It is different, however, with something entrusted to the heart, i.e., involving one’s feelings, meaning, in our case, that one’s heart actually abhor and despise the evil that he now craves,
מַה שֶּׁאֵין כֵּן בְּדָבָר הַמָּסוּר לַלֵּב, דְּהַיְינוּ, שֶׁיְּהֵא הָרָע מָאוּס מַמָּשׁ בַּלֵּב וְשָׂנאוּי
[whether] with absolute hatred, as the perfect tzaddik does, or even not quite so utterly, as does the “incomplete tzaddik.”
בְּתַכְלִית שִׂנְאָה – אוֹ אֲפִילוּ שֶׁלֹּא בְּתַכְלִית שִׂנְאָה –
This cannot be attained in complete truth except through that level of intense love of G-d called “love which experiences delights,” which consists of delighting in G-dliness,
הִנֵּה זֶה, אִי אֶפְשָׁר שֶׁיִּהְיֶה בֶּאֱמֶת לַאֲמִיתּוֹ, אֶלָּא עַל יְדֵי גּוֹדֶל וְתוֹקֶף הָאַהֲבָה לַה', בִּבְחִינַת "אַהֲבָה בְּתַּעֲנוּגִים", לְהִתְעַנֵּג עַל ה'
akin to [the bliss of] the World to Come, concerning which our Sages say that souls “will bask in the radiance of the Divine Presence.” Only such “love which experiences delights” creates a hatred of evil, as explained in the previous chapters.
מֵעֵין עוֹלָם הַבָּא,
Concerning one who experiences this [“love of delights”], our Sages said, “You shall see a glimmer of your reward in the World to Come in your lifetime.”4 Not every man is privileged to attain this state, for it is in the nature of a reward received from above, and a reward can only be received, not taken.
וְעַל זֶה אָמְרוּ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ־זִכְרוֹנָם־לִבְרָכָה: "עוֹלָמְךָ תִּרְאֶה בְּחַיֶּיךָ כוּ'"; וְאֵין כָּל אָדָם זוֹכֶה לָזֶה, כִּי זֶהוּ כְּעֵין קִבּוּל שָׂכָר,
Thus, it is written, “I (G-d) shall grant [you] your priestly service as a gift,”5
וּכְדִכְתִיב: "עֲבוֹדַת מַתָּנָה אֶתֵּן אֶת כְּהוּנַּתְכֶם וְגוֹ'",
as is explained elsewhere.
כְּמוֹ שֶׁנִּתְבָּאֵר בְּמָקוֹם אַחֵר.
Consequently, the rank of tzaddik is not within every man’s reach: it is dependent upon one’s loathing of evil, which is in turn contingent on his experiencing that blissful love which is a gift from G-d. The level of beinoni, however, is attainable by all.
With this in mind, the Alter Rebbe clarifies the Talmudic passage that describes Job as saying to G-d: “You have created tzaddikim (righteous men), You have created resha’im (wicked men).” In the first chapter of the Tanya, the Alter Rebbe asked: How can G-d be said to have “created” righteous and wicked men? If man is wicked, it is his own doing. G-d ordains only whether one shall be clever or foolish, strong or weak, and the like; he does not declare whether one will be righteous or wicked, for doing so would negate man’s freedom of choice. How, then, could Job say, “You have created men as tzaddikim and resha’im”?
The matter becomes clear, however, in light of the Alter Rebbe’s statement here that the ability to become a tzaddik is a gift from G-d, not granted to every man. “You have created tzaddikim” thus means that G-d created souls capable of attaining the rank of tzaddik. In the Alter Rebbe’s words:
Therefore Job said, “You have created tzaddikim….”
וְלָכֵן אָמַר אִיּוֹב: "בָּרָאתָ צַדִּיקִים כוּ'";
We can now understand Job’s statement as a reference to those souls created with the capacity of attaining the rank of tzaddik. (The meaning of “You have created resha’im” is explained in ch. 27.)
As stated in Tikkunei Zohar,6 there are many grades and degrees in Jewish souls:
וְכִדְאִיתָא בַּתִּיקּוּנִים, שֶׁיֵּשׁ בְּנִשְׁמוֹת יִשְׂרָאֵל כַּמָּה מִינֵי מַדְרֵגוֹת וּבְחִינוֹת:
Pious men (chassidim), strong men (gibborim) who gain mastery over their evil inclination, scholars of the Torah, prophets…tzaddikim, and so forth. Note there.
חֲסִידִים, גִּבּוֹרִים הַמִּתְגַּבְּרִים עַל יִצְרָם, מָארֵי תוֹרָה, נְבִיאִים כוּ', צַדִּיקִים כוּ', עַיֵּין שָׁם:
Accordingly, within the ranks of the souls, there are those who are categorized as tzaddikim.7
Service of G-d with this ecstatically blissful love is designated “priesthood” even though it is not restricted to the Kohanim, members of the priestly family of Aaron. The above-quoted verse tells us that this lofty level of divine service is a gift from G-d,