“A man of kindness is good to his soul, but the cruel troubles his own flesh.” (Mishlei, 11:17) This means to do acts of kindness and to do good things to his body. This is like the saying of Hillel (Vayikra Rabba, 34:3), “After Hillel had concluded his studies, he went walking, accompanied by his students. His students asked him, ‘where are you going?’ He said, ‘to do a mitzvah.’ ‘What mitzvah is that?’ they asked. ‘To go wash myself in the bathhouse,’ he answered. They asked how this was a mitzvah. He said, ‘look at the one who is appointed to wash and maintain the statues of kings they display in theaters and stadiums. The one who does this is not only paid, but is exalted in the company of the powerful. How much more so with me, created in the image of God. Furthermore, it is written, ‘the man of kindness is good to his soul.’” All this is after he has refined himself, so as not to taste the bitter (of wordly desire) as sweet. Then if he finds that it is in his power to be good to his body and he prevents it (see Mishlei, 3:27), on this it is said, “the cruel one troubles his own flesh.” However, if he is not yet refined and he finds that he desires to cause his body delight, on this it says, “evil ones do acts of falsehood” (Mishlei, 11:18). In other words, it is not enough that what he is doing is not called bestowing kindness on his body, but the opposite; he turns it around and destroys his body by spoiling it with delights. This is, “acts of falsehood.” This is hinted at in the holy Zohar, which says (Shemot, 200a), “there are three points to the Torah.” This means that with every action, great or small, one must weight it on a kind of spiritual scale to see that it fits three criteria. First of all, it must be good for his body. This is as our sages said (Pesachim, 68b), “at the outset, when someone does something, he does it for himself.” Furthermore it should be good and honest in the ways of God. Also it must not cause harm to anyone else. After he sees that the action fits these three categories, he can do it, and it is called “a man of kindness is good to his soul.”
גּוֹמֵל נַפְשׁוֹ אִישׁ חָסֶד. הַיְינוּ לִגְמוֹל חֶסֶד וְלַעֲשׂוֹת מַה שֶּׁטּוֹב לְגוּפוֹ כְּמַאֲמַר הִלֵּל (ויקרא רבה פרשה ל"ד,ג') כְּשֶׁנִּכְנַס לַמֶּרְחָץ נֵיזִיל וְנִגְמוֹל חֶסֶד לַהֲדָא עֲלוּבְתָּא וְהוּא מִדַּת חֲסִידוּת, אַךְ כָּל זֶה הוּא אַחַר שֶׁזִּיכֵּךְ אֶת עַצְמוֹ שֶׁלֹּא לִטְעוֹם לְמַר מָתוֹק, וְאָז אִם נִמְצָא מוֹנֵעַ טוֹבָה מִגּוּפוֹ בִּהְיוֹת לְאֵל יָדוֹ עַל זֶה נֶאֱמַר (משלי י"א,י"ז) "עוֹכֵר שְׁאֵרוֹ אַכְזָרִי", אֲבָל אִם אֵינוֹ מְבֹרָר עֲדַיִין בָּזֶה וְחִשְׁקוֹ לְעַדֵּן גּוּפוֹ, עַל זֶה נֶאֱמַר "רָשָׁע עוֹשֶׂה פְעֻלַּת שָׁקֶר", הַיְינוּ לֹא דַי שֶׁאֵינוֹ נִקְרָא גּוֹמֵל חֶסֶד עִם גּוּפוֹ, אֶלָּא אַדְּרַבָּה נַהֲפוֹךְ הוּא שֶׁמַּשְׁחִית אֶת גּוּפוֹ בְּתַפְנוּקֵי מַעֲדַנָּיו, וְזֶהוּ פְּעֻלַּת שָׁקֶר וְזֶהוּ שֶׁמְּרַמֵּז בַּזוה"ק (שמות ר.) תְּלַת נִקּוּדִין לְאוֹרַיְיתָא, הַיְינוּ בְּכָל דָּבָר קָטָן וְגָדוֹל יִשְׁקוֹל הָאָדָם בְּפֶלֶס לִמְצוֹא בַּמַּעֲשֶׂה הַזֶּה ג' דְּבָרִים שֶׁיִּהְיֶה טוֹב לְגוּפוֹ כְּמַאֲמַר חֲזַ"ל (פסחים ס"ח:) מֵעִיקָּרָא כִּי עָבֵיד אִינִישׁ לְגַרְמֵיהּ הוּא עָבֵיד, וְשֶׁיִּהְיֶה טוֹב וְיָשָׁר בְּדַרְכֵי ה', וְשֶׁלֹּא יִצְמַח מִזֶּה שׁוּם רֵיעוּתָא לַאֲחֵרִים, וְאָז כְּשֶׁיִּהְיֶה לוֹ חֶשְׁבּוֹן הַזֶּה יָכוֹל לַעֲשׂוֹת הַמַּעֲשֶׂה, וְיִקָּרֵא "גּוֹמֵל נַפְשׁוֹ" כוּ׳.
“A man of kindness is good to his soul, but the cruel troubles his own flesh.” (Mishlei, 11:17)
This means to do acts of kindness and to do good things to his body. This is like the saying of Hillel (Vayikra Rabba, 34:3), “After Hillel had concluded his studies, he went walking, accompanied by his students. His students asked him, ‘where are you going?’ He said, ‘to do a mitzvah.’ ‘What mitzvah is that?’ they asked. ‘To go wash myself in the bathhouse,’ he answered. They asked how this was a mitzvah. He said, ‘look at the one who is appointed to wash and maintain the statues of kings they display in theaters and stadiums. The one who does this is not only paid, but is exalted in the company of the powerful. How much more so with me, created in the image of God. Furthermore, it is written, ‘the man of kindness is good to his soul.’” All this is after he has refined himself, so as not to taste the bitter (of wordly desire) as sweet. Then if he finds that it is in his power to be good to his body and he prevents it (see Mishlei, 3:27), on this it is said, “the cruel one troubles his own flesh.” However, if he is not yet refined and he finds that he desires to cause his body delight, on this it says, “evil ones do acts of falsehood” (Mishlei, 11:18). In other words, it is not enough that what he is doing is not called bestowing kindness on his body, but the opposite; he turns it around and destroys his body by spoiling it with delights. This is, “acts of falsehood.” This is hinted at in the holy Zohar, which says (Shemot, 200a), “there are three points to the Torah.” This means that with every action, great or small, one must weight it on a kind of spiritual scale to see that it fits three criteria. First of all, it must be good for his body. This is as our sages said (Pesachim, 68b), “at the outset, when someone does something, he does it for himself.” Furthermore it should be good and honest in the ways of God. Also it must not cause harm to anyone else. After he sees that the action fits these three categories, he can do it, and it is called “a man of kindness is good to his soul.”