Daily Tanya Tuesday 4th Adar: Chapter 30 Part 2: How hard are you working to serve G-d that you are in a position to judge another

4^th Adar/(LY) 19^th Adar 1

• Any individual who has yet to wage war against his body [and evil inclination] to the above extent in a great and intense battle, has not yet reached the same level of challenge and battle as experienced by the lowlife, who is expected to subjugate and break even an inclination that is similar to a fiery furnace due to his fear of G-d.
• Concentration in blessings: The same applies regarding Grace after meals [i.e. Birchas Hamazon], and all blessing which are to be said over food and Mitzvahs, that they must be said with proper concentration [and hence a person must ask himself does he really exert enough effort in this regard].
• Concentration in Mitzvahs: The same applies regarding the fulfillment of Mitzvah’s which must be done altruistically for the sake of heaven [and hence a person must ask himself does he really exert enough effort in this regard].
• Learning Torah: The same applies regarding the learning of Torah, that one must ask himself if he is truly learning more Torah than he naturally desires according to his nature and instinct. Is he truly learning much more than his norm by facing and overcoming a fierce battle with his body? A person who pushes himself to learn only slightly more than his norm is considered to have been successful in winning only a small battle, which is of no comparison to a fierce battle against a fiery inclination.
• Comparing the lack of effort in positive commands to the transgressions of the lowlife: Regarding all the above battles, one is like the lowlife. The low life who faces an inclination that is as fiery as a furnace, is nonetheless considered a complete Rasha if he does not overcome it. Accordingly, one must ask himself if he is any better than this Rasha, if he too fails in his battles in the above-mentioned matters which are as intense as the fiery furnace of the lowlife, as what difference does it make if one is failing to battle his evil inclination in matters of transgressing prohibitions, as does the lowlife, or in lack of proper fulfillment of positive commands, as does he, as after all they are all the commands of the one and only G-d.
• Charity: The same applies regarding all other Mitzvahs, especially regarding monetary related commands such as the giving of charity and the like.

(LY) 20th Adar 1

3.      Lack of effort in Sur Meira-Iskafya in Unpopular Mitzvos

• Even regarding matters of transgression [i.e. Sur Meira], a person who contemplates can find in his soul that he too is not perfect in this in its entirety, as there are matters of evil that he too performs, regarding those lusts that require an extreme battle with his inclination, and sometimes even when the battle is not as strong. Such as for example:
• Stopping in middle of a luscious and gossipy story: For example, does one control himself and stop in middle of a luscious mundane conversation, or gossipy story about another, as even a slight disparaging remark is forbidden even if truthful, and even if done for the sake of exonerating oneself from any wrongdoing. This can be learned from what Rebbe Shimon told his father Rabbeinu Hakadosh that it is not he who wrote the invalid Get but rather Yehuda the tailor who wrote it, to which Rabbeinu Hakadosh replied that he should stop speaking gossip.
• There are many other such matters that are abundantly common for people to transgress, [due to their pettiness and lightness in one’s eyes, which does not view it as sinful].
• Sanctifying the permitted: Likewise, does one control himself to not indulge in the permitted more than necessary which is a Torah obligation, as Scripture states that you shall sanctify yourself, and even if this command is only Rabbinical, it is known that Rabbinical matters are to be viewed even more severe than Biblical.
• All the above are examples of sins that a person does not view as serious sins, and thereby becomes used to transgressing, and perhaps even views them as if they are permitted being that he has transgressed them so often. [However, in truth, they are sinful.]

(LY) 21st Adar 1

4.      A Torah Scholars sin and lack of proper fulfillment of Mitzvos is viewed much worse than the transgressions of an Am Haretz:

• [Another aspect that one must enter the calculation which makes him even worse than the lowlife, is that] in truth, if he is a Torah scholar and holds himself up as a G-d-fearing Jew who desires closeness to G-d, then his level of responsibility for sinning is much greater than that of the lowlife.
• A much greater guilt and offense: His guilt is doubly resounding versus that of the lowlife in the fact that he does not successfully overcome his evil inclination to the same level of intensity of battle as experienced by the lowlife who is distanced from G-d and His Torah.
• A lowlife is not held responsible to the same extent: Low lives are not held to the same extent of guilt and level of responsibility as that of Torah scholars. They are not held as responsible for the fact that their fear of G-d, who watches and comprehends all of their activities, is not enough to help them be successful in overcoming their fiery furnace of inclination. However, this level of fear of G-d is the expected level of responsibility extended to a Torah scholar who is close to G-d and His Torah and Divine service, and nonetheless sins.
• The guilt of Acher: This follows the teaching of the sages who stated regarding Acher [Alisha Ben Avuyah who was a great scholar and became a heretic] that since he knew My honor therefore his guilt is much greater.
• Even the intentional sin of the ignoramus is viewed as unintentional: Likewise, it is due to this reason that the sages state that even the intentional sins performed by the ignoramuses are considered to be unintentional [as their level of guilt is not as high].