Ethics

Torah and good deeds purify your character. But you cannot rely on this alone. You must work on your character. In particular, you must perfect your ethical being.

Orot Hakodesh III, p. 233

The call to purify your character never ceases. You may have already purified it when you were on an intermediate spiritual level. But when you grow, you bring hidden treasures of life out of the depths of chaos. These portions come to you as a spiritual revelation. Because they have never been refined, they require constantly new purifying. There are holy people who never cease growing. They go from strength to strength, always engaged in actualized repentance. Purifying and refining character is a vital ingredient of that repentance.

Orot Hakodesh III, p. 233

"Ethical behavior must precede the Torah." Such a period of time is necessary, in [all] generations. An ingrained ethics in all the depth of its majesty and its mighty strength must be established in our spirit and become a receptacle for the great influences that come from the power of the Torah. Just as awe is the level of the root [force] that precedes wisdom, so are natural ethics the level of the root [force] that precedes awe and all its ramifications. This principle holds for the individual, and entirety of the [Jewish] people and all humanity.

Orot Hatorah 12:2