Quotes from the Tanya – Chapter 12
By zevi770 · February 19, 2012
CHAPTER 12
“The Benoine never has, nor will sin, for the Godly soul’s ten levels and three garments fill his mind, speech, and actions, nonetheless it is not the only voice in his head.”
“The Benoine is highly influenced by his animal soul (though has the character to ignore it, as will be explained) however in special times, such as when the light of God’s mind shines, when one says the Shemah prayer in great concentration and hence arouses a love for God, at that time there is only the voice of the Godly soul in his mind.”
“However after the Benoine finishes his prayers and the Godly mind light leaves him, then he like every normal Rasha has desires for the pleasures of the world.”
“At this point – of desiring the pleasures of this world – the Benoine through self control, for the mind has the ability to order the thoughts, speech and actions, rejects the fulfillment in action, or in speech, and even to think about the desires that are aroused which enter his mind.”
“The nature of man is that man switches his thoughts away from thinking about what his instincts wish him to think of (namely, how to get what man deems pleasurable) especially to switch his thoughts to matters of holiness, as King Solomon states, “I have seen there is benefit to wisdom over foolishness, like light over darkness;” (namely that just as light banishes darkness, switching from instinctual thoughts to spiritual thoughts banishes the instinctual desires.”)
“Just as light immediately banishes darkness and as man only sins if the Yetzer Hara convinces him that he is permitted to sin (for no man willingly sins) hence even a tiny bit of the light of the Godly soul that desires to permeate your thoughts speech and actions has the capacity to banish much foolishness (ed. All you need to do is think Torah thoughts, and it will automatically switch on the light, banishing the foolish premise that a Jew can sin without sinning.”)
“Despite the fact that the light of the Godly soul has the ability to outshine the foolishness / darkness of the Yetzer Hara’s desires, nonetheless such a person is not called a Tzaddik, for the essence of the love for the instinctual pleasures remains after prayer, as if the Benoine never prayed in the first place.
All that remains of the Benoine’s love – which is ineffective in quieting the love of the animal souls’ – is the instinctive love (which we shall speak about later on) that is a natural part of the Jewish soul.”
“As mentioned after prayer – when the glowing love for God is gone – though the Benoine would never consider sinning, nonetheless thoughts regarding sexual imagery (as our sages state, three sins man cannot manage to prevent daily, sexual imagery, full concentration during prayer etc.) so these thoughts enter his mind disturbing his tranquility in his prayer and good deeds.”
“Despite the fact that such unpleasant thoughts enter the Benoines mind, but the remembrance of the love generated for God during prayer, and the natural instinctive love within his heart for God after prayer, is adequate to prevent the thoughts becoming actions or even something that he will willingly indulge in, even in his imagination.”
“Certainly the Benione would never entertain the thought to fulfill his negative desires or even to speak of them, for to decide to do so, would be to lower himself into the category of evil / Rasha and the Benoine is never ever a Rasha.”
“The same applies if his thoughts entertain some kind of Lashon Hara (negative image) on a friend or even resentment or God forbid anger, the Benoine immediately banishes such thoughts from growing in his mind and in fact is prepared to accept evil (and never get upset, for all comes from God,) and furthermore his ability to control his behavior (for as mentioned the mind can order the heart, body, around) causes him to do only exceptional goodness and kindness to his friends.
As the Zohar teaches, when it comes to interpersonal relationships, one aught to study how Yosef treated his brothers” (that though they sold him into slavery he not only forgave them but fed, sustained and saved them!)