The Alter Rebbe opens with the verse:
“מה יפית ומה נעמת אהבה בתענוגים“
“How beautiful and how pleasant is love in delights.”
He explains that there are two distinct forms of love of Hashem, and this letter focuses on the higher one: Ahavah B’Ta’anugim.
- Two Types of Love
The Alter Rebbe assumes the reader already knows that there are different levels of love of Hashem.
Here he concentrates on:
אהבה בתענוגים
Love expressed as delight and enjoyment in Hashem.
This is not merely wanting to be close to Hashem.
It is actually taking delight in Godliness itself.
- What Is “Ahavah B’Ta’anugim”?
It is a state in which a person:
- Experiences profound joy in Hashem.
- Finds sweetness in Divine awareness.
- Delights in Godliness itself.
The Alter Rebbe describes it as:
“טעמה כי טוב ה'”
Tasting that Hashem is good.
The person does not merely believe that Hashem is good.
He feels and experiences it.
- A Taste of Olam HaBa
The Alter Rebbe compares this love to:
The experience of Olam HaBa.
Just as the souls in the World to Come delight in Divine revelation,
so too a person experiencing Ahavah B’Ta’anugim tastes something similar while still in this world.
This is why he quotes:
“שמחו צדיקים בה‘”
“The righteous rejoice in Hashem.”
- Not Everyone Attains This Level
The Alter Rebbe is careful to say:
“ולא כל אדם זוכה לזה“
“Not every person merits this.”
This is an exceptional spiritual level.
It is associated with the highest tzaddikim.
- Why Is It Called a Gift?
The Zohar describes this state as:
“כהנא ברעותא דלבא“
and the Alter Rebbe connects it to the verse:
“עבודת מתנה“
“A service that is a gift.”
The key idea is that this love cannot be produced directly by human effort.
Unlike many areas of avodat Hashem,
it cannot simply be achieved through hard work alone.
- Contrast with Yirah
Fear of Hashem requires effort.
The Alter Rebbe cites teachings such as:
“If you seek it like silver…”
Yirah must be pursued.
One must struggle for it.
One must work on it.
- Ahavah B’Ta’anugim Comes from Above
By contrast:
Ahavah B’Ta’anugim “falls upon a person.”
In other words:
- It is granted.
- It is bestowed.
- It comes from Above.
A person cannot command himself to feel it.
- Yet It Does Not Come for Free
Although it is a gift, it is not arbitrary.
The Alter Rebbe explains that it comes only after a person has exerted himself to attain:
יראת הרוממות
Awe of Hashem’s greatness.
After reaching the fullest level of awe available to him,
then the higher love may descend from Above.
- Love Joins Fear
The Alter Rebbe says that the love then comes:
To dwell together with the fear.
The sequence is important:
- A person works on yirah.
- He develops genuine reverence.
- Then Ahavah B’Ta’anugim may be granted.
Fear is the vessel; delight is the gift.
Key Takeaway
The Alter Rebbe distinguishes between spiritual accomplishments that are earned and spiritual experiences that are bestowed. Yirah requires sustained effort and personal labor. Ahavah B’Ta’anugim, however, is a rare gift from Above: a state in which the soul delights in Hashem with extraordinary joy, tasting something of the pleasure of Olam HaBa. Although it cannot be achieved directly through effort, it comes only after a person has fully developed Yirat HaRomemut and prepared himself to receive it.