NUM275 Rabbi [Judah HaNasi, who codified the Mishnah] said: Which is the right course that a man should choose for himself?… Reckon the loss that a mitzvah entails, against its reward; and the benefit gained from a sin, against the loss it brings. Contemplate three things and you will not come into the hands, the clutches of sin: Know what is above you: an eye sees, and ear hears, and all your deeds are written, recorded in a Book. Pirkei Avot, Perek II, mishnah 1. The first obstacle that the evil inclination throws in the path of a person on his way to perform a mitzvah is the thought of what it has to cost. "Think of the time, the effort, the money. How could you!" Rabbi Judah HaNasi's answer is: We cannot deny that observing mitzvoth does involve an initial cost. But weigh this against the gain beyond price, the infinite reward that will surely come. When tempted by a transgression, on the other hand, you have an initial gain. This, too, cannot be denied. There is an immediate pleasure. People use the expression, "ugly as sin." Sin is ugly, but only after the fact. Before it is done, it is quite attractive and tempting. If it were not, people would not sin. True, says Rabbi Judah HaNasi, it tempts you; it offers you some immediate benefit, some ready profit. But weigh the momentary gain against the infinite loss, the irreparable harm that it brings. And Rabbi Judah HaNasi is not alone in this wise approach. "Said Rabbi Yohanan: What is the sense of the verse, 'Therefore the mosh'lim (JPS translates, "they that speak in parables"; RSV, "the ballad singers.") say: Come to heshbon' [this verse]? 'The mosh'lim means the rulers--those who rule and control their passions.' Come to heshbon': [they say] Come and let us make a heshbon, a reckoning of the world: the loss that a mitzvah entails, against its reward; the profit from a transgression, against the loss it brings" (T.B. Baba Bathra 78b). To control the yetzer hara, the evil inclination, this is the key: make a heshbon, a reckoning of what you gain and what you lose by everything, good or bad, that you do. For a mitzvah the cost, the loss is temporary; the reward is everlasting. For an averah, a transgression, the pleasure and the gain are transient; the harm, though it may not come at once, is devastating and permanent. In any system of accounting, what is important is the final figure in the last column. Of what avail is it to show a profit in the beginning but then have a deficit in red ink at the end? A series of pleasures is a perishing series. Good times leave nothing in their wake except a feeling of emptiness. The experience of many pleasures amounts to nothing of permanent value. Transgressions end with loss; that spells their true significance. On the other hand, mitzvoth end with gain; this is the reality. Make a heshbon, and you will become the "ruler of your spirit."