- להאזנה יום כיפור 003 עיצומו של יום מכפר הקבה מכפר
003 The Mikveh of Yisrael Is Hashem
- להאזנה יום כיפור 003 עיצומו של יום מכפר הקבה מכפר
Yom Kippur - 003 The Mikveh of Yisrael Is Hashem
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Two Levels of Purity on Yom Kippur: “Pure Waters” and “The Mikveh of Yisrael is Hashem”
“Rabbi Akiva said: Praiseworthy is Yisrael. Before Whom are they purified, and Whom purifies them? Their father in Heaven, for it says, “And I will sprinkle upon them pure waters, and they shall be purified”, and it says, “The mikveh of Yisrael, is Hashem” – just as a mikveh purifies the impure, so does HaKadosh Baruch Hu purify Yisrael.”[1]
There are two levels here: “Before Whom they are purified”, and “Who purifies them”. Rabbi Akiva brings two separate verses for each of these, and they really symbolize two different aspects of purification: (1) “And I will sprinkle upon them pure waters”, and (2) “The mikveh of Yisrael, is Hashem” – just as a mikveh purifies the impure, so does Hashem purify Yisrael.”
The difference between these two levels of purification appears to be as follows. “I will sprinkle upon them pure waters” is as it implies, that Hashem places purifying water upon a person; the second aspect, “The mikveh of Yisrael is Hashem”, is saying more: On Yom Kippur, a person enters into Hashem, as if Hashem is a mikveh, so to speak – and that is what purifies him.
In the first aspect, “And I will sprinkle upon them pure waters”, the purification is not coming directly from Hashem Himself. Rather, it is that Hashem sends down a shefa (spiritual abundance), “pure waters”, which come and purify the person. But in the second aspect, “The mikveh of Yisrael is Hashem”, the “waters” are like Hashem Himself, so to speak – in other words, it is a purification through connecting to Hashem’s essence.
This is the meaning of the two terms used by Rabbi Akiva, “Before Whom they are purified”, and “Who purifies them”: The first term, “Before Whom they are purified,” is referring to “before” the Whom; and the second aspect, “Who purifies them”, is referring to the “Who” that purifies them.
The Atonement of Yom Kippur Through The Dimension of “Ayin”
Of Yom Kippur, it is written, “Before Hashem, be purified”. What is the deeper understanding of being purified “before Hashem”? The depth of the matter appears to be as follows.
The Gemara says that there are two sins which Yom Kippur does not atone for: One who says “I will sin, and Yom Kippur will atone”,[2] and, according to the opinion of the Rabbanan (the consensus of most of our Sages), Yom Kippur does not either atone for those who do not repent. There are also several other examples brought in the Gemara of cases where Yom Kippur does not atone for.
These are the examples where “Ain Yom Kippur mechaper”, where “Yom Kippur does not atone.” But we have received a teaching that this can also be read as, “Ayin Yom Kippur mechaper” - when there is “ayin” [the negation of the material realm, and the revelation of the completely spiritual], then, Yom Kippur atones. Something that “Yeish” (the material, tangible realm) cannot atone for, “Ayin” (the spiritual dimension) can atone for. That means that Yom Kippur doesn’t atone in certain instances only in the dimension of “Yeish” within Yom Kippur, but in the dimension of Ayin that is within Yom Kippur, even those sins can be atoned for.
Thus, the first aspect of the purification, “I will sprinkle upon them pure waters”, refers to the “Yeish” aspect within Yom Kippur, symbolized by the water, which is tangible. This purification is not coming directly from Hashem Himself (His atzmiyus\essence), hence, it is purification on the level of “Yeish”, for it is closer to the material, tangible world which we understand. But the second aspect, “The mikveh of Yisrael is Hashem”, refers to Hashem being as a mikveh, so to speak – this is a purification of the dimension of the “Ayin” aspect within Yom Kippur, of integration with Hashem, referring to a connection to the atzmiyus\essence of Hashem, where “No thought can grasp Him” – the dimension of “ayin”.
Thus, there are two aspects of atonement on Yom Kippur. One aspect is the fact that “the essence of the day atones”. The second aspect of it, which is the more inner aspect of the atonement, is that Hashem Himself atones for sins on this day. This is the deeper meaning of “Before Hashem, be purified” – the Torah uses the four-letter name of havayah in this verse, which shows us that the purification is coming from the atzmiyus of Hashem Himself. “The mikveh of Yisrael, is Hashem” – the atzmiyus\essence of Hashem is the purifying mikveh, so to speak; this refers to hiskalelus (integrating) with Hashem.
