Returning now to his original point, that the wicked cannot begin serving G-d with love and fear before repenting their sins, the Alter Rebbe says:
This is the lower category of repentance, whereby the lower letter hey is raised up from its fall into the forces of evil, the kelipot.
וְהִיא בְּחִינַת תְּשׁוּבָה תַּתָּאָה, לְהַעֲלוֹת הֵ"א תַּתָּאָה, לַהֲקִימָהּ מִנְּפִילָתָהּ שֶׁנָפְלָה אֶל הַחִיצוֹנִים,
Teshuvah (repentance), spelled תְּשׁוּבָה, forms the words “returning the hey”; this implies that repentance “returns” the hey of the Divine Name, Havayah (yud-hey-vav-hey), to its proper place. The higher category of teshuvah returns the “higher” (the first) hey to the yud preceding it, while the lower form of teshuvah returns the “lower” hey to the vav preceding it. The teshuvah mentioned earlier as a prerequisite for a love and fear of G-d is of the lower category.
This fall of the lower hey of the Divine Name into the kelipot is the mystery of the Shechinah (the Divine Presence) in exile, as our Sages have said: “When the Jews were exiled to Edom, the Shechinah went into exile with them.”;)
שֶׁהוּא סוֹד גָּלוּת הַשְּׁכִינָה, כְּמַאֲמַר רַבּוֹתֵינוּ־זִכְרוֹנָם־לִבְרָכָה: "גָּלוּ לֶאֱדוֹם – שְׁכִינָה עִמָּהֶם",
I n a spiritual sense, in terms of one’s service to G-d, this statement means that when one acts like “Edom,” the embodiment of evil, when he sins, he degrades and draws down to Edom, to the kelipot, the Divine spark which vitalizes his nefesh, ruach, and neshamah with G-dly, holy life. In this way, the Shechinah within him is drawn into exile.
דְּהַיְינוּ, כְּשֶׁאָדָם עוֹשֶׂה מַעֲשֵׂה אֱדוֹם מוֹרִיד וּמַמְשִׁיךְ לְשָׁם בְּחִינַת וְנִיצוֹץ אֱלֹהוּת הַמְחַיֶּה אֶת נֶפֶשׁ־רוּחַ־נְשָׁמָה שֶׁלּוֹ,
W hat constitutes “exile” in this case is the fact that the Divine spark gives life to his G-dly soul, which is clothed in the animal soul of kelipah situated in the left part of his heart, and as long as he remains wicked, the animal soul reigns over him, dominating his “small city,” his body. Thus, the Divine spark within his G-dly soul is in exile in the kelipah of his animal soul.
הַמְלוּבָּשִׁים בּוֹ בַּנֶּפֶשׁ הַבַּהֲמִית מֵהַקְּלִיפָּה, שֶׁבְּלִבּוֹ שֶׁבֶּחָלָל הַשְּׂמָאלִי, הַמּוֹלֶכֶת בּוֹ בְּעוֹדוֹ רָשָׁע וּמוֹשֶׁלֶת בָּעִיר קְטַנָּה שֶׁלּוֹ,
The nefesh, ruach, and neshamah are thus held captive in exile under it.
וְנֶפֶשׁ־רוּחַ־נְשָׁמָה כְּבוּשִׁים בַּגּוֹלָה אֶצְלָהּ.
A captive not only lacks the freedom to act as he wishes but is also forced to carry out the wishes of his captor. The Divine spark within the soul, however, although in exile, is still not in captivity. It has merely lost its ability to affect the person with its G-dly vitality.
When the heart of the rasha is broken within him and thereby, the spirit of uncleanliness and of the sitra achara are broken and the forces of evil are dispersed,
וּכְשֶׁנִּשְׁבָּר לִבּוֹ בְּקִרְבּוֹ, וְנִשְׁבְּרָה רוּחַ הַטּוּמְאָה וְסִטְרָא אָחֳרָא, וְיִתְפָּרְדוּ כוּ' –
then the lower hey of the Divine Name—the Shechinah—rises from its fall and stands firm, as discussed elsewhere.
הִיא קָמָה מִנְּפִילָתָהּ וְגַם נִצָּבָה, כְּמוֹ שֶׁנִּתְבָּאֵר בְּמָקוֹם אַחֵר:
Only when he repents and thereby frees the Shechinah from exile, allowing the Divine spark within him to affect his soul and body, may he begin to serve G-d with love and fear.
In summary: It is indeed “very near” to us to love and fear G-d, for we are able to create at least an “intellectual emotion” by means of our mind, which is under our control, even if our heart is not. However, this does not apply to the rasha, who is a slave to the desires of his animal soul and must repent before beginning to serve G-d with love and fear.
Footnotes
15.
Cf. Megillah 29a.