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Knowledge of the Issur vs. knowledge gained through experience

Does Teshuvah stem from knowledge of the Issur, or from knowledge gained through Experience?

We brought a piece from Dov where he tells the guy how "knowing the intricacies of the issurim" is not what we need to recover. Instead, we need to ask ourselves what is OUR problem is (not what the Torah says the problem is).

After some replies on the forum, Dov again clarifies that it is not the "knowledge" of why it's wrong that can stop a real addict, nor is it blind-faith in the truth of the Torah that can stop us. What stopped him, was plain and simply the "knowledge" that he gained through his suffering.

GYE Corp. Monday, 23 January 2012

If we could actually say that knowing this (the intricacies of the issurim) would necessarily make an iota of difference in getting someone to stop for good, I'd promptly shut up. But I do not believe it is so in many cases.

Of the following two choices, which is more like "knowledge" and which is more like "blind faith"?

1 - What the p'sukim, shulchan aruch, gemorah or zohar tell me I must not do, (based on my acceptance of Torah misinai, emunas chachomim, [and ruach hakodesh in some cases])...

or,

2 - the experiences - each of which I had: of being so wrapped up in my porn and masturbation (or my heiligeh struggle not to use/do it) that I lived a life where even my ruchnius is all about me; watching my wife cry her heart out when she sees that I have a much closer relationship with my "thing"than I have with her (sorry folks); and getting my face mashed into the shame of my servitude to these embarrassing and pathetic behaviors that I do over and over, without recovery.

I don't need any faith to suffer. I just need to not recover.

Furthermore, when the Torah tells us that teshuvah (per RMB"N) is within our reach, it doesn't say it's in a book, at all. It says all we need la'asos is what is in our mouths and in our hearts. Our own experience - if we really see it as it is - unvarnished - will lead us to Teshuva.