The life of a tzaddik is not a physical life, but a life consisting wholly of faith, awe, and love of G-d... While the tzaddik was alive on earth, his disciples received but a reflection of these attributes, a ray radiating beyond this vessel by means of his holy utterances and thoughts... But after his passing... whoever is close to him can receive a [far loftier dimension] of these three attributes, since they are no longer confined within a [material] vessel, nor bounded by physical space...