Dei'ah veDibur - Information & Insight
  

A Window into the Chareidi World

11 Sivan 5759, May 26 1999 | Mordecai Plaut, director Published Weekly
NEWS

OPINION
& COMMENT

HOME
& FAMILY

IN-DEPTH
FEATURES

VAAD HORABBONIM HAOLAMI LEINYONEI GIYUR

TOPICS IN THE NEWS

HOMEPAGE

 

Sponsored by
Shema Yisrael Torah Network
Shema Yisrael Torah Network

Produced and housed by
Jencom

Opinion & Comment
Illuminating the Darkness
by Rav Yitzchok Dvoratz

When we see a freight train transporting goods to urban areas, we can't help noticing the different types of cars and compartments, be they open or sealed. There are the grain cars in which vital food is being brought for daily sustenance. Then there are cars with cartons of clothing, a less necessary commodity. What probably takes up the least space are the white cartons of medicines for the sick, since only a small segment of the population requires them; important as they are, they are not a universal need.

If we do notice anywhere a train load full of medicines, bandages, ampoules, salves and so on, we will immediately understand that an epidemic or war is under way. Many people have been injured, wounded, are dying -- and they depend on these medicines for their very lives.

This example is presented by HaRav Leib Chasman zt'l in his work, Ohr Yahel, III, p. 163. Its lesson, he says, is very crucial. "And thus is it, my brothers -- why it is so necessary to study mussar, which is the only medicine that can heal those who are afflicted with [bad] traits. Every tzaddik in his generation, every sage amongst his own flock, has never ceased to cry out and rebuke the hearts of his followers, verbally and in his written works and letters. From Shlomo Hamelech in Mishlei and Koheles down to the latter sages in our own generation -- all have reproved and chastised, and spout mussar and more mussar.

"From here we can see how great is the battle, how critical the war against the evil inclination which holds sway in the world. How many are the victims who have fallen, the injured who gasp for their last breaths. Without mussar, they are doomed. Without the remedy of reproof, they cannot hope to survive. How terrible is the sight! How the heart aches to see the vast numbers of people lying in the dust heaps, in the markets and the city streets, plague-stricken, contaminated from head to foot, scurvied and mangy, writhing in their suffering, groaning in pain -- with no one to offer balm and succor. They reject mussar and this is the consequence. Bitter and awesome!"

In the same spirit, but with a different metaphor, HaRav Aharon Yosef Bakst Hy'd, ravad of Lomza, depicts the extreme darkness that envelops man and the great need to illuminate it. In Lev Aharon p. 55, he writes under the title, "The Soul of Man is the Lamp of Hashem," the following poignant message: "Hashem sought to illuminate the soul of man, but found no way save through his soul. My father zt'l explained it with a parable: If we were to dig a tunnel under all the streets of Lomza, we would have to illuminate it. Five hundred candles would not suffice to dispel the darkness. Perhaps ten thousand candles might avail. If, however, we were to dig a tunnel under all of Poland, ten thousand candles would not dispel any of the darkness.

"Man's soul is the lamp of Hashem. Hashem knows and understands the nature of man, through and through. He knows that nothing can vanquish the darkness of his body, save for the soul. From the intensity of the light, you can infer the extent of the darkness. And thus can we realize the intensity of the battle that rages inside him, between the bodily forces and his soul, throughout his life."

HaRav Chaim Shmuelevitz zt'l dwells on this theme in his Mussar Talks, 5732, p. 22, and says as follows: "It is written that man's soul is the lamp of Hashem. The wisest of all men called the soul the lamp of Hashem, since it truly is a divine part of Hashem. Its incandescence is powerful. The gemora in Pesochim talks about the brilliance of light and quotes the verse stating that the moon will be abashed and the sun, ashamed. It is also written that the light of the moon will be as intense as the light of sun, while the light of the sun will be sevenfold the light of the seven days of Creation.

"There is no contradiction, for one is referring to the World to Come, where only the light of the Shechina will prevail, while the other is referring to the times of Moshiach. Rashi notes that in the times of Moshiach, the light of the sun will be 343 times more intense than it is now. It will put the sun of now to shame since it will be a direct reflection of the light of the Shechina.

