After discussing Ahavah B’Ta’anugim, the lofty love that comes as a gift from Above, the Alter Rebbe now turns to a second type of love, one that is relevant to every Jew.
This love is not delight in Hashem.
It is a powerful longing and desire to be connected to Him.
- The Second Love: Longing for Hashem
The Alter Rebbe describes it as:
A love and yearning in which the soul desires to cleave to Hashem.
The person feels that:
- Closeness to Hashem is his true good.
- Separation from Hashem is painful.
- His deepest desire is to be bound to the Source of Life.
This is not yet the pleasure and delight of the previous chapter.
Rather, it resembles thirst and longing.
- Every Jew Possesses This Love
Unlike Ahavah B’Ta’anugim, which is reserved for rare individuals,
this love exists in:
“כלל ישראל, אפילו ברשעים“
All Jews, even sinners.
The Alter Rebbe says that this hidden love is the source of repentance.
When a Jew suddenly regrets his sins and desires to return to Hashem, that reaction emerges from this concealed love.
- Why Don’t We Feel It?
Because the love exists in exile.
The soul is enclosed within the body and hidden beneath worldly desires.
As a result:
The kelipah can dominate it.
This is what Chazal call:
“רוח שטות“
A spirit of folly.
A person sins not because he truly wants separation from Hashem, but because the inner love is concealed.
- The First Stage of Avodah
The Alter Rebbe says that a person’s task is first:
To drive the kelipah out of thought, speech, and action.
The initial battle is practical.
One must remove negative expression from:
- Mind
- Speech
- Behavior
Even before fully transforming the heart.
- The Second Stage: Freeing the Hidden Love
After weakening the kelipah’s control,
a person can begin:
“להוציא ממסגר אסיר“
To release the prisoner from confinement.
The prisoner is the hidden love itself.
The goal is to bring it from concealment into conscious experience.
- How Is This Done?
Primarily through thought and contemplation.
A person should continually reflect that:
- Hashem is the source of all life.
- Hashem gives life to the entire universe.
- Hashem is the life of his own soul.
As this awareness deepens,
the soul naturally begins to desire closeness to Him.
- The Two Mashalim
The Alter Rebbe uses two images.
A Child Seeking His Father
Just as a child naturally wants to be with his father,
the soul naturally longs for its source.
Fire Rising Upward
Just as fire rises upward toward its source,
the soul constantly seeks reunion with its spiritual origin.
This yearning is natural, not artificial.
- Thought Creates Emotional Revelation
The more a person thinks about this reality,
the more the hidden love becomes revealed.
Eventually it spreads beyond thought into:
- Speech
- Action
- Torah study
- Mitzvah observance
Because these are the means through which one becomes attached to Hashem.
As the Alter Rebbe reminds us:
“אורייתא וקודשא בריך הוא כולא חד“
Torah and Hashem are one.
- Why It Is Called Thirst
This love is described by the verse:
“צמאה נפשי לאלוקים“
“My soul thirsts for God.”
A thirsty person does not yet possess what he wants.
He yearns for it.
Likewise, this love is characterized by longing rather than fulfillment.
This distinguishes it from Ahavah B’Ta’anugim, which is already a state of enjoyment and delight.
- The Prayer of the Beinoni
The Alter Rebbe concludes with a practical application.
When we pray for help in serving Hashem, we are praying that:
- This hidden love emerge from its confinement.
- It become the dominant force within the heart.
- Worldly desires cease to rule.
The worldly desires may not completely disappear,
but they should become subordinate to the soul’s love of Hashem.
- “The Mistress of the House”
The Alter Rebbe uses a vivid metaphor.
The love of Hashem should become:
“עקרת הבית“
The mistress of the house.
Worldly desires become merely servants.
Even if they remain present, they are no longer in control.
They are used only for legitimate needs such as:
- Eating
- Drinking
- Physical maintenance
in accordance with:
“בכל דרכיך דעהו“
“Know Him in all your ways.”
Key Takeaway
The Alter Rebbe contrasts two loves of Hashem. Ahavah B’Ta’anugim is a rare gift of delight in Godliness. The second love, however, is present within every Jew. It is the soul’s natural longing to return to its source. The task of avodah is not to create this love, but to uncover it, freeing it from concealment through contemplation, Torah, mitzvot, and the discipline of removing obstacles that block its expression.