What
Is
the
Prohibition
to
Teach
Torah
to
Idol-Worshippers
in
the
Work?
Article
No.
31,
1989
It
is
written
in
The
Zohar
(Hukat,
Item
2):
“It
is
written
there,
‘But
Zot
[This]
without
the
addition
of
the
Vav,
is
the
statute
of
the
Torah,’
which
is
Malchut,
called
‘Statute,’
and
comes
from
ZA,
who
is
called
‘Torah.’
Yet,
not
the
Torah
itself,
which
is
ZA,
but
only
the
judgment
of
the
Torah,
the
decree
of
the
Torah,
which
is
Malchut.
Conversely,
‘This
is
the
Torah’
is
to
show
that
all
is
in
one
unification,
to
include
the
Assembly
of
Israel,
which
is
Malchut,
in
the
Creator,
so
all
will
be
one.”
We
should
understand
why
The
Zohar
calls
Malchut
by
the
name
“statute.”
That
is,
why
must
Malchut
be
only
a
law,
without
intellect,
as
RASHI
interpreted,
“‘This
is
the
statute
of
the
Torah,’
since
Satan
and
the
nations
of
the
world
count
Israel
to
say,
‘What
is
this
Mitzva
[commandment/good
deed]
and
what
point
is
there
to
it?’
Hence,
it
is
written
about
it,
‘It
is
a
statue,
a
decree
before
Me;
you
have
no
permission
to
doubt
it.’”
Thus,
when
is
it
considered
a
law?
Only
when
the
nations
of
the
world
ask,
“What
is
this
Mitzva”?
and
we
must
answer
them.
What
is
the
answer?
A
law,
a
decree.”
This
implies
that
man
upholds
the
law
precisely
when
they
ask
“Why?”
Then
it
can
be
said
that
he
is
observing
the
Mitzva
because
of
a
law.
Otherwise,
there
is
nothing
that
shows
that
he
is
observing
this
Mitzva
because
it
is
a
law.
We
should
also
understand
this:
Would
it
not
be
better
had
this
Mitzva
been
clothed
in
intellect?
That
is,
it
would
be
easier
to
observe
the
Mitzva.
Why
does
the
Creator
want
it
to
be
as
a
law,
which
is
harder
to
observe
the
Mitzva?
After
all,
there
is
a
rule,
“The
Creator
does
not
complain
(comes
with
libel)
against
His
creations”
(Avoda
Zarah
3).
We
should
understand
why
He
wants
this
Mitzva
as
a
law.
When
speaking
of
the
work,
we
must
discern
two
things:
1)
the
practice,
2)
the
intention.
In
the
corporeal
world,
we
see
that
a
person
looks
mainly
at
the
reward.
That
is,
if
a
person
works
for
an
employer
who
gives
him
the
work
and
tells
him,
“I
want
you
to
work
for
me,
but
you
haven’t
the
brains
to
understand
why
I
need
this
work.
You
may
think
that
it
would
be
better
for
me
if
I
did
not
need
to
command
you
to
do
the
things
that
I
am
commanding
you,
but
I
cannot
explain
to
you
why
I
need
you
to
do
these
things
for
me.
In
return,
tell
me
how
much
you
earn
working
for
other
people,
with
whom
you
do
understand
why
you
are
working,
and
since
I
want
this
job,
I
will
pay
you
ten
times
more
than
you
would
earn
with
others.”
Certainly,
many
people
would
jump
on
such
a
job,
since
they
are
all
looking
at
the
reward
and
the
salary,
since
he
is
paying
ten
times
more.
For
example,
the
usual
pay
is
$1,000
a
month,
and
he
will
pay
$10,000.
Certainly,
with
such
a
job,
he
will
not
say
that
they
are
working
above
reason,
that
their
job
is
called
“a
law,”
since
it
is
within
reason
that
it
is
worthwhile
to
do
this
job,
as
it
is
common
sense
that
the
main
reason
that
a
person
works
is
for
the
pay.
