18 Feb PARSHAS MISHPATIM: CHANGING ONE’S NATURE

The Noam Elimelech
writes in Tzetel
Kattan (16) “Man was
created in the world to
change his nature.”
The Tzetel Kattan
gives examples of
stubbornness, laziness, shamefulness,
someone who doesn’t speak clearly,
and someone who isn’t a masmid
by nature. He should go against his
nature and acquire good middos and
good character traits.
It is written in sefarim that this is
done step by step. One can’t expect
to change immediately, but one takes
one step towards improving his nature
and then another step, and Hashem
will help him succeed.
The Divrei Chaim zt’l is renowned
for his deeds of tzedakah. He said,
“If I see a poor person and I am

not able to help him, I feel like my
flesh is being ripped out.” However,
he also said that he was born with a
stingy nature, and he changed it and
acquired a generous nature.
When the Ahavas Yisrael of Vizhnitz
zt’l was young, he was afraid, by
nature. His brothers-in-law would
throw a chicken at him to tease him
because he feared it.
During the First World War, a soldier
came into his beis medresh with a
rifle in his hand. The Ahavas Yisrael
opened his vest in front of his heart,
as if to say, “If you want to shoot,
do so.” He had entirely changed his
nature and wasn’t fearful at all. This is
because it is possible to change one’s
nature. Every small step in the right
direction adds up until Hashem helps
him, and he acquires an improved
nature.
The Gemara (Bava Metzia 32)
discusses the concept of yitzru

l’chof, to bend and to change one’s
nature regarding a mitzvah stated in
this week’s parashah. There are two
mitzvos: prikah and te’inah, which
means to help your fellow man
unload his donkey and to help your
fellow man load his donkey.
Suppose a person sees two people
struggling with their animals. One
is loading his donkey, and one is
unloading his donkey. Who should
he help? The Gemara teaches that
he should help the one unloading
his animal because we must also
be concerned with the pain and the
distress of animals. Therefore, when
we have to choose whether to unload
or load an animal, we should choose
to unload because, besides helping
our fellow man, we also save the
animal from distress.
Nevertheless, the Gemara says that if
the person who is loading his animal is
someone whom you hate, you should

help him load the animal because,
“It is better to overcome your yetzer
hara.” We must train ourselves to go
against our yetzer hara and to change
our human tendencies. If our tendency
is to hate, we must train ourselves to
love. As Noam Elimelech teaches,
“Man was created in the world to
change his nature.”
The Shitah Mikubetzes quotes
the Mahari Lunil who writes, “To
overcome one’s yetzer hara is greater
than performing several mitzvos.”