Sha’ar 2:29-30: Delays and Habits.
Delaying teshuva will cause him to sin more, and to regress. Bad habits are self-imposed limits on our bechira. Everything we do generates momentum.
A Contemporary, Empirical Perspective on Secular Studies
A complete discussion would be ahistorical, and discuss what role chochmo should play in the studies of a ben Torah. This would not be as productive to do b’rabbim since the conclusion would very much depend on the individual. But
Sha’ar 2:26-28: Why We Must Work Hard, Without Delay
1) HKB”H made is that we have to work hard to grow so that we will not be lulled into a complacency that would cause us to not meet our full potential.2) A fixed-length investment of time that temporarily limits
Sha’ar 2:25-26: Investing the Time and Effort to Change
Acquiring knowledge vs. Internalizing knowledge – the later requires constant reinforcement. Have to set aside time to think about and internalize where we will end up (olam haba) to correctly internalize and plan what we should focus on now. Can’t
Sha’ar 2:24-25: The Potential of Olam Hazeh, With the Proper Perspective
Only a living person can do mitzvos, and this is the value of Olam Hazeh. For Yedias Hashem, however, Olam Haba dwarfs anything that can be achieved in Olam Hazeh, and hence here, when extolling opportunity of Olam Hazeh, R’
Sha’ar 2:22-23: Awareness of Mortality Helps Maximize Results
Awareness of mortality gives one a sense of yakrus hazman, and thus he works to maximize his time and accomplish as much as possible in learning, yiras Shomayim, tikkun hamiddos, doing mitzvos, all of which are practically infinite. Without that
Sha’ar 2:21: Internalizing and Fulfilling Our Missions
Must internalize, not just know, that we’re here to serve HKBH. We each have a unique mission beyond the general, common fulfillment of mitzvos. Mission can be characterized by how he balances different mitzvos, by where he is, etc. Implicit
Sha’arei 2:19: Perspective on Fleeting Nature of This World
Thoughtful people see this world as very temporary; the finite life in this world is negligible in length compare to the eternal life of olam haba. Doesn’t mean we shouldn’t plan / prepare for the future – Chazal clearly say
Avos 4:5: Lomeid Al Menas La’asos
Authentic learning must be al menas la’asos. Hence we do stop learning to do a mitzvah that can’t be taken care of by someone else. Doing is part of the mitzvah of learning itself, not a distinct one. Hashem’s yedi’ah
Derech Eretz: Torah’s Balance Between Physical and Spiritual
“Derech eretz” can mean livelihood/melacha or proper behavior/middos (R’ Yona, Rambam). Is there a connection between the two meanings? Rambam (Peirush Mishanyos, Avos 5:6) defines am ha’aretz as having the necessary middos to live in society successfully and smoothly with