Why is it that most Chassidishe seforim are not written in a systematic form, just some vorts on the parsha and the like, whereas the mussar seforim usually have a pretty clear pattern?
The Baal Shem Tov revealed an incredible ohr in Yiddishkeit. He revealed the ohr of yichud Hashem—how a Yid can always find Hashem in whatever he is doing, and wherever he is. This fills a Yid with tremendous spiritual energy and breathes new life into every element of avodas Hashem. It lifts our emunah to an entirely new level.
Because this ohr is so great, the Tzadikim were not given permission to reveal it in a fully systematic way. Each Yid has to do that work himself. We can understand this with a mashal. If someone has a problem with his electricity and calls an electrician, the electrician works hard and finally fixes it. As he is about to leave, you ask him, “Can you please go around the house and turn on all the light switches?” This is obviously foolish. He fixed the problem and got the electricity running; now it is your job to decide where to channel the electricity and exactly which lights you want to use.
The Baal Shem Tov got the electricity flowing. He “turned on” Yiddishkeit. Now it is our job to channel that ohr into our own keilim. Chassidus, in that sense, is like the electricity box—it cannot, and should not, go into every detail.
(Of course, the Baal Shem Tov did not make anything up; if one looks, these ideas can be found in the seforim of the Rishonim, but the early generations did not have permission to establish them as a clear derech.)
Many years after the Baal Shem Tov, Rebbe Nachman came into the world. He was given permission to go even lower and to reveal the keilim (vessels/tools) needed to receive the great ohr of Chassidus. Some of these are: speaking to Hashem about everything just as you would speak to a close friend; hishtokekus, yearning for closeness to Hashem as an avodah in itself; ways to deal with katnus (spiritual disconnect); knowing that even a little bit is also great; looking for every crumb of good in oneself and in one’s fellow Yid—the nekudah tovah; being happy and satisfied with whatever one has; and always being b’simcha. These, among others, are keilim for the ohr of Chassidus.
Other Tzadikim also had their own unique way of revealing other keilim to their chassidim as well, but Rebbe Nachman’s keilim are more general and therefore easily accessible for every Yid to use, regardless of who the Yid’s Tzadik or Rebbe is.
The Baal Shem Tov himself also practiced hisbodedus and all these avodos, but he did not have permission to reveal them as an organized derech. Only after the ohr was revealed, did Rebbe Nachman receive permission to reveal the keilim.
Because of this, when one learns classic Chassidus, he may feel that he is missing practical tools, and when one learns Rebbe Nachman, he may feel that he is missing ohr — that it feels too rigid and practical. This is why it is good to learn both—then one has great ohr together with down-to-earth tools.
The question still remains: if Rebbe Nachman had permission to reveal the tools, why are his seforim also so vague and not systematic? The answer is that there is a rule of “zeh l’umas zeh” (“this opposite this”). Whenever a new ohr of kedushah is revealed, the klippah is given strength to reveal new tools of its own. Because of this, Hashem, in His great kindness, allows the Tzadikim to reveal things only in a somewhat hidden and vague way, so that the klippah cannot make sweeping revelations of its own.
In the end, the fact that we aren’t handed every element of Chassidus in a crystal clear, systematic way is of great benefit to us. A person is forced to build himself, to think how to apply the ohr to his own nature and needs. In this way, the ohr becomes embedded within him much more strongly.
Even today, when Tzadikim have gone even lower and revealed the derech haChassidus with greater clarity, they have still left much room and many things vague, for these very reasons.
This article was found in Nekuda Tova Nekuda Tova Listing.