Audio Version Of The Blog – 12/27/23
Posted on December 27th, 2023
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Michael Laitman on the Times of Israel: “Returning to Our Roots”
Returning to our roots invokes a profound sentiment, which resonates deeply, stirring an inexplicable longing within.
The wisdom of Kabbalah possesses a principle known as the “law of root and branch.” It asserts that each spiritual root holds a physical counterpart in our world. For instance, Jerusalem (Heb. “Yerushalayim”) stems from a spiritual force rooted in complete awe/fear (Heb. “Ira’a Shlema”), which is a fear for not fulfilling the Divine will. It is a call for us to embrace brotherly love, wholeness, peace and the perfection of our nation, radiating unity to all peoples.
The hidden connection between this root and its branches draws people who are attuned to the higher ideal of Jerusalem toward the mountainous city itself. Upon reaching its ancient walls, a distinct fervor envelops them, influenced not just by the idea but also by the very ground they stand upon.
This union between root and branch was once palpable during the days of the Temple, when Israel diligently pursued unity, attracting the world to learn from the wisdom of connection that the people of Israel upheld. Unity, however, fell short when internal strife consumed them, severing the harmony between Jerusalem’s essence and its inhabitants, leading to their expulsion from this sacred ground.
Even now, although we have returned to Israel, the bond between Israel’s root, its capital Jerusalem, and its physical manifestation, is frail and faded. Our failure to prioritize unity in our return from exile has led to escalating division and animosity, jeopardizing our existence in this land.אפ
We should indeed revere the Land of Israel as an extension of a sanctified root, treating it with the utmost respect, and we do so by cultivating love and connection among each other.
Our attachment to Israel’s root and Jerusalem’s heart determines our belonging to this land. Failure to align ourselves accordingly will likely subject us to another exile, as Kabbalist Baruch Shalom HaLevi Ashlag (the Rabash) penned,
“Exile comes only when one does not cautiously keep the value of the land, and the land is not appreciated as it should be. As a result, the land throws that person out, as it is written, ‘And the land shall vomit out.’ […] May the Creator grant us understanding the great merit of the land of Israel, and to know how to appreciate it so it will not vomit us out.” – Rabash, “Letter 57.”
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Question: It is said that a person should pray to the Creator to help him be above reason, and his work should be in joy as if he had been awarded spiritual reason.
But when I am in joy there is some fear that I will start to receive for myself.
How can I overcome the fear of being in joy?
Answer: Why are you afraid to be in joy? On the contrary, it is a huge commandment. It is necessary to be in this state all the time and not fall from the level of joy that the Creator created you. It brings you closer to Him, and gives you a feeling of coming closer and connecting with Him.
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From the 1st psrt of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/13/23, Writings of Rabash “These Candles Are Sacred”
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Question: What is the spiritual world, where is it, what is it, and what kind of picture should we imagine in order to yearn for it?
Answer: The spiritual world is the attitude of love of everyone for everyone. As far as we can correspond to it, we will rise to it.
Question: Can we already feel the spiritual world at least a little bit?
Answer: Try to love your friends and feel the attitude to the Creator within this quality. This will be the feeling of the upper world for now.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/12/23, Writings of Rabash Letter No. 44
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Question: How does one not let the will to receive break into the heart?
Answer: Actively resist it. By cultivating love for others in your heart, mainly for your ten, you will be able to reach a state of connection with the friends.
Question: But where can I get the strength to pray?
Answer: From each other. Everyone should help others through their correct example, and then you will never have problems with a lack of strength to show love.
Question: When we work on our connection, we ask the Creator that the heart really lets a friend in and starts sincerely loving him. But it is said that we need to connect with each other and with the Creator.
What is this addition of with the Creator?
