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PODCAST

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed

Focused on practical spiritual growth, this podcast explores Jewish wisdom through real-life experience and thoughtful conversations, helping listeners build clarity, resilience, and deeper meaning in their lives.

religion & spirituality judaism

All Episodes

26:37

Living Between Yaakov and Yisrael

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/04/20

We all experience the tension between knowing what’s right and actually living it. This episode introduces a powerful Torah framework—Yaakov and Yisrael—that helps you understand why that gap exists and how to work within it. You’ll walk away with a clearer way to relate to struggle, pressure, and uncertainty so they become part of your growth instead of something you’re trying to escape.Join the Conversation! Be part of our growing community—join the Shema Podcast for the Perplexed

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17:03

The System of Concealment and Disclosure

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/04/19

What do you do when everything that once “worked” suddenly stops?When you’ve seen clear hashgacha in your life… taken steps forward… grown in your commitment and observance… and then the clarity disappears?This episode tackles that experience head-on.You’ll gain a framework to understand why emunah can feel inconsistent, why effort and results stop lining up, and what it actually means when Hashem feels hidden. More importantly, you’ll walk away with a way to stay grounded and aligned even

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59:08

Iyar: Preparing Yourself to Receive

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/04/17

In this episode, Rabbi Pill and I explore the deeper meaning of the month of Iyar and what it teaches us about real growth after inspiration fades.We all experience moments of clarity and connection, but the real challenge is turning that into something lasting. Iyar is the bridge that shows us how to do that. It’s about taking what we were shown and building it into who we are through steady, consistent work.This is what will help you understand that real growth isn’t about big moments

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32:52

Exposing the Illusion of the System

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/04/13

This episode tackles a tension most people never resolve: you don’t control outcomes, yet you’re still responsible to fully engage in the process.If you internalize this properly, it can remove a tremendous amount of pressure, frustration, and confusion from your life. You’ll learn how to stay disciplined and active in your work, health, and responsibilities without tying your sense of control or self-worth to the results.At a deeper level, this episode reframes the purpose of life itself:

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37:29

The Pesach Seder: Understanding the System of Redemption

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/03/27

This episode draws on a profound teaching from the Baal HaSulam and reveals how its framework for spiritual growth aligns with the deeper purpose of the Pesach Seder. While the essay itself does not explicitly discuss the Seder, it provides a clear system for moving from understanding to true knowing—offering listeners a practical way to bridge the gap between what they believe and how they actually live. By learning to recognize the structure through which Hashem operates, this episode

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34:57

Episode 8: Revealing Your True Self

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/03/22

In this conversation with Rabbi Cohen, you’ll gain a clearer understanding of why even intelligent, well-intentioned people often struggle to see the truth—and what to do about it. You’ll walk away with practical tools to recognize hidden biases, shift from a mindset of taking to giving, and begin untangling the layers that distort your decisions, relationships, and sense of self. Most importantly, this episode will help you access the deeper clarity already within you, so you can make

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53:53

Nisan: Growth Through the Tension of Tohu and Tikkun

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/03/19

In this episode, I’m joined by Rabbi Pill for a powerful conversation as we explore how to stop fighting the tension in your life and start using it as a tool for real growth. By understanding the dynamic of Tohu and Tikkun, you’ll begin to see how moments of chaos, frustration, and breakdown are not setbacks, but the very mechanism through which Hashem moves you forward. This will give you a clearer framework for personal growth, help you align your actions with what you already know to be

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26:25

Episode 7: Recalibrating the Mind

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/03/01

In this episode of Strive for Truth, Rabbi Michael Cohen guides us through a powerful recalibration of how we think. Together, we explore how hidden biases quietly shape our decisions and how easily our minds distort reality without us even realizing it. By listening, you’ll begin to separate yourself from your automatic reactions, gain tools for more honest self-reflection, and develop greater clarity in your decision-making. Rabbi Cohen shows us how humility, Torah learning, and sincere

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37:58

Episode 6: The Real Metric of a Successful Life

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/02/22

Most people measure their lives by income, achievement, influence, or knowledge. But what if the real metric of success is something far simpler and far more confronting? In this episode, you’ll gain a powerful lens to evaluate your day, your relationships, your ambition, and even your spiritual growth through one transformative question: am I giving or am I taking? This conversation will help you reframe marriage, work, parenting, learning, and personal growth, so you can stop chasing

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54:17

Adar: Concealment is Revelation

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/02/13

In this episode, Rabbi Pill and I explore how the month of Adar trains us to recognize Hashem specifically when nothing feels clear, inspiring, or “spiritual.” If you’ve ever felt your motivation cool off, your enthusiasm fade, or your mind start telling you that life is just coincidence and routine, this conversation will give you a practical way to regain perspective and steadiness. You’ll come away with a stronger sense of how to hold emunah and bitachon when there is no feedback, how to

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41:48

Two Paths, One Destination

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/02/11

In this episode, Rabbi Cohen and I, explore a powerful framework for understanding spiritual growth when effort feels slow, incentives disappear, or life stops following the system we thought we understood. If you’ve ever wondered why progress sometimes feels incremental and other times requires a complete inner shift, this conversation offers clarity and reassurance. You’ll gain perspective on how humility, persistence, and asking for help each play a role in becoming who you’re meant to

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58:59

Redeeming the Imagination through Shabbos with Rabbi...

