אות - יב

Those who desire to be upright people and to enter the service of Hashem, and then have great confusions and great obstacles and cannot advise themselves how to proceed on account of the great confusions and obstacles they have — and everything they want to do in the service of Hashem is difficult for them to do properly — know that this itself, that they toil and are consumed with doing some devotion or with sanctifying themselves in some sanctity, even though they cannot complete it properly: this itself, that they toil and are driven after it, is in the aspect of sacrificial offerings, in the aspect of [Psalms 44:23]: *"Because for Your sake we are killed all day long, we are counted as sheep for slaughter"* — and it is stated in the Tikunim[29] that this is the aspect of prayer which is in the aspect of sacrifices. That is, when one wants to pray and one is not permitted and is confused by all manner of confusions and has to labor greatly at the time of prayer — and then even if he does not merit to pray properly, even still, the toil itself, that he labors with all his strength and surrenders himself to pray properly — this itself is in the aspect of sacrifices, in the aspect of *"Because for Your sake we are killed all day, we are counted as sheep for slaughter."* And similarly with all the devotions and sanctities that a person wants to sanctify himself in — even if he does not merit, Heaven forbid, to sanctify himself properly — even still, the toil itself and the afflictions and confusions he has from this, because he desires and wishes to sanctify himself only that he is not permitted: this itself is in the aspect of sacrifices, in the aspect of *"Because for Your sake we are killed all day, we are counted as sheep for slaughter."*

Therefore it is incumbent upon a person to always do his part — to toil in the service of Hashem in whatever he can. *"Whatever your hand finds to do — do it"* [Ecclesiastes 9:10], even though it is very hard for him and it seems to him that he is not permitted at all and that he is driven very, very far away and does not merit to do anything in holiness properly, etc. — even still it is upon him to do what he can, and Hashem, Who is good in His eyes, will do.