Vanquishing The Evil Inclination: Eradication or Redirection?

If memory serves, the story of David and Avishag was explained to me in Arie Crown in accordance with the approach of the Yerushalmi. (I believe I learned it with Mrs. Pearl Gross.)

To cite from this source,

the ARUCH LA'NER suggests a novel approach to explain the Gemara (Sanhedrin 22a). The Yerushalmi explains that in order for David ha'Melech to repent fully from his actions with Bas Sheva, David ha'Melech constantly tried to place himself in the same situation as he was in when the incident with Bas Sheva occurred, and then, in that situation, to act with the utmost righteousness and control. (This is the highest form of Teshuvah, as the RAMBAM states in Hilchos Teshuvah 2:1.) For this purpose, David ha'Melech had beautiful Pilagshim brought to him. For the same reason, David ha'Melech wanted an attendant to be found who would be the most beautiful woman in all of Israel. When Avishag saw that David ha'Melech was already very old, she said, "You no longer have the same desire you had in your youth, and therefore having a beautiful woman around will not serve the purpose for which you intend." This is what she meant by saying that even a thief eventually loses his ability to steal and then claims that he has repented, not out of true repentance but merely out of the inability to steal. David ha'Melech showed her that he was still youthful and thus could still accomplish complete Teshuvah.

The question was: What was King David's attitude toward his yetzer hara, the evil inclination that makes it possible for man to desire and to have intimate relations? Had he conquered it wholly so that he had no desire for Avishag at all, even though she lay next to him, flesh to flesh, or did he desire her but deny himself?

In school we were taught that King David slew his evil inclination, the interpretation being that he had no desire for Avishag at all. To me, this seemed peculiar. Wouldn't it have been much harder for King David to have desired Avishag but nonetheless deny her to himself in order to atone for what happened with Bat-Sheva? It seemed to me that this is what it should mean to conquer the yetzer hara.

Thus, to me it seemed as though there were two approaches:

1. Eradication (to slay the yetzer hara so that it no longer exists within a person- one only has one's yetzer hatov)

2. Redirection (to take the yetzer hara and redirect one's passions and desires into a more appropriate forum or channel in order to serve God- see Shabbat 156a.)

My best friend and I discussed this and he told me there is a machlokes as to which of these two approaches is better. He also suggested that complete redirection may lead to a form of eradication, in that if someone has truly redirected one's yetzer hara to kill into being a butcher, perhaps he no longer has any desire to kill a human being, so that desire was eradicated. I, in contrast, thought there was a possibility that the man still wanted to murder but slaked his thirst by killing cows rather than humans. However, this would never be totally satisfying to him. (Unfortunately, since in the Gemara it merely says the thirst is to 'shed blood' but never stipulates that it is specifically to murder or to shed human blood, I can't really prove my point.) Leaving that discussion aside, I thought it would be nice to offer some sources for both points of view per the simple understanding.

In Maalos HaTorah, Avraham ben Shlomo Zalman seems to prefer the eradication approach. He cites the Vilna Gaon as saying:

When you are not able to withstand him [the Evil Inclination] because he overpowers you, then, "draw him to the study hall." Tell him that in the study hall you will do his will by learning for selfish motives in order to gain honor. This will put his mind at ease, and he will acquiesce. Thus, "doing not for its own sake leads to doing for its own sake" (Pesachim 50b). In this manner you shall be freed from the Evil Inclination completely. And so we understand the verse, "If your enemy is hungry"- and he desires to make you sin, "feed him the bread of Torah"- fulfill his will by learning for selfish motives, "for you will be heaping coals of fire upon his head" - when you subsequently reach the level of learning for its own sake.

-pages 47-48

Thus, it seems that Avraham ben Shlomo Zalman is stating that if the Evil Inclination engages you, you may lose at first (having to learn for selfish motivations) but in the end you will prevail by learning solely for the sake of Heaven. This is not redirection but rather simply a way to pursue complete eradication. He makes this even clearer when he later writes,

"The rabbis also explain (Kiddushin 30b n Bereishis 4:7. The verse recounts God's response to Cain's anger that his inferior offering was not accepted) "If you do good you will prevail." If you are busy in Torah, which is called 'good,' 'you will prevail'- the Evil Inclination shall be removed from you. But if not, you will be given into its hands, as it says, 'Sin crouches at the door' (Bereishis 4:7).

-pages 48-49

The words he uses, היצר הרע מסולק ממך, do not speak to uplifting, utilizing and redirecting the Evil Inclination in order to serve God but rather of complete removal. This is in complete contrast to the Baal Shem Tov's approach. When I was at home over Sukkos, I saw my father reading Masechet Avot with the commentary of the Baal Shem Tov. Intrigued, I read the book. I have scanned the Baal Shem Tov's approach to the evil inclination to my computer and uploaded it in PDF form here. The Besht, in total contrast to those who think the Yetzer Hara ought to be slaughtered, believes that it must be conquered but not slaughtered or eradicated. See the box I have outlined in red here:


The Besht states that one who breaks and shatters the Yetzer Hara does not practice true gevurah, strength. But to conquer the evil inclination and raise it up so that one uses it for holy things is a much higher and more difficult level. That is what is truly intended when one speaks of kevisha with regard to the evil inclination. This is in line with what he states regarding the adage, "Who is wise? One who learns from every man." Every man, explains the Besht, refers to the Yetzer Hara as well!


