The Pornography Episode- Joy of Text 1:6 by Rabbi Dov Linzer

But is it permitted to gaze upon a woman? The Gemara raises an objection from a baraita. The verse states: “And you shall keep yourself from every evil thing” (Deuteronomy 23:10); this teaches that a person should not gaze upon a beautiful woman, even if she is unmarried; and a person should not gaze upon a married woman, even if she is ugly; and a person should not gaze upon the colored garments of a woman; and a person should not gaze at a male donkey, at a female donkey, at a pig, at a sow, or at fowl, when they are mating ... Nor may one gaze at the colored garments of a woman, Rav Yehuda says that Shmuel says: This is the halakha even if they are spread on a wall, not only when they are being worn. Rav Pappa says: And the prohibition applies only when one knows their owner... The Gemara cites another source that interprets the verse cited above. The Sages taught a baraita explaining the verse: “And you shall keep yourself from every evil thing” (Deuteronomy 23:10), which is immediately followed by the verse: “If there be among you any man who is not ritually pure by reason of that which happened to him by night” (Deuteronomy 23:11). This teaches that a person should not think impure thoughts by day and thereby come to the impurity of an emission by night.

The Gemara interprets verses written with regard to the Midianite war discussed above: “And we have brought an offering before the Lord what every man has gotten of jewels of gold, chains, and bracelets, rings, agil, and kumaz, to make atonement for our souls before the Lord” (Numbers 31:50). Rabbi Elazar said: Agil is a mold in the shape of a woman’s breasts worn over them as an ornament... Later in that chapter, it is written: “And Moses was angry with the officers of the host, the captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, who came from the battle” (Numbers 31:14);... They said to him: “Not one man of us is missing” (Numbers 31:49), we remain as wholesome in deed as we were. He said to them: If so, why do you need atonement? The princes brought these ornaments to atone for their souls. They said to him: If we have emerged from the grasps of actual transgression, we have not emerged from the grasps of thoughts of transgression. Immediately, they decided: “And we have brought an offering before the Lord.” The Sage of the school of Rabbi Yishmael taught: For what reason did Israel in that generation require atonement? Because they nourished their eyes from nakedness. With regard to the verse that lists the ornaments, Rav Sheshet said: For what reason did the verse list outer ornaments, i.e., a bracelet, with inner ornaments, i.e., a kumaz? To tell you that anyone who gazes upon a woman’s little finger is considered as if he gazed upon her naked genitals. The atonement was for the sin of looking.

[2] It is forbidden for a person to beckon with his hands or feet or to signal with his eyes to one of the arayot (i.e., a woman with whom he is forbidden to have sexual relations). He is similarly forbidden to be jocular with her or to interact with her in a way of levity. It is even forbidden to smell the perfume that she is wearing or to gaze at her beauty, and a person who intends to do so is given lashes.
One who gazes at even a small finger of a woman and intends to derive sexual pleasure, it is as if he has gazed at her genital area. And even to hear to voice of an ervah or to see her hair is forbidden.

[3] It is permitted to look at the face of an unmarried woman and examine [her features]… to determine whether she is attractive in his eyes so that he may marry her. There is no prohibition in doing this. On the contrary, it is proper to do so. One should not, however, look in a licentious manner. Behold the verse states: “I established a covenant with my eyes; I would not gaze at a maiden.” (Job 31:1).

[4] It is permitted for a person to gaze at his wife when she is a niddah, although she is an ervah [at that time]. Although his heart derives satisfaction from seeing her, since she will be permitted to him afterwards, he will not come to stumble. He should not, however, share mirth with her or act frivolously with her lest this lead to sin.

One of the early pious ones and the great sages would take pride in the fact that he never looked at his circumcision, and another one took pride in the fact that he never look at the visage of his wife, because his heart was turned away from matters of nonsense to words of truth which take hold of the hearts of the holy ones.

Rabbi Yehoshua from Saknin said in the name of Rabbi Levi: Moshe did not let his eyes feast upon the Shekhinah, therefore he merited to derive pleasure from the Shekhina. His eyes did not feast upon the Shekhina, as it says, “And Moshe hid his face [for he feared to look upon God]” (Shemot 3:6). He merited to derive pleasure from the Shekhina, as it say, “And Moshe did not know that his face shone [when God spoke with him” (Shemot 34:29). In merit of “he hid” he was rewarded with “And God spoke to Moshe face-to-face.” (Shemot 33:11). In merit of “for he feared” he was rewarded with “and they feared to draw near to him.” In merit of “to look” he was rewarded with “And the vision of God he saw” (Bamidar 12:8).

Nadav and Avihu – their eyes feasted upon the Shekhina (see Shemot 24:9-11, “Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadav, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; And they saw the God of Israel… And upon the nobles of the children of Israel He laid not his hand: and they saw God, and did eat and drink.”) – and they did not derive pleasure from the Shekhina, as the verse states, “And Nadav and Avihu died before the Lord.” (Bamidbar 3:4).

Thoughts of transgression are worse than transgression itself, and your mnemonic is the odor of meat.

Thoughts of sin – regarding lust for women are more difficult to weaken one’s flesh (i.e., have a more deleterious effect on one’s health) than the act itself.

The smell of meat – one who smells roasting meat, it is very hard for him, because he lusts after it.

