Do Not Make Yourself An Idol

Dr. Michael LaitmanBaal HaSulam, “One Commandment:” “…by accustoming oneself to serving people, one benefits others and not oneself. Thus, one becomes gradually fit to keep the Mitzvot of the Creator with the required condition—benefiting the Creator and not oneself.”

I do not follow, do not understand, and do not grasp this principle. If I need to work and to unite with humanity, this is clear to me. We are here together; the gap between me and others appeared only due to the breaking, and I feel myself as separate from them. So, I have to overcome, correct this force of the breaking and become united with them.

But what about the Creator? Perhaps He is somewhere outside and I can reach Him through humanity. Or, by uniting with others in the group, I discover that He is inside, among us, and even fills all that space.

Nonetheless, it is difficult for me to pave the way, directing myself at the group for the sake of the Creator. What does this mean? This is a vague requirement. I understand relationships with other people, but how can I build a relationship with somebody in addition to this? Our problem is that we cannot imagine the correct picture, and therefore we remain confused for a long time.

”The Creator” is the quality of absolute, final, perfect bestowal. The unity between me and the group is the vessel for receiving the quality of bestowal. We want to achieve love and oneness between us so the world becomes “round,” global, integral. However, it has to be done for the sake of the Creator, which means, in order for the quality of bestowal to connect to us, to dwell and reign inside of us.

Thus, it is forbidden to ascribe any individuality or image to the Creator. This is “idol worship” or, literally, “foreign work” because it leads us aside, in a completely different direction. The Creator, Boreh, means “come (Bo) and see (Reh). If you enter a group and reach unity, then, by virtue of the friends, you reveal the quality of bestowal, which is called “the Creator.”

That is why it is written: “Israel, the Torah, and the Creator are one” where “Israel” is me with the friends (or humanity) and the Creator. In other words, the friends and I together are called “Malchut” or “Shechina,” and I reveal Zeir Anpin, which becomes expressed inside Malchut, according to the oneness which is achieved in it.

Hence comes the meaning of the formula “to serve people to bring contentment to the Creator.” Under no circumstances should you imagine somebody or something as the final recipient of your efforts. The Creator is neither a person nor a phenomenon, but the property that becomes revealed in us. To draw yourself such a recipient means to be engaged in idolatry, to create an idol. If we always stick to this rule, we will have no problems.

After all, we want to eventually build the system which will embrace all vessels and Lights. This is Malchut of the world of Infinity, where we are in unity and cohesion, where the Light is revealed in the vessel. We came from there, from the First state. In the Second state, we correct our attitude and nothing more, and come to the Third state, becoming conscious of and understanding the world in which we exist from the beginning.

There is no image that exists outside of us, for whose sake we should work and to which we should come. Just schematically, our intentions and calculations are added to this sequence: first we create a vessel, and then, to the extent of its ability to unite, according to the law of equivalence of form, we reveal the Creator in this vessel, according to the principle “come and see.” Thus, we reveal Malchut – the desire, which remains unchanged.
[52696]
From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/26/11, “One Commandment”

Related Material:
We See What We Feel
A Request To Be Made Human
A Warning In A Whisper

2 Comments

  1. If I am in a state where I feel good and happy when I give to others. Does this mean this is all we should be concerned with? Because when I feel good about giving to others, or fullfilling their desires, I feel love for them and I feel love for everyone around me, wanting to say it to everyone and expressing it. If we just focus on our intentions to give this way, is this all we have to worry about?

  2. Also, does this mean that the Creator is many because he is in all of us when we bestow to one another?

Discussion | Share Feedback | Ask a question




Laitman.com Comments RSS Feed