Comment: In Shamati 88, Baal HaSulam talks about idolatry. You mentioned that idolatry is the belief in other forces, but that also comes from the Creator.

My Response: If you believe that everything comes from one Creator, then you have no problem.

The article discusses how in past centuries, a thousand or two thousand years ago, people believed in upper forces that resided in trees, water, rivers, and the sea. So they worshiped various objects and natural phenomena. Today this is almost nonexistent.

Question: Is the exaltation of someone also idolatry, and how should we react when this happens within us?

Answer: If we elevate certain individuals above others, we must be cautious to ensure it does not resemble worshiping other gods or idols.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 3/6/24, Writings of Baal HaSulam “All the Work Is Only Where There Are Two Ways – 1”

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Comment: Many ancient Greeks were afraid of Socrates’ question, which he often asked: “Aren’t you ashamed to take care of money, fame, honors, and not take care of your soul and not think about it, so that it is as good as possible?”

Alcibiades, a politician and strategist of that time, hated Socrates and said: “Socrates made me feel a sense of shame. And how often I wished that he was no longer among living people.”

Answer: That’s right; with a normal egoistic view of the world, if someone points out my flaws to me, I first want him to disappear, and the flaws, if possible, let them disappear too.

Question: From this explanation, it would seem to be a despicable thing to engage in fame, money, and power?

Answer: It should at least be secondary. We need it for existence.

Question: So we are dealing with this out of necessity? But only just out of necessity.

Answer: Yes.

Question: And in principle, all our studies should be to engage in matters of the soul. Why then don’t we engage in them?

Answer: Ask all people and they will tell you: “I do not know what a soul is. I do not know how to do it. I don’t want to…it’s difficult; it’s complicated. It’s against my egoistic nature. I don’t want to…”

Question: Then why are there so many spiritual practices in the world?

Answer: Because people invent things all the time, and they want to trick the Creator around their finger. That is, I will do this or do that, and in this way I will conquer egoism and nature, and the Creator.

Question: So this is all an attempt by a person to somehow bypass the main thing. Because the main thing is difficult to do?

Answer: The main thing is against our nature, and therefore we cannot advance like this.

Question: How can a person determine that he has found exactly that?

Answer: He begins to feel the meaning of life, the real meaning of life, the meaning of existence. He feels that he has found the root of life.

Question: Where do I feel it? Where is the feeling in me that I have found this?

Answer: It is a merging of heart and mind.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 11/6/23

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Question: When reading the Torah, we study the quality of bestowal and love. How can we attract this force upon ourselves while reading the article?

Answer: Studying the Torah is a multi-step process. Initially, we simply learn to read, translate, and analyze what is in our materials, replace words with spiritual elements and connections, and begin to understand what is really said. These are the conditions.

Question: What are these spiritual definitions that stand behind the words?

Answer: In Pticha (Preface to the Wisdom of Kabbalah) or in The Study of the Ten Sefirot, we study about them. They explain how the light coming to us from the Creator affects us, what desires it reveals, and how it connects us.

By reading the sources, it gradually becomes clear what happens to us during this process: what rises, what shifts, what descends, how we attract the light, how we open ourselves to the light, and what it does when it enters us.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 3/3/24, Writings of Baal HaSulam “The Torah, the Creator, and Israel Are One”

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Question: When the great Newton died, his relatives wanted to sell his writings. Naturally, they wanted to get hundreds of thousands of pounds for it.

Buyers came from the Cambridge Library, from the British National Museum, bishops, and so on. They would open Newton’s writings, start reading them and pushed them away as if it were a plague. His work remained untouched for many, many years.

The fact is, Newton believed in one God. Among other things, he quoted Rambam and followed the Jewish sages.

He wrote about the uniqueness of God, who created everything, who transmitted knowledge about the system of the universe to the first man—Adam, and then to the chosen few up to Abraham, and then to the Jewish people. This is how Newton defined the role of the Jews in the world history.

However, in a direct way, the secrets were accessible to very few. That is, they were accessible to Moses and carefully encrypted in the structure of the Jerusalem Temple. So, Newton began studying the Jerusalem Temple. In every turn and corner, he saw the harmony of the universe and wrote about it.

I do not know if it is possible to make such a comparison, but Abraham and Moses got such access to the Creator, so Newton wanted to get it too. That is, he wanted to break through to the Creator by means of science. Is it possible or not?

Answer: Through science? I think not. Many people wanted to break through science to a vision of the upper world, the upper governance, but no one was allowed to do it that way.

Question: Can you tell us why? Basically, did he take the first steps?

Answer: On the outside, he took external steps toward this in his discoveries.

Question: Yes, and he also studied Hebrew. But why is it not allowed?

Answer: The fact is you cannot reveal it that way. One must discover new instruments for attaining nature and make it so that nature would reveal itself to him. That is, from the side of man to the Creator and from the side of the Creator to man. I do not think this is possible except through Kabbalah and the science of Kabbalah. In fact, many have tried to accomplish this, but encountered such restrictions that they could not achieve this.