Hence,
one
who
pays
more,
there
you
need
to
work.
This
is
called
“within
reason.”
What
do
the
created
beings
call
“above
reason”?
When
one
must
work
without
any
pay
or
reward,
this
is
called
“above
reason.”
This
is
so
because
of
the
purpose
of
creation,
which
is
to
do
good
to
His
creations,
meaning
for
the
creatures
to
receive
delight
and
pleasure,
which
is
called
“desire
to
receive
for
oneself.”
That
is,
everything
he
does
will
be
for
the
sake
of
the
creature,
for
so
was
His
wish.
For
this
reason,
when
a
person
is
told
that
he
must
work
without
reward,
it
is
called
“above
reason,”
which
is
against
the
intellect,
meaning
against
the
purpose
of
creation.
Then,
when
a
person
is
told
that
he
must
work
in
order
to
bestow,
there
immediately
comes
the
question
of
the
wicked:
What
is
this
work
for
you,
that
you
are
not
caring
for
your
own
benefit
but
for
the
benefit
of
the
Creator?
Clearly,
we
must
provide
a
reasonable
answer,
since
he
is
making
a
straightforward
argument,
saying
“You
want
to
go
against
nature!”
But
what
did
our
sages
say
about
what
to
answer?
“Blunt
his
teeth,”
meaning
there
is
no
answer
to
this,
only
a
law.
When
we
want
to
overcome
him
and
say
that
it
is
worthwhile
to
work
for
the
King,
he
becomes
smarter
and
begins
to
ask
the
question
of
wicked
Pharaoh,
who
says,
“Who
is
the
Lord
that
I
should
obey
His
voice?”
It
follows
that
there
are
two
just
arguments
here.
And
according
to
what
Baal
HaSulam
said,
it
is
only
one
argument,
except
he
wants
to
remain
in
self-love,
and
therefore
argues
like
a
wise
one.
That
is,
“In
truth,
I
am
a
mighty
man,
not
one
of
the
ordinary
folk,
who
cannot
overcome.
However,
I
don’t
know
the
Creator.
If
the
Creator
were
revealed
to
me
and
I
would
not
have
to
believe
in
Him,
I
would
immediately
work
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator.”
It
turns
out
that
he
is
in
pride.
That
is,
he
wants
to
remain
in
self-love,
and
therefore
makes
the
argument
of
the
wise
one,
that
he
is
not
like
other
people
who
cannot
overcome,
who
are
like
little
children
who
want
what
they
see
and
have
no
power
to
overcome
and
see
if
this
is
good
for
them
or
not.
“I,
on
the
other
hand,
am
what
is
called
‘a
man,’
and
I
can
control
myself.
But
if
the
Creator
wants
me
to
work
for
Him,
He
shouldn’t
hide
Himself
so
we
can’t
perceive
Him
and
must
only
believe
in
His
Providence.
This
doesn’t
make
sense.”
It
turns
out
that
he
is
clothing
the
self-love
in
a
garment
of
pride.
That
is,
his
will
to
receive
for
himself
causes
him
to
be
proud.
In
other
words,
everything
that
a
person
says,
that
he
does
not
want
to
believe,
is
really
that
he
does
not
want
to
annul
his
will
to
receive
for
himself.
Baal
HaSulam
said
about
this
that
we
must
believe
that
this
path
of
faith
above
reason,
and
also
the
fact
that
we
must
work
for
Him
and
not
for
our
own
sake,
is
not
because
the
Creator
wants
all
those
things
for
His
own
sake.
Rather,
it
is
all
for
man’s
sake.
In
other
words,
the
Creator’s
desire
to
give
to
the
created
beings
delight
and
pleasure,
and
to
have
in
this
complete
delight,
meaning
that
they
will
not
to
feel
any
shame
while
receiving
the
delight,
He
has
given
us
an
advice:
to
work
for
Him.
