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Text Excerpt
ריאה שואבת כל מיני משקין, כבד כועס, מרה זורקת בו טפה ומניחתו, טחול שוחק, קרקבן טוחן, קיבה ישנה, אף נעור. נעור הישן ישן הנעור — נמוק והולך לו. תנא: אם שניהם ישנים או שניהם נעורים — מיד מת.
and the lungs draw all kinds of liquids, the liver becomes angry, the gall bladder injects a drop of gall into the liver and allays anger, the spleen laughs, the maw grinds the food, and the stomach brings sleep, and the nose awakens. If they reversed roles such that the organ which brings on sleep were to awaken, or the organ which awakens were to bring on sleep, the individual would gradually deteriorate. It was taught: If both bring on sleep or both awaken, the person immediately dies.
תניא רבי יוסי הגלילי אומר: צדיקים יצר טוב שופטן, שנאמר: ״ולבי חלל בקרבי״. רשעים יצר רע שופטן, שנאמר: ״נאם פשע לרשע בקרב לבי אין פחד אלהים לנגד עיניו״. בינונים — זה וזה שופטן, שנאמר: ״יעמד לימין אביון להושיע משפטי נפשו״.
With regard to one’s inclinations, it was taught in a baraita that R' Yosei HaGelili says: The good inclination rules the righteous, as it is stated: “And my heart is dead within me” (Psalms 109:22); the evil inclination has been completely banished from his heart. The evil inclination rules the wicked, as it is stated: “Transgression speaks to the wicked, there is no fear of God before his eyes” (Psalms 36:2). Middling people are ruled by both the good and evil inclinations, as it is stated: “Because He stands at the right hand of the needy, to save him from them that rule his soul” (Psalms 109:31).
אמר רבה: כגון אנו בינונים. אמר ליה אביי: לא שביק מר חיי לכל בריה?
Rabba said: People like us are middling. Abaye, his student and nephew, said to him: If the Master claims that he is merely middling, he does not leave room for any creature to live. If a person like you is middling, what of the rest of us?
ואמר רבא: לא איברי עלמא אלא לרשיעי גמורי או לצדיקי גמורי. אמר רבא: לידע אינש בנפשיה אם צדיק גמור הוא אם לאו. אמר רב: לא איברי עלמא אלא לאחאב בן עמרי ולרבי חנינא בן דוסא. לאחאב בן עמרי — העולם הזה, ולרבי חנינא בן דוסא — העולם הבא.
And Rava said: The world was created only for the sake of the full-fledged wicked or the full-fledged righteous; others do not live complete lives in either world. Rava said: One should know of himself whether or not he is completely righteous, as if he is not completely righteous, he knows that his life will be a life of suffering. Rav said: The world was created only for the wicked Ahab ben Omri and for R' Ḥanina ben Dosa. The Talmud explains: For Ahab ben Omri, this world was created, as he has no place in the World-to-Come, and for R' Ḥanina ben Dosa, the World-to-Come was created.
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