Question: So, after such attempts, is there no opening appearing in the heart or somewhere inside a person?

Answer: It opens up a little and it is opening, in fact, in science.

Question: And then one goes back to science?

Answer: Yes.

Comment: So, this fulfillment of the scientist—shuts everything down.

Answer: You can see how it happens. From generation to generation science somehow moves forward in small steps, but it is in fact not allowed to go further.

Question: You have been doing this all your life, and you say, “Only through Kabbalah.” You seemed to have tried to break through both the scientific method and the method of Kabbalah. And you still say: “Through Kabbalah?”

Answer: Yes.

Comment: Here we have one point you keep talking about called “faith above reason.” That is, the scientist follows the mind. The Kabbalist follows faith above reason.

My Response: Yes.

Question: For regular people, can you explain again what is it, what is the difference between the other sciences if faith is above reason?

Answer: I cannot explain it. A person should seriously engage in self-education, but not from other methods or sources.

Comment: Not psychology.

My Response: This is not psychology. One must position himself in relation to nature so nature will let him in.

It lets you in when a person is ready to serve it in everything for the sake of attaining nature. That is, for the Creator to be above all else for him. This is not a religious attachment to the Creator, but rather a devotion to the Creator in the idea, the adhesion to the Creator.

Question: What is the difference between religion and the science of Kabbalah in this case? You said: “This is not a religion.” Religion too has a direction, it has a specific aim. But here?

Answer: Here one must follow the commandments of the Creator in order to attain Him.

Question: But not there?

Answer: No, religion does not offer a direction to attain the Creator; no.

Question: So why do I follow the commandments?

Answer: To follow His external instructions, external laws.

Question: But this point of attaining Him is missing?

Answer: Yes, although you cannot explain it at all. You need to study and little by little begin to understand what is required of you.

Question: So it still requires me to change?

Answer: Yes.

Question: At what point do I realize I have to change? I keep studying and studying—at what point?

Answer: When complete self-annulment is required.
[324402]
From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 1/8/24

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Now you can understand that sleep [Tardema] in Gematria is “translation” [Targum]. It is also the letters Tered MA [MA will descend]...(Rashbi, Zohar for All, “Heaven and Earth”).

Question: What is the significance of the numerical value of words?

Answer: Language is a code that contains many different symbols.

We know that the Kabbalistic sources are written in Aramaic and Hebrew. And here we are also talking about the fact that there is a simple language, a written language, and a numerical language, which all indicate how words can be combined to form other words.

This is a very broad concept including how letters form words, how words form sentences, and how we can use sentences to manage the world.

The numerical value of a word implies that I can represent the word as a number or a specific set of numbers.

Question: So, could the Torah be written in the form of numbers?

Answer: Of course. How do programmers compose instructions for a computer? They write various letters, symbols, and then input them into the machine. The machine, understands these symbols, reads them, and executes the program.

Question: The thing is, the letter itself appears as a combination of certain symbols and has a specific form that expresses the relationship of forces. But what does the number mean?

Answer: The number indicates on what level these forces operate. So when a Kabbalist reads that some character in the Torah lived for 900 years, it signifies the spiritual level of that character.
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From KabTV’s “Introduction to The Book of Zohar” 1/21/24

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To myself I am only a child playing on the beach, while vast oceans of truth lie undiscovered before me (Isaac Newton).

Question: What do you think of that?

Answer: That is normal. Precisely because he explored and felt the world, he calls himself a child.

Question: Because he saw what the world is like?

Answer: Yes.

Question: And he says that he just found a few pebbles, that he was lucky. He doesn’t get proud of the fact that he is like that. He says: “All this was given to me.” Where has all this gone today? Nowadays scientists do not think like that.

Answer: Today it is no longer possible to investigate the world using such methods of internal contemplation. And this is exactly what he used. Today they use technical and technological methods.

That is why there are no more Newtons. The last Newton was in the form of, I would say, Lev Landau. There was no one after him.

Question: Then what is your definition of a scientist?

Answer: A scientist is one who wants to understand the meaning of the existence of our world. It does not matter what he is: biologist, technologist, who, or what. If he seeks to understand the nature of the existence of our world, then he is a true scientist.

Question: Basically, over time, does it turn out that the Newtons have been exterminated?

Answer: Yes.

Question: Why were they brought down? Why did it all come to this current state?

Answer: Nobody likes scientists. Nobody. Not a single scientist could rise as much as he was supposed to by nature. Science is in conflict with government—any government! That is why no one respects them.

Different kinds of seminars and academies are organized for them. This is true. And shut up! Make an atomic bomb for us, space flight, all sorts of rockets, planes, guns—and stay silent.

