Have you ever wondered why we have to struggle so much? We are constantly faced with situations which we have to struggle between that which we would like to do and that which we feel is right to do.  In this week’s Torah portion the Torah sheds some insight onto this question.

The portion begins “When you will wage war with your enemy and G-d will deliver him into your hand and you will capture his captivity.”  The commentaries explain that this verse is not only speaking about a physical war but also refer to the internal war which each one of us has and the verse is telling us that the ultimate purpose of this internal war is to take captives.

What type of captivity is the verse referring to?  The explanation is that when we overcome our negative urges we thereby elevate some the degree the negative parts of our psyche which created these urges.  There is a kabalistic principal that darkness that is transformed into light shines a lot brighter then ordinary light.  Thus by the process, we bring the bright light into our lives.  As the popular saying goes: A happy life consists not in the absence, but in the mastery of hardship”.