Things that come from the Heart
Regarding things that come from the heart, enter the heart. Hence, why do we see that even if things have already entered the heart, one still falls from his degree?
The thing is that when one hears the words of Torah from his teacher, he immediately agrees with his teacher, and resolves to observe the words of his teacher with his heart and soul. Afterwards, when he comes out to the world, he sees, covets, and is infected by the multitude of desires roaming the world, and he and his mind, his heart and will annul before the majority.
As long as he has no power to judge the world to a scale of merit, they subdue him. He mingles in their desires and is led like sheep for the slaughter. He has no free choice and is compelled to think, want, crave and demand everything that the majority demands. He then chooses their alien thoughts and their loathsome lusts and desires, alien to the spirit of Torah. In that state he has no strength to subdue the majority.
Instead, there is only one counsel then, to cling to his teacher and to the books. This is called “From the mouth of books and from the mouth of authors.” Only by cleaving to them can he change his mind and will for the better. However, witty arguments will not help him change his mind, but only the remedy of adhesion, for this is the wondrous cure that reforms.
Only while one is inside Kedusha (lit. Sanctity) can one argue with oneself, and indulge in clever polemics, arguing that the mind necessitates that he should always walk in the path of God. However, one should know, that even when he is wise and certain that he can already use this wit to defeat the Sitra Achra (evil inclination), one must bear in mind that this is worthless.
There is no armament that can defeat the war on desire, for all these concepts are but a consequence he has attained after the aforementioned adhesion. In other words, all the concepts upon which he builds his building, saying you must always follow in the path of God, is founded in the cohesion with his teacher. Thus, he loses the foundation, then all the concepts are powerless; they will now be baseless.
Hence, one must not rely on one’s own mind, but cleave once more to books and authors, for only that can help him, and no wit and intellect, as they are lifeless.