וְזֶה בְּחִינַת שׁוֹבָבִי"ם שֶׁבָּהֶם נוֹהֲגִים הַכְּשֵׁרִים לְהִתְעַנּוֹת וְלִצְעֹק לַה' יִתְבָּרַךְ בִּתְפִלּוֹת וּסְלִיחוֹת, כִּי בְּאֵלּוּ הַיָּמִים קוֹרִין בַּתּוֹרָה בְּעִנְיַן גָּלוּת מִצְרַיִם וּגְאֻלָּתָם שֶׁהָיָה עַל-יְדֵי צְעָקָה כַּנַּ"ל. וּכְמוֹ כֵן צְרִיכִין עַתָּה בַּגָּלוּת הַזֶּה כַּנַּ"ל. וְזֶהוּ, "שׁוּבוּ בָנִים שׁוֹבָבִים", שֶׁעִקַּר כָּל הַצָּרוֹת וְהַגָּלֻיּוֹת, רַחֲמָנָא לִצְלָן, הֵם עַל-יְדֵי חֶסְרוֹן הַדַּעַת, שֶׁזֶּהוּ בְּחִינַת שׁוֹבָבִים, שֶׁכָּל אֶחָד הוֹלֵךְ בָּעוֹלָם כְּמוֹ מְשֻׁגָּע וְשׁוֹבָב מַמָּשׁ, כְּמוֹ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר, "וַיֵּלֶךְ שׁוֹבָב בְּדֶרֶךְ לִבּוֹ". וּכְשֶׁיָּבִין הָאָדָם בְּעַצְמוֹ כָּל זֹאת אֵיךְ הוּא שׁוֹבָב וּמְשֻׁגָּע מַמָּשׁ, כִּי הוֹלֵךְ אַחֲרֵי שְׁרִירוּת לִבּוֹ וְאֵינוֹ מִסְתַּכֵּל עַל תַּכְלִיתוֹ הַנִּצְחִי, בְּוַדַּאי יָחוּס עַל עַצְמוֹ וְיִצְעַק הַרְבֵּה לַה' יִתְבָּרַךְ, וְעַל-יְדֵי-זֶה יִזְכֶּה, לְפִי בְּחִינָתוֹ, לְהוֹלִיד הַמֹּחִין וְהַדַּעַת, שֶׁעַל-יְדֵי-זֶה עִקַּר הַגְּאֻלָּה בִּכְלָל וּבִפְרָט בְּכָל אָדָם וּבְכָל זְמַן כַּנַּ"ל:
And this is the quality of Shovavi”m, when those who are fit have the custom of fasting and crying out to blessed God with prayers and penitential liturgy. For in this season, we read in the Torah about the exile in Egypt, and their redemption, which came through their crying out, as written above. And we need to do the same now in this exile, as written above. And so: “Return, wayward children – shuvu banim shovavim” (Jeremiah 3:14, 22), for the essence of troubles and exiles – may the Compassionate One save us from them – is in a lack of knowing, which is the quality of the wayward, when everyone goes around in the world like a literally crazy wayward person, as it is said (Isaiah 57:17), “The went wayward on their [own] heart’s path.” And when a person understands all this about themselves, how they are wayward and literally crazy, because they follow the stubbornness [or: imagination] of their heart and don’t pay attention to the eternal end-point, they will certainly have pity on themselves and do a lot of crying out to blessed God, and in that way will merit, in accord with their own qualities, to understanding and knowledge, which are the essence of the means to redemption generally and specifically, for each person and each time, as is written above.
A person who is not thinking about his תכלית הנצחי - eternal purpose, is crazy.
INSSSSSAAAAANEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
In other words - we live in one huge, global, mental hospital.
Don't be a patient.
