Chasidut su Salmi 30:78

2. At night, Malchut is in exile. The essence of the perfection of Malchut is through length of days. In other words, the aspect of Da'at/Knowledge, the aspect of benevolences. At night, judgment(s) are strengthened {they have the upper hand, so to speak}. Therefore, at that time. Da'at is hidden and Malchut is dimished and descends among the lower {worlds}. The essence of Da'at is received from the hands, in the aspect of an argument for the sake of heaven, the aspect of (Lamentations 3:41) "Let us lift up our hearts to our hands", etc. And at night, the spirit in the pulse does not flow as much {literally, 'the spirit which beats'} and the movement of the limbs are heavier at night. Because of this, the melancholy spirit is then strengthened, in the aspect of (Psalms 30:6) "in the evening, weeping may tarry". The essence of this strengthening is on the hands, as is explained there in the aspect of 'melancholy hands', etc. Therefore, in the morning, when the spirit renews and returns and animates all the limbs, then the melancholy spirit is nullified, in the aspect of (Id.) "but in the morning there is joyful singing". The spirit in the pulse returns to flow through all the limbs, especially the hands. Therefore, one must specifically purify his hands, for there the melancholy spirit is especially strong, as explained above. And the opposite is also true - at that time even more holiness is drawn down there {to the hands} and therefore they must be sanctified and purified. Purification is through water, which is the aspect of benevolences, the aspect of Da'at. Then, through this, one may build the Malchut. For the essence of the building of Malchut is from the hands, in the aspect of (Song of Songs 2:6) "His left hand was under my head, and his right hand...", etc. In other words, through the spirit of the pulse that is in the heart, it is drawn on the hands until they can reach heavenward. And from there, one can receive words in the aspect of arguments for the sake of heaven, as explained above. This is the aspect of Da'at, through which is the essence of the perfection of Malchut, as explained above. This is the meaning of (Berakhot 15a) "Anyone who relieves himself, washes his hands, dons phylacteries and recites Shema is as if he received the perfect yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven. For the essence of the perfection of Malchut is through subduing the evil and the kelipot which have hold of holiness. This is what our Rabbi {Rebbe Nachman z"l} wrote there, that the essence of the perfection of Malchut is to rebuke and to chastise the people in order to chase away the evil and the kelipot. This is the aspect of (Proverbs 25:4-5) "Remove dross from silver", etc. "Remove the wicked man before the king, and his throne will be established with righteousness". With chesed/loving-kindness specifically. For through this da'at is evoked, which is the aspect of chesed, as explained above. This is why it is necessary to wash the hands twice - before using the bathroom and afterwards. Because it is impossible to chase away the evil except through da'at, as is explained there. Therefore, one must first purify the hands in order to evoke da'at, in the aspect of 'length of days'. Through this one is able to reveal the hidden; in other words, to banish and nullify the kelipot which cover and hide the holiness. From there itself one is able to evoke length of days, the aspect of da'at, as is explained there. This is the aspect of washing the hands a second time aftewards, in order to evoke da'at and length of days, to merit by banishing the evil, as explained above. This is the aspect of then putting on tefillin. Because one purified his hands, he can then use them, in the aspect of (Deuteronomy 32:40) "For I raise up My hand to heaven", the aspect of (Psalms 134:2) "Lift your hands in the holy place" and evoke da'at through the hands into the mind, as explained above. The aspect of tefillin comes from this, which are mentalities, and are the aspect of life and length of days. As our Rabbis of Blessed Memory stated (Menachot 44a) "Whoever lays tefillin attains life". This is the meaning of (Psalms 24:3) "Who will ascend upon the Lord's mount and who will stand in His Holy place?". In other words, who is able to merit da'at, which is the aspect of Hashem's mount and His holy place, i.e. the Beit Hamikdash, which is the aspect of da'at. "He who has clean hands and a pure heart" (Id.), because through a pure heart comes clean hands, the aspect of (Lamentations 3:41) "Let us lift up our hearts to our hands". Through this one may ascend Hashem's mountain to obtain da'at, the aspect of (Deuteronomy 32:40) "For I raise up My hand to heaven", the aspect of argument for the sake of heaven, as explained above. This is the aspect of Chesed/Loving-kindness, Gevurah, Tif'eret, which ascends and becomes Chochmah, Binah and Da'at. This is what is written in the Shulchan Aruch Orach Chayim Siman 4 Seif 3), that it is forbidden to touch the mouth, nose, eyes and ears before washing the hands; these are the aspects of the 'Seven Candles' which receive the Light of the Face, i.e. the Intellect. The reception is through the hands. When the hands are impure one can receive the opposite, G-d forbid, since the other {the evil forces} also receive from the hands, as explained above. Afterwards, we read the Shema which is the acceptance of the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven, which one merits through relieving oneself, washing the hands, and putting on tefillin, as explained above. This is he aspect of uncovering the hidden, as it is written "Hashem is our G-d, Hashem is One". Even in all the hidden {things}, we receive vitality from Him. As it says in the Zohar (III, Eikev page 273) "One should prolong the pronunciation of the dalet in Echad, as in (Deuteronomy 17:20) 'so that he will have length of days over his kingdom'". In other words, as explained above, the essence of the reading of the Shema is the letter dalet of the word Echad (One), the aspect of evoking length of days, which is Da'at, into Malchut. This is what our Rabbis of Blessed Memory wrote (Berakhot 15a), all who relieve themselves, wash their hands, put on tefillin, and read the Shema are as if they accepted the perfect yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven. All of this is the aspect of the perfection of Malchut, as explained above. This is as our Rabbis of Blessed Memory said 'and immersed oneself', for this is considered like he immersed. This is the aspect of immersion, the aspect of Mikvah, the aspect of Da'at Elyon (Supernal Wisdom) and great benevolences. For this is the essence of the perfection of Malchut, as explained above and as brought there. See there, study the lesson "And on the day of the first fruits" well, as seen above, and understand the words. For all of this {I} wrote in brief and it is impossible to understand these words well until you study the lesson, as seen above.

