The Key to Winning Life’s Greatest Inner Battle: Overcoming the Inclination, Part II

In a previous article, we explored the nature of the evil inclination (yetzer hara). Here we continue by learning how to relate to it, and how to overcome it.

Our sages tell stories of great individuals who once belittled those who committed sins. In response, G-d placed them into immense spiritual trials, and had He not intervened and stopped the test midway, they would certainly have failed. Only then did they grasp the overwhelming power of the yetzer hara (see Kiddushin 81a).

Interestingly, the Talmud also recounts the stories of two other individuals who nearly stumbled, but ultimately overcame the challenge through great inner strength and self-sacrifice. One cried out, "There's a fire in my house!" just to draw attention to himself so that shame would prevent him from sinning. The other jumped into a burning furnace to escape temptation.

When we analyze these stories, a powerful message emerges: those who failed were the very ones who minimized the evil inclination and saw no difficulty in overcoming it. Their failure stemmed from underestimating the force they were up against. In contrast, those who succeeded were those who feared and respected the yetzer hara. One of them created physical barriers to avoid sin by removing a ladder that led to a rooftop where sin could occur. The other would regularly pray to G-d to avoid facing temptation. They acknowledged the strength of the yetzer and thus took real precautions which ultimately protected them.

Sometimes we too are tempted to downplay the yetzer hara because admitting that it could overpower us unless we put in real effort feels like admitting weakness. However, this attitude leads us to let our guard down, and suddenly, the yetzer hara strikes, like a snake slithering silently among the rocks, only to bite without warning.

Here lies the secret of overcoming the yetzer hara:

If I dismiss its power, I may fall asleep at my post. If however I acknowledge its strength, I’ll remain vigilant, and have a real chance of winning.

That said, an exaggerated fear of the yetzer can also weaken our resolve. If a country becomes so afraid of its enemy, its soldiers lose all morale and are defeated even by a weak foe.

A deeper look into this can be found in a remarkable teaching of our sages: “In the future, G-d will bring the yetzer hara and slaughter it before the righteous and the wicked. To the righteous, it will appear like a mighty mountain. To the wicked, like a strand of hair. Both will weep. The righteous will say, ‘How were we ever able to overcome such a great mountain?’ The wicked will say, ‘How could we not conquer something as thin as a strand of hair?!’ And even G-d will marvel with them…” (Sukkah 52a)

At first glance, this statement raises questions:

A. How is it possible that the righteous, who defeated the yetzer, see it as a great mountain, while the wicked, who failed, see it as thin as a hair?
B. Why does G-d seem to side with the wicked’s perception?

These questions support the principle that awareness of the enemy is key to overcoming him. This is the core insight of the sages in their vivid teaching.

After a person passes from this world, their internal struggle between body and soul ends. No longer a free-willed being, the person arrives at the heavenly court, where their life is reviewed and evaluated. That is what the sages meant when they said that G-d brings the yetzer hara and slaughters it- it is no longer active, because temptation ends with death. Then is the moment of clarity: “What did I do with my life?”

Those who recognized the power and danger of the yetzer hara were able to defeat it, because they defended themselves appropriately. The righteous overcame temptation because they took it seriously. In retrospect, they weep in awe: “It was like a mountain- how did we ever win?!”

The wicked however failed because they underestimated it. Now, looking back, they see how small it really was- “just a strand of hair!”- and they weep in regret: “Why couldn’t we defeat that?”

G-d too, joins in their wonder- not because the righteous were wrong, but because the wicked truly could have overcome the yetzer, had they prepared properly. As the sages taught, G-d never gives a person a trial they cannot withstand.