Question: What did Baal HaSulam add to the correction of the soul that the ARI started?

Answer: The ARI himself did not write anything. It was his student Marhu (Chaim Vital) who wrote, and his writings were published over the course of three generations after the death of the ARI.

Baal HaSulam explained and systematized the entire teaching of the ARI. Before him, the teaching of the ARI was not arranged in a structured way, and therefore, it was impossible to study it properly. Many who began studying the ARI would eventually switch to studying the works of the Ramak.

I myself studied the Ramak until I discovered Baal HaSulam. I saw many Kabbalists who preferred studying the Ramak instead of the ARI because the books of Ramak are clear and organized.

The writings of the ARI were not structured. Baal HaSulam systematized, detailed, explained, and arranged them: the three lines, the first and second restrictions, the Creator and the created being, the definitions of the worlds, Sefirot, Partzufim, NRNHY KHB, ZON, and he even created a collection of diagrams of the upper worlds in the book Elan.

Although some parts are missing that he could have systematized further (like Adam HaRishon, the impure worlds of BYA), it seems he chose not to deal with them. Without Baal HaSulam, we would not have the method of the ARI. It would be impossible to understand the ARI.

Today when we read other Kabbalists, we understand them only because we are familiar with the works of Baal HaSulam. Without him, we would be confused.

Whatever you read, whether it is the books on Hasidism, the Ramak, or the Agra, you only understand them because you studied Baal HaSulam. Without the articles of Rabash, we would not be able to understand what is required of us and what the work of the Creator truly means.

Without these two Kabbalists Baal HaSulam and RABASH who complement each other, we would not have the correct approach to the method of correction.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/8/10, Writings of Baal HaSulam Preface “Introduction to the Book Panim Meirot uMasbirot”

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Humanity is moving forward. Once it believed only in spirits, in hidden forces of nature: wind, sun, moon, earthquakes, sacrifices, etc. There are still many similar beliefs on Earth today that exist to this day. Some of them will only vanish with the revelation of the Creator.

But as egoism develops in humanity, the ego begins to demand greater revelation, greater comprehension, and a stronger foundation for any action. A person becomes lazier and more egoistic; they want rewards, and demand clear understanding, knowledge, and compensation for their efforts.

That is why, in ancient times, over many centuries, various movements and forms of worship emerged. All of them were also tied to the specific characteristics of each nation that were beneficial to their elites.

But the key point is that all these beliefs are referred to as “faith,” that is, as blind faith—believing in something that a person does not reveal, does not see, and does not feel. Yet when someone begins to work with this, everything in him is purely psychologically shaped into a kind of knowledge, a conviction so strong that one is ready to give their life for it.

Question: Is blind faith close to faith with knowledge?

Answer: There is no actual knowledge here because no one is revealing the Creator. But gradually a person reaches a state where they must do so.

The first person to reveal the Creator was Adam only 6,000 years ago. Although for many centuries before that humanity sought to know the Creator, it remained in a state of faith and not knowledge. Adam HaRishon was the first who attained the Creator. That is, he gained clear knowledge, and the ability for mutual, two-way communication: “I speak to Him, and He responds.” Adam began to work within this interaction.

This kind of attainment of the Creator by a person in this world is called the wisdom of Kabbalah. Only then do we move from faith to knowledge.

The entire wisdom of Kabbalah is based on knowledge. It calls each person to rise either from the level of nonbelief—which is also a kind of faith, a belief in the absence of upper forces, a program of development, etc.—or from the level where upper forces are accepted on faith, to a state where a person reveals the Creator’s governance and begins to interact accordingly.

Thus, in our world there are two completely different approaches to human behavior. That is why there are over 3,000 various belief systems. We can see how much they differ across different regions of the world.

For example, in South America it is customary to dig up the bones of ancestors, wash them out of respect, and rebury them. In China, other types of worship exist, and in Japan, still others. People come up with all sorts of methods. This is one path.

The second path is Kabbalah. It is intended for those who cannot function within blind faith; they need knowledge.

Kabbalah leads them to the revelation of the upper force, not just belief in it where people invent various methods, systems of behavior, and interaction, but actual revelation. A person is shown models of behavior with the upper force, mutual closeness, communication, development, and so on.

Question: So when Baal HaSulam writes “religion,” should we always interpret it as “Kabbalah”?

Answer: Baal HaSulam specifically means Kabbalah because nothing else is connected to the upper force.
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From KabTV’s “The Last Generation” 7/10/2017

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Question: According to Kabbalah, the purpose of human existence is to reveal the the Creator. What exactly is revealed to a person?

Answer: We exist within a certain informational field, and we do not know where or what it is.

We do not know where we came from, how we exist, what governs us, or where our thoughts and desires come from at every moment. We do not know what directs us when we decide to act.

We float along the current of life, and it seems to us that we are doing things, but in truth, we are not.

In order to understand where we are and who we are, we must reveal the governing force.

This is precisely what the wisdom of Kabbalah is engaged in. There is no greater purpose in our lives than to reveal the upper force and its governance over us. Only then will we know who we are, why we are, and how we are.