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/02/06

Imagination is the most destructive power of the human mind—and also its greatest. In this episode, you’ll discover how Shabbos is Hashem’s system for redeeming the imagination, turning it from a source of anxiety, illusion, and control into a force for trust, clarity, and spiritual alignment. If you struggle with future-focused thinking, uncertainty, or the gap between what you know is true and how you actually live, this conversation offers a practical way forward. You’ll gain a new way

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35:49

Episode 5: Your Challenges Are Your Kiddush Hashem

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/02/03

In this episode, we explore how the very challenges you wish you didn’t have may actually be the place where your greatest purpose lives. Instead of asking why life feels unfair or uneven, this conversation reframes difficulty as something intentional, personal, and meaningful. Listening will help you see your struggles with more clarity, dignity, and responsibility—and walk away with a calmer, stronger perspective on what Hashem may be asking of you, specifically, through the life you’re

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49:15

Activating Our Inherited Spiritual Strengths

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/01/28

In this episode, we explore how life’s challenges are not setbacks or punishments, but invitations to activate strengths already embedded within us. Together with Rabbi Michael Cohen, we examine Rav Dessler’s understanding of mercy, testing, and inherited spiritual capacity, and how these ideas can change the way you experience difficulty. You’ll gain a clearer way to face pressure without feeling broken or defeated, learn how to recognize when inner resistance is not “who you are,” and

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42:26

The Structured Path of Deveikus

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/01/26

In this episode, I give you a simple, repeatable roadmap for real deveikus, how to use your mind in the right order so you stop spiraling into anxiety, overthinking, and fantasy futures. You’ll learn how to recognize when your imagination is hijacking you, how to take the next clean step even while you feel fear, and how to turn Torah into lived, embodied trust that rewires your nervous system. By the end, you’ll have a practical decision-making checklist you can use in business, family,

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39:51

Episode 3: Operating Capital, Not Reward

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/01/21

In this episode, Rabbi Michael Cohen and I explore a radical idea from Rav Dessler that reframes how we think about success, reward, and mitzvah observance. This world is not where mitzvot are paid back. It is where we are provisioned. What looks like reward is often just operating capital providing the resources necessary to fulfill our mission. We examine how imagination and experiential learning turn Torah from something we merely understand into something we actually live. You’ll walk

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58:12

Rabbi Akiva: Relentless Perseverance in Torah

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/01/19

In this episode of Sages of the Talmud, I’m joined by Morty Roth to explore the life of Rabbi Akiva, one of the most influential figures in Jewish history.My goal in this conversation is not to retell a familiar story, but to extract the lessons that matter for real life. We explore what it means to begin without certainty, how to respond when years of effort are suddenly lost, and how to keep growing when starting over feels overwhelming. Rabbi Akiva’s life offers a powerful framework for

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30:21

Episode 2: Redefining Happiness

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/01/13

In this episode of Strive for Truth, I explore Rav Eliyahu Dessler’s opening teaching on happiness together with Rabbi Michael Cohen, challenging one of the most deeply held assumptions about what makes life fulfilling. Rather than offering techniques or motivation, this conversation helps listeners recognize the hidden drivers that quietly undermine happiness and learn how to relate differently to ambition, success, and desire. By reframing happiness as something rooted in inner alignment

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60:34

Shevat: Growth Beneath the Surface

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/01/12

Just as the zodiac of Shevat, the D’li (bucket), has no value on its own and only matters when it is filled with water and carried to those who need it, this month invites us to quietly work on becoming clear, humble vessels for Hashem’s Torah in the world. In this episode of The Power of the Hebrew Months, Rabbi Pill and I explore how Shevat shifts our focus away from external performance and toward what lies beneath—our kavannah (intent), emunah, and bitachon. Like trees in winter, the

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41:40

Episode 1: Rebuilding the Inner Operating System

The Shema Podcast for the Perplexed ·

2026/01/01

In this opening episode of Strive for Truth, I’m joined by Rabbi Michael Cohen to introduce the work of Rabbi Eliyahu Dessler and to explain why this text requires a fundamentally different kind of learning. Rather than approaching it as philosophy or behavior modification, we frame Strive for Truth as a disciplined study of how a person thinks, chooses, and relates to reality itself. Rabbi Cohen shares his own background with this work, having studied it through Rabbi Aryeh Carmell—the

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237 results

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