Vayikra 16:29.30
(29) And this shall be to you a law for all time: In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month (Yom Kippur), you shall practice self-denial (i.e. 1. fast, 2. do not immerse in water, 3. do not be together with one’s wife, 4. do not wear shoes); and you shall do no manner of work, neither the citizen nor the alien (i.e. a convert) who resides among you.
(30) For on this day atonement shall be made for you to cleanse you of all your sins; you shall be clean before the LORD.
Rabbeinu Yona- Gates of Repentence- Gate 2 way 5
It is a positive commandment to introspect and think through one’s behavior on Yom Kippur and then repent as it says (in the above verse) you shall be clean before the LORD. When we do so Hashem will then cleanse us of all our sins.
We see from the verse that there are two parts to Teshuvah
1. We clean ourselves going forward.
2. Forgiveness and cleansing of the past (i.e. cleansing spiritual damage our sins have caused as well as renewing our connection to Hashem)
(9) R. Akiva says, Happy are you, Israel! Before whom are you purified, and who purifies you [of your transgressions]? Your Father Who is in heaven. For it is said, "Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean"; and it is also said, "The ritual bath of Israel is the Lord"; even as a ritual bath purifies the unclean, so does the Holy One, Blessed be He, purify Israel.
This is the idea of the double language of this Mishna. We purify ourselves and Hashem purifies us even further.
Rambam Hilchos Teshuvah Chapter 2 Halacha 2
What constitutes Teshuvah?
1. That a sinner should abandon his sins and remove them from his thoughts, resolving in his heart, never to commit them again…
2.Similarly, he must regret the past …
3. [He must reach the level where] He who knows the hidden will testify concerning him that he will never return to this sin again….
4. He must verbally confess and state these matters which he resolved in his heart.
This confession is a positive command. [Devarim 5:6-7]
How does one confess: He states: "I implore You, God, I sinned, I transgressed, I committed iniquity before You by doing the following (insert whatever sin is relevant). Behold, I regret and am embarrassed for my deeds. I promise never to repeat this act again." (C1:H2)
Chapter 2 Halacha 1- [Who has reached] complete Teshuvah? A person who confronts the same situation in which he sinned when he has the potential to commit [the sin again], and, nevertheless, abstains and does not commit it because of his Teshuvah alone and not because of fear or a lack of strength.
For example, a person engaged in illicit sexual relations with a woman. Afterwards, they met in privacy, in the same country, while his love for her and physical power still persisted, and nevertheless, he abstained and did not transgress. This is a complete Baal-Teshuvah.
Point of interest: In the Rambam’s opinion Teshuva is not counted as a separate Mitvoh. The Mitzvoh is to admit that which one did wrong (confession). Why is that? Isn’t the main point repenting (which means starting to do the right thing) not admitting guilt?
Rav Dessler explains that people generally do not do thing that they really feel are wrong. Everyone needs to be ok with themselves as a person so we create rationales for ourselves why although general this is an issue for some reason it does not apply here or to me. We may even go as far as changing our views on morality. When we truly admit to ourselves that something is wrong our own nature will force us to change. The major hurdle is just being honest with ourselves. Once we have confessed we are basically there.
Teshuva for those who did not sin
Teshuva which is translated (and means) Repentance comes from the root Shav which means returning. Generally this indicates that the person doing Teshuva once was doing the right thing but then veered away and is now trying to come back. What if one does not feel that they are doing anything wrong? Where does Yom Kippur and Teshuva fit in?
Teshuva- Returning to our source
Every soul comes into this world on a mission. That mission is to return our soul to its home in heaven. In order to do so we need to come as close to Hashem as our soul was before it came down. In this way after we leave the world our soul will fly back to its home. By committing sins we create barriers that our soul needs to break down before returning. This can be done in the place known as Gehinom (hell) or through Teshuva while still in this world. However in order to return to our place we need to grow to reach it. All of our life is a process of growing. We are allotted enough time to get there. If we do not use our time properly we will be in Heaven just not in our rightful place. Therefore Teshuva is always relevant. No matter where we were born and even if we feel good with our level of Jewishness Yom Kippur is a time to take stock and ask ourselves, “Have I fulfilled my soul‘s whole potential?”
The Chovas Halevovos speaks about a man who has a sack of silver coins (his whole wealth). He is traveling and reaches a river. In order to get across he starts throwing coins in to stop up the river. When he reaches his last coin (and the river is not in any way diminished) he gives a coin to the ferry and gets across. The coins represent the days of our life and the river everything there is to do in the world. We can waste all our wealth by throwing it away or we can take it with us home. It all depends on what we do with our life.
The Musser masters recommend that on Yom Kippur one should commit and make easy and small changes in our daily life that bring us closer to Hashem. This can tremendously enhance our lives with a feeling of purpose and growth and not be too difficult.