Audio Version Of The Blog – 09.30.13

Listen to an Audio Version of the Blog
Download: MP3 Audio
[audio:http://files.kabbalahmedia.info/audio/eng_o_rav_2013-09-30_declamation_blog-rav_full.mp3 title=’30.9.13′]

What Baal HaSulam Contributed To The Spiritual System

Dr. Michael LaitmanBaal HaSulam “One Commandment”: Earlier sages chose a private way for themselves and I chose a general way, since in my view, it better suits the Godly matter to be clothed in eternal letter-combinations that will never change. I wish to say that with physical success, they will not change in any place and in any time. For this reason my words are limited.

Because of the above reason, I was compelled to express spirituality in a general manner. Yet, instead, I chose to explain all the details and spiritual combinations down to very small details, which have no other source and origin other than this collective, that is, the purity of Kabbalah. And since I clarify the spiritual details without clothing in corporeal combinations, it will do much good to the development of attainment. And this wisdom is called “the wisdom of truth.”

Only after many twists and turns and revelations along the way, a person walking the path of truth begins to realize what changes Baal HaSulam has made to it. It seems that he just wrote new texts but in fact, we are talking about changes in the system itself.

In general, every Kabbalist makes changes in the system through his corrections, his additions. That means to “clarify” the system as a whole or in details, in one form or another. The essence is not to describe the spiritual world in some words or in a certain style. No, Baal HaSulam streamlined the system and added such components so that a person advancing along the path could use them, constantly receiving support, assistance, acceleration, and so moving on.

In this, the analysis and clarification is done both in details and as a whole and takes more distinct forms necessary to move toward the goal of creation at a higher rate in comparison with those which provided the system earlier, before Baal HaSulam contributed his efforts, his changes into it.

Each Kabbalist adds something, each of them produces systemic changes, and it is not related to just writing a book. In the “Introduction to the Study of the Ten Sefirot,” Baal HaSulam talks about the sages of Talmud who have carried out such corrections in the system, so that instead of asceticism, we could advance through efforts and studies. He himself has made such a correction, by which we can, instead of studying, be more engaged in actions between us: dissemination and unity.

The Light that Reforms depends more on the actions, called the “study of the Torah.” And to “study the Torah” means to learn actions of bestowal, to learn to make them in such a way so that the Light of Hochma would clothe in the Light of Hassadim and they become the “letters” of life. Thus a man is writing the book of Torah on the tablets of his heart and advances on the path.

We learn from the “Book of Life,” we live it, experience it in practice, and reveal its letters in the form of states that pass through our desires, vessels. And Baal HaSulam arranged everything so that going through our individual actions we gain knowledge of the system as a whole. We seem to look at the big screen with the general picture, in the corner of which there is a small fragment with a part of it. Similarly, a surgeon sees general data according to the patient’s conditions and, at the same time, on the small screen, a specific location of the ongoing operation.

Thus, moving individually, we are imbued with the same impressions of the total process.
[117507]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/29/13, Writings of Baal HaSulam

Related Material:
The Man Who Opened The Path To Liberation
Kabbalists’ Legacy: Not Only Books
First-Hand Method

Like A Bird That Carries Everything To Her Nest

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Why does it say: “The reward is according to one’s sorrow?” Does it mean that we have to suffer?

Answer: Sorrow stands for exertion and efforts. According to the exertion we have invested, we receive the reward. The exertion is only with regard to one thing: choosing the environment. The more we are incorporated in the group, in its center, despite the different problems and obstacles, as it is there that we find the point of connection and then the adhesion with the Creator.

In everything that we study about the shattering of the vessels and their correction, in all of Rabash’s articles, in the practical work that we do with the public, we see that there is no other option but the group. Like birds that keep returning to the nest bringing more twigs each time, we too have to bring all our hopes and efforts to the center of the group because it is there in the center that we will discover the Creator.

To the extent that each one is incorporated in the center of the group and annuls himself, he will find the answer to all his hopes. Those who don’t do that and draw away will accordingly not succeed in anything. Let’s hope that they will be able to see this and refocus on correction.

