“Destroy Man’s desire to sin,” our sages tell us, “and you would destroy the world.”
Not that anyone should actually sin. We need to rechannel that desire for the good. To build a house. To marry. To create.
But one who lacks the desire to sin, though he may be very righteous, is not indigenous to this world.
And a world can only be changed by those who are truly a part of it.
It's more a matter of becoming like Hashem. Reply
In Judaism we say that we have erred when we don't act as we should. Next time we will do it better. The word sin is fraught with other too many notions that are not part of Judaism. For example, " we were not born in sin." NO1 Since we are given Free Will to decide how to behave, it can be argued that this teaching here is exactly on target. Yet, that person must reflect on his/ her future action to discern if it will help. The innermost destructive impulses are therefore there for a reason: without it we can't build.; if use wisely they can result in an improvement step by step.. It means that we must analyze before we act on impulses. No saints in Judaism ! Reply
The essence of our nature is driven by egoistic desires and intentions.
Our challenge is to transform this basic instinct.
We need to check the intention for our actions to discern towards whom we intend to benefit with the action. Then we spin the intention to help others.
Eventually we will attain a second nature that has the equivalent form of G_d's nature.
We have successfully risen above our sinful, selfish nature by using it's fuel in favour of others. This is our inner work in this world.
Let's be constructive turning sin into good.
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Good🌻Morning,
A slave has no power, but to do what their master tells them to do. We are in this world, but not of this world. GD took us out of Egypt and slavery, and we became citizens of the Kingdom of GD at Mount Sinai when we agreed to follow His statutes when we said "I Do." We are GD's bride and we belong to Him alone. I have all the rights of, as a citizen, of the Kingdom of GD that is presented to me in the Torah. The Torah keeps me straight about the "self" and sinning and how to stay in right standing with GD, so that in His power and light I can affect me and this world for lasting change; bringing Heaven to earth, and making it a home for the Moshiach. Therefore, I am still relatable to the world, but I am no longer a slave because I am a citizen of the Kingdom of GD. GD gives us "freewill" to choose Him or this world. In this world you are in bondage. In GD"s world you are free. Those who are free are like abolitionists freeing slaves.
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Only the Torah can make you feel bad for not sinning and sinning at the same time and still make sense. This is proof it is divine. Reply
Sin vs. Evil Inclination
Is the meaning of "desire to sin" an evil inclination ("yetzer ha ra"?)
Because this way it's perfectly clear;
There is no evil within the evil inclination, but a life force of the world...
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Is it wrong to tell people that they should not sin? What about teaching the 10 Commandments? Is it a crime if we say you should not sin by not honouring your parents? I quite don't understand this statement. We are living in a corrupted world, so we should not sin, even though we have sinned a lot. But to say it us a crime to advise others not to sin, is quite confusing.
Thank you
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I understand the above teaching to do with the following. Jewish thinking leads us to understand that we are here to do good work and to bring Heaven down to Earth. In other words, even the inner evil inclination in each person can be channeled to be a force for good. In fact, that may be its very purpose. So goes for the purpose of the "desire to sin." If we did not have that desire, the teaching is saying, then we are probably not from this world. Therefore, we wouldn't be the ones who are to bring Heaven down the Earth. The Commandments are there to help us achieve this. Reply
In no way does it say to tell people not to sin, and it even states explicitly that we "should not sin."
It's saying, I think, that a world perfectly devoid of the ability/option to sin is missing the point of our purpose. The fact that we could sin (in other words, that we have the free will to do so), is what makes the good we do all the more precious and beneficial.
It's no wonder for a person completely righteous and "above this physical world" to do good things. But suppose someone despite his inclination towards sin decides instead to act properly; now that's something!
