NUM274 In summation: a person must survey all of his deeds and oversee all his ways, in order to remove any bad tendency or trait, let alone a sin or a transgression. It is also necessary that a man be meticulous in his ways and weigh them daily, like the leading merchants do when they assess all their undertakings to prevent their businesses from falling into ruin. One should schedule fixed times and hours for this (rather than doing so randomly) and adhere to them faithfully, because there is so much at stake. Our Sages of blessed memory have explicitly taught us the need for this type of evaluation. And this is what they, of blessed memory, have said (Bava Basra 78b) on the following verse: "'Therefore, the Allegorists said, come to Cheshbon' [this verse], and therefore, those who rule over their evil inclination say, 'come and evaluate the balance sheet of the world [a play on the word Chesbon which refers to an Emorite City but can also mean a balance sheet] – the loss of a mitzvah versus its gain, and the gain of a transgression versus its loss.…'" This is because truthful advice of this nature can only be given and can only be appreciated by those who have already freed themselves from the control of their evil inclination and who rule over it. One who remains imprisoned by his evil inclination can either see or grasp this truth. His evil inclination literally blinds his eyes, and he is like one who walks in darkness and cannot see the obstacles before him.