There is nowhere else to discover the spiritual world, no other entrance to the spiritual world except for the center of the group which is as fine as an eye of a needle. When you reach it you don’t transcend to another place through this tiny hole, but you attain everything in that central point of connection. The more you focus on it, you eventually reach the actual point that has no space, and it’s there that you begin to feel spirituality, the next dimension.

So there is nowhere to run to or escape; you will find it all here in the group or you won’t find it anywhere! This is where the principle of “love thy friend as thyself” stems. It isn’t just nice words and not some psychological trick since it isn’t about an egoistic connection but about a corrected connection. Although the words may be the same, the meaning is totally different.
[117500]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/27/13, Introduction to the Study of the Ten Sefirot

Related Material:
Getting To The Center Of The Universe As In The Eye Of A Needle
Rejecting Our Present Selves
Living Water From A Common Well

Attainment Instead Of Games

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe difference between impurity (Klipa) and Divinity, is that the Klipa instead of acting and as a result of the action reaching an understanding, as it is written, “by your actions, we will know you,” it wants first of all to understand, to reach an attainment from within reason and doesn’t look for spiritual attainment. The difference is very slight, seemingly insignificant, but one must constantly fight for it. It’s exactly here that the line lies between empty philosophy, between those wise ones who research our system as if they understand something spiritual, and the spiritual way.

How is it possible to understand something and talk about it without attaining it? People can’t understand that besides the intellectual clarifications, there is spiritual attainment, a change in a person’s attributes, a different perspective in which he discovers Lights, Partzufim, worlds, and then he can speak about them.

Instead of that, a person takes the words from the wisdom of Kabbalah, the words from the Kabbalists who discovered spiritual forces of the system, and with their assistance begins to play with them as if he understands what the spiritual world is about, what is going on, and what stands behind each word. It’s like a children’s game where the child plays with a car or with a plastic tank. Children imagine that everything is really taking place, like in life, but when we look at them, we understand that it’s only a game.

It’s exactly the way people think about Kabbalah after they receive theoretical knowledge without any attainment. However, this is also good, since quickly they will discover their mistake and will come to receive the true knowledge and will want to participate.
[117315]
From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/18/13, The Zohar

Related Material:
We Can’t Understand And Measure The Creator
What Hasn’t Been Attained Cannot Be Named
Don’t Rely On The Mind

Working Without Any Compromises

Dr. Michael LaitmanRabash, Letter 29: Here my master, father, teacher, and Rabbi of blessed memory assured us that by following His way and maintaining His conduct, we would merit His eternity, blessed be He, and adhere to Him, blessed be He, and enter into the palace of the King.

We need to clarify in a fundamental manner all of the conditions and laws that were established for us by Baal HaSulam and maintain them in all their details. For if we deviate even somewhat, then we will immediately by pass by the goal, will not realize that we passed near it, and did not notice. Therefore, in our work we must strictly carry out all the conditions. In this, we must be steadfast as a rock so that nobody can cause us to fall.

There can be no compromises, suppositions, or excuses to make this work easy, pleasant, soft, and seemingly more successful. There is no other success than holding on to the conditions that Baal HaSulam taught. Only in this, do we need to see our success and not in anything else. Therefore when I sometimes hear complaints, I take this as corruption and an attempt to divert us. And here we need to stand on our own without any compromises.

Writings of Baal HaSulam, “The Teaching of Kabbalah and Its Essence”: I am glad that I have been born in this generation when it is permitted to disclose the wisdom of truth. And should you ask, “How do I know that it is permitted?” I will reply that I have been given permission to disclose. Until now, the ways by which it is possible to publicly engage and to fully explain each word have not been revealed to any sage.

This is to say, we can reveal the entire wisdom of Kabbalah only in accordance with the audience, so as not to confuse them. But there are no secrets any longer.

And the matter doesn’t depend upon the genius of the Kabbalist himself, rather upon the state in which the generation is found; for all of my merit in revealing this wisdom is established by my generation.

We belong to a unique generation that not only agrees with the instructions of Baal HaSulam, but also by all outward appearances signs, is selected to expand and implement the wisdom of Kabbalah. Therefore, for every person who goes resolutely, directly towards the goal, doesn’t agree to any compromises, and considers it the only important thing in his life, is assured of success. And someone who wants to make a business of the wisdom of Kabbalah or to exploit it for his own ego is doomed to failure.

