Tikkun Chatzos

Rabbi Chiyah taught: “Whoever studies Torah at night the Divine Presence is before him, as it is said: “Rise, cry out in the night at the peak of the night watches. Pour out your heart like water before the Presence of Hashem.”14 This verse signifies that the Divine Presence is before us at that time. It was also said by our Sages, of blessed memory: “Whoever studies Torah at night is called a servant of Hashem, as it is written: [Behold, Bless Hashem] all [you] servants of Hashem who stand in the House of Hashem, during the nights.” Chabad.org

Rabbi Chiyah believes that through the effort of  “getting up” from sleep, your own personal effort, you can obtain spiritual enlightenment. Not so. Yes we can receive understanding from reading the scripture at midnight, in the morning, or any time of the day. It is YHWH and HaShem alone who fills us with His Spirit. Through His word we receive understanding, through the Holy Spirit we receive understanding of all things, discern all things, which glorify YHWH.

How many study Torah all day?

The study of Torah has largely been replaced by Talmud in adult years. If you are a Rabbi, or priest perhaps outside your weddings, service, and duties, but the average person does not have such ability. As each person must function in this world as what they are given by YHWH. If all people only study Tanakh, who would prepare the crops? Who would manufacture buildings, or anything of substance? To each are given their ability and to those the word of HaShem then the guardians and scribes of such.

My life is YHWH. From the time I awake until the time I sleep after midnight. My job is to follow YHWH and do His will – to write His word, to pour out myself upon His teaching. He pours out His knowledge of which a thousand years I may still be as a child.

Who has the will to forego all matter of thought for well being, wealth, bills, your mental desires – your plans and constructs within your mind? Only the servants of YHWH can do such things. Blessed be the youth who choose such things, albeit I have not seen this. Who are the children who give up themselves to serve from an early age, and yet never serve?

For life is through experience, learning – understanding the difference between the world and our own desires and the end result of such.

This is why Jesus says, “Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” Matt 19:24

For no man who has gain in all things can understand the sorrow of people, or ever rely solely on YHWH for your personal need. You can never have spiritual growth or receive redemption IF YOU only rely on yourself and not YHWH. How can HaShem teach you or guide you if you never call upon His name? How can you become like a child in the service of YHWH if you never let go of the things of the world?

“So Jesus called a child to come and stand in front of them, and said, ‘I assure you that unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the Kingdom of heaven. The greatest in the Kingdom of heaven is the one who humbles himself and becomes like this child.’” Matt 18:2-4

“We should all yearn to merit getting up in the middle of the night to recite Tikkun Chatzot, where we mourn over the destruction of Beit HaMikdash (the Temple). We also mourn the concealment of the light of the true tzaddikim. It is also a very good time to mourn over our own sins and shortcomings, all of which are delaying the rebuilding of the Temple. We need to strive to see ourselves and our personal situations in the words of Tikkun Chatzot.”

Your sin and shortcoming DO NOT delay the rebuilding of the Temple – diaspora was a direct result of transgression.

This is a new popular belief that performing good can bring about Moshiach and embue one of the Rabbi as the anointed. Many now cling to such arguments and the mysticism of Kabbalah rather than the word of YHWH.

Only YHWH determines when the Temple is to be rebuilt, only He who controls all things and gathers to Himself determines the day, the hour, and the moment.