Dig Deep!
BY RABBI RAFAEL ZAIDENBERG
“This is the teaching regarding a man who would die in a tent” - (Vayikra 19:14).
The Gemara (Shabbat 83b) expounds on the above verse that the Torah will only endure with a person who kills himself over it. Rebbe Nachman of Breslov teaches in Likutey Moharan (Part 1 Lesson 1) that a Jew must constantly search for the inner meaning of everything he encounters. Meaning, since there is G-dliness everywhere in the world that sustains all of creation, one must look into the physical and see its spiritual significance, in order to constantly connect to Hashem.
The Yetzer Hara [evil inclination] is the evil force planted in this world who’s job is to keep us from penetrating the surface of the physical, and tries to inhibit our ability to see the deeper meaning of why Hashem created things in his world. Therefore, one must give strength to the Yetzer Hatov [good inclination] to conquer the Yetzer Hara, and this is done through learning Torah.
The Yetzer Hara knows even better than us that the key to success in all areas of life comes from learning Torah. Therefore, he does everything in his power to make sure a person doesn't set daily times to learn Torah. The holy Sefer Zera Kodesh (Parshat Shoftim) goes so far as to say that the Yetzer Hara will even not disturb a person to be busy with all sorts of Mitzvot, all day long, as long as he pushes off his Torah study, as he is petrified when a Jew connects to the power of the Torah.
The Gemara (Kiddushin 30b) teaches that if the Yetzer Hara is trying to tempt you into doing a sin, you should drag him to the Beit Midrash. The mefarshim explain that the intent of the Gemara is to go and study Torah. The Gemara also teaches that Hakadosh Baruch Hu created the Yetzer Hara, but created the Torah as its anecdote.
This is all coming to teach us that we must put our fullest efforts in learning Torah with strength and vigilance. The Torah has the power to diminish and even eradicate the forces of evil that became stuck to us by our previous sins. The Gemara (Sotah 3b) teaches that the only reason a person falls into sin is because a spirit of folly has entered him. When one learns Torah, the fire of Torah slowly removes this spirit of folly, which is the Yetzer Hara, and allows one to fully connect to Hashem, without any barriers.
When one is so connected to Torah that he searches for the inner meaning and different interpretations of the Torah, one will have the strength and ability to come to a deeper understanding of everything he encounters.
May we all merit to realize the inner truth and spirituality of everything in creation by learning the Torah, and return to Hashem with all of our strength. Amen!
Shabbat Shalom.
