וְהִנֵּה אַף אִם כְּשֶׁיַּאֲרִיךְ הַרְבֵּה לְהַעֲמִיק בָּעִנְיָנִים הַנִּזְכָּרִים לְעֵיל, כְּשָׁעָה וּשְׁתַּיִם, לִהְיוֹת בִּנְמִיכַת רוּחַ וְלֵב נִשְׁבָּר – יָבֹא לִידֵי עַצְבוּת גְּדוֹלָה, לֹא יָחוּשׁ.

Even if the deep and lengthy contemplation of the aforementioned matters lasting for an hour or two, in order to be humble of spirit and contrite of heart, leads to great sadness, one should not be concerned. When a person compares himself to others, he may find that he has no reason to consider himself superior. On the contrary, he may see much that is worth emulating. It is possible, for instance, that a Torah scholar is making no effort to improve, while an unremarkable individual, even one who might be considered most unworthy, is valiantly struggling against sweeping passions. When the scholar realizes this, he is liable to grow dejected. Yet the sadness and dejection that results from such contemplation is not a reason for concern.

וְאַף שֶׁעַצְבוּת הִיא מִצַּד קְלִיפַּת נוֹגַהּ, וְלֹא מִצַּד הַקְּדוּשָּׁה. כִּי בְּצַד הַקְּדוּשָּׁה כְּתִיב: "עֹז וְחֶדְוָה בִּמְקוֹמוֹ״ (דברי הימים א טז, כז), וְאֵין הַשְּׁכִינָה שׁוֹרָה אֶלָּא מִתּוֹךְ שִׂמְחָה,

It is true that sadness stems from the side of kelippat noga and not from the side of holiness, for concerning holiness the verse states, "Might and joy are His place" (I Chron. 16:27), and the Divine Presence rests upon an individual only from a state of joy, Sadness generally stems from kelippa, from the side of evil, or at the very least from kelippat noga, which is neither good nor evil. Moreover, the sources cited by the author of the Tanya teach that joy is required in the performance of any area of divine service. There is no place for sadness or depression when engaging in holy matters. This holds true particularly with regard to prayer, since its function is to reveal the Divine Presence, which rests upon a person and his surroundings only when a person is in a state of joy.

וְכֵן לִדְבַר הֲלָכָה וכו׳,

and the same applies with regard to the study of a matter of halakha and so on, Our Sages teach that since the Divine Presence abides with a person when he is joyous and not depressed, one should also study halakha in a state of joy and self-abnegation, so that God Himself will be present as he studies. On a simple level, this dictum teaches that joy is conducive to a proper understanding of the subject matter being studied.

אֶלָּא שֶׁאִם הָעַצְבוּת הִיא מִמִּילֵּי דִּשְׁמַיָּא – הִיא מִבְּחִינַת טוֹב שֶׁבְּנוֹגַהּ

but if the sadness is due to heavenly matters, that is, if one is sad due to his sins, it stems from the good inherent in the kelippa of noga . The kelippa of noga contains a glimmer of light, a trace of goodness. Generally speaking, dejection comes from the realm of kelippa. But that is the dejection caused by mundane concerns, such as monetary loss or a thwarted attempt to commit a sin. Such sadness stems from the evil within kelippat noga. On the other hand, dejection due to one's spiritual failures, such as when one does not study Torah properly or one has failed to perform a mitzva correctly, comes from the good within kelippat noga.

[וְלָכֵן כָּתַב הָאֲרִ״י ז״ל שֶׁאֲפִילּוּ דַּאֲגַת הָעֲוֹנוֹת אֵינָהּ רְאוּיָה כִּי אִם בִּשְׁעַת הַוִּידּוּי,

(Therefore, the Arizal wrote that even worrying about one's sins is inappropriate except during the time of confession, Even though worry about spiritual matters comes from the good aspect contained within kelippat noga, at the end of the day it still stems from kelippa. In light of this, one should indulge in such contemplations only at the appropriate point in the prayer service, when one confesses his sins.

וְלֹא בִּשְׁעַת הַתְּפִלָּה וְתַלְמוּד תּוֹרָה, שֶׁצָּרִיךְ לִהְיוֹת בְּשִׂמְחָה שֶׁמִּצַּד הַקְּדוּשָּׁה דַּוְוקָא.]

and not during prayer or Torah study, which must be performed with joy stemming specifically from the side of holiness.) The joy referred to here is that which is experienced when performing a holy act, to the exclusion of frivolity and other such meaningless behavior.

אַף עַל פִּי כֵן, הֲרֵי כָּךְ הִיא הַמִּדָּה – לְאַכְּפַיָּא לַסִּטְרָא אָחֳרָא בְּמִינָהּ וְדוּגְמָתָהּ, כְּמַאֲמַר רַבּוֹתֵינוּ ז״ל: "מִינֵּיהּ וּבֵיהּ אִבָּא לִשְׁדְּיֵהּ בֵּיהּ נַרְגָּא״ (סנהדרין לט, ב),

Nevertheless, since sadness derives from kelippa, this is the approach: to subdue the sitra aḥara using its own methods and tools in accordance with our Rabbis' statement "From and within the forest comes the ax handle that fells it" (Sanhedrin 39b), The forest itself provides the handle for the ax used to fell its own trees. The proper way to battle the sitra a ḥ ara is by using its own weapons. In our context, we intentionally employ the negative trait of depression to combat evil. From evil itself we carve the weapon with which we will ultimately destroy it.

וּ"פָגַע בּוֹ כַּיּוֹצֵא בוֹ״ (שבת קכא, ב).

and, in a different context, "One of its type killed it" (Shabbat 121b). The Talmud there recounts that after a snake was found in the study hall on the Sabbath, and a Nabatean killed it, Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi stated that "one of its type killed it." In other words, a dangerous person killed the dangerous snake. To fight evil, we must use something that comes from evil and appears similar to it. We need only change its direction so that it will act on behalf of good.

וְעַל זֶה נֶאֱמַר: "בְּכָל עֶצֶב יִהְיֶה מוֹתָר״ (משלי יד, כג). וְהַיִּתְרוֹן הִיא הַשִּׂמְחָה הַבָּאָה אַחַר הָעֶצֶב כְּדִלְקַמָּן.

