"Everything in the world is connected to everything else.
Every detail is intermeshed with other details.
Every action has an ongoing ripple effect.
When a person changes just one particular, he improves the entire world.
When he elevates the power of his animal soul, he elevates all of reality to a higher plane.
The purpose of a mitzvah is ultimately to elevate the entire world, to completely change the central meaning of existence in general."
--Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz
From Understanding the Tanya by Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz