The Internal Battle of Every Human Soul

Nimrod spoke with confidence: “The ‘evil inclination’ is created by religious people. I’ve never encountered it. Why should I complicate my life with something that doesn’t exist?”

The Critical Implant

At creation, Adam was given just one commandment: not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. To ensure a genuine test, G-d appointed a cunning tempter symbolized by the serpent, who performed his role with expert skill and deception.

The failure of Adam and Eve to uphold this single commandment changed everything. Humanity was expelled from Eden, mortality was introduced, and commandments multiplied. But most significantly, the tempter- originally external- became internalized. The seductive voice that once said “you” now speaks from within as “I.”

The struggle today isn’t against an outsider, but against a voice within that masquerades as our own best judgment. It’s like a hidden enemy seated at the table of your inner decision-making, disguised as your trusted advisor.

The Coachman and the Horses

In any ethical dilemma, we hear conflicting voices each claiming to be “me.” One voice says, “I’m a loyal friend, I should help him,” while another says, “Not in this weather, and not with this mood.”

It’s like a coach with horses pulling in different directions while the coachman- your conscious will- dozes off. Without a firm grip on the reins, the horse's instincts and drives will lead you far from your goals.

Man or Beast?

We all have instinctive automatic and emotional drives rooted in the present moment. When a driver shouts at you on the highway, you might lash out immediately. But later, from the calm of your living room, that reaction often seems immature and out of sync with your values.

True humanity begins when we pause, reflect, and make conscious choices rather than react from instinct. Animals are ruled by drives, but humans have the gift and responsibility of choice.

The Mind Is a Tool

Some assume that reason and morality automatically oppose the evil inclination when in fact the mind is neutral. If you explode in anger and later someone challenges your behavior, your brain will offer a host of clever justifications.

To align the mind with your higher self, you must want it to help you grow, and direct it toward your chosen values. Otherwise, it serves the path of least resistance which is often dictated by the evil inclination.

Identifying the Inner Voice

The most difficult part of this struggle is recognizing the evil inclination in disguise. It speaks your language, uses your values and pretends to protect you, often from shame, discomfort, or pain.

The giveaway is that it lives in the now. It pushes for immediate action, gratification, and reaction. “Do it now!” is its mantra. But if you delay- “I’ll decide later, tomorrow”- it vanishes. The evil inclination cannot survive long-term thinking.

The Spiritual Obstacle Course

We may ask, if G-d wants us to do good, why create the evil inclination at all?

Imagine a mother visiting a military training base. She sees her son’s obstacle course and offers to donate money to pave it smooth and make it easy. The officers smile politely. The challenge is what builds the soldier.

The same is true in life. Without tests, there’s no growth, and without resistance, there’s no strength. We are taught “And G-d saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good.” The sages say: “‘Very good’- this refers to the evil inclination.”

Regarding Nimrod, who claims never to have met the evil inclination- it’s not that he hasn’t- it’s that he has surrendered to it completely. His coachman is asleep and the horses roam freely. He faces no inner conflict- not because he has none, but because he has stopped resisting.

Where is he going? Not to any meaningful destination. Just wandering in the field, grazing with the herd.

It's time to wake up the coachman, hold the reins and choose to live deliberately.