With regard to this, the verse states, "In all sadness there will be an advantage" (Prov. 14:23). The advantage is the joy that follows the sadness, as will be explained below. Although sadness is intrinsically an evil trait, it can, if properly employed, present an advantage in the realm of sanctity. Sadness in itself has nothing to recommend it, but it can elevate a person to a state of joy greater than he had previously experienced. Following a period of sadness, an unprecedented upsurge of joy, which one could not have otherwise attained, bursts forth. Thus, even though sadness is generally undesirable since it stems from kelippa, at times it may be used to attain positive ends. The author of the Tanya now proceeds to explain that this sadness under discussion, that which rectifies evil and ultimately leads to happiness, is not true sadness at all.

אַךְ בֶּאֱמֶת אֵין לֵב נִשְׁבָּר וּמְרִירוּת הַנֶּפֶשׁ עַל רִיחוּקָהּ מֵאוֹר פְּנֵי ה׳ וְהִתְלַבְּשׁוּתָהּ בַּסִּטְרָא אָחֳרָא נִקְרָאִים בְּשֵׁם עַצְבוּת כְּלָל בִּלְשׁוֹן הַקּוֹדֶשׁ. כִּי עַצְבוּת הִיא שֶׁלִּבּוֹ מְטוּמְטָם כָּאֶבֶן וְאֵין חַיּוּת בְּלִבּוֹ.

In truth, however, a broken heart and bitterness of the soul due to its remoteness from the light of God's countenance and its being clothed in the sitra aḥara is not at all referred to as atzvut , sadness, in biblical Hebrew, for atzvut is a state where one's heart is dull as a stone, possessing no vitality. The sense of humility, the contrite heart and bitterness of the soul, that results from the awareness of one's distance from God is attained after a thorough self-introspection, as discussed in the preceding chapters. The author of the Tanya now points out that bitterness of the soul does not denote sadness in Hebrew. Although these two states appear similar, they are not at all identical. Atzvut denotes melancholy or depression, a state that renders a person unresponsive and unable to act. It deprives him of his capabilities and strips him of his energy. A person who is depressed is caught up in himself, in his thoughts and feelings, with no desire to escape. He nurses the awareness of his misfortunes, comfortable in the thought of his incapacity, neither initiating nor welcoming communication.

אֲבָל מְרִירוּת וְלֵב נִשְׁבָּר, אַדְּרַבָּה, הֲרֵי יֵשׁ חַיּוּת בְּלִבּוֹ לְהִתְפַּעֵל וּלְהִתְמַרְמֵר,

But bitterness of the soul and a broken heart demonstrate that on the contrary, there is vitality in his heart motivating him to become embittered, One does not indulge in self-pity as a result of realizing his distance from God. He only grows determined to change. When his broken heart cries out, "Why am I so far from God?" that is not a pretext for self-pity but the expression of impatience with himself, even anger. His bitterness impels him to ask searching questions: "Where do I stand? Where am I headed?" This sentiment is not one of a lack of vitality, of foundering and death. On the contrary, his soul is vibrant and awakened. Whereas a sad person is overwhelmed and unable to do anything, a bitter person is driven by the need to rise to the occasion, the imperative to act.

רַק שֶׁהִיא חַיּוּת מִבְּחִינַת גְּבוּרוֹת קְדוֹשׁוֹת – וְהַשִּׂמְחָה מִבְּחִינַת חֲסָדִים,

except that this vitality stems from the holy aspects of Gevura (Restraint), while joy stems from the holy aspects of Ḥesed (Kindness), The force of life always flows from what is good and holy, from "life and good" versus "death and evil." But it can come in one of two ways. There is a vitality that is pleasing, permeated with advancement, a joyous aliveness that flows from holy kindness. But there is a second kind of vitality as well that comes from bitterness, from a broken heart, and that flows from holy aspects of Gevura, the attribute of restraint. The full-fledged experience of severity is never easy or pleasant. But a person who undergoes that painful experience is alive.

כִּי הַלֵּב כָּלוּל מִשְּׁתֵּיהֶן.

for the heart comprises both attributes. The heart, the seat of emotion in the soul, contains both aspects of restraint and aspects of kindness. Anger and depression are aspects of the attribute of Gevura rooted in kelippa, and as such, these feelings have no place in the holy divine soul. By contrast, the sense of bitterness over one's distance from God, though rooted in the aspects of Gevura, is regarded as holy, and so has a place in the divine soul. At the same time, joy, which stems from the holy aspects of Ḥesed, may also claim a place in the realm of holiness. Although the emotions of bitterness and joy are dissimilar, both bear an essential bond with the divine soul.

וְהִנֵּה לְעִתִּים צָרִיךְ לְעוֹרֵר בְּחִינַת גְּבוּרוֹת הַקְּדוֹשׁוֹת

It is sometimes necessary to evoke the holy aspects of Gevura Normally, we prefer to avoid the side of Gevura. Since it limits and confines the essence of things, it can be unpleasant to experience. It may even be dangerous because it exposes us to fearsome forces, such as anger or war. Nevertheless, for certain purposes and at certain times, we must evoke in the depths of our heart the aspects of this attribute that stem from the side of holiness, generating the bitterness of the soul.

כְּדֵי לְהַמְתִּיק הַדִּינִים,

in order to mitigate, literally, "sweeten," the harsh judgments stemming from the aspects of Gevura, The Hebrew word for mitigate, lehamtik, literally means to sweeten, as when bitter waters are sweetened and become potable. To sweeten something is to completely transform and rectify it. In the service of God, this constitutes transforming the essence of the animal soul to good. External factors can uproot and eradicate evil. But sweetening entails rectifying something from itself and within itself. There is a change at its essence that brings a deeper understanding and hence a correction of behavior.

שֶׁהֵם בְּחִינַת נֶפֶשׁ הַבַּהֲמִית וְיֵצֶר הָרַע, כְּשֶׁשּׁוֹלֵט חַס וְשָׁלוֹם עַל הָאָדָם.

which are the animal soul and the evil inclination whenever the evil inclination dominates a person, God forbid, Judgments in this context refer to life challenges and the concealment of the Divine, whether those affecting mundane matters, such as one's livelihood or health, or those challenging one's spiritual ascent. In spiritual terms, a person is affected by severe judgments when his animal soul rules over his divine soul. On a physical level, a person visited by such judgments suffers through calamities visited upon his children, his well-being, and his livelihood. When such judgments inundate a person, the way to "sweeten" or mitigate them is by employing the very same force they themselves engender. One should harness the power of the bitter emotions he feels when beset by these troubles and use them to sweeten the bitterness inherent in the harsh judgments. The anger and disappointment he feels at being distant from God are the very tools he may employ in assuaging those judgments.

כִּי אֵין הַדִּינִים נִמְתָּקִין אֶלָּא בְּשָׁרְשָׁן.

for harsh judgments can be sweetened only at their source. These judgments, which are an aspect of the animal soul and the evil inclination, can be rectified only at their source, the holy aspects of Gevura, because at their root they are not evil. When we uncover the good at the source, all the harshness that emerged from it is rectified as well. Although judgment may also be rectified by kindness, that is merely external and partial, the equivalent of making a bitter food palatable by adding honey to it. Judgment is truly sweetened only at its source, and to attain that, the power of judgment itself is needed. When a psychologist eases his patient's guilty feelings, he will also be easing his patient's overwrought symptoms. But to completely solve the patient's problem, he must uncover its cause at its source.

וְלָכֵן אָמְרוּ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ ז״ל: "לְעוֹלָם יַרְגִּיז אָדָם יֵצֶר הַטּוֹב״ (ברכות ה, א),

It is for this reason that our Rabbis state, "One should always incite his good inclination against his evil inclination" (Berakhot 5a), One fulfills this talmudic dictum by conducting a spiritual self-assessment and crushing the egotistical natures of his animal soul and evil inclination. Essentially, by executing judgment on oneself by means of this self-assessment, one effectively sweetens the harsh judgments set upon him from above at their root.

וְהַיְינוּ בְּכָל עֵת שֶׁרוֹאֶה בְּנַפְשׁוֹ שֶׁצָּרִיךְ לְכָךְ.

meaning any time he sees that he requires it. The expression le'olam, "always," in the abovementioned talmudic passage is not meant to be taken literally. It does not mean that a person must break his heart and experience a bitterness of soul at every moment. That is not the way to serve God or attain holiness. Rather, a person must do so only at certain times. A principled person may grow proud and pleased with himself. At times, this may inspire him to progress with a sense of joy. At other times, this feeling brings on smugness that prevents him from seeing his flaws, and as a result he does nothing to improve. Such a person is rotting within, sinking into the torpor of the dull heart. It is then that he must incite his good nature against his evil inclination by exploring whatever is broken and damaged, by examining himself. In this way, he may awaken with a renewed vitality.

אַךְ שְׁעַת הַכּוֹשֶׁר, שֶׁהִיא שָׁעָה הַמְיוּחֶדֶת וּרְאוּיָה לְכָךְ לְרוֹב בְּנֵי אָדָם, הִיא בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁהוּא עָצֵב בְּלָאו הָכִי, מִמִּילֵּי דְּעָלְמָא אוֹ כָּךְ בְּלִי שׁוּם סִבָּה.

However, the fitting time to be bitter or brokenhearted, the opportune and appropriate time for this for most people, is when one is already sad over mundane matters, or he feels this way for no explicable reason whatsoever. These "mundane matters" are worries that cause a person to be sad, such as monetary problems, loss, anxiety, and insults. On the other hand, people go through cycles of emotions and may grow sad without any clear reason. Whatever the cause, when a person is sad, that is a good opportunity to channel the sadness and bitterness toward the realm of holiness.

אֲזַי הִיא שְׁעַת הַכּוֹשֶׁר לְהַפֵּךְ הָעֶצֶב, לִהְיוֹת מִמָּרֵי דְּחוּשְׁבָּנָא הַנִּזְכָּרִים לְעֵיל,

This is a fitting time to transform the sadness and to be one of the aforementioned masters of introspection (see chap. 29) When a person is sad for whatever reason, that is the right time to do soul-searching so that the introspection will lead to a bitterness of the soul and a feeling of dejection about his spiritual concerns. This can change his mood from a sadness that is pulling him downward to a bitterness of the soul that can lift him up.

וּלְקַיֵּים מַאֲמַר רַבּוֹתֵינוּ ז״ל: "לְעוֹלָם יַרְגִּיז״ וכו׳, כַּנִּזְכָּר לְעֵיל, וּבָזֶה יִפָּטֵר מֵהָעַצְבוּת שֶׁמִּמִּילֵּי דְּעָלְמָא.

and to thereby fulfill our Rabbis' statement "One should always incite his good inclination against his evil inclination" (Berakhot 5a), as mentioned above. Through this, he will be released from the sadness brought on by mundane matters When a person first experiences a bitterness of the spirit regarding heavenly matters, he is no longer saddened by the concerns of this world. That kind of sadness comes from feeling slighted, from the sense that one is not getting what one deserves, that one is receiving unfair treatment. After introspection and seeing his flaws, a person understands that he deserves no better than he has received. He may feel pained, he may be upset, but he will not feel slighted, nor will he be sad. He will not assume that he is worthy of more; he will no longer ask why bad things happen to him. As a result, such matters will no longer depress him.

וְאַחַר כָּךְ יָבֹא לִידֵי שִׂמְחָה אֲמִיתִּית,

and will subsequently arrive at true joy. After he has been crushed by the bitterness of the soul, after reflection has revealed his imperfections and exposed his heart to pain, he can attain true joy.

דְּהַיְינוּ שֶׁזֹּאת יָשִׁיב אֶל לִבּוֹ לְנַחֲמוֹ בְּכִפְלַיִים, אַחַר הַדְּבָרִים וְהָאֱמֶת הָאֵלֶּה הַנִּזְכָּרִים לְעֵיל,

That is, in the wake of these aforementioned matters, the results of his soul-searching, and confronting the truth, he can console himself to a much greater degree After an accounting of the soul, when a person finds that he is lacking and blemished, he can console himself even more than he could have before experiencing this bitterness of the soul.

לֵאמֹר לְלִבּוֹ: אֱמֶת הוּא כֵּן בְּלִי סָפֵק שֶׁאֲנִי רָחוֹק מְאֹד מֵה׳ בְּתַכְלִית, וּמְשׁוּקָּץ וּמְתוֹעָב כו׳,

by telling his heart, "It is undoubtedly true that I am exceedingly far from God, despicable, loathsome, and so on. This is not mere rhetoric or an act of pretension. When a person examines himself honestly, he truly experiences himself in this way.

אַךְ כָּל זֶה הוּא אֲנִי לְבַדִּי, הוּא הַגּוּף עִם נֶפֶשׁ הַחִיּוּנִית שֶׁבּוֹ.

But all this is applicable to myself alone, meaning my body and the vital soul that is clothed in it. As explained above, the animal soul that gives life to the body is the beinoni's sense of self. Therefore, the part that is "despicable and loathsome" is the body and the animal soul that gives life to the body.

אֲבָל מִכָּל מָקוֹם יֵשׁ בְּקִרְבִּי חֵלֶק ה׳ מַמָּשׁ, שֶׁיֶּשְׁנוֹ אֲפִילּוּ בַּקַּל שֶׁבַּקַּלִּים, שֶׁהִיא נֶפֶשׁ הָאֱלוֹקִית עִם נִיצוֹץ אֱלֹקוּת מַמָּשׁ הַמְלוּבָּשׁ בָּהּ לְהַחֲיוֹתָהּ,

Yet nevertheless there is within me an actual part of God that exists even in the most unworthy: the divine soul along with an actual spark of Godliness that is clothed within it, animating it. Something divine, a soul that is a spark of God's illumination, exists in the Jew's very persona, even though it is the animal soul and even if he is the most worthless of individuals.

רַק שֶׁהִיא בִּבְחִינַת גָּלוּת.

It is only hidden because it is in a state of exile within me. A person must be aware of this soul within him. If he cannot sense it, that is because his divine soul is in exile. He has kept it from having dominion over him and has sent it into exile. When it is revealed at all, it is not on its own behalf but to benefit the body and the animal soul.

וְאִם כֵּן אַדְּרַבָּה, כָּל מַה שֶּׁאֲנִי, בְּתַכְלִית הָרִיחוּק מֵה׳ וְהַתִּיעוּב וְשִׁיקּוּץ, הֲרֵי נֶפֶשׁ הָאֱלוֹקִית שֶׁבִּי בְּגָלוּת גָּדוֹל יוֹתֵר

If so, on the contrary, the more that I, my body and animal soul, am utterly distant from God, and the more loathsome and despicable, the deeper in exile is the divine soul within me, The lower the person descends, the further the divine soul clothed within him descends into exile. Wherever a person goes with his body and animal soul, he draws along his divine soul, the Godly spark within him.

וְהָרַחֲמָנוּת עָלֶיהָ גְּדוֹלָה מְאֹד.

and all the more so is it to be pitied. Such pity is an awareness of the gap between the soul's divine source and its present distance and concealment from the Divine. There is pity when someone finds himself cast below his station. If a person feels that he is getting what he deserves, he may suffer, but that is all. He pities himself only when he believes that he has been deprived (and the same holds true regarding his perceptions of others).

וְלָזֶה אָשִׂים כָּל מְגַמָּתִי וְחֶפְצִי לְהוֹצִיאָהּ וּלְהַעֲלוֹתָהּ מִגָּלוּת זֶה לַהֲשִׁיבָהּ אֶל בֵּית אָבִיהָ כִּנְעוּרֶיהָ קוֹדֶם שֶׁנִּתְלַבְּשָׁה

It is to this end that I direct my entire goal and desire toward extricating it and raising it out of this exile and returning it to its father's house as in its youth, that is, to its source and

בְּגוּפִי, שֶׁהָיְתָה נִכְלֶלֶת בְּאוֹרוֹ יִתְבָּרַךְ וּמְיוּחֶדֶת עִמּוֹ בְּתַכְלִית.

root, before it was clothed in my body, when it was subsumed in God's light and totally united with Him. Bitterness, unlike sadness, leads to resolve. In this case, one becomes motivated to redeem the divine soul from its imprisonment and suffering. The expression the author of the Tanya uses here, "returning it to its father's house as in its youth" is borrowed from the verse "But if a priest's daughter is a widow or a divorcée, and she has no offspring, and she returns to her father's house as in her youth, from the food of her father she may partake…" (Lev. 22:13). In the context of the Tanya, the phrase refers to the return of the divine soul to its original source. Along these lines, the Zohar states that the "priest's daughter" is the divine soul, which is also called the daughter of the king. When the divine soul is "a widow or a divorcée," separated from the body, it "returns to its father's house," to God, "as in its youth" – that is, to its original state, as it was before it descended to the body.

וְגַם עַתָּה כֵּן תְּהֵא כְּלוּלָה וּמְיוּחֶדֶת בּוֹ יִתְבָּרַךְ, כְּשֶׁאָשִׂים כָּל מְגַמָּתִי בְּתוֹרָה וּמִצְוֹת, לְהַלְבִּישׁ בָּהֶן כָּל עֶשֶׂר בְּחִינוֹתֶיהָ, כַּנִּזְכָּר לְעֵיל,

Now too it will be incorporated and united with God, when I set my entire focus on Torah study and the fulfillment of mitzvot in which to clothe all its ten faculties, as mentioned above (chap. 4), A person's entire focus must be to liberate his divine soul from its exile and raise it up to God. The way to do this is to turn one's attention to Torah study and the performance of mitzvot so that the soul's ten faculties will become clothed in them. In exile, the divine soul is clothed in the filthy garments of the animal soul, the kelippa. It is redeemed when we clothe it in Torah and mitzvot, which are its essential garments, the way in which it expresses its essence. By studying Torah and fulfilling mitzvot, by allowing the soul's inner essence to shine through, the soul returns to its source in the Divine, "returning to its father's house as in its youth."

וּבִפְרָט בְּמִצְוַת תְּפִלָּה, לִצְעוֹק אֶל ה׳ בַּצַּר לָהּ מִגָּלוּתָהּ בְּגוּפִי הַמְשׁוּקָּץ לְהוֹצִיאָהּ מִמַּסְגֵּר וּלְדָבְקָה בּוֹ יִתְבָּרַךְ.

particularly the mitzva of prayer, by crying out to God regarding its distress from its exile in my despicable body so that it may be extricated from its confinement and cleave to God." The function of prayer is to express the outcry of the divine soul, freeing it from the boundaries of the body and returning it to "its Father's house as in its youth."

