We are now discussing the different areas of Bitachon. The first area is Bitachon in one’s personal life.
Today we will specifically address health and living. Although the Hovot HaLevavot wrote the book on Bitachon, he is weary of over-Bitachon. He tells us that even though it’s been decided how many years you’ll live, you still have to go through the efforts of life. You have to eat, drink, clothe yourself, and take care of your person hygiene.
He says we should not say:
אם קדם בגזרת הבורא שאחיה ישאיר נפשי בגופי מבלי מזון
"if the Creator has pre-decreed that I will live, then my body will survive without food all the days of my life, therefore I will not trouble myself to eat..”
That line of thinking is ridiculous. He goes further and says the same is true for health. Bitachon is not a heter for laziness or negligence. Most people who don’t exercise don’t because they’re lazy. It’s not because of Bitachon.
Furthermore, he says, a person can’t let himself get into dangerous situations based on Bitachon. For example, you can’t enter a dangerous forest knowing there are wild animals there, and you can’t jump into a dangerous ocean, or anything like that. You can’t put your life in danger and say, “I’m relying on Hashem.”
He mentions a Pasuk from Devarim as proof:
לא תנסו את ה׳ אלקיכם.
Do not test G-d.
This pasuk is normally brought down in the context of testing G-d with our mitzvot. We can’t say we’ll put on tefilin only if Hashem makes us wealthy, or say we’ll keep Shabbat “only if You make us healthy.” We can’t test G-d. We can’t make deals with G-d.
(The only exception to this rule is ma’aser.)
The Hovot HaLevavot says this rule applies to Bitachon and health. Don’t test G-d. Don’t speed or drive recklessly and put yourself in harm’s way to test Hashem.
There are two possible outcomes if someone does so. One outcome is that the person doesn’t survive.
The Hovot HaLevavot gives us a Hiddush here-That a person who isn’t careful with his health, or who is reckless, and gets into an accident, is held responsible for murder,
even though, of course, G-d decreed what would happen. He says there is no difference between murdering someone else and murdering yourself. On the contrary, murdering yourself is actually worse! He brings a pasuk that says regarding a person who kills someone close to him, such as a brother or parent, it’s a much worse sin than killing a stranger. Therefore, killing oneself is the worse possible thing. He says there is great punishment in store for those who do so. This is not referring to someone who jumps off a bridge, lo alenu. This is regarding someone who isn’t careful with his health. We must take take of our health, and we can’t use Bitachon as an excuse.
A man who was being too lenient about seeing doctors, and was not careful with his health, was once told by the Chazon Ish that a person has to try to care for himself as he would care for a friend. So much so, that when he listens to the doctor’s advice and does what he’s told, even if it’s for himself, he is fulfilling the mitzvah of Bikur Holim. Bikur Holim is not only for strangers. Our responsibility to ourselves is even greater. The Chazon Ish further writes, in one of his letters, that being negligent when it comes to saving yourself falls under the sin of שפיכות דמים /murder.
This is a big Hiddush. Our lives aren’t in our own hands.
I recently heard an old class of Rav Wolbe’s, from many years ago, where he spoke about a medical conference he had been to. He mentioned that many great poskim were there as well. A question was asked at the conference, about how to handle a person who rejects a life-saving procedure because he’s opposed to it for some reason. For example, we can say that he refused a heart valve because it was taken from a pig; or perhaps a person was opposed to receiving a blood transfusion from a stranger’s blood. The question was whether the doctors could use a pretext to fool the patient into the procedure, thus sparing his life, albeit without his permission. The Rabbis at the conference said that yes, they could do the procedure against his will, because he is not the owner of his life. (This was a halachic decision and doesn’t reflect the law in America.) Just like you can’t kill others, you can’t kill yourself.
Assisted suicide is forbidden in our religion. More than that, we are hearing from Hovot HaLevavot that this is the worse possible thing.
You have to take care of your health.
