There is work during an ascent and work during a descent, and a person must try to find what is relevant to him in each of these two states. But most importantly, a person is required to work during an ascent, because during a descent there is no one from whom to demand anything. He may be in such a state that he neither hears nor is able to move from his place, sometimes not only internally but even physically.

But during an ascent, when he experiences an influx of strength, he should not simply enjoy it, as though he feels good and is in a state of perfection. He must understand that this has been given to him from above, although he does not deserve it. Yet both the state of ascent and the state of descent are given to him solely for the sake of advancing.

There are no reward and punishment in this. It is not that because I suffered before, I am now being rewarded by feeling good. This is a completely mistaken thought and an incorrect approach to the process we are going through.

The state called a descent is given in order to feel our own qualities, while the state called an ascent is given in order to feel the qualities of the Creator. By sensing our own qualities during the descent and the qualities of the Creator during the ascent, we must work with these two states and derive the greatest possible benefit for our advancement from them.

If we go through these states without using them to advance toward the purpose of creation, they simply pass by. We will be given an ascent and a descent once or twice, and then they will stop. Or they will be sent once every six months or once a year. And so, the years will pass.

Everything depends on how purposefully a person relates to each state they find themself in, without thinking that it is given to them as a reward or a punishment, but accepting it simply as a state for work.
[358779]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/7/26, Rabash, “What Are Holiness and Purity, in the Work?”

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