תורה 105

5. The general point of this is that through the Torah we merit repentance—i.e., to restore all the things and permutations and letters which due to one’s sins were scattered to wherever they were scattered and banished from their place. As a result, the daat was not settled. This is because as long as they are not in their place, daat is unsettled, as explained above. For sin causes the portions of letters and permutations in all the worlds that are associated with his soul’s root to be banished from their places. This is the exile of the Shekhinah, on account of which daat is not settled and, consequently, he cannot awaken mercy, as explained above.

Thus he has to repent. And repentance is primarily achieved through the Torah, which is “poor in its place and rich elsewhere.” Through this he attracts and binds all the letters and permutations that were expelled from their places, restoring them all to where they belong. Daat is then settled and he merits awakening mercy. This is because mercy depends primarily on daat, since “when someone lacks daat, it is forbidden to show him mercy” (and as has been explained a number of times elsewhere in the teachings of the Rebbe, of blessed memory ; see there).

Thus it is that through Torah we merit repentance and daat is made whole. As a result, we merit awakening God’s mercy. And the essential mercy is our awakening God’s mercy so that with this mercy He Himself awakens the abundant mercy, which we are incapable of reaching. Rather, God Himself has to pray for this, as explained above. In other words, He should be merciful to us with His simple mercy that we have awakened. Through this, His abundant mercy—the abundant mercy of Atika St imaah—is awakened, and from there we will certainly have deliverance.