The Spiritual Power of Speech - Rabbi Zamir Cohen (AI)

Let's imagine a person who has a device in his house with two levers. The first lever when pulled causes the device to start dispensing dollars. $1 plus $1 every minute up to $200. The second lever when pulled releases a club that strikes him and breaks his bones. The question is which lever would the person prefer to pull? Which one would he choose to use? King Solomon who was wiser than any man teaches us about a tool in our body that we can use either for good or for bad. That is it can either upgrade the quality of our life taking us to higher levels or destroy our lives through this very tool. And this tool is our mouth. The mouth generates dispenses $1 plus $1, word after word. If you calculate the mouth can speak 200 words a minute and with this mouth a person can create and influence great things. But a person can also destroy himself, literally break his bones through the words he speaks. Let's read King Solomon's words in Proverbs 10:13. In the sin of lips, there is a harmful trap, but the righteous escapes from trouble. In the sin of lips, there is a harmful trap. When a person sins with his lips, meaning he doesn't pay attention to what he says, speaking words recklessly. Solomon calls this a sin. Solomon says that the sin of the lips is like a harmful trap. A trap is something that sets an obstacle in the way. Not just any obstacle, but one that is very difficult to escape from. In modern Hebrew, when we talk about traps, we mean explosives. But in Solomon's time, there were no explosives. A trap is something a person stumbles upon and falls into. The Malbim, one of the greatest commentators on the Bible, explains why Solomon used the word lips. Usually, when we talk about speech, we refer to the mouth or tongue, as it is written, he who guards his mouth and tongue guards his soul from troubles. Or another verse, who is the man who desires life, who loves days to see good. Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit. Here Solomon speaks only of the lips. The lips are the external part of the mouth, expressing speech without thought. The tongue is more internal and expresses deeper thought. A person carefully weighs every word. But the external lips can spill words without thought, and those words can ruin his life. How many couples have divorced just because of a sentence that should have been avoided? Not necessarily just one sentence. Sometimes he starts with something he says and she answers, then he responds and she escalates the words more, trying to show that she has the last word. Until one side finally breaks the relationship. Can't take it anymore. And even when the other side comes to apologize, I didn't mean it. I will change. I will improve now. It's too late to fix all the damage. A wise man once said, "Before a word is spoken, you control it. After it's spoken, it controls you. There's already a force that takes control of your life because of something you said. Let's take a simple example. A person standing in court being asked questions. A single sentence could send him to jail. If he didn't think carefully about how to phrase things, he could destroy his life in that moment. If he had phrased it differently, explained things in a different way than how he initially answered, he could have been free to live a better life. A person standing before a king answering questions. Every word is measured and deliberate. How should he phrase it? That's why King Solomon, who was the wisest of all men, says, "Control your lips. Don't let them spill words." Because if you don't watch them, he calls it a sin, not a mistake. A sin. A sin is like doing something intentionally, even if the person didn't mean it. But Solomon says, "Know that the result could be destructive. In the sin of lips, there is a harmful trap, but the righteous man escapes from trouble. On the other hand, he says, "A person who follows the path of righteousness can use his speech to get out of trouble." In other words, a person who lacks wisdom even when he's not in trouble brings trouble upon himself through his words. And a person who walks in righteousness, called a righteous person, can escape from trouble through his speech. He knows how to phrase things, how to explain himself, how to make peace, and how to apologize. There are people with egos who cannot apologize. A word of apology could have saved an entire relationship or job. They stand firm on their ego. They said something and the boss wants to fire them. They say, "No, I stand by my principles." Drop the ego. Apologize and say, "I spoke incorrectly. I will try harder from now on." Reconcile. The way a person speaks is something worth paying attention to. There is a big issue in workplaces where uh by nature there's also competition between employees. There's a strong urge to gossip about others. One worker talks to another about how the third one isn't doing well and how the boss is a fraud and how the manager is exploiting people. These conversations when a person gossips behind others backs and when the person they spoke about suddenly approaches them during a conversation smiling and showing that they are friends that person ends up causing themselves trouble. Even the friend they spoke to will start to suspect that the person