But those who are cautious will earn immense benefits in this world and in the next. As we explained, it is the poorest mitzvah.

Yet people are still negligent with this prohibition. After learning all the above, we can understand the severity of lashon hara. When one is cautious with his speech, he will avoid disputes and many hardships, and thereby he will live a long life. The peddler taught Reb Yanai that long life isn't a reward.

נצור לשונך מרע, 'Who is the person who desires life…? He should guard his tongue from speaking bad.' Reb Yanai said, 'I’ve been saying this pasuk (verse) my entire life and I never knew its meaning until that peddler explained it to me!” What did Reb Yanai learn from this peddler that he didn’t know before? The Dubno Magid zt'l explains that Reb Yanai originally thought the pasuk was saying that the reward for cautious speech is longevity. The peddler replied, 'People like you don’t need it.' When Reb Yanai insisted that he wants to buy it, the peddler opened a Tehillim and read (Tehillim 34) מי האיש החפץ חיים.

The Beis HaLevi told him that they are roshei teivos (acronym) ,שומר פיו ולשונו שומר מצרות נפשו for 'Someone who guards his tongue protects himself from troubles.' The Midrash (Metzora) teaches: There was once a peddler who wandered from town to town and would announce in the marketplaces מאן בעי סמא דחייא 'Who wants the elixir for life?' Reb Yanai told the peddler he wants to buy that medicine. One of his students was curious about that practice, so when the opportunity arose he opened the snuffbox and found the written שפ״ו שמ״נ letters inside. The Beis HaLevi zt'l would often open his tabak pushkeh (snuffbox), look inside, and then immediately close it. As a wise man said, 'Before I speak, I rule over my words. If you become angry, you will suffer chest pains, which could lead to a heart attack…' Similarly, guarding one's speech isn't good only for spiritual reasons. I’m explaining to you that for your health, you must be cautious with your anger. I came here to hear medical advice.' The doctor said, 'You don’t understand. The patient interrupted the doctor, 'If I wanted to listen to a mussar drashah, I would have gone to the beis medresh. The doctor spoke to him about the importance of being cautious about getting angry. The Dubno Magid expresses this point with a mashal (parable): Someone once came to his doctor and complained of chest pains. If one traces the origin of all disputes, he will find that negligence with the laws of lashon hara stands at the root. It is also common sense that one should avoid speaking lashon hara. Therefore, one says, כנגע נראה לי בבית ' I saw something that appears like tzaraas,” but it isn’t the primary tzaraas. He should say like appears It, 'כנגע נראה לי tzaraas.'' Why can't he say, 'I saw tzaraas'? Reb Chaim Vital zt'l explains that the primary tzaraas is on the neshamah. It states (14:35), כנגע נראה לי בבית 'I saw something that appears like tzaraas…' Rashi explains, 'Even a Torah scholar who is certain that he has tzaraas shouldn’t tell with a certainty that he saw tzaraas. This form of tzaraas applies to all generations. He will also have tzaraas on his neshamah (soul). That is how tzaraas appears in our times. So, we see that although one won't get tzaraas today for speaking lashon hara, poverty and suffering do make their appearance. It’s the poorest sin, as it is so neglected. In contrast, people are, unfortunately, not very careful with lashon hara. Even many nonreligious Yidden refrain from eating chazir. There isn't another sin in the Torah that is upheld as scrupulously as this one. This means this prohibition is very well kept. (As the Gemara says, “Whoever speaks lashon hara…it would be proper to throw him to the dogs.”) The chazir is very wealthy. The poor dog represents the aveirah of speaking lashon hara. The Gemara (Shabbos 155:) לית דעניא מכלבא ולית דעתיר מחזירא 'Nothing is poorer than a dog and nothing is wealthier than a pig.” Rashi explains, a pig is wealthy because, 'It can eat all types of food, it finds food on its own, and people tend to feed it.' A dog is poor, as Rashi explains, 'No one has compassion on a dog to give it a lot of food.' Why is this written in the Gemara? Why do we need to know that a chazir (pig) is wealthy and a dog is poor? The Vilna Gaon zt'l explains that the wealthy pig signifies the prohibition of eating chazir.

Gemara ispeak