The tablets were placed inside the ark. The tablets are called Torah, and it is clothed inside the ark, meaning faith.
Faith is a big and difficult task, which is not within our power to take upon ourselves. However, one must know that “The ark carries its carriers.” In other words, what one can do is only to know the fear of the Creator, how far it is from human powers to carry out this task.
This is as in “Were it not for the help of the Creator, he would not overcome it,” relating to the “Who” and “What” questions. This means that one should ask for the measures of fear and see it in its true, pure, and clean form, as it is written, “If you seek her as silver and search for her as a treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Creator.” Before one seeks to see her form, it is impossible to understand what is the fear of the Creator.
Then, when he sees the difficulties and the resistance of the body to it, and we see that it is utterly impossible for a person to receive it, this is the place for prayer that the Creator will help, as in “Were it not for the help of the Creator.”
At that time, “And you will find the knowledge of God” comes true, for only then is the time to be rewarded with the knowledge of Kedusha [holiness]. This is why it is called “finding,” since a person already sees that it is utterly impossible that he will be able to take upon himself the burden of faith. It follows that after all the searches, all he found was the negation, how far this quality is from him. Yet, only then is he rewarded with the revelation of His name.
It follows that this is not in a manner of cause and consequence, where the order is that today I know little and tomorrow I know more until the whole matter becomes known to him.
Here it is to the contrary: Today, I know little, and tomorrow, unless I search in a manner of purity, I find within me less and less, and the next day even less, until we arrive at the point of zero.
But only then is one fit to take upon himself the faith in wholeness. It follows that it is a find that comes absentmindedly. This is why it is written, “And you will find the knowledge of God.”
This is the meaning of the ark, meaning faith, carrying its carriers. It means that the faith gives strength to the carriers, who took upon themselves the heavy task. They come to a state where they think that they cannot carry the burden of faith, and think that they are carrying the faith, meaning that they do not see that it is within human capability to carry the ark on the shoulders of faith, which is a burden, called “ark,” “will be carried on the shoulder.”
But we must know that faith gives man strength. It gives man vitality, regarded as “the living carries itself.” This means that according to the human intellect, it is impossible to achieve such a degree that is removed from any discernment of the will to receive, whether in mind or in heart. And yet, it gives strength, as in “the living carries itself,” which carries a person, as in “the ark carries its carriers.”
Then, when one is rewarded with this and has this reality, he calls this “finding,” and he thought that he will always remain in a state of “between heaven and earth.” At that time, he sees that even in such a state it can still impart eternal life upon him.