What does “lefum tza'ara agra” mean?

Rabbi Landau teaches that the Sages' words lefum tza'ara agra mean “according to the pain is the reward,” and he reads them as the law of every real victory: “If there's no resistance, there's no victory.”

In A Soul at Peace, he points out how precise the wording is. It does not say there is a reward along with the pain, as if the reward were added on from outside. It says the size of the reward is measured by the size of the pain. The realness of the victory grows out of the struggle itself.

His practical advice there: the next time you meet an obstacle, whether in prayer, in keeping Shabbos, in learning, or in anything else, stop before you say “I can't.” Say to yourself instead, “The game has started.”

Going deeper: Rabbi Landau's teaching, level by level

Surface claim

The reward grows out of the struggle, not in spite of it.

Deepest human truth

Without opposition, a victory means nothing.

More questions from this teaching

• If I keep hitting obstacles, does that mean I'm on the wrong path?