When we come to perform a mitzvah, the energy in our souls and the mitzvah interact, and all of the letters which make up our essences grow bigger with an injection of Kedusha, Torah, exalted wisdom, and life. If we were on the proper level to experience this spiritual union, if our sensitivities were in tune with the immeasurable wealth of our Divine inner life, when we approached a mitzvah, we would feel the same ecstasy and joy that a bride and groom feel when they step under the wedding canopy to become husband and wife.
When a Jew performs a mitzvah, the letters of his or her soul are magnified with an accelerated life-force. Letters of Torah from the upper worlds of existence merge with the letters of the individual soul. This “wedding” between the upper and lower worlds causes a union of splendor and joy. Our will and God’s will become one. We and the world are filled with supernal strength, wisdom, holiness, valor, harmony, and joy. The same wholeness which returned to the world upon the giving of the Torah now returns to our souls. In the meeting of man and the mitzvah, the purpose of life is achieved. Man stands in line with God’s will for existence. The soul cleaves to God. Worlds merge, and the union brings rebirth to all of Creation.
Because of the soul’s connection to all of the world, each seemingly small mitzvah is, in truth, a cosmic deed which fills the world with untold blessing. The performance of a mitzvah fills the world with Torah, and with inner goodness and truth. We hold in our hands the fate of existence. Our good deeds infuse the world with merit. By observing the commandments of the Torah, we not only elevate our own life, we make the world a better place. In the Heavenly court, God’s judgment is sweetened.
In effect, the Almighty has put in our hands the key to existence. Divine blessing and life are released in the world according to what we do. In a sense, when we perform a mitzvah, we give strength to God Himself, as we say in our morning prayers, “Give strength to God.” Israel is figuratively the source of God’s power. It is our deeds which enable God’s goodness to appear in the world. Because of the unity of all Creation, the mitzvot which we perform on earth open valves of Heavenly blessing in the exalted worlds above. By doing God’s will, we bring about the wedding of heaven and earth.
“In Eretz Yisrael, the letters of our souls grow bigger; there they reveal shining light; they are nurtured with independent life from the light of life of Knesset Yisrael; they are directly influenced from the secret of their original creation.”
In simple language, Rabbi Kook is saying that if there were a Geiger counter which could measure the existence of Hebrew letters, it would start to crackle with a thunderous noise the moment it approached the borders of Israel. For Eretz Yisrael is the land of GIGANTIC 3-D LETTERS. It is the Land of indigenous ALEFS and BETS. Like the giants which the spies encountered in Hevron, and the gigantic fruit they found in the Land, the ALPHABET of Eretz Yisrael dwarfs the Lilliputian alphabet of Galut. The letters thrive in the air of Israel and draw body-building nutrients from its holy soil. In contrast, the letters of Chutz L’Aretz are stunted, like plants grown outside of their natural climate.
When a Jew makes Aliyah to Eretz Yisrael, the letters of his soul shift into high gear and multiply in size. All of his being gets bigger. He grows closer to God. Compared to the person he was in Galut, he becomes larger than life. He transforms into a giant, filled with greater valor, greater holiness, greater happiness and wisdom.
What is the secret of this change? IN ERETZ YISRAEL, OUR LETTERS, LIKE OUR SOULS, BECOME THE GIGANTIC LETTERS OF CLAL YISRAEL. They are no longer small, private, individual letters – THEY MULTIPLY AND MULTIPLY THROUGH THEIR UNION WITH KNESSET YISRAEL. IN THE LAND OF CLAL YISRAEL, OUR LETTERS MERGE WITH THE MEGA-SOUL OF THE NATION.
