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To Reveal Or To Conceal?

Dr. Michael LaitmanIn the days of the prophets, Kabbalists revealed the wisdom of Kabbalah a bit to the sages of the nations of the world. Aristotle, Plato, and other philosophers in Ancient Greece really wanted to know the truth without any malicious thoughts. By the way, many gentiles joined the nation of Israel in those days and reached very high levels in spirituality.

As for the philosophers, since they based their ideas on Kabbalistic ideas, they developed theology. Their approach may seem as wisdom since their desire belongs to AHP, and they simply cannot understand that there are other options. It is beyond a person’s power to rise above his desire.

So as The Book of  Zohar says, Rashbi cried: “Woe to me if I reveal and woe to me if I don’t reveal. How will people reach the end of correction without my revelation? After all, they will not have the source of the Light that is only in my generation.” Rashbi was the last one who attained all the Lights of the first three Sefirot of the world of Atzilut before the destruction of the Temple, which means the private end of correction of all the 125 degrees.

“If I don’t reveal it in the form of a written source, the souls that yearn for spirituality will not be able to draw the Light and to use it in order to correct themselves. On the other hand, if I reveal the wisdom, the nations of the world will surely corrupt it even more severely.” Rashbi already saw what had happened since the time of the prophets until his days. So what will happen next? If the wisdom falls into evil hands, what afflictions will it bring?

Rashbi still wrote The Book of Zohar, but it was concealed. Later according to the will of the upper Providence it reached Rabbi Moshe de Leon whose widow sold it when she had no means of support. Thus The Book of Zohar was revealed to the world and it did actually bring about many corruptions and many corrections.

Question: What motivates a Kabbalist to reveal or to conceal the wisdom?

Answer: The call of the time. On the one hand, Rashbi knew that his time was a time of growing concealment that would continue until an almost total rupture between the correction and the shattered Reshimot (informational genes). But he had to leave a fine thread of Light between the Light of Ein Sof (Infinity) and the Reshimot on the level of this world, so that people could use it. This is The Book of Zohar. Like Baal HaSulam whose basis is on earth and his head reaches Heaven, the first three Sefirot of the world of Atzilut, and the Light of the end of correction.

In addition, The Zohar was written with the help of Rabbi Abba who concealed it so that only a person who has internalized the wisdom of Kabbalah and exists in the attribute of bestowal will be able to find it. Others see only tales in The Zohar; however, many details and terms from these “tales” have been used in false wisdoms. The egoistic desire distorted and shattered this book in its warped mirror, as if it tells about forces that operate and influence the fate of people in our world.

If we look through the prism of the desire to bestow, we see that it is about the corrected and uncorrected parts of the soul that have different names. The Book of Zohar speaks about inner corrections and not about the bodies, which are not accounted for.

Question: Does a Kabbalist take into account the potential corruptions of the revelations or does he only see the correction?

Answer: If Rashbi hadn’t taken the corruptions into account, he wouldn’t have cried thinking about them. Still it is impossible to do without them. Eventually, although it seems that “a handmaid is heir to her mistress” this is exactly how she helps her reveal herself.

Question: In contrast to Rashbi, Baal HaSulam revealed everything that he could.

Answer: This is because the time has come. The special era has come, and Baal HaSulam wrote that he was happy to be born at a time when it is possible to reveal the wisdom of Kabbalah.

Today we already lag behind the pace of development; our times require a much greater pace of dissemination than we are doing.

So, it is all about the right time to act. If it weren’t so, we wouldn’t approach the masses and this should be clear.
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From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/3/12, A Handmaid that Is Heir to Her Mistress”

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This Changeable World

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: When a Kabbalist reveals the method of correction, are his books enough or should there be someone who should use them correctly?

Answer: ARI in his generation outlined the oral method and the three generations that followed him put it writing. Then came Baal Shem Tov who began to implement the method practically. His disciples who were great Kabbalists continued his legacy and wrote the wisdom of Kabbalah in great detail.

In addition, there were many figures throughout history like Spinoza, Marx, and Einstein who expressed their attitude to society, to science and to the perception of reality in different nonreligious forms and thus expanded the approaches for this method for the world.

