Chasidic Insights
42 The snake, who moves about bent over: The Zohar compares the snake to the evil inclination (the yetzer hara). The evil inclination is smarter than to immediately suggest that we “crawl on our belly” and bury ourselves in earthliness. It begins by suggesting that we walk with a lowered head, that we forget God who is above us, as well as the higher purposes of life. This eventually leads us to forget our purpose altogether.
The antidote to the snake’s schemes is to immerse ourselves in the study of the Torah, especially the inner dimension of Torah, which lifts us into a realm that the snake cannot enter.
43 You will remain spiritually defiled through them: The Hebrew word for this phrase (ונטמתם) is written without the expected alef (ונטמאתם), such that it can be read “lest you become dulled.” The Talmud adduces this altered spelling to assert that consuming non-kosher foods causes the heart to grow spiritually dull.
It is the heart’s nature to be influenced by the mind. Intellectual recognition of God’s greatness, or understanding of His wisdom and His Torah, should logically lead to an emotional swell of love and awe. Unfortunately, however, this sometimes does not happen. We see, study, and understand, but remain uninspired.
This dullness of heart is attributable to the heart’s overstuffing with material indulgences, which render it spiritually sluggish or “hardened”—much as when any vessel is full, it “solidifies” and becomes unreceptive. Therefore, in order for the heart to be spiritually inspired, it must be emptied of material influences; it must become once again a heart of flesh, rather than of stone.
The sages offer several tactics in restoring a dulled heart to its former pliability and receptivity:
- It is taught in the Zohar: “If a log does not catch fire, it should be splintered until [the fire] shines [from it]; if the body does not catch fire from the light of the soul, it should be crushed, and then the light of the soul will shine [in it].”
Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi explains that this means that there are times when a stone heart can only be shattered by a serious lecture to oneself. First, an honest appraisal is needed. We must examine how we spend our time: Are we seriously working toward achieving our higher goals? Are we devoting our energies and resources in accordance with our priorities? If we find that we are favoring the material over the spiritual, we should ponder how, then, do we differ from an animal. (True, a cow eats hay and straw while we prefer other delicacies, but are our material desires ultimately so different?) Such an honest appraisal and the resulting distress over our shortcomings deflates our material drives, enabling us to more easily achieve true spiritual joy and ecstasy.
Another strategy is to “artificially” help the mind overpower the heart. When we meditate constantly about lofty spiritual concepts, their light will eventually break through even the thickest barrier, illuminating the heart as well.
Finally, it is possible to soften the heart by taking advantage of the intrinsic holiness of the letters of the Torah. Even simple repetition of those holy letters or recitation of passages of the Torah draws their spirituality into the person reciting them, and ultimately even a heart of stone will melt before them.