וְזוֹ הִיא בְּחִינַת "תְּשׁוּבָה וּמַעֲשִׂים טוֹבִים״ (אבות פרק ד משנה יז), שֶׁהֵן מַעֲשִׂים טוֹבִים שֶׁעוֹשֶׂה כְּדֵי לְהָשִׁיב חֵלֶק ה׳ לִמְקוֹרָא וְשָׁרְשָׁא דְּכָל עָלְמִין.

This constitutes "repentance and good deeds" (Mishna Avot 4:17), which are the good deeds one does in order to restore this part of God, the divine soul, to the root and source of all worlds. Repentance in this sense does not refer to repenting for a sin. The author of the Tanya is, after all, discussing the beinoni, who has never sinned. The literal meaning of the Hebrew word for repentance, teshuva, is to return. This could entail the return of the world to God or the return of the divine soul to its source, which is also the source and root of all the worlds. We achieve such atonement when we perform "good deeds" – when we study Torah and fulfill the mitzvot.

וְזֹאת תִּהְיֶה עֲבוֹדָתוֹ כָּל יָמָיו בְּשִׂמְחָה רַבָּה, הִיא שִׂמְחַת הַנֶּפֶשׁ בְּצֵאתָהּ מֵהַגּוּף הַמְתוֹעָב וְשָׁבָה אֶל בֵּית אָבִיהָ כִּנְעוּרֶיהָ בִּשְׁעַת הַתּוֹרָה וְהָעֲבוֹדָה,

This should be one's lifelong service of God, to perform mitzvot with great joy, which is the joy of the soul as it leaves the loathsome body and returns to its father's house as in its youth during one's Torah study and divine service, This comprehensive teshuva is comprised of Torah study and divine service, particularly prayer. A person engages in that service with great joy, because it represents the soul's liberation from the body, from its sensory perceptions and desires, and brings about renewal and emergence into the freedom of divine holiness.

וּכְמַאֲמַר רַבּוֹתֵינוּ ז״ל, לִהְיוֹת "כָּל יָמָיו בִּתְשׁוּבָה״ (שבת קנג, א).

in accordance with our Rabbis' statement that one should "spend his entire life in a state of repentance" (Shabbat 153a). A person who is in a "state of repentance" throughout his life is not someone who must atone for a particular sin. If he is constantly in a state of repentance, on account of which sin is he repenting? Rather, he is constantly striving to return to God, to the source and root of his soul, becoming ever closer and growing ever more intimately connected with Him, walking on a path that reaches to infinity, a path without end on which one walks forever, "spending his entire life in a state of repentance."

וְאֵין לְךָ שִׂמְחָה גְּדוֹלָה כְּצֵאת מֵהַגָּלוּת וְהַשִּׁבְיָה,

There is no greater joy than that of being released from exile and captivity, The greater one's distance from God, the greater the joy upon being brought close to Him once more. It is only the pain associated with that sense of distance that has the ability to evoke the degree of joy one feels when reunited with God. A person who perpetually enjoys a high-quality lifestyle is not always consciously joyous over his comfortable circumstances. It is typically only upon experiencing distance – that is, pain and hardship – that this person can once again appreciate and rejoice in his original station in life.

כִּמְשַׁל בֶּן מֶלֶךְ שֶׁהָיָה בַּשִּׁבְיָה וְטוֹחֵן בְּבֵית הָאֲסוּרִים וּמְנוּוָּל בָּאַשְׁפָּה, וְיָצָא לַחָפְשִׁי אֶל בֵּית אָבִיו הַמֶּלֶךְ.

as in the parable of a prince who was held in captivity and , having been tasked with grinding wheat in prison, became a filthy wretch, whereupon he was set free and returned to the house of his father, the king. There is no greater joy than emerging from rock bottom and rising to the highest realm of existence, from a world of disgrace and enslavement to the house of one's father and king. When the divine soul leaves the exile of the body, there is joy in its broadest sense, the joy that comes with the nullification of self, with leaving behind the vessels of the body and animal soul, for "might and joy are in His place" (I Chron. 16:27).

וְאַף שֶׁהַגּוּף עוֹמֵד בְּשִׁיקּוּצוֹ וְתִיעוּבוֹ,

Indeed, his body remains despicable and loathsome, When a person is immersed in Torah and mitzvot, his divine soul is liberated from the bonds of the body and clings to God. The soul can experience no greater joy than that. This is so even if his self-identification with his body and animal soul remains unchanged, in its contemptible and abominable state.

וּכְמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב בַּזֹּהַר (תיקוני זהר בהקדמה י, ב ותיקון כא מח, ב) דְּנִקְרָא מַשְׁכָא דְּחִוְיָא,

and as the Zohar states (Tikkunei Zohar 10b, 48b), the body is called the skin of a serpent The serpent itself represents the three unclean kelippot, which can never emerge from their polluted state. The skin of the serpent is the outer part of the three unholy kelippot, which is the kelippa of noga, the body.

כִּי מַהוּתָהּ וְעַצְמוּתָהּ שֶׁל הַנֶּפֶשׁ הַבַּהֲמִית לֹא נֶהְפַּךְ לְטוֹב לִיכָּלֵל בַּקְּדוּשָּׁה,

since the essence and being of the animal soul has not transformed into good so that it may be absorbed into the realm of holiness. Just as the body remains a body, so does the animal soul always remain animal-like. This in part defines the beinoni, who cannot change the nature of his animal soul.

מִכָּל מָקוֹם, תִּיקַר נַפְשׁוֹ בְּעֵינָיו לִשְׂמוֹחַ בְּשִׂמְחָתָהּ יוֹתֵר מֵהַגּוּף הַנִּבְזֶה, שֶׁלֹּא לְעַרְבֵּב וּלְבַלְבֵּל שִׂמְחַת הַנֶּפֶשׁ בְּעִצְּבוֹן הַגּוּף.