... We have to understand why they (the rabbis) made a holiday, and established that we should say Hallal and praise, on the miracles of the eighth days of Hanukkah and of Purim, but did not make a holiday on the days of the wars of Sisera (Judges 4), and the wars of Sennacherib (Kings 19), that were also great miracles? ... But (the explanation is, that) only these miracles that are forefather and ancient prophets saw that with our good deeds and action these graces (good revelations) are being revealed again and again, in every year, and in every generation --- those where the days they turned into holidays. And that is why the Talmud says (Shabbat 36) that "on the next year they made it a holiday and established it with Hallal and praise." They mean, that they established that these revelations, and the miracles, and the the graces, will be forever. And with that we bring forward the light (revelation) forever, in every time. And that is what they mean they have "established" it, meaning that they have established it in every generation. [translators note: this is a draft, and incomplete translation]

As Rashi, may his memory be blessed, explains the word chinukh (education), in the verse (Deuteronomy 20:5), "who built a house but did not dedicate it (chankho) - "Chinukh is a term for beginning." But it is obvious that we would not say, chinukh, about any beginning. For example, when the Gemara (Pesachim 116a) says about the order of the Haggadah, "One begins with disgrace and ends with praise," we would not say, "One is mechanekh with disgrace, etc." And likewise regarding the Sanhedrin (Sanhedrin 32a) - that we begin from the side - we would not say that, we are mechankhin from the side. However in Parashat Lech Lecha (Rashi on Genesis 14:14), Rashi explains it further to us, as follows: Chanikhiv, etc. whom he had trained in the commandments. It is a term for introducing a person or a thing, for the first time, to some particular occupation in which it is intended that he should remain. It has a similar sense in (Proverbs 22:6), "Chanokh the lad," in (Numbers 7:84) "the dedication (chanukat) of the altar" and in (Psalms 30:1) "The dedication (chanukat) of the house."

In hasidism, the path of avodah via imaginative thought [mahshavah] focuses on comprehension of supernal matters. This entails not merely performing mental combinations and yihudim of Names and letters, but also engaging in manifold thoughts of God’s greatnesses, which precedes His Names and their letters. [Further, i]t entails not merely thoughts of His greatness in the supernal worlds, but also of His greatness in this world, since an influx of holiness and revelation of His greatness is drawn into this world as well through the revelation of the Besht. Furthermore, ever since our sages drew forth and revealed the light in the vessels, the avodah of thought and apprehension focuses not only on kabbalistic matters, but also on the simple meaning of the Torah, of bartering animals and the like. It is true that the Zohar refers to the simple meaning of the Torah as sackcloth and its kabbalistic meanings as more minimal, purer garbing, in the sense of “You have removed my sackcloth…”³⁷⁹Psalm 30:11. Compare Zohar 3:152 for its privying of inner layers of meaning over the outer layers, akin to outer layers of clothing. Yet, now the vessels and sackcloth have become sanctified and are garbs of holiness, and great is the level of one who embraces the King even through his garb.