Likutay Moharan - Torah-teaching 98

98

He set his eyes on him and he became a heap of bones

[L’shon HaChaveirim – In the language of the friends] The matter of what is stated in the Gemara several times: “He set his eyes on him and he became a heap of bones” (Berachos 58a, Shabbos 34a, Bava Basra 75a, Sanhedrin 100a). What is the meaning of the expression “he set his eyes on him”, and what is “he became a heap of bones”?

Behold, a person does not see to what extent the defect (pegam) reaches, if he has transgressed a transgression. But the tzaddik sees — for the tzaddik has the eyes of Hashem, as it is written (Tehillim 34): “The eyes of Hashem are toward the righteous” — that the tzaddik has the eyes of Hashem. “And the eyes of Hashem roam throughout the entire earth” (Zechariah 4; Divrei HaYamim II 16).

It is found that the tzaddik sees to what extent the defect reaches. “He set his eyes on him” — meaning that he sees with the eyes of the righteous.

“And he became a heap of bones” — gal (heap) is from the language of revelation [hitgalut, meaning something hidden becoming revealed], and atzamos (bones) is from the language of (Yeshayahu 33): “He closes his eyes from seeing evil” — that is, he sees what he has damaged, which had previously been hidden from him.

[The Hebrew word for “he closes” in that verse is otzem (עוֹצֵם), which shares the same root as etzem (עֶצֶם), meaning “bone.” The verse is thus being used here to draw a connection between spiritual blindness and the bones — i.e., what was once hidden, now painfully exposed.]

And there is no punishment greater than this: when a person sees what he has damaged.