Teshuvah – Returning The Essence of the Creations To Their Root
Let us explain this matter further.
It is known from the sefarim hakedoshim that the Ten Days of Repentance correspond to the Ten Expressions of creation, which correspond to the Ten Commandments. “In the word of Hashem the heavens were made” – each thing contains the “word of Hashem” which empowers it.[3] There were ten expressions which Hashem used to make the Creation, and each expression contains Hashem’s Name, which allows the creation to exist. The word “teshuvah” means “return”, when something is returned to its root and source. The Ten Days of Repentance represent ten different combinations of the name of havayah, implying that the name of havayah itself must be returned to its root. The root is the atzmus (lit. “very essence”, as it were, of Hashem), also called achdus peshutah (undifferentiated unity).
Thus, the deeper meaning of “Before Hashem, be purified” is to return the name of havayah and integrate it, as it were, with the Creator. So there is a level above the name of havayah: a higher point where the name of havayah becomes integrated with.
This is the depth in teshuvah! Teshuvah does not simply mean to return from sins, but to return the very essence of the soul, the very reality of the creations, to the Creator. It is not simply to return evil to good, or even to return good to higher good. It is to return the very reality of all creations to the Creator, to the “word of Hashem” in each creation.
From the aspect of “Yeish” in Yom Kippur, it is said, “And I will sprinkle upon you pure waters”. In this aspect, there can be defilement, which is removed through the purity of Yom Kippur. But from the higher aspect of Yom Kippur, which is “ayin”, it is said, “The mikveh of Yisrael is Hashem” – that Hashem Himself purifies. This is where even the holiest point possible is returned to Hashem. So the inner dimension of Yom Kippur, its core, is the atonement from the “ayin” aspect of Yom Kippur. It is the fact that Yom Kippur returns all the creations to ayin, to nothingness, because everything is being returned to Hashem Yisborach.
This is the depth to these ten days of teshuvah before Yom Kippur.
The Return of Creation to “Ain Od Milvado”
As it explained in the sefarim, the 365 prohibitions of the Torah correspond to the 365 days of the [solar] year. Each day of the [solar] year corresponds to one of the 365 prohibitions, and Yom Kippur corresponds to the prohibition of “You shall not have other gods before Me.”
The commandment which precedes the above one is “I am Hashem”, and the depth of this is that the “I” of Hashem is the true Yeish [the true existence of the entire Creation]. We do not know His essence, but we do know that He is the true reality. The very understanding that there can be any reality apart from Hashem is considered having “other gods”. Since there is nothing else besides Him, there are no others! When we nullify the possibility of “others” and we integrate all of these “others” in their root, in the reality of Ain Od Milvado (the fact that there is nothing else besides for Hashem), there is no possibility of “other gods”. There is only Hashem, and nothing besides Him.
Thus, the depth of “Do not have other gods before Me” is not just to dismiss any mistaken notion of the existence of any other gods. It is to nullify the reality of all “others” altogether. If there can be no others, there can be no other gods, for there is nothing besides Hashem, and if there is nothing besides Hashem, it is not possible for there to be any other gods. The depth of Yom Kippur is this understanding of “Do not have other gods before Me”.
Even more so, it is the revelation of “The mikveh of Yisrael is Hashem” – meaning that it is a return of all the creations to their Root. Chazal state that Yom Kippur is the “day of HaKadosh Baruch Hu”[4]. “A day of Hashem is a thousand years”, and “a thousand” in Hebrew is “elef”, which can also be read as “Aleph”, the One (Hashem), which is spelled backward as the word “pele”, “incomprehensible”. Yom Kippur is a day which we can have no intellectual grasp of, because on this day, there is no reality of our own – there is only a state of hiskalelus (integration) with Hashem, for everything is being returned to their Root.
Atonement Through “Ayin” on Yom Kippur: Becoming Miskalel (Integrated) In Hashem
Thus, there are two aspects of atonement on Yom Kippur – there is the atonement through the day of Yom Kippur, and there is also a higher level of atonement, which is coming from Hashem Himself.
There is a dispute in the Sages if Yom Kippur atones only for those who do teshuvah or not. The view of the Rabbanan is that Yom Kippur does not atone for those who don’t do teshuvah, while Rebbi’s view is that Yom Kippur atones even for those who don’t do teshuvah. The deeper understanding of this dispute is as follows. From the perspective of the creations, there can be instances where we are atoned, and instances where there is no atonement. [This is the Rabbanan’s view]. But when Hashem Himself atones for our sins, and when we elevate our perspective to the understanding that every point within this Creation contains the revelation of Ain Od Milvado, then there can be atonement for all [This is Rebbi’s view].
