ראה אנכי נותן לפניכם היום וגו' את הברכה אשר תשמעו וגו'. יש בחינות ברכה וקללה, מצד שאין לו דבקות בפנימיות התורה והמצוות, כי אם על ידי אשה מקושטת, בענינים ניאותין לכל אחד מישראל, לפי בחינתו וחשקו, כמו ששמעתי בשם מורי בפ' ראה, את הברכה אשר תשמעו וגו': (תוי"י פ' בא דנ"א נ"א).
Behold, I set before you today a blessing and a curse. The blessing, if you obey the commandments of the L-rd your G-d, which I command you today. And the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the L-rd your G-d…” (Deuteronomy 11:26-28) There are aspects of blessing and curse. They occur when a person’s attachment to the inner dimension of the Torah and the mitzvos is only by means of the “bejeweled woman” – in ways that are pleasing to each one of Israel, according to his nature and desire.1The compiler of sefer Baal Shem Tov writes: “When Torah study is for the sake of any material end, this itself is a blessing and a curse. The very study is a blessing; however, the extraneous intention is called a curse. Therefore, this type of study is called a blessing and a curse together. Thus, the verse continues: ‘The blessing, if you obey the commandments….’ That is, a person must separate the blessing from the curse, and study Torah in a way that will only be for blessing.” Toldos Yaakov Yosef, Bo, p. 51a
ראה אנכי נותן לפניכם היום וגו' את הברכה אשר תשמעו וגו'. יש בחינות ברכה וקללה, מצד שאין לו דבקות בפנימיות התורה והמצוות, כי אם על ידי אשה מקושטת, בענינים ניאותין לכל אחד מישראל, לפי בחינתו וחשקו, כמו ששמעתי בשם מורי בפ' ראה, את הברכה אשר תשמעו וגו':
(תוי"י פ' בא דנ"א נ"א).
Behold, I set before you today a blessing and a curse. The blessing, if you obey the commandments of the L-rd your G-d, which I command you today. And the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the L-rd your G-d…” (Deuteronomy 11:26-28)
There are aspects of blessing and curse. They occur when a person’s attachment to the inner dimension of the Torah and the mitzvos is only by means of the “bejeweled woman” – in ways that are pleasing to each one of Israel, according to his nature and desire.1The compiler of sefer Baal Shem Tov writes: “When Torah study is for the sake of any material end, this itself is a blessing and a curse. The very study is a blessing; however, the extraneous intention is called a curse. Therefore, this type of study is called a blessing and a curse together. Thus, the verse continues: ‘The blessing, if you obey the commandments….’ That is, a person must separate the blessing from the curse, and study Torah in a way that will only be for blessing.”
Toldos Yaakov Yosef, Bo, p. 51a