Question: What do you think if we took Newton from that time and transferred him here—as he is, without the influence of anyone else—how would he respond to these instructions to make a nuclear bomb, a hydrogen bomb, or to create weapons? Would he go for it or not?

Answer: I think he would not. Each scientist, in accordance with the depth of his attainment, simultaneously feels the height of science and cannot connect it with those egoistic, mercantile demands that the government offers him.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 12/25/23

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The language of the translation is close to the holy tongue, yet the angels do not need it and do not know it, while they do need and know the languages of the nations of the world. The language of translation is posterior, VAK of the holy tongue, since VAK are called posterior and sleep, without Mochin, which are GAR. For this reason, the translation is truly very close to the holy tongue (Rashbi, Zohar for All, “Heaven and Earth”).

Question: What are these two languages: one, Hebrew, is holy and the other, Aramaic, is reverse of it?

Answer: The holy language is called Hebrew because it conveys the direct influence of the Creator on all of creation. And the reverse language, as an imprint from Hebrew, is called Aramaic. Many books on Kabbalah, including The Book of the Zohar, are written in Aramaic.

Question: Why is Hebrew not enough?

Answer: Because the two languages complement each other and describe the whole creation. The point is that creation must be described in such a way that is understandable to everyone.

Moreover, it is crucial to understand that Hebrew and Aramaic are not just two opposite languages, but are an expression of the forces of creation, and that is why we use both. After all, how can these languages be opposite at all? For example, The Book of Zohar and Talmud are mainly written in Aramaic, while other primary sources are in Hebrew. Yet in principle, both Aramaic and Hebrew convey the Creator’s attitude toward creation. The choice of language depended on the period of writing and for whom the books were written.

Aramaic was once a more common language. It was not only read and written, but also spoken. It gradually fell out of use.
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From KabTV’s “Introduction to The Book of Zohar“1/21/24

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Question: If the Torah is intended for us to unite, why did the Kabbalists leave such a large amount of material that when studying we have the illusion that we are learning some other facet?

Why didn’t they write an article or articles about the need for connection so that we could study them over and over again and not get confused by so many explanations of seemingly different things?

Answer: The large number of articles depends on the division of souls, on the variations of connections between them. That is why we need such an abundance of material.

Question: If a group of people takes one article, for example, “There Is None Else Besides Him” and advance only according to it, will they reach their goal?

Answer: No, they will not. No article covers all souls.
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From the 1^st oart of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/15/24, Writings of Rabash “What Are Torah and Work in the Way of the Creator?”

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The articles of Rabash contain the entire Torah. He takes it from the highest level and lowers it to our level so that we receive it in the most suitable form, which helps us grow and internally organize ourselves to achieve higher levels. Therefore, Rabash’s articles are the highest source for internal work.

The main thing is to try to penetrate them with your heart, not your head. Open your heart and strive to feel the Creator, and only then begin some movements inside the heart to find an even closer alignment with the Creator.

How can we bring our hearts closer to Rabash? Only by connecting with the hearts of our friends and opening our hearts. There is no other way.

In a few days, we will gather for a congress, which is entirely based on Rabash’s articles and is called “Life in the Ten.” I am very excited and look forward to this congress with great trepidation because the Creator has given us everything we need. Everything depends on whether we can realize what we have received, and our putting all our strength into it.

The whole path is open to us. We can now take off to the goal and reveal all the components we need to collect and attach to ourselves along the way. The main thing is to be highly concentrated. I truly hope this happens to us.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 1/22/24, Writings of Baal HaSulam “Study of the Ten Sefirot“

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Question: Your teacher Baruch Ashlag (Rabash) wrote articles in which he states that a person who studies Kabbalah lives among people who have nothing to do with spiritual development and even oppose it.

Therefore, if he wants to develop spiritually and change his egoistic nature, he must organize a new environment that would support him. But on the other hand, he needs to be careful not to disengage from society, from acquaintances, from parents, and not to close himself in a small group, and not to enter into asceticism.

How can we make the right choice between egoistic society that does not support spiritual development and a group committed to altruistic ideas and values?

Answer: The fact is that any science, any hobby of a person captures him and begins to pull him in its direction.

It is the same with Kabbalah. Moreover, Kabbalah attracts much more than any other pursuit because it reveals the meaning of our world, its history, the creation of man, the way he is controlled, and his behavior from the point of view of nature.

Naturally, very strong opportunities are revealed before a person here, and one really feels that he can be carried away somewhere, carried away too much, torn away from everything corporeal.

As a rule, such sensations arise in beginners. But in general, we need to reassure them here because all this is not as it may seem to them.

The fact is that we all sometimes get carried away by all sorts of things. But the wisdom of Kabbalah is interesting because it does not detach us from this world, but on the contrary, reveals it even more.

Therefore, a person who correctly studies Kabbalah comes into even greater contact with this world, understands it, classifies it, and ultimately finds a clear and stable root in this world.
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From KabTV’s “Practical Kabbalah” 1/16/24

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