Chein As Mitzvah Root

במדרש כי לוית חן הם כו'

The Midrash expounds the verse "For they are a graceful garland (livyas chein) for your head" (Mishlei 1:9), and so forth.

The Sfas Emes opens with a verse from Mishlei that compares Torah and mitzvos to a garland of grace upon one's head, and he will build the whole piece around this idea of chein.

חן הוא השורש של כל דבר והוא עיקר נקודת הטוב שנמצא בכל דבר שע"ז נאמר וירא א' כו' כל א' עשה והנה טוב והוא בחי' השבת רמז לדבר ונח מצא חן, ובימי המעשה יש עצות ע"י המצוות איך להעלות כל מעשה לדבקה בשורשה

Chein (grace) is the root of every thing, and it is the essential point of good that is found in every thing. It is regarding this that it is said, "And Hashem saw" (Bereishis 1) — each and every thing that He made, "and behold, it was good" — and this is the aspect of Shabbos. A hint to this matter is the verse "And Noach found grace (chein)" (Bereishis 6:8). And during the weekdays there are strategies, by means of the mitzvos, for how to elevate every action so as to cleave to its root.

Chein is the inner core of goodness hidden inside everything Hashem created — the very good that Hashem saw at Creation, which is bound up with Shabbos. On weekdays we lack that ready revelation, so the mitzvos serve as the tools to lift our actions back up to their Divine root.

וז"ש לוית חן הם לראשך לדבק כ"ד בראשיתו ועי"ז יש עוד יתרון וז"ש וענקים כו'

This is the meaning of "They are a graceful garland for your head" — to attach each and every thing to its beginning; and through this there is yet a further advantage, and this is the meaning of "and necklaces (anakim) for your throat," and so forth.

The garland on the head represents tying every thing back to its beginning, its source in Hashem; and the necklaces hint at an additional gain that comes from doing so.

ובזה יתפרש המשך המד' בפ' אורח חיים פן תפלס כו' ומשל הפרדס כי תכלית המצות להתדבק בשורש

With this can be explained the continuation of the Midrash on the verse "Lest you weigh out (pen tefales) the path of life" (Mishlei 5:6), and so forth, together with the parable of the orchard (pardes) — for the purpose of the mitzvos is to cleave to the root.

He shows that the Midrash's warning not to merely "weigh and measure" the paths of life, together with the parable of the orchard, all point to the same truth: the real goal of a mitzvah is dveikus, cleaving to the root.

ולזה צריכין כל המצות כמ"ש במד' תנחומא ע"פ מכל משמר נצור לבך כי ממנו תוצאות חיים

And it is for this that all the mitzvos are needed, as is stated in the Midrash Tanchuma on the verse "Above all that you guard, protect your heart, for from it are the issues of life" (Mishlei 4:23).

Every single mitzvah is required for this purpose, as the Tanchuma teaches from the verse about guarding the heart, since from the heart flow the wellsprings of life.

פי' מזה הכלל דוקא שנשאר בלב רושם מכל מצוה וממנו ת"ח

The meaning is that specifically from this general principle an impression remains in the heart from every mitzvah, and from it come the issues of life.

The point is that each mitzvah leaves a lasting impression on the heart, and it is from that imprint on the heart that true life issues forth.

ולכן אין נ"מ בין קלה לחמורה אם כי שכרה מרובה אבל תכלית המצוה ליישר הלב וזה עולה כמה פעמים יותר מכל השכר

Therefore there is no difference between a light mitzvah and a stringent one — even though its reward is great, nevertheless the purpose of the mitzvah is to straighten the heart, and this is worth many times more than all the reward.

Because the real aim is to straighten the heart, it makes no difference whether a mitzvah is light or stringent; even though reward is real, the inner effect on the heart is worth far more than any reward.

רק השי"ת משלם שכר גם על המצות שעצמותן טוב מאוד יותר מכל השכר

It is only that Hashem pays reward even for the mitzvos, whose very essence is exceedingly good, far more than all the reward.

Hashem in His kindness still grants reward even for mitzvos whose own essence is already supremely good — a good that itself surpasses any reward that could be given.

וע"ז נאמר חכו ממתקים כדאיתא במד' בכמה מקומות:

And it is regarding this that it is said, "His palate is sweetness" (Shir HaShirim 5:16), as is brought in the Midrash in several places.

This is the meaning of "His palate is sweetness" — the inherent sweetness and goodness of the mitzvos themselves, as the Midrash teaches in many places.

Summary: The Sfas Emes teaches that chein, grace, is the hidden point of good that Hashem placed within every created thing — the very goodness He saw at Creation, which is rooted in the aspect of Shabbos. On the weekdays, when that goodness is concealed, the mitzvos are the means by which Bnei Yisrael elevate every action and cleave it back to its Divine root, like a garland that binds each thing to its source. Drawing on the Tanchuma's teaching about guarding the heart, he explains that the true purpose of every mitzvah, light or stringent alike, is to straighten the heart and leave an impression upon it, from which the wellsprings of life flow. This inner effect is worth far more than any reward, yet Hashem in His kindness still rewards us even for mitzvos whose very essence is already exceedingly good. This is the sweetness of "His palate is sweetness" — the intrinsic goodness of the mitzvos themselves.