Tumah Of The Heart

The Gemorah (Yoma 39a) has a derasha on the possuk (11:43) venetmasem bam—you shall become tamah because of them, that it should be read as venetamtem-it shall block up.  Things which are forbidden to eat will block a person’s heart and separate him from Hashem.  Why is it that forbidden foods contaminate the heart of a person?  The Gemorah could be understood in two ways, either it’s the issur of the Torah that causes the contamination or possibly there is something in the physical makeup of the forbidden foods which causes the contamination.  The Maharal in Teferes Yisroel chapter 6 understands that it’s the issur which causes the contamination.  This would seem to be the opinion of the Raf in the Ain Yaakov who explains as well that the issur causes the contamination.  On the other hand, the Ramban explains the reason why certain foods aren’t allowed to be eaten is because these animals have cruel traits and these traits become part of a person when he eats those animals.  This approach is followed le’halacha by the Chosom Sofer in Responsa 83 that doesn’t allow even a shotah to eat forbidden foods for it will contaminate their heart.  The shotah is exempt from the issur, yet the Chosom Sofer assumes his/her heart will still be contaminated.  The Tanyah assumes this position as well in chapter 6.  The crux of the debate seems to be dependent on what the Maharal discusses in the previous chapter in Teferes Yisroel if the Torah forbade things because they are evil inherently or they become evil because the Torah forbids it.  The Maharal holds like the second way therefore, he explains that it’s the issur which causes the contamination.  However, the Ramban follows his own approach (quoted in Maharal,) that things that the Torah forbade are inherently evil.