Use Your Time Well Be extremely careful not to waste even a moment (cf. Seder Ha’emtzaim 16). You should view even ten minutes of wasted time as a grave sin (heaven preserve us). You pay for wasted time with your life. The time that you have thrown away, a part of your life, is gone forever; you will never regain it. Remind yourself of your mortality. This day and time are fading away, and you cannot bring them back. If you have wasted time, imagine that you have cut out a strip of your heart and thrown it to the dogs.

If you are in a situation where you cannot learn Torah, then engage in thoughts of Torah. Think about the proper way to live your life and the ways of Hasidism. Think about these things during public prayer when the cantor is repeating the Shmoneh Esrai—unless you are completely immersed in his words, or unless this would so distract you that you would fail to make the communal responses.

Most of all, when you are in the street, immerse your mind and heart in a Torah concept. In this way, not only will you strengthen your heart to grow more holy (which is the main goal of our group), but you will also protect yourself from evil (heaven forbid).