Page 118 - BERESHIT

world. Chazal extol the virtues of the many tzaddikim who guarded the
purity of their thoughts and the clarity of their sight, such as Rabbi Mattia
ben Charash who asked to poke out his own eyes, and Palti ben Layish
who thrust a sword in the ground between him and his wife Michal.

Boaz swore using Hashem’s Name that he would not touch Ruth until
legitimately married. He did so in order to keep his impulse to sin at bay.
This gave him the strength and protection to shield him from his Yetzer
Hara. Although one should flee from a similar situation, Boaz acted to
deceive the Satan in his crusade against him, convincing the Satan that no
future king would ever come from such a union.

Moshe asked Hashem why the Torah was not given through Rabbi Akiva.
Hashem silenced Moshe and said; this is the way I have determined it to
be. This indicates that all of Rabbi Akiva’s achievements were based
solely on Moshe’s, and thus it was not possible to transmit the Torah
through Rabbi Akiva. When Rabbi Akiva returned home after an absence
of twenty-four years, he was followed by twenty four thousand students.
He was approached by his wife Rachel who threw herself at his feet.
Rabbi Akiva said to his students, leave her for whatever I and you have
accomplished in learning is in her merit. It was due to her modesty that
she merited a husband who was a nitzutz of Moshe Rabbeinu – her
modesty was thus the cornerstone of all of his accomplishments.

The Gemara brings a story of one who was tempted to sin but suppressed
his desires after the fringes of his tzitzit hit him in the face. The eyes can
be an instrument to remember and fulfill the mitzvot and sanctify their
owner, as it says adjacent to the mitzvah of tzitzit, “and you shall see them
and remember all of my mitzvot.” At the same time though, they can cause
man to become tamei by gazing at forbidden sights, as it says, “And you
shall not stray after your heart or eyes.”

Eyesight is compared to radar which can pinpoint the enemy’s position
and determine the site of battle. So too, looking can arouse one’s desires