The Gemara says that some sins cannot be atoned for [through Yom Kippur], but the sefarim hakedoshim explain that these sins can be atoned for through the dimension of ayin [soon this will be explained]. Such sins are on a level where atonement isn’t possible, but in the deeper dimension, there is always atonement, because “No place is empty from Him”,[5] nothing can become so separated from HaKadosh Baruch Hu that atonement isn’t possible. Hashem can reach anywhere, and that is why atonement is always possible. So there is no such thing as a situation which is hopeless from teshuvah.
Teshuvah is to return something to its true essence, its havayah, which is the point of “Ain Od Milvado” that can be revealed in each thing. From this inner perspective, there is nothing in the world which cannot be returned to its source. “You exist before the world was created, and You exist after the world was created.” The point where Hashem existed before the creation of this world is also a light that shines into our own dimension after Creation, and therefore, everything can be returned to this root point: “You existed before the world was created.” There is nothing which cannot be returned to HaKadosh Baruch Hu, for everything returns to its root. Everything becomes miskalel (integrated) in Him.
This is the meaning of “The mikveh of Yisrael is Hashem”. It is that HaKadosh Baruch Hu, in His very glory and essence, is the One who purifies us. The purity on Yom Kippur comes from the hiskalelus of the creations in Hashem on this day. Although it says, “Their sins were a separation for them”,[6] the more one is miskalel in Hashem, the less his sins separate him from closeness with Hashem. Through being miskalel in Hashem, not only do one’s sins become returned to their root, but the very havayah of the person returns to his root. To the degree that one reveals how Hashem is found in each thing, that “there is no place that is empty from Him”, nothing can ever be totally separate from Hashem – this, itself, is teshuvah. It is a return to the point of achdus peshutah (undifferentiated unity), where there is no possibility of any separation.
This is the depth of teshuvah on Yom Kippur. This is the ayin of Yom Kippur.
The Depth of Refraining From Eating and From Marital Relations on Yom Kippur
We are commanded in the Torah to refrain from five acts on Yom Kippur: eating and drinking, washing, smearing, wearing leather shoes, and marital relations.
Yom Kippur is the only day of the year where marital relations are prohibited by the Torah. It is also prohibited on Tisha B’Av, but only Rabbinically. The only day in which the Torah prohibits marital relations is Yom Kippur. The depth behind this is because on Yom Kippur, it resembles the point before the “split” of Adam and Chavah into separate beings, when they were one unified body and soul. Hashem first created them dav partzufim[7], doubled together and back-to-back, and at that level, marital relations was not possible. Yom Kippur reveals this point of undifferentiated oneness, where Adam and Chavah were still one and there was no need for marital relations.
Eating is also prohibited on Yom Kippur, and it is for the same above reason. Marital relations are called eating, as in the verse, “She ate and wiped her mouth”, which the Gemara says is referring to a woman who commits adultery and tries to then make herself look innocent.[8] Both marital relations and eating are prohibited on Yom Kippur because it is a day that is above these acts. The Gemara says that if one eats on Erev Yom Kippur, it as if he fasted on Yom Kippur. The depth of this is because the eating on Yom Kippur, as well as the refrain from eating on Yom Kippur, is entirely above the act of eating.
The Torah requires one to refrain from eating on Yom Kippur, which is called inuy, a form of suffering. Normally, the soul is in the body, and although the soul is the primary existence of a person, he must keep his body alive, through eating. But when the soul and body are unified together [such as on the day of Yom Kippur], there is no eating. Normally when we eat throughout the rest of the year, it is because the body needs its physical food, because it is separate from the soul and it cannot be nourished from the soul. But when the soul and the body become integrated together, the soul can sustain the body and there is no need for food.
In other words, the commandment of the Torah to fast on Yom Kippur is not simply to afflict the body, but because it is a revelation of the soul integrated with the body, where eating isn’t possible. Although the Torah says “And you shall afflict your souls [bodies]” by fasting on Yom Kippur, this is only because the Torah speaks in the language of people”. In the inner dimension of Torah, the act of refraining from eating on Yom Kippur is not an affliction for the body.
Along the same lines, there are no marital relations on Yom Kippur because since it is a day of oneness, there is no place for the connection of two beings together, only a connection to one source, the Individual One of the world.
