The Benoni

Pearls from the Vilna Gaon – Man vs. Animal, reprinted with the kind authorization of:

***Pearls from the Vilna Gaon*** Man vs. Animal translated by Rabbi Yosef Peretz

Rabbi Eliyahu of Vilna, commonly known as the Gaon (literally “genius”) was probably the most influential Jewish leader in modern history. He never assumed any official position of leadership and spent his time in almost total isolation toiling day and night in torah study. He became the undisputed greatest torah scholar and kabbalist in modern history.

from the Vilna Gaon’s Barak HaShachar commentary on Koheles/Ecclesiastes

“What has a man more

of all his labor wherein

he labors under the

sun?” (Koheles 1:3)

“It is known that in a man there are four powers:

1) Domem (inanimate – minerals, liquids, etc.)

2) Tzomeach (growth-plants)

3) Chai (living-animal)

4) Medaber (speaking-human)

The domem (inanimate) has no nefesh (true soul. it has only a sustaining power.) at all. And its name testifies on itself (domem means ‘silent’).

The tzomeach (plant) has one soul, and it is the ‘nefesh tzomachas’ (soul of growth).

The Chai (animal) has in it an additional lifeforce spirit (ruach) with which ends the boundary of the chai (i.e. the animal has no higher connection).

In a man there is an additional intellectual power. He is the ‘medaber’ (speaking), because only through the intellect can one be called ‘medaber’, as is known, because there are also some birds who can speak.

Therefore we find that there are 3 souls in a man, the tzomeach, the chai, and the sichli (intellectual) and they are the nefesh, ruach, and neshama. (see book Shaarei Kedusha for greater details).

The nefesh dwells in the liver, the ruach in the heart, and the neshama in the brain. And each one goes and desires to its root.

The nefesh lusts for food and drink because it nourishes and grows and reproduces, (i.e. it is in charge of all the involuntary body functions), therefore it lusts for these things. And also, it is known that all the gidul (growth) and food comes to the liver and from it to the other limbs (since the liver processes all the blood which contains all the food). And likewise all taavas (lusts for indulgences) come from the liver, as known in the zohar on the verse “Let me swallow, some of this red, red pottage” (Bereishis 25:30). (The Torah also associates the nefesh with blood, as in “The Nefesh of flesh is in the blood.” (Vayikra 17:11).

And the ruach lusts for honor, wealth, because the power of the ruach arouses as is known. And all the midos (traits) of jealousy, arrogance, and the other midos are branches of these – and everything is in the heart. Therefore the Sages said that an evil heart is the root of all bad midos and likewise a good heart to all the good midos, as written (in pirkei avos 2:13) “for in his words (a good heart) yours are included“.

And they are called together the nefesh and ruach behemit (animal) because they are also in an animal. Therefore they desire animal things (food, dominance, etc.).

And the soul is a ‘chelek Eloki mimaal’ (Divine part from on high) , and lusts for G-dly things, and it is in the brain, the place of wisdom and thought, as written in Iyov 28:12 and in mishlei in many places. And likewise thought is the dveikus and yira (clinging to the awareness of G-d’s presence) which all of mishne torah (book of Devarim) emphasizes as written “And now Israel what does G-d ask of you…” and many verses as is known…
And it is known that there are 3 midos which take a person out of this world, they are the roots to all the (bad) midos – kina (jealousy), taava (lust for indulgence), and kavod (honor). And taava is in the nefesh while kina and kavod are in the ruach, and they are the 3 midos of the disciples of the wicked Bilaam
1)”nefesh rechava” (wide nefesh) which refers to taava therefore they used the term ‘nefesh’.
2) “ruach gevoha” (inflated spirit) which refers to honor, hence the use of the term ‘ruach’
3) “ayin raah” (an evil eye) is jealousy…
Those who possess these qualities, even their good deeds are not le shem shamayim (for the sake of heaven, i.e. with pure motives). The one with a nefesh taava does tzedaka only with the remainders of what he can’t put in his stomach as written in the sefer hakane, while the one with a ruach gevoha (inflated spirit) does only to make a name for himself…

…
There are 3 times in a man:
1) the days of aliya (ascent) which are until 20, because then one’s growth has finished as known, and likewise the intellect has finished (matured) therefore then the (primary) neshama comes to a man (from above if he is worthy) as is known that at his birth the nefesh comes. And at 13 the (primary) ruach, and at 20 the neshama which completes his intellect…

And until 20 which is the time of the growing of the body from the tzomeach (nefesh in charge of growth, nourishment, and reproduction) he goes after the hevel (futilities of this world)…
And on the verse “what benefit is there to a man who toils under the sun”, the Sages expounded that this implies that toil below the sun is futile, but toil above the sun is not futile. The “sun” refers to the neshama which shines to a man with wisdom…and this is what is meant by “under the sun” – under the neshama, which refers to the nefesh and ruach which are below it as is known. And it means all of one’s toil, even the toil in torah and mitzvos which he does with them is worth nothing. As he continues “veraiti..” and likewise in the talmud, “lelomdehem lo neemar..”

And it is known that the superiority of a man over an animal is only because of the neshama, as above. And if his toiling is with the ruach and nefesh (selfish motives), he is like an animal. And this is what is meant by “What has a man more of all his labor wherein he labors under the sun?” (Koheles 1:3) – what is he greater as a man in all his toil,etc.
(see the original hebrew (commentary on Koheles) for the full version)

note:This does not mean that the neshama is primary. The primary of a man is the heart (ruach). The heart is the king over him (Vilna Gaon on Yonah) and rules over his decisions and desires. The neshama is there to help to guide him and straighten his ways as the Vilna Gaon writes:

(from lamed likutim sof sefer dtzniuta)
Man and time are male and female. The totality of man and all the souls of men, are one body and are male (all the souls of men existed together in Adam before the sin, while all the souls of women were in Chava). And the totality of all the years of the world (i.e. time) are female – see beginning of tikun 69 (103b), which are nefesh (time) and ruach (man). And the nefesh is the partner of the body, therefore, the days and years become a body for the ruach, in the secret meaning of the verse “the female encircles the man” (Yirmiya 31:22), as written in Tikun 22, that the female is the body of the male.

Therefore (in the body) there are 248 limbs (and likewise 248 positive commandments in the torah) corresponding to the man and 365 negative commandments corresponding to the days of the year. And the Sages have said that “time is man’s friend and loves him”. And time was divided to 3 parts – past, present, and future corresponding to nefesh, ruach, and neshama of a man. And just like the head of a man is honorable (large) and goes and diminishes (down to the jaw), so too time. And just like the heart is the essence of a man, and likewise the ruach, and the neshama only serves to teach a man intelligence to guide him. So too all the focus of time is in the present. But the past is already gone and it is a great and effective, teacher (to learn lessons from past mistakes of self or others). As for the future “do not worry about tomorrow” and a man should not think about it because it is not his. As written therefore “one is worrying about a world which does not belong to him” (Yevamos 63b)…

comment: For an explanation of why G-d created man with an animal and spiritual side, see the unparalleled book “the Way of G-d” by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (Gate 1) (Feldheim publishers, Aryeh Kaplan translation). There are also classes online.

see also:
3 Roots of Evil – The Role of the Jews special audio by Rabbi Uziel Milevski, zt’l
(former chief Rabbi of Mexico and senior lecturer at Ohr Somayach, Jerusalem)