The Yeitav Leiv zy’a told the following parable: There was once a king who would drive through his capital city on his birthday, and the townspeople would line the streets to watch the king pass by. As the king's chariot drew near, the townspeople had the opportunity to throw a letter into the king’s chariot, stating their requests, which the king would fulfill.
There was one person who would annually throw his letters into the king's chariot, but the king never granted his wishes. He investigated the matter and heard that one of the king’s ministers – who rode with the king – hated him. When he would toss his letter into the chariot, this minister would tell the king to ignore his requests, claiming that he wasn't a loyal citizen, unworthy of the king’s benevolence.
The following year, this man went to the king's palace before the king's birthday to speak with the king directly. Now that his adversary wasn't around, the king agreed to fulfill his request.
At this point in the story, the Yeitav Lev cried and said, “Beloved Yidden! On Rosh Hashanah, Hashem is surrounded by angels who speak out against us, claiming we don’t deserve a good year, and we have to grab the shofar to protect ourselves. We are much better off speaking to Hashem face to face now, in the month of Elul, and especially during the days of Selichos. Our adversaries aren't around, and there is a better chance that Hashem will give us our desires. Beg Hashem for compassion; ask Him for health, wealth, nachas, and all your heart's desires. If we do so, Hashem will have mercy on us and grant us a sweet and successful new year.”
Reb Shlomo Shlissel z’l (founder of Chasan Mishnayos) said that when he was learning in Yeshivas Chevron, a bachur from Russia joined the yeshiva. Reb Shlissel asked him, "What do the Russian Jews say about Elul?" The bachur replied "Smiths test rusty metal scraps – to know whether the rust is through and through, or whether there is good metal under the rust – by putting a magnet next to it. If the metal is attracted to the magnet, that means there is good metal under the rust. The same is with Elul [and the days of Selichos]. Throughout the year, people forget Hashem and their obligations to Him, but when Elul and the days of Selichos arrive, one should be inspired to do teshuvah. If one remains stagnant even now, that's a sign that he is corroded through and through."
Ignore it. But when someone pounds on your door, you understand that the person is desperate, so you open to see what is needed. Therefore, we say in selichos, דלתיך מלפניך ריקם תשיבנו אל נא וחנון רחום דפקנו, “We are pounding on Your door... Don't have us return empty-handed." We are pounding at Hashem's door, desperate for His forgiveness and salvation, and therefore, we plead that Hashem listen to our prayers.
Tzaddikim tell a mashal of a person who was lost in the forest and needed food and water. Finally, he spotted a house. He knocked at the door, but the homeowner didn’t answer. What did the man do? Did he walk away? Of course not. He was in the forest, alone, and he needed help. He knocked again. He pounded on the door, and he begged for mercy because he realized this was his only chance for survival. Similarly, we knock at Hashem's doors, and if they are closed, we knock again, we pound on the door, and we don't go away until our tefillos are answered because we realize we don't have another option.
We say on the first day of selichos, רצה בלילות בעמדם עתירתם, "Desire their tefillos..." There are several ways to express tefillah, and עתירה is when one davens many, many times (see Rashi, Bereishis 25:21 ויעתר ה"ד). This is because we don’t ask Hashem only once or twice for life, a good year, and atonement. We ask again and again because we are desperate and need Hashem to answer our tefillos.
