Chapter 4

This is a long one.

I learnt the following things:

1. Good works and virtues are means to the end of achieving perfection -- our ultimate goal. This is similar to what the Rambam says...

2. Envy will exist in the world to come. If you mess up in this world, you'll get a very puny share in the next world, and you're not going to like it, just like you don't like it now when your neighbour is driving a fancier car or has a bigger house. I think this moshul is VERY strange and hard to understand........

3. Death gives urgency to our need to watch over our deeds -- we won't be able to fix them when we're dead.

4. Even the smallest sins can lead to grave punishments, and the holier you are, the more accountable you become. This is of course a well-known idea that is often summoned to explain apparently asymmetric punishments in the Torah. To be honest, this idea -- coupled with the idea that there is no reward for mitzvos in this world -- ought to discourage many people from the pursuit of saintliness. Who wants to bring such scrutiny onto themselves?

5. When teschuva is accepted, the very desire for the sin is taken away. I've never heard of that before. How do you understand it? If you come across something that has caused you to sin, and you still have the desire to sin with it -- does that mean that your teschuva has not been accepted?

6. Fear of sin leads to watchfulness of actions. Fear of sin is acquired through knowledge of the requirements of the law, desire to achieve greater reward in Olam Haba, desire to achieve perfection in deeds and character, and being fearful of Divine punishment.

I once presented that idea to a teacher of mine. I never did get a satisfactory answer.

To understand this, I think you first have to understand 3, that our life on this earth is finite. During this finite life our job is to maximize ourselves in order reap the benefits in the next world. As one moves up the ladder in this world the cleansing process of punishment is more appreciated because one should prefer punishment in this short life, as compared to the repercussions in the next.

It's not that complicated. Sure earning more money puts you into a higher tax bracket but that doesn't mean you'll want to stay really poor just so you can pay less taxes. The closer to perfection you become the better your share in the world to come. Sure you get put under greater scrutiny as you go to higher levels but it's worth it.

Except that when you become saintly, instead of being taxed at a higher bracket, your best friend dies on the account of you tying your shoelaces improperly.

heres how I would sum it up:
If you have a brand new 2008 Audi R8 and you get a small little scratch on the side door, It would be very noticeable, and maybe a bit embarrassing and it would bother the owner alot. It would cost more then $1000 to repair.

But even if you get a large sized dent on a banged up well used 84 Buick RoadMaster, No one would notice, it wouldn't bother the owner and the damage could be repair for under $100

Ok, and many people prefer simpler cheaper cars to avoid the headache of worrying over every single scratch.

How long will a cheap car last you? How far can you travel? How much will you be paying for repairs?

We don't want to be carried away with analogies, but there are many people who would rather buy a new Honda Accord than a Mercedes.

In any case, the answer in this chapter is that if you don't perfect yourself and settle for a Honda Accord portion in the World To Come, you will feel jealous of your buddies who will have acquired a much greater share. I don't know about this one.

Another answer given is that you want to perfect, actualize yourself as much as possible during your lifetime, and so you shouldn't settle for mediocrity. Zusya should strive to be the best Zusya possible.

Why is it so hard to understand?



Surely there is a reward for mitzvos in this world - the Torah says it quite clearly - and we say it in Shema several times a day. If you will keep mitzvos, then G-d will give sustenance, and rain, etc.

How long can you last with such simple goals.

I want to make more money so I can live in a nicer house, I want to live in a nicer house because I want to have room to park my Bentley, I want a bentley so I can feel like I have accomplished something in life, And when that gets booring I want to get a LearJet and so on....

Living life under a box will not get you far at all. We find no real satisfaction or happiness in life without obstacles to conquer and goals to achieve. and if your goal is well defined and you have decided that you ill not stop until you get a learjet then you will get there eventually. Just like a car needs fuel - Dreams, goals, ambitions - these are the stuff a man uses for fuel.

Set priorities for your goals. A major part of successful living lies in the ability to put first things first. Indeed, the reason most major goals are not achieved is that we spend our time doing second things first.

Different people have different ambitions. For some, money, a house, a bentley is what it's all about. For others, all that is narishkeit. Their ideal is something more abstract, something more elusive and subtle.

Still others have no ideals at all.

Being jealous after you die? What other kinds of emotions will there be?



Yes, and Rambam explains that this only means that you will be given the opportunity to do more mitzvos, there are no other rewards [with exceptions].

I think being the best Zusya possible is a pretty tough goal to strive for...

Int said very well in the other thread that people -- well, I think men mostly -- find meaning in creating things that outlast them. There is no shortage of endeavours that produce things that can outlast a man and give him meaning and real happiness.

What's wrong with having emotions once you're resurrected (including jealousy)?



Yeah, so? That's not enough? If you are given opportunity to do mitzvos in a peaceful and calm environment, I think that's a very good reward in itself and what many people would call a "good life". What do you want - a pot of gold?

where the truck is that little devilish leprechaun

who said anything about resurrection???



Didn't you daven Yom Kippur mussaf?

Depends on what you mean by "after you die". According to some, that period will include resurrection.



I did. Elaborate.

I don't think it's that hard to be afraid of Sin. To beat him you need to use all of the aeons, and I mean all of them. You have to go back and get Yojimbo. I think the only RPG top boss scarier than Sin was Sophia Pathos from Xenosaga...

...

Why would you place a thread about FFX under Divrei Torah???

First you need to beat Dark Element, Epaaj, Ghost, Imp, Nidhogg, Thorn, Tonberry, Valaha, & Yowie

Can usagi(=rabbit) yojimbo (=hired assassin samurai) beat wind and water(=fuu sui aka feng shwei)?

Whoa, get off the acid.

To the best of my understanding The World To Come means that you are no longer alive in a physical body. Resurrection is something that will happen at some other point in the future, and, according to the Rambam, only to certain people. But that's a separate stage.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ten_Martyrs


You don't get crud for doing mitzvos.

The closer we become to Hashem, the more infinite we become, and we affect the world more and more deeply. At the same time, Hashem takes care of us more closely; we are protected from evil and secure, like a baby who never worries whether its mother will remember to feed it tomorrow, and with endlessly fulfilling potential to grow. At the same time, if we affect the world in a less than optimal way, we're setting off a longer chain reaction than someone at the end of the chain, and can cause a lot more damage than is apparent at the time. In order to save us from this, we are punished in this world. Would you rather suffer for a time in this life or suffer eternally?

so if R'Eliyashiv oversleeps davening, that might cause a small earthquake in Peru. Ok. So you are saying that God saves the innocent Peruvians by instead giving R'Eliyashiv a massive daylong headache as punishment? Why would R'Eliyashiv otherwise suffer eternally? Surely he'll be getting a nice reward after 120. And what about cases such as the ones listed in this chapter when the saintly individuals apparently did harm bystanders through their sins?

By suffer eternally, I mean forever have less kedusha than they could have.

I think it's possible that by lowering the spiritual level, they made it possible for others to sin and be punished. But I don't know.