Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 202

How Do We Reach Bestowal to the Creator?

We can reach bestowal to the Creator through the small society we build. We bestow to our friends, the friends bestow to us, and together we form a group. Just as, in the end of correction, our souls are connected on the spiritual level, so we try to connect here and truly rise to that state.

By doing so, we attract surrounding light (Ohr Makif) into this world, and in a sense compel the Creator to increase the illumination, either through our own attraction of the surrounding light or through the light coming from the Creator in another way.

However, only our yearning to reach the purpose of creation neutralizes the Creator’s seemingly negative attitude toward the world. Then, the Creator does not need to awaken the world to correction through suffering.

No amount of activity based solely on direct relations between people will help, that is, bestowal to others with no connection to Godliness. Any form of bestowal on the level where a person currently exists, if disconnected from the Creator, is ineffective. We need to engage in bestowal to others only with the intention of reaching bestowal to the Creator.

“Love your neighbor as yourself” must be connected solely to correction. In the article “The Last Generation,” Baal HaSulam explains that this is the reason for the collapse of systems like those in Russia. They took the ideal of bestowing to others and detached it from the Creator. The same occurred in kibbutzim and other cooperative societies. They separated the ideal from its spiritual root and purpose, turning bestowal into a value in and of itself. This led to those systems’ complete collapse.

In other words, bestowal to others, when disconnected from bestowal to the Creator and from the purpose of creation, is out of alignment with the true goal and ultimately leads to destruction. What is the end of correction? It is a state in which every thought, action, and breath is connected to the purpose of creation. Anything disconnected from this purpose has no true existence and is considered lifeless. However, when we reach a state where everything in our life is connected to the end of correction, nothing limits us, and we attain a form of eternal life. The wisdom of Kabbalah is the method of learning how to reach this state.

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Preparation to the Lesson

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1st part of the Lesson — Writings of Rabash, Article 2 “What Is, ‘Return, O Israel, Unto the Lord Your God,’ in the Work?” (1991) (2.3.2003)

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2nd part of the Lesson — Writings of Baal HaSulam, “Study of the Ten Sefirot,” Vol. 1, Part 1, Chapter 1

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By being in exile they [the children of Israel] will feel the need to be only in a state of bestowal, by which they will be rewarded with Dvekut with the Creator. Thus, the suffering of exile will reform them (Rabash, Article 27, 1986 “The Creator and Israel Went into Exile”).

We were created with vessels of reception, which are opposite to the Creator. Since the Creator wishes to bring us closer to Him according to the law of equivalence of form, He is revealed only to the extent that we become similar to Him. Therefore a person is called “Adam,” from the word “Edomeh,” “I shall be similar to the Creator.”

As long as a person’s desires have not yet been corrected because he has not attained the state of equivalence of form, the similarity of his qualities to the qualities of the Creator, those desires remain opposite to the Creator. Yet even one who still possesses qualities opposite to the Creator, but at the same time strives for adhesion with Him, is already called “Israel” (“Yashar-El,” straight to the Creator).

However, true “Israel” is the degree of equivalence of form. To the one who attains it, the Creator is revealed accordingly, and this signifies that they have both come out of exile together.

Just as a person comes out of exile, that is, out of his uncorrected Kelim, so too the Creator comes out of exile by revealing Himself to that person to the same extent. But insofar as a person remains in exile in certain desires, or even partially within some of them, to that same extent the Creator remains concealed from him.

The degrees of the Creator’s concealment or revelation with respect to us are called the worlds (Olamot, from the word “Alama,” concealment.) The Creator is revealed only in accordance with one’s corrected desires. This determines where on the spiritual ladder a person stands in relation to the Creator.

Altogether a person possesses 620 desires. In other words, there are 620 acts of correction that separate him from the Creator, 620 corrections that he must perform in order to correct his desires, fill them, and thereby attain adhesion with the Creator. Accordingly, a person comes out of exile and—by having acquired the desire to attain the land of Israel (Eretz Israel), as it is written—enters it, and dwells there, that is, in the place where the Creator always dwells.

In the land of Israel live the people called “Yehudim” (Jews), who are in unity (Yichud) with the Creator, a people whose desires are directed solely toward the Creator. Outside that land dwell the “nations of the world” whose desires are scattered and dispersed among every kind of craving and passion for various pleasures.

