Daf Yomi - Yoma 72 - Talmid Chocham Compared to Aron

The Gemora learns from the fact that the aron was coated with gold on the outside and the inside that a talmid chochom should be the same. His inside should be as pure as his outside. The Hafloaa in Ponim Yofos comments that the comparison to the aron eludes to the learning of Torah 'lishmo'. The aron was pure gold on the outside and inside, yet the middle was wood. A person when he begins learning should try to learn 'lishmo', however when he sees that there are difficulties and stumbling blocks to this endeavor, he must adept and perhaps will be successful if he learns 'shelo lishma', providing that his goal is to 'reach for the gold' and eventually learn purely 'lishmo'.