Even though it cannot be said that setting limits is the main purpose of the world, there is no denying its necessity for the sake of reality.
In man there is a process of selection: he absorbs certain things and rejects others.
So long as a person can discriminate, both physically and spiritually, all is well.
But when a person comes under the corrupting influence of luxury, the situation changes.
The need for limits becomes urgent, both those that come from above and those that come from below.
From below one can be concerned with one’s own private realm of action.
But in addition, the power to awaken from below can stir the higher awakening, the higher consciousness of limits.
–Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz