(א) יסוד החסידות ושרש העבודה התמימה הוא שיתברר ויתאמת אצל האדם מה חובתו בעולמו ולמה צריך שישים מבטו ומגמתו בכל אשר הוא עמל כל ימי חייו.
(ב) והנה מה שהורונו חכמינו זכרונם לברכה הוא, שהאדם לא נברא אלא להתענג על ה' ולהנות מזיו שכינתו שזהו התענוג האמיתי והעידון הגדול מכל העידונים שיכולים להמצא. ומקום העידון הזה באמת הוא העולם הבא, כי הוא הנברא בהכנה המצטרכת לדבר הזה.
(ג) אך הדרך כדי להגיע אל מחוז חפצנו זה, הוא זה העולם.
(1) The foundation of piety and the root of perfect service [of G-d] is for a man to clarify and come to realize as truth what is his obligation in his world and to what he needs to direct his gaze and his aspiration in all that he toils all the days of his life.
(2) Behold, what our sages, of blessed memory, have taught us is that man was created solely to delight in G-d and to derive pleasure in the radiance of the Shechina (divine presence). For this is the true delight and the greatest pleasure that can possibly exist. The place of this pleasure is, in truth, in Olam Haba (the World to Come). For it was created expressly for this purpose.
(3) But the path to arrive at the "desired haven" (Ps. 107:30) of ours is this world.
The "B" of Judaism
For a complete understanding of life, we need to know what is demanded of us. What were we created for? What is the meaning of existence?
Let's ask this question: What do all parents want for their children? To be healthy, strong, and full of joy. To be clear, purposeful and accomplished. To have everything good under the sun. Why? So they can get the most pleasure out of life. Only pleasure.
Your son might have a lot of fun playing PacMan, but you won't let him drop out of college to become a professional PacMan player. You know he deserves better.
God looks at us the same way. As our Father in Heaven, He created us to bestow goodness and pleasure upon us. And He gave us the Torah – our instructions for living – in order to teach us how to derive maximum pleasure from this world.
A pen is made for writing. But what if somebody told you that your pen is a toothpick? You'd say, "That's ridiculous. Why would it have ink in it? And it doesn't fit between my teeth!"
How do you determine the purpose of an object? Examine its construction. You know that a pen is for writing because that's what all its components indicate, and that's what it does best.
Judaism says that human beings were designed to have pleasure. In fact we see that every decision a human being makes is based on one final criteria: Will it give me pleasure?
Even when we do something altruistic, we do it because the act gives us pleasure.
Whether it's what to have for dinner, what to do with spare time, who to marry, or what career to choose – underneath it all, pleasure is the defining criterion. If it looks like pain, we avoid it. If it promises pleasure, we go for it. Even when we do something altruistic, we do so because it gives us pleasure.
God designed the world – and everything in it – in order to give us pleasure. The goal of life is to get that pleasure. Just as parents want their children to enjoy life, so too the Almighty wants His children to enjoy their lives to the fullest. That's the "B" of Judaism.