Oros HaTeshuva 4:1

Rabbi Silber opens chapter four of Rav Kook's Oros HaTeshuva, introducing teshuva not merely as a human response to sin, but as a force embedded in creation itself. He points to Chazal's striking teaching that teshuva existed before the world was created — which means it existed before sin did, making it something far bigger than damage control. He compares it to the seasons: the same force that makes the trees lose their leaves and later regrow them, that turns the grass green again after winter, is the very force a person taps into when he does teshuva. Rabbi Silber highlights Rav Kook's point that a person's own effort at change is never enough on its own — it only succeeds because it draws on this universal current already running through the world.

• Teshuva isn't only a human response to sin — Chazal teach that teshuva existed even before the world was created.
• Since teshuva preceded sin itself, it's a force built into creation, not just damage control after wrongdoing.
• The same natural force that regrows trees and turns the grass green after winter is what powers personal teshuva.
• Real personal change isn't accomplished by willpower alone — it draws on a universal current already present in the world.