sincere and acceptable to Hashem.
05/02/2008 | Bilvavi – I will build a sanctuary in my heart Part 4 (85 audio files)
04/21/2010 | Mesilas Yesharim – with Bilvavi commentary (82 audio files) Pages 1-4 Why Abridged Learning Fails in Avodas Hashem Pages 4-7 Mussar is Part and Parcel of Talmud Torah Pages 8-12 How Valuable is Mussar to Us Pages 13-15 Remembrance of the Heart vs Remembrance of the Brain
05/26/2009 | Da es Atzmechah – Know Your Soul (27 audio files) Pages 1-4 Why Abridged Learning Fails in Avodas Hashem Pages 4-7 Mussar is Part and Parcel of Talmud Torah Pages 8-12 How Valuable is Mussar to Us Pages 13-15 Remembrance of the Heart vs Remembrance of the Brain
Rabbi Boruch Leff (Reprint – Yated Ne’eman)
B’ezras Hashem, I am nearing the end of what is probably the most important sefer I have ever learned. Now, I don’t mean to say that this sefer is more important than the Chumash, or Shas. But I do say that if you are looking to truly and sincerely grow close to Hashem, if you are looking for real, practical guidance in how to live with Hashem on a constant basis, if you are looking to live with the Ribbono Shel Olam as your Friend, your Father , and your King, you must go to your neighborhood seforim store today and buy BILVAVI MISHKAN AVNEH-Volume 1. MORE
