Everyone knows that one of the many areas in which the great Tzadik, the Chofetz Chaim, stood out, was his extreme care to avoid speaking negatively about others. He was a living example of “Mi ha’ish hachafetz chaim ohev yamim li’ros tov, netzor l’shoncha me’ra usphasecha midaber mirma, Who is the man who is eager for life, who desires years of good fortune? Guard your tongue from evil, your lips from deceitful speech.”
One year, on Purim, there was a man who was very drunk in the presence of the Chofetz Chaim. He was behaving very obnoxiously, and the others present tried to throw him out of the room, feeling that it was disrespectful to the great Tzadik for him to be there. In this drunken state, he declared, “I refuse to leave unless the Chofetz Chaim promises me that I will have a place right next to him in Gan Eden!”
The Chofetz Chaim responded: “The only good thing I have done in my life is that I never spoke badly about another person. From the day I began to speak as a child, I have been careful in this regard. If you promise me right now, that for the rest of your life, you will never speak negatively about another person, I can promise you that you will sit next to me in Gan Eden.”
But the man could not bring himself to make such a commitment. The Chofetz Chaim encouraged him to make the commitment, telling him that we can learn from the ways of Mordechai, who never spoke badly about others, unlike Haman, who always had negative things to say, particularly about the Jewish people. But this Yid could not find the strength to make such a strong, everlasting pledge.
Unable to obtain this guarantee from the Chofetz Chaim, the others threw the man out of the room, so that they could continue to celebrate Purim without his disturbances.
Later on, the Chofetz Chaim said that this man had an opportunity, and had he made that commitment, surely Hashem would have helped him to fulfill it. When a Yid makes a promise to Hashem, from the depth of his heart, Hashem helps him to fulfill it.
Take It To Go:
The Chofetz Chaim was teaching us that when it comes to making a commitment for the sake of Heaven, it is not just a matter of whether we can have the inner strength to keep our commitment. Such a perspective leaves Hashem out of the picture! When making a pledge to grow in Yiddishkeit, remember to invite Hashem into the process, and ask Him to help you do what would otherwise be impossible for you to do on your own. As the Gemarah teaches us (Sukkah 52b) “A person’s evil inclination overcomes him each day…and if not for the Holy One, Blessed be He, Who assists him with the good inclination, he would not overcome it.” A Yid never makes a commitment alone!
This article was found in Nekuda Tova Issue 27 Special Purim Editions.