Yet his divine soul should nevertheless be more precious to him than his loathsome body, and the ensuing feelings of sadness associated with it, so that he rejoices in his soul's joy without mingling and confusing the joy of the divine soul with the sadness of the body. Since a person is composed of both the animal and the divine souls, why does he identify himself with the body and animal soul? Why should he rejoice or concern himself with his body alone? He should be able to rejoice when his divine soul is freed, when it rises with every holy word and deed he performs, and he should be able to do this without concerning himself with his body, which is certainly cause for his sense of inadequacy. If a person occupies himself with the divine soul's joy, which is the joy of God himself, there is no room for his private sorrows.

וְהִנֵּה בְּחִינָה זוֹ הִיא בְּחִינַת יְצִיאַת מִצְרַיִם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר בָּהּ: "כִּי בָרַח הָעָם״ (שמות יד, ה).

This is reminiscent of the exodus from Egypt, regarding which the verse states, "The people had fled" (Ex. 14:5). Escape from one's limitations, as one hides oneself from evil, parallels the exodus. Such escape does not constitute a denial of the reality of evil. On the contrary, for such a person, evil is very real and very strong, which is precisely why he is fleeing from it. The notion of hiding oneself from evil refers to his disregarding and disengaging from it. He flees from evil instead of confronting it. He tries to build something holy despite the existence of evil and despite its persistence in being evil. This is not a conscious attempt to perfect the self, the totality of reality as he knows it. He does no more than give his divine soul a chance, an illumination of some point of light, to gain its freedom.

דְּלִכְאוֹרָה הוּא תָּמוּהַּ, לָמָּה הָיְתָה כָּזֹאת? וְכִי אִילּוּ אָמְרוּ לְפַרְעֹה לְשַׁלְּחָם חָפְשִׁי לְעוֹלָם, לֹא הָיָה מוּכְרָח לְשַׁלְּחָם?

On the surface, this is perplexing. Why was it so, that the people had to flee from Egypt? Had they told Pharaoh to set them free forever, would he not have been forced to do so? Why was it that the exodus from Egypt took the form of flight? Why didn't they leave "with a high hand" (Ex. 14:8) at the outset? Why did they need to use tricks, to pretend that they were only leaving temporarily, telling Pharaoh, "We will go for a three-day journey" (Ex. 8:23)? After all, Pharaoh would have been forced to give in to any conditions that they set.

אֶלָּא מִפְּנֵי שֶׁהָרַע שֶׁבְּנַפְשׁוֹת יִשְׂרָאֵל עֲדַיִין הָיָה בְּתָקְפּוֹ בֶּחָלָל הַשְּׂמָאלִי,

Rather, the reason they had to escape Egypt is because the evil in the souls of the Israelites was still at its full potency in the left chamber of their hearts, The exodus came about from on high and not through the refined, inner powers within the Israelites' souls. Their souls had not yet undergone a deeply transformative experience, so they were completely unprepared to bring about the exodus on their own.

כִּי לֹא פָּסְקָה זוּהֲמָתָם עַד מַתַּן תּוֹרָה,

for their contamination did not cease until the giving of the Torah. From the time of Adam's sin, all human souls were compromised until the souls of the Jewish people standing at Mount Sinai were perfected. The Sages say that the serpent injected venom into Eve, which lodged within all humanity until the Jewish people stood at Mount Sinai, whereupon their souls were rectified.

רַק מְגַמָּתָם וְחֶפְצָם הָיְתָה לָצֵאת נַפְשָׁם הָאֱלוֹקִית מִגָּלוּת הַסִּטְרָא אָחֳרָא, הִיא טוּמְאַת מִצְרַיִם,

Yet their focus and desire was that their divine souls be extricated from the exile of the sitra aḥara , namely, the defilement of Egypt, A sojourn in Egypt did not merely entail residing in a foreign country. The Jews were also partners in its degradation, in a land that was the epitome of impurity, a part of the sitra a ḥ ara. Thus, when a person leaves behind his own personal Egypt, he leaves behind the sitra aḥara.

וּלְדָבְקָה בּוֹ יִתְבָּרַךְ, וּכְדִכְתִיב: "ה׳ עוּזִּי וּמָעוּזִּי וּמְנוּסִי בְּיוֹם צָרָה״ וגו׳ (ירמיה טז, יט), "מִשְׂגַּבִּי וּמְנוּסִי״ וגו׳ (שמואל ב כב, ג), וְ״הוּא מָנוֹס לִי״ וגו׳.

and cleave to God, as it is written, "Lord, my strength, my stronghold, and my refuge on the day of trouble…" (Jer. 16:19), and "my stronghold and my refuge…" (II Sam. 22:3), and it says, "He is my escape…." The word manos used in these verses not only means refuge but also denotes escape. The Jewish people had to escape from Egypt because of the Egypt within their souls and not because of Pharaoh. As long as they were spiritual slaves to Egypt, they could leave and come to cleave to God only through a quick escape. The same concept applies to all of us. If a person is not on a level where he sincerely wants to leave Egypt and all its temptations, the only way to escape it is to flee. He cannot solve all the problems that the animal soul presents, but while he cannot fully resolve all the challenges associated with the self, he can at least flee from them and run toward God. That itself is something great because it is in this way that the divine soul proceeds along its own exodus to Mount Sinai.

וְלָכֵן לֶעָתִיד, כְּשֶׁיַּעֲבִיר ה׳ רוּחַ הַטּוּמְאָה מִן הָאָרֶץ, כְּתִיב: "וּבִמְנוּסָה לֹא תֵלֵכוּן כִּי הוֹלֵךְ לִפְנֵיכֶם ה׳״ וגו׳ (ישעיה נב, יב).

Therefore, with regard to the final redemption in the future, when God will remove the spirit of impurity from the earth, it is written, "You will not go in flight, for the Lord will go before you…" (Isa. 52:12). In the future, during the final redemption, there will be no need to flee. When the Jewish people left Egypt, they had to escape in great haste. Had they gone slowly, they would not have ended up leaving, or they would have turned around and returned to Egypt, as the verse states, "Lest the people reconsider when they see war and return to Egypt" (Ex. 13:17). But once the spirit of impurity is removed from the earth, the march toward holiness will become clear and whole, without hesitation or interruption. It will then be possible to proceed at leisure. There will be nothing to fear, nothing to hide from, no need to flee. Until this point, the author of the Tanya has discussed the joy that results when the divine soul is liberated from the dungeon of exile. Now he will discuss a deeper reason for this joy that follows in the wake of bitterness.