Question: What does the word “revelation” mean in this context?

Answer: I do not even know whether I truly exist right now or not, and what my life really means.

Comment: But I feel that I exist in some kind of world.

My Response: But do you feel that you are being governed, and who governs you?

Comment: True, we do not perceive the root cause.

My Response: We perceive neither the beginning, nor the middle, nor the end.

The attainment of the Creator must reveal everything that I want to know about myself, my existence, and reality as a whole—where I am, why, and what for.

Question: So when the reason for my existence and its purpose are revealed to me, is that what is called the revelation of the Creator?

Answer: No, that is the revelation of His attitude toward me. But essentially, that is how He is revealed, only relative to us.

Question: Is this some kind of sensory attainment?

Answer: Of course, it is sensory, direct, and scientific.

Question: Where does this become revealed in a person? Let us say one person attains it, and another does not. What is the difference between them?

Answer: The one who has attained the Creator perceives our world as a part of a vast reality.

He sees how everything happens not only in this world but in all of creation. He understands why each action occurs, with him and with everyone. He feels the entire picture.

We cannot even imagine what that means. But from that picture, a person understands everything that is happening to him and to everyone, in all of history and geography. It does not matter where, he understands the whole of creation and the Creator who governs it.
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From KabTV’s “Basics of Kabbalah” 7/2/19

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True bestowal can only be achieved under the influence of the upper light when we study Kabbalah in a group.

By reading books that describe the actions of bestowal that the light performs on desire, we thereby cause its effects on our own desires. It is all very simple.

Question: By what measure is bestowal evaluated?

Answer: Bestowal is measured above the desire, meaning, what kind of desire I am able to rise above in order to bestow. Maybe I can give up 10 dollars, or 20, or perhaps 10 million or even 20.

This example is clear to you. It depends on what you are able to rise above. Bestowal is measured by the magnitude of the desire you transcend, by the desire you disregard in order to bestow. This is called a “sacrifice.” You sacrifice your 10 million.
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From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. Bestowal,” 9/24/10

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Preparation to the Lesson

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1st part of the Lesson — Writings of Rabash, Article 35 “The Fifteenth of Av” 1986 (8.16.2019)

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2nd part of the Lesson — Writings of Rabash, Article 8 “Which Keeping of Torah and Mitzvot Purifies the Heart?” (1984)

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3rd part of the Lesson — Writings of Rabash, Article 11 “Concerning Ancestral Merit” (1984)

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4th part of the Lesson — Writings of Baal HaSulam, “Introduction of The Book of Zohar,” “The Donkey Driver”

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We are unable to perform any action directly related to the Creator. All of them should pass only through the group, in the center of which we will reveal this essence called the Creator.

The Creator does not exist separately, by Himself. Only if I bring the group together, wishing to unite it, and it turns into a single whole—there, within this unity, I begin to discover the Creator for myself. I cannot find Him otherwise.

There is a very clear chain leading to the Creator: love of friends -> awe -> faith -> love for the Creator. Only in this way can we reach Him, otherwise we miss.

The concept of “the Creator” is one, unified, single force, attainable within the unity of the group. If I can direct all my desires and intentions toward unification, I will be able to imagine this single concept, which is the Creator.

Before I can imagine it, the Creator does not exist. There is no Creator without creation. All the work carried out in the group is designed to clarify the concept of the Creator. This does not mean we practice here but reveal the Creator somewhere else.

It is within our work in the group, in concentrating all our efforts on the concept of unity, on uniting the group, all friends, all desires and intentions, evil and good inclinations into one single whole, at the very top of the middle line do we reveal the Creator.

When I become included in a friend, I become imbued with his properties, desires, and goals. But I cannot do it myself, I only make efforts, and the upper light binds us into a system of ten Sefirot, into a spiritual Partzuf, into a vessel of the soul. In this vessel (Kli) we begin to feel all kinds of phenomena. Under the influence of light, we make a restriction, a screen, reflected light, and coupling while striking (Zivug de Hakaa), with the light.

Even if we do not want to connect and act through force, we are already awakening the light. The main thing is that this light does not come to us from above uninvited, pushing us toward each other with a negative force, but that we ourselves ask for its awakening, striving for the center of the group.

With our efforts to unite, we awaken the light that returns to the source, which, acting through the center of the group, attracts us to the center with its centripetal force. We should leave our ego behind, where it is now, and strive with our hearts toward the center of the group.
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From Daily Kabbalah Lesson 1/17/19 Writings of Rabash “Love of Friends – 2”

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Question: What is the right approach to failure?

Answer: What must be, will be. What is meant to happen will happen. And we must be ready for everything and understand that life is like this: a white stripe, a black stripe.

Question: So after the black stripe, a white one will definitely come?

Answer: Maybe it will just lightly pass, just touch you, but it will come. And then again, a black one.

Question: Then how will I change? Will I not suffer from this, will I not beat myself up?

Answer: No, we are built in such a way that we only run away from failures. We cannot properly analyze them, understand them, correct something, and prepare for something. We cannot. We only work to escape from them. And this is a completely wrong action and philosophy in general.

