How is a person supposed to achieve holiness.
The Torah has forbidden various acts for which a person lives with a natural desire and lust. The truth is that a person’s desires are generally stronger than his ability to control them, and his only option is to keep far away from their awakening. However, this is impossible. A person cannot remain celibate; the world needs to continue. No children would be born, and the world would be destroyed if everyone attempted to follow this directive.
The Torah, therefore, teaches us how to do things. We learn how we are supposed to live without sinning. We are to do what we need to do, but do so in a holy fashion, sanctifying ourselves with Hashem’s holiness. Our purpose in performing these physical acts should always be spiritual. He should do them as though he was wrapping Tefillin on himself. This person is considered holy.
A person may still ask, how can he deny that which his body feels? He knows he is enjoying it, he cannot be truthful when he tells himself that his purpose is spiritual. Nobody has the ability to remove the feeling of pleasure associated with physical acts. His feelings of pleasure override his thoughts of holiness, and he is back to acting like an animal, filled with lust. The answer to this is כִּי לֹהֵּיכֶם-א ה'קָדוֹשׁ אֲנִּי – for I, Hashem your G-d am holy. The Zohar writes that when a person performs a Mitzvah, Hashem’s Holy Name of four letters rests on the limb with which he performed that Mitzvah. Indeed, in Kabbala, the word מצוה alludes to הוי"ה, with the מ"צ, in א"ת ב"ש, being י"ה and the other two letters being ו"ה.
A person can sanctify his entire body through following the Mitzvos as he should. Nothing bad can happen to him through this, even though the act seems like a physical. Hashem is our G-d, and he can, therefore, stay connected to him even when he performs physical acts.
Every single member of Klal Yisroel can reach this level, not just the leaders and ascetics among us.
This is why the Parsha was said to the entire nation and why the Torah repeated the words דַּבֵּר וְאָמַּרְ תָ . We need to know that we have to act this way, and that we can reach this level if we wish it.
