Mordecai is righteous, whose work is only to bestow without any need to ascend in degrees, and he is content with little, while the king wished to give the light of wisdom, which extends from the left line, and Mordecai’s work was only from the right line.

What did the king do? He promoted Haman, meaning he made the left line important. This is the meaning of “and set his seat above all the ministers.” In addition, he gave him the control, meaning that all the king’s slaves kneeled and bowed before Haman, “for the king had so commanded,” that he would receive control, and everyone accepted him (Baal HaSulam, Shamati 37, “An Article for Purim“).

If a person is entirely in a state of bestowal, they do not consider that it might also be possible to receive for the sake of bestowal, because these qualities contradict each other. I am directed solely toward bestowal, away from myself, and that is all I desire. I take pleasure in bestowing and thinking about others, and in this state, my bestowal, action, thought, and desire—all the forces of my soul—are directed in one direction: from me outward, to the one to whom I bestow. This is how the quality of “Mordechai” within us is structured.

But if one seeks to reveal a person’s full capacity to bestow, then it is necessary to develop receiving desires within them so that they may receive for the sake of bestowal and thereby form a connection and mutuality between them and the Creator.

If I only bestow to someone, there is no real connection between us. It only seems that we are connected because I am within them, in their desires, but they are not within me! Therefore there is no true unity between us, which was the purpose of creation.

True connection is only possible if I also receive from the other to the same extent that I wish to bestow to them. Then a mutual relationship arises between us because connection is only possible between equals; whatever I receive, I also bestow!

However, if I receive for the sake of bestowal, to return fulfillment to the other, this action includes two opposing qualities: receiving, which brings pleasure, and bestowal, which seeks to bring pleasure to another. That is why our inner Mordechai, the quality of bestowal within us, does not understand how this is possible. We truly do not grasp it; it is an extremely elevated state.

So how can one be compelled to act in such a way and be drawn out of the balance provided by bestowal for the sake of bestowal, the attribute of Bina, which desires nothing for itself and only gives as much as possible? How can one be forced to even consider receiving, to integrate reception into bestowal? This is an incredibly complex and multidimensional process; it requires an entirely new approach, a profound internal transformation to understand how to work with it.

It is the result of a mutual connection between them, one that previously seemed impossible. That is why a powerful, external, and even cruel force is needed to completely overturn the previous approach of “bestowal for the sake of bestowal,” the method of Mordechai, to such an extent that the Mordechai within me feels annulled, powerless! I am no longer capable of bestowing for the sake of bestowal and instead fall into “impure desires” (Klipot), completely lost!

Only then, but not before, does this new approach emerge, the possibility of receiving for the sake of bestowal. As always, development follows all four phases until we reach the final resolution.

This is why so many different characters play a role in the Purim story, assistants to the King and Haman, and each represents aspects of this profound process.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 3/20/11, Writings of Baal HaSulam “An Article for Purim“

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