Baal Shem Tov Swears to Smoke His Incense Only with Fat to Overcome Spiritual Confusion

Rabbi Nachman of Breslov recounted a story about his great-grandfather, the Baal Shem Tov, who once struggled to pray due to inner confusion. Despite his efforts, he could not concentrate, which Rabbi Yitzhak Yeshay Benun explained in a Hasidic teaching for Saturday night. The Baal Shem Tov realized that the cause was smoking his incense with fat (chelev) by mistake, which he initially thought was forbidden. He then vowed to smoke his incense only with fat, understanding that smoking fat is not prohibited, only eating it is. This confusion and sadness stemmed from the evil inclination trying to bring him down into despair. The Baal Shem Tov taught that sometimes the evil inclination exaggerates the severity of a sin to cause sadness, and that the punishment for the sadness following a sin can be greater than for the sin itself. This lesson highlights the importance of guarding against the evil inclination’s attempts to lead one into unnecessary despair.