Shofar awakens the soul and mercy

בפסוק אשרי העם יודעי תרועה דרשו חז"ל שיודעין לרצות את בוראם בתרועה.

On the posuk "Fortunate is the people that knows the teruah" (Tehillim 89:16), Chazal expounded: who know how to appease their Creator with the teruah.

The "knowing" of the shofar blast is the wisdom of how to win Hashem's favor through it.

דאיתא אמרו לפני מלכיות כדי שתמליכוני עליכם כו' ובמה בשופר.

For it is taught: "Say before Me Malchuyos (verses of kingship), so that you crown Me over you… and with what? With the shofar."

Chazal teach that we accept Hashem's kingship on Rosh Hashanah specifically by means of the shofar.

דכ' עבדי אתה ישראל אשר בך אתפאר כי באמת בנ"י נקראו בנים.

As it is written: "You are My servant, Yisrael, in whom I take glory" (Yeshayahu 49:3) — for in truth Bnei Yisrael are called "sons."

The posuk calls Yisrael a servant, yet elsewhere they are called Hashem's children; both relationships are true.

והמה ממליכין אותו ית' בבחי' מלך על עבדיו וזה התפארת שהגם שהם בנים יודעים הם כי אינם כדאי אף להיות עבדיו.

And they crown Him in the aspect of a King over His servants — and this is the "glory": that although they are sons, they recognize that they are not even worthy to be His servants.

Hashem's tiferes (glory) lies in this humility: Bnei Yisrael, though beloved as children, crown Him as servants who feel unworthy even of that.

וזהו הנוסח שתקנו אם כבנים אם כעבדים.

And this is the formula that was instituted: "whether as sons, whether as servants."

Our tefillah captures both relationships at once — we approach Hashem as sons and as servants.

שבנ"י יודעים הגם כי יש להם בחי' בנים על כל זה עבדיו הם ומחבבים את קבלת מלכותו עליהם.

For Bnei Yisrael know that even though they have the aspect of sons, nonetheless they are His servants, and they cherish accepting His kingship upon themselves.

Their greatness is that despite their closeness as children, they lovingly submit to Hashem as servants accept a king.

וזהו שתמליכוני עליכם ובמה בשופר יתכן שקאי על המלכות ג"כ שהגם שהם בנים עכ"ז המה ממליכים אותו.

And this is "that you crown Me over you, and with what? With the shofar" — it may be that this too refers to kingship: that though they are sons, nevertheless they crown Him.

The shofar's coronation expresses exactly this: children who nonetheless choose to enthrone Hashem as King.

וזהו עיקר העדות של בנ"י כמ"ש במ"א.

And this is the essence of the testimony of Bnei Yisrael, as explained elsewhere.

This willing acceptance is the core of what Bnei Yisrael bear witness to.

וזהו עצם הדעת כמ"ש חז"ל שערומין בדעת כאדם ומשימין עצמם כבהמה.

And this is the very essence of daas (understanding), as Chazal said: they are cunning in knowledge like Adam, yet they make themselves like an animal.

True wisdom is knowing one's greatness yet humbling oneself completely before Hashem.

ומכלל דכ' יודעי תרועה משמע שהשופר נותן דעת לבנ"י.

And from the fact that it is written "those who know the teruah," it implies that the shofar gives daas to Bnei Yisrael.

The phrase "those who know" hints that the shofar itself bestows this clarity of understanding.

והוא עפ"י המשנה חביב אדם שנברא בצלם חיבה יתירה נודעת לו כו'.

And this accords with the Mishnah: "Beloved is man, for he was created in the [divine] image; an extra love was made known to him…" (Avos 3:14).

Man's being made in the divine image, and being told so, is itself a special token of Hashem's love.

וזהו החיבה יתירה הוא רק לבנ"י כמ"ש אתה הראת לדעת.

And this "extra love" belongs only to Bnei Yisrael, as it is written: "You were shown, in order to know" (Devarim 4:35).

The heightened love — being shown and made to know — is the unique portion of Bnei Yisrael.

והוא שזוכין לקבל הנשמה יתירה שהיא עצם הצלם והדמות של האדם שע"ז נאמר אדם אתם אתם קרוין אדם וע"ז הצורה חל נועם ה'.

And it is that they merit to receive the neshamah yeseirah (the added soul), which is the very essence of the "image and likeness" of man — about which it is said, "You are called adam," you are called adam — and upon this form rests the pleasantness of Hashem.

The deepest divine image is the additional soul Bnei Yisrael receive; it is to them that the title adam fully applies, and on that form the noam Hashem (the pleasantness of Hashem) comes to rest.

והוא שופרא דאדם והוא השופר שנמשך הארת הנשמה והדעת ע"י הקול שופר.

And this is the "beauty (shufra) of man" — and this is the shofar, through which the illumination of the neshamah and of daas is drawn down by means of the sound of the shofar.

Playing on shofar and shufra (beauty), the shofar's sound draws down the light of the soul and the inner understanding that is man's true beauty.

ולכן עי"ז באור פניך יהלכון.

Therefore, through this, "they walk in the light of Your countenance" (Tehillim 89:16).

The same posuk continues that those who know the teruah walk in Hashem's light — the light awakened by the shofar.

ועל ידי זה מתעורר הרחמים בשמים כמ"ש חז"ל כשבנ"י תוקעין הקב"ה עומד מכסא דין ויושב על כסא רחמים.

And through this, rachamim (mercy) is awakened in Heaven, as Chazal said: when Bnei Yisrael blow the shofar, the Holy One rises from the throne of judgment and sits upon the throne of mercy.

The shofar's awakening of the soul causes Hashem to move from strict din (judgment) to rachamim.

כי עיקר הרחמים למעלה על הנשמה שהם מעשה ידיו של הקב"ה כמ"ש ונשמות אני עשיתי כמ"ש בס' שערי תשובה מר"י ז"ל.

For the essence of the mercy above is upon the neshamah, which are the handiwork of the Holy One, as it is written: "and the souls I have made" (Yeshayahu 57:16), as is written in Sefer Sha'arei Teshuvah of Rabbeinu Yonah z"l.

Hashem's mercy is aroused above all for the soul, which is uniquely His own handiwork, as Rabbeinu Yonah brings.

וכמ"ש כרחם אב על בנים ומי שיש לו בן יגע בתורה מתמלא עליו רחמים כדאיתא במד' תולדות.

And as it is written, "As a father has mercy on his children" (Tehillim 103:13) — and one who has a son toiling in Torah is filled with mercy upon him, as is brought in the Midrash on Toldos.

A father's compassion is especially stirred for a child laboring in Torah, an image of Hashem's mercy on Bnei Yisrael.

ולכן ע"י השופר שמתעורר הנשמה של בנ"י הקב"ה יושב על כסא רחמים:

Therefore, through the shofar, which awakens the neshamah of Bnei Yisrael, the Holy One sits upon the throne of mercy.

Because the shofar rouses the soul — the very object of Hashem's deepest mercy — He turns from judgment to compassion.

Summary: The shofar grants Bnei Yisrael the daas to crown Hashem as King even while they are His beloved children, and to humble themselves as servants. Its sound draws down the light of the neshamah — the true divine "image" and beauty of man — and because Hashem's deepest mercy is for the soul that is His own handiwork, the awakening of that soul moves Him from the throne of judgment to the throne of mercy.