If we connect these two states—failure and success—we will make ourselves sovereign over them and will not be weak-willed in times of failure or in times of success.

Question: So I kind of unite black and white?

Answer: Yes.

Question: I do not perceive it as a failure?

Answer: You rise above both states and thus go through them easily. You just need to understand what it means to rise above them.

It means to rise above your life’s striving, to stop chasing success. Understand that right now, today, you are in success already, within it.

It is like physicists say there are all sorts of black holes. So actually, we ourselves are in a black hole. In an astronomical black hole.

Question: And what is beyond it?

Answer: Nothing; and nothing is needed. Relax and understand that you are inside nature. And let it lead you. The main thing is to surrender to nature.

Question: So I throw away the oars? There is a current, I throw away the oars.

Answer: Yes.

Question: Is there a current?

Answer: Even that does not matter to me.

Question: That does not matter? To just let go of everything like that?

Answer: Yes.

Question: Is that possible?

Answer: If you believe in a wise, great, eternal, all-powerful nature, then in my opinion, it is the most reasonable decision.

Comment: Yes, this sounds very timely: nothing is in my control.

My Response: And moreover, anything you come up with to go against this on your own only emphasizes the insignificance, limitation, misunderstanding, ignorance, and disagreement with this great nature in which we exist.

Resist nothing. Invent nothing. Try simply to understand what nature itself is, agree with it, cling to it, and you will find the most optimal component of your existence.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 7/23/25

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What would I gain if I found out what will happen to me in a week, a month, a year, ten or twenty years? I think it is much more interesting to live when you do not know anything. You just don’t know! This is much more interesting; it is exciting.

When you know everything, it is as if you have come to a movie theater to watch a movie, sat in the chair, and suddenly realized that you remember this movie very well; you have already seen it. The whole thrill disappears.

Comment: Meaning, it is better to live the way as you say: tomorrow is tomorrow, whatever will happen, will happen. Everything is in the hands of the upper one. Hence, we should move with this flow.

My Response: Yes, the best thing is not to know anything and be the boss in your life.

As much as you are the boss, you are the boss, and as much as not, you will start figuring it out; it just does not need to be. I am moving forward according to the rules that the Creator has set up for me in order to come to Him. I am approaching Him precisely within those conditions that He has presented for me. I do not want anything more. I do not want to see more than that, even a tiny bit! I do not want anything else! I want to be exactly so, a devoted follower of the Creator.

This is the most wonderful of anything that can be! This is a great award to a person when he can act this way!

And at the same time, hearing them speak about your future? No way! We must come to the state of bestowal.

Question: What if around the corner of this movement, as you say, of giving oneself to the Creator, suddenly horrible things happen?

Answer: There is no horrible or non-horrible. It all depends on how you relate to it. If you give yourself to it with an open heart and soul, then whatever happens, happens, but this is from the Creator; there is nothing horrible.

Everything in the next moment just becomes simple, clear, soft. Your attitude to the Creator is what makes Him the Creator. That is all. Here also comes the correct connection between you.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 7/19/25

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Comment: Chow Yun-Fat, a  Hong Kong actor and filmmaker is a millionaire; however, he lives on limited budget, uses public transportation, buys clothes only on sale, saying: “As long as it is comfortable, I do not need anything else.” He has had a small phone for 17 years and just recently replaced it with a smart phone. He says that he does not need wealth for the sake of wealth.

My Response: He was created this way. There are people who like to live precisely such a lifestyle; they feel better this way. It is not overcoming of their egoism, but rather an expression of their nature.

His egoism is balanced. Large egoism exists in a huge number of people eager for everything and ready to sacrifice their lives for the achievement of some egoistic, earthly goal. Here we must show how it is possible to balance these aspirations in order to be happy.

Question: Do you feel even closer to people who are bursting and their ego is raging?

Answer: Yes, such people are closer to me because they are the ones who are people. But he is like: “Here I have green grass, and this is good. Sun, water, and that is it!”

Question: Do you say that you are closer to those millionaires who go and make more and more money and even step over others?

Answer: Yes, they realize the enormous egoism of nature that exists in humanity. For that reason, humanity will come to recognize the evil of egoism. Precisely thanks to these millionaires. They are working correctly for the general law of nature, and we have to be grateful to them. They show all of humanity how quickly we have to burn this egoism; otherwise, nothing will happen.

We have to realize its futility, uselessness, and emptiness. Most importantly, it does not bring us to any good goal. This knowledge and this experience of accumulation of negative results are necessary for us.

Question: Meaning, it is all opposite. People admire this person. However, you are closer to someone who steps over people, makes millions and billions, and that is all. He rages! And he is closer to you?

Answer: Of course. Precisely thanks to them, humanity understands what it has to correct within.

Question: Will it come to this fast?

Answer: Certainly. It will come only through recognition of evil and the nature of egoism when it grows and is gradually more and more recognized by everyone, and through revelation of its corruption on our side.

Question: Only in this way?

Answer: If there is a possibility to do something in a good way, then this is the only choice. And if not, then it will be through suffering. Let’s hope that it will not happen this way.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman,” 11/15/19

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