By
this
we
will
be
able
to
receive
delight
and
pleasure
and
will
not
feel
any
unpleasantness
while
receiving
the
delight.
For
this
reason,
in
order
not
to
feel
shame,
we
were
given
another
thing,
called
“faith
above
reason.”
“If
Providence
were
revealed,”
as
he
says
in
the
introduction,
“it
would
be
utterly
impossible
to
do
anything
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator.
Rather,
everything
would
have
to
be
for
one’s
own
sake,”
if
the
pleasure
in
Mitzvot
[plural
of
Mitzva]
were
revealed
more
than
in
corporeal
pleasures.
We
see
how
difficult
it
is
to
relinquish
corporeal
pleasures
and
to
say,
“I
will
receive
the
pleasure
only
when
I
can
aim
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator.
Otherwise,
I
do
not
want
to
receive
the
pleasure.”
With
the
flavors
of
Torah
and
Mitzvot,
we
must
believe
what
the
ARI
says,
that
because
of
the
breaking,
holy
sparks
fell
into
the
Klipot
[shells/peels].
The
Zohar
calls
it
“slim
light,”
meaning
a
small
illumination
from
the
Kedusha
[holiness].
From
this
come
all
the
pleasures
in
the
corporeal
world.
By
this
we
can
calculate
that
if
it
is
difficult
to
make
a
choice
over
small
pleasures
and
say
that
he
is
careful
not
to
receive
the
corporeal
pleasures
only
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator,
meaning
he
is
willing
to
relinquish
every
single
pleasure
he
receives
if
he
cannot
aim
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator,
how
difficult
it
is,
it
is
much
more
so
if
the
delight
and
pleasure
clothed
in
Torah
and
Mitzvot
were
revealed.
Then
the
creatures
would
not
be
able
to
choose
to
do
everything
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator,
but
would
receive
the
delight
and
pleasure
for
their
own
sake.
Therefore,
in
order
for
the
creatures
to
be
able
to
correct
themselves,
in
order
to
have
Dvekut
[adhesion]
and
equivalence
of
form
while
receiving
the
delight
and
pleasure,
there
was
the
Tzimtzum
[restriction]
and
concealment.
Then,
if
the
delight
in
Torah
and
Mitzvot
is
not
revealed
and
a
person
observes
Torah
and
Mitzvot
because
of
faith,
meaning
that
he
chose
Torah
and
Mitzvot
not
because
he
derives
pleasure
from
Torah
and
Mitzvot,
since
the
delight
and
pleasure
is
still
not
revealed,
since
before
a
person
corrects
his
vessels
of
reception,
so
everything
he
does
will
be
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator
and
not
for
his
own
sake—on
that
person
there
are
still
concealment
and
hiding.
At
that
time,
there
is
room
for
choice,
meaning
to
choose
and
see
if
he
is
working
for
his
own
sake
or
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator.
Conversely,
if
the
reward
and
pleasure
were
revealed,
the
created
beings
would
be
compelled
to
remain
in
a
state
of
receiving
for
themselves,
since
they
would
not
be
able
to
retire
from
Torah
and
Mitzvot
because
of
the
open
Providence.
It
is
as
he
says
(in
the
“Introduction
to
The
Study
of
the
Ten
Sefirot,”
Item
43),
“If,
for
example,
the
Creator
were
to
establish
open
Providence
with
His
creations
in
that,
for
instance,
anyone
who
eats
a
forbidden
thing
would
suffocate
on
the
spot,
and
anyone
who
performs
a
Mitzva
would
discover
such
wonderful
pleasures
in
it,
like
the
finest
delights
in
this
world.
Then,
what
fool
would
even
contemplate
tasting
a
forbidden
thing,
knowing
that
he
would
immediately
lose
his
life
because
of
it,
just
as
one
does
not
consider
jumping
into
a
fire?
