Any man from the house of Israel… who shall offer an offering to G‑d… an animal that has a blemish you shall not offer, for it will not be found desirable… (22:18- 20)

While in the city of Slutzk, Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov once passed a study hall. The large room was filled with Talmudic scholars, all studying with great fervor and gusto. "This room is filled to capacity with Torah," said the Baal Shem Tov. "In fact, it is so full that I cannot enter - there is no room left even to squeeze myself in."

The Baal Shem Tov later explained his remark: "The Zohar tells us that the love and awe of G‑d are the two wings of the mitzvah, the means by which we imbue our every positive act with the ability to 'fly' heavenward and be received as a desirable offering to G‑d. One may perform a mitzvah in the most technically impeccable manner, so that the 'body' of the deed is fully developed; but if it is not motivated by and permeated with the love and awe of G‑d, it lacks the two limbs needed to carry it aloft. So it remains very much below and part of the person's pedestrian, self-bound existence."