The World as a Training Ground

Kobi was an idealistic Israeli teenager. He completed high school successfully and eagerly awaited his draft order; he dreamed of serving in a combat unit. Kobi enlisted in the IDF, was placed in a unit, and sent to a base in southern Israel. He successfully completed basic training and then began officer training. The course was tough and grueling; the unit trained in the desert, surrounded only by sand and sky. They practiced climbing mountains and descending cliffs, crawling through caves, and entering valleys. The sun beat down on them by day, and at night they huddled from the cold in tents.

One day, Kobi's father came to visit him. He stopped at the entrance to the training camp and was horrified to see the soldiers climbing a hill with heavy equipment on their shoulders, running over sandy and rocky terrain, leaping over obstacles, and jumping over pits, all the while panting and sweating.

And there he saw his Kobi... running like the others with a huge radio on his back, his shoes dusty, and his body covered in sweat. The father couldn't contain himself any longer. He approached the division commander and said:

"I'm willing to help your guys, pave the area, build orderly paths and steps for easy climbing up the mountain. Look at them exerting themselves; they are still so young!" The father concluded with undisguised pain.

The commander held back a laugh and explained: Understand, father, the more we train them under harsh conditions, the better and stronger they will become; the current challenges prepare them for the future!

This world is a training ground. The soul descends into the world on a mission to fulfill its purpose. Hashem provides it with a precise instruction manual — the holy Torah. Yet, the world is full of trials and obstacles requiring a person to overcome and strive against the lurking evil inclination, intent on causing a stumble at every step. The task is to stand against it, overcome all the trials, and look forward to the world to come, where lies the ultimate purpose. In this world, we are merely training and preparing the soul for eternal life in the world to come.

And what fuels the soul? Observing Torah and practicing the mitzvot, Shabbat, honoring parents, loving your neighbor as yourself, tefillin, tzitzit, and dozens of other commandments. None of these come easily! For a person to acquire a single attribute and fulfill a commandment in its entirety, they must exert considerable effort and stand firm on their principles against the evil inclination. This is our main task in this world: to break bad habits and devote our hearts to our Father in Heaven.

But in the divine instruction manual, there are also pitfalls and obstacles that we must be wary of, like forbidden foods, immodest gazing, prohibitions against murder, against revenge and bearing grudges, and more... These are essentially traps, and by overcoming them, we come closer to the goal, refining our souls for eternal life in the world to come.

If we consider everything happening around us in this way, we will see how many treasures lie in our hands, opportunities to fulfill great mitzvot, if only we pay attention to them.

A person goes to the store to buy bread and milk for their family intending for the mitzvah of kindness. Yes! Kindness towards one's family is true kindness... A person pays a craftsman who has performed work at their home, intending for the mitzvah "On that day you shall give him his wages." These are examples we encounter every day, just requiring us to be more mindful.

Conversely, there are many prohibitions and obstacles that we unknowingly violate, such as the prohibition of l'shon hara; the Chafetz Chaim lists 17 prohibitions concerning l'shon hara!

If we can identify these pitfalls, it's already a good start for a change within us. If we read the situation correctly, we'll know where to invest and what to avoid, thus training and preparing our souls for eternal life, life in the world to come.