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Let us say that this is a sobering statement, that will set our feet on the ground and make us humble before our Lord. It is comforting to know that He will understand when we fall. Reply
desire to sin how interesting and thought-provoking. thank you so much for adding this dimension to my way of thinking about my Jewish life. love it! it reminds me of what an artist showed me once - in drawing a flower. without shadows, it's blah and flat. the shadows add depth and bring the flower to life. like our 'dark' side. without it how could we shine?!!! Reply
How is good A judge can only rule from law. And where else could he practice other then which is revealed. They that practice the law resides in both spaces, as the intention is not division but unity. A request is surely better then a command, as one selects desire over fear. When change is no longer required then unity is formed. Reply
I get it. Sometime my first instinct isn't the right one. But it gives me a chance to ask myself why I'm having that thought or feeling, and it often leads me to doing something good for someone else. Sinful thoughts often come for something missing in my life. Reply
Rabbi, it is your explanations of the original statement that inspire. For certain the original seems contradictory to Torah. I feel the original "good citizens" dose should be shelved because it is not a paradox leading to truth but a conflicted statement that cannot bring light.
BUT!!!! The good news is when you repositioned the thought....adjusted the foundation in your posting "Re: Confusing?" the whole thing opened up!
At face value the original is cloaked in dark. My soul shouted "NO!!!" when i read it. Only in reading your last post did Torah burn bright. My inner parts bursted, a hearty "YES!!!"
Thank you for the early morning roller coaster ride! I'm ready to help fix the world with the hope of Messiah again today.
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Sin
Sin or human nature which describes it better is part of our makeup, GOD knew that when he created us, it's built in. Simply said; the 10 commandments describes our GOD given natural states. Destroy sin and you deny GOD's infallibility.
Here is the paradox, sin is the act of violating GOD's will but it was GOD's will that created man's human nature (one has an inclination to do evil "from his youth".(Genesis 8:21)), who's natural state is to follow it's natural desires or sin as religion categorizes it. Did GOD reduce our life into a real live version of the Amazing Race that is interspersed with physical and mental challenges, and require us to deduce clues, navigate ourselves in foreign areas, interact with locals, perform physical and mental challenges, etc... to win the ultimate prize.
The concept of sin has caused man to become fearful of his/her natural state to become observant but not religious. The goal is to be spiritual, to have a real relationship with GOD.
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Good Citizens I am confused. Baal Tanya has said that at the moment of birth our soul gets a directive to be Tzadic, not a Rasha. As per Tanya definitions, Tzadic has no desire to sin. Are we saying, than, that HaShem wants us NOT to be citizens of this World ? Reply
Great wisdom.
Great wisdom without compassion is soul less
Here great wisdom is given and understood by all .
For who is he or she that claims he is not in the struggle with the opposition. .?
It is through our sorrow we learn happiness Through our pain healing
Through our pains -empathy for others.Through the darkness we yearn for The Light. Yes.Thank The Creator for the opposite.
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Re: Confusing?
I admit it is a tad counter-intuitive. Those steeped in standard Christian ethics, in particular, will have trouble with it. Perhaps this will help unravel this idea for you:
Judaism is about healing the world. Just as angels can't be social workers, the rich can't run a soup kitchen, and someone who has never been ill will have a hard time being a sympathetic nurse, so too those who never experience the burning desire of temptation cannot heal the world.
To effect real change, you need two feet on the ground, and you need to understand and feel what life on planet earth is all about. Someone who never feels an urge to sin is not entirely on planet earth.
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destroying sin in a sinful world
The citizens of this world were born into sin...the citizens of this world are those who desire to sin everyday in this world of sin. If not for sinful citizens of this world, and if not for the sin in this world, we would not be redirected into looking at ourselves to see what desires we have and if they are sinful....then we need to examine our sinful world, and discern if we want to live in this world of sin and keep on desiring sin.
Once God destroyed sin by flooding the earth....this next time Father will burn the earth....it gets the evil out better.....I suppose.
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Innocence of a Child I believe it is G-d's very desire for us to live a pure and holy life. (I wish we could but we fail at times). I would rather live in a world without sin than with but because we have a sinful nature that is not possible. Think of how much better it would be.... I would rather have the purity and innocence of a child one filled with trust, kindness, love for all and giving. Sin causes nothing but heartaches, it destroys. It is like the weeds in the garden it starts off small but if you don't get it out it can soon take over someone's life. :) Have a wonderful day ! Reply
Confusing? It seems contradictory - Someone explain this in simple terms please Reply
very intriguing and difficult to comprehend.
does even righteous tzadik have
this desire to sin, besides he is human like other layman?
having desire which can be controlled and rejected upon right decision to choose not to sin.