Man must have control over all these desires, reduce them as much as possible, and only retain of them as much as is indispensable. His aim must be the aim of man as man, viz., the formation of ideas, and nothing else. The best and sublimest among them is the idea which man forms of God, angels, and the rest of the creation according to his capacity. Such men are always with God, and of them it is said, "Ye are princes, and all of you are children of the Most High" (Ps. 82:6). This is man's task and purpose. Others, however, that are separated from God form the multitude of fools, and do just the opposite. They neglect all thought and all reflection on ideas, and consider as their task the cultivation of the sense of touch,--that sense which is the greatest disgrace: they only think and reason about eating and love. Thus it is said of the wicked who are drowned in eating, drinking, and love, "They also have erred through wine, and through strong drink are out of the way," etc. (Isa. 28:7), "for all tables are full of vomit and filthiness, so that there is no place clean" (ver. 8); again, "And women rule over them" (ibid. 3:2),--the opposite of that which man was told in the beginning of the creation, "And for thy husband shall thy desire be, and he shall rule over thee" (Gen. 3:16). The intensity of their lust is then described thus, "Every one neighed after his neighbour's wife," etc. (Jer. 5:8); "they are all adulterers, an assembly of treacherous men" (ibid. 9:2). The whole book of the Proverbs of Solomon treats of this subject, and exhorts to abstain from lust and intemperance. These two vices ruin those that hate God and keep far from Him; to them the following passages may be applied, "They are not the Lord's" (ibid. 5:10); "Cast them out of my sight, and let them go forth" (ibid. 15:1). As regards the portion beginning, "Who can find a virtuous woman?" it is clear what is meant by the figurative expression, "a virtuous woman." When man possesses a good sound body that does not overpower him nor disturb the equilibrium in him, he possesses a divine gift. In short, a good constitution facilitates the rule of the soul over the body, but it is not impossible to conquer a bad constitution by training. For this reason King Solomon and others wrote the moral lessons; also all the commandments and exhortations in the Pentateuch aim at conquering the desires of the body. Those who desire to be men in truth, and not brutes, having only the appearance and shape of men, must constantly endeavour to reduce the wants of the body, such as eating, love, drinking, anger, and all vices originating in lust and passion; they must feel ashamed of them and set limits to them for themselves. As for eating and drinking in so far as it is indispensable, they will eat and drink only as much as is useful and necessary as food, and not for the purpose of pleasure. They will also speak little of these things, and rarely congregate for such purposes. Thus our Sages, as is well known, kept aloof from a banquet that was not part of a religious act, and pious men followed the example of R. Phineḥas, son of Jair, who never dined with other persons, and even refused to accept an invitation of R. Jehudah, the Holy. Wine may be treated as food, if taken as such, but to form parties for the purpose of drinking wine together must be considered more disgraceful than the unrestrained conduct of persons who in daylight meet in the same house undressed and naked. For the natural action of the digestive organ is indispensable to man, he cannot do without it; whilst drunkenness depends on the free will of an evil man. To appear naked in the presence of other people is misconduct only according to public opinion, not according to the dictates of reason, whilst drunkenness, which ruins the mind and the body of man, reason stamps as a vice. You, therefore, who desire to act as human beings must keep away from it, and even from speaking of it. On sexual intercourse, I need not add anything after I have pointed out in the commentary on Abot (i. 17) how it is treated by our Law, which is the teaching of pure wisdom--no excuse whatever should induce us to mention it or to speak of it. Thus our Sages said, that Elisha the prophet is called holy, because he did not think of it, and consequently never found himself polluted with semen. In a similar manner they say that Jacob had the first issue of semen for the conception of Reuben. All these traditional stories have the object of teaching the nation humane conduct. There is a well-known saying of our Sages, "The thoughts about the sin are more dangerous than the sin itself." I can offer a good explanation of this saying: When a person is disobedient, this is due to certain accidents connected with the corporeal element in his constitution; for man sins only by his animal nature, whereas thinking is a faculty of man connected with his form,--a person who thinks sinfully sins therefore by means of the nobler portion of his self: and he who wrongly causes a foolish slave to work does not sin as much as he who wrongly causes a noble and free man to do the work of a slave. For this specifically human element, with all its properties and powers, should only be employed in suitable work, in attempts to join higher beings, and not in attempts to go down and reach the lower creatures. You know how we condemn lowness of speech, and justly so, for speech is likewise peculiar to man and a boon which God granted to him that he may be distinguished from the rest of living creatures. Thus God says, "Who gave a mouth to man?" (Exod. 4:11); and the prophet declares, "The Lord God hath given me a learned tongue" (Isa. 50:4). This gift, therefore, which God gave us in order to enable us to perfect ourselves, to learn and to teach, must not be employed in doing that which is for us most degrading and perfectly disgraceful; we must not imitate the songs and tales of ignorant and lascivious people. It may be suitable to them, but is not fit for those who are told, "And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation" (Exod. 19:6). Those who employ the faculty of thinking and speaking in the service of that sense which is no honour to us, who think more than necessary of drink and love, or even sing of these things: they employ and use the divine gift in acts of rebellion against the Giver, and in the transgression of His commandments. To them the following words may be applied: "And I multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal" (Hos. 2:10).

The Sages of the school of Rabbi Yannai, however, say proof that Moses spoke impertinently toward God on High is derived from here, Moses’ rebuke at the beginning of Deuteronomy: “And Di Zahav” (Deuteronomy 1:1). This is an entry in a list of places where Moses had spoken to Israel. As there was no place encountered by that name, it is interpreted as an allusion to another matter. We must clarify: What is the meaning of and Di Zahav? The Sages of the school of Rabbi Yannai said that Moses said the following before the Holy One, Blessed be He, to atone for Israel after the sin of the Golden Calf: Master of the Universe, because of the gold and silver that you lavished upon Israel during the exodus from Egypt until they said enough [dai]; it was this wealth that caused Israel to make the Golden Calf... Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba said that Rabbi Yoḥanan said: This is comparable to a person who had a son; he bathed him and anointed him with oil, fed him and gave him drink, and hung a purse of money around his neck. Then, he brought his son to the entrance of a brothel. What could the son do to avoid sinning?