The Gemara says that even if an individual person does teshuvah, the sins of the entire world are forgiven[9], and this means that when a person reveals teshuvah on the level of revealing the oneness of Hashem, this teshuvah reveals the Individual One on the world, and hence the entire world is forgiven, from this revelation.
This is the depth behind how the day of Yom Kippur itself atones. It is the revelation that there is only one point: the soul and body are one, man and woman are one at their root, and as a result, there is no eating or relations on this day.
Erev Yom Kippur and Yom Kippur – The Integration of the Body With The Soul
It is said that a person on Erev Yom Kippur should eat double the amount he normally eats during the rest of the year. The depth behind this matter is because Yom Kippur [and Erev Yom Kippur] is the revelation where the soul and body become one, and therefore, the body is sustained in the same way that the soul is sustained. Therefore, the sustenance of both the body and the soul is the same on Yom Kippur, and that is why one should eat double on Erev Yom Kippur – so that he can learn how to “feed” his body and soul with the same perspective. On Erev Yom Kippur, the food which we normally give to our body alone is now the same food we are giving to our neshamah!
On the day of Yom Kippur itself, both the body and soul are “afflicted” with hunger, whereas on Erev Yom Kippur, both the body and soul are fed through the same sustenance. In either of these two days, though, the body and soul are one. On Erev Yom Kippur, the food for the body is the food for the soul. And on Yom Kippur, the soul doesn’t need to eat, so neither does the body.
Chazal state that when one eats on the ninth [of Tishrei, which is Erev Yom Kippur], the verse considers it as if he has fasted on the tenth [of Tishrei, which is Yom Kippur].[10] Since the body and soul are unified [on these two days, Erev Yom Kippur and Yom Kippur], the eating on Erev Yom Kippur is not considered to be a mere physical act of eating for the body, but a kind of eating which is on the level of a unified soul and body. It is an act of eating which is the category of the affliction of Yom Kippur, because the eating is on a level of “Yom Kippur”, where the soul and body are unified.
Thus, the act of eating on Erev Yom Kippur is not the same kind of eating we simply recognize, and the fasting on Yom Kippur is not either what it appears to be. Eating on Erev Yom Kippur, and fasting on Yom Kippur, are both acts that stem from a unified state of body and soul together, where the sustenance is coming from the Individual One of the world.
In the future, when the soul and body will be unified again, what will be their sustenance? Chazal state that “The righteous sit and their crowns are on their heads, and they enjoy the radiance of the Shechinah.”[11] Even more so, they enjoy a state of d’veykus (attachment) in Hashem, for “In the future, Hashem will make a circle for the righteous, and He will sit between them in Gan Eden, and each of them will point with his finger, for it says, “On that day, behold, this is our G-d, we hoped for Him and He saved us.”[12] A person’s entirety will be sustained then from everything, because it will be revealed that “There is nothing besides for Him” in each thing.
Thus, the eating on Erev Yom Kippur and the fasting on Yom Kippur are from the same perspective, and they are acts which are integrated with each other. This is why the eating on Erev Yom Kippur, and the fast of Yom Kippur, both serve to rectify the sin of Adam HaRishon when he ate from the Tree of Knowledge. When Adam was commanded not to eat from the tree, he was told, “For on the day you eat from it, you will surely die”. Eating from the Tree of Knowledge was an act that brought death, the separation of the soul from the body. Hence, when the body and soul are in a unified state, this rectifies the sin. This is the very essence of Yom Kippur.
In the world we are in today, the body and the soul are separate from each other. The soul receives its vitality from that which is Heavenly, from its source in Gan Eden. The body receives its vitality from This World, from materialism. But when the soul and body will be joined together by the Resurrection of the Dead, there will be no more separation between the soul and body, only unity between them (achdus peshutah, undifferentiated unity). Then, one’s entire involvement will be with “Ain Od Milvado”, that there is nothing besides Him. This is the true sustenance for the body and soul, which is on Yom Kippur.
“The mikveh of Yisrael is Hashem” – as long as the neshamah is by itself and the body is by itself, the neshamah is sustained from Gan Eden, and the body is sustained by This World. But the more one eliminates the separation between the body and soul, and instead reveals unity between them, to that extent, can he be sustained from “The mikveh of Yisrael is Hashem”.
