The tzaddikim would throw themselves, with every fiber of their being, into the avodah of these days—beginning on Rosh Chodesh Elul. They would barely sleep, eat, or speak from that time. Most of us are not on not this level.... But we must take note of what happens when we distract ourselves from the avodah, and we must make sure to remain engaged with it as much as possible.
A person must understand how this month works. It is intentional that we remove a person from his regular routine—for when a person isn’t in his regular place, he has a choice. He can choose one of the two: either to leave the past behind, or to do everything to return to his comfort zone. A person must embrace the change that this holy month offers us, not push his way towards the comfort and familiarity of the old.
Completely Immersed
When a person immerses himself in a mikveh, the impurity will depart him only if he’s completely submerged in the water. If even one tiny part of his body isn’t in the water, the immersion is completely ineffective, and he gains nothing. So too, when a person performs a mitzvah, but his mind isn’t completely in it, he will not derive the full purity and holiness that this mitzvah offers. If he places his entire self into the mitzvah, he becomes elevated and purified.
The idea of doing something with intensity, over a few consecutive and interrupted few hours, is something that must be emphasized as we approach this month. We’re all familiar with the concept of learning ברציפות, for consecutive hours. We know that it has a transformative effect on the person. But people hesitate to do it. They would rather spend money on journeying to kivrei tzaddikim than sitting down to learn for a few hours uninterrupted—because that is more difficult.
A Wash Cycle for the Soul
But this is the idea of “immersion.” After fifteen minutes of learning, one aspect of his nefesh is awakened. He overpowers his tiredness and impatience... and another problem arises, and this too must be tackled by more learning.... Just as when a child visits the dentist, the dentist doesn’t address more than two teeth at a time, but rather makes an appointment for the following week, a person who grows and advances in his avodah steadily address the troubles of his soul one or two at a time.
And just as this concept exists in learning, so too does it exist in regard to a mitzvah—which must be done with complete focus. The lengthy davening of the Yamim Noraim is a great example of this, and it is a great exercise for our nefesh. The concept also applies to the hours of dancing the מצוה של ריקודים that many do over these days... as well as to many other mitzvos that we perform during this time of the year. The person is asked to pause and concentrate—something that we’re unaccustomed to doing in today’s fast-paced world. A person may become agitated by this... not knowing what to do with himself.
But we must know that this challenge is part of the program. The washing machine manual states, “You can start a short cycle of 15 minutes, but this won’t cleanse you sufficiently. You need a long cycle—to immerse your clothing into the wash....” If a person fights the program, if he is annoyed because “the chazzan is taking too long,” he does the opposite of this.
We must allow ourselves to become immersed in the atmosphere and aura that these days present. It’s challenging. We accept that it is difficult. But we don’t become agitated by it. Understand that this is precisely what we need. We want to become immersed. To be immersed, to complete the wash cycle, and to become purified and elevated by these exalted days.
