15 Segulot of Rabbeinu Chida for Complete Cleansing from Sins

15 Segulot of Rabbeinu Chida for Complete Cleansing from Sins

Rabbeinu Chida, in the sefer “Tziporen HaShamir” (chapter 10), presents segulot that help one be cleansed from sin. Through these practices, one can rid oneself both of long-standing serious sins and of lesser ones, without resorting to exhausting fasts. The main thing is to perform them with awe and love of Hashem.   Segulot for Cleansing from Sins 1. One who responds to Kaddish with all his strength—that is, with complete concentration, to the point that his body becomes inwardly tense—saying: “Amen, yehei Shmei Rabbah”, is forgiven even for thoughts of apostasy; (Shabbat 119b) 2. One who observes Shabbat properly, in accordance with the requirements of halachah, is forgiven for his sins—even if he worships idols, as in the generation of Enosh (it was specifically in the time of Enosh, the son of Shet, that humanity began to worship idols); (Shabbat 118b) 3. For anyone who recites the prayer on Friday night and says during Kiddush: “Vayechulu...”, two angels say: “Your iniquity has departed, and your sin is atoned for”; (Shabbat 119b) More details here: Сгула в эрев шабат рабби шломке ми звил   4. One who forgives others for wrongs committed against him is forgiven by G-d for his own sins; (Yoma 23a) 5. One who listens to a derashah (lesson or interpretation) on Aggadah, followed by Kaddish, and responds: “Amen, yehei Shmei Rabbah”, is forgiven for all his sins; (Midrash Shocher Tov, Mishlei 10) 6. One who recites “Shirat HaYam” (Exodus 14:30–31, 15:1–19)—the “Song at the Sea”—with joy, feeling as though he himself has been saved, and vividly imagines Pharaoh drowning together with his army, is forgiven for all his sins; (Mishnah Berurah 51:17) 7. One who mourns and weeps over the death of a righteous person is forgiven for all his sins; (Shabbat 105a) 8. Suffering atones for a person’s sins, and if he accepts it with love, he will merit seeing several generations of his descendants, and good fortune will accompany him; (Berachot 5a) 9. One who studies the laws of sacrifices is considered as though he himself had brought the offerings, and all his sins are forgiven; (Ta'anit 27b) 10. One who studies Torah for the sake of Heaven is forgiven for all his sins (Berachot 5a), and his spiritual level rises; (Avot 6:1) 11. One who puts on a tallit and tefillin every day, recites Shema Yisrael and the Amidah, is forgiven for all his sins; (Tur, Orach Chaim 37, based on “Shimush Rabbah”) 12. On Yom Kippur, when the passage from the Book of Leviticus, “Acharei Mot” (concerning the death of Nadav and Avihu, the sons of Aaron), is read, the Almighty proclaims to one who mourns and weeps over the deaths of the righteous: “Your iniquity has departed”; (Zohar, Vayikra 57) 13. If a miracle was performed for a person and he recited a Thanksgiving Song, he may be certain that his sins have been forgiven; (Midrash “Shocher Tov” 18) 14. New discoveries in Torah atone for a person’s sin as though he had brought an offering, as it is written: “You did not desire an olah offering or a chatat offering; then I said, ‘Behold, I have come’—as it is written about me in the scroll of the book; You did not ask for sacrifices or gifts, burnt offerings or sin offerings. Then I said: Behold, I have come, as prescribed for me in the scroll of the book”; (Tehillim 40:7) 15. Ta'anit Ha-Raavad—Rabbi Avraham ben David Ha-Levi—taught that one who gives up a favorite dish as an atonement for his sins is considered as though he had fasted and brought an atoning sacrifice. This is because, after the destruction of the Temple, the Sages of the Talmud equated the table at which Jews eat their meals with the altar. (Tosafot Sotah 15:11; Rabbeinu Yonah, “Yesod HaTeshuvah”) More details here: Ta'anit Raavad III – An Atoning Sacrifice in Our Times   All of the above should be done not for one’s own sake—to rid oneself of sin—but for the sake of the Creator. One should reflect on how much pleasure these actions bring to the Almighty. For He even grants a great reward for them. Fortunate is the person who succeeds in bringing joy to the Creator of the universe! This is what a person was created for.   (Based on the book “Pele Yoetz,” Part 2)