The Mitzvos and the Human Body

The Mitzvos and the Human Body

Based on Sefer Chareidim

Every part of the human being can become a vessel for holiness.
Sefer Chareidim teaches us to see the mitzvos not as separate commandments, but as a Divine system through which our heart, eyes, ears, mouth, hands, feet, and entire body become connected to Hashem.

1. HEART

– Faith in Hashem
– Knowledge of Hashem
– Love of Hashem
– Fear of Hashem
– Accepting the yoke of Heaven
– Accepting the yoke of mitzvos
– Repentance
– Remembering the Exodus from Egypt
– Remembering Miriam
– Remembering Amalek
– Not believing in idolatry
– Not hating another Jew
– Not coveting
– Not desiring what belongs to another
– Avoiding arrogance

2. EYES

– Looking at tzitzis
– Contemplating Hashem’s greatness
– Looking toward holy things
– Avoiding forbidden sights
– Not following one’s eyes after improper desires
– Not looking at idolatry
– Avoiding sights that lead to sin

3. EARS

– Hearing words of Torah
– Hearing rebuke
– Hearing the shofar
– Hearing the Torah reading
– Hearing the Shema
– Hearing prayer and blessings
– Hearing the words of a prophet
– Listening to the words of Torah scholars
– Not listening to lashon hara
– Not listening to an inciter
– Not listening to false prophecy

4a. MOUTH AND THROAT

– Reciting the Shema
– Prayer
– Torah study
– Teaching Torah
– Remembering the Exodus
– Birchas HaMazon
– Blessings over food
– Kiddush
– Havdalah
– Confession
– Rebuke
– Honoring parents through speech
– Giving thanks to Hashem
– Speaking words of Torah
– Not swearing falsely
– Not taking Hashem’s Name in vain
– Not cursing
– Not speaking lashon hara
– Not speaking rechilus
– Not lying
– Not humiliating another person through speech
– Not giving false testimony

4b. MOUTH AND ESOPHAGUS — EATING

– Eating matzah
– Eating in the sukkah
– Eating and drinking on Shabbos and Yom Tov
– Eating on Erev Yom Kippur
– Eating kosher food
– Eating holy offerings
– Eating maaser sheni
– Not eating chametz on Pesach
– Not eating blood
– Not eating forbidden fats
– Not eating neveilah
– Not eating treifah
– Not eating forbidden foods
– Not eating on Yom Kippur

5. NOSE

– Guarding the sense of smell
– Maintaining the holiness of the senses

6. HANDS

– Putting on tefillin
– Wearing tzitzis
– Taking the lulav
– Building a sukkah
– Building a maakeh
– Giving tzedakah
– Lending money to the poor
– Returning lost property
– Visiting the sick
– Accompanying the deceased
– Burying the deceased
– Performing acts of kindness
– Helping someone in need
– Giving the gifts required to the poor
– The laws of shemitah
– Not stealing
– Not robbing
– Not oppressing another financially
– Not withholding wages
– Not causing damage
– Not taking collateral improperly

7. FEET

– Going up to Jerusalem for the festivals
– Going to the synagogue
– Going to the study hall
– Visiting the sick
– Comforting mourners
– Accompanying the deceased
– Running to perform a mitzvah
– Standing before a Torah scholar
– Standing before an elderly person
– Standing before one’s parents
– Walking to perform acts of kindness
– Walking away from a place of sin

8. THE ORGAN OF THE COVENANT

– Circumcision
– Not delaying circumcision
– Guarding the covenant
– Maintaining the holiness of the covenant

The Goal

The mitzvos transform the human body into a dwelling place for holiness.

The heart thinks of Hashem.
The eyes see what is holy.
The ears hear Torah.
The mouth speaks holiness.
The hands perform mitzvos.
The feet walk toward goodness.

The whole person becomes a כלי — a vessel for Hashem.