Q:
What do you say to someone who has trouble getting to sleep on time?
A:
Briefly; the seforim say that a man has to be a zariz. Zariz means he has to have alacrity to serve Hashem. הוי גיבור כארי – “Be strong as a lion, לעשות רצון אביך שבשמים – to do the will of your father in heaven” (Avos 5:23). Sometimes it takes strength of a lion to do the will of Hashem. And the seforim say that among the things included in being strong like a lion is to force yourself to go to sleep on time. If you just dawdle around after bed time, so you’ll get up in the morning without energy, and you’ll waste the next day. Your davening will be without much energy and surely your learning. And so, you must force yourself to hit the hay on time. You have to be a zariz, and strong like a lion to get to sleep on time. That’s the way to prepare for a next day of achievement.
TAPE # 539 (February 1985)
