Mayim Achronim: What Exactly is the Yetzer HaRa?

 

This week’s parasha, Ki Tetze, begins by describing the procedure when Israelite men “go out to war” and encounter a beautiful woman behind enemy lines. The Torah permits taking this woman for a wife, but on condition that the soldier waits for one month. He is to bring her to his home, where she shaves her head and cuts her nails while mourning for a month for the loss of her family. Only then, if the soldier still wants her, he can take her as a wife. If he no longer wants her, then she is to be set free unconditionally. The Torah cautions that she must not be treated as a slave or sold. A big question here is: is the soldier permitted to have relations with the “beautiful captive” immediately, or must he wait one month until she is eligible to be his wife? The Talmud (Kiddushin 21b-22a) assumes the soldier is permitted to be with the woman immediately, for his yetzer hara (“evil inclination”) is particularly strong at this point. The language of the Torah implies that he desires her now, in the moment. That said, the Talmud points out that the Torah also says to “bring her to your home” (Deuteronomy 21:12) to teach that the soldier “should not force her during the war”, ie. he should take her home first. The Talmud also adds that only one such captive is permitted to a soldier, and he cannot take another captive for someone else either. Finally, the Talmud recognizes how unpleasant this all sounds, and suggests that the Torah is trying to minimize what would otherwise be a grave and immoral sin. Tragically, raping and pillaging was normal in the course of war, so the Torah attempts to mitigate this terrible behaviour as much as possible, while recognizing it would be nearly impossible to prohibit it entirely. Thus, the Torah commands that the soldier may take no more than a single captive, and make sure he takes good care of her, brings her to his home, and ultimately converts her and marries her. Which brings up another question in the Talmud: Is a kohen who is out at war permitted to engage in this as well? We know that kohanim were part of the army camp, and had various roles including giving speeches to boost morale. It would seem that kohanim are therefore allowed to take a beautiful captive as well—but that creates a major problem because kohanim are not allowed to marry converts! There are several different opinions on this. One is that kohanim are prohibited, and another is that they are permitted since kohanim also have a yetzer hara. There is also a middle position that kohanim would be allowed to have relations with the beautiful captive just once—to quell the yetzer hara—but not to take the captive home to marry her, since they cannot marry converts. This raises another big question: what, exactly, is the yetzer hara? The term yetzer, or yetzirah, means “formation”. It first appears in the Torah when God forms man from the dust of the earth, vayitzer (וייצר) Hashem Elohim et ha’adam (Genesis 2:7). The word is written with two yuds, which the Talmud (Berakhot 61a) says indicates that God formed man with two types of yetzer, a yetzer hatov and a yetzer hara, ie. a “good inclination” and an “evil inclination”. The Midrash (Yalkut Shimoni II, 424) adds that God regretted having to create the evil inclination, but it was necessary to give man the ability to choose. Without it, humans would not have the opportunity to exercise their free will. Moreover, the term yetzer implies that these forces help to “form” and “shape” every human being. Through them, we are presented with challenges that we have to overcome, and with traits that we have to refine. Thus, the yetzers play a key role in the development of every person. The Origins of the Yetzer HaRa Where does the yetzer hara come from? Reish Lakish affirms that “Satan is the yetzer hara is the angel of death” (Bava Batra 16a). All three are seemingly part of the same force, presumably associated with an angel or some angelic force. The Zohar (I, 165b) says that the yetzer hara attaches to a person at birth, drawing them to selfishness, self-indulgence, and sin. It is only at age 13 that the yetzer hatov officially attaches to a person. (A child is entirely innocent, of course, but inherently selfish.) Henceforth, these two angels accompany a person wherever they go, “the good inclination on the right and the evil inclination on the left”. The Zohar continues to describe that when a person does a mitzvah, the evil inclination “bows down” to the good inclination and is subservient to it. Both inclinations then guard the person. One who is a tzadik is thus able to keep the yetzer hara in check and under control, subdued towards divine service. The tzadik can direct both inclinations towards mitzvot and the service of Hashem. This is why, the Zohar (III, 267a) says, in the Shema we say to love God with “all of our heart”, b’khol levavkha (בכל לבבך), where the word “heart” is spelled with two letter beits instead of