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Chapter Three: express his meritorious side. Even if he stumbles a great The holy Ohr Hachaim (Leviticus 14) comments that the
deal, heaven have mercy, since he rejects these impediments Gemara’s statement that whoever studies the Torah on the sacrifices
The Secret of Life and wants to be in accord with Hashem’s will, he emerges is considered as though he brought a sacrifice applies more broadly
to the entire Torah. He writes:
victorious in judgment.
At this point, you have come to recognize the importance of In regard to every mitzvah that a person cannot perform,
intent and to recognize that the essence of your freedom of choice when he studies this mitzvah in the Torah, it is as though
lies in your intent, and I have urged you to want to possess intent. he performed it. That is the meaning of the statement,
But you still lack the tools and practical framework to apply what “If in My laws you go and My commandments you shall
you have learned. This chapter will discuss the practical framework If a person yearns for Torah and mitzvot, it is impossible guard...” (Leviticus 26:3). Those mitzvot that you cannot
that will make it possible for you to choose correctly with the power that he will end up in Gehennom. Even if he descends perform, “you shall guard”—in the sense that you shall
of your intent. there, he will immediately dart up like an arrow from a await [and anticipate] the time when you will be able to
bow, because after a person’s death he is drawn to the perform them. As you do so, consider it as though you
Presumably, everyone will ask the difficult question: “Everything place that he had yearned for while he had been alive.
that I have read so far is fine, but how do we attain intent? It is have performed them. And so the verse states, “And
easy to speak about intent, it is pleasant to speak about it, and it is (Shem Mishmuel in the name of his father, the Avnei Nezer) you shall do them” (ibid.), meaning: “I reward you not
inspiring. These words fill my heart with unbounded hope—but in only for your thought but as though you have performed
the end, all I remain with is the words….” the deed.” And it is with this [intent] that a person must
learn the Torah’s mitzvot and intend to do them.
And one could raise another question: Earlier, I cited the Imrei
Emet’s interpretation of the common saying, “Nothing can stand Similarly, the Sefat Emet (Acharei 5632) teaches:
before the will,” as meaning that nothing can prevent a person
from possessing will. But that is not the simple meaning of this The verse states, “Which a person will do and live by
saying. The simple meaning is that with the power of his will a them” (Leviticus 18:5). This refers to the future [i.e., the
person can do anything. When a person wants something, nothing verse is written in the future tense]. That means that in
can stand in his way. Also, Rabbi Nachman states that free choice is all of a person’s thoughts he must always be ready to
exactly what it sounds like: if a person wants something, he does it. do the will of God, blessed be He. That will give him
But we see that this is not so simple. There are many things that we vitality and joy. That is called “guarding the mitzvot”:
cannot accomplish. The Gemara itself speaks about a person who
intends to do a mitzvah but is thwarted. Thus, there is a reality that constantly sitting, hoping and awaiting: When will I be
a person can be thwarted. There is a reality of difficulties. There is able to do God’s will? As a result, when this person is
a reality of obstacles. able, he will do so properly. And so the verse continues,
“If in My laws you go and My commandments you shall
And there is another problematical statement in the Gemara: that guard, which a person will do and live by them,” because
a person is led in the way that he wants to go. But there are many this vitality always exists as a result of a person guarding
people who want, yet who nevertheless are not led. Why is that? and keeping the mitzvot.
In this chapter, with the help of heaven I will answer these And the Ben Ish Chai (Ve’etchanan 301) teaches:
questions. There yet remains hope…!
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