He even explains that there are two types of tzadikim, those who kill the evil inclination within themselves and those who use it and simply channel it appropriately. He gives an interesting mashal regarding this. But the part I liked best was when he explained how one answers the yetzer hara in conversation:

Once upon a time there was a king who desired to test his servants. He sent two men in his employ to speak words of evil and rebellion against him to see whether his servants would join them in their scheme or oppose them. The servants fell into camps: those who answered in kind and spoke words of opposition against the king and those who protested and claimed they loved and supported the king. There was amongst these servants one wise man who realized this was all a test and that the men who were speaking evil of the king were actually in his employ! Thus he rejoined, when they came to persuade him, "Fools! You yourselves are occupied in following the word of the king and you desire me to oppose his word?" The king heard the answer of the wise man and was most pleased by it; he brought him close and loved him and made him the head of his officers.

The answer of this wise man holds the key to how one may rule his evil inclination when it desires him to sin. All he must do is turn to his Evil Inclination and say, "You yourself are simply doing the word of your Owner (i.e. God), and why should man transgress the commandments of his Owner?!"

I thought that was very clever; it struck a chord with me.

In any case, I am of the camp who is curious about all things and thus must find a way to uplift them and use them for the service of God. There are others who might be better served in truly slaying their yetzer hara, but when it comes to me, I prefer the Besht's approach.

The Burning Bush, The Simple Jew & The Tzaddik

This is an excerpt from Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi by Nissan Mindel, pages 69-73.

~
The main strictures which the Mithnagdim leveled against the Beshtian doctrines centered on two points:

Firstly, the teachings of the Ba'al Shem Tov accorded especial esteem to the prayers and Tehillim-recital of the unlearned and untutored Jew, even though he did not know what he was saying. This attitude, the Mithnagdim contended, tended to give the am ha'aretz and ignoramus a sense of undeserved self-importance, and lowered the prestige of the talmidei-chachamim. It seemed to ignore the Talmudic saying that "all calamities that occur in the world are due to the amei-ha'aretz."

Secondly, according to the doctrine of the Ba'al Shem Tov, even a Gaon and Tzaddik have to serve G-d in the way of Teshuvah. The Mithnagdim took strong exception to this doctrine, arguing that it placed the sainta nd scholar in the category of ordinary sinners and repenters. Such a notion surely undermined the honor of the Torah and the dignity of the talmidei-chachamim. The Mithnagdim further concluded that this notion was in contradiction to the view of the Torah, Written and Oral, which described the Tzaddik as the "foundation of the world" and the talmidei-chachamim as those who "increase peace in the world" and as the true "builders" of the Jewish nation. The Beshtian notion of requiring them, too, to do penance was humiliating, and most objectionable.

Rabbi Schneur Zalman replied to the said two main contentions of the Mithnagdim as follows:

"The basis of the doctrine of the Ba'al Shem Tov and of the teachings of his successor, my teacher and master the Maggid of Miezricz, which illuminate the way of Divine service, followed by all the disciples of our master the Maggid, is to be found in the first Divine revelation to Moshe Rabbeinu.

"My teacher, the Maggid of Miezricz, taught me the following doctrine, which he had received from the Ba'al Shem Tov:

It is written, "And the angel of God appeared (vayyera) unto him in a flame of fire from the midst of the bush. And he saw that the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. Then said Moshe, 'I will turn aside and see this great sight" (Exod. 3:2-3).

The Targum renders the word vayyera ("appeared") by v'itgali ("revealed himself"). The meaning of "revelation" is that it comes within the perception of everyone, to each one according to one's capacity, down to the lowest levels. Thus, the Targum also renders the word vayyered in Exod. 19:20 ("And G-d came down on Mount Sinai") by v'itgali ("revealed himself"), though elsewhere, e.g. Gen. 38:1 ("And Judah came down"), the word vayyered is rendered by v'nahat ("descended"). Similarly in Gen. 11:5 the Targum gives a corresponding rendition in the sense of "revelation," as in the case of the revelation at Mt. Sinai.

Now, just as the revelation at Sinai was intended for all the people, from Moshe down to the Jew of the most humble station, so must "revelation" be understood in the other instances, including the first revelation to Moshe out of the Burning Bush. Here, too, we must assume a revelation which can be perceived on all levels, down to the lowest, as already mentioned.