Teshuvah: When We Feel Sustained Entirely From Hashem
This is the depth behind the concept of teshuvah. The meaning of teshuvah is, when we receive our vitality only from Hashem, and when we recognize that there is no other source of vitality in the world! Normally, a person gets his vitality from a combination of physical and spiritual nourishment. But from the higher perspective -“Before Hashem, be purified” - a person receives vitality only from Hashem, from hiskalelus (integration) and d’veykus (attachment) in Him.[13] This is the primary way to view life – that there is no other vitality we have than this.
This is also the depth of how Yom Kippur itself atones. It reveals how there is no difference between the soul and body, for they are both sustained from the same source: from d’veykus in Hashem. This is the very core of Yom Kippur, that atonement is mainly found when one is near Hashem. This is the implication of “The mikveh of Yisrael is Hashem”: when one recognizes that there is no such thing as receiving vitality from any source other than this!
In contrast to this, the antithesis to teshuvah is, when one thinks that his vitality can come from anything other than Hashem. The worst outcome of this is when a person gets vitality from a sin. But even if a person is getting his vitality from things that are holy, this is still not coming from the true Source of life, which can only be Hashem. Anything which does not connect a person with Hashem is a form of separation from Him.
The deep revelation of teshuvah, which reflects the view of the neshamah, is that one can go beyond the level of “enjoying the radiance of the Shechinah”, and instead be more interested in the d’veykus, in the attachment itself, to Hashem. More important than deriving enjoyment from holiness is to attach oneself to “You, alone” – to His atzmiyus, His very essence, so to speak. This is because the soul needs to return even his spiritual enjoyment to Hashem, and integrate it in Hashem. One’s attachment should be to Hashem Himself, and to nothing else that is on the “outside” of Him….
Two Levels: Atonement of Yom Kippur and Atonement From Hashem Himself
The atonement of “Yom Kippur” is the “yeish” aspect on Yom Kippur, whereas the atonement through Hashem Himself is the “ayin” aspect of Yom Kippur.
The Yeish\Yom Kippur aspect is the source of the five forms of physical suffering we have on Yom Kippur. But from the higher aspect, the fact that Hashem Himself atones for us on Yom Kippur – which is its “ayin” aspect - all of existence returns to Hashem on Yom Kippur, and in this sense, the purpose of the five forms of suffering of Yom Kippur is to connect all of existence with Hashem, to close all of it into one space, so that everything can be confined into a space of being with Hashem.
Ne’ilah – Closed Off With Hashem Alone
Corresponding to the five forms of physical affliction on Yom Kippur, are the five tefillos on Yom Kippur. The last tefillah of Yom Kippur, and the most elevated, is the prayer of Ne’ilah.
The word Ne’ilah is from the term “Gan Naul”, “closed garden”. When something is naul\closed, it means that it is confined, and nothing can escape from it. From the outer perspective, it seems that there are barriers that block us from Hashem and close us off from Him. It seems as if there is a locked door that is between us and Hashem, which cannot be broken. But from a higher perspective, the word naul\closed implies that we cannot leave the presence of Hashem – we are closed off with Him, as opposed to outside of Him.
Thus, Ne’ilah is the concept that a person is closed off with Hashem, and only with Hashem – and that a person cannot really leave the presence of Hashem.
That is what Ne’ilah is about! It is not only a time where the “gates are closed”, nor is it only a time where all Heavenly substance becomes closed. On an inner level, it is where a person is closed off with Hashem, so to speak, where he cannot leave that space. From the lower perspective, it is a time where the gates are becoming closed to us, implying a divide between man and Hashem. But from the higher perspective, it is to be closed off with Hashem, in a way that we cannot leave it.
This perspective is the inner meaning of the five forms of affliction on Yom Kippur. The five forms of affliction are also parallel to the five levels of the soul, which are the Nefesh, Ruach, Neshamah, Chayah, and Yechidah. The highest point in the soul, the “Yechidah”, corresponds to the “Ne’ilah” prayer of Yom Kippur, as is well-known. This is because the depth of the concept of Ne’ilah is, “yechidah l’yachdecha” - “A Yechidah, to make You unique”, to show a person that he has nothing in life except for Hashem. There is nothing else in a person’s life other than Hashem, and if there is nothing else, there is nowhere else to go from there. That is Ne’ilah. Everything is closed there, everything is sealed there – there is nowhere to escape to, when one is in the presence of Hashem.
There is only one reality: Hashem. There is nothing more. This is the true completion of the soul, when it closed off with Hashem, and where there is no place for any disparate realities. This is the meaning of “A Yechidah, to make You unique.”
