Know! sleep deprivation reduces the sexual drive. For a person has within him a fire from the time of birth. From this fire burn all the bonfires of each of the desires. In addition, all the food and drink that people put into the body are burned and consumed by this fire. By sleeping less, this fire is weakened and is unable to burn.
However, sleep deprivation harms the mind. The same is true of excess sleep. When a person forces himself to sleep a lot, this too weakens and reduces the aforementioned fire, and it harms the mind as well. Only when a person sleeps the proper amount is the sexual drive potent and at its strongest, because the aforementioned fire has not been weakened. {We heard all this from [Rebbe Nachman’s] holy conversations. The depth of what he meant he did not explain clearly, yet, what I understood from his remark was that there is no solution for reducing the sexual drive by means of some ruse, because this harms the mind. For it would be possible to reduce the sexual drive by minimizing sleep or sleeping a great deal, but both harm the mind. Therefore, there is no stratagem or solution to fight this other than empowering himself with the strength of the warrior to conquer his evil inclination—and God will help him divest himself of this lust.}
דַּע, שֶׁמִּעוּט שֵׁנָה הוּא מְמַעֵט תַּאֲוַת נִאוּף, כִּי יֵשׁ אֵשׁ בָּאָדָם מִתְּחִלַּת הַתּוֹלָדָה, שֶׁמֵּהָאֵשׁ הַזֶּה בּוֹעֲרִין בְּאָדָם כָּל הַתַּבְעֵרוֹת שֶׁל כָּל הַתַּאֲווֹת, וְגַם כָּל הָאֲכִילָה וּשְׁתִיָּה שֶׁנּוֹתְנִין לְהַגּוּף, הָאֵשׁ הַזֶּה הוּא מְכַלֶּה וְשׂוֹרֵף הַכֹּל. וְעַל יְדֵי מִעוּט שֵׁנָה, הָאֵשׁ הַזֶּה נֶחֱלָשׁ וְאֵין לוֹ כֹּחַ לִבְעֹר,
Know! sleep deprivation reduces the sexual drive. For a person has within him a fire from the time of birth. From this fire burn all the bonfires of each of the desires. In addition, all the food and drink that people put into the body are burned and consumed by this fire. By sleeping less, this fire is weakened and is unable to burn.
אַךְ שֶׁמַּזִּיק לְהַמֹּחַ מִעוּט שֵׁנָה. וְכֵן רִבּוּי שֵׁנָה, כְּשֶׁהָאָדָם מַכְרִיחַ עַצְמוֹ לִישֹׁן הַרְבֵּה, גַּם זֶה מַחֲלִישׁ וּמְמַעֵט הָאֵשׁ הַנַּ"ל, וְגַם זֶה מַזִּיק לְהַמֹּחַ, רַק כְּשֶׁאָדָם יָשֵׁן בְּמִדָּה כָּרָאוּי, אֲזַי תַּאֲוַת הַמִּשְׁגָּל בְּתָקְפָּהּ וְכֹחָהּ, כִּי לֹא נֶחֱלָשׁ הָאֵשׁ הַנַּ"ל: [כָּל זֶה שָׁמַעְנוּ מִתּוֹךְ שִׂיחוֹתָיו הַקְּדוֹשִׁים, וְתֹכֶן כַּוָּנָתוֹ בָּזֶה לֹא בֵּאֵר הֵיטֵב, אַךְ כְּפִי מַה שֶּׁהֵבַנְתִּי מִשִּׂיחָתוֹ, הַכַּוָּנָה שֶׁאֵין מוֹעִיל שׁוּם עֵצָה לְמַעֵט תַּאֲוַת נִאוּף עַל־יְדֵי אֵיזֶה תַּחְבּוּלָה, כִּי מַזִּיק לְהַמֹּחַ, כִּי הָיָה אֶפְשָׁר לְהַחֲלִישׁ הַתַּאֲוָה עַל־יְדֵי מִעוּט שֵׁנָה אוֹ רִבּוּי שֵׁנָה, אֲבָל שְׁנֵיהֶם מַזִּיקִים לְהַמֹּחַ, עַל־כֵּן אֵין חָכְמָה וְאֵין עֵצָה כְּנֶגֶד זֶה, רַק לְהִתְחַזֵּק לִהְיוֹת גִּבּוֹר לִכְבֹּשׁ אֶת יִצְרוֹ, וַה' יַעֲזֹר לוֹ לְסַלֵּק תַּאֲוָה זֹאת מֵאִתּוֹ]:
However, sleep deprivation harms the mind. The same is true of excess sleep. When a person forces himself to sleep a lot, this too weakens and reduces the aforementioned fire, and it harms the mind as well. Only when a person sleeps the proper amount is the sexual drive potent and at its strongest, because the aforementioned fire has not been weakened. {We heard all this from [Rebbe Nachman’s] holy conversations. The depth of what he meant he did not explain clearly, yet, what I understood from his remark was that there is no solution for reducing the sexual drive by means of some ruse, because this harms the mind. For it would be possible to reduce the sexual drive by minimizing sleep or sleeping a great deal, but both harm the mind. Therefore, there is no stratagem or solution to fight this other than empowering himself with the strength of the warrior to conquer his evil inclination—and God will help him divest himself of this lust.}