The Gate of Abstinence
“The plain meaning of abstinence is to bridle the inner lusts and to refrain from something that one has the ability and opportunity for due to a reason which obligates this. It is said: "the abstainer is one who has the power but does not use it".’’
This quote is taken from the book Chovot HaLevavot, or The Duties of the Hearts which was written in about 1080 by Rabbi Bahya ibn Paquda of Saragossa.
In Jewish literature, Chovot HaLevavot is considered a groundbreaking and inciting work, and it is the first book of Mussar. Jewish Mussar is virtue-based literature that leads a person to ideal human behavior, which differentiates it from classic Jewish philosophy, which examines ontological assumptions etc.
The book was written in Judeo-Arabic and later translated into Hebrew by Ibn Tibbon, the same translator who brought us Maimonides’ Guide for the Perplexed.
The book is divided into ten chapters which are called “Gates.” Today I would like to focus on the ninth gate, the gate of Abstinence or “Sha’ar HaPrishut.”
I’m interested in exploring abstinence today because of the last verses in our Torah portion Yitro.
The portion has a curious ending. Right after the Ten Commandments are given in a dramatic display of divinity, Moses approaches the fog, and is told the following words by God, after which the portion ends:
מִזְבַּ֣ח אֲדָמָה֮ תַּעֲשֶׂה־לִּי֒ וְזָבַחְתָּ֣ עָלָ֗יו אֶת־עֹלֹתֶ֙יךָ֙ וְאֶת־שְׁלָמֶ֔יךָ אֶת־צֹֽאנְךָ֖ וְאֶת־בְּקָרֶ֑ךָ בְּכׇל־הַמָּקוֹם֙
אֲשֶׁ֣ר אַזְכִּ֣יר אֶת־שְׁמִ֔י אָב֥וֹא אֵלֶ֖יךָ וּבֵרַכְתִּֽיךָ׃
“Make for Me an altar of earth and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your sacrifices of well-being, your sheep and your oxen; in every place where I cause My name to be mentioned, I will come to you and bless you.”
וְאִם־מִזְבַּ֤ח אֲבָנִים֙ תַּֽעֲשֶׂה־לִּ֔י לֹֽא־תִבְנֶ֥ה אֶתְהֶ֖ן גָּזִ֑ית כִּ֧י חַרְבְּךָ֛ הֵנַ֥פְתָּ עָלֶ֖יהָ וַתְּחַֽלְלֶֽהָ׃
“And if you make for Me an altar of stones, do not build it of hewn stones; for by wielding your tool upon them, you have profaned them.”
Here, right after the Ten Commandments are given, God commands something else, a code of conduct, a way in which to live the ethical life which was just commanded.
Worshiping God, according to the verses above, should be done with simplicity. The altar that God prefers should be an altar made of earth, made of dirt. God, knowing the behavior of people, further instructs that if people choose to build an altar out of stone, this stone should be a soft one, so that no iron would be involved in the process.
Rabbi Shlomo Ephraim ben Aaron Luntschitz explains in his commentary “Kli Yakar:”
״הורה בזה שרצה ה' להראות במזבח זה ענייני ענוה והחרב ענינו הגאווה״
“He instructed that what God wanted to show at the altar is a matter of humility, and the sword is a matter of pride.”
What does our tradition have to offer with regard to simplicity? To living a simple life? To abstinence?
Generally, our tradition doesn’t view withdrawal from the world as the path to holiness. Instead, holiness is achieved within ordinary life, lived through ethical behavior, self-discipline, and proper intention.
Our sages even define abstinence as sin and criticize those who do not participate in life or enjoy it.
…Whoever sits in a fast is called a sinner… But with what soul did this sin? Rather, by distressing himself when he abstained from wine… And if one who distresses himself only from wine, is called a sinner, one who distresses himself from each and every matter, all the more so… (Ta’anit 11a)
The Gate of Abstinence in Chovot Halevavot is one of the more extreme Jewish cases in favor of abstinence, and yet it is very moderate.
Bahya explains that God gave humans lust for food, sex or power in order to build the world, in order to advance creation. The feeling of pleasure one gets from eating, procreating or building something great, is a reward given for the act of creation. The problem begins when people get addicted to that reward instead of the act of creation itself.
Abstinence, according to Bahya, is what is needed in order to once again achieve that balance which was broken.
However, building the world is important and most people should continue to engage with it. Bahya, thinks that it should be the role of selected individuals who he calls "healers" who would be like professional abstainers, who will heal people’s addiction to pleasure and also serve as inspiration and examples for others who wish to correct their ways.
Bahya describes three types of abstinence: First: people who withdraw from life completely- meaning retiring to the mountains, living off of nature and abstaining from any pleasure; Second: those who remain in society but abstain from all it has to offer, isolate and prevent themselves from all pleasure. Bahya criticizes these two groups as egotistical and hurtful to the world and to society. He prefers the third group, and that is, the people who participate fully with the world, but only externally. In their heart they are abstinent. Or as he puts it:
הַפָּרוּשׁ,
The [genuine] ascetic:
צָהֳלָתוֹ בְּפָנָיו וְאֶבְלוֹ בְּלִבּוֹ.
His joy is on his face, and his sorrow is in his heart.
This is a mind-blowing concept - what does it mean to be abstinent at heart only? How can we maintain the force of creation without becoming addicted to the pleasure it brings?
Like the Rambam, Bahya thought that the golden path was the middle path, he wrote of “Haderech Hatora” - “the proper Torah way,” which would bring people back to enjoying creation for creation’s sake and would not abuse the pleasure within it.
For our lives, it might mean eating in order to remain healthy, having sexual relations in order to maintain romantic relationships, and to create not in order to feel the power of being recognized, but rather to add abundance to the world.
His ideas might be more relevant to us today than ever, as our arrogance, and our addiction to pleasure have diverted us from our true role as creators.
Bahya warns us, that the higher we build, the lower is the abyss which opens in our souls; or in his words:
וְכָל אֲשֶׁר נוֹסַף הָעוֹלָם יִשּׁוּב נוֹסַף שִׂכְלָם חֻרְבָּן
“The more their world was improved, the greater was the destruction of their understanding.”
Watch the video in Hebrew:
