Episode Details

 Seeking Heaven on Earth or Turning Earth into Heaven 

  Having spent a week studying the portion
of the Meraglim, end delving into the additional support given to Joshua and Caleb, and learning that the neshamot of the original Shevatim joined each of the ten other meraglim to boost (although unsuccessfully) their spiritual awareness, I am trying to understand the mindset of the ten. I endeavor to put myself in their shoes and figure out why they did what they did. 

We read the various explanations discussing their intent, but something was still missing for me. If we look at Rashi, we see that at first, he praises the Meraglim quoting the Torah’s description of them as anashim - men and telling how important each and every
one of them in fact was. The rabbis tell us that the Torah lists their names in
order of importance, and we don’t find Joshua or Caleb until the middle of the
list. We have to ask, if these guys were so special, how did they mess up? 

But then Rashi tells us that they went
in as they came out and with that, he explains that just as they came out with
an evil intention, they went in with an evil intention.  

So, when did they go from important,
honorable, righteous people to people who went in with this evil intent? 

I think we can also get a feel for where
they went wrong or what the thought process which led to their miscalculation
was by looking at the responses to them by Joshua and Caleb. 

I don’t think that anyone goes in with
the intent to derail a mission unless they think that they are totally
justified and righteous in what they are doing. These ten must have thought
that they were doing the most beneficial thing for Benai Yisrael. 

Many of our rabbi suggest that the
meraglim thought it best to stay in the desert under the leadership of Moses
where they could eat the maan, drink from the well of Miriam, dwell in the
protection of the divine clouds and study the Torah firsthand within a life of
perfection rather than leaving that Heaven on Earth and connecting themselves
to a land, to a battle and to farming to work, where the torah might be
forgotten. 

Caleb tells them that we can surely go
up and inherit the land because Hashem gives us the ability. We explained in
the class based on the Talmud in Sotah that he saying that even if you gave us
ladders, we could climb into heaven provided we have Hashem‘s assistance. When
they are afraid and the strength of those in the land. Joshua tells them:
'Have no fear of the people of the country, for they are our prey: their
protection has departed from them, but the Lord is with us' (14:9).  

 I
believe we have a reasonable clue as to what was on the minds of the 10 spies. 

If we say that they were righteous and
suddenly everything changed when they were ready to go into the land, then
something happens at the time of their appointment. Perhaps until then they
didn’t feel a responsibility for the nation as a whole, but at this point, as
leaders, they became responsible and with that responsibility, tremendous fear
takes hold.