the usual one. This is to indicate that we should love and serve God with both inclinations of the heart. And this explains a statement in the Talmud (Sotah 47a) that one should push the yetzer hara away with the left and draw it near with the right, meaning that even the yetzer hara should be channeled towards divine service. With that in mind, we can better understand what was said above. It’s not that there is a little angel sitting on a person’s right shoulder and a little devil sitting on a person’s left shoulder (as popularly depicted in cartoons), but that the yetzer hatov and the yetzer hara are forces embedded within a person’s heart. It may explain, from a spiritual perspective, why the heart is divided up into a right atrium and ventricle, and a left atrium and ventricle. It might also explain why the heart is situated just about centre in the human torso, but bends a bit to the left, meaning the yetzer hara is naturally a little stronger in a person and pulls the person a little more to the left, as God declares that yetzer lev ha’adam ra min’urav, “the inclination of man’s heart is evil from his youth” (Genesis 8:21). Subduing the yetzer hara and directing it to divine service is not natural and takes a lot of work. (It’s not easy being a tzadik!) It’s worth adding that scientists in recent years have found that the heart is surrounded by a network of nerves and seems to have a “brain” of its own! The Talmud (Sukkah 52a) cites the above verse first in stating that the yetzer hara has seven names altogether: ra (evil), ‘arel (uncircumcised), tameh (impure), soneh(hater), mikhshol (stumbling block), e’ven (stone), and tzfoni (“northern one”). A Scriptural verse is given to prove each one. The Zohar (II, 263a) builds on this and says that these seven aspects stand opposite the seven lower Sefirot, or Middot (ie. Chessed, Gevurah, Tiferet, Netzach, Hod, Yesod, and Malkhut), from the negative side. Recall that these seven Sefirot are associated with the heart (while the top three, the Mochin, are associated with the brain). This brings us full circle: there are seven major positive attributes embedded in the heart, and seven negative ones to balance them out. These correspond to the yetzer hatov and the yetzer hara. Recall also that when paralleling the Sefirot to the Olamot, the middle six Middot correspond to the world of Yetzirah (and the seventh Malkhut to the lowest physical world of Asiyah). Of course, these forces go all the way back to the start of Creation. One of our most ancient mystical texts, Sefer haBahir, says that the yetzer hara energy is first alluded to by the term tohu, “chaos”, in Genesis 1:2 (see ch. 163). Later on, it tells us that King David was able to destroy his yetzer hara entirely, and he was able to do this through regular and intense Torah study (ch. 196). This may be why, in his later years (though still relatively young in his 60s), we read that his sexual drive was completely gone, and he was not intimate with the “exceedingly beautiful” Avishag who was brought to keep him warm (I Kings 1:4). Indeed, our Sages state that intense Torah study may cause impotence! The Talmud provides a whole list of rabbis who became impotent due to Torah learning (Yevamot 64b). Elsewhere, the Talmud (Kiddushin 30b) records God declaring “I created the evil inclination, and I created the Torah as its antidote. As long as you learn Torah, you will never succumb to it.” And that’s why the Sages taught that if the evil inclination is pursuing you, “drag him to the beit hamidrash.” (Sukkah 52b) Torah study will take care of it. Such statements imply that the main temptation of the evil inclination is sexual. This is particularly highlighted by the famous story of when the Sages prayed for God to remove the yetzer hara from the world (Sanhedrin 64a, Yoma 69b). God granted their wish, but within three days the Sages found no chicken eggs! Without the yetzer hara, there was no drive for anything to procreate either. The Sages had no choice but to have the yetzer hara reinstated. (They did manage to nullify the temptation for incest.) That brings us right back to this week’s parasha. The Arizal (in Sha’ar haMitzvot on Ki Tetze) explained that in Biblical times, only tzadikim would go to war. They were all righteous, Torah-observant talmidei chakhamim (perhaps today’s Haredi draft dodgers should take another look at this Arizal). In that case, how could they succumb to such a base desire for a beautiful captive? It’s not what we think! Rather, the Arizal says, these tzadikim were drawn to the beautiful captive because they recognized within her a nitzotz, a holy spark, that needed rectification. The beautiful captive was therefore given time to mourn and heal, and only then properly converted and taken on as a full-fledged wife, with all the rights and privileges of any other daughter of Israel. She was thereby redeemed and her holy spark restored to its rightful place in the cosmos. A major tikkun was