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Preparation To The Lesson
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Writings of Baal Sulam, Letter 45, 1927, pg 133
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“Preface to the Wisdom of Kabbalah,” Item 33, Lesson 14
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“The Wisdom of Kabbalah and Its Essence,” Lesson 14
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A question I received: What is the use of studying The Book of Zohar in our times? Do you have to study it to attain spirituality?

My Answer: Yes, the time has now arrived to study The Book of Zohar. I waited for this a long time, because we had to go through a preparation period. Now we have reached a state where a great mass of people all over the world is able to ascend up the spiritual ladder. This is why the commentary to The Book of Zohar is called Sulam – The Ladder.

That is why we are starting to study The Book of Zohar together now. Every person who joins us for this study, and who is able to nullify himself like a baby in order to study together with us, will be able to break through into the sensation of what The Zohar describes.

The Zohar cannot be studied with the mind because it speaks to a person’s heart and develops his sensations. The aim of this is to let him feel two qualities: bestowal and reception. That is why Baal HaSulam named his commentary to The Zohar “Sulam” – The Ladder.

In addition, The Zohar cannot be studied on your own, but only in a group. In fact, that is how it was written, by a group of ten Kabbalists whose souls were completely united. The ten Kabbalists who wrote The Zohar made up a spiritual vessel comprised of the ten main Sefirot. Each of them represented one Sefira, or one special force of the wholesome vessel (Kli) that was created by the Creator. Therefore, if we aspire to become such a wholesome vessel, then we will be able to receive this message from them, and it will influence us.

If we try to study The Zohar in a group now, we will quickly feel how the force concealed in this book connects us. And to the degree we unite, we will be able to accept and understand its message. Actually, we will be able to feel it, because understanding happens through the heart. There are specific desires that are organized particularly in order to understand the spiritual message.

It is impossible to attain The Zohar with dry reason. There has to be a group that has gone through a great path of preparation, whose members have already tried to attain spirituality through other means and have been freed of their delusions. They have discerned many things and are ready to cancel themselves because they understand that alone, with their individual forces, they cannot achieve anything. Then, they are ready to start studying The Zohar and to tune into it.

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A question I received: How does the lower one annul himself before the Upper?

My Answer: Initially, the next spiritual degree seems like darkness, when in fact it is a higher level of bestowal. Since I am incapable of relating to that level, it therefore causes a feeling of darkness, emptiness and depression within me.

I am able to annul my egoism (myself) only with the help of this higher degree. In order to do this, I must turn to the group and receive from it the greatness of the goal, of connecting with the Upper Level, through the quality of bestowal. Then I am ready to plead to the Upper Level, asking It to give me the greatness of the goal, for the goal’s importance to become higher than reception. In this way, I become ready to agree with the Upper Level and to annul myself before It.

In response to my plea, the Upper Level opens up to me and shows me the greatness of bestowal to such a degree that I am ready to bestow. I then become equal to It and rise to that level.I merge with the Upper Level, acquiring the new understanding from It. Then I move to the second stage and begin acting independently.

This is similar to a generally accepted method of education where a senior student gives me an example, takes my hand in his, and draws a picture. After that, I can draw the picture myself.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The Method Of Climbing Up The Spiritual Ladder
Laitman.com Post: How To Ascend To The Upper Degree
Laitman.com Post: The Design Of Desire
Laitman.com Post: The Teaching Of The Language Of Roots And Branches
Shamati #4: “What Is the Reason for the Heaviness One Feels when Annulling before the Creator in the Work”
Rabash Article: “The Importance of the Association”

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