| The text of Tomer Devorah, written by Rabbi Moshe Cordovero (HaRamak). Teshuvah Elyonah ~ Exalted Repentance. Chapter Four, Binah (Divine Enlightenment). Presented in the original Hebrew text and accompanied with the English translation. The English text is annotated with the commentary of “Laughter Will Fill Our Mouths.”
(ג) ומי שמהרהר בתשובה כל ימיו גורם שתאיר הבינה בכל ימיו; ונמצאו כל ימיו ימי תשובה. (3) One who contemplates Teshuvah (Repentance) all his days causes Binah (Divine Enlightenment) to illuminate all his days; it thus emerges that all his days are spent in Teshuvah.
The Power of “Contemplating Teshuvah”
Note the Ramak’s choice of words: “One who contemplates Teshuvah (Repentance) all his days causes Binah (Divine Enlightenment) to illuminate all his days.” We might have expected him to write something more along the lines of, “One who performs Teshuvah all his days causes Binah (Divine Enlightenment) to illuminate all his days.” How is it possible that merely contemplating Teshuvah suffices to awaken “Binah to illuminate all his days?!”
The Ramak reveals a remarkable insight. The mere contemplation of Teshuvah (Repentance) itself makes a powerful impact in Heaven! In truth, this idea is reflected in our Sages’s ruling that “if a man says to a woman, ‘Be married to me on condition that I am a virtuous man,’ then even if he has been utterly corrupt and evil until that moment, the marriage is valid, for perhaps he contemplated performing Teshuvah” (Kiddushin 49b).
Similarly, the verse (Exodus 12:28) regarding the Paschal Offering, states, “And the Children of Israel went and fulfilled as God commanded Moses and Aaron.” Rashi notes that they did not fulfill this precept because this verse refers to the Commandment to eat the Paschal offering which God commanded the Children of Israel on the first day of Nisan (the name of a Hebrew month). However, the actual eating did not take place until the fifteenth of Nisan. If so, what is the meaning of the verse, “The Children of Israel went and fulfilled as God commanded Moses and Aaron?” Rather, since they accepted to fulfill the Commandment to eat the Paschal offering, the Merciful One credits them with performing the Commandment on the first day of Nisan! So too, when one contemplates on Teshuvah (Repentance), the Merciful One credits him with fulfilling the Commandment from the time of his acceptance to repent!
Therefore, whenever we “contemplate performing Teshuvah,” even without performing Teshuvah, we cause the Divine Light of Binah to illuminate “all our days.” The mere contemplation of Teshuvah awakens Binah (Divine Enlightenment) to sanctify a person’s soul and arouses the Divine attributes of compassion and forgiveness! Even more, it reverses our status in Heaven from iniquitous to righteous.
Illuminating All a Person’s Days
The Ramak informs us that engaging in Teshuvah (Repentance) causes Binah (Divine Enlightenment) to cast its radiance upon a person. What is behind this wondrous relationship between Teshuvah and Binah (Divine Enlightenment) radiating its luminescence? Intriguingly, the Ramak repeats the phrase “all his days” three times in this short passage. Perhaps he is hinting that, in general, “the days” are an allusion to being under the dominion of the Sun, as the Torah states (Genesis 1:16): and the Great Luminary that rules over the day. No matter how unimaginably potent it may be, the Sun is a mere physical, limited light. However, the Ramak is conveying that Teshuvah awakens the infinite spiritual light of Binah. As a result of Teshuvah, Man enters into the dominion of Binah (Divine Enlightenment), a spiritual sun that is more incalculably powerful than the physical one. Indeed, it has the spiritual magnitude “to illuminate all his days.”
Binah Converts Every Indiscretion Into Goodness
What’s more, the phrase “he causes Binah (Divine Enlightenment) to illuminate all his days” implies that Binah literally illuminates every instant of the person’s life, converting every previous indiscretion into goodness. Incredibly, by engaging in Teshuvah Elyonah (Exalted Repentance) one causes past misdeeds and blemishes to transform to wholesome virtues.
“It Thus Emerges That All His Days Are Spent in Teshuvah”
The Light of Binah (Divine Enlightenment) not only “rectifies every flaw”; it also illuminates “all one’s days” with a significantly greater magnitude of light than before he erred! The Creator shines a magnitude of Divine Radiance upon a person in his normative status, (i.e., devoid of sin). However, if he commits a sin, he is relegated to a status of disfavor with Heaven. Yet, when he contemplates Teshuvah Elyonah (Exalted Repentance), the Merciful One shines Divine Illumination upon him, exceeding in magnitude beyond his status before he sinned. Thus, one who contemplates Teshuvah Elyonah, attains a superior magnitude of Divine Radiance!
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