In this chapter, the Chovos HaLevavos exposes the deep, subtle traps of the yetzer hara that target a talmid chacham who has already overcome basic temptations. The yetzer hara first tries to distract him during his avodah by filling his mind with complex Torah questions and intellectual difficulties, leaving his heart far from Hashem. When the person wakes up to this and tries to serve Hashem with true sincerity, the yetzer hara pivots to a new, cunning tactic: urging him to completely hide all his mitzvos and learning under the guise of avoiding flattery and pride.
We learn how the yetzer hara tries to convince a Yid to act lazy, join in lightheadedness, and abandon public mitzvos like davening with a minyan or teaching others, all to "protect" his sincerity. The author provides us with the essential tools and arguments to defeat these tricks, showing us how to balance the need for hidden avodah with our public obligations to Hashem.
וְאִם יִמָּלֵט מִכָּל מָה שֶׁזָּכַרְנוּ, וְיִהְיֶה מֵאַנְשֵׁי הַחָכְמָה וְהַבִּינָה, יַעֲבִיר עַל לִבּוֹ עִנְיָן קָשֶׁה מֵעִנְיְנֵי הַחָכְמָה, וְיַטְרִיד אוֹתוֹ בִּשְׁאֵלָה וּתְשׁוּבָה, וּבְקֻשְׁיָא וּבְפֵרוּק, וּמָה שֶׁנִּתְעַלֵּם מִמֶּנּוּ בְּעִיּוּן מָה שֶׁהָיָה צָרִיךְ לְעַיֵּן בּוֹ, וּמָה שֶׁנִּשְׁאַר לוֹ לִלְמֹד מִן הַחָכְמָה; וְיַחְשֹׁב עִם נַפְשׁוֹ לַעֲסֹק בּוֹ, וְיַטְרִידֵהוּ בָּזֶה בְּכָל מַעֲשֵׂי הָעֲבוֹדָה, וְיַפְסִיד עָלָיו כִּפְלַיִם מָה שֶׁמְּתַקֵּן עָלָיו.
And if a person escapes all the traps we have mentioned, and he is indeed one of the people of wisdom and understanding, the yetzer hara will bring to his mind a difficult matter of Torah study, distracting him with questions and answers, difficulties and resolutions, pointing out what he missed in his analysis, what he should have investigated further, and what still remains for him to learn of this wisdom; and he will resolve in his soul to occupy himself with it, and the yetzer will distract him with this during all his acts of divine service, causing him twice as much loss as he gains.
NoteThe yetzer hara uses the person's own passion for Torah study and intellectual depth as a distraction to ruin his focus during other essential acts of avodah, like tefillah.
וְאֶפְשָׁר שֶׁיִּכָּנֵס בְּמַעֲשֵׂה הָעֲבוֹדָה וְיֵצֵא מִמֶּנּוּ, וְיִהְיֶה תָּמִיד בְּטִרְדַּת לִבּוֹ בְּזוּלָתוֹ מֵעִנְיְנֵי הָעוֹלָם.
And it is possible that he will enter into an act of divine service and emerge from it while his heart is constantly preoccupied with other worldly matters.
וְאֶפְשָׁר שֶׁיְּבַקֵּשׁ כַּפָּרַת הַמָּקוֹם בִּלְשׁוֹנוֹ, וְהוּא רָץ בְּמַחְשַׁבְתּוֹ וּבְמַצְפּוּנוֹ לְהַמְרוֹתוֹ.
And it is even possible that he will seek forgiveness from Hashem with his tongue, while in his thoughts and innermost mind he is rushing to rebel against Him.
וּמִתְחַנֵּן אֵלָיו בְּאֵבָרָיו, וּפוֹנֶה מֵעָלָיו בְּלִבּוֹ וּבְחֻבּוֹ, דּוֹמֶה לְמָה שֶׁאָמַר הַכָּתוּב: "בְּפִיו וּבִשְׂפָתָיו כִּבְּדוּנִי, וְלִבּוֹ רִחַק מִמֶּנִּי"; וְאָמַר: "וַיְפַתּוּהוּ בְּפִיהֶם, וּבִלְשׁוֹנָם יְכַזְּבוּ לוֹ, וְלִבָּם לֹא נָכוֹן עִמּוֹ".
He supplicates to Him with his physical limbs but turns away from Him in his heart and innermost thoughts, similar to what the verse says: 'With its mouth and with its lips it honors Me, but its heart is far from Me,' and as it says: 'They enticed Him with their mouth, and lied to Him with their tongue, but their heart was not sincere with Him.'
