My Spiritual Simulator – 09.06.10

Spiritual Simulator: Questions of the Day

A Descent Is A Joy

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: How should I react once I find myself in a state of descent?

Answer: I have to relate to it as a call from Above and ask myself: “Who sent it to me? What for?” A new state has been revealed to me. As Baal HaSulam writes: “I rejoice in the revelation of the wicked,” meaning the “new” egoistic qualities that are being exposed in me. Surely, they were hiding within me always. But now, as I grew stronger, they become apparent so that I rise above them and, despite of them, stay connected with the Creator as in a state of ascent.

This is an unpleasant feeling in an empty desire. However, one can instantly rejoice in the revelation of this desire because with its help he will undoubtedly and quickly discover a stronger connection with the group and the Creator. Hence, upon feeling a descent, one should immediately connect with the group and start performing all possible actions in order to turn the descent into the force of unification.

A descent is the discovery of a sharper precision in our connection, where I’m not yet connected with the group, yet have to do it now. I was under the impression that I was bound to the group by a “thick robe.” But now I see that this robe is comprised of hundreds of tiny threads by which I am not connected with the group at all.

And so I ascend, sharpening and strengthening my connection with the group more and more. This is why I welcome such a revelation for it occurs on the basis of my previous state.

You will soon sense that a descent is a joy. Everything depends on how one relates to it: as merely a state or as the means for achieving the goal.

Work brings joy. A true professional is happy to come across the problems in his work. It gives him an opportunity to apply his professionalism, find a solution, create something new, and demonstrate his skill.

Why do all creative personalities need “inspiration”? Why are they constantly searching? Why do they feel confused and lost until their creation is born? It could be a person of any profession, even a plumber, but if he is a master, he feels his trade.

Hence, difficulties or special circumstances that arise are an asset which we can’t live without. We don’t understand or appreciate the extent to which the revelation of deficiencies within us exposes the Light.

From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/6/10, “And Jacob Went Out”

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Kabbalah For Beginners “Rosh Hashanah” – 09.06.10

Kabbalah TV Channel 66’s Kabbalah for Beginners, “Rosh Hashanah”
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Raising The Whole World

The purpose of everything that we feel in our reality, be it positive or negative, is to form us along the spiritual ladder. There is nothing that would be created for any other purpose or that existed by itself. Everything in this world – thousands of surrounding objects, actions, or forces – exists for a single purpose: my spiritual development. I incorporate, consciously or not, all that surrounds me into myself and hence ascend.

Indeed, if everything came from the World of Infinity down to the level of our world where it seemingly exists without being connected into a single whole, then how could objects and actions of our world not be bonded by a single purpose from which they descended down to us? How can there be anything in our world that has not come to it from the World of Infinity? And if it did descend from the World of Infinity, it means that it originated in unity that existed there and afterward, by descending down, took the form of the breaking, distancing, and isolation.

Hence, by climbing the spiritual ladder a person has to raise the entire reality, all of “This World,” along with himself. It is said that by ascending spiritually, a person elevates (corrects) the still, vegetative, and animate levels of nature along with himself.

From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/6/10, “And Jacob Went Out”

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Kabbalah Moments: Private Providence

The General And The Particular

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: How do you reconcile the notion of Private Providence and one’s individual prayer with the notion of general spiritual laws that every person must comply with?

Answer: You will not understand this until you stop separating yourself from the general system. The “particular” is a type of connection between you and the system of souls, which stems from your state. Meanwhile, the “general” is the basic condition of the group.

A person can never receive anything for himself. Indeed, on his own he has no capacity in which to receive spirituality. A person’s individual spiritual capacity exists outside of him. It is in the desires of others that he is able to attach to himself with the help of the Upper Light, like a mother who lives within her child’s desires.

Aside from the desires of others, every one of us has only a “point,” their individual root. What can you do with a point? Only connect it to all the other parts of its soul: the desires of others.

This matter of connecting yourself to the general Kli is what we call Private Providence. The notion of “myself” as an individual (a point) does not exist in reality! This point feels itself only with respect to the environment, whether egoistically (our world) or altruistically (the spiritual world). Without the environment it cannot feel anything, even itself.

Therefore, our development relates exclusively to the environment, and our freedom of will lies only in choosing a better environment. After all, my environment today will be me tomorrow.

From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/5/10, “What is the Matter of My Making A Pact in the Work”

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125 Steps Of Oneness

Dr. Michael LaitmanHow can we unite with each other? It is possible only if a person with his desire exists in the friend and the friend within him. Everyone has to absorb the desire of the other and work with it, and in doing so, they connect. Since their desire is aimed at the same goal, through their mutual work they create a common force of aspiration to go forth. This force guarantees their progress and is called Arvut (mutual guarantee).

