Quick Thoughts on the Parsha

In the fourth aliyah of Parshat Ki Teitzei, we read, כי תצא מחנה על איביך ונשמרת מכל דבר רע, “When a camp goes out against your enemies, you shall beware of everything evil” (23:10). What are these evil things we need to beware of? Rashi explains, שהשטן מקטרג בשעת הסכנה, “for Satan accuses in the time of danger”. Our verse here is warning us that davka when we are fighting off our enemies, when we are in the midst of struggle, that is when the Satan is most likely to step in and try to bring us down. And so we must be cautious and wary when we go to battle because it is then that we are the most vulnerable. This lesson from our verse leads us to ask, why is it that when things are hard, the Satan steps in to make it even harder? We have certainly all felt the hopelessness of struggling with only more struggles in sight. The Alter Rebbe in his Tanya answers that when we are at battle, fighting our yetzer hara, that is when the Satan is most threatened, and so he steps in to make his final attempt to thwart us. In this way, the experience of things getting harder is a sign that we are on the verge of victory. When we feel the Satan’s threat, for example in the form of temptation or depression, it is a recognition of our underlying strength and proximity to overcoming our enemies and obstacles. Today, identify an obstacle/enemy/aspect of your yetzer hara that you are feeling is just getting harder. Now challenge yourself to recognize your underlying strength in response to it. When life feels like it is only getting harder, may it be a sign of our impending success and joy.

-- Rabbanit Alissa