Marx for example, regardless of what we know about him, actually began to speak about the fulfillment of the wisdom of Kabbalah in the world. What is socialism if we disregard the false Soviet improvisation? It is the method of our mutual connection in one equal society in which we manage our whole life. Actually, it is about Kabbalistic principles. So it turns out that Marx is one of the “angels” in the hands of the Creator.

What did Spinoza do? He took the Jew out of the external frameworks of Judaism and “shook” him in order to take him on an alternative path and a new perspective of spirituality that is not limited by the performance of external commandments, but which include another element.

It doesn’t matter how accurate this direction was; the Creator brought about this development, which was enough in those days.

Then Einstein did the same thing in the field of science when he discovered the concept of relativity and the natural limit and the speed of light. He studied the mutual relations between matter and a dimension that was unknown until then, in terms of changing time and distance, in a changing reality, where everything is relative.

Thus, gradually all the methods lead to the picture of the new world that loses its previous stability and becomes changeable in a person’s perception.

The wisdom of Kabbalah speaks about the same thing: Everything changes according to our attributes. Even now, we can already change our world and everything that we see if we rise to the level of more sublime desires. Then another world will open up for us of different mutual forces and relationships; instead of people, we will see totally different creatures, souls.

We are actually approaching this perception through different intermediate phases, through a virtual world. Many people have been through this path besides the three that we have mentioned. On the whole even the smallest detail in history leads to this point of correction. Eventually everything is concentrated in it.
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From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/3/12, “A Handmaid that Is Heir to Her Mistress”

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If You Don’t Come To The World, The World Will Come To You

Dr. Michael LaitmanBaal HaSulam, “A Handmaid Is Heir to Her Mistress”: The Higher Roots, called “Externality,” as we have explained above, are generally called “handmaid” and “slave.” This aims to show that they do not intend to harm at all, as it may seem in superficial observation. Instead, they serve the internality, like the slave and the handmaid who serve their masters.

It seems that the world is full of conflicts, wars, hatred, and troubles, and although we could really manage among us by cooperation and mutuality, eventually everything is aimed at one thing: Even in the current situation everyone is serving one another. It is very hard to accept this and yet that’s the way it is. The relations among us may seem unpleasant and awful, but still everyone serves others.

Of course, we cannot accept this form of fulfillment; on the contrary, we can sustain the same thing in a faster, better, and more comfortable manner. Still we have to accept the upper Providence: no matter what happens, everything happens for the purpose of mutual correction.

Question: Today I hear on the news that the Iranian leaders want to destroy Israel. Do I have to say to myself: “That’s good, it serves us?”

Answer: There is no doubt that it serves us, but we could accept the current phase of our development in a more pleasant and comfortable way if we related to what is happening correctly. The problem is in us, in the Jewish people and so we summon upon ourselves specifically this form of external pressure instead of a friendly attitude.

The forces of development are expressed this way since we are not preparing ourselves to accept them correctly. Who else is to blame for that but us? This is where all the accusations of the Jews stem from.

After all, the initiative is in our hands, we have the method and around us are desires that cry out: “Why aren’t you coming with the correction?!” Instead of with presents and signs of love, they approach us with threats since we don’t give them what they need.

On the whole, the world is balanced, and that is the world of Ein Sof (Infinity). If we make it lose its balance by not judging the world to the scale of merit, the scale of guilt rises, of not fulfilling our obligation. Rav Kook writes about it: If it is impossible to blow a kosher Shofar of redemption, the enemies of Israel come, Amalek, Hitler, etc. and blow in our ears…and evoke the redemption. He says that Amalek Hitler, etc, evoke the redemption.

Further on he says: Nationality is also part of the rod of the “Jews’ troubles,” here too we see the redemption, but you cannot bless this Shofar.

“You cannot bless,” but it is also a Shofar…

The whole point is that we are in the world of Ein Sof, and we are the ones who determine how it will appear to us, which of its parts will seem “white” to us and which will seem “black.” So there is nothing to cry about. Ahmadinejad awakens us to reach the correction faster. In addition to that the global crisis pushes us. If it began in some distant place and has reached us, it means that we are lagging behind in our development, in our ability to present the method of correction to the nations of the world.

