Class 13- Inner Fire- Kuntres Hahispaalus- Chapter 2

Summary Paragraph 3
The second, higher level of avodah is called “ Machshava Tovah- a good thought that joins with action.”
At this level, a person has love and fear of Hashem, but they are not revealed emotionally in the heart. Instead, they exist within the intellect and the concealed depths of the heart, as a result of contemplation.
Although this love and fear are internally elevated, they do not remain abstract. Hashem joins them to practical action, so they directly influence mitzvah observance. For this reason, this level is considered superior to action alone, yet different from openly felt emotional devotion.
This “good thought” is not cold or detached. It includes inner desire and subtle emotional movement, similar to how a person becomes inwardly stirred when thinking about something personally meaningful, such as success, gain, or good news. The sign of this level is mental attachment and inner connection, where the mind becomes deeply absorbed in the thought—called cleaving of thought- Dvekus Shebemachshava- or “hearing within thought.”
In Divine contemplation, this happens when G-dliness feels personally relevant. The person senses arousal, but it remains in the intellect, not yet expressed in the heart. From there, it flows into action.
This level corresponds to “deep hearing” in Shema Yisrael: an inward attentiveness that generates love and yearning without emotional revelation. It characterizes a person operating at the level of Ruach of Yetzirah, through which Torah and mitzvot are elevated—ultimately reaching even higher Gan Eden- because Hashem joins the inner thought to the deed. And this level is also called “Achosi- my Sister”.