Also,
what
fool
would
leave
any
Mitzva
without
performing
it
as
quickly
as
possible?”
It
follows
that
this
matter
of
faith,
and
this
matter
of
work
in
order
to
bestow
and
not
for
one’s
own
benefit
are
all
for
man’s
sake.
According
to
the
above,
we
can
understand
the
question
we
asked,
Why
were
we
given
the
order
of
the
work
by
way
of
faith
above
reason?
It
makes
sense
that
if
the
Creator
were
to
give
us
the
work
in
Torah
and
Mitzvot
within
the
reason
and
the
intellect,
it
would
be
easier
to
do
the
holy
work,
and
the
Creator
does
not
complain
against
His
creations,
so
why
did
He
do
this?
The
answer
is
that
only
by
way
of
concealment
and
hiding
is
it
possible
for
the
created
beings
to
achieve
wholeness,
meaning
to
receive
the
delight
and
pleasure
in
wholeness,
meaning
not
to
feel
unpleasantness
while
receiving
the
pleasures.
Therefore,
it
turns
out
that
precisely
when
we
can
go
with
our
hearts
and
minds
toward
the
Creator,
precisely
this
way
is
the
most
successful,
and
not
as
everyone
thinks,
that
if
the
Creator
gives
us
the
work
in
the
intellect,
meaning
to
have
open
Providence,
from
this
the
created
beings
will
achieve
wholeness.
We
can
say
about
this,
as
it
is
written,
“For
My
thoughts
are
not
your
thoughts.”
According
to
the
above,
we
can
interpret
what
we
asked,
Why
is
Malchut
called
a
“statute,”
as
it
is
called
“the
statute
of
the
Torah”?
The
Zohar
says
there
that
Malchut
is
called
“the
statute
of
the
Torah,”
and
not
the
Torah
itself,
the
decree
of
the
Torah,
which
is
Malchut,
but
we
must
include
Malchut
and
the
Torah
in
one
unification.
We
asked,
Why
is
Malchut
called
“statute”?
The
answer
that
Malchut
is
called
the
“kingdom
of
heaven,”
which
is
faith,
to
believe
in
the
Creator,
that
He
watches
over
the
world
with
a
guidance
of
good
and
doing
good.
When
a
person
begins
to
introspect,
he
sees
that
he
is
full
of
faults.
Thus,
how
can
the
body
understand
that
these
are
all
bestowals?
Although
we
are
given
the
prayer
for
the
bad
states
that
we
feel,
whether
in
corporeality
or
in
spirituality,
but
afterward,
meaning
after
the
prayer,
when
a
person
prayed
but
his
prayer
was
not
answered,
if
he
sees
that
he
is
in
utter
lowliness,
whether
in
corporeality
or
in
spirituality,
at
that
time
he
needs
to
overcome
and
say
that
the
name
of
the
Creator
is
The
Good
Who
Does
Good.
This
is
a
lot
of
work,
since
he
has
no
rational
answers
to
the
questions
that
the
body
asks.
Instead,
he
must
say,
“I
take
upon
myself
the
burden
of
the
kingdom
of
heaven
above
reason
and
say
that
such
is
the
decree
of
the
Creator.”
Our
sages
said
about
this,
“Since
the
nations
of
the
world
count
Israel
to
say,
‘What
is
this
Mitzva
and
what
is
its
taste?’
What
should
we
reply?
‘I
have
set
a
law,
a
decree
before
Me,
and
it
is
forbidden
to
doubt
it.’”
This
is
why
the
kingdom
of
heaven
is
called
a
“statute.”
However,
it
is
the
law
of
the
Torah
and
not
the
Torah
itself.
That
is,
in
order
to
be
rewarded
with
the
Torah,
we
must
take
upon
ourselves
the
rules
that
the
Torah
has
given
us.
Otherwise,
it
is
impossible
to
receive
the
Torah.
