SEFER CHOFETZ CHAIM ?
Day 8 ¨C Past History
? Another area involving loshon hora is that of past history.? It is forbidden to relate something about an individual¡¯s past which either the speaker or the listener considers shameful, though in reality it is not shameful at all.
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Our Sages teach that ¡°at the place where baalei teshuvah (returnees to the path of Torah) stand, perfect tzaddikim (those who have always been righteous) cannot stand¡± (Berachos 34b).? Thus, there is nothing shameful about a baal teshuvah.? Nevertheless, it
is forbidden to relate that someone is a baal teshuvah if either the speaker or the listener looks down at such people.? (Related laws regarding baalei teshuvah will be discussed in Day 20).
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SEFER SHMIRAS HALOSHON ? Do Whatever You Can (I) ?
A Torah scholar once posed the following question: If one has failed to concentrate while reciting the Shemoneh Esrei prayer and finds himself near its conclusion, with what approach can he inspire himself to pray the remainder of the prayer with proper concentration?
The scholar offered a solution by way of a parable:
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A young girl was standing in the marketplace with a large basket of apples for sale. Suddenly, a thief approached and began to snatch apples out of the basket. The girl became confused and stood helplessly, not knowing what to do. Someone who was watching from
a distance called out to her, ¡°Why are you standing still? What are you waiting for ¡ªthat he should grab everything? Just as he is grabbing, so should you grab-? whatever you can get will still be yours!¡±
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And so it is regarding prayer. If one was overcome by lethargy and mindless daydreaming at the start of the Shemoneh Esrei, and suddenly finds himself near the prayer¡¯s end without having ¡°grabbed any apples,¡± this does not mean that he should give up and leave
himself with nothing. Rather, he should strive with all his inner strength to concentrate on the remaining blessings.
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And so it is, exactly, with shmiras haloshon. You stumbled this morning and spoke the forbidden? Then stand ready this afternoon to overcome your evil inclination and refrain from forbidden talk. And if you fail in the afternoon, nevertheless, strengthen yourself
to do battle once more tomorrow. Surely Hashem will help you to succeed, for ¡°one who seeks to purify himself is granted Heavenly assistance¡± (Shabbos 104a).
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