Rabbi Judah ben Bezalel Lowe, known as the Maharal of Prague was famous among Jews and non-Jews alike. He was a mystic who was revered for his holiness and Torah scholarship, as well as his proficiency in mathematics, astronomy, and other sciences. Eventually, word of his greatness reached the ears of Emperor Rudolph II.
The Emperor invited the Maharal to his castle on February 23, 1592. There they conversed for one and a half hours, and developed a mutual respect for each other.
Rabbi Judah Lowe made use of his excellent connections with the Emperor, often intervening on behalf of his community when it was threatened by anti-Semitic attacks or oppression.
The Baal Shem Tov once said that he would rather be buried in the ground and return to the earth than rise to heaven in a fiery chariot like Elijah.
Why?
Because through an initial dip downward, you can reach much higher. And the lower the dip, the higher the reach.
So if it seems to you at times that life is pulling you down, burying your soul in mundane, earthly matters rather than letting you soar freely to the heavens...
...know that in all these mitzvahs here on earth you are gaining the power and momentum to rocket upward beyond the heavens, higher than you could imagine.
In the view from above, everything is always moving only upward.