וְאִם יִיקַץ בָּעֵת הַהִיא, וְיַחְשֹׁב עִם נַפְשׁוֹ, וְיֹאמַר לָהּ: אֵיךְ אֶתְנַהֵג עִם הַבּוֹרֵא בְּמָה שֶׁאֵינוֹ נָכוֹן לִי לְהִתְנַהֵג בּוֹ עִם הַבְּרוּאִים, בְּעֵת שֶׁאֲנִי צָרִיךְ אֲלֵיהֶם, אוֹ בְּעֵת שֶׁהֵם צְרִיכִים לִי?
But if he wakes up at that moment, makes an accounting with his soul, and says to it: 'How can I behave toward the Creator in a way that would be improper for me to behave toward created beings, either when I need them or when they need me?'
כִּי מִי שֶׁאֵלֵךְ אֵלָיו לְבַקֵּשׁ מִמֶּנּוּ חֵפֶץ, וְאֶשְׁאַל אוֹתוֹ מִמֶּנּוּ בִּלְשׁוֹנִי, וְלִבִּי פּוֹנֶה מִמֶּנּוּ, אִלּוּ הָיָה מַכִּיר זֶה מִמֶּנִּי, הָיָה מוֹאֵס וְגוֹעֵל אוֹתִי, כָּל שֶׁכֵּן שֶׁיִּמְנַע מִמֶּנִּי חֶפְצִי.
For if I were to go to someone to request a favor, asking him with my tongue while my heart is turned away from him, if he were to recognize this in me, he would despise and loathe me, and he would certainly withhold my request.
קַל וָחֹמֶר אִם הָיָה יוֹדֵעַ בִּי שֶׁאֲנִי מַטְרִיד לִבִּי בְּמָה שֶׁאֵינוֹ מֵפִיק רְצוֹנוֹ, אַךְ בְּמָה שֶׁמַּקְצִיפוֹ עָלַי, שֶׁתִּהְיֶה שִׂנְאָתוֹ אוֹתִי יוֹתֵר גְּדוֹלָה, וּמְנִיעָתוֹ מִמֶּנִּי יוֹתֵר רְאוּיָה.
How much more so if he knew that I was occupying my mind with things that do not please him, or even with things that anger him, surely his hatred toward me would be even greater, and his refusal to help me would be completely justified.
וְכֵן מִבְּלִי סָפֵק הָיִיתִי עוֹשֶׂה לְמִי שֶׁהָיָה שׁוֹאֵל מִמֶּנִּי שׁוּם חֵפֶץ, וְהָיִיתִי יוֹדֵעַ מִלִּבּוֹ מָה שֶׁיָּדַע בּוֹרְאִי מִלִּבִּי.
And without a doubt, I would act the exact same way toward anyone who asked a favor of me, if I could know his inner thoughts just as my Creator knows what is in my heart.
וְאֵיךְ לֹא אֵבוֹשׁ מִבּוֹרְאִי, שֶׁאֶרְצֶה לוֹ מִנַּפְשִׁי בְּמָה שֶׁלֹּא הָיִיתִי רוֹצֶה לָהּ מֵחַלָּשׁ כָּמוֹנִי, וְלֹא הָיָה רוֹצֶה בּוֹ מִמֶּנִּי נִבְרָא נִצְרָךְ וְחַלָּשׁ כָּמוֹנִי, וּכְמוֹ שֶׁאָמַר הַכָּתוּב: "גַּם בּוֹשׁ לֹא יֵבֹשׁוּ, וְהִכָּלֵם לֹא יָדָעוּ"? אָז יִנָּגֵף הַיֵּצֶר.
How then can I not feel ashamed before my Creator, offering Him from my soul that which I would never accept from a weakling like myself, and which no needy, weak creature like myself would accept from me, as the verse says: 'They were not at all ashamed, nor did they know how to blush'? With this realization, the yetzer hara will be defeated.
וְכַאֲשֶׁר יִתְיָאֵשׁ הַיֵּצֶר מִפַּתּוֹתְךָ מִן הַפָּנִים הָאֵלֶּה, יִשְׁתַּדֵּל לְפַתּוֹתְךָ בְּהַנָּחַת הַחֹנֶף, וְיֹאמַר לְךָ: לֹא יִתָּכֵן שֶׁתִּהְיֶה עֲבוֹדָתְךָ לָאֵל בְּלֵב שָׁלֵם גְּמוּרָה, עַד שֶׁתַּרְחִיק הַחֹנֶף מִמְּךָ, מִעוּטוֹ וְרֻבּוֹ.
