Napoloen Hill and the Alter Rebbe In A Car Getting Coffee

The Rebbe’s Kabbalah Preempted ‘Think and Grow Rich’ by 2 Centuries

Few books have withstood the test of time and defined an entire genre quite like Napoloen Hill’s ‘Think and Grow Rich.’ In the book, Hill paints a vivid emotional and mental structure you have to build to bring wealth to fruition. Hill talks about desire as the root cause of achievement. When you set your goals and imbue them with a strong desire, you can bring them to fruition. Hill suggests desire breeds imagination, a spark of creativity that brings you one step closer to the resources you need to manifest your burning cause.

But imagination and thought are not enough on their own. Imbuing your spark of imagination with a strong, true emotion is key to reprograming your subconscious for success.

Reading the book I couldn’t help but recall the ancient fountain of knowledge from which I drank, the Torah, specifically the mystical books of Kabala and Chassidut that were written hundreds of years ago. 200 years ago, Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, The Alter Rebbe preceded Hill’s ideas with his dissertation on the soul in his seminal work — the Tanya.

Rabbi Schenuer Zalman builds on the notion of the 10 sefirot, a kabbalistic structure first proposed by Rabbi Yitzchak Luria, the Ari Zal. The sefirot are the energies and mechanisms by which G-d brings the world into being. Although each Sefirah has its unique characteristics, they are all interconnected, each one influencing and being influenced by the others. They form a dynamic flow of divine energy, often depicted as the Tree of Life.

The Sefirot also have significance on a human level. Each human being is a world on its own and possesses a microcosm of the spiritual energies with which the world is brought into being. Thus, the Sefirot provides us with a map of consciousness. Each Sefirah corresponds to specific aspects of our spiritual and emotional lives.

The study of the Sefirot is both philosophical and practical, providing insights into the nature of God, the universe, and the soul, as well as guiding personal spiritual development and ethical conduct.

At the pinnacle of the Sefirot sits Keter, which literally means ‘crown.’ Keter is the inception of reality when the previously impossible starts to manifest into the world. It is also associated with desire, which can be translated as ratzon (רצון), ta’anug (תענוג) and ta’ava (תאווה.) Keter stands beyond conscious thought, representing the superconscious, or unconscious, preceding and initiating all of creation — both human and divine.

Then comes Chochma (חכמה), the spark of imagination mentioned by Hill where the initial seed is planted, and the Idea starts to germinate in your mind. Imagination requires humility, say both Hill and the nice Rabbi, since if you’re full of yourself, you aren’t leaving room for the Infinite Intelligence to work its magic.

In Kabbalistic interpretation, Chochma is associated with the power of “כח מה” (Koach Mah), which can be translated as the “potential of what is,” or “the power of possibility.” This phrase encapsulates the concept of Chochma as the primordial potential that contains all subsequent creation within it, like a seed containing the blueprint of a fully grown tree.

It is in Chochma where the infinite possibilities presented by Keter are funneled into a singular point of creativity — akin to the moment an artist first touches brush to canvas, full of potential but not yet actualized. This Sefirah is thus the birthplace of true insight, where abstract, pre-logical intuition is realized, and where the partnership between human and Divine intelligence can yield profound innovation and understanding.

Chochma (חכמה) is followed by בינה, which takes the spark of imagination and flesh it out fully as an idea. Bina is the womb on imagination, where it takes root before being birth into the world of thought, speech and action.

Finally, comes da’at, which though technically not a sefira, is the missing link between the intellect and emotion in man’s cosmic psyche. Da’at is best understood as a visceral awareness, a connection and attachment to the knowledge at hand, a flow state where action and awareness become one.

Thus ends the intellectual component of man.

Like Hill, Rabbi Schneur Zalman doesn’t stop there.

Emotions, or מידות, are natural descendants of your intellect and carry out their vision into the world. Like colors, two primary emotions combine to comprise the entire spectrum of feeling. Those are אהבה, love, and יראה, which means awe.

Hill and Rabbi Schneur Zalman both acknowledge the primary role of love, the kind Rabbi adds an element of reverence that should form the core of man’s emotional toolset. Reverence breeds discipline, strength and determined grit.

Both Hill and Rabbi Schneur Zalman believe that your achievements should not be primarily ego-centric. Your desire, imagination and emotions and actions should serve a grander truth, and be a net positive to all who surround you.

Although they lived some two centuries apart, one could imagine Napoloen Hill and Rabbi Schneur Zalman enjoying a hearty conversation about desire, intellect, emotion and their impact on success and happiness.

It would go something like this.

NAPOLEON HILL: Rabbi, I just had this amazing breakthrough about desire and achievement. It’s like I discovered something that no one else has ever thought of before!

RABBI SCHNEUR ZALMAN: (laughing)That’s great, Napoleon. But I can assure you, the connection between desire and success is not a new idea. It’s a cornerstone of Jewish wisdom for centuries.

NAPOLEON HILL: (surprised) Really? I had no idea.

RABBI SCHNEUR ZALMAN: (nodding) Yes, Napoleon. In fact, the Kabbalists of old understood that the power of desire is what drives us to achieve our goals.

NAPOLEON HILL: (intrigued) Kabbalists? What’s that?

RABBI SCHNEUR ZALMAN: (smiling) Kabbalah is a mystical tradition within Judaism that explores the secrets of the universe and our place within it.

NAPOLEON HILL: (nodding) Fascinating. So what did the Kabbalists have to say about desire?

RABBI SCHNEUR ZALMAN: (sipping his coffee) They believed that desire is the fuel that propels us forward,

RABBI SCHNEUR ZALMAN: …but desire alone is not enough. You must have a clear vision of what you want to achieve and be willing to work hard to attain it.

NAPOLEON HILL: (nodding) That’s exactly what I’ve been saying, Rabbi. In fact, in my book, “Think and Grow Rich,” I talk about the power of desire and how it can help us achieve our goals.

RABBI SCHNEUR ZALMAN: (smiling) That’s very interesting, Napoleon. In the Kabbalistic tradition, desire is associated with the sefirah of Keter, which is the control center of man.

NAPOLEON HILL: (curiously) The control center of man? What do you mean by that, Rabbi?

RABBI SCHNEUR ZALMAN: (explaining) Well, Keter is the sefirah that governs our highest aspirations and deepest desires. It’s the point of connection between our physical world and the spiritual realm.

NAPOLEON HILL: (nodding) I see. So, in a way, Keter is like the seed of desire that we need to plant in our minds to achieve success?

RABBI SCHNEUR ZALMAN: (smiling) Precisely, Napoleon. Just like a seed needs to be planted in fertile soil and nurtured with water and sunlight to grow, our desires need to be nourished with focus and determination to come to fruition.

NAPOLEON HILL: (leaning forward) I couldn’t agree more, Rabbi. This is truly fascinating.

RABBI SCHNEUR ZALMAN: (sipping his coffee) Indeed, Napoleon. The wisdom of the Kabbalistic tradition has much to offer us in our pursuit of success and happiness.