completed. Yetzer HaRa Foods  Tying into the above discussion on sexual sin, the Zohar (I, 170b) says that another “seat” of the yetzer hara is the gid hanashe in the loins. This is the place where Jacob was injured in his battle with the angel, so the Torah forbids the consumption of this nerve (Genesis 32:33). The deeper reason for prohibiting its consumption, the Zohar explains, is because it stimulates the evil inclination! Similarly, the Arizal suggested not to eat the hearts of animals, even chicken hearts, because it may stimulate the yetzer hara (see Sha’ar haMitzvoton Vayelekh). Two more foods associated with the yetzer hara are chametz and honey, which may represent the other major temptation of the yetzer hara—for food, sweets, and delicacies. The Ba’al haTurim (Rabbi Yakov ben Asher, c. 1269-1343) says this is why the Torah forbids bringing chametz and honey with any offerings in the Temple (Leviticus 2:11). The Zohar (II, 182a) explains that the yetzer hara operates like chametz, entering a person while small and then slowly expanding and growing. On Pesach, we have to get rid of all of our chametz. But when Shavuot comes around, we do eat a lot of chametz (as Shavuot is the wheat harvest), and a lot of honey too in the form of sweet cakes. Why? Because we are learning Torah all night on Shavuot and destroying our yetzer hara! In fact, the Zohar (III, 97b) beautifully points out that Shavuot is always called Atzeret (עצרת), the letters of which also make up yetzer hara (יצר הרע). Moreover, the Zohar points out that on other holidays a chatat sin offering would always be brought, but not on Shavuot, to signify the nullification of the yetzer hara. Finally, the Talmud (Sukkah 52a) gives us the well-known principle that the greater the person, the greater their yetzer hara will be. The Arizal adds a mystical dimension, explaining that a loftier soul will fall deeper into kelipot, and have much greater tests in life (Sha’ar haGilgulim, Ch. 28). Such people are also prone to more sadness and constant worry. He brings King David as an example. Later, the Arizal says we shouldn’t judge great people who fall to sin too harshly, because their test is naturally so much greater (ch. 39). Similarly, as a person gets older their yetzer hara typically weakens as well. Rabbi Elimelech of Lizhensk cautioned people about this: We often see an old man who has spent his life in excesses, imitating in his declining years the works of the pious. He does not indulge himself in food; he rises early to pray and to recite Psalms. He imagines he has become a pious man by the performance of acts which simulate piety. But he forgets that his abstinence from food and sleep is due chiefly to his weakened desires. He becomes so self-satiated that he forgives himself his own sins. The result, however, is that he dies without true repentance. May Hashem save us from such a fate! (Newman’s The Hasidic Anthology, pg. 6, citing Ohel Elimelech) Relatedly, the Lubavitcher Rebbe used this principle to explain the meaning of Avot 5:21, which says that at 100 years old a person is “like dead and nullified from the world”. The Rebbe said it means once a person is a centenarian, his yetzer hara is dead and nullified, and so he transcends the temptations of this world and becomes more angelic (Likkutei Sichos on Vayera, pg. 48). Despite the advanced age and physical decline, a person at 100 is capable of accessing tremendous spiritual powers. Ultimately, the Talmud (Sukkah 52a) says God will slay the evil inclination and remove it from the world in the Messianic Age. When he does so, the yetzer hara will appear as a great mountain for the righteous, and as a thin hair for the wicked. The righteous will be amazed that they were able to overcome such a great mountain, and the wicked will be embarrassed that they couldn’t overcome such a pathetic little string. Until then, we have to confront and control our yetzer hara, subduing it and directing it to divine service. This month of Elul, as we approach the High Holidays, is a particularly significant time to focus on this battle. Rav Ovadia Yosef linked it to this week’s parasha, saying that ki tetze lamilchama, “when you go out to war”, is alluding to the war we all wage against our yetzer hara. And the starting word ki (כי) has a numerical value of 30, representing the days of this month of teshuvah. This struggle is not just individual, but national. There is a greater yetzer hara tempting the entire house of Israel. The Zohar (III, 124a) says the yetzer hara has two aspects here, one called “snake” and one called “dog”. The former is associated with Ishmael, and the latter with Esau. When Israel succumbs to the yetzer hara and sins, the Zohar says, Hashem causes Israel to be delivered into the hands of Ishmael and Esau, God forbid. In light of what is happening in the world around us, it is all the more significant to double down on teshuvah this month, and defeat the yetzer hara within for good. Shabbat Shalom!