"We are not worthy of this light in this world; nevertheless, there is a remnant of it -- man's very soul, which is a portion of the Divine Being. The light within man is immeasurably potent. Conversely, we can infer that since Hashem saw to put such an intense light into man, it necessarily follows that the extreme darkness of his body requires this light as counterbalance. Only the lamp of Hashem is mighty enough to banish this darkness!"

In a gathering on the yahrtzeit of the Alter of Slobodke, his son-in-law and disciple, HaRav Yitzchok Isaac Sher zt'l -- of whom the Alter said that his words were like those of one from the period of the Rishonim -- explained the Alter's approach in mussar. "Man inquires into the secrets of the upper and lower worlds; he is eager to understand whatever he is able to grasp. But he is powerless to understand his own self. His mind is dormant and fails to see or fathom what goes on inside him. Rabbenu used to rouse us continually to examine ourselves, to contemplate in isolation and seek to reveal the workings of our own minds.

"He used to say: If someone were to promise us that were we to mortify ourselves for a year's time, we would merit the revelation of Eliyohu Hanovi, would we not accept this challenge eagerly and do so with eager self sacrifice? Well, through the study of mussar and self-introspection, we can achieve this! Without doubt! We can reveal our inner mind, our soul, which is loftier and more elevated than any angel, higher than the hosts of heaven. Hashem testified before the angels that the `wisdom [of the soul] is far greater than yours.' By deep contemplation and intense introspection, a person is capable of melting down, fusing, his heart of stone and transforming it into soul, just as it was at the inception of his own creation. A small period of self examination, a moment of deep introspection into his soul, a flash of insight, of mind searching, and he is capable of soaring to the heavens, of flying nobly up to the very heavenly Throne, to bask in the proximity of Hashem."

On the subject of the study of mussar, it is noteworthy to quote the words of HaRav Yisroel Salanter zy'o in his Letters, Letter #7, which dwells on what Chazal say in Kiddushin 30: "If this abominable one [the yetzer hora] accosted you -- drag him along to the beis hamedrash." There are various `houses of study,' he notes. There is the `house of study' which deals with honest, reliable business practices. Another `house of study' deals with matters of kashrus etc. In other words, the antidote of Torah is both general and specific. General: "Torah, while one is preoccupied with it, protects and saves." Specific: "And it is the first, and almost the exclusive, in true and fair business dealings." Torah implies correct speech and touches upon every single facet of a person's behavior, so that if a person is suddenly `accosted,' waylaid, by the evil inclination, let him seek the particular facet of Torah, the particular `house of study' which deals with that matter [in which he is being tested], so that he will know how to deal with it. For this, it is necessary to study mussar."

HaRav Moshe Midner zt'l, rosh yeshivas Torah Chessed in Baranowitz, explains this teaching of Chazal in a similar manner. In Toras Ovos he writes as follows: "`If this abominable one [the yetzer hora] accosted you -- drag him along to the beis hamedrash.' Drag him to the place where he is being dealt with and discussed, where his wiles and ways are examined so they can be counteracted." He similarly discusses the words of R' Yitzchok in this very topic: "`A man's evil drive is renewed every single day.' Consequentially, man must wage the battle afresh every single day, for if he doesn't do so, he is in grave danger."

It is related in Gedolei Hadoros by HaRav Stern shlita that R' Midner spent a certain period in his life in Brisk where he occasionally met with HaRav Chaim Brisker who regarded him highly. Eye witnesses testify that R' Chaim once said over a chiddush, and when he noted that R' Moshe seemed to reject it, he turned to his disciple- secretary and told him to remove this innovation from his writings. R' Moshe was taken aback and tried to mollify him but R' Chaim said, "If this Jew does not accept this innovation, it is a sign that something here is amiss."

Who is the man who seeks life? One who revels in revealing the hidden light from within the darkness in himself, who seeks to illuminate the obscure, as we pray in Tefillas Tal. Such a person is advised to systematically study the various works of mussar, to pore over them intensely and penetratingly, whereby he will merit heavenly assist, illumination, to march in their way and to establish the continuation of his life along this very path, for his benefit in this world and the next.


All material on this site is copyrighted and its use is restricted.
Click here for conditions of use.