Answer: The fact is that through the connection between you, you connect with the Creator. This is exactly what you have to reveal. In your unity, you will begin to feel the spiritual world.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/12/23, Writings of Rabash Letter No. 44
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We should understand why there cannot be an upper blessing on an empty table. After all, the blessing is that the Creator wants to give to the created beings delight and pleasure. Thus, why must the receivers first prepare in order to make room for the blessing to be, meaning that they must set up a suitable place to receive the upper blessing? (What Is the Prohibition to Bless on an Empty Table, in the Work? Rabash, Article No. 16 (1989)).
Question: If the table we are supposed to bless is empty, then is this an opportunity to ask?
Answer: The table is all that we receive from the Creator. If it is empty, then the Creator does not offer us anything. We must feel that we are always at the set table, i.e., everything we receive comes from Him.
Comment: But you said that the Creator enjoys it when we turn to Him. And if the table is set, I don’t turn to Him.
My Response: In this case, your prayer is gratitude, not a request—because everything is in front of you.
Question: How do you arouse the appetite for a set table every time you reveal that it is set?
Answer: You don’t immediately reveal that the table is set. First you have to make contact with your friends, connect with them, develop a feeling of hunger, and only then you will see a set table in front of you.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/16/23, Writings of Rabash “What Is the Prohibition to Bless on an Empty Table, in the Work?”
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Question: When a person receives an addition of desire, his goal changes. Does it mean that a person is now striving to rise above his friends and he does not need the greatness of the Creator?
Answer: A person constantly receives an addition of egoism, pride, etc. from above, and he must work on this all the time.
Then he will begin to understand how high the Creator is because He annuls Himself more than anyone by concealing Himself from our world.
Thus, you can only see Him to the extent that you are annulling yourself by feeling smaller than others.
Therefore, by annulling yourself as much as possible before your friends and raising them in your eyes, you will gradually establish the right relationships with each other.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/5/23, Writings of Baal HaSulam “Man’s Pride Shall Bring Him Low“
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Question: In the last decade, a branch was created in the theoretical exact sciences called the science of dark data.
It explores what the scientific approach should be to data sets that we are unable to comprehend but know that they exist and somehow, not very clearly how, affect us.
Here arises the following question. Throughout its development, humanity has not been able to precisely determine the boundary of what it can know up to a certain limit and what it cannot. It seems to move with blindfolded eyes. Why is it half-erased in human perception?
Answer: The reason is that we truly do not know ourselves and to the same extent we do not know the space, the volume, of information in which we exist. Therefore, only all kinds of speculation can take place here, and this is no longer science.
We just need to keep going with the same small steps that we are taking, and the future will gradually unfold more, and more, and more to us. Every day we still learn something new. So, although I am talking about the unknowable, I assume that this unknowable is knowable.
Question: Is cognition a sensation or some other sensation?
Answer: Cognition is the sensation of merging our inner world with something external, i.e., the connection of two planes, two perceptions.
Question: Is ideal cognition the inclusion of all reality in oneself or oneself in all reality?
Answer: But we have not realized this yet, so we are only talking about it theoretically.
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From KabTV’s “Kabbalah Express” 11/27/23
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Question: My correction is a difficult and long path. I do not want to wait another 20 years to get to that. What efforts should be made to hasten the process of correction?
Answer: If you think that the correction concerns only you, then you may have to wait another 2,000 years.
But if you think that the correction should be between you in the group, then you will very quickly feel what you need to do, and you will have time for everything.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/11/23, Writings of Rabash “The Meaning of Sins Becoming as Merits”
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Comment: You say that the criteria of spiritual work is my good attitude toward my friends. For example, I rarely come to the group. It suits me as everyone is very nice to me. It turns out, a good attitude is an insufficient criterion.
My Response: This is because you are putting yourself in the position of a guest in this way.
Come to the group regularly and try to connect to your friends between lessons and get closer to the Creator through them. If you miss this opportunity, it goes to your disadvantage.
You must be connected to the ten and be ready to perceive any states you feel for the approval of the Creator. Then, you will constantly feel you can come closer to Him every minute.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/11/23, Writings of Rabash “The Meaning of Sins Becoming as Merits”
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