When the yetzer hara despairs of enticing you through these means, he will try to entice you from the angle of abandoning flattery and insincerity, saying to you: 'It is impossible for your service of Hashem to be complete and with a perfect heart until you completely distance yourself from flattery, whether in small or large measure.'
NoteThe yetzer hara now tries to use the fear of 'chonef' (insincerity or showing off) to trick the person into stopping his good deeds altogether.
וְהַרְחָקַת הַחֹנֶף לִבְנֵי אָדָם מֵעָלֶיךָ לֹא יִתָּכֵן אֶלָּא בְּכַסּוֹת כָּל מַעֲשֶׂיךָ מֵהֶם, וּבְהַרְאוֹת הֵפֶךְ מָה שֶׁיֵּשׁ בְּלִבְּךָ לָהֶם.
'And distancing yourself from flattery toward people is only possible by hiding all of your good deeds from them, and by showing them the opposite of what is truly in your heart.'
וְכַאֲשֶׁר תִּתְפַּלֵּל קַצֵּר, וְאַל יֵרָאֶה מִמְּךָ בָּהּ רָצוֹן וְלֹא הִשְׁתַּדְּלוּת.
'Therefore, when you pray, make it brief, and let no sign of desire or intense effort be visible from you.'
וּכְשֶׁתִּרְצֶה לִלְמֹד שׁוּם חָכְמָה הִתְיַחֵד לְבַדְּךָ, וְאַל יֵדַע בָּזֶה זוּלָתִי הַבּוֹרֵא, וְאַל תֵּרָאֶה בָּךְ שׁוּם מִדָּה טוֹבָה, וְהַרְאֵה הָעַצְלָה וְהַכְּבֵדוּת בְּמַעֲשֵׂה הָעֲבוֹדָה, כְּדֵי שֶׁלֹּא יֵצֵא לְךָ בָּהּ שֵׁם וְתַפְסִיד שְׂכָרְךָ.
'And when you want to study Torah, isolate yourself in private so that no one knows of it besides the Creator; let no good character trait be visible in you, and display laziness and heaviness in performing divine service so that you do not gain a reputation for it and lose your reward.'
וְלֹא תְּצַוֶּה עַל הַטּוֹב וְתַזְהִיר מִן הָרַע, וְאַל תּוֹדִיעַ חָכְמָתְךָ וְאַל תְּלַמְּדָהּ לְזוּלָתְךָ, וְאַל יֵרָאֶה עָלֶיךָ סִימָן יִרְאַת שָׁמַיִם וְלֹא אוֹת מֵאוֹתוֹת הָעֲבוֹדָה, שֶׁלֹּא יְכַבְּדוּךָ בְּנֵי אָדָם בַּעֲבוּרָם.
'Do not command others to do good nor warn them against evil; do not make your wisdom known nor teach it to others, and let no sign of fear of Heaven or mark of divine service be seen on you, so that people will not honor you because of them.'
וּמֵהַשְׁלָמַת אָפְנֵי זְרִיזוּתְךָ, שֶׁתִּתְרַע לְכָל כִּתּוֹת בְּנֵי אָדָם, וְתִתְנַהֵג בְּמִנְהֲגֵיהֶם, וְתֵלֵךְ בְּדַרְכֵיהֶם וּבִנְתִיבוֹתָם בְּעִנְיָן דִּבְרֵי הָאֱמֶת וְהַשְּׂחוֹק.
'And to make your caution complete, you should socialize with all kinds of people, adopt their customs, and walk in their ways and paths regarding lightheartedness and joking instead of speaking words of truth.'
וְאַל תִּשְׁמֵר כָּל כָּךְ מִן הַכָּזָב וְהַשְּׁבוּעָה, וְהִתְחַבֵּר עִמָּהם בְּמַאֲכָל וּבְמִשְׁתֶּה, וּבְחִידוֹת וּבְמוֹתְרֵי הַדְּבָרִים וְרֹב הַשְּׂחוֹק, וּלְדַבֵּר בָּהֶם לִזְכֹּר גְּנוּתָם, וְכָל אֲשֶׁר יַרְחִיק מִמְּךָ שֵׁם הַפְּרִישׁוּת בָּעוֹלָם הַזֶּה אֵצֶל אֲנָשָׁיו.
'Do not be so careful to avoid falsehood and oaths, and join them in eating and drinking, in riddles, idle chatter, excessive laughter, and speaking about people to mention their faults—indeed, do anything that will distance you from a reputation of abstinence among the people of this world.'
וְאִם תִּשְׁמַע לוֹ בָּזֶה, יִשְׁלֹל מִמְּךָ אֱמוּנָתְךָ וְלֹא תַּרְגִּישׁ.
