QUESTION:
The Rav has said that generally, men are more gifted with the intellectual faculties (chochmah and seichel), as opposed to the ability of “heart”, whereas women are more gifted with “heart” and less with intellect, and that this was because Chavah was created from a state of sleep, where the intellect isn’t working and only the heart is active. However, it seems that the sefer Chovos HaLevovos, which is explaining to us the duties of the “heart”, is certainly teaching us how to approach the world with intellectual chochmah and seichel, and not with spiritual feelings of “heart”. What is the proper path in a woman’s avodas Hashem? Is it the path of the Chovos HaLevovos (which seems to emphasize the use of seichel/chochmah/intellect), or is it the path which the Rav is explaining, that women are mainly meant to mainly use the heart and not the intellect….?
ANSWER:
You have made a clear and proper definition. But the truth is that if there is just “heart” and there is no use of the intellect, a person will not succeed in avodas Hashem. Even more so, there is additional reason today why women need to use their intellect in avodas Hashem. Women today are worldlier and are anyways using their intellect, to think about other things that are not spiritual. If women would not be using their intellect at all, they would easily connect to the “heart”, but since women are using the intellect more these days, for materialistic concerns, the only way to counter this problem is to put their intellect to holy uses.
So in essence, the heart is the main function of the woman, as opposed to the intellect; but in more recent times, where there are women who have become more intellectual as they are involved more with the outside world, they are using the intellect for non-spiritual purposes, so they are less drawn towards using the heart; and the only way for them to counter this is to use their intellects for holy purposes. However, in most women, the heart is the stronger point than their intellect, and thus the main avodah of a woman in most cases is to use the heart, and less with intellect. The language of our Sages, such as the words of sefer Chovos HaLevovos, is certainly a more intellectual approach that is geared towards men and not towards women, but in our times where women are anyways using their intellect in all kinds of areas, they need to channel their intellect towards holy areas, to counter the use of their intellect that is being used towards mundane things.
So in essence, the heart is the main function of the woman, as opposed to the intellect; but in more recent times, where there are women who have become more intellectual as they are involved more with the outside world, they are using the intellect for non-spiritual purposes, so they are less drawn towards using the heart; and the only way for them to counter this is to use their intellects for holy purposes. However, in most women, the heart is the stronger point than their intellect, and thus the main avodah of a woman in most cases is to use the heart, and less with intellect. The language of our Sages, such as the words of sefer Chovos HaLevovos, is certainly a more intellectual approach that is geared towards men and not towards women, but in our times where women are anyways using their intellect in all kinds of areas, they need to channel their intellect towards holy areas, to counter the use of their intellect that is being used towards mundane things.
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