is gossiping about them behind their back as well. You show yourself as a friend but you're also showing them to the other. You might show yourself as a friend, but behind people's backs you gossip. So, who knows if you're also gossiping about me. The gimmar says that false witnesses are looked down upon by the person who hires them. He pays them, hires their services, but in his heart, he looks down on them. How can you lie? Yes, he's paying you, but that doesn't mean I respect you for being so clever and smart to lie in court. The person who hires them is actually disrespecting them. The same applies when someone gossips or speaks slander in the workplace. They create a toxic atmosphere. According to Jewish law, this is a very serious matter. It is written that speaking lash and har slander is considered equal to idol worship, forbidden sexual relations, and murder. Through lash and har, a person can destroy the lives of others, create division among people, and sometimes two people who were close friends are torn apart because a third person gossiped about one of them to the other. Even if the things they said were true, they caused a separation and dispute between them. It is forbidden by the Torah to speak lashonhara, even if it's the truth. This is different from the laws of the state where you can only sue someone if they lie about you. In Jewish law, even if a person speaks the truth about someone else's shortcomings, they are violating a prohibition. When is it allowed, even a mitzvah, to speak about someone else's shortcomings? If there is benefit in doing so, without any purpose, simply gossiping, the Torah forbids this absolutely. There are several transgressions a person commits when they speak about others without any beneficial reason, even if it's the truth. If there is benefit, it is allowed and even a mitzvah. What is benefit? For example, a person comes to you and tells you that according to their plan, they are going to invest money in a partnership with someone. They give their money. The person opens the business, works and they have a partnership agreement where the person will get 60% and they will get 40%. However, you know, the other person is a con artist who has done this to others before. He takes the money, disappears, and the person will never see that money again. Is it a violation of lashhara to tell your neighbor, "Don't deal with him. He's a crook." I know personally that he swindled people. Not only is there no prohibition of lashhara in this case, but there is also a mitzvah to return lost property. The Torah says, "You shall not stand idly by when your neighbors blood is at risk. If you see someone is about to be harmed or you can save them from harm, you are obligated to act. You see a child about to cross the street and you're holding their hand. If a person doesn't do this, they are violating a Torah commandment. Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor. Someone might say, "I didn't do anything. The child was alone. They went and hurt themselves." But you had the ability to save them. It's true. Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor is not just about life and death situations, but also about financial matters. If you see someone about to lose money, you have a responsibility and a mitzvah to save them from falling into a trap. So in this case, there's no fault or sin in telling someone, "This person is a fraud. Don't deal with them." But if you're gossiping without any benefit, just out of a bad inclination, that's something to avoid. By the way, where does this desire to talk about others come from? It can happen in families, among neighbors or in workplaces. It often stems from an inner flaw within the person. Someone who feels insecure. This person feels inferior and in order to elevate themselves, they start talking down about others, portraying them as negative, fraudulent or deceitful. In this way, they think they make themselves seem better than everyone else. If everyone else is wrong, who is right? Only themselves. They stand tall, thinking they're the most important. Every person should do an introspection and control their speech, knowing what is permissible to say and what is forbidden. We all know every person in the workplace, wherever it may be. If you know someone who you are certain will never speak ill of anyone. If it's for a purpose, they will tell you. But without a purpose, they will never gossip about anyone. They're not foolish. They have information. They see what's going on. But they don't talk about people. You feel that you like them. You trust them. They become someone you can rely on because you know that they won't gossip about you. They won't reveal others secrets. And they won't reveal yours either. From this we learn how important it is for our social image to be one of clean people, pure people, people you can trust. This doesn't happen overnight. It's a process. It's not easy to stop speaking Lashanhara and to be free of it. It's written in the verse, though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again. The righteous man falls, but he gets up and that's why he's called righteous. It doesn't say a person falls seven times. It says a righteous man falls seven times. Rabbi Yeetszak Hutna explains the rising of the righteous is