""Only guard yourself and greatly guard your life." (Deuteronomy 4:9)

Rabbi Yose, a sage of the Mishna, said: "Let all your deeds be for the sake of Heaven." (Pirkei Avos 2:17). Rabbi Ovadiah Bartenora, in his classical commentary on this teaching, writes: "Even when you are engaged in eating, drinking, and earning a living, do not have the kavanah - intention - that you are doing this for your physical pleasure, but rather for the sake of being healthy so that you can fulfill the will of your Creator." Yes, we should certainly enjoy those physical pleasures that the Creator intended us to have, but our primary motivation should be "for the sake of Heaven" - to have the strength to fulfill the life-affirming purpose of our Creator. The great 12th century sage, Maimonides - also known as "the Rambam" - elaborates on this idea, and he notes that even sleeping can be for the sake of Heaven if one sleeps with the intention of gaining physical and mental strength in order to know Hashem - the Compassionate One (Hilchos De'os, 3:3). In general, adds Maimonides, one needs a healthy body in order to know and emulate the ways of Hashem; "therefore, he must avoid that which harms the body and accustom himself to that which helps the body become healthier and stronger" (Ibid. 4:1). Maimonides also reminds us that our sages stressed the importance of exercise and good nutrition.

And Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch reminds us that it is a mitzva - Divine mandate - to take care of our health, as it is written: "Only guard yourself and greatly guard your life" (Deut. 4:9). The Hebrew term for "life" in this verse is "nefesh" - a term which can refer to the life-force which supports the body. In his explanation of this mitzva, Rabbi Hirsch writes:

"Not only may you not rob yourself of your life; you may not even cause your body the slightest injury. You may not ruin your health through carelessness, you may not weaken yourself by abstinence from that which is permitted, you may not willfully bring yourself into danger, you may not lessen your powers through an irregular way of life, or in any way weaken your health or shorten your life. Only if the body is healthy is it an efficient instrument for the spirit's activity. Therefore, even the smallest unnecessary deprivation of strength is accountable to God. Every smallest weakening is partial murder. Therefore you should avoid everything which might possibly impair your health. You should not risk your health except when God himself demands it. You should not rely on a protective miracle of Providence, unless the fulfillment of duty makes it necessary to face danger; for Providence does not protect carelessness and foolhardiness. And the law (of Torah) asks you to be even more circumspect in avoiding danger to life and limb than in the avoidance of other transgressions - see Choshen Mishpat 427 and Yorah Deah 116." (Horeb, chapter 62)

Rabbi Hirsch also conveys the following personal message to each of us: You have a responsibility to preserve your life and your health, for all creation has a claim to your beneficent activity, including "every human being whom you can serve, every animal that you have and can preserve, every tree which you can guard, and every earthly creature to which you belong" (Ibid.).

All of the above teachings can help us to understand the following statement in the Book of Proverbs:

"A person who does chesed (deeds of love) does good to himself." (11:17)

According to some of the commentaries, the "good" that the loving person does to himself is the providing of his necessary physical needs so that he can be healthy and strong. A person who is dedicated to chesed looks after his basic physical needs so that he can have the health, strength, and resources to give to others. With this altruistic intention, eating, drinking, sleeping, exercise, and all activities which enhance physical and mental health become deeds "for the sake of Heaven."

Shalom,

Yosef Ben Shlomo Hakohen (See below)

Related Comments:

1. The Chafetz Chaim, whose teachings we discussed in previous letters, stressed the importance of good health to his students. In a talk that he gave at his yeshiva in 1903, he said: "Don't go learning and studying inordinately, beyond the normal amount of Talmud. A person must guard his body against ailments. He must therefore rest, renew his strength, breathe fresh air. An hour should be set aside regularly for a walk around evening time, or for resting at home. As much as possible, one should bathe in the river, to fortify the body. Excessive, exaggerated zeal and perseverance in study stems from the counsel of the bad inclination, which seeks to persuade a person to toil away beyond his strength, so that his body should become so weakened that he will be forced to give up the study of Torah completely; and thus his reward will be canceled by his loss. In my own self I have seen this: In my early years I kept learning and studying Torah beyond my strength, and as a result, my eyes became weakened; and so the doctors decreed that I must not read any printed work studiously for a full two years." ("The Chafetz Chaim" by Rabbi Moses Yoshor, ArtScroll)

2. The Chazon Ish, a leading sage of the mid-twentieth century who lived in Bnei Brak, Israel, was constantly concerned about the health and welfare of yeshiva students. In a letter to one student who had been ill, he wrote: "Perhaps you can arrange to go to a resort for a month for recuperation. Ask your soul to be kind to your body." ("The Torah Personality" - Biographical sketches of leading sages published by ArtScroll)

3. "Horeb" by Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, explains the ethical and spiritual lessons that can be learned by fulfilling the mitzvos of the Torah, including the mitzvos of the heart and the mind. It also provides the reader with many of the details and laws regarding the mitzvos.