The Haven of Torah
A talmid chacham confessed to me, while weeping copiously, that he nearly fell into sinning with a gentile woman who works in his office. At the last moment, he caught himself and fled the office as fast as his feet could carry him.
“How in the world did I fall so low? I learn Torah, and I am punctilious in mitzvah observance, keeping all halachot, simple and complex alike. How could I be reduced to even contemplate such a disgraceful act?”
I was very pained by his tale. In an effort to lift his spirits, I said, “First of all, do not become depressed. It is only the subterfuge of the Yetzer Hara, who discourages a person from doing teshuvah. In this manner, he causes a person to fall even lower, rachmana litzlan. On the contrary, you must energize yourself with the thought that you did a great deed by escaping iniquity just in the nick of time. You have thereby earned yourself a tremendous zechut.
“But you must be extremely vigilant when at the office, to ensure that this nisayon never repeats itself. Who knows if next time you will merit being saved from sin?
“Regarding how this situation could have happened to you, a G-d-fearing Jew, there is no doubt that it resulted from a lack of caution in the area of yichud. Being alone with this strange woman led you to discuss and contemplate foreign ideas, nearly leading you into terrible sin, rachmana litzlan.
“It is only your Torah study that saved you. Our Sages state (Sukkah 52b): We learn in the name of Rabbi Yishmael that if this contemptible one (the Yetzer Hara) meets you, drag him to the Beit Hamidrash. If he is made of stone, he will crumble; if he is made of metal, he will shatter.
“When one is confronted by his Yetzer Hara, he should go to the Beit Hamidrash. The heat of Torah there will simply melt the Yetzer Hara into nothingness.”
