During this period of time which directly precedes Rosh Hashanah, it is imperative that every Jewish person think deeply about his deeds in order to discern what he can rectify and improve so as to guarantee himself good attorneys for the Day of Judgment. Maran Harav Ovadia Yosef Shlit”a writes that the word “Elul” is similar to the Aramaic word “Ve’Alilu,” which is the Aramaic translation of the verse which is said regarding the spies sent to the Land of Israel, “And they spied the land.” This means that “Elul” connotes searching through and probing one’s actions.
Certainly, copious prayer and repentance are beneficial for every individual. Hagaon Chazon Ish writes that a person can improve his situation much more through prayer than through any other natural means that he believes may help him.
Without prayer and good deeds such as repentance and charity, our lot would be much worse. This that it would sometimes seem to us that those who do not pray profusely also live their lives normally and it does not seem that they are self-destructing is because sometimes a person is granted life in this world, but in truth, his reward from the World to Come is being deducted, as the verse states, “When the wicked sprout like grass etc. it is to destroy them forever.” In the World to Come, however, he will not be granted anything. Similarly, there are wicked people who merit much goodness in this world as a result of the advice of the Evil Inclination who wishes that everyone follow them and err, as is quite common unfortunately.
Our Sages teach us in the Talmud Yerushalmi (Ta’anit, Chapter 2), “Rabbi Elazar says, three things nullify harsh decrees: Prayer, charity, and repentance.” He continues to bring proofs to this idea from the scriptures. Thus, one should practice these three things, i.e. prayer, charity, and repentance, profusely during these days, as the hymnist writes, “Repentance, prayer, and charity shall annul the harshness of the decree.” The source for this is the aforementioned Talmud Yerushalmi. Maran Harav Shlit”a writes that although in previous generations they would fast many times during these days in the spirit of “repentance,” nevertheless, in our times when it is difficult for people to fast, one should give more and more charity instead. Indeed, it is better to give more charity in our times than to fast, for by fasting one decreases in his service of Heaven (for fasting weakens him).
We have already mentioned several times that one should take care to pass along the charity funds to responsible individuals so that they will in turn dispense these funds to truly needy people and one should not rely on the charity committees for this even if they seemingly come with the recommendation of the generation’s Torah leaders.
