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Discover a joyful and uplifting path to Repentance!
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The Joy of Repentance\Guilt-Free
Based on Tomer Devorah by the Holy Ramak
Authored and Published by the Salant Foundation
Distributed by Feldheim
Rising to the Upper Realm of Existence
וִימֵי חַיָּיו מְעֻטָּרִים בְּסוֹד הַתְּשׁוּבָה הָעֶלְיוֹנָה
(5) The days of his life will thereby be crowned with the Secret of Teshuvah Elyonah (Exalted Repentance).
Rising to the Upper Realm of Existence
As we saw, there are three main categories of Teshuvah (Repentance): a) Teshuvah motivated by the fear of God and b) Teshuvah inspired by the love of God. The third category is c) the Secret of Teshuvah Elyonah. The term “Elyonah” is an allusion to the Sefirot (System of Divine Lights), which dwell in the the Upper Realm of existence, as we discussed above. Accordingly, the unique quality of Teshuvah Elyonah is that it grants us access to the Sefirot, particularly to the Divine Realm of Binah (Divine Enlightenment).
We learned on Day Five that the Almighty established an aspect of reciprocity between Man’s soul and the Sefirot. Teshuvah Elyonah is initialized through Man’s intent to ascend to his soul’s root, which resides in the Divine Realm of Binah. When one successfully attains Teshuvah Elyonah, he transforms himself by uniting with the pure and inherently incorruptible goodness that characterizes his spiritual root. New worlds of powerful love for Heaven are awakened in his heart, when he accesses his spiritual root. In turn, his past actions ascend with him and implant themselves in holiness, his misdeeds convert to Mitzvot for everything follows after the sweet root. Indeed, Binah’s brilliant light will illuminate upon all his days from the moment of his inception and span until eternity, as the Ramak writes, “The days of his life will thereby be crowned with the Secret of Teshuvah Elyonah.”
It’s Easy to Ascend to Our Roots
We might assume that the sublime achievement of ascending to one’s holy root, residing in the exalted Light of Binah, is a most challenging and difficult endeavor. Surely it is suited only to those immersed in the most rarified levels of Divine service – the righteous figures of legends and the Torah scholars whose lives are uncompromisingly dedicated to Divine service and Torah study. However, nothing could be further from the truth! The Ramak reveals that the mere contemplation of Teshuvah Elyonah causes Binah to radiate its luminescence upon us and transport us to our holy roots – no matter who a person is and what he has done until now.
The Power of Intention
It is vital to always recall that intention alone is sufficient to awaken reciprocation from the Sefirot. As the Ramak writes (Tomer Devorah, Chapter 5):
The rule of the matter is as follows: When one performs good deeds for the inhabitants of the physical realm, and he intends to [awaken the aspect of the Sefira aligned with that particular action,] his intention will certainly awaken the reciprocal effect in the respective Sefira (One of the Ten Divine Lights).
We see from this passage that acting with trust and proper intent when performing a deed inevitably awakens the corresponding Sefira in which the said deed is rooted. Therefore, it is unquestionable that Man’s intent to ascend to his holy root in Binah will awaken the Sefira to cast its splendor upon him and elevate him to a higher plane of existence.
It Is “Easy”
We might assume that if climbing to the top of a towering mountain demands “sweat and tears,” how much more intense struggle is required to ascend to the root of our soul, which exists in the lofty realm of Binah. As the Talmud teaches (Chagiga 13a):
Rabbi Yochanon ben Zakai taught…From the earth to the firmament is a distance of five hundred years, and between each firmament is a distance of five hundred years, and the thickness of each firmament is five hundred years.
The distance from the earth to the firmament of Binah is an unimaginable traverse, beyond our ability to calculate. If so, it would seem extremely challenging to ascend to the root of our soul!
However, the truth is the very opposite of what we imagine! The root of our soul already resides in the Realm of Binah, similar to the concept that we will mention regarding the pleasant fragrance of the sacrifice that returns the breath to its source (Day Twenty-Five). Indeed, the Ramak does not mention the notion of “intense exertion” regarding Teshuvah Elyonah. Hence, our mere intention to repent, causes the Sanctity and incandescent radiance of “Binah to illuminate all the days of our life.”
Indeed, the Sefer Charedim tells us, if a person lifts his eyes to the King of the Universe and “ascends” quickly to Heaven, like “a target to an arrow,” he will be graced with God’s forgiveness. (Chapter 73)
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