through their seven falls. A person who wants to improve themselves cannot become an angel in a day. They try, they strive, they fall, they get up and fall again. They build safeguards. They become more careful. They improve and over time the number of falls decreases and they improve themselves until they reach perfection. That's why even when they fall, if they don't accept the fall and keep rising and improving, they are still called righteous. They don't say, "This is me. I'm in a low place. That's how I am. I'll accept myself as I am." If they don't accept this, they fight and continue to strive for perfection. This is why it's said though a righteous man falls seven times he rises again. This also applies to issues of lashonhara. Rabbi Kutner in a letter explaining this verse wrote about the haetsheim how careful he was with lashanhara. His book hetim addresses the laws of lashanhara. He wrote many books but he is known as Hafetim because of this book which he wrote on the laws of lashhara evil speech. Why did he call it haetim? From the verse who is the person who desires life loves days to see good. Keep your tongue from evil. Rabbi Yeetsak Hutnner says that everyone praises the hathe for his meticulous care regarding evil speech. There are stories of how precise he was, how he only spoke according to Jewish law. One must have absolute control over the power of their speech. However, Rabbi Hutner explains that we make a mistake. When we speak about the great leaders of Israel, we always talk about the final stage. how righteous they were, how many miracles they performed, how powerful their blessings were, how much Torah they knew, and how great they were in this way and that. But Rabbi Hutner says this is a mistake. When talking about the righteous, we shouldn't only talk about the final stage, the end point. We should speak about the beginning, too. how many difficulties they faced, what struggles they went through in their youth and how many falls they had. Rabbi Hutner is not afraid to say that who knows how many falls the Hafetshim had with his speech before he became the Hafetim. Why does he say this? Not to diminish the Haetsheim, but to give us string. Sometimes when a person hears stories about the greats of Israel and sees scholars, they wonder where am I and where are they? But they weren't born that way either. It takes work, effort, study, falls, and rising up until they reached where they did. This knowledge is very encouraging and strengthens a person. Take Rabbi Aka as an example. Rabbi Aka at the age of 40 couldn't read or write. He was a shepherd. There were no schools at that time. If a father didn't ensure his child learned to read and write, the child grew up without those skills. When Rabi Akiva was 40, the daughter of his boss, Kalba Savoa, recognized good qualities in him. Everyone wanted her. Her father was one of the rich men and respected people of Jerusalem and they called him Kalba Savua as a term of endearment. In Aramaic, the term means like a bulldog. Whoever entered his house came out full. He was a very wealthy man with great generosity and everyone admired him. When Jerusalem was under siege, he was one of those who said he could sustain the city for 21 years with his business. His only daughter noticed the shepherd Aka, seeing that he had good qualities, that he was a kind, wise, and clever man. She said to him, "If you marry me, I want you to be my husband, but I want you to become a Torah scholar. Are you willing to go and learn Torah?" He replied, "I am willing, but you know, at 40 years old, how can I learn Torah? I am not exactly young." She replied, "I trust you. I have faith in you." They got married. He committed to her and they married only for a yeshiva of 24 years. He studied Torah and by the age of 64, he was already recognized as the greatest scholar of his generation. There was no one greater than him in Torah knowledge. Rabi Shimanbar Yohai was one of his students. Rabbi Aka who did not know how to read or write until the age of 40. How did he achieve this? He was trusted. They told him, "You are capable. You can do it." In the midrash, it says that several times he wanted to leave learning. It was hard for him. suddenly having to change his habits. He was used to pasture, the desire to sit by a book. It's hard. And even today, there are those who after the army became stronger in their faith and began to study Torah. And today, they are outstanding Torah scholars. No one even knows their background. Each and every person has their own history. And Rabbi Aka, he is the example. But what was the secret to his success? She believed in him. You're capable. You can. Once again, the power of speech. The words she said to him, "You have virtues. You can do it." And this is the exact opposite of what King Solomon begins with here. In the transgression of the lips lies a snare for evil. Sometimes parents with just a slip of the tongue can lower a child's self-esteem. The same in marriage, criticism, insults. We must remember that a person's self-image, especially a child's, but also an adults, in marriage or in the workplace, is like a fabric. And the threads that make up this fabric are words. There is a fabric woven from threads of gold, silver, diamonds, beautiful colors. It becomes a luxurious