Path of the Just Mesilat Yesharim Class #6 The Trait of Diligence

(1) After "watchfulness" comes "zeal". For "watchfulness" revolves around the negative mitzvot while "zeal" around the positive mitzvot. This is as written "turn from evil and do good" (Ps. 34:15).

(2) The matter of "Zeal" is clear. It is the early engaging in mitzvot and their completion as the sages of blessed memory said: "the zealous are early to perform the mitzvot" (Pesachim 4a).

(3) For just like it requires great intelligence and much foresight to save oneself from the snares of the evil inclination, and to escape from the evil so that it does not rule over us and mix in our deeds, so too it requires great cleverness and foresight to grasp the mitzvot, to acquire them, and not to lose them.

(4) For just like the evil inclination causes and strives with its strategies to cast man into the nets of sin, so too it strives to prevent him from performing Mitzvot and to leave him devoid of them.

(5) If a man weakens and is lazy, not strengthening himself to pursue them and to hold on to them, he will certainly remain shaken out and empty of them.

(6) You can observe that man's nature weighs very heavily upon him. For the earthiness of the physical is gross. Therefore a man does not want to exert himself and labor. But he who wants to merit to the service of the Creator must strengthen himself against his own nature, mustering strength and zeal.

(7) If he leaves himself in the hands of his [natural] heaviness, it is a certainty that he will not succeed. This is what the Tana (Mishnaic sage) stated: "be brazen as a leopard, light as an eagle, swift as a deer, and mighty as a lion to do the will of your Father in Heaven" (Avot 5:20). Likewise, the Sages counted among the things which need strengthening: "Torah and good deeds" (Berachot 32b). This is explicitly stated in scripture: "be strong and very courageous [to observe and do all of the Torah...]" (Yehoshua 1:6). For great strengthening is needed for one who wants to bend his nature to its opposite.

(8) Behold, Shlomo repeatedly exhorted many times on this in seeing the evil of laziness and the greatness of the harm resulting from it. He said "a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest. Then shall your poverty come as a traveler" (Mishlei 24:33). For behold, even though the lazy person is not doing evil actively, nevertheless he brings evil on himself through his very inactivity.

(9) Shlomo further said: "also he who is slack in his work is a brother to the destroyer" (Mishlei 18:9). For even though this person is not a destroyer who commits evil directly with his own hands, don't think he is far removed from being one. On the contrary, he is the destroyer's brother and his comrade.

(10) He further stated a familiar, every day illustration to explain the evil that befalls the lazy person: "I passed by the field of a lazy man, and by the vineyard of the man without understanding; And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face of it, and its stone wall was broken down; Then I observed; I put my heart to it; I beheld and I received mussar (instruction); A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to lie down; so shall your poverty come as a traveler, and your want like a man with a shield" (Mishlei 24:30-34).

(11) Besides the plain meaning, which is true in the literal sense, for this is indeed what happens to the field of a lazy man, the sages of blessed memory expounded it beautifully in a Midrash (Yalkut Mishlei 247:961) as follows:

(12) "it was all grown over with thorns" - refers to one who seeks the interpretation of a portion of the Torah and does not find it.

(13) "nettles had covered the face of it" - since he did not labor sufficiently in the Torah, he sits in judgment and declares the pure, unclean and the impure, clean, thus breaching the fence set up by the Torah Sages. What is his punishment? Shlomo revealed it: "one who breaches a fence will be bitten by a snake" (Kohelet 10:8).

(14) That is, the evil that befalls the lazy man does not come all at once. Rather it comes little by little. Without his knowing it or sensing it, he is pulled from one evil to another until he finds himself sunk in ultimate evil.

(15) Behold, at first he is merely diminishing the labor that was proper for him. This draws him to not study the Torah adequately. Due to lack of study, when he goes afterwards to study, he will be lacking the requisite understanding.

(16) If the evil that befalls him would end there, his calamity would already be great. But it grows further, for in his desire to at least explain the section or chapter under consideration, he distorts reasons not in accordance with Halacha, destroying truth, and perverting it till he transgresses decrees and breaches the fences.

(17) His end is destruction like all those who breach fences. Shlomo continues: "then I observed; I put my heart to it" - I reflected on this matter and realized the great evil in it, for it is like a poison which creeps and spreads little by little. Its effect is not noticed until death comes. This is the meaning of: "a little sleep... so shall your destitution come swiftly as a traveler, etc."

(18) We can observe with our own eyes how so often a person comes to understand his duty in this world and grasps the truth of what is required to save his soul and what is his duty towards his Creator, but despite this, he disregards it. This disregard is not due to insufficient clarity of this duty, nor any other cause but the heaviness of laziness which overcomes him.

(19) He thus says: "I will eat a bit", or "I will sleep a little", or "it is difficult for me to leave my house". "I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on again?". "It is very hot outside". "It is very cold" or "it is raining" and all the other sorts of excuses and rationalizations that the mouths of lazy people are full of. Either way, in the meantime the Torah is abandoned, the service of G-d is idle, and man abandons his Creator. This is what Shlomo said: "by laziness the ceiling decays; and through lowering of the hands the house leaks" (Kohelet 10:18).

(20) If you ask the lazy person [to explain his behavior], he will confront you with numerous quotations of the sages, verses from scripture, and logical arguments all of which instruct him, according to his distorted mind, to be lenient with himself, and to leave himself in the tranquility of his laziness.

(21) But he fails to see that all these arguments and reasons do not stem from balanced reasoning but rather spring from the wellspring of laziness, which, as it strengthens over him, inclines his views and intellect to those arguments. Hence he fails to heed the voice of the wise and men of sound judgment. This is what Shlomo screams out: "The lazy man is wiser in his own eyes than seven men that answer sensibly" (Mishlei 26:16).

(22) For laziness does not allow him to be even concerned for the words of those who rebuke him. Rather he will consider them all to be mistaken or foolish, while he alone is the wise one.

(23) Know that this is a fundamental principle, well tested by experience, in the art of Separation: every leniency must be carefully investigated. For even though, it is possible that it is justified and correct, nevertheless it is more likely to be the advice of the evil inclination and its deceit. Therefore, one must investigate it with much analysis and examination. If after all this it still stands meritorious, then certainly it is good.

(24) The summary of the matter: a man must greatly strengthen himself and fortify himself with zeal in doing the Mitzvot by casting off himself the weight of laziness which impedes him.

(25) The angels were praised for possessing this good trait as written: "[Bless the L-rd, His angels,] those mighty in strength, who perform His word, hearkening to the voice of His word" (Tehilim 103:20); and "the Chayot dash to and fro like the appearance of a flash of lightning" (Yechezkel 1:14). Behold, a man is a man and not an angel, hence it is impossible for him to attain the might of an angel, but he should certainly strive to do all he can to come as close to that level as possible. King David would praise (G-d) for his portion saying: "I hasten and do not delay to keep your commandments" (Tehilim 119:60).