Connecting occurs when I take part of your desire and experience it as my own, and all my desires serve to fulfill it. Moreover, since your desire is to reach the goal, it turns out that I lead you to it while you lead me. Thus, our desires unite in the common goal. Hence, it is written: “Make your desire as His, and He will make His as yours.”

This is a criterion to verify the extent of our connectedness. The distance between us amounts to 125 degrees (steps), 125 parts of my egoistic desire. But gradually, correcting it through the actions “for your sake,” I come closer to you in my work for bestowal.

That is what is called “love the other as you love yourself.” In other words, I employ your desire to annul mine before it and in so doing, I correct my desire. My desire remains but because I have gone such a distance to reach you, I have made my desire bestowing. Nothing has changed; I’ve only added the intention. And the distance between us disappeared for I annihilated it with my intention!

And what does this “other” want? He wants to attain adhesion with the Creator, just like you do. So, there is only one thing you need to help him with: to become one with the Creator (together with you). This single intention connects us all as one.

Hence we say that we are all in one boat, and it goes in one direction. The closer I come to you, the closer I come to the Creator.

From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/3/10, Shamati #50

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Unification Of The Souls = Equivalence To The Creator

Dr. Michael LaitmanWe need to feel our opposition to the Light and bring ourselves to its state. If we don’t draw the Light to ourselves, we feel suffering since it feels bitter to sense that we are opposite to the Creator. Therefore, in order to give us an opportunity to develop properly, we are brought into a system called a “Kabbalistic group.” Instead of existing in a vacuum and not knowing how to develop in the attempts to become similar to the Creator, I find myself in a group.

I can work on uniting with the group, with others who aspire to the same goal as me. Instead of focusing on something invisible, being in a void, and not knowing where the suffering comes from or what’s going on, I work on unification. And our connection solves all the problems!

How can unification of the souls substitute for similarity to the Creator? Originally, in the World of Infinity we were one soul of Adam. Later, we broke into many parts, individual souls, and instead of the World of Infinity we began to feel our (broken) world. Through the breaking, the Light created qualities in us that are opposite to it, and the soul became opposite to the Light.

However, if we correct the breaking together and reunite, our action lends itself to the revelation of the Light, becoming like it. Instead of equalizing ourselves to the Light which is concealed, we equalize ourselves to the desires which we feel and understand. It seems to us as though we are being summoned, like good children, to unite and annul our egoism. But by doing so we reveal the Light in the unification of our desires because this is where the Light concealed itself: inside the broken Kelim.

It turns out that the opportunity to work in the group is the most practical and real application of Kabbalah. We perform actions that are available to us while, in essence, we reveal the Light that is situated beyond the breaking. In this manner we clarify our contrast to the Light, become equal to it, and unite. The Light and the vessel merge into one whole, and we return to the World of Infinity.

We reveal 620 states or degrees that separate us from each other and from the Light. By doing so we discover that we are opposite to the Light to the extent of 620 degrees and thereby understand the Light of Infinity 620 times better. We thus reveal the common soul and the entire Light that fills it: the Creator.

From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/3/10, Shamati #50

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Kabbalists On Kabbalists, Part 19

Dr. Michael LaitmanDear Friends, please ask questions about these passages from the great Kabbalists. The commentaries in brackets are mine.

Main Kabbalistic Sources: The Works of the ARI

And the same words that were said about the Rashbi should be said about the ARI himself—that his predecessors [even though they knew more than the ARI] were not given permission from Above to disclose the interpretations of the wisdom, and that he was given this permission. And also, this does not distinguish any greatness or smallness at all, since it is possible that the virtue of his formers was much greater than the Ari’s, but they were not given permission for it at all. For this reason, they refrained from writing commentaries that relate to the actual wisdom, but settled for brief intimations that were not in any way linked to one another.

For this reason, since the books of the Ari appeared in the world, all who study the wisdom of Kabbalah have left their hands from all the books of the Ramak, and all the first and the great ones [Kabbalists] that preceded the ARI, as it is known among those who engage in this wisdom. They have attached their spiritual lives solely to the writings of the ARI in a way that the essential books, considered proper interpretations of this wisdom, are only The Book of Zohar, the Tikkunim [Tikkunei Zohar] and following them, the books of the ARI.

[Since Baal HaSulam wrote complete commentaries to The Book of Zohar and the ARI’s books, our generation studies both sources through his works.]
– Baal HaSulam, “Disclosing a Portion, Covering Two

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Daily Kabbalah Lesson – 09.06.10

Rabash, Shlavei HaSulam, “And Jacob Went Out
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Shamati #42What is the Acronym Elul (1) in the Work States” 
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