134. Then he began and said in the name of Rabbi Pinchas: "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your strength" (Kohelet 9:10). How good it is for a man to try to fulfill the will of his Master while the flame is yet burning and resting on his head. For the light of that flame is strength resting upon him, and so is it written: "let the power of my Hashem be great" (Bemidbar 14:17). "the power of Hashem" - this is the power that rests on the head of the righteous and of all those who willingly undertake the will of their Master, WHICH IS THE SHECHINAH. And about this we have already learned: 'Whoever responds with all his power: 'Amen. May His great name be blessed...' - HIS VERDICT OF SEVENTY YEARS IS TORN UP.'
135. He surely has to awaken all his body parts with great power IN THE WORSHIP OF THE HOLY ONE, BLESSED BE HE, for by means of this powerful awakening that he summons up, he also awakens that holy and supernal power, WHICH IS MALCHUT, and he is uplifted in holiness and shatters the power and hold of the Other Side. Hence IT IS WRITTEN: "WHATEVER YOUR HAND FINDS TO DO, DO IT WITH YOUR STRENGTH," FOR IT IS with your own strength that you must perform the will of your Master.
136. "For there is not work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in Sheol, whither you go" (Ibid.). For it is in this power, that there is deed; namely, the effort to engage in this world is called 'deed,' namely the world of action, to complement the end of the thought. Device refers to the world that depends on speech, NAMELY MALCHUT, WHICH IS CALLED 'SPEECH,' for a calculation of device depends on speech, and this is why all the numerology and the solstices and equinoxes are based on the moon, WHICH IS MALCHUT. "knowledge" refers to the secret of the six ends, WHICH IS ZEIR ANPIN, which are dependent on thought, and are called the world of that thought, WHICH IS BINAH. "wisdom" REFERS TO CHOCHMAH, on which everything is dependent, AS IT IS SAID: "IN WISDOM HAVE YOU MADE THEM ALL" (TEHILIM 104:24).
137. And all of them, THE DEED, OR CALCULATION, DEVICE, KNOWLEDGE, AND WISDOM, are included in that same strength, WHICH IS THE SHECHINAH THAT RESTS ON THE HEAD OF THE RIGHTEOUS. This is not the case on the side of Sheol, which is a level of Gehenom. For the end of everyone who does not try with this strength to enter it by means of deed, accounting device, knowledge, and wisdom in this world will eventually arrive in Sheol, where there is no deed, nor accounting device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom. For the Other Side is the way to Sheol, as it is written: "Her house is the way to Sheol" (Mishlei 7:27). Whoever becomes listless in relation to that holy strength is attacked by the Other Side, whose house is Sheol.
138. "Whither you go:" HE ASKS, Do, indeed, all men go there to Sheol? HE ANSWERS, Yes, but THE RIGHTEOUS rise up again immediately, as it is written: "He brings down to Sheol, and brings up" (I Shmuel 2:6). This verse, however, is not to be applied to the wicked who never for a moment considered repentance, for they go down TO SHEOL and do not ascend again. Even the completely righteous go down there. Why should this be? It is because they take from there a number of wicked and bring them up from there. Who are the ones THAT THEY BRING UP? They who considered repentance in this world, but were unable to repent for they died. And it is for these wicked people that the righteous go down to Sheol and take them and bring them up from there.