fabric and there's a fabric woven from dirty stained threads and what comes out is poor quality. A person's self-image is a result of the threads that are sewn around him. What does he hear? What do they say about him? If a child feels that he's praised, uplifted, and if he does something wrong, they explain, but they don't humiliate. He'll change, improve. But if he's shamed, it breaks him. The same in marriage. A woman has a complaint against her husband. If for years he only hears criticism, how he's not good enough, she won't gain much from it. If he takes what she says seriously, his self-esteem will go down. He'll lose motivation, won't feel like putting in effort, and the reverse is also true. A woman who hears negative words from her husband, it's much worse than the opposite. The Rambam in his guidance on marriage chapter 15 of Hilhot is gives the husband and wife different instructions. In the list for the husband he writes his speech with her should be calm and gentle. He doesn't say that in the wife's list even though she also should speak gently. But from the husband he demands more. You speak gently because if you hurt her with words, even if she hurt you first, even with the same words, your hurt to her is much deeper. Therefore, a man is required to be more careful that his speech is gentle. Even if his wife's words were on point, you should speak well, creating a positive atmosphere. This has a significant impact on the entire quality of a person's marital life. But a woman also has complaints about her husband. One must be mindful in advance of how to phrase things. Let's take a simple example and from it we can extrapolate many everyday situations. Let's assume the husband has taken on the responsibility of doing the shopping. The wife is very busy managing the children and work. So her husband does the shopping. One day she says to him, "When you're at the supermarket today, don't forget to get eggplants. I want to make something for Shabbat with them." He goes, comes back, brings several bags, but no eggplants. Now, the wife knows she needs to drive half an hour to get them, and this bothers her. The natural reaction is, "You always forget to buy what I ask you to." If we analyze these words, when she says to him, "You, you always forget the word you," she said this naturally. But for him, it sounds like an accusing finger pointing at him and saying, "You're wrong." She might say, "I didn't mean it that way. I just went along with the words." But he hears the words, "You always forget." The word you already creates an accusing finger. Always. Why always? Does he always forget? Look at the bag, see how many things he did remember to buy, but when a person is under pressure, they don't pay attention to the words they say, and the other person ends up feeling hurt and offended. However, if you phrase things differently, always in criticism, instead of using the word you, which conveys the message you were wrong, it's always better to talk about yourself. Always start with praise. For example, in this case, she can achieve a much better result if when she looks disappointed because there are no eggplants, she says to him, "I really appreciate that you always do the shopping. She's already doing this politely, even though she's burning with anger inside, but she controls her speech. I appreciate that you always do the shopping. People forget sometimes, not just you. It happens in this world. If you'd prefer, next time I'll write it down for you. Then he will say, "Okay, no problem." And he will actually remember or say, "I'll write it down. I'll remember." Problems can be solved. Life and death are in the hands of the tongue like a tool that a person can use to create money or receive blows and destroy their own life. This is the power of speech. You can see successful young men and women full of self-confidence and joy in life. People attribute this to them but the truth is it should be attributed to their parents who knew in their childhood how to lift them up, raise them, balance them, know how to speak to them, how to guide them. There's criticism but there are also words of praise providing balance and this person grows and develops in a healthy way achieving wonderful results. Some people really had difficult childhoods where their parents humiliated and belittled them, but through inner work. They knew how to rebuild themselves and rise to a better life. But it's not easy. A person's self-image is like a fabric created from the threads of the word spoken to them. When King Solomon says, "Perverse lips are a trap for evil," Rashi explains that King Solomon is hinting at the people of the generation of the flood. He says, "Pay attention to the sequence of words in the verse. Perverse lips are a trap for evil, and the righteous man will emerge from trouble." Who is the righteous man who came out of the trouble of the flood generation? Noah. So, the simple interpretation of the verse talks about everything we've discussed so far, which is a message for everyone. But inwardly it also hints to us. Learn from the history of the people of the flood generation. What did they say? They spoke disparagingly about the Holy One. Blessed be he. And this disrespect led them to a point where the earth was filled with corruption. They were