Part I; Likkutei Amarim, Chapter 15
The whole chapterד וּבַבֵּינוֹנִי יֵשׁ גַּם כֵּן שְׁתֵּי מַדְרֵגוֹת: ״עוֹבֵד אֱלֹהִים״, וַ״אֲשֶׁר לֹא עֲבָדוֹ״, וְאַף־עַל־פִּי־כֵן – אֵינוֹ רָשָׁע, כִּי לֹא עָבַר מִיָּמָיו שׁוּם עֲבֵירָה קַלָּה, וְגַם קִיֵּים כָּל הַמִּצְוֹת שֶׁאֶפְשָׁר לוֹ לְקַיְּימָן, וְתַלְמוּד תּוֹרָה כְּנֶגֶד כּוּלָּם, וְלָא פָסִיק פּוּמֵיהּ מִגִּירְסָא.
4In the category of benoni there are also to be found two gradations, namely, “one who serves G–d” and “one who does not serve Him.”3 Yet the latter is not wicked, for never in his life did he commit even a minor transgression and, moreover, he fulfilled all the commandments which were possible for him to fulfill, including the study of the Torah which balances everything else, his mouth never ceasing from study.
האֶלָּא שֶׁאֵינוֹ עוֹשֶׂה שׁוּם מִלְחָמָה עִם הַיֵּצֶר לְנַצְּחוֹ, עַל יְדֵי אוֹר ה׳ הַמֵּאִיר עַל נֶפֶשׁ הָאֱלֹהִית שֶׁבַּמּוֹחַ הַשַּׁלִּיט עַל הַלֵּב כַּנִּזְכָּר לְעֵיל, מִפְּנֵי שֶׁאֵין יִצְרוֹ עוֹמֵד לְנֶגְדּוֹ כְּלָל לְבַטְּלוֹ מִתּוֹרָתוֹ וַעֲבוֹדָתוֹ, וְאֵין צָרִיךְ לִלְחוֹם עִמּוֹ כְּלָל, כְּגוֹן שֶׁהוּא מַתְמִיד בְּלִמּוּדוֹ בְּטִבְעוֹ מִתּוֹלַדְתּוֹ עַל יְדֵי תִּגְבּוֹרֶת הַ״מָּרָה שְׁחוֹרָה״, וְכֵן אֵין לוֹ מִלְחָמָה מִתַּאֲוַת נָשִׁים מִפְּנֵי שֶׁהוּא מְצוּנָּן בְּטִבְעוֹ, וְכֵן בִּשְׁאָר תַּעֲנוּגֵי עוֹלָם הַזֶּה – הוּא מְחוּסַּר הֶרְגֵּשׁ הֲנָאָה בְּטִבְעוֹ.
5The reason he is referred to as “one who does not serve Him” is that he does not wage any battle against his [evil] disposition in order to vanquish it by means of the Divine light that irradiates the divine soul, whose abode is in the brain which predominates over the heart, as explained above;4 for his disposition does not confront him at all in an attempt to distract him from study and prayer, and he is consequently never obliged to wage war against it. Thus, for example, is the case of one who is by nature an assiduous student because he is organically so disposed, and is likewise free from conflict with regard to sexual desire by reason of his frigid nature, and similarly with the other mundane pleasures wherein he naturally lacks any feeling of enjoyment.
ווְלָכֵן, אֵין צָרִיךְ לְהִתְבּוֹנֵן כָּל כָּךְ בִּגְדוּלַּת ה׳, לְהוֹלִיד מִבִּינָתוֹ רוּחַ דַּעַת וְיִרְאַת ה׳ בְּמוֹחוֹ – לְהִשָּׁמֵר שֶׁלֹּא לַעֲבוֹר עַל מִצְוֹת לֹא תַעֲשֶׂה, וְאַהֲבַת ה׳ בְּלִבּוֹ – לְדָבְקָה בוֹ בְּקִיּוּם הַמִּצְוֹת, וְתַלְמוּד תּוֹרָה כְּנֶגֶד כּוּלָּן, אֶלָּא דַּי לוֹ בְּאַהֲבָה מְסוּתֶּרֶת אֲשֶׁר בְּלֵב כְּלָלוּת יִשְׂרָאֵל, שֶׁנִּקְרְאוּ ״אוֹהֲבֵי שְׁמוֹ״.
6Hence he does not need to concentrate so much on the greatness of G–d to consciously create a spirit of knowledge and fear of G–d in his mind in order to guard himself against violation of the prohibitive commandments or to arouse the love of G–d in his heart to induce his attachment to Him through the fulfillment of the [positive] commandments and the study of the Torah, which balances everything else. For him suffices the hidden love that is in the heart of all Jews, who are called “those who love His name.”5
זוְלָכֵן אֵינוֹ נִקְרָא ״עוֹבֵד״ כְּלָל, כִּי אַהֲבָה זוֹ הַמְסוּתֶּרֶת, אֵינָהּ פְּעוּלָּתוֹ וַעֲבוֹדָתוֹ כְּלָל, אֶלָּא הִיא יְרוּשָּׁתֵנוּ מֵאֲבוֹתֵינוּ לִכְלַל יִשְׂרָאֵל, וּכְמוֹ שֶׁיִּתְבָּאֵר לְקַמָּן.
חוְכֵן אַף מִי שֶׁאֵינוֹ מַתְמִיד בְּלִמּוּדוֹ בְּטִבְעוֹ, רַק שֶׁהִרְגִּיל עַצְמוֹ לִלְמוֹד בְּהַתְמָדָה גְדוֹלָה, וְנַעֲשָׂה הַהֶרְגֵּל לוֹ טֶבַע שֵׁנִי, דַּי לוֹ בְּאַהֲבָה מְסוּתֶּרֶת זוֹ, אֶלָּא אִם כֵּן רוֹצֶה לִלְמוֹד יוֹתֵר מֵרְגִילוּתוֹ.
8So, too, is one who, although by nature not an assiduous student, has yet accustomed himself to study with great diligence, so that the habit has become second nature with him; for him, too, suffices the innate love, unless he wishes to study more than his wont.
Kehot Publication Society · CC BY-NC · sefaria.org
Kehot Publication Society · CC BY-NC · sefaria.org