[Avodah] Yetzer HaRa channeled for good?

[Micha Berger]

On Tue, October 10, 2006 2:55 pm, Ken Bloom wrote:
: That too, and I didn't mean to imply otherwise about the language of
: Yetzer HaRa here. But AIUI, it's a general principle applying to
: whatever part of the yetzer hara. When avodah zara was removed, so was
: nevuah, when arayot were removed, so was the good that comes with it.

: But R' Shlomo Argamon mentioned to me that he thought that yetzer
: harah was something that could be channeled for good, that the term
: Yetzer HaRa corresponded to the animalistic soul, and it was something
: that was meant to be channeled for good (as opposed to something meant
: to be conquered). So when the yetzer hara for arayot was removed,
: that meant it could no longer be channeled for good either.

I just cited RSSchwab on the siddur, on "vekhof es yitreinu" that the YhT
could be used for ill, so why not?

Chazal comment on "bekhol levavekha" -- "bishnei yitzrekha" (kayadua from
Rashi). There are two ways a person can take that:

1- That the YhR can be channeled for good, and thus one can love Hashem bekhol
levavekha.

2- That overcoming the YhR is a good thing, and thereby one can love Hashem
using their YhR. This is the only way I can understand "uvekhol me'odekha". It
doesn't mean my property and other resources love Him. I don't know if in some
kabbalistic way my lawn mower does, but I do not think that's peshat. Rather,
the pasuq is "You shall love Hashem using [not "with"!] your whole heart, your
whole life-soul and all your resources."

IOW, does the departure of the YhR for AZ cause the departure of nevu'ah, or
does the end of the battle against the YhR end man's ability to reach nevu'ah?

I'm inclined toward the former when thinking about Shema, but the latter in
understanding the medrash.

In Igeres haMussar, the YhR, which is also called simply the "yeitzer" is
associated with impulsivity and pleasure gratification, and the word "seichel"
seems to be used interchangably with YhT. More like animal pleasure principle
vs human mind - tzelem E-lokim.

And if the YhR were an inclination toward evil, that would mean that man
inherently knows good and evil, regardless of upbringing -- they are different
structures in his psyche. So then, what's the excuse of a tinoq shenishba?

Last, grammatically, "yeitzer hara" is not "yotzeir ra". It is described as a
"form-maker which is evil" not "that which makes evil forms".

This seems to indicate that whatever it's an inclination for, the YhR isn't a
mechanism pushing man to evil qua evil. And thus, there is certainly room to
say that at times it can be harnessed productively.

Tir'u beTov!
-mi

-- 
Micha Berger             One who kills his inclination is as though he
micha at aishdas.org        brought an offering. But to bring an offering,
http://www.aishdas.org   you must know where to slaughter and what
Fax: (270) 514-1507      parts to offer.        - R' Simcha Zissel Ziv