וְלִהְיוֹת בְּחִינַת תְּשׁוּבָה זוֹ בְּיֶתֶר שְׂאֵת וְיֶתֶר עָז מֵעוּמְקָא דְּלִבָּא, וְגַם שִׂמְחַת הַנֶּפֶשׁ תִּהְיֶה בְּתוֹסֶפֶת אוֹרָה וְשִׂמְחָה,

One will be able to add a greater magnitude of power to this repentance from the depths of the heart, as well as adding a greater measure of light and joy to the joy of his soul There is a direct link between repentance, the restoration of the soul to its source, and joy. The deeper one's atonement as it arises from humility and bitterness, the greater will be one's joy.

כַּאֲשֶׁר יָשִׁיב אֶל לִבּוֹ דַּעַת וּתְבוּנָה לְנַחֲמוֹ מֵעִצְּבוֹנוֹ וִיגוֹנוֹ, לֵאמֹר כַּנִּזְכָּר לְעֵיל, הֵן אֱמֶת כו׳.

by reflecting in his heart with knowledge and understanding, in order to console it from its sadness and sorrow, saying that which was mentioned above (chap. 29): "It is true that I am full of imperfections, and so on, He will, as it were, speak to himself in order to arrive at the awakening described above, that "all of my imperfections, blemishes, and flaws, which I sensed amid the bitterness of my soul, truly exist. My self-introspection, assuming it to be accurate, has condemned me." The greater a person is, the more clearly he can see his faults. The higher his spiritual level and the longer he has been there, the more clearly he can see the superficiality of his good deeds, their lack of inner drive. Although he may appear to others, and even to himself, as an important person, as someone both humble and holy, he is still lowly and deficient.

אַךְ אֲנִי לֹא עָשִׂיתִי אֶת עַצְמִי!

but I did not create myself! Essentially, when a person is weighed in the balance and found wanting, that is not because he has used his free will wrongly but because of the basic, inborn structure of the soul. One enters the world with a soul and body that already have desires and a certain way of viewing the world. One perceives the world with his senses and interprets it with tacit assumptions. Whether through nature or nurture, a person's first and direct understanding of the world is physical, and this understanding does not have to be learned but is innate. To arrive at a sense of the spiritual, on the other hand, one must always push beyond one's boundaries. Because the self has a direct and intimate relationship with the body and its senses, a piece of bread always seems more real than the Divine. The ability to relate to a nonphysical reality requires effort and a dramatic change in one's perception of the world. It is not because he is wicked that a person first finds it easy to sin. Generally speaking, it is because sins take a tangible form, while the realization of holiness requires education, refinement, and elevation.

וְלָמָּה עָשָׂה ה׳ כָּזֹאת, לְהוֹרִיד חֵלֶק מֵאוֹרוֹ יִתְבָּרַךְ הַמְּמַלֵּא וְסוֹבֵב כָּל עָלְמִין, וְכוֹלָא קַמֵּיהּ כְּלָא חָשִׁיב, וְהִלְבִּישׁוֹ בְּמַשְׁכָא דְּחִוְיָא וְטִפָּה סְרוּחָה?

Yet why did God do such a thing and cause the divine soul, a portion of His light, which permeates and encompasses all worlds and in relation to which everything is considered as nothingness, to descend and be clothed in the serpent's skin and a putrid drop of semen? The skin of the serpent is the depths of kelippa that was created as a result of Adam's sin. That kelippa is more intrinsic than the body because it is the garment of the innermost feelings of the animal soul. In addition, man is created from a drop of semen, which is the distillation of the human body, a piece of flesh no different from the flesh of any other creature. Why did God take the divine soul, which is even higher than the angels, and clothe it in such a lowly garment?

אֵין זֶה כִּי אִם יְרִידָה זוֹ הִיא צוֹרֶךְ עֲלִיָּה –

It must be that this descent is necessary only for a subsequent ascent, This descent should not be seen as punishment but as a means of accomplishing a goal: to ultimately cause the animal soul and all its garments to ascend to God.

לְהַעֲלוֹת לַה׳ כָּל נֶפֶשׁ הַחִיּוּנִית הַבַּהֲמִית שֶׁמִּקְּלִיפַּת נוֹגַהּ, וְכָל לְבוּשֶׁיהָ, הֵן בְּחִינַת מַחֲשָׁבָה דִּבּוּר וּמַעֲשֶׂה שֶׁלָּהּ,

to cause the entire vital, animal soul, which stems from kelippat noga , along with all its garments, which are its thoughts, speech, and actions, to ascend to God Just as a drill pierces the earth and exposes its hidden treasures so they can be recovered, so the divine soul penetrates the animal soul and everything connected with it, its thoughts, speech, and deeds, in order to uncover the holiness within and raise it up.