corrupt and immoral because to them there was no God. A person without God can interpret their conscience however they want and they can take it in any direction they choose. The whole progressive ideology which is found today in many places around the world unfortunately also in Israel is problematic. Instead of channeling their goodwill to protect their own people and invest in what needs to be invested in, people direct their goodwill towards enemies with self-hatred that you can't even understand where it comes from. Just look at what's happening today in Europe and in the United States. Opinions are becoming distorted because they are taking their conscience in opposite directions. This fundamental issue is already addressed in the Bible that the human soul is incredibly complex. It is written in a verse. Those who sacrifice human beings, calves they kiss. A person can slaughter human beings, murder people, but kiss a calf. In other words, he's willing to show devotion to animals, yet he is cruel to humans. How does this work in the human soul? The human soul is complex. A person can arrive at a point where he doesn't see God in the picture and he organizes his thoughts however he wants. So he finds reasons why it's okay to kill people as the Germans did believing it was a supreme value to kill those who didn't fit their ideals. But when it comes to their animals, look at how much care and love they gave them. This is why it is so important for someone who says, "I really want to change. I have a problem. I have no control over my mouth. I have problems in my marriage because I don't control my speech. At work, I get into trouble with people because I can't control my mouth. What should I do? How can I succeed when I'm angry? I use harsh, offensive, insulting words. I gossip. I speak slander. And afterward, I realize it was a mistake. How do I control myself? There are two pieces of advice. The first, which is basic for everyone, is to set aside time for Torah study. Don't let a day pass without spending an hour learning Torah. For my body, I give myself three meals a day. There's no way I'm going without food for a day because I don't have time. There's always time. Even if I say I don't have time, I still find time to eat for my soul. At least one meal. one meal of Torah study. A live lesson is the best. It's great when a person attends a lesson physically sitting in class. But even on days when they can't, they should use media tools to give themselves a moment of reflection. It's best to set aside time when you are free of all other distractions. This is the time dedicated to Torah. In addition, apart from the scheduled time during travel or when working at home, a woman can listen to lessons or Torah teachings in the background. These things elevate a person, bringing them to higher levels because the Torah provides guidance for all aspects of life. And the beauty of the Torah is that being divine wisdom and not human wisdom, it is always balanced. It gives the most precise guidance in the right balance and the right measure. With human opinions, you could talk to a psychologist and he'll tell you one thing, but another person will say the opposite. But when you have divine guidance from the verses in the Torah and the teachings of the sages, you know it's certain and true. The second piece of advice for someone who says, "I can't control my mouth. Sometimes I yell at my wife, curse my children. I can't control my speech." Is that this is something terrible. There are families where when parents get angry, they might even curse their children. The holy zoha says this is the worst when a person curses their own family, their children. Before Rash Hashana, we say prayers for removing curses along with nullifying vows because words have power. For someone who says, "I can't control myself. What should they do?" So, as we said, Torah study is like a level. It balances the person and straightens them out. But there is another piece of advice. It is written about Joseph the righteous that when Piper's wife tried to seduce him, she not only tempted him, but also threatened him. She told him that if he didn't do as she wished, she would cause him much trouble, even if he just looked at her. The sages say that Potifer's wife was the most beautiful woman of that time. And Joseph was the most handsome man of that time, as the Torah says, and Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. She desired him and would tell him, "Look at me." She knew that if he looked, he would fall. But Joseph did not lift his eyes, and he continued working. He was a servant in the house, serving, preparing, and cleaning. but he never looked at her. She told him that if he didn't look at her, she would gouge his eyes out. She could have mistreated him. Since in slavery, when someone buys a slave, they can treat them however they wish, especially among non-Jews. While in Israel, there were laws in the Torah about how to treat a slave. Among the nations of the world, they could be mistreated. She threatened to gouge his eyes. And Joseph replied, "The Lord opens the eyes of the blind." She told him that she would imprison him, which she eventually did. He replied, "The Lord looses the bound." She mentioned that there was a device used for torture, a kind of instrument