World of the Sages: Buzzing flies

The talmudic passage seems to suggest that the yetzer hara isn't a monster, but an annoying fly.

By LEVI COOPER
talmud book 88 298 (photo credit: )
talmud book 88 298
(photo credit: )
Our sages seek to explain the nature of the yetzer hara, the evil inclination that diverts us from the path of righteousness. According to one view the yetzer hara is comparable to a fly that sits between the two gateways of the heart (B. Brachot 61a). To buttress this image, a proof text is offered: Flies of death fester and putrefy perfumed oil (Ecclesiastes 10:1). Commenting on this verse, Rashi (11th century, France) explains that a single fly which falls into a container of perfumed oil can spoil the entire contents. Thus the talmudic passage seems to be suggesting that the yetzer hara is not a large monster; it is a small annoying fly buzzing around our heart and distracting us from our destiny. Such a seemingly inconsequential creature can ruin that which is essentially good. Perhaps following on from this talmudic passage, the midrash likens Amalek, the arch-enemy of the Jewish people for all generations, to a fly (Yalkut Shimoni). In the Bible, Amalek is the first to attack the fledgling Jewish nation after its liberation from Egypt (Exodus 17:8-16). Amalek becomes the scourge of our people in every generation and we are commanded to eradicate Amalek (Deuteronomy 25:17-19). In what way is Amalek like a fly? The midrash explains that just like a fly, Amalek was excited by an open wound. The Jewish people had just left years of slavery; they were tired, frail and scared, and had yet to coalesce into a nation. Perceiving this weakness, Amalek attacked, beginning the assault on the most fragile elements of the people, the stragglers. It is well known that since biblical times we do not identify Amalek with one specific nation, and we do not seek to eradicate any group of people. Amalek today is a concept, the idea of ultimate evil: Nations that prey on weaknesses, godlessly and unsympathetically seeking to harm, are compared to Amalek. Amalek, however, is not just the other; Amalek can also be inside of us: That voice that chirps in when we are most feeble, striking at our core by picking at tender wounds. In this context Amalek is identified with the yetzer hara, the evil inside of us that constantly seeks to undermine and destabilize, thus stunting spiritual growth. It is these Amaleks that are the bane of our existence, and it is against them that we battle. One of the biblical commentators - Rabbi Shlomo Ephraim Luntschitz (Kli Yakar, 1550-1619, Lenczyk-Lublin-Prague) - explains the fly analogy further. A fly is powerless to bore a hole in a piece of flesh. Only once the fly finds a lesion or an open cut does it have the ability to further the damage. Thus - says Rabbi Luntschitz - Amalek has no power against a righteous person. It is only when there is an open wound, a fault or weakness, that the Amalek fly can further maim us. In light of the commandment to rid ourselves of Amalek by wiping out the name of this maggot-like enemy that feeds on our open wounds, there is a strange annotation in the Talmud (B. Bava Batra 46b). Occasionally, the talmudic text contains a mnemonic device, a word or phrase where each letter or word hints at a passage in the ensuing text. These annotations are accompanied by the word siman (sign) to indicate that they are not part of the talmudic discussion but an aide-mémoire. Probably the most surprising siman in the entire Talmud is the use of the word Amalek as such an annotation! How could it be that the very name we are instructed to wipe out is given such a prominent place in one of our dearest and most studied texts? Moreover, placing it in the Talmud essentially means that it will never be fully wiped out, for who would dare to erase the text of the Talmud? Most commentators do not relate to this strange siman. Rabbi Ya'acov Emden (1697-1776, Altona), however, notes how surprising it is to find this mnemonic device. He offers a number of tentative answers. First, he notes that while we are instructed to erase any trace of Amalek, we are simultaneously enjoined to remember and never to forget Amalek's heinous actions. This siman ensures that we recall Amalek's foul deeds, in a manner similar to the annual obligatory public reading of the biblical censure of Amalek. Rabbi Emden offers a further innovative direction by referencing another talmudic passage: "If that despicable character [the yetzer hara] attempts to harm you, drag it to the beit midrash. If the yetzer hara is like a stone, the Torah will wear it away; if the yetzer hara is like iron, the Torah will smash it to smithereens" (B. Kiddushin 30b). By placing Amalek's name in the middle of the Talmud, Amalek has been forcibly dragged into the beit midrash. Furthermore, anyone learning this passage encounters his name and uses his name for recalling four cases detailed in the Talmud. Rabbi Emden further comments that by bringing Amalek into the beit midrash and disarming him, we can then extract whatever positive forces are hidden within. In light of Rabbi Luntschitz's comment we can add that bringing Amalek into the beit midrash is akin to bringing him into the fortress of our tradition. In this consecrated space Amalek is powerless, for when we delve into our tradition we are at our strongest; there are no festering wounds in the beit midrash. Rabbi Emden's explanation offers a plan for the ongoing battle against Amalek: By reaffirming our fidelity to the hallowed texts of our tradition, we strengthen ourselves and immunize our souls against foreign, harmful distractions. Perhaps it is even significant that the word Amalek is used as a mnemonic tool, suggesting that the best way to combat Amalek is to remember who we are. The buzzing fly of Amalek may not just be an annoying background sound, waiting to infect an open wound. The buzzing fly is there to remind us to be loyal to our true identity. The writer is on the faculty of Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies and is a rabbi in Tzur Hadassah.