At the end of the sixth day of creation the Torah states, "And God saw all that he had made, and behold it was very good" (Bereishis 1, 31). In Bereishis Rabbah, Chazal say (9,9) that the phrase "it was very good" is referring to the yetzer horah (evil inclination). It is difficult to understand the concept of "good" when discussing the yetzer horah.

A person once approached the Chofetz Chaim zt"l, lamenting that the constant pressure of his yetzer horah gave him no rest. The Chofetz Chaim responded that man should rejoice because of his yetzer horah, for without it, man would have no purpose on earth.

The Chofetz Chaim compares the yetzer horah to a watch. A watch works by the internal chains pulling against each other, causing the hands to move, and thereby keeping accurate time. Similarly, man's yetzer tov (good inclination) pulls him towards good and his yetzer horah pulls him towards evil. This "tug of war" keeps man focused on the fact that Hashem created us to conquer the desires, which pull us away from Him. By reestablishing Hashem's dominance over our lives, we have fulfilled our purpose on earth.

A person once praised a talmid chochom by saying that he possessed no yetzer horah at all. Upon hearing this, the Chazon Ish zt"l declared that, on the contrary, this talmid chochom is a bal mum (blemished soul), since true praise is for one who conquers his yetzer horah.

Since the yetzer horah is part of the process that is necessary in crowning Hashem upon ourselves, the word "good" can apply.

The yetzer horah gives each Jew the potential to reach levels above an angel. On one hand, an angel is a purely spiritual being who always performs the will of Hashem. However, the angel has no free choice and no power attempting to distract him from his mission. How could an angel ever sin? Conversely, in order for a person to discharge Hashem's will, he must overcome a very powerful force that impedes his desire to do good. Therefore, if man fulfills a command of Hashem, he has actually raised himself to a new level by conquering his yetzer horah. With each additional triumph, one attains even higher spiritual planes. Man is given the opportunity from Hashem to continually defeat the yetzer horah and soar to levels above angels.

In responding to the snake's question regarding the permissibility of eating the fruit in the Garden of Eden, Chava

said, "Of the fruit of the tree which is in the center of the garden God has said: 'You shall not eat of it and you shall not touch it, lest you die' " (Bereishis 3,3). Since Hashem never commanded Adam or Chava not to touch the Tree of Knowledge (only not to eat from it), Rashi comments, "She (Chava) added to the commandment, therefore she came to detraction."

Rav Yaacov Kaminetzky zt"l points out that Chava did not know that the prohibition against touching the Tree was not legislated by Hashem. Had she been aware of this, the snake's argument, that her not having died after touching the Tree proved that it was permissible to eat from the tree, would have fallen on deaf ears.

In supporting this assertion, Rav Kaminetzky cites Avos D'Reb Noson who says that Adam actually told Chava that they were not allowed to touch the Tree of Knowledge. His purpose in doing this was to make a "fence around" the prohibition against eating from the Tree of Knowledge, which Hashem did forbid. By telling Chava not to even touch the Tree, Adam reasoned that neither of them would even venture near the tree, thus assuring that neither Chava nor himself would eat from it.

It is clear from the text of the Torah that Chava was under the notion that the proscription against touching the Tree was divinely ordained ("God has said: 'You shall not eat of it and you shall not touch it, lest you die' "). Chava's misconception provided the snake with the opening to convince her that it was not improper to eat from the Tree. When the snake pushed Chava against the Tree and she did not die, he was then able to persuade her that just as touching the Tree did not cause her to die, so too eating from it would not cause death. Had Chava known that the prohibition against touching the Tree was an "additional" fence accepted by Adam upon himself, she would not have expected to die when she came in contact with the Tree. With this knowledge, she would not have been induced by the snake's reasoning and would not have eaten the fruit.

When Rashi states that adding to Hashem's word caused Chava's downfall, Rashi does not mean that it was improper for Adam to have placed a "fence around" the command of Hashem. The legislation of Rabbinical laws is for the purpose of keeping a Jew away from violating a divinely ordained precept. However, Adam's transgression of adding "a fence" was his failure to inform Chava, in a clear and exact manner, the distinction between the prohibition mandated by Hashem and the "fence" Adam had accepted upon himself.

