The Problem of Addiction
The Sefer HaChinuch tells us that that is a person will go after his ta’avos, he will become mired in them, and he will be drawn to go after them again and again, and he won’t be able to stay away from them—just as a person who drinks lots of alcohol becomes addicted to it, and he’s never satisfied; he constantly pursues the drink.
With these words, the holy Sefer HaChinuch foretold the terrible plague of addiction in our time. This was long before the addiction of technology, and he writes clearly about the phenomenon of people who become addicted to bad habits and loses control of themselves... their yetzer hara becomes stronger and stronger.
He concludes by noting that when a person does manage to overcome his yetzer hara even once, it will become easier and easier for him to do so in the future. Every time a person is מתגבר, he strengthens his power of overcoming, and this will bring him incredible joy.
Sadly, there are people stuck with terrible habits and addictions, and it’s horrifying—because the power of their yetzer hara has become strengthened. These people try hard to extricate themselves from these addictions, but they fall in repeatedly. However, in truth, there’s no such thing as despair—especially when it comes to ruchniyus. Even when it seems like a mighty and herculean uphill climb, tefillah always helps.
Breaking Barriers
The holy Bnei Yisasschar (Agra b’Pirka) says in the name of the Chozeh of Lublin regarding the incident (Chagigah 15:1) in which Elisha ben Avuya, who was called “Acher,” heard a voice from Heaven which announced שובו בנים שובבים חוץ מאחר, return, wayward people... except for Acher. Elisha could have said, “If there’s no teshuvah for me, I will still serve Hashem l’sheim Shamayim... even if I never receive a reward; my avodah will be to bring pleasure to the Ribbono shel Olam.” And had he done so, he would have merited for all his aveiros to be wiped away and to attain lofty madreigos!
Tzaddikim explained that if this is true, and Elisha could have done teshuvah, why did he indeed hear a Bas Kol to the contrary? The answer is that this was his punishment and his nisayon. He truly felt and sensed that there was no path to teshuvah for him, and that there was no way for him to untether himself from his sins, and he would remain mired in them for eternity.
This barrier and separation and distance from Hashem is indeed the result of our aveiros—but the truth remains that a Yid can always return; we must simply break through the barriers, and the feeling that “it’s not going to happen.” And even if we fall again, R”l, we must not despair.
And because the Ribbono shel Olam is a טוב ומטיב, He has sent down to the world tzaddikim such as the Chozeh of Lublin, who revealed to us that there’s always teshuvah, and that we must never become lost. We must always strengthen ourselves until Hashem will have rachmanus on us and accept our teshuvah.
Tefillah Is Never Limited
A prominent rav came to the tziyun of the Shelah HaKadosh; there he saw a Yid crying bitterly, with terrible sobs and cries. He asked the Yid about this, and he eventually explained that he became addicted to forbidden sights, and he doesn’t see a way out of it. The rav brought him to Rav Shmuel Wosner, who instructed him to place his head on the table as he recited three times the words אש תמיד תוקד על המזבח לא תכבה, which is a segulah for purity of thought. Since that moment, the Yid was completely transformed, and he never struggled with these nisyonos again.
This is indeed a tremendous account, but the main part of the report is the first part: This Yid understood the power of prayer, and he stood up to daven to Hashem with searing cries amid the emunah that Hashem will surely help him. This is the main lesson. That he later merited a yeshuah isn’t surprising at all—for, of course, tefillah is always effective.
The chiddush is that a Yid could have the power of emunah, even in such a low state, believing that the Ribbono shel Olam will help him if only he davens from the depths of his heart.