What is worse is that we subconsciously hope that as a result of the troubles they will understand us instead of having to run to them to explain in every possible way the solution to the problem. We don’t worry about it the way we should. There is a lot we have to do, but we act irresponsibly, not feeling that we are guilty of what is happening, and so the troubles are nearing us. It won’t be as people threaten, it will be much worse than that.
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From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/2/12, “A Handmaid that Is Heir to Her Mistress”

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Don’t Be Right, Be Good

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: What should I do if I feel glad that there are crises, since they show that we are right?

Answer: We are right in saying that the world doesn’t see a solution to the crisis, but if we could explain what is happening to the general public, there would be no need for the blows. People would reach a much deeper and wider understanding of the current events, and they know what should be done.

Today people are just suffering from shock. But, we can sweeten his troubles by explaining things, by corrections and mutual incorporation. Now the same level of relief that we could convey to him turns into hatred towards us. People don’t know why they hate us, and the point is that the time has come for the general public to be corrected, especially in Israel and to some extent all over the world. On the whole we feel the blows upon ourselves.

So let’s see if you feel happy when your negligence and inattention will hit you like a boomerang. By the way, it refers to each of us.

Baal HaSulam says in the “Introduction to The Book of Zohar,” item 71: In such a generation, all the destructors among the Nations of the World raise their heads and wish primarily to destroy and to kill the Children of Israel, as it is written (Yevamot 63), “No calamity comes to the world but for Israel.” This means, as it is written in the above corrections, that they cause poverty, ruin, robbery, killing, and destruction in the whole world.

A person rejoices in all the troubles in the world: “I have told you that things will be bad, now you see that I was right!” What kind of stinking ego can that be. Of course it is in each of us, but we mustn’t let it hold the reins and agree that this slogan will be inscribed on our flag. We mustn’t sit and do nothing and see how people suffer. Can we treat the world this way? Is there room for such a person among our friends?
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From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/2/12, Article “A Handmaid that Is Heir to Her Mistress”

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A Progress Trap

Dr. Michael LaitmanOpinion (Ronald Wright, from About.com): “The film, based on Ronald Wright’s insightful nonfiction book, A Short History of Progress, presents convincing arguments that technology if not used appropriately and in moderation can lead to adverse conditions and the collapse of civilization – if not the actual demise of humankind.

“Wright, who is interviewed in the film, points to ‘progress traps,’ or instances in which human know how, belief systems or technologies that have solved short term needs have actually had adverse effects.

“One example, presented as a dramatic reenactment in the film, is the prehistoric hunt for woolly mammoths – it was progress when our ancestors figured out how to hunt efficiently, killing two beasts at a time instead of one, but when they figured out how to slay the whole herd by driving them off a cliff, they killed off their entire future food supply, and put their survival in jeopardy. That’s a progress trap that anyone can understand. And, that the same sort of dangerous behavior persists today is raised by Jane Goodall, who points out that humankind’s continued exploitation of Earth’s resources and the wasteful consumption exacerbated by ever increasing use of technologies that are deemed as progress, is simply not good for the future evolution — or survival — of the species.

Surviving Progress is filled with information and presents a wide range of arguments that call for a reconsideration of the notion of progress. The film covers a smorgasbord of concerns that are presented as a nourishing mixed salad of reenactments, graphics and on camera interviews. It is an intellectually stimulating and provocative film that raises more questions than it answers. The essential question is a valid and challenging one: Is humankind sufficiently evolved to be able to handle its know how and not allow the misuse of technology to eventually destroy civilization? That’s a question that should be considered by everyone.”

My Comment: Today, we are outgrowing these errors due to the current crisis. It is hoped that it is understood that the egoistic economy has come to an end, and it should change to the economy of happiness in equal abundance for our bodies and in unlimited development for our souls.
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My Invisible Group

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Do you personally have a group? I am not referring to your followers that you are teaching the properties of the Light and methods of perception to. Do you need this group?

