“Take from among you a contribution to the Lord; whoever is of a willing heart shall bring it.
The matter of taking from you means actual taking, from a person’s actual body. The Zohar interprets that Truma [contribution] means Tarum Hey [to lift the (letter) Hey], where we must raise the Hey to the Vav.
Similarly, it is written in The Zohar that Teshuva [repentance] is called “the Hey will return to the Vav,” which means, as he interprets in the Sulam [Ladder commentary on The Zohar] that Hey is called Malchut, which means that the Kli [vessel] that receives must be returned to the Vav, for Vav is called “the Giver.” When one engages in matters of bestowal, by an act below, the act above is awakened.
At that time, it causes what will be included in the Malchut in the root of his soul, which will also be in order to bestow, like the man below engages in bestowal. This is called “the unification of the Creator and His Shechina [Divinity].
With this we understand the contribution of the Creator, which is as it is written, “The Merciful one will raise for us the fallen hut of David.” This is called “raising the Shechina from the dust.” Concerning a fall in corporeality, we see that sometimes it becomes known that the gold fell in the world, meaning lost its value and it is not as valuable as it should be.
It is likewise with spirituality. If spirituality does not have the value it is supposed to have, we do not pay for it the required payment. And since one is demanded to work with devotion, if a person does not have the real value, to make it worthwhile to pay the price of devotion, this is considered that the Shechina is in the dust.
It is about this that we pray, “The Merciful one will raise for us the fallen hut of David,” meaning that the Creator will give us the feeling of the exaltedness of the holy work. This is the meaning of “Take from among you a contribution to the Lord,” meaning that the vessels of reception of a person will give to the Creator, which is called annulment in devotion to the Creator.
By giving the awakening to raise the Hey from the dust, the Creator will help from above, so it is “Whoever is of a willing heart shall bring it.” This means that the whole heart will agree to the matter of devotion to the Creator. “Whoever is of a willing heart shall bring it” is called “He who comes to purify is aided.”
But before this, we must begin the work with faith above reason in both mind and heart, meaning in order to bestow.
This is so because those people who have no work in corporeality, it is because they do not want to work for low wages. But if everyone agreed to work without reward, everyone would have work. But since they want a price for their work, the employer cannot always employ workers because he cannot pay for their work.
Hence, without payment, he does not want to work and therefore does not work. But in spirituality, when it is said that one must work without reward, this is because of Dvekut [adhesion], called “equivalence of form,” so there will not be the bread of shame. All of one’s work should be based on, “For He is great and ruling.” Hence, when we come to a state where we do not receive anything for ourselves, this is all of our importance.