Roads Of Pleasantness

clip_image001The Zohar, Chapter “Metzorah (At The End),” Item 100: Therefore, we learned that when the Sabbath starts, all the wicked in hell rest, and they have freedom and rest. And when the Sabbath ends, we should evoke the upper joy upon ourselves, to be saved from the punishment of the wicked that are sentenced from that time forth. And we should awaken and say, “Let the pleasantness of the Lord our God be upon us.” This is the higher pleasantness, the joy of all, the Mochin de Yeshshut. And it is said about that, “Her ways are ways of pleasantness.”

“The wicked” refers to the desires that give us a feeling of being in “hell.” It is a sense of shame that is evoked because we recognize the property of bestowal, and in contrast to it, see our own uncorrected properties.

We have to learn to see each of our properties within such a state. The correction of our desires is impossible without sensing “hell” in each of our uncorrected properties, which are opposite to the Creator.

Therefore, when we’re able to recognize our uncorrected properties opposite to the Creator and arrive at correction, all roads turn into “roads of pleasantness.” We are the ones who decide that it’s so.

When The Wicked Are Set Free

clip_image001The Zohar, Chapter “Miketz (At the End),” Item 85: Wherever the judgment is placed on Israel, and it says, “burden,” it is seemingly a burden on the Creator to punish Israel. This is a burden from both sides, as though He is burdened whether He punishes them or does not punish them. If He does not punish them, they will remain in the filth of the sin. And if He does punish them, He is seemingly suffering for the affliction of Israel. This is why it is bad when it writes, “burden,” concerning them.

It is impossible to make spiritual progress without revealing the will to enjoy. Our desire to be filled with pleasure is infinite, but it is concealed within us. When this desire gradually reveals itself in its uncorrected form, we begin to experience problems. Our heart becomes burdened and our advancement becomes even more difficult. Yet the process we undergo is inevitable because our correction occurs over our desire to enjoy. Therefore, it must be revealed this way.

Revelation of our uncorrected desires is a sign that we are ready to be corrected. This is why new layers of the uncorrected desire to enjoy are revealed, allowing us to work on them. For this reason, we must appreciate both the good and the bad.

There is no such thing as “bad,” but only what is called the “Revelation of Evil.” When that which was previously concealed becomes disclosed to us in the form of “wicked” (egoistic) desires, the process of correction is made possible.

Revelation Happens Through A Great Cloud Of Doubts

cloud When we unite our desires to reveal The Zohar, every person contributes his own deficiencies, his unique work of the mind and heart, and his attempts to cling to the words in order to attain the goal through them. Every person has his own ideas about what spirituality is and how the qualities we read about, such as Aaron, the bull, the mixed multitude, Moses, and others are connected inside him.

Every person imagines these notions from the root of his soul, envisioning them in various, distorted forms. But it’s OK that they are distorted because “The advantage of the Light is revealed from the darkness.” Every person adds his own small misconception to the great, common, confused desire.

This results in a great, mixed-up ball, like a ball of yarn composed of something unclear and unknown. It consists of all the disappointments, deficiencies, and desires, but they all unite together inside this ball because through our searching we desire to attain unity and reveal the Creator inside us. As a result, we raise a prayer (MAN), which is the sum of all the doubts, confusion, and impressions we feel while studying The Zohar, while The Zohar is one for all of us.

We desire to unite all of our aspirations together, which means that we are standing around Mount Sinai (the Mountain of Hatred). However, we don’t understand what is happening. Therefore, while Moses ascends to the mountain, we construct a Golden Calf and commit all the other transgressions.

But then the Surrounding Light comes to us and illuminates our common desire (Kli), which consists of our confusions and doubts. It illuminates the darkness, the state of not being able to see where this picture is inside of us and where our connection with others lies. The Surrounding Light comes to us through the great cloud of doubts that we create together; it is through that cloud that the Light influences every person. Passing through this filter, the Light brings each of us the desires, deficiencies, and qualities of others, as well as its own qualities. And this brings about the revelation.

The Light itself does not have any form. When you desire to unite with others and with The Zohar, when you don’t understand anything and are confused, but you strive to be part of the great, common desire, then the Light brings you an imprint of these forms. It reveals the right connection between us and gives you the right structure, in which you are connected with everyone. You then start to understand the qualities that The Zohar describes.

These qualities don’t exist inside any one of us. I don’t have Aaron or the Golden Calf inside me; these qualities become expressed only inside my connection with others – whether I’m “for” them or “against” them. They cannot exist in a separate person. The impure force and the holiness that are being described mean “against unity” or “for it.” Therefore, the Surrounding Light that comes in response to your efforts brings you either unity or opposition to unity. But it happens in a clear, conscious manner. Everything is discerned only in relation to unity because the only thing we have to correct is the broken vessel of the common soul.

Therefore, a single individual cannot imagine anything that The Zohar describes. The prayer rises upward and the Light descends downward only through our common cloud of confusion and doubts.

Bringing The Power Of A Kabbalah Congress To The Whole World

What's the Right Attitude To Have To This World We think that the spiritual levels described by The Zohar are light-years away from us. But when spirituality becomes revealed, it happens very quickly, and if we unite at the upcoming The Zohar Convention 2010 , we will be able to attain the sensation of spirituality.

Besides, we have to keep in mind that all spiritual development until now took place on the individual level. It was done by select individuals, each of whom had to make extraordinary efforts.

But now is time of revelation, marking a shift in the number of people studying as well as the method of study. It is now the method of the whole world’s correction, the correction of the masses. The only thing required for this to happen is a slight desire on our part.

None of the Kabbalists of the past wrote about this state because they did not live in a generation such as ours. Now the correction has become global; it is the true correction where we must all unite together. Nothing like this has ever happened in history yet.

We are witnesses of the expansion and growth of this wave, which is enveloping more and more people. It is moving together with us, giving us support, and making us a necessary presence in the world.

Therefore, I have great hopes for the upcoming gathering, but everything will depend on you.