where a person would be confined like a ball for a period. Joseph replied, "The Lord raises the bowed, meaning even if you bend me, I can stand because the Lord can raise me." In short, Joseph did not yield. He followed the will of God. This was Joseph's conduct in standing up to these great trials. How did he manage to withstand them? The Torah recounts that on that day, as it tells us, there was no one in the house. Everyone had gone to their idol worship celebrations. Joseph being a servant stayed behind. He didn't believe in their idol worship. So, he didn't go. All the other servants went, but Potterer's wife stayed behind because she wasn't feeling well and couldn't go with them. Then she approached him and grabbed his garment. It says he left his garment in her hand, fled and went outside because he felt that if he stayed even one more second, he would fall into sin. She held on to him and he left the house without his garment enduring humiliation. Later, she used this to accuse him to her husband. Look, his garment is here. see what he wanted to do to me and he was imprisoned. For this he believed her. Where did he find the strength at that moment? After all, a person has temptations. How did Joseph stand firm in this severe trial? The sages say that at that moment, Joseph saw the image of his father, Jacob, before him, and he imagined in his mind that his father was there. His father was in the land of Canaan. He had been taken and sold as a slave in Egypt. But Joseph envisioned his father's image. In front of my father, I would never do such a thing. It's impossible. And so he left the garment in her hand and fled outside. From this, we learn a great principle. When a person feels that temptation is attacking them, whether it's in speech or action, and they feel it's hard to control, if you have an image of someone important to you, someone you respect deeply, it can help you overcome the urge. If not, think of another great person whose value you hold in high regard. If Rabbi Oadia Ysef were here, I would never dare speak this way. In front of him, I wouldn't do it. Joseph saw the image of his father imagining him as if he were present and that gave him the strength to stand firm. There's a story about Rabbi Ovadia Ysef. A father came to him with his son. A boy around the age of bar mitzvah. The boy had grown and was taller than his father. The father shared with the rabbi that he no longer knew what to do. The boy suffered from attention deficit issues, wasn't calm, and when something upset him, he would act out at home and even hit his father. The father didn't know what to do anymore. The boy was at the age of bar mitzvah and was behaving this way. The rabbi spoke gently to the boy, and the boy confessed that afterward he felt remorse, but at the moment he couldn't control himself. The rabbi asked him, "If I were with you at that moment when someone angered you and you felt you couldn't control yourself, if I were in the room with you, would you have hit your father? Would you have acted out in anger?" The boy responded, "No, of course not. In front of you, rabbi. How could I?" Then the rabbi said, "Let's take a photo together." The boy agreed, feeling honored, and they took a picture, enlarged it, and the father hung it in the living room. Now, every time the boy wanted to act out, he would see the picture. This changed the boy completely. When I heard this story, I thought to myself, where did the rabbi get this idea from? Perhaps from Joseph the righteous, who saw the image of his father, and that gave him the strength to withstand the trial. Up until now, we've discussed the parable of the verse, which is completely true. This is from the book of Proverbs. In the sin of the lips, there is a snare. A person who doesn't guard their speech, who sins with their lips, causes much harm to themselves and those around them. But the righteous will escape trouble. A person who knows how to speak properly, even when in trouble, can escape from it. What's the underlying message in the deeper meaning? King Solomon speaks about the spiritual dimension of creation. What is the power of speech that a person has? On a simple level, speech affects human relations. But in the cabalistic teachings, it is explained that speech has spiritual power. Speech has the ability to act and change reality in the spiritual realm of creation. Let's explore the depth of this idea. How does it work? Why does speech have power? Where does it come from? We are just human beings, not the creator. The holy one, blessed be he, created the world with speech. And God said, "Let there be light." The world was created through 10 statements. We are not the creator. We are human beings. So what is the power of speech? The cabalists explain it this way. When the holy one, blessed be he, created the world, as we know, on the fifth day of creation, animals began to appear. What animals appeared on the fifth day? Crawling creatures and birds. This means that there were still no mammals and no humans in the world. If you had filmed the world with a drone on the fifth day, you would have seen crawling creatures moving around and birds along with plants that had already been created earlier. On the sixth day of creation, mammals began to appear, lions, bears, tigers, giraffes, and