This, in summary, is the subject of the following discussion.

זאת ועוד אחרת

An additional [virtue] in mitzvot involving action (aside from their function in elevating one’s animal soul, mentioned above):

שכח נפש החיונית המתלבש באותיות הדבור בתלמוד תורה או תפלה וכיוצא בהן או מצות מעשיות

the vitalizing soul’s energy clothed in the utterance of letters of one’s speech in Torah study, prayer or the like, or the energy clothed in the performance of mitzvot involving action

הרי כל גידולו וחיותו מהדם, שמקליפת נוגה ממש

derives its entire growth and vitality from the blood, which is of kelipat nogah itself,

שהן כל אוכלין ומשקין שאכל ושתה, ונעשו דם

meaning all the food and drink that one has eaten and drunk, and which have become blood.

שהיו תחת ממשלתה, וינקו חיותם ממנה

These were under the dominion of kelipat nogah and drew their vitality from it.

ועתה היא מתהפכת מרע לטוב ונכללת בקדושה, על ידי כח נפש החיונית הגדל ממנה, שנתלבש באותיות אלה או בעשיה זו, אשר הן הן פנימיות רצונו יתברך בלי שום הסתר פנים

Now that the person performs a mitzvah with the energy derived from this food and drink this kelipah is transformed from evil to good and is absorbed into holiness, by means of the energy of the animal soul that grows from it (i.e., the energy nourished by those objects that derive their vitality from this kelipah), which has now clothed itself in these letters of Torah and prayer or in the performance of this mitzvah, which actually constitute the unveiled expression of the inner aspect of G‑d’s Will.

וחיותן נכלל גם כן באור אין סוף ברוך הוא, שהוא רצונו יתברך

For their vitality (the vitality expended in performing mitzvot) is also absorbed (like the mitzvot themselves) into the blessed Ein Sof-light, which is His Will as expressed in mitzvot,

ובחיותן נכלל ועולה גם כן כח נפש החיונית

and with their vitality the energy of the animal soul is likewise elevated and absorbed into the Ein Sof-light; and since the energy necessary for performing mitzvot was supplied by food and drink, the vitality of the food and drink is likewise absorbed in the Ein Sof-light, together with the mitzvah whose performance it made possible.

ועל ידי זה תעלה גם כן כללות קליפת נוגה, שהיא כללות החיות של עולם הזה הגשמי והחומרי

Thereby, all of kelipat nogah, which constitutes the vitality of this physical and corporeal world as a whole, will ascend as well. When will this come about?

כאשר כל הנשמה ונפש האלקית שבכל ישראל, המתחלקת בפרטות לששים רבוא, תקיים כל נפש פרטית כל תרי׳׳ג מצות התורה

When the whole neshamah, the divine soul4 in all of Israel, which is divided into 600,000 particular offshoots (the standard figure for the members of the Jewish nation, all individual souls being further subdivisions of these 600,000 “general” souls, as will be explained further) will fulfill, each individual soul thereof, the 613 mitzvot of the Torah:

שס״ה לא תעשה, להפריד שס׳׳ה גידים של דם נפש החיונית שבגוף

when they will refrain from transgressing the 365 prohibitions, to restrain the 365 blood vessels of the animal soul in the body,

שלא יינקו ויקבלו חיות בעבירה זו מאת שלש קליפות הטמאות לגמרי, שמהן נשפעים שס׳׳ה לא תעשה דאורייתא, וענפיהן שהן מדרבנן

so that they do not draw nurture or receive vitality by means of such transgression, from any one of the three completely unclean kelipot from which are derived the 365 Biblical prohibitions, and the Rabbinical prohibitions — their offshoots.

Since all that derives its vitality from the three wholly unclean kelipot cannot rise to holiness, were a Jew to transgress any prohibition, and thereby cause the particular blood-vessel associated with that prohibition to receive vitality from these kelipot —

ושוב לא תוכל נפש החיונית לעלות אל ה׳, אם נטמאה בטומאת השלש קליפות הטמאות

the vitalizing soul could no longer ascend to G‑d, having been tainted by the impurity of the three impure kelipot.

שאין להן עליה לעולם, כי אם ביטול והעברה לגמרי

[For] these [kelipot] can never be elevated, but must be nullified and utterly destroyed,

כמו שכתוב: ואת רוח הטומאה אעביר מן הארץ

as it is written,5 “And I shall drive out the unclean spirit from the earth.”

Similarly, anything which derives its vitality from them can never ascend to holiness. Therefore, only the observance of all the 365 prohibitions allows the entire vital soul to ascend, without any part of it held back by the impurity of these kelipot.

ורמ״ח מצות עשה, להמשיך אור אין סוף ברוך הוא למטה

When, furthermore, every individual soul will fulfill also the 248 positive commandments, thereby drawing down the blessed Ein Sof-light below,

להעלות לו ולקשר ולייחד בו כללות הנפש החיונית שברמ״ח אברי הגוף ביחוד גמור, להיות לאחדים ממש

to elevate to Him and to bind and unite with Him the entire vital soul, which is in the 248 limbs of the body, in perfect unity, (such is the effect of a mitzvah in uniting the vital, animal soul with G‑d), so that they become actually one [with Him],

כמו שעלה ברצונו יתברך להיות לו דירה בתחתונים, והם לו למרכבה כמו האבות

in accordance with His Will that there be an abode for Him in the lower realms, and so great is this unity that they (the limbs of the body with the vitality of the animal soul invested in them) become a “chariot” for G‑d, as were the Patriarchs — whose every limb was in total submission to the Divine Will, wherefore they are designated as G‑d’s “chariots” — and so will every Jew become a chariot by performing the mitzvot.

