How To Stay Afloat

Torah Ohr, "Mayim Rabim," Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi

Seemingly the flood doesn't make sense. If it's main purpose was to destroy the sinners, who did it need to happen in such a tumultuous fashion? In one moment, Hashem could have wiped everyone out, even without a great flood.

Yet in truth, the purpose of the flood was to purify the earth, as it states, "the earth had become filled with larceny" (i.e., the earth itself) had become entirely corrupted and required purification. The flood waters were intended to purify the impure. This was akin to the mikveh, whose minimum size is the enough to contain 40 se'ah [corresponding to the rain which lasted for 40 days].

Nowadays, everyone also has a flood, and that is the struggle and challenges of making a parnassa in our material world. These challenges are called the "waters of Noach" -- which refers to a restful pleasure -- because they elevate the soul to a higher place than before it descended into this world, like the superiority of light which comes from the darkness.

Torah Ohr, "Mayim Rabim," Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi

In Hebrew, the word for ark is teivah, which also means "word." Thus, Hashem's commandment to Noach to "go into the ark" also means to "go into the word [i.e,, the words of Torah & tefillah].