In our generation this is no longer possible. The time has arrived in which we must realize this method not in the form of some kind of mysticism, religion, or tradition. All of the religions are collapsing and only this method is flourishing and will make it possible for a person to grow from the ruins of all the faiths, religions, and all kinds of methods.
[116944]
From the Talk during the Meal Dedicated to the Memory Baal HaSulam 9/15/13

Related Material:
The Man Who Opened The Path To Liberation
To Live And Not Merely Exist
The Eternal Phase Of Dissemination

The Naked King

Dr. Michael LaitmanIn the News (from The Independent): “King Willem-Alexander delivered a message to the Dutch people from the government in a nationally televised address: the welfare state of the 20th century is gone.

“In its place a ‘participation society’ is emerging, in which people must take responsibility for their own future and create their own social and financial safety nets, with less help from the national government. …

“’The shift to a ‘participation society’ is especially visible in social security and long-term care,’ the king said, reading out to lawmakers a speech written for him by Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s government.

“’The classic welfare state of the second half of the 20th century in these areas in particular brought forth arrangements that are unsustainable in their current form.’ …

“The king said Tuesday some costs for the care of the elderly, for youth services, and for job retraining after layoffs will now be pushed back to the local level, in order to make them better tailored to local circumstances. …

“Willem-Alexander said that nowadays, people expect and ‘want to make their own choices, to arrange their own lives, and take care of each other.”

My Comment: Ahead there is either savagery or development in integral education, the path of suffering or the path of Light, as predicted by Kabbalah.
[117543]

Related Material:
IMF Tells US To Sort Out Debt, Quickly
No One Has Any Chances
Europe And Demographic Decline

Spiritual Audit

Dr. Michael LaitmanBaal HaSulam, “Introduction to The Book of Zohar”, Item 17: Thus, we are already in that measure of perfection, worthy and fitting of the Perfect Operator who made us, even in our current, second state, for this body does not defect us in any way, since it will expire and die, and is only here for the time necessary for its cancellation and acquisition of our eternal form.

As it is written, “I created the evil inclination.” It is all about the corrupt form that reveals itself within us so that we will rescind it. By doing so, we will attain the full depth of creation and will come to know the upper force, the one, the only, the unique. This is the way it works. We must be grateful for having circumstances that allow us to act in a certain way, thus ascending to the level of the Creator.

In this world, while learning something, we stay who we are, with the addition of some knowledge that is external to us. In spirituality, new things disclose themselves internally and come to us through our desires and roots.

As a result, we constantly change and are born anew every single moment. Each internal change turns us into someone else. Our new form is not connected with the prior states in any way, that is, with something that previously happened to us before a new spiritual action emerged within us.

There is nothing but a chain of causes and effects. Other than that, all our thoughts and sensations acquired at a new level completely differ from the prior step.

We must get ready for that and prepare ourselves to go through various conditions while we still are at the preparatory level. Desperation, disappointment, apathy, and indifference are replaced by enthusiasm and excitement. We go through the entire spectrum of sensations that allows us to analyze ourselves and see prior states vanishing as we transition to new levels.

At this time, the amplitude between our ascents and downfalls is not so great, nor are the various details of our perception of the world really significant. Nevertheless, our animate sensations can be opposite to the judgments we make. For example, when we fall to the very bottom, we regard this state as the ascent to a new high. The main thing is to realize from whom we are getting the descents and what does He want to achieve by sending them to us. Or it might be the opposite: Elation, like doing drugs or winning the lottery, can be regarded as a dead end that doesn’t contain even a tiny spark of the Light and draws us down to an animal state.

I evaluate the situation not by their feelings, but by their importance and the purpose. Everything depends not on the state per se, but rather on the evaluations we make.  And therefore, our prime concern is to transition from sensations to analysis of closely it is connected to our goal. We examine everything around us to how it relates to and how closely it correspondences to, and how useful it is for the goal. For example, if the descent I experienced distanced me from the goal was intended for my subsequent recovery, then I am happy.

