Lasting Integrity – Parshas Bo 5771
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Moshe made it very clear to Pharaoh who would be leaving Egypt. Pharaoh granted permission for the adults to leave, however, the children had to remain. His intention was obvious as he knew that there can be no nation without the continuation of the children. The parents would never agree to leave. Moshe replied, “With our youth and elders we will leave… (Shemos 10:9).” I have always strived to delve into the depth of that which Chazal teach us that Pharaoh represents the Yetzer Harah. How does this translate to us?
The Yetzer Harah wishes to get children to sin for numerous reasons. Firstly, he wants them to be in the habit of sinning. Secondly, and more dangerously, he wants them to have guilty feelings for what they did and to feel hopeless and trapped in his clutches and thus to give up and never try to escape.
There are two ways to fight this. The first is to always know that one can do Teshuva at any time in his life. It is never too late to change. I once read Rabbi Avi Schulman’s response to someone who gave him the excuse of, “you can’t teach old dogs new tricks” trying to justify why he could not change. “You are a human being, not a dog! Living a life of Torah, Mitzvos and middos isn’t a trick, it’s an important goal!”
The second way to fight the Yetzer Harah is to think ahead in the future. I want to look back on my life from now on as successful and fulfilling. You can’t change the past, but you can make your future! Chazal (Sukka 53a) tell us that the holy Rabbis would say, “praiseworthy is someone whose childhood does not bring him embarrassment in his adulthood… and praiseworthy is someone that at least has the ability to use his adulthood to gain forgiveness for his childhood!
Indeed, human development expert Erik Erikson (1902-1994), known for his theory on social development of human beings, had this same insight. His Jewish roots served him well in the academic world (he is most famous for coining the phrase “identity crisis”). Erikson defined the elder years as a struggle between integrity vs. despair. The main determining factor of one’s happiness was whether he or she was satisfied or dissatisfied with what they have accomplished or failed to accomplish within their lifetime.
I believe that Moshe was telling Pharaoh (the Yetzer Harah): “We serve Hashem during our time of youth and old age. We strive to bring our accomplishments with us as we move forward in life. We find fulfillment in building from our youth into our personal development and age advancements!”
Categories: Parshas Bo Yetzer Harah, Yetzer Tov