And if you listen to him in this, he will strip you of your faith without you even realizing it.
וְאִם תָּשִׁיב עָלָיו וְתֹאמַר לוֹ: כְּבָר עָזַרְתָּ לְאוֹיְבַי בְּהִלָּחֶמְךָ בִּי, וְהִתְחַכֶּמְךָ לִי לַהֲרֹס כֹּחִי וּלְמַהֵר מַפַּלְתִּי; וְאֵיךְ אֶבְרַח מִן הָאֵשׁ הַקְּטַנָּה אֶל הָאֵשׁ הַגְּדוֹלָה?
But you must answer him and say: 'You have already aided my enemies by waging war against me and using your cunning to destroy my strength and hasten my downfall; how can I flee from a small fire into a massive fire?'
וַאֲנִי לֹא בָּרַחְתִּי מֵאַהֲבַת הַשֵּׁם וְהַכָּבוֹד אֶלָּא שֶׁלֹּא לְהִזְדַּיֵּן לִבְנֵי אָדָם, וְאַתָּה מְצַוֶּה אוֹתִי לְהִזְדַּיֵּן לָהֶם בְּהַנָּחַת עֲבוֹדַת הָאֱלֹהִים!
'I only fled from the love of fame and honor so that I would not show off to people, yet you are commanding me to show off to them by abandoning the service of Hashem!'
אַךְ מַה שֶּׁרָאוּי לְהַסְתִּירוֹ מִמַּעֲשַׂי, הוּא כָּל מָה שֶׁיֻּשְׁלַם וְיֻגְמַר מִבְּלִי דַּעַת בְּנֵי אָדָם בּוֹ.
'Rather, the deeds of mine that are proper to hide are those that can be fully completed and finished without any human being knowing about them.'
אֲבָל לְהִתְפַּלֵּל בְּצִבּוּר, וּלְצַוּוֹת בַּטּוֹב וּלְהַזְהִיר מִן הָרַע, וְלִמּוּד הַחָכְמוֹת, וַעֲשׂוֹת חֶסֶד וְהַדּוֹמֶה לָזֶה, אֵין מִן הַזְּרִיזוּת לְהַנִּיחַ אוֹתוֹ וּלְעָזְבוֹ בַּעֲבוּר עִלַּת הַחֹנֶף; אַךְ אֲנִי חַיָּב לַעֲשׂוֹתוֹ לְשֵׁם שָׁמַיִם.
'But praying with a minyan, commanding good and warning against evil, teaching Torah, performing acts of kindness, and the like—it is not proper caution to neglect and abandon them out of fear of flattery; rather, I am obligated to perform them solely for the sake of Heaven.'
וְאִם יְשַׁבְּחוּנִי בְּנֵי אָדָם עָלָיו אוֹ יְכַבְּדוּנִי בַּעֲבוּרוֹ, לֹא יַזִּיק בִּשְׂכָרִי מְאוּמָה, מִפְּנֵי שֶׁלֹּא הָיְתָה כַּוָּנָתִי לוֹ בְּעֵת הַמַּעֲשֶׂה.
'And if people praise me for it or honor me because of it, it will not diminish my reward in the slightest, because that was not my intention when I performed the deed.'
וּכְבָר נֶאֱמַר: כְּשֶׁתַּעֲשֶׂה מַעֲשֶׂה שֶׁיּוֹדְעִים בּוֹ בְּנֵי אָדָם, וְתִרְצֶה לַעֲמֹד עַל בֵּרוּר כַּוָּנָתְךָ, בְּחַן נַפְשְׁךָ בּוֹ בִּשְׁנֵי פָּנִים.
And it has already been said: When you perform a good deed that other people are aware of, and you want to verify the purity of your intention, test yourself in two ways.
אֶחָד מֵהֶם: שֶׁתֵּדַע מָה אַתָּה מְקַוֶּה בַּמַּעֲשֶׂה הַהוּא מִן הַגְּמוּל, וּמִמִּי אַתָּה מְקַוֶּה אוֹתוֹ; אִם מִן הָאֱלֹהִים, הוּא שָׁלֵם, וְאִם מִזּוּלָתוֹ, אֵינֶנּוּ שָׁלֵם.
The first is: to clarify what reward you hope to receive from that deed, and from whom you expect it; if you hope for it from Hashem, your intention is perfect, but if from anyone else, it is not perfect.