עַל יְדֵי הִתְלַבְּשׁוּתָן בְּמַעֲשֵׂה דִּבּוּר וּמַחְשֶׁבֶת הַתּוֹרָה

by being clothed in the actions, speech, and thoughts of the Torah." A person cannot think, speak, or act without his body and animal soul. When he studies Torah and performs mitzvot, which require thoughts, speech, and actions, the animal soul participates. At that moment, willingly or not, it is garbed in holiness so that it too rises. As the divine soul gains its freedom and attains its personal exodus, it merits tranquility. The entire scope of the self, including the body, animal soul, and garments of the animal soul, joins that divine illumination. God has placed the divine soul in this world to be enveloped and immersed in physicality. In this sense, our divine soul is God's investment, just as a farmer sows seeds in order to harvest a bountiful crop or a businessman invests in merchandise in order to make a profit. The purpose of the ascent that follows the descent is not to return to the previous status, which would bring the divine soul back to its original divine source and leave the body and animal soul behind on earth. Instead, the ascent is meant to raise the animal soul together with the divine soul. The process of return is not one of separation. Separation is essentially death, wherein the soul leaves the body and proceeds to its next destination. The true, inherent liberation of the soul does not depend on cutting itself off from the body but on its unification with God. This does not require leaving the body. In a sense, the divine soul must act through the body, the vehicle that performs mitzvot and provides the context of human, physical life in which the Torah and mitzvot can exist. The divine soul itself cannot function unless it acts together with the animal soul within the body. When the divine soul returns to God, it must take the body and the animal soul along with it. When we harness an animal to a plow, it walks forward for its own purposes. But as the animal seeks food or a place of rest, it operates the tool. In another analogy, when we build a dam to generate electricity, our goal is not to hold back the water and then allow it to flow as it did before. We want it to cascade vigorously and, as it moves, also activate the turbine. Similarly, the divine soul yearns for connection and a relationship with the Divine. But God binds the divine soul to the body and the animal soul in a manner that it cannot escape without them. As long as the divine soul remains within the body, it cannot express itself on its own, since all it does must pass through the body and the animal soul. The divine soul cannot even think without the intermediary of the body, since thought is a function of the physical brain. If the divine soul wishes to cling to God in thought, it must do so through the brain. The brain must then change its own nature in order to think of holy things and not other matters. The same is true of speech and deed. This difficult process, which involves effort and struggle, makes it possible for the divine soul to free itself and for the animal soul to rise. Then the divine soul itself attains an even higher level than it had originally occupied.

[וּכְמוֹ שֶׁיִּתְבָּאֵר לְקַמָּן עִנְיַן הַעֲלָאָה זוֹ בַּאֲרִיכוּת, אֵיךְ שֶׁהִיא תַּכְלִית בְּרִיאַת הָעוֹלָם].

(The concept of this ascent and how it is the purpose of the world's creation will be explained further below at length [chaps. 35–37].) The elevation of the animal soul together with its garments is not only a nice thing, something positive and beneficial. It actually fulfills the first and overarching goal of the world's creation. The world was not created for the sake of the divine soul but for the animal soul and the body to be elevated through the divine soul. The makeup of the world is one of raw material, of kelippa, within which the divine force operates. The purpose of this construct is so that this divine force acts to such an extent that the light contained therein is uncovered and elevated to the realm of holiness. This, then, is the purpose of existence: a descent for the sake of a subsequent ascent.

וְאִם כֵּן אֵיפוֹא, זֹאת אֶעֱשֶׂה וְזֹאת תִּהְיֶה כָּל מְגַמָּתִי כָּל יְמֵי חֶלְדִּי, לִכֹּל בָּהֶן חַיֵּי רוּחִי וְנַפְשִׁי, וּכְמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב: "אֵלֶיךָ ה׳ נַפְשִׁי אֶשָּׂא״ (תהלים כה, א),

"If that is the case, then this I will do, and that will be my entire focus for the duration of my existence: to infuse them, my Torah study and mitzva performance, with the life of my spirit and soul, as it is written,'To You, Lord, I lift my soul' (Ps. 25:1). As mentioned above, a person must tell himself, "I did not create myself!" God joined the divine soul, literally a portion of God that is loftier than everything else, with the animal soul and the physical body. After experiencing the bitterness of the soul, after the self-hatred, one must recognize that he was not the one who joined these elements together. One is not held responsible for this pairing. Moreover, this was God's specific intent. At times, we do the same. Whether for educational or other purposes, we pair two individuals of opposing natures, one very good and the other very bad, in the hope that the better half of the pair will influence its partner for the good. The same applies to pairing two horses of different strengths. The danger always exists that the opposite will occur, that the inferior element will corrupt the better. Still, the good part is not supposed to isolate itself from the other. Rather, the role of the good is to strengthen the bond so that with time the worse half will identify with its better half. In that sense, the essential purpose of creation is the existence of the body and the animal soul, not the existence of the divine soul. Even though the great effort that we must invest in them is neither pleasant nor easy, it is our mission to do so. It is the reason we exist and the world as a whole exists.

דְּהַיְינוּ לְקַשֵּׁר מַחֲשַׁבְתִּי וְדִבּוּרִי בְּמַחֲשַׁבְתּוֹ וְדִבּוּרוֹ יִתְבָּרַךְ, וְהֵן הֵן גּוּפֵי הֲלָכוֹת הָעֲרוּכוֹת לְפָנֵינוּ וְכֵן מַעֲשֶׂה בְּמַעֲשֵׂה הַמִּצְוֹת,

This means binding my thoughts and speech to God's thoughts and speech, which constitute the very corpus of halakhot that have been set forth before us. Similarly, I wish to bind my actions with God's actions by fulfilling the mitzvot." The Torah and the mitzvot constitute God's will and wisdom. When a person is engaged in fulfilling them, he unites with God since he is essentially thinking His thoughts and speaking His words. Since this unity encompasses thoughts, speech, and deeds, which are expressed by the body and the animal soul, it incorporates a person's animal soul. The animal soul is the instrument through which we act. It is through the animal soul that holy thoughts are contemplated, holy words are spoken, and holy deeds are performed.

שֶׁלָּכֵן נִקְרֵאת הַתּוֹרָה "מְשִׁיבַת נָפֶשׁ״ (תהלים יט, ח). פֵּירוּשׁ, לִמְקוֹרָהּ וְשָׁרְשָׁהּ.

For this reason, the Torah is described as "restoring the soul" (Ps. 19:8), meaning, it restores the soul to its root and source. The usual explanation of the phrase "restoring the soul" is that the Torah revives the soul, giving a person the strength to live. But it can also be understood as saying that the Torah returns the soul "to its father's house as in its youth." The Torah is a path on which the soul returns to its source.

וְעַל זֶה נֶאֱמַר: "פִּקּוּדֵי ה׳ יְשָׁרִים מְשַׂמְּחֵי לֵב״ (שם פסוק ט).

With regard to this, it states, "The precepts of the Lord are upright, gladdening the heart" (Ps. 19:9). The heart rejoices in the mitzvot because they enable the soul to return to its source and experience joy. The "precepts of the Lord gladden the heart" because they are the path on which the soul returns to unite with its Maker. And when this occurs, the soul justifies its own existence and that of all reality. This chapter discussed the question of how to emerge from the sadness and bitterness of the soul, a state in which one knowingly placed himself. As explained in the previous chapter, a person does this in order to break the egotistical sense of smugness that, particularly for the