The Changing Face of Inspiration

Chapter eight is deceptive. It first appears simple, almost obvious, but a careful reading quickly reveals the author's precision and insight.

He tells us that zhirus and zerizus are actually two sides of the same coin - zehirus is avoiding sin and zerizus is doing Mitzvos - and therefore there is no real difference in method when it comes to acquiring these two traits. Torah leads to zerizus just as it leads to zehirus, with the same three types of inspiration for the three different types of people, as described back in chapter four.

On the face of it, that is all the author seems to say and it makes perfect sense. However, this is problematic. R. Pinchas ben Yair did not say that Torah leads to both zehirus and zerizus; he said Torah leads to zehirus and zehirus leads to zerizus. Is the Ramchal accusing R. Pinchas ben Yair of inexactitude?

The simple answer to this question is found in the final paragraph of chapter nine. There the Ramchal says that zerizus belongs after zehirus for as long as people pay no attention to their behavior, excitement for Mitzvos is highly unlikely. It is only after zehirus is achieved that zerizus becomes a possibility. This is of course true, but in chapter eight the Ramchal provides, in his subtle choice of words, a deeper appreciation of the process in which zehirus brings a person to zerizus.

At the end of chapter eight, the author sums up the chapter, claiming that he has described how the same three kinds of inspiring contemplations that worked for zehirus also work for zerizus. But a careful reading shows that the Ramchal has written things differently here. First of all, before the final paragraph, no mention is made of the three different kinds of people. The Ramchal just describes three ways of thinking that lead to zerizus as if they work equally well on all people. More significantly, none of the three "contemplations" found in chapter eight match the "contemplations" found in chapter four! In chapter four we find the fear of flaws for the "shleimei hada'as," the shame of dishonor in the next world for those "inferior to them," and the fear of punishment for "the masses." Compare that to the three "contemplations" of chapter eight: First there is awareness of the value of Mitzvos and the magnitude of our obligation to perform them, then there is thinking about the constant flow of wonderful things that God does for people, and finally, man's dependence on God and the awareness that a failure in divine service could lead to deprivation. The two sets of three just don't match.

It seems that our three friends have evolved since chapter four. While before zehirus contemplations have to be custom-tailored for different kinds of people, after zehirus is achieved and people have grown in their spiritual sensitivity, they can be motivated by an increasing variety of contemplations. And although they still have different "personalities" and the Torah impacts and inspires them in different ways, we can readily see how they have matured and are now not just inspired by the Torah to avoid sin, but each in his own way is motivated to do Mitzvos as well.

Indeed, it is as R. Pinchas ben Yair said. Zehirus leads to zerizus.