והנה עיקר התשובה הוא בלב
Now the essence of penitence is in the heart,
כי על ידי החרטה מעומקא דלבא, מעורר עומק אור העליון הזה
for through regret from the depth of the heart one arouses the [corresponding] depth (i.e., the ultimate degree) of this Supreme light.
I.e., a man's earnest penitence calls forth the above-described superior spiritual light which rectifies whatever he had been lacking in his fulfillment of the Torah and its mitzvot.
אך כדי להמשיכו, להאיר בעולמות עליונים ותחתונים
But in order to call forth [this light] so that it will radiate in the higher and lower worlds,
צריך אתערותא דלתתא ממש, בבחינת מעשה
there must be an actual arousal from below in the form of action,
דהיינו, מעשה הצדקה וחסד בלי גבול ומדה
viz., the practice of charity and kindness without limit and measure.
דכמו שהאדם משפיע רב חסד
For just as a man dispenses rav Chesed, an infinite abundance of kindness —
פירוש: ח״ס דלי״ת
[the first two letters of חסד] meaning "he pities" [and the last letter when spelled out meaning, in Aramaic,] "him who has not,"
דהיינו לדל ואביון, דלית ליה מגרמיה כלום
implying [that he dispenses his kindness] to the utterly destitute individual who does not have (deleit lei) anything of his own,
ואינו נותן גבול ומדה לנתינתו והשפעתו
without setting a limit or measure to his giving and diffusion —
כך הקב״ה משפיע אורו וטובו בבחינת חסד עילאה, הנקרא רב חסד
so, too, the Holy One, blessed be He, diffuses His light and benign influence in the spirit of the superior Chesed, known as rav Chesed,
המאיר בבחינת אין סוף, בלי גבול ומדה, תוך העולמות עליונים ותחתונים
that radiates infinitely, without limit or measure, within the upper and lower worlds.
שכולם הם בבחינת דלי״ת אצלו יתברך
For in relation to Him, blessed be He, all are in a state of deleit ("having nothing"),
דלית להון מגרמיהון כלום
inasmuch as they have nothing at all of their own,
וכולא קמיה כלא חשיבי
and all before Him are considered as nothing.
Since all of creation is of no account in the eyes of G‑d, anything received from His hand is not deserved, but a gratuitous gift; as, indeed, is the very fact that mortal endeavors are able to draw down Divine light.
At any rate, boundless tzedakah and kindness draw down the degree of Divine radiance that transcends all worlds.
ועל ידי זה נתקנו כל הפגמים שפגם האדם בעונותיו למעלה, בעולמות עליונים ותחתונים
All the blemishes that a man caused above, in the upper and the lower worlds, through his sins, are thereby rectified.
Thus, the measured performance of tzedakah and Chesed draws down Chesed olam, which is a worldlike (hence, a finite) degree of Divine benevolence, while the boundless performance of tzedakah and Chesed draws down rav Chesed, an infinite degree of Divine benevolence.
וזהו שכתוב: עשה צדקה ומשפט, נבחר לה׳ מזבח
And this is the meaning of the verse,1 "G‑d prefers tzedakah and justice2 over offerings,"
לפי שהקרבנות הן בבחינת שיעור ומדה וגבול
because the sacrifices are defined in terms of quantity, dimension and limitation,
מה שאין כן בצדקה, שיוכל לפזר בלי גבול לתקן עונותיו
while charity can be dispensed without limit, for the purpose of rectifying one's sins.
Although (like the sacrifices) tzedakah also effects atonement, it may be offered (unlike the sacrifices) without limit. It is therefore able to draw down Divine illumination that is correspondingly infinite, and thereby secure a superior order of atonement.
ומה שכתוב: המבזבז אל יבזבז יותר מחומש
As for the ruling that3 "He who is unstinting [in his charitable giving] should not expend more than one fifth [of his earnings],"
היינו דוקא במי שלא חטא
this applies only to one who has not sinned,
או שתקן חטאיו בסיגופים ותעניות
or who has rectified his sins by means of self-mortification and fasts,
כראוי לתקן כל הפגמים למעלה
as indeed all the blemishes Above should be rectified.
Since such an individual need not give tzedakah to rectify his sins, he should not give more than a fifth.
אבל מי שצריך לתקן נפשו עדיין
But as to him who still needs to remedy his soul,
פשיטא דלא גרעה רפואת הנפש מרפואת הגוף
the healing of the soul is obviously no less a priority than the healing of the body,
שאין כסף נחשב
where money does not count.
וכל אשר לאיש יתן בעד נפשו, כתיב
As Scripture states,4 "Whatever a man has he will give on behalf of his soul."
The simple meaning of the verse is that a person will forego all his wealth in order to save his life. However, since the word "soul" is used rather than "life", we may also understand this to mean that a person will give everything he has in order to save and rectify his soul.
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