We learned a great yesod—that in every mitzvah that we do we should remember that the Ribbono shel Olam has commanded us to perform it so that we will come to the knowledge and the belief in His control of the world, and that by adhering to Hashem’s command, we proclaim that there is a G-d in the world.
But in addition to this, the Ramban is teaching us that the mitzvos have the power—as a segulah—to transform the heart of a Yid and to infuse his heart with the awareness and the knowledge that every aspect of the world is conducted by Hashem.
Emunah Can Come Only Through the Fulfillment of Mitzvos
Sometimes, a person will attempt to separate these concepts in his mind... There is one area called emunah and bitachon, and in addition to this, there are other mitzvos. For example, when a person fulfills the mitzvah of shiluach haken, he doesn’t associate this with the sugya of bitachon in Hashem. They’re two separate entities. There are times when he performs mitzvos, and there are times when he strengthens his belief in Hashem.
Says the Ramban: You’re making a big mistake! Emunah can become etched in your heart only by fulfilling the mitzvos of the Torah. Every mitzvah has this power to infuse in you the belief in Hashem—and if you have in mind, while performing a mitzvah, that Hashem is in charge of the world, and that He always does good for you, the mitzvah will strengthen your emunah!
Revealing the Secret
This is what Chazal (Talmud Bavli Makkos 21b) meant when they said Chavakuk came and established that all mitzvos are really rooted in the mitzvah of emunah. All mitzvos have this special purpose; to strengthen the emunah in the heart of a Yid. This is the reason that we were given mitzvos in the first place: to remind us always that there is a G-d, the single belief that is at the heart of the purpose of Creation.
