Changing the World from the Inside Out: A Jewish Approach to Personal and Social Change

While Hoffman doesn’t use the term “good point,” his search for self energy is a very similar process to that described by the Breslov masters.

Breslov tradition teaches that the essence of song comes from finding and collecting the good from within darkness.

Just like sleeping too much is a physical symptom of depression, lack of motivation and distraction are a form of spiritual sleep. Seeking and finding good points is the Breslov prescription for waking up from spiritual sleep.

Finding good points, which activate feelings of joy, will make you unstuck and open up the possibility of return.

Our human task in this world is not to sit peacefully and meditate on the beauty of creation. That is one of our soul tasks, and we have Shabbat for that. Our role here is to be partners with God in creation, to build up the world and invite God’s presence into the physical. This takes drive, ambition, creativity, and passion.

This description of a hitbodedut session became one of the Jewish tradition’s models for authentic prayer. It was only when Hannah spoke openly from her heart that change began to happen.

The key is that we can actually feel our goodness and this feeling moves us. The most basic good point in all of us is that we are created in the divine image. Imagine deciding to bring awareness of this fact into your consciousness multiple times a day.

“The yetzer harah was very good.”4 How can that little red devil be very good? We need to explore how various Jewish teachers throughout the millennia understood the yetzer to see how this vital, me-focused energy source that pulses through our veins can be a force for sustainable development and creativity.

Rigidity is the enemy of growth and change. To connect to and articulate our ratzon, we must decide to open ourselves up just a crack and really feel.