Shabbat – The Time to Refocus
The Torah commands us in Sefer Bamidbar (15:39) – in a pasuk which we recite twice daily as part of the Shema reading – that we must guard our eyes from seeing improper sights:
ולא תתורו אחרי לבבכם ואחרי עיניכם אשר אתם זונים אחריהם
“You shall not follow your heart and your eyes after which you might be led astray…”
The Sefer Ha’hinuch lists this prohibition as one of the Torah’s 613 commands (387), and he explains that the Torah here indicates to us the proper perspective we ought to have towards worldly pleasures. Sins, the Sefer Ha’hinuch writes, are the product of an improper mindset, and so by ensuring to live with the proper mindset, we can help ensure that we avoid wrongdoing. The Torah therefore warns not to look upon sights that can lead us astray, which also means not pursuing worldly pleasures as ends unto themselves. We are to perceive physical pleasure as means of maintaining our health and helping us serve the Almighty. The root of sin is overly focusing on worldly pleasures, perceiving them as our ultimate goal which we pursue. The Torah teaches us this concept by way of the prohibition of לא תתורו because viewing inappropriate sights has the effect of drawing our focus and attention onto worldly pleasures. It takes us away from our focus on Torah and mitzvot – which ought to be our goals and highest priorities in life – and causes us to focus instead on physical gratification. The concept of שמירת עיניים (literally ;guarding our eyes), is also referring to maintaining our priorities and staying focused on that which should be our ultimate goal.
For this reason, it is especially important to guard our eyes on Shabbat. Shabbat is the time when we take a break from our regular mundane activities, when we step back from our activities of the workweek which could easily distort our priority scale and draw our focus away from our ultimate goals. On Shabbat, we indulge in fine foods and drinks as part of a spiritual experience, in serving Hashem, thus reinforcing our sense of priorities and our understanding of what is the end and what is the means. Shabbat is the time when we elevate physical pleasure to a higher plane, thereby ensuring that although we engage in mundane activities throughout the week to support ourselves and our families, nevertheless, our highest priority and ultimate goal is not money and physical enjoyment, but rather spirituality and building a connection with Hashem. Especially on Shabbat, then, we must ensure not to look upon sights which can take our focus away from spirituality and draw our attention onto the physical pleasures of the world, as this would undermine one of the most important objectives of the Shabbat experience.
Indeed, a close connection exists between Shabbat and שמירת עיניים. The Talmud Yerushalmi teaches that each of the Ten Commandments has an allusion in Shema. For example, the words שמע ישראל ה' אלקינו (“Hear, O Israel, Hashem our G-d”) parallels the first of the Aseret Ha’dibberot – אנכי ה' אלקיך (“I am Hashem your G-d”). The words ה' אחד (“Hashem is One”) parallels the prohibition against worshipping other deities (לא יהיה לך אלהים אחרים). The words ואספת דגנך, which speak of a person harvesting the grain he sowed( and not taking his friend’s grain), alludes to the prohibition against theft, taking other people’s property (לא תגנוב). The Yerushlami also mentions that the command of ולא תתורו אחרי לבבכם alludes to the prohibition against illicit relations (לא תנאף), and the next pasuk – למען תזכרו ועשיתם את כל מצוותי (“…in order that you remember to perform all My commands”) – parallels the command to remember Shabbat (זכור את יום השבת לקדשו), which is equal to all other mitzvot. According to the Yerushalmi, then, the prohibition of ולא תתורו is presented right before the command that refers to Shabbat – למען תזכרו. The reason is because in order to achieve the goals of Shabbat, the goals of resetting our priorities, we need to avoid sights that direct our focus in the wrong direction.
A man who was considering purchasing his first luxury car once came to Rav Aharon Steinman for advice. Having achieved financial success, he wanted to buy a luxury car, but he was concerned that this might arouse the envy of others and this cause an עין הרע (“evil eye”). He asked the great sage whether or not this was a legitimate concern, or if he should buy the car without worrying.
Rav Steinman replied by asking a seemingly unrelated question. “How many times have you finished Shas?”
The man, perplexed, replied that he had not finished Shas even once.
“Then how many Masechtot (tractates of Talmud) have you completed?”
“Very, very few,” the man said.
“Then you have nothing to worry about,” the Rabbi assured. “Nobody will be jealous of you.”
For the great sages, it is clear and obvious that the most important thing in life is Torah, not material wealth, and so it is only Torah achievement that could arouse envy.
Another story is told of Rav Shach, who once met the great philanthropist Mr. Moshe Reichman. After meeting with the great sage and writing out millions of dollars’ worth of checks to support important Torah institutions, Mr. Reichman turned to Rav Shach and asked, “Whose share in the next world is greater – mine, or the Rabbis and scholars whom I am supporting?”
“I can’t answer that question,” Rav Shach replied. “Only Hashem knows who will receive a greater portion of the next world. But what I can tell you with absolute certainty is that the Rabbis and scholars you support have a much greater portion of this world, because they spend their time studying Torah.”
For Rav Shach, “quality of life” is determined not by one’s material blessings, but rather by the extent of his involvement in spirituality.
The Mishna in Pirkeh Avot (6:4) says:
כך היא דרכה של תורה: פת במלח תאכל ומים במשורה תשתה ועל הארץ תישן וחיי צער תחיה ובתורה אתה עמל. אם אתה עושה כן...אשריך בעולם הזה וטוב לך לעולם הבא.
“This is the way of Torah: you eat bread with salt, drink water in rations, sleep on the floor, live a life of difficulty, and toil in Torah. If you do this…fortunate are you in this world, and it will be good for you in the next world.
Rav Yaakov Kaminetzky explained this Mishna to mean that one must be prepared to endure hardship and poverty if this is necessary to properly devote oneself to Torah. Our highest priority should be spirituality, not physical comfort, and therefore we must be willing to make material sacrifices, even difficult sacrifices, for the sake of Torah.
The Pele Yoetz notes the Mishna’s concluding comment, “If you do this…fortunate are you…” The good fortune of sacrificing for Torah is experienced only “if you do this” – meaning, by one who actually does so. Others may feel sorry for such a person, but the person himself feels fortunate and gratified. He recognizes and appreciates the unparalleled joy and beauty of Torah, and so he feels fortunate even when he sacrifices his material wellbeing and physical enjoyment for the sake of Torah.
Shabbat is called מעין עולם הבא – an experience which, to some small degree, resembles the experience of the next world. As the next world is entirely spiritual, the concept of מעין עולם הבא includes the refocusing of our priorities, understanding the primacy of the spiritual over the physical. This is why we spend Shabbat involved in praying, learning and singing praise to Hashem, as well as elevating our physical activities to the lofty plane of spirituality.
By observing Shabbat the right way, and utilizing this special opportunity to straighten our priorities and focus our attention on what’s really important in life and what our true goals are, we will absorb the unique kedushah of Shabbat and become better and holier people.