Sec. 6: The Service of Prayer

Now, the verse "And you shall serve G‑d your L‑rd" refers to the concept of prayer,1 as Rambam states:2

It is a positive mitzvah to pray…, as it is written, "And you shall serve G‑d your L‑rd." According to the oral tradition, we learned that this teaches us that this service is prayer, as it is written:3 "And serve Him with all your heart," and our Sages state:4 "What is the service of the heart? This is prayer."5

It is understood that included in the charge to serve G‑d — in addition to the service of awe — is also the service of love which is actualized in prayer, as it is taught:6 "There is no service like the service of love."

To explain:7 Prayer produces an effect both on the G‑dly soul and the animal soul. The Hebrew term for prayer, tefillah, relatesto the term tofal which has the meaning of "joining together."8 [Through prayer,] the G‑dly soul is joined to its root and source.9 Also, [through prayer,] the animal soul is purified and refined,10 and the sparks of G‑dliness invested in one's body and one's portion of the world are elevated.11

Both of these effects are produced through the service of love. The service of fear and kabbalas ol does not change a person and it does not bring about a refinement and a purification of the animal soul. This can be observed in actual life. There are people who have natural yiras Shamayim (fear of Heaven). With minimal meditation, they are able to arouse a level of fear that motivates them to "turn away from evil and do good." Nevertheless, even when their conduct is ideal in terms of "turn[ing] away from evil and do[ing] good," their animal souls retain their inherent strength and power.12 On the contrary, their animal souls grow stronger over the course of time as they are drawn on repeatedly.13, 14

Moreover, since service motivated by fear does not bring about a refinement and a purification of the animal soul, it also does not bring about a connection between the G‑dly soul and its root and source. For the establishment of such a connection depends on the fulfillment of G‑d's will, and G‑d's will is that the soul will refine the body and the animal soul.15 That is the purpose for which the soul descended to this material plane. For the soul itself is not in need of correction.16, 17 It descends to this earthly plane only to refine the body and animal soul. As long as it has not brought about such a refinement, it has not fulfilled G‑d's will.18 Hence, it will not have connected the G‑dly soul to its root and source.

Summary

Divine service involves not only fear and kabbalas ol but also love, which is achieved through the service of prayer.

The Hebrew term for prayer, tefillah, relatesto the term tofal which has the meaning of "joining together." Prayer joins the G‑dly soul to its root and source. Prayer also refines a person's animal soul.

Both of these effects are produced through the service of love. In contrast, the service of fear and kabbalas ol does not radically change a person's inner character traits. He remains who he is; he just controls his conduct. To bring about an inner change, love is necessary. Similarly, fear does not bring about a connection between the G‑dly soul and its root and source, for the establishment of such a connection depends on the fulfillment of G‑d's will, and G‑d's will is that the soul will refine the body and the animal soul.

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Sec. 5: The Service of a Servant to His Master

Sec. 7: Service Motivated by Fear

Footnotes

As stated above, kabbalas ol is associated primarily with fear. In the portion of the maamar that follows, the Rebbe proceeds to explain how the service of G‑d also requires love. For avodah involves transformation of one's inner being, not merely control of one's conduct. Such transformation is accomplished through love, for love is the emotion that pushes a person beyond himself and into connection with others.

Hilchos Tefillah 1:1.

Devarim 11:13.

Sifri to Devarim, op. cit.; Taanit 2a.

I.e., prayer is service "in the heart," i.e., changing the nature of one's heart itself.

See Zohar, Vol. II, p. 55b; Vol. III, p. 267a.

The concepts to follow are explained in Kuntres HaAvodah, chs. 1-3.

See an alternate version of Keilim 3:5 which speaks about "One who puts together an earthenware container." See Sefer HaMaamarim 5709.

I.e., the soul as it is manifest in a person's mind and heart is connected to the root of the soul as it exists in the spiritual realms. For only a ray of the soul enclothes itself in the body; the essence of the soul remains in the spiritual realms above (see fn. 51). Prayer creates a bond that enables the G‑dly power of the soul in its source and root to shine within the soul as it is enclothed in the body.

10.

I.e., integrity is created between a person's inner spiritual awareness and desire to bond with G‑d (which stems from his G‑dly soul) and his operative consciousness, the way he thinks and feels on an everyday basis (which stems from his animal soul).

11.

For then a person's thought, speech, and action will reflect his inner spiritual purpose. As such, all the material entities which he uses will be aligned with the Divine intent. This will enable the G‑dly sparks within them to be elevated and connected with their spiritual source.

The two effects produced by prayer are interrelated. Because the G‑dly soul within the body is brought into contact with its essential G‑dly source and core, it is infused with the infinite power of that source. Hence, the arousal of the G‑dly soul produces effects that are not confined to the spiritual realms, but change the way the person relates to his material surroundings as well.

12.

I.e., the person's conduct conforms to the Torah's standards, but his inner self remains unrefined.

13.

The more a person is involved with material entities, even when his involvement is not excessive and his physical desires are kept in check, the more his mind and heart become focused on that realm and become insensitive to spiritual concepts.

14.

See Tanya,ch. 13.

15.

As mentioned in note 46, only a ray of the G‑dly soul is enclothed in the body. Why? Because the soul as it exists in the spiritual realms is too elevated and transcendent to shine within the body. This is the nature of Seder HaHishtalshelus, the chainlike pattern of downward progression that characterizes the Spiritual Cosmos. An entity's spiritual level is defined by its degree of refinement and thus it is restricted to that level.

How then can the full power of the soul above shine within the soul in the body? Because a power that knows no bounds and restrictions — G‑d's will — is bringing them together.

16.

I.e., the G‑dly soul is pure, "an actual part of G‑d from Above" (Tanya, ch. 2). As it exists in the spiritual realms, it is totally at one with G‑d and thus is not in need of correction.

"Correction" is a translation of the word תקון. Although the Hebrew term could also be translated as "improvement," "correction" was chosen because through the soul's descent to the physical plane and its Divine service in refining the body, the animal soul, and the world at large, the soul is elevated and lifted to a higher plane. Nevertheless, even before this elevation is achieved, it is pure and in no need of correction (Toras Chayim, Shmos, p. 309c; Basi LeGani, 5710, ch. 20).

17.

Etz Chayim, Shaar HaTzelem, ch. 1, cited in Tanya, chs. 37, 38.

18.

For G‑d's desire for a dwelling in the lower worlds (see Tanya, ch. 36) involves not only the actual observance of mitzvos, but also the refinement of man's character: that he remake his personality so that he becomes a medium for the expression of G‑dliness.

A discourse by the Lubavitcher Rebbe; free translation by Eli Touger

A discourse by the Lubavitcher Rebbe; translated by Eli Touger

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A discourse by the Lubavitcher Rebbe; free translation by Eli Touger