Answer: My group are those people, more correctly not people, but the souls with whom I am in contact. I want very much for my students to become the same group and join my group. I hope it will come true.

Question: Is it easy for you to unite in your group?

Answer: It is hard! The further a person advances, the more difficult it is because he has to deal with an increasing amount of different, obscure, unexpected personal and external properties.

Indeed, we have not been even born in the spiritual world. Can you imagine the problems of a young child who is 5, 10, or 15 years old and so on in comparisons with the problems of an adult. These problems are all the time increasing. But according to this, when every time you balance them, they reveal higher harmony, the Creator, greater attainment, feeling, awareness of all humanity, of the whole system. It is written: “Reward is according to the effort.”
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From the Kharkov Convention “Uniting to Ascend” 8/19/12, Lesson 7

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Illusion Or Unity?

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: What state should we achieve at a workshop to be successful: awareness of what we want but are unable to unite or that we all have the same feeling? And if we do feel, is it an illusion? Because we cannot unite and become aware of this every day.

Answer: No, we are heading towards unity; we are uniting. If we were not united, we would not have felt new impressions and new understandings. The unity that we have reached here has not reached the spiritual threshold, but it is unity.

You now have the same understanding, feelings, and thoughts; you experienced all this together. You have tasted from the same source, the same questions, identical, similar responses, although there were many different ones, it does not matter!
You have experienced unity!
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From the Kharkov Convention “Uniting to Ascend” 8/19/12, Lesson 7

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Why Is It So Difficult To Keep The Intention?

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Why is it so difficult to keep the intention?

Answer: It is because in the right intention, our desire to enjoy immediately reaches correction. If, even for a moment, you thought with the right intention, then you corrected the desire that occurred inside of you at that moment, and it would be replaced with a new one, an uncorrected one. And now, once again, you need to imagine the unified group of all of the friends as one whole.

If you do so and aspire towards the Light that Reforms in order to reveal the quality of bestowal a little bit inside that state, then it means that you have once again corrected your desire and it changed once again. It turns out, that every time when you get disconnected, it means that you are not disconnected and getting further apart, but that the desires are changing inside of you and this is how you move forward!
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From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/28/12, The Zohar

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0% for Ourselves

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Now, while we are still in the preparation mode, we demand to get the power of bestowal. Will our request change after we enter the spiritual world, or will we ask for the same thing again?

Answer: It’s the same request, but during our preparation period it bears an egoistic nature Lo Lishma. I ask to be given the force of bestowal, but subconsciously I hope to get some benefit for myself. So, it’s called “Lo Lishma” but the request per se remains the same.

The preparation period starts with my first request about the power of bestowal. This period ends when we receive this power, which we use to enter the spiritual world. There, we receive the power of bestowal again.

0% For Ourselves
During preparation, I requested for my own sake, Lo Lishma. I wanted to obtain the power of bestowal and hoped that eventually I would get something good for myself. My egoistic intentions gradually diminished from 100% in the beginning of my journey until they became 0% at the end. This is how I advance during the preparation period.

When I obtain the power of bestowal by preparing the desire for genuine bestowal, I use this power to request a stronger power of bestowal. At this time, it’s the force at the level of Bina, Hafetz Hesed, bestowal for the sake of bestowal. At the next level I again ask for the power of bestowal to receive for the sake of bestowal, but this time it’s the level of Hochma. This is how I move forward until I get to the level of final correction (Gmar Tikkun), the state of Keter. Continually, I ask for the power of bestowal and the difference is what desires it will rule over and what is its strength.

I realize that in order to acquire the power of bestowal, I have to sense the greatness of the Creator. To the degree of my ability to sense it, I will be able to “bend” my desire. During the preparation period and to the extent of the greatness of the Creator, I manage to correct my Lo Lishma and desire less for my own sake. This is how I prepare my bestowal desires for the next stage of bestowal for the sake of bestowal as well as my receiving desires for the state of receiving for the sake of bestowal.

Everything depends on the realization of the Creator’s greatness, which helps me rise above my egoism. It’s possible to transition from the verbal request to the internal demand in the heart only with the help of the Light. This is done by the Reforming Light.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/12/12, Writings of Rabash

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