Companies invest millions into mining for gold, or digging for diamonds and other precious stones, often not knowing exactly where they will be found. They simply estimate the general vicinity.

Imagine knowing with certainty that a treasure exists within you, and all you gotta do is dig, dig, dig. That’s how the verse refers to the innate reverence of G‑d found within every Jew, waiting to be revealed. “If you seek it like silver and search for it like a buried treasure, then will you understand the reverence of G‑d.”

As a Jew, you have the capacity to have this fear, or reverence for G‑d, which is enough to motivate you to fulfill his commands. But you have to do the digging.

That means work of the mind. Imagine knowing with certainty that a treasure exists within youIt entails focusing on G‑d’s greatness and constant presence with fixed concentration (known as Da’as) to the point where it is real to the mind’s eye. It takes meditating at length for the awareness of G‑d to translate from an intellectual consciousness to an actual feeling. And just like physical digging, it’s no easy task.

That’s why we get assistance in the form of soul powers from the contemporary sages and leaders (the souls of Moses) of every era. By connecting to them and learning their teachings, the “digging” becomes easier.

The goal is to feel enough awe of heaven to refrain from violating G‑d’s will. As it says in the Torah, G‑d asks “only that you revere G‑d, your G‑d [in order to] go in his ways.”

If you spend some time dedicated to this practice in the morning, then at any point during the day that temptation calls your name, you can easily recall the feeling of awe that comes along with the awareness of G‑d’s greatness.

Because you can always claim your treasure.

Tanya Bit: “Digging” for fear of heaven is bound to yield results.

(Inspired from Chapter 42 of Tanya)