„(Musar Avicha) *** The quality of modesty is a difficult one. On th…”
„(Musar Avicha) *** The quality of modesty is a difficult one. On the face of it, it distances peace between one person and another, in that it separates women from men. Rav Kook does not ignore this fact. Modesty causes us a loss of connection that could be good; but together with this good, a very great harm of licentiousness could arise, and therefore we must refrain from bonds of friendship between a man and a woman, even though...”
...there is in it proper conduct (derech eretz).
Students asked me whether, today, it is forbidden for a person to say hello to a woman on the street. It seems to me, in my humble opinion, that in today's reality, in which women are found everywhere and are part of society, there is no point in behaving strangely and refraining from saying hello; but the intent is certainly that one should not weave deep bonds of friendship between women and men, and especially between married men and married women, where, sadly, the breaches in this matter are many and the falls are many.
The example the Rav brings of distancing from a quality that could be good is the broadening of the mind in matters that contain a moral problem. Even though a person who refrains from studying such matters prevents himself from developing his mind, we refrain from this in order to guard ourselves.
Have a pleasant rest of the evening, everyone!
For the recovery of Roza bat Bova, and for her speedy recovery.
From the community archive of Mishpetei HaRav Kook — studying Rav Kook's teachings since 2011.