Thus, we try to maintain a connection with the goal and measure our internal states by it. In the end, we begin striving to stay in one perfect state. Anything that runs through us helps us to analyze ourselves and thus, adhere with the state of merging.
[82061]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/3/12, “Introduction to The Book of Zohar

Related Material:
Should We Search For Evil Within Ourselves?
The spiritual Breathing: Ascents and Descents
“I Want Only To Bestow”

The Curse Of Brownian Particles

Dr. Michael LaitmanBaal HaSulam, “Introduction to The Book of Zohar,” Item 19: …all the agonies in our world are but manifestations offered to our eyes, to prompt us to revoke the evil Klipa of the body and assume the complete form of the will to bestow. And it is as we have said, that the path of suffering in itself can bring us to the desired form.

Our corrupt desire has to develop, that is, to change in the course of its evolution. As it develops, it strives for pleasures as long as this pursuit doesn’t stop satisfying us. Now, on the contrary, it brings us troubles and problems.

The afflictions vary. Partially, they happen because a desire is unable to fulfill itself, which is not that scary yet. However, in addition the desire suffers from its own vices. In other words, the desire suffers not only because it experiences a lack of fulfillment but also because it feels a lack of vitality. It’s one thing when there is no abundance but it’s a totally different thing when there is a deficiency of essential things. This  eventually leads to death.

From this we see that desire can be accurately directed to anything. Sufferings forces people to run away them, that is, sufferings direct us to exactly where we should be. They don’t define the goal, but simply push us away from them.

But there is another path, the path of Torah. It reveals the purpose of man, which defines the goal without painful reminders. The state in which I feel bad (the evil state) pushes me away to a place where suffering stops being the main moving force. I move away from it to a distance of, let’s say, L1. I stop there, and then, a new round of pain pushes me away again to a safe distance of L2, solely to stop the torments.

This kind of Brownian movement can take years and generations. It is the path of suffering.

The Curse of Brownian Particles
 

On the other hand, on the path of Torah, I pursue its purpose it in a good, peaceful manner, in the quickest way, through 125 degrees.
[82055]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/3/12, “Introduction to The Book of Zohar”

Related Material:
The Creator Does Not Need Our Suffering
Righteousness Isn’t Acquired By suffering
About sufferin Great Great And Small

The Magic Influence Of The Environment

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: World War II veterans recall that during the early days of war they were uplifted, full of excitement and joy. However, when the real clashes began, all this changed to horror.

Answer: I myself watched the joy and turn to terror during the military actions I participated in, in this country (Israel). The exhilaration was quickly replaced by a desire to make it all end quickly. This is actually the case. And people can’t explain it.

Anybody can be transformed under the influence of the environment; one easily can be stopped from doing what he used to enjoy previously.

Take the anti-smoking campaign for example. I am a smoker too, so I can tell how it affects people. Many quit smoking. Thirty or forty years ago, everyone was smoking everywhere, in all public places: on buses, on the streets, and in buildings. It was normal and it caused no objections. Strangely enough, people didn’t even pay attention to the fact that everyone around them smoked!

Today, it’s prohibited to smoke even at bus stations, sometimes even in the street, not to mention cafes or any other public places.

In other words, we see that, if a society sets a certain objective, the environment influences a person to the extent that it can change even his firm habits such as smoking. Everyone realizes how important it is to a smoker to have a cigarette, and yet, people quit smoking.

If we only could “tune up” our society toward the changes that would lead us to integral growth and unity, we would certainly succeed! The problem is to make quite a stir—governmental and international programs—aimed at implementing integral liaisons among us. Otherwise, we will still have to go through this process but in a dramatic way.
[81507]
From a “Talk on Integral Upbringing” 5/25/12

Related Material:
The Influence of a Committed Community
The Environment’s Amazing Influence
Karl Marx on the Influence of the Environment

Daily Kabbalah Lesson – 09.30.13

Preparation to the Lesson

[media 1] [media 2]

Writings of Baal HaSulam Introduction to the Study of Ten Sefirot

[media 3] [media 4]

The Book of Zohar — Introduction

[media 5] [media 6]

Talmud Eser Sefirot, Vol. 3, Part 9

[media 7] [media 8]

Writings of Baal HaSulam One Commandment

[media 9] [media 10]