Rectifying The Sin of Eating From The Eitz HaDaas on Motzei Yom Kippur: Reframing Our Sensual Experiences With “Ain Od Milvado”
The verse says, “Go eat, in joy, your bread…for G-d has already desired your deeds” [this refers to Motzei Yom Kippur].[14] One must know that when the verse here says “Go eat”, it is not referring to regular eating that he is used to from before. It refers to a new kind of eating, where a person tastes, in the depths of his soul, nothing other than Hashem; where a person breathes and lives nothing else other than Hashem.
The Torah says, “And the woman saw that the tree was fit for consumption, and that it was desirable to the eyes, and that the tree was precious to the intellect.” The root of the sin with partaking of the Eitz HaDaas was that Chavah perceived that she may sense something else other than Hashem. She veered from the very reality, which is: Ain Od Milvado, there is nothing besides Hashem.
One must know that he only tastes of Hashem, and he only sees Hashem, so to speak, in the reality before him. Although it is written “No man can see Me and live”, it is impossible to physically see Hashem, but as the Zohar says, “They see, but they do not know what they see.” Hashem is found in front of us, and it is just that we cannot see Him. But one must know that all he really “sees” in front of Him is: the Creator! He is just not aware that he is seeing Him!
And whenever one hears anything, he must know that he is really hearing Hashem, but he is not aware that this is what he is hearing. It seems to a person that two people in front of him are speaking with each other, and it seems that here are two people who are bothering him with their noisy chatter, but they are just blocking him from the revelation of Hashem’s presence, the reality of Ain Od Milvado.
Thus, when the verse is saying, “Go, eat” – one must know that that the act refraining from eating, as well as the act of eating, are both integrated at once, in one root. One must know that whatever he eats is really nothing but d’veykus in Hashem [and it is only a mirage that he is eating]! There is nothing else to partake of on this world, nothing else that we “eat”! There is no other perception of reality- for this is perception, this is the reality.
The completion of the soul is the perspective that a person does not receive any other vitality than Hashem. After being closed off with Hashem, one can realize that there is no other source of vitality, than Hashem.
This is what rectifies the sin of partaking of the Eitz HaDaas: when one realizes that his entire vitality can only come from Hashem, his entire existence is to be with Hashem, to be in a state of connection to Him. The entire attitude that man received from eating of the Eitz HaDaas is the very notion that a person thinks that he can become separated from the reality of Hashem. When that is the case, a person can sense other things than Hashem, because his physical senses are not attached with Hashem. The rectification of man is therefore to integrate both fasting and eating into their source – to recognize that one only receives vitality from Hashem, and from no other place.
When a person eats and he realizes as he is eating that it is not the food which sustains him, but Hashem, this eating is not eating, but an act of fasting from eating. The person is physically eating, but in reality, he is not eating at all, for he is connected to Hashem. The physical senses contradict this, and it does not seem that way. But for this reason, we need emunah, to believe, that even when it seems that we are receiving vitality from something, we are actually receiving vitality from Hashem.
In Conclusion
“The mikveh of Yisrael is Hashem” – this is the completion [to the soul] contained in Yom Kippur. The lower aspect of Yom Kippur is “And I will sprinkle upon them pure waters and they will be purified”, which is that Hashem receives vitality from the spiritual light that Hashem sends down to us. But the higher aspect of Yom Kippur is “The mikveh of Yisrael is Hashem”, which is that a person has no vitality other than Hashem! It is the understanding that he is entirely entering into this “mikveh”, he is entirely miskalel (integrated) in Hashem, [when one recognizes that] this is his entire chiyus (vitality), and there can be no other source of chiyus than this.
This is the perspective of completion offered by Yom Kippur: “A Yechidah to make You unique”: Ain Od Milvado!
[1] Mishnah at the end of Tractate Yoma
[2] Yoma 85b
[3] This concept is mentioned often in Sfas Emes al haTorah.
[4] Eliyahu Rabbah 1
[5] Tikkunei HaZohar 57a
[6] Yeshayahu 59:2
[7] Eruvin 18a
[8] Yoma 75a
[9] Yoma 86a
[10] Rosh Hashanah 9a
[11] Berachos 17a
[12] Taanis 31a
[13] Editor’s Note: In the end of sefer Bilvavi Aleph (Building A Sanctuary In The Heart: Part One), the Rav explains on a subtler level that hiskalelus is beyond d’veykus. Here the terms of hiskalelus and d’veykus are being used more freely.
[14] Koheles 9:7
NOTE: Final english versions are only found in the Rav's printed seforim »