Rabotai (my masters), I want to share with you a beautiful story that happened a couple of weeks ago in Ramat Beit Shemesh Bet. This story was told by a Rav in Eretz Yisrael, named Rebbe Chaim Zaid. He said that a couple of weeks ago, an avrech, a Kollel (Torah study program) person, walked into the shul (synagogue) during First Seder (first study session), all shaken up. His friends asked him, “What happened?” He told them, “Rabotai, I want to share with you what happened to me this morning.”
“For years, I have taken the bus from my house to the Kollel to learn Torah in the morning. The regular bus, the autobus. Every single morning, while doing Shacharit, the prayers in the morning, I daven (pray) to Hashem: ‘Hashem, please help me so that today I’ll be able to watch my eyes. Hashem, please help me with Shemirat Einayim (watch my eyes).’ I need davens, I need davens. Today, I walk up to the bus, go up the stairs, and get on the bus.”
“The chiloni bus driver, the secular bus driver, turns to me and tells me, ‘Atem HaDatiyim, you religious people, I know what you do. You’re hooked up with God, because I know you’re doing something.’” The avrech asked the bus driver, “What are you talking about? What’s going on?” He said, “I want to tell you something. Every single morning, when you get on the bus, for some reason, even though every single day someone sits in your seat, which is behind the bus driver, every time you get on the bus, either the person sitting in that seat behind me gets off at the stop before you, or that person moves when you get on.”
You see, this avrech specifically sat behind the bus driver. Why? Because as soon as you get on the bus, you’re most able to watch your eyes. You get on the bus, and then, boom, you sit right behind the bus driver in the first seat, so you’re able to see less. You’re able to control your eyes. This person davened to Hashem every single day: “Hashem, please help me control my eyes.” And he didn’t even realize how much Hashem had hooked him up. Every single day, the bus driver said, for some reason, even though someone was sitting in that seat before you, either they got off at the stop before you, or they moved as soon as you got onto the bus.
This avrech, when he arrived, said, “We underestimate the power of tefillah (prayer). Every single day, I daven to Hashem: ‘Hashem, I want to watch my eyes. Please help me out.’ And little did I know that every single day, for some reason, Hashem made those people move seats so I could sit behind the bus driver in order to watch my eyes.”
If a person wants to take upon himself to be a kadosh (holy person), if a person wants to watch his eyes, the basics, the beginning—and this is also in the Chazon Ish, by the way—the basics for a person to have Shemirat Einayim is tefillah. The regular Hishtadlut (effort), the regular effort to try to watch your eyes, is tefillah, tefillah, tefillah. Once you daven to Hashem, “Hashem, please help me control my eyes,” don’t underestimate your power. It’s the power of prayer to watch your eyes.