When a person is confronted with a chumra, which is difficult for him to follow, it may cause him to abandon his obligation of

fulfilling the Torah commandment as well. Therefore, issur (prohibition) and chumra (stringency or fence) must be clearly delineated and defined when influencing people in regard to their obligations in fulfilling a positive commandment or not transgressing a negative commandment.

"Iggeres HaRamban"
(The Letter of the Ramban)

Although Iggeres HaRamban is not an actual sefer, but a letter, the wisdom and insights contained in it are more than many multiple volume works. The Iggeres HaRamban is a letter that the Ramban zt"l wrote while residing in Eretz Yisroel to his son, Nachman, who lived in Spain.

In the letter, the Ramban instructs his son to read the letter once a week "and neglect none of it." The letter is aimed at inspiring humility and training youth in fear of Hashem. As the Chida zt"l states, "Ramban outlines a program for achieving the qualities of sanctity and humility. The Mussar Masters (Masters of Ethical Teachings) encouraged their students to study the letter periodically, as the Ramban's holy words have the power to pierce the innermost recesses of the heart, filling it with a spirit of sanctity."

The Iggeres HaRamban was first printed in 1579 in Venice, Italy, as part of the classic mussar sefer, Reishis Chochmo, written by Rabbi Eliyahu de Vidas. Though a second, expanded version of the letter was also printed, the version that first appeared in Reishis Chochmo has become the accepted version.

Not only did the Ramban's son derive great benefit and strength from this letter, Jewish People wishing to attain humility and fear of Hashem have studied this letter throughout the centuries as well. In concluding his letter, the Ramban states, "Every day that you shall read this letter, heaven shall answer your heart's desires - Amen, Selah."

TABLE TALK

THE DILEMMA
(What would you do in this situation?)

Boruch's daughter needs a dress to attend a wedding of a friend. The dress she wants to buy is more than Boruch is willing to pay. The store's policy is that any item can be returned if the customer is unsatisfied with it.

Can Boruch "purchase" the dress for his daughter and then return it after the wedding?

If it is permissible to "purchase" the dress under these circumstances, what would be the halacha if Boruch's daughter got the dress dirty and it had to be dry-cleaned? Would Boruch have to keep the dress or would it be permissible to dry clean the dress and then return it?

(Consult your Rav for a proper halachic ruling)

(Please send us your answer by e-mail to gkrainess@adelphia.net. The answer will appear in next week's issue)

Last week's clues and answer: I am an antidote to light-headedness; I was almost concealed; I come from assembled wisdom; My pursuit is purely not physical - Koheles

Congratulations to Eli and Dovid Efroymson and Tovie Hoffman.

Answer: Reuven must not believe his parent. However, a child must always treat a parent with the utmost respect and Reuven may not tell his parent that they spoke improperly. Reuven may respectfully say to his parent that even if what they said is true, doesn't it say in the Torah that we should not speak negatively about another person? (Apples of Gold citing Sefer Chofetz Chaim)

TORAH RIDDLE

Which person in the history of the world murdered 25% of the world's population?

(The answer will appear in next week's issue)

Last week's question and answer: When would you say a separate brocha on each of the four species (lulav, hadassim, aravos and esrog)? If each of the four species were taken separately and the person made an interruption in between taking each of them, then he would have to make a separate brocha on the lulav, hadassim, aravos and esrog.

THE KOLLEL FAMILY

MAZEL TOV

-Mr. and Mrs. Harry Newmark on the birth of a son.
-Rabbi and Mrs. Dovid Weinberger on the birth of a son.

WELCOME

-Dr. and Mrs. David Lever.

(Please inform us if you wish to have a happy or solemn occasion or a community or personal event posted on the Community Bulletin Board - Thank you.)

To sponsor an issue of Oneg Shabbos, please contact Leib Chaim Krainess, Director of Kollel Development at (216) 559-0638 or gkrainess@adelphia.net