Teshuva is something so enormous, so remarkable - penetrating so much of the spiritual universe - that even a tiny morsel of teshuva is considered to be something great, and its light permeates the soul, giving one the strength to ascend to ever higher levels of holiness. But we are capable of gradual teshuva, of slowly improving ourselves, as we ascend higher and higher, of laboriously traversing the paths of righteousness, of painstakingly refining our character traits and deeds - until we reach the high spiritual level of tahara, or purity. Rabbi Kook writes: “A person is obligated to confess his sins….When he experiences daily the purity of prayer and confession - while never forgetting to analyze his own deeds - he shakes off his own wickedness, little by little, before that wickedness can deceive him so greatly that he is unable to lift his head.”
Author: Rabbi Shlomo Aviner
Published at: 2025-09-30 21:43:13
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