Bilvavi Part 5 - 101 Emunah and Bitachon

בלבבי חלק ה. אמונה ובטחון עמ' קא – קב

1.

There is emunah, and there is bitachon.

Emunah means that a person believes that everything that happens on this world is all because of Hashem, who is running every last detail in Creation. 

Bitachon, however, is a deeper matter.

2.

Bitachon is that I trust in Hashem, because He is worrying about me and taking care of me. It doesn’t mean that I know for sure what will happen; it means that I am calm, since Hashem is taking care of me. He knows exactly what I need – what’s good for me, and what isn’t. He loves me, worries about me every second – both in this world and in the next, until the rest of eternity. He doesn’t forget about me for a moment.

Not only does He always worry for me, but nothing limits Him, and He can give me anything, because nothing holds Him back.

3.

Bitachon is a feeling of total calmness, when I feel that I am being taken care of, because Hashem is taking care of me every moment.

In order to feel true bitachon, one needs to first develop a love for Hashem – a love which results in a feeling of total trust in Hashem.

Bitachon is not an intellectual matter. It is a soul matter – it is something which the soul feels when it feels the Creator and feels His love. When a person becomes aware of that love, he comes to rely on Hashem that He will take care of Him, because since Hashem loves him so much, He will never abandon him.

4.

Only when a person has true bitachon will he become truly happy and calm. Without bitachon, life is just one big pressure. Only by trusting in Hashem’s love for His creations– that He cares for us every moment – can a person ever be calm on this world.