Now, let us learn how to apply this in practice—and we will elaborate: We must know that everything we view in this world is through a mundane lens, and it is not necessarily the way it really is. We see it through the prism of החול ימות, the weekdays, which entail layers upon layers that cover over the true essence. There’s a real world beneath the layers, and our avodah in this world is to tap into the realness.
The work of ניצוצות העלאת entails seeing beneath the surface to the real essence—and this includes seeing our own nature for what it really is. This is the Shabbos’dig view of the world.
The Toldos Yaakov Yosef explains that the qualities and attributes (כוחות הנפש) within a person that are expressed in improper ways, such as anger, hubris, and lust, etc., are all really rooted in kedushah. A person may say, “What can I do? I was exhausted, so I lost my cool. I was upset, and this is why I spoke this way. I didn’t mean it—but my inner attributes expressed themselves in a negative way....”
Rooted in Holiness
This person must know that these expressions are really rooted in holiness. Every time a person has a desire for something negative... he feels the flames of desire and lust... he must know that the root of it is a nekudah of kedushah, which really strives and longs for the fire of kedushah and yearns for spiritual pleasures. This person who desires superiority over others experiences feelings of גאוה—but he is really feeling the greatness of his neshamah, which is truly great and wishes its greatness to be known. (We will elaborate on this teaching from the Toldos later).
While these holy inner desires may often express themselves in foolish ways, they’re rooted in holiness.