so on. And finally, humans. And God created man from the dust of the earth and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life. These are familiar words. Let's imagine that there was a camera on the fifth day of creation. Not that we would have been there, but let's suppose there was a camera capturing the events of creation. What would we have seen? We would have seen the earth beginning to bring forth crawling creatures, meaning animals, emerging from the ground. Just as the holy one, blessed be he, created the earth, he imbued it with the power to bring forth crawling creatures and animals, we would see the earth beginning to change and the crawling creatures emerging from it. Birds, as it is written, were created from the mud and the muck. That's where the birds began to emerge. But what was the process? First, a body was created. But this body couldn't move or function without spirit. The spirit of all living creatures also comes from the earth. From the earth, the body emerges and also the spirit within it. This spirit enters the body and animates it. The life begins to function. On the sixth day, the same process occurred. We see the earth beginning to bring forth animals again. First creating bodies and then the spirit of life entering them. The next stage was the creation of the first human. And God created man from the dust of the earth. So what would we see on the camera now? A body was created made of dust in the shape of a human. But the difference between this and all other animals is that when the human body was created, the spirit did not come from the earth. And he breathed into his nostrils the breath of life. The spirit came from above, from the creator. Just as he blows air into a balloon, so too did he blow the breath of life into man. What's the significance of this? When the holy one, blessed be he, blew the breath of life into man. It wasn't just ordinary air. It was a higher spirit, one on a different level. This is why animals die. Every animal, including fish, that dies does not return in a new incarnation. Its purpose is completed. Once their physical body ceases, their spiritual essence returns to the earth. However, this is not the case with humans, as it is written in Ecclesiastes, and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it. The human soul is spiritual and is considered a part of God from above. This does not mean that a person is God nor that God divides himself. But metaphorically the soul is so elevated that it resembles the creator himself even though it is a creation of God. When we examine the verse in the image of God he made man. It raises the question what does in the image of God mean? Since God has no physical form image here refers to a likeness in essence. The Rambam Mymones explains in Mor Nevuhim that the image of God in humans refers to the intellectual and rational faculties which distinguish humans from animals. This intellectual capacity allows humans to understand and reason abilities that are considered a reflection of the divine. Furthermore, the term Elohim used in the creation narrative implies that God possesses all powers. The plural form does not indicate multiplicity but signifies the fullness of divine attributes. Thus, when it is said that man is created in God's image, it means that humans have been endowed with a portion of these divine attributes, particularly the ability to reason and make choices. This understanding of the image of God explains why humans have the power of speech. Speech is a unique human ability that can influence reality. Studies have shown that prayer and positive speech can have tangible effects on outcomes such as healing. For instance, groups of patients who were prayed for showed statistically significant improvements compared to those who were not. Conversely, misuse of speech, such as telling inappropriate jokes or using foul language, can have detrimental effects. The Talmud teaches that such speech can harm others and diminish the speaker's own spiritual standing. In contrast, engaging in Torah study is a powerful use of speech. Even dedicating 5 minutes to learning a halaka or a verse from the Talmud contributes to the spiritual vitality of the world. Those who devote themselves to Torah study, especially in Yeshivas, are likened to the oxygen of the Jewish people, sustaining the community spiritually. The structured daily schedule in yeshivas with its rigorous study sessions, meals, and prayers reflects a lifestyle dedicated to Torah. This commitment ensures the continuity and preservation of Jewish tradition and identity. Even for those who may not believe in the spiritual dimension of Torah study, the historical evidence is clear. Communities with active Torah study institutions have maintained their Jewish identity, while those without such institutions have faced assimilation and decline. Therefore, supporting Torah study is essential for the preservation of the Jewish people. Each individual speech has the power to build or destroy. It can heal or harm. By choosing to speak positively and engage in Torah study, one contributes to the well-being of oneself and the community. In conclusion, may the words of Torah bring success to all who engage with them. May God protect and bless everyone with long life and health. Amen.