Musar su Numeri 5:2

Parshat Nasso, commences with commandment 362, that people who have become defiled are required to leave the camp, as it says (5,1) וישלחו מן המחנה people who suffer from serious impurities such as טומאת זב, טומאת מת, or צרעת.

וישלחו מן המחנה . What is meant is that והיה מחניך קדוש, the impure, should be sent from all three camps, as the situation required, in order to comply with the Torah's instructions in Deut. 23,15, והיה מחניך קדוש, "your camp shall remain holy." The Zohar there explains that the reference is to the 248 limbs of a person which make up his skeleton and which must retain their sanctity. This is hinted at in our paragraph. There are three camps and they represent respectively the head, the heart, and the stomach. The head is the seat of the brain and of all thoughts, and this domain must not be polluted by even the most minor degree of impurity. Our sages have already taught us that the הרהורי עבירה, impure thoughts and intentions, are more dangerous morally than the actual impurity caused by committing the sin (Yuma 29a). There follows the camp of the Levites, which is comparable to the heart of man. Obviously a good and pure heart is to be maintained at all times. The third camp is comparable to man's stomach and intestines, an area vital for converting food into energy, and discharge of that which cannot be used constructively. This area is somewhat ugly; it reminds us constantly of the bodily aspects of man and our tragic inability to remain alive without the body. Nonetheless, anyone who suffers from severe types of impurity must leave even that part of the camp. The moral lesson of all this is to sanctify oneself by means of one's food intake or abstention from it. The Jew is commanded to observe modesty even when he performs biological functions that are necessary, such as excretions of undigested food. All of these rules are designed to expel serious impurities.

First of all, the episode of the serpent, who spoke lashon hara of the Holy One Blessed be He and thereby brought death to the world. And (Bereshith 29:20): "If G-d will be with me and guard me," concerning which Chazal have said: "if He will guard me against lashon hara." And the episode of Joseph (Ibid. 37:2): "And Joseph brought their evil talk to their father," this being the catalyst of the descent of the Jews to Egypt. And (Shemoth 2:14): "In truth, the thing has become known" (see Rashi there and what we shall write below). There, too, (4:1) Moses our teacher, may peace be upon him, says: "But they will not believe me," and the Blessed L-rd counters (Ibid. 2): "What is this in your hand?" … (3) …and it became a serpent." Also there (6): "And, behold, his hand was leprous as snow." And (Ibid. 17:2): "And the people quarreled with Moses… (7) …over the quarrel of the children of Israel, etc." followed by (8): "And Amalek came and warred with Israel, etc." And (Ibid. 23:1): "You shall not bear a false report, which applies to both the speaker and the receiver [of lashon hara] (as we find in Makkoth 23a), followed by (2): "Do not be after many to do evil." And, in reference to the me'il [the outer robe of the ephod] (Ibid. 28:32): "A border shall there be to its mouth roundabout," and the entire section. And (35): "And its sound will be heard when he comes to the sanctuary, etc." And the entire section of Tazria and Metzora: the plague-spots of houses, the plague-spots of clothing, the plague-spots of men, (Vayikra 13:46): "Solitary shall he sit"— even outside of the camp of Israel. And his atonement— "chirping" birds. And (Ibid. 19:16): "Do not go talebearing among your people," (Ibid. 17): "Reprove, shall you reprove your neighbor, but you shall not bear sin because of him." And (Ibid. 25:17): "You shall not wrong, one man, his fellow," which relates to verbal wronging, which is also in the category of evil speech. And (Bamidbar 5:1): "And they shall send out of the camp every leper"— even if he were as great in Torah as Doeg. And (Ibid. 12:1): "And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses, etc." And the entire section of Shelach Lecha, which speaks about the spies. And (Ibid. 21:5): "And the people spoke against G-d and against Moses." And (Devarim 23:10): "When you go out as a camp against your foes, guard yourself against every evil thing [davar ra]," concerning which Chazal have said: "davar ra" may be read as "dibbur ra" [evil speech]. And in Tetze, the "giving out of an evil name [motzi shem ra]," and (Ibid. 24:9): "Remember what the L-rd your G-d did to Miriam, etc." And (Ibid. 27:24): "Cursed be he who smites his friend in secret," which refers to lashon hara. And it is known that all of the "cursings" were preceded by blessings; and they opened with blessing, saying: "Blessed is he who does not smite"— whence we derive that one who is heedful in this is blessed.