It is likewise written (in Etz Chayim, Portal 26) that the [divine] soul itself does not need perfecting at all…; and there is no need for it to be embodied in this world, in a body and vital soul… except to draw down light to perfect them — the vital soul and the body…and this parallels exactly the mystery of “the exile of the Shechinah,” whose purpose is to refine the sparks of holiness which fell into the kelipot; so too does the divine soul enter into exile within the body and vital soul in order to perfect them, and to extract from them the sparks of holiness which they contain.

– Tanya, Chapter 37

She is locked behind ivory bars

opened only with a skeleton key

fashioned from one of Adam’s ribs.

She counts time to the beat of a heart

and the pulsing of blood through veins and arteries

pondering her confined and confusing predicament.

For she was innocent of any crime –

and pleaded innocence,

and yet willingly serves time.

When offered her nightly parole

she returns each morning to her cell,

anticipating something great

something of eternal value

of which she will play a small role.

She can only pray that upon her final return home

into the arms of He who breathed life into her

she will have faithfully abided by 

her contract.

And yes, to plead as well on behalf of her cellmate

on the other side of her cell

with whom she shared time

and who served a life sentence with no parole.

She tried to be a good influence on him.

After all, he grew up on the other side of the tracks.