It's human behavior to adamantly do that which he is firbidden to do because he feels constricted.Others do it l'hachis-to spite.
(7) Aryeh, 12/11/2007 "You're Not My Dad" rebellioness is inborn in all of us, if we are able to control it than we can do great things on our lives. It is only when the "Yetza Hora" has a hold on us that we lower ourselves below the animal kingdom. The choice is ours to make, choose life.
(6) Kamillia, 7/11/2007 Daddy Are we to assume that if it had been his Father rather than his boss, he would have listened?
(5) cindy boyer, 7/11/2007 It's Adam's rebellious blueprint within us Adam & Eve did the one thing God told them not to do & it's been in the human race's fabric ever since. It's easy to rebel; it's hard to be obedient.
(4) ammi, 7/11/2007 It all started in gan Eden a long time ago.... HaShem told our forefather Adam(and his wife): "You can eat whatever you want, except..." The result: Adam (and his wife)did exactly the forbidden thing. We see this tendency in childraising also. Even though we tell our children what the result will be, they JUST HAVE TO TEST at least once if it REALLY is that bad to do that "NoNo". Up to that point everything has been garded and safe, we get everything for free, before we even ask- and simply allowed- all OK. Maybe it´s a mistake we all need to go through at least once, in order to learn to distinguish between good and evil and through that experience develop maturity to choose to do the right thing next time we find ourselves in a similar situation.
(3) Deborah, 6/11/2007 curiosity I think people are drawn to things they know they shouldn't do out of curiosity. Curiosity serves a purpose; sometimes negative and sometimes positive. It pushes individuals past their perceptions and preconceived notions about reality. Inventions, science and personal goals benefit from this. Of course it has a negative effect too. I agree with Eliav that it is up to the individual to do right with that curiosity. Ben Franklin, Einstein and my 3 year old son have(had) that curiosity.
(2) Eliav, 4/11/2007 it's inborn The desire to go against the grain is an inborn trait. The proof of it, a baby kicking his mother in the womb? Why would anyone do a thing like that? It's not getting any better on the outside. It's because that's how we were created. But like anything else, it can go both ways. If we use that power to fight the trend to go against the norms of society that are healthy and necessary, then we are endangering ourselves and the people around us. Or, we can be someone like Abraham, or Ghandi, or any other number of heroes who had the courage to stand up against the trend and do what was right. The desire might be there from the start, but what we do with it is up to us.
(1) Rosen, 4/11/2007 temptations vs. listening There are temptations all around us, but if we listen to others and G-d appropriately, then it is a mitzvah that we did so. The only explanation why one would not listen would be spite.
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