The words b'labat esh are rendered by Rashi by b'shalhevet shel esh, libo shel esh ("in a flame of fire; the heart of fire"). Thus, the message of G-d (i.e. "G-dliness") is to be found in the "heart of fire," i.e. in the earnest and sincere inwardness of the heart, where the fiery embers of G-dliness abide.

The words "from the midst of the bush" elicit Rashi's further commentary: "But not from another [more stately] tree, alluding to the verse, 'I am with him in distress (tzarah)'" (Ps. 91:15). Tzarah (literally "narrow place") alludes to this material world, which is so called because it is limited in space; and also because the Light of the En Sof is concealed therein in Nature, and is thus "confined" and "constricted," as it were. By contrast, the supernal worlds, where the Light of the En Sof shines forth manifestly, are called "wide, open spaces."

However, the design and purpose of the creation of this physical world is to illuminate it and convert it from צרה to צהר- "light"- by means of the light of the Torah and the Mitzvoth, to be studied and observed in the daily life.

It is written, "Man is like a tree of the field" (Deut. 20:19). There are fruit-bearing trees, to which, according to Rabbi Yochanan, the talmidei-chachamim are likened (Taanit 7a); and there is the sneh, a humble bush that bears no fruit. Yet the "fiery flame" was manifest in the sneh. To be sure, the talmidei-chachamim, the students of the Torah, are filled with fire, since the Torah is called "fire" (Deut. 33:2), but it is not the inextinguishable kind of fire which burned in the sneh. The talmidei-chachamim can, and do, quench their inner fire by the intellectual gratification which they derive from their Torah studies, from the new insights which they discover, and from original innovations in the interpretation and exposition of the wisdom of the Talmud.

Not so the ordinary and unlearned Jew, the sneh- in whom burns an inextinguishable fire, and unquenchable longing for attachment to G-d. The only spiritual expression that the simple and untutored Jew can find, is in prayer and the recital of Tehillim. And though he may not know the exact meaning of the sacred words he intones, they contain the full force of his sincerity and wholeheartedness.

The only motivation of these humble Jews is their simple faith in G-d, which creates in them the burning and insatiable desire for Torah and Mitzvoth, a desire which, of necessity, remains unsatisfied and unquenched.

That is why the eternal "fiery flame" (labat esh) is to be found precisely in the hearts of these simple, sincere folk.

It is written, "And Moshe said, 'I will turn and see this great sight'" (Exod. 3:3) which, according to Rashi, means "I will turn from here, to come closer to there." This indicates that Moshe Rabbeinu understood the Divine message of the Burning Bush which emphasized the unique quality of the ordinary Jew- the Labat esh being found precisely in the sneh, rather than in the cedars of Lebanon. The realization of this evoked a sense of Teshuvah in him, and a change of outlook and direction ("I will turn [ashuva] from here to come closer there").

Now, Moshe Rabbeinu was a perfect Tzaddik. The course of Teshuvah of the perfect Tzaddik is quite different from that of the ordinary repenter. It is effected in the manner of "I will turn from here to come closer there." In other words, no one, not even the greatest Tzaddik, should be static in his Divine service, however perfect it may seem at any time. There must be a constant striviting toward ever greater heights, turning from one high level to a still higher one, with a constant desire to get closer to G-d. In this progression, which is essentially an infinite process, each higher level attained leaves the previous level, however satisfactory it seemed previously, deficient by comparison. Hence there is room for Teshuvah even for the perfect Tzaddik."

Rabbi Schneur Zalman emphasized that the said fundamental tenets of the Ba'al Shem Tov were based on the first Divine revelation to Moshe Rabbeinu, whom G-d had chosen to be the first deliverer and leader of the Jewish nation and he went on to explain the precedental nature of that revelation:

The Divine revelation to Moshe Rabbeinu was quite different from the Divine revelation to Noah, or even to Abraham. For the Divine revelation to Noah was a personal one, due to special Divine grace. Whether Noah was singled out for this Divine love because "Noah found favor in the eyes of G-d" (Gen. 6:8), or because he actually merited it, as it is written, "For I have found thee righteous before Me in this generatoin" (ibid. 7:1), it was, nevertheless, a personal revelation, confined to him only.

The Divine revelation to Abraham was quite different. It contained certain instructions as to Divine service, and was attended by extraordinary tests and trial. It was, obviously, on an altogether higher level, though it, too, came as a result of special Divine love, as it is written, "For I know him (Rashi: love him) that he will command his children and his household after him, that they observe the way of G-d, to do righteousness and justice," (Gen. 18:19). In the Midrash Abraham was also called the "Supreme King's favorite" (B.R. ch. 42). Be it as it may, G-d's revelation to Abraham was also, essentially, a personal one.

However, the Divine revelation to Moshe Rabbeinu- Rabbi Schneur Zalman explained- was not merely a personal one, but rather a general one, serving as a guideline for all future leaders of our people. This revelation showed that a Jewish leader should look for the labat esh in the sneh- among the ordinary people. The leader must try to discover this spark in the heart of the simple folk and fan it into an all-consuming flame.