How to Overcome Sadness and Achieve True Joy: Wisdom from Hasidism
Learning to overcome sadness is essential for anyone seeking spiritual growth and emotional well-being. Imagine you’re a wrestler facing a strong opponent. If you enter the fight sluggish and slow, you’ll lose, even if you’re physically stronger. This is exactly how spiritual struggle with our negative qualities works. This is a key principle taught by Hasidic wisdom.
Why You Must Overcome Sadness for Spiritual Growth
It’s impossible to overcome your negative inclinations if you’re immersed in despondency and heaviness of heart. Sadness makes us slow and indecisive, as if our heart has turned to stone. Only vigor of spirit, which comes with joy and openness of heart, can give us strength for spiritual work.
But doesn’t Scripture say: “In every sadness there will be profit”? Yes, but notice: it says there “will be profit.” Sadness itself has no virtue; the benefit only comes afterward, as a result.
Joy After Sadness: The Secret of Spiritual Transformation
What benefit can sadness bring? The true benefit is joy in God that comes after justified sorrow for our mistakes. When a person, at an appropriate time, sincerely grieves over their wrongdoings, genuine bitterness and contrition are born in their heart.
Through this contrition of heart, the veil separating the person from the Divine is destroyed. That’s why after proper, conscious sorrow comes a special joy – like bright light after darkness. This joy is much deeper and more profound than ordinary happiness.
Practical Advice: How to Overcome Sadness and Anxiety
How can we free our heart from worries about worldly problems – be it health, livelihood, or family concerns?
Our sages teach: “Just as one blesses for good, so should one bless for apparent misfortune.” This means accepting everything with joy, even what seems like trouble. Why? Because in reality, this too is for good, only this good is still hidden from our eyes.
What appears to us as misfortune comes from a higher, hidden world, and contains a deeper good than what we easily recognize as positive. This is what the verse refers to: “Blessed is the man whom You chastise,” and that’s why those who joyfully accept difficulties are described as: “Those who love Him are like the sun rising in its might.”
How to Recognize and Overcome False Sadness
What about sadness over spiritual matters? If you notice that during work or daily activities you’re suddenly overcome by sadness about your spiritual condition – know that this is a trick of the evil inclination!
How could genuine sadness arising from love of God appear in the midst of business concerns? This artificial sadness is created only to push you later toward undesirable desires and pleasures, for human nature seeks joy and cannot remain in despondency for long.
Practical Action Plan to Overcome Sadness
What should you do when sadness overtakes you – during prayer, study, or ordinary activities? To overcome sadness in these moments, tell yourself: “Now is not the time for sorrow, even about serious transgressions.”
For true contrition, you need to set aside special time when your mind is calm to reflect on the greatness of the One against whom you have sinned. Only then can your heart experience real bitterness and repentance.
And most importantly – immediately after your heart has been contrite during these specific times, completely remove sorrow from your heart! Believe with all your soul that the Almighty has already erased your sin and “forgives abundantly.”
Why Joy is Essential for Serving God
Scripture directly states: “Because you did not serve the Lord your God with joy…” – followed by a description of punishments. Service without joy is incomplete service that cannot be accepted.
When we joyfully accept even what appears to be misfortune, we demonstrate the highest love for God. This shows that closeness to Him is dearer to us than all worldly joys, as it is said: “For Your loving kindness is better than life.”
The Sun Emerging from Behind the Veil
Those who rejoice even in trials will merit a special reward – to see “the sun emerging in its might.” What does this mean? In the future world, what is hidden will become manifest, and the highest Divinity, now concealed like the sun behind clouds, will shine in all its power for those who in this world could see good even in what seemed like darkness.
Key Takeaway: The Path to True Joy
True joy comes after properly experienced sorrow. We should set aside special time for contrition about our mistakes, but then – completely overcome sadness and free our heart, believing in complete forgiveness.
Remember: the evil inclination uses even sadness about spiritual matters to later plunge us into pursuit of pleasures. Therefore, always check where your sadness came from, and if it appeared at an inappropriate time – know that it is not from a pure source.
The most important principle: serve with joy! And even what seems like trouble, accept as hidden good coming from a higher world.
This article is based on Chapter 26 of the book “Likutei Amarim – Tanya” by Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, one of the greatest Hasidic thinkers, founder of the Chabad movement.
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.
