Kabbalah sa 1 Samuel 7:17: Sha'arei Kedusha & Sha'arei Orah

Bringing merit to the guilty: Our sages, of blessed memory, stated,⁶⁹²Tanna d’Bei Eliyahu Rabba, Ch. 8 “Elkana merited having his son Shmuel – who was equal to Moshe and Aharon⁶⁹³Talmud Bavli, Brachot 31b – because he would go up [to the Tabernacle at Shiloh] for every Festival, and would bring multitudes of people with him, thus bringing merit upon them.” His son Shmuel followed this practice, as written,⁶⁹⁴Samuel I 7:16-17 “He would travel year after year, circling to Beth-El, Gilgal and Mitzpah, and judging Israel in all these places. He then would return to Ramah, for his home was there, and there he would judge Israel. And there he built an altar to HaShem-יהו״ה.” Similarly, our forefather Avraham, peace be upon him, only merited all his exalted levels on account of what is written,⁶⁹⁵Genesis 12:5 “The souls that they made in Choran.” Similarly, it is written,⁶⁹⁶Genesis 18:18-19 “Avraham shall surely be a great and mighty nation and all the nations of the world will be blessed in him. For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, to keep the way of HaShem-יהו״ה, doing charity and justice etc.” Moreover, the leaders of every generation are either rewarded or punished only in regard to this matter.

However, if after having become repugnant, that soul returns, mends its ways and repairs its paths, she then returns to adhere to where she originally was cut off from, thus meriting to ascend to the Sefirah of Understanding-Binah, called the Coming World-Olam HaBa-עולם הבא. She then returns to the place that was lost to her. This then, is the secret of Return-Teshuvah-תשובה, as in the verse,¹⁸⁵Samuel I 7:17 “He then would return-Teshuvato-תשובתו to Ramah,¹⁸⁶The word Ramah-רמה also means elevated, and thus, this may be read as, “Then he returned to be elevated.” for his home was there.” Thus, since the Nefashot-נפשות are bound to the Ruchot-רוחות, and the Ruchot-רוחות are bound to the Neshamot-נשמות, and the Neshamot-נשמות are bound to the World of Life-Olam HaChayim-עולם החיים, the verse therefore states,¹⁸⁷Samuel I 25:29 “May my lord’s soul-Nefesh Adonee-נפש אדני be bound up in the bond of Life-Tzror HaChayim-צרור החיים.”