When
a
person
takes
upon
himself
the
kingdom
of
heaven,
he
is
called
“Israel,”
since
through
the
kingdom
of
heaven
that
a
person
takes
upon
himself
above
reason,
he
exits
self-love,
and
then
he
is
able
to
receive
the
Torah
herself.
Otherwise,
if
he
was
still
not
rewarded
with
vessels
of
bestowal,
all
the
Torah
that
he
takes
will
go
to
the
Sitra
Achra
[other
side]
and
not
to
Kedusha.
That
is,
that
light
of
Torah,
which
is
the
delight
and
pleasure
that
the
creatures
must
receive,
will
go
to
the
Klipot.
This
is
why
there
was
the
Tzimtzum
and
the
concealment,
so
that
everything
would
enter
the
Kedusha.
Hence,
precisely
when
a
person
is
rewarded
with
being
Israel,
when
he
has
already
been
rewarded
with
the
kingdom
of
heaven,
namely
that
in
everything
he
does,
he
has
no
other
thought
but
to
bestow
contentment
upon
his
Maker,
then
he
can
be
given
the
Torah.
It
therefore
follows
that
in
the
work,
the
prohibition
on
teaching
Torah
to
idol-worshippers
means
that
it
is
impossible
to
learn
Torah
as
long
as
one
is
in
a
state
of
idol-worshipping,
when
he
is
still
immersed
in
self-love.
That
is,
faith
above
reason,
called
“kingdom
of
heaven,”
which
is
a
statute,
is
a
way
to
emerge
from
self-love
and
thereby
be
rewarded
according
to
the
order
of
the
work
that
is
given
when
a
person
wants
to
take
upon
himself
the
kingdom
of
heaven
in
mind
and
heart.
At
that
time
a
person
is
rewarded
with
the
quality
of
“Israel,”
meaning
that
all
his
actions
are
only
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator.
Then
is
the
time
when
he
can
receive
the
Torah,
and
the
Klipot
cannot
suck
from
the
Kedusha.
By
this
we
can
interpret
what
our
sages
said
(Hulim
89),
“The
world
exists
only
for
one
who
restrains
himself
during
a
feud.”
We
should
understand
why
if
a
person
does
not
restrain
himself
but
replies
to
the
other
during
a
feud,
because
of
this
the
world
cannot
exist.
In
the
work,
this
means
that
the
“world”
is
the
person
himself,
as
it
is
written
in
The
Zohar,
“Every
person
is
a
small
world
in
and
of
itself.”
Therefore,
this
means
that
when
a
person
begins
to
quarrel
with
the
body
and
wants
to
obey
what
our
sages
said,
“One
should
always
vex
the
good
inclination
over
the
evil
inclination,”
and
RASHI
interpreted
that
he
should
make
war
with
it,
called
“the
war
of
the
inclination,”
meaning
when
a
person
demands
of
the
body
to
do
everything
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator,
this
infuriates
the
evil
inclination
as
he
wants
to
annul
its
authority
altogether,
and
everything
a
person
does,
he
wants
it
all
to
be
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator,
at
that
time,
the
body
comes
to
him
with
just
arguments
that
the
body
is
making
rational
arguments.
But
if
a
person
wants
to
live,
meaning
he
wants
to
achieve
the
complete
wholeness
and
observe
the
will
of
the
Creator,
whose
desire
is
to
do
good
to
His
creations,
meaning
to
be
rewarded
with
the
light
of
Torah,
which
is
the
delight
and
pleasure
in
the
thought
of
creation,
at
that
time
it
is
forbidden
to
answer
the
body
with
rational
arguments,
meaning
to
say
that
he
is
going
within
reason,
since
within
reason
must
be
in
order
to
receive.
Instead,
he
restrains
himself
during
the
feud
and
tells
it,
“From
the
perspective
of
the
intellect,
you
are
correct,
but
I
am
going
above
reason.”