ומאחר שכללות נפש החיונית שבכללות ישראל תהיה מרכבה קדושה לה׳

Once the totality of the vital soul of the community of Israel will become a holy chariot for G‑d,

אזי גם כללות החיות של עולם הזה, שהיא קליפת נוגה עכשיו, תצא אז מטומאתה וחלאתה ותעלה לקדושה

then also the general vitality of this world, which now consists of kelipat nogah, will also emerge from its impurity and sickness (the term “impurity” refers to the evil of the kelipah; “sickness” refers to the element of good that kelipat nogah contains, which is nevertheless the good of kelipah, not holiness), and will ascend to holiness,

להיות מרכבה לה׳, בהתגלות כבודו

to become a chariot for G‑d, upon the revelation of His glory (in the World to Come).

וראו כל בשר יחדיו, ויופיע עליהם בהדר גאון עוזו, וימלא כבוד ה׳ את כל הארץ

Then all flesh will behold [G‑dliness] together, and He will appear upon them with the majestic beauty of His power, and “the glory of G‑d will fill the whole world.”

וישראל יראו עין בעין, כבמתן תורה

Israel will see “eye to eye” — the human eye will see the truth of G‑dliness just as the Supernal “eye” sees it — just as [they saw] at the giving of the Torah,

דכתיב: אתה הראת לדעת כי ה׳ הוא אלקים, אין עוד מלבדו

of which it is written,6 “You showed Yourself, so that it be known that ‘G‑d is the L‑rd (lit.: the Four-Letter Divine Name is ELOKIM; i.e., despite the concealment of the Four-Letter Divine Name (which denotes G‑d’s limitless power) by the name Elokim (which signifies G‑d’s self-limitation), it is the former that still pervades all existence); there is nothing else besides Him.”

But whereas the revelation at Sinai lasted only a short time, the revelation in the future will be permanent.

ועל ידי זה יתבלעו ויתבטלו לגמרי כל השלש קליפות הטמאות

Through this ascent of kelipat nogah to holiness, the three unclean kelipot will be utterly annihilated and nullified.

כי יניקתן וחיותן מהקדושה עכשיו, היא על ידי קליפת נוגה, הממוצעת ביניהן

For the nurture and vitality which they now receive from holiness, comes to them [only] by way of kelipat nogah, the intermediary between them.

Kelipat nogah, containing both good and evil, is the medium through which these kelipot which are completely evil receive their vitality from G‑dliness, which is completely good. When kelipat nogah ascends to G‑dliness, the impure kelipot, no longer having any access to G‑dly vitality, cease to exist.

ונמצא כי כל תכלית של ימות המשיח ותחיית המתים, שהוא גילוי כבודו ואלקותו יתברך, ולהעביר רוח הטומאה מן הארץ

It follows, therefore, that the purpose of the Messianic era and of the resurrection, namely, the revelation of His glory and Divinity, and the banishment of the spirit of impurity from the earth,

תלוי בהמשכת אלקותו ואור אין סוף ברוך הוא לנפש החיונית שבכללות ישראל בכל רמ״ח אבריה, על ידי קיומה כל רמ״ח מצות עשה

is entirely dependent on [our] drawing down His G‑dliness and the blessed Ein Sof-light upon all the 248 limbs of the vital soul of all Israel (for by way of the vital soul, all the world will be suffused with G‑dliness), and this is achieved by the vital soul’s performance of all the 248 positive mitzvot;

ולהעביר רוח הטומאה ממנה, בשמירתה כל שס״ה מצות לא תעשה, שלא יינקו ממנה שס״ה גידיה

and this purpose is also dependent on [our] banishing the spirit of impurity, i.e., the three impure kelipot, from the vital soul of all Israel (for by being banished from the vital soul, the spirit of impurity is banished from the entire world); and this is accomplished by the vital soul’s observance of all 365 prohibitive mitzvot, thus preventing its 365 blood vessels from drawing nurture from the spirit of impurity.

Why is it that suffusing the vital soul with Ein Sof-light and banishing the impure kelipot from the vital soul produces a parallel effect on the entire world?

כי כללות ישראל, שהם ששים רבוא נשמות פרטיות, הם כללות החיות של כללות העולם, כי בשבילם נברא

For the community of Israel, comprising 600,000 particular souls, is the general source of vitality for the world as a whole, since the world was created for the sake of these souls.

וכל פרט מהם הוא כולל ושייך לו החיות של חלק אחד מששים רבוא מכללות העולם

Each specific one of them contains and to each is related the vitality of one six-hundred-thousandth-part of the entire world.

התלוי בנפשו החיונית להעלותו לה׳ בעלייתה

This [part of the world] depends on his vital soul for its elevation to G‑d through [the vital soul’s] own elevation.

דהיינו במה שמשתמש מעולם הזה לצורך גופו ונפשו החיונית לעבודת ה׳

This means that one elevates “his” portion of the world by his partaking of this world for the requirements of his body and vital soul in the service of G‑d. By using the objects of this world that one’s body and vital soul need for the sake of serving G‑d, one elevates his portion of the world.

כגון אכילה ושתיה ודומיהם, ודירה וכל כלי תשמישיו

For example: eating, drinking, and the like; one’s dwelling and all his utensils.