Spiritual Foundation of Love | Rabbi Yaakov Moshe Katz

In the Gemara in Avoda Zara, in Daf 20, it brings the ladder ascending to the Heavens. זהירות מביאה לידי זריזות and it brings up to the level that you could be מחיה מתים. The Mesillas Yesharim based his Sefer on this, that this is the ladder, the ladder to ascend to the Heavens in all Ruchniyus, to go all the way up. There’s a gevaldiger diyuk in the Gemara. The Gemara starts off: What is זהירות? You should not look at a beautiful woman, because it brings bad thoughts. and you learn it out ונשמרתם. And it brings the ladder of R’ Pinchas ben Yair. If you notice, the beginning of the ladder which ascends to the Heavens is Shmiras Einayim, which is guarding from bad thoughts. As we've been working so long on our Shmiras Einayim together, and we didn't realize it's such a cornerstone in the whole Avodas Hashem. When you work on this, you're improving your whole ladder. The pasuk in Mishlei says, You should watch your eyes in the way of Hashem. And the Medrash explains it, the Yerushalmi, My son, if you give me your eyes and heart I know that you are mine. Wow. You give your eyes, you give your heart to Hashem, Hashem knows you're His. This is the big key. We thought we were working on just our eyes, we're working on so much more. The eyes influence the heart, the הרהורים, the thoughts. If we guard our eyes, HaKadosh Baruch Hu knows that you are mine. There was someone who was married and they had a deal. Whenever he would teach in a seminary, whenever he would go to a wedding, he would hand his glasses to his wife, because he would tell his wife, I want you to know my eyes are yours and my heart is just for you. HaKadosh Baruch Hu loves us and gave us everything we have, our heart, our eyes. He's asking us, My son, give me your heart and your eyes and I’ll know that you are mine. Could we not, when we're walking in the street, look away and give Him our eyes? And you should know, Hashem is going to give us back much, much more, but this thing, could you do for me? Hashem gives us so much love. We can’t give Him back a little bit? Look away when you know you're not supposed to look and think once during the Three Weeks, Hashem, I'm giving You my heart. In Melachim, when Shlomo HaMelech built the Beis HaMikdash, so the prophecy was, Hashem's heart and eyes are looking at us. That's the עניין of Beis HaMikdash. We're together. Can we say, We want the Beis HaMikdash back. We need Your heart and eyes to watch over us, to take care of us, to give us Bracha. Can we give Him, can we be Mechazek together, and give Him our heart and our eyes and say: Hashem, I'm going to try to not look as much. This is a step to the Geulah, and He’ll overpour us with such love, and build the Beis HaMikdash בקרוב.