A Jewish man sadly fell prey to his evil inclination, breached the boundaries established by Chazal, and bought a sinful and detestable device, Heaven forefend, to the heartbreak of his family and his tormented soul.
The evil inclination, the “old and foolish king,” gave him the excuse that he needed the abominable device that could plunge him into the depths of spiritual ruin because, as a car owner, he required Waze for navigation on his journeys. Since kosher GPS devices were less advanced, he willingly descended into the abyss, purchasing the treifa device, Rachmana litzlan.
His plunge from using the seemingly innocent Waze application to grave transgressions involving prohibited and forbidden sights was swift. Crossing the line involved no more than a light touch on the screen, as he had opted for an advanced “touchscreen” device. With the mere swipe of a finger, he found himself surfing through filth and depravity, immersed to his neck in delusional imaginings of a “boiling and putrid cesspool,” Rachmana litzlan.
This unfortunate sinner was part of a WhatsApp group formed by a few like- minded empty friends who united in their depth of depravity. As is common among such people, they justified each others’ moral failures and declines.
One day, this man received an invitation on his device from one of the group to join him in a night of drinking and debauchery, chas veshalom. Already deeply immersed in moral decay and surrounded by wicked friends, his spiritual senses dulled, and he accepted the invitation. Together, they indulged in copious amounts of alcohol, behaving like despicable drunkards.
When their revelry ended, the two men began the journey back home. On Tel Aviv’s Ayalon Freeway, an Arab traffic officer stopped them for a routine inspection. It is common for the police to set up surprise checks to catch reckless drivers who endanger public safety.
In addition to examining the vehicle and the driver’s documentation, the officer measured the alcohol level in the driver’s blood. This test is taken very seriously, as driving under the influence of alcohol is a severe offense that endangers passengers and other vehicles. Drivers who fail the test face immediate license suspension, vehicle confiscation, and a court summons, often accompanied by severe penalties and fines.
When these two disreputable individuals saw the Arab officer signaling them to pull over, their hearts sank with dread. They knew that if the officer conducted his tests, their excessive drinking would be exposed, and they would face harsh consequences!
At that moment, the driver recalled the well-known and accepted segulah (spiritual remedy) from the holy teachings of Rav Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld, zt”l, the leading Rav of Eretz Yisrael, that when encountering law enforcement authorities and seeking to escape their grasp, one should recite the passuk from Megillas Esther (5:4), ’בוֹאיָ הַ’מֶּלֶךְ וְ’הָמָן הַ’יּום, while focusing on the initials of the words, which form the holy four-lettered .שם הווי“ה This is a tried-and- true segulah to escape the clutches of harsh authorities. (See what is written on the passuk in the sefer Tiv HaMoadim – Purim.)
Immediately, the man cried out from the depths of his heart, reciting the words of the segulah, and his heart filled with prayer and supplication to his Creator to save him from the severe penalties looming over his head.
The vehicle slowly pulled over to the side of the road and stopped near the stern-faced officer. He lowered the window, and the officer thrust his head inside and immediately smelled the alcohol heavily permeating the two Jews. Without hesitation, he firmly pronounced his verdict: “You’ve been drinking, haven’t you?!”
He pulled out a breathalyzer and moved it toward the man. As he brought it closer, the device immediately emitted incriminating beeping sounds.
Realizing his dire situation, the man appealed to the officer’s better nature, pleading that he overlook the crime just this once, as police sometimes grant leniency on a first offense. To his amazement, the harsh Arab officer agreed to his request, stating derisively, “Listen carefully. I’m letting you go this time! Drive very carefully to the nearest gas station, wash your face thoroughly, and get home safely! Woe to you if I catch you like this again!”
The man thanked the officer and handed his Waze to his companion in the back seat, asking him to check the location of the nearest gas station. The intoxicated friend left the vehicle with the device to check where to go. Seeing the officer standing nearby, he loudly expressed his gratitude: “Thank you very much! Thank you so much!” But as the officer whiffed the foul odor from his breath, he threateningly shouted: “Leave immediately, or I will impose all the fines and penalties on you right now!”
Seeing that things were escalating, the driver called his friend to return so they could drive off at once. Without delay, they sped away before the officer could change his mind.
As they sped off, the friend suddenly remembered that in his confusion and fear at the officer’s warning, he had placed the forbidden device—the very object that had led them to such a lowly state—on the roof of the car, intending to use it to find their way.
As they hastily sped away, they saw the device fly off the roof and shatter into countless pieces on the road.
At that moment, the man realized the magnitude of the miracle God had so kindly performed for him—a Divine gift he did not deserve. Overwhelmed by repentance and deep remorse, he cried out from the depths of his heart: “Ribbono Shel Olam! I hereby consign this costly device as a sacrifice to You in fulfillment of the pasuk (Devarim 7:26), You shall not bring an abomination into your house, lest you become cherem like it. You shall utterly detest it and utterly abhor it, for it is cherem! I pledge to return to You in complete repentance!”
Indeed, the spiritual storm within him produced great fruits. He committed to using only kosher devices, abandoned all repugnant vanities, joined several honey-sweet Torah study groups, and began to observe even the smallest mitzvos carefully. His family rejoiced as he ascended spiritually in Torah learning, yiras Shamayim, and closeness to God.
Later, he recounted the incident to his lawyer, a traffic law expert who was well- acquainted with the strictness of traffic police. The lawyer remarked that such an occurrence could not have happened naturally and surmised that Eliyahu Hanavi must have appeared to save them from plunging into the abyss and raise them from the bottomless pit to the greatest heights.
(Preratiyos, Kovetz 65787)
