There is, however, a possibility for negative consequences even within Torah study. Since the Torah is enclothed in worldly affairs and operates with the framework of human logic, it is possible that a person will look at it as no more than a system of wisdom, forgetting about G-d, the Giver of the Torah. When the Torah is studied with such an approach, it can become “a potion of death,” encouraging a person’s self-concern. Instead of serving as a tool to bring about the refinement of the world and the person studying, the study of the Torah can inflate the person’s ego and cause him to become more materially oriented.
For this reason, it is necessary for one’s Torah study to include P’nimiyus HaTorah, the inner, mystic dimensions of the Torah, which focuses attention directly on the Torah’s G-dly and spiritual core.