וְהַשֵּׁנִי: שֶׁתֵּדַע מִנַּפְשְׁךָ שֶׁאִם הָיִיתָ מִתְיַחֵד, הֶהָיִיתָ עוֹשֶׂה הַמַּעֲשֶׂה הַהוּא עַל הָעִנְיָן הַהוּא; וְאִם יִתְבָּרֵר לְךָ זֶה, מַעֲשְׂךָ שָׁלֵם לֵאלֹהִים, הַרְבֵּה מִמֶּנּוּ, וְאִם יִהְיֶה פָּחוֹת מִזֶּה, הַנִּיחֵהוּ עַד שֶׁיִּזְדַּכֵּךְ לִבְּךָ לַשָּׁמַיִם; אָז יִנָּגֵף הַיֵּצֶר.
The second is: to ask yourself honestly whether, if you were completely alone, you would still perform that deed in the exact same manner; if this is clear to you, then your deed is pure for Hashem, so do more of it, but if it would be less than that, stop doing it until your heart becomes purified for the sake of Heaven. With this, the yetzer hara will be defeated.
וְאִם לֹא יִמְצָא הַיֵּצֶר דֶּרֶךְ לְפַתּוֹתְךָ מֵהַפָּנִים הָאֵלֶּה, יִתְחַכֵּם לְךָ בְּמָה שֶׁהוּא יוֹתֵר דַּק מִזֶּה, וְהוּא דֶּרֶךְ הַגְּמוּל וְהָעֹנֶשׁ בָּעוֹלָם הַזֶּה וּבָעוֹלָם הַבָּא.
And if the yetzer hara cannot find a way to entice you through these methods, he will try to outsmart you with an even subtler approach, which is through the path of reward and punishment in this world and the World to Come.
וְיֹאמַר לְךָ: הִנֵּה אַתָּה מֵחֲסִידֵי הַבּוֹרֵא וּמִסְּגֻלָּתוֹ, וְכָמוֹךָ הוּא רָאוּי לִגְמוּל הָעוֹלָם הַזֶּה וְהַבָּא, וְצָרִיךְ שֶׁתִּשְׁתַּדֵּל כְּפִי יְכָלְתְּךָ, אוּלַי תַּתְחִיל לְהַגִּיעַ לָזֶה בְּמַעֲשֶׂיךָ וּבְהִמָּשֶׁכְךָ אַחֲרֵי עֲבוֹדַת הָאֱלֹהִים בְּלֵב טוֹב וּבְשִׂמְחָה רַבָּה, כְּמוֹ שֶׁאָמַר דָּוִד: "אוֹר זָרֻעַ לַצַּדִּיק, וּלְיִשְׁרֵי לֵב שִׂמְחָה".
He will say to you: 'Behold, you are among the pious of the Creator and His treasured ones, and someone like you is truly worthy of reward in this world and the next; you must exert yourself to the utmost of your ability, so that perhaps you may attain this through your deeds and by dedicating yourself to the service of Hashem with a good heart and great joy, as David HaMelech said: "Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart."'
NoteHere, the yetzer hara tries to inject self-righteousness and pride into the person's avodah by making him feel superior and focused on his own spiritual stature.
The chapter details how the yetzer hara disrupts our service of G-d, first by distracting the mind with intellectual pursuits during davening, leading to a hollow service where one's lips are close to Hashem but the heart is far. To counter this, a person must make a soul-accounting, realizing he would never treat a fellow human being with such insincerity. When the yetzer hara then tries to push him to the opposite extreme—abandoning public mitzvos, learning, and rebuke under the pretense of avoiding flattery—the person must answer that public mitzvos must still be performed for the sake of Heaven, and he must test his true motives by examining his inner feelings regarding the praise of others.
The yetzer hara is incredibly cunning. When he cannot stop you from serving Hashem, he will try to ruin your avodah from the inside. If you are learning, he will distract you during davening with a difficult kashya or a brilliant chiddush, making you feel like you are doing something holy while your heart is actually far from Hashem. If you overcome that, he will try to make you hide your yiras Shamayim completely under the guise of avoiding ga'avah and flattery, whispering that you should act lazy or join in lightheadedness just to remain hidden.
True avodah requires us to recognize these subtle traps. We must be honest with ourselves: if we would be embarrassed to ask a favor from a flesh-and-blood friend while our mind was completely distracted, how can we stand before the Ribbono shel Olam with our lips moving while our hearts are elsewhere? At the same time, we cannot let the fear of showing off stop us from davening with warmth in public, learning Torah openly, or helping another Yid.
Today, before you begin to daven or do a mitzvah, take ten seconds to quiet your mind. Ask yourself: 'If I were completely alone right now, would I still do this mitzvah with the same care?' Clear away all outside thoughts, even holy thoughts of Torah study, and focus solely on the fact that you are standing directly before the Creator of the world.