How to Overcome Negative Thoughts: Tanya’s Wisdom for Modern Life
Learning to overcome negative thoughts is one of life’s greatest challenges. Each of us faces unwanted thoughts and desires. They come unexpectedly, cause anxiety, and often become a reason for despondency. But what if these thoughts are not a cause for sadness, but an opportunity for spiritual growth? The ancient wisdom of Hasidism offers an amazing approach to combating negative thoughts that can change your life. Let’s explore how to transform internal struggle into a source of joy and strength.
Why You Shouldn’t Feel Sad When Trying to Overcome Negative Thoughts
When bad thoughts and desires enter your mind, the first reaction is to get upset. But this reaction may be mistaken. If these thoughts arise not during prayer or spiritual practice, but in ordinary everyday life—and you successfully distract yourself from them—this is a reason for joy, not sorrow.
Why? Because by rejecting these thoughts, you are actually fulfilling a spiritual commandment. You are following the precept: “Do not follow after your heart and after your eyes.” The sages teach: “One who sits and does not commit a sin is rewarded as if he fulfilled a commandment.”
In other words, each time you say “no” to a negative thought, you perform a spiritual feat no less valuable than fulfilling a positive commandment.
Humility Instead of Pride: Keys to Overcome Negative Thoughts
Sadness about unwanted thoughts often comes from pride. A person gets upset because they believe they should be at the level of a righteous person who doesn’t have such thoughts at all. But this is a mistake.
If you knew your true place in the spiritual hierarchy, you would understand that your task is not to completely get rid of bad thoughts, but to fight them properly. For it is in this struggle that your spiritual growth occurs.
Each time you push away a negative thought, you weaken the forces of darkness (called “sitra achra” in Kabbalah) not only in yourself but throughout the world. Your small effort below causes enormous changes above.
Your Purpose: The Daily Struggle to Overcome Negative Thoughts
Perhaps you were created specifically for this struggle. Don’t think you must reach a state where bad thoughts cease to appear. Perhaps your spiritual purpose is to constantly fight them and win small victories.
This is what the phrase from the Book of Job speaks about: “You have created the wicked.” This doesn’t mean that someone was created to sin. It means that some souls are created for constant struggle with temptations, which brings special joy to the Almighty.
Two Types of Spiritual Pleasure
In the spiritual world, there are two types of “delight”:
- Pleasure from the complete destruction of evil—when the righteous turn darkness into light.
- Pleasure from conquering evil in the midst of struggle—when ordinary people resist temptations.
This is similar to two types of delicious food: one is naturally sweet and pleasant, the other is spicy or sour, but well-prepared. Both dishes are equally valuable, though in different ways.
Small Victories: Daily Practices to Overcome Negative Thoughts
Fighting negative thoughts is not the only way of spiritual growth. Even in completely permissible things, you can practice self-restraint:
- Postponing a meal for an hour and devoting this time to study
- Refraining from conversation on a worldly topic that interests you greatly
- Temporarily giving up pleasant but unnecessary thoughts
Each such small effort creates an enormous spiritual effect. As the sages say: “If a person sanctifies himself a little below, he is sanctified greatly from above.”
The Path to True Holiness
The commandment “Sanctify yourselves” means that you should make yourselves holy, even if you are far from perfection now. When you make efforts to separate yourself from negative influences, you receive the promise: “And you shall be holy.”
This is not just a command, but also a promise. Eventually, thanks to your efforts and help from above, you will indeed become holy. Negative desires will gradually leave your heart until they disappear completely.
Practical Conclusions for Modern Life
- Don’t get upset about negative thoughts—they give you an opportunity to fulfill a commandment.
- Rejoice in your struggle to overcome negative thoughts—it creates special joy in spiritual worlds.
- Practice small self-restraints—even a minute’s delay before pleasure has enormous spiritual value.
- Remember the help from above—your small efforts bring great help from heaven.
- Don’t strive for perfection immediately—the path to holiness is gradual.
By following these principles, you can transform your internal battles from a source of disappointment into a source of joy and growth. Each victory as you overcome negative thoughts is not just a personal achievement but a contribution to the repair of the entire world.
This article is based on Chapter 27 of the book “Likutei Amarim – Tanya” by Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, founder of the Chabad movement and one of the greatest Hasidic thinkers.
Afterword: This text has not been approved by any sage, Torah scholar, or rabbi and is merely a simplified adaptation of the sacred text for general understanding. For comprehension of true wisdom and a deeper understanding of the original text, you should refer to the sources.