In other words, a person’s 620 desires that are directed toward himself are called the “nations of the world.” To the extent that he corrects them into desires to bestow upon the Creator, each one of them is transformed from a gentile (Goy) into a Yehudi, that is, it becomes a Ger (a convert to Judaism). In this way, each corrected desire rises to the degree of the Creator.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/20/26, Rabash, “The Creator and Israel Went into Exile”

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In the book Pri Haham, Rabash calls the property of pride the force of destruction. What can I do? On one hand, I must preserve this force; on the other hand, I cannot turn to the Creator until this force is under my full control, because only after overcoming it can I ask Him for something.

I have to suppress myself, reach a state of lowering my “I” and exalting the Creator, but I am unable to do so. Therefore, the stony heart cannot be corrected until the final correction (Gmar Tikun).

You can correct this with the additional force you receive from the group. In this case, the force of the group is something special, as if it is outside the relationship between man and the Creator.

This is an additional force that I can use as an external help. It belongs neither to “existence from absence” nor to “existence from existence,” neither to man nor the Creator, but as if to something third that exists in nature.

Since pride puts me, like Pharaoh, against the Creator, there is nothing to be done about it. It is only from the outside that I can receive additional force, which will give me the opportunity to suppress my “I” and turn to the Creator. Otherwise, Pharaoh will shout, “Who is the Creator that I should listen to Him?” No matter how many plagues are thrown at me, nothing will help.

Therefore, Rabash emphasizes that only the force of the group can help us. Baal HaSulam writes that our happy future depends on it. Without the help of the group, I stand like a wall against the Creator, unable to do anything. The Creator does not want to be the first to reveal Himself to me, because by doing so, He would suppress my “I,” and I would simply annul before Him.

Can I ask the Creator to reveal Himself to me so that my “I” is suppressed through my own efforts, and His actions are a response to my actions? This can only be achieved by getting outside help.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/15/26, Rabash, “What Is “Do Not Slight the Blessing of a Layperson” in the Work?”

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Work can only be discussed where there is a place for work. What can one work on? The only thing that exists in all of creation is the desire to receive. How did the Creator create the desire? Through the fact that He departed from it, and an empty place remained as a result. This is the desire to feel the presence of the Creator. This is the first Kli.

Of course, this Kli still has no independence whatsoever, but only a need (Hisaron) for the presence of the Creator. The Creator is the whole of nature, and the Kli is its copy, the Hisaron of this nature. So what? After all, there is still no creation, because creation is something independent, something that acts outside the program of the Creator, outside His desire.

What does “outside” mean? Opposite to the Creator, opposite to Him. How can this desire, created thanks to the presence of the Creator and being His imprint in which there is absolutely no independence and which does not feel anything separate from the Creator within itself, acquire some quality that is completely independent of Him?

The question is: if from the very beginning there exists one single force, one single desire, how can another one emerge from it, completely separated from it? It would seem that there must be some connection, accompanied by control, observation, and guidance. But in that case, how can we call a creation that at a certain stage separated from the Creator a creation if initially it did not exist?

For this purpose, the Creator created a state in which two qualities simultaneously exist: His and the quality opposite to Him. From the comparison of these two qualities, creation emerged. Creation is the result of the sensation of the Creator and the absence of this sensation. The attitude toward the presence of the Creator, based on the difference between “feeling” and “not feeling” the Creator—this is creation.

Creation is called a screen, intention, and, of course, it was formed from Hisaron. But this Hisaron must be special: the lack of sensation of the Creator’s presence develops into a need to feel the Creator and comes to a desire to establish a relationship with the Creator Himself.

Here, there are three parameters: Hisaron, pleasure, and that which establishes the relationship between them. All this is called Kli, light, and the screen between them. We can speak about the existence of creation only when we have these three parameters. But if one of them is missing, then the concept of “creation” cannot exist.

Thus, everything depends on the desire directed toward the presence of the Creator, on the relationship between these two diametrically opposite entities. A person is a preparatory Kli, more precisely, not even a Kli yet, but the one who must become a Kli, a creation. And if the correct desire does not begin to form within him, that is, the desire for the presence of the Creator, then he cannot, in his work, begin to determine the intention: in what form he is ready and agree with His presence.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/22/26, Rabash, “What Are “A Layperson’s Vessels,” in the Work?”

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Quality is far more important than quantity. There is an infinite number of plants in the world, yet one flower is equivalent to all the still matter in the universe.

One animal is equivalent to all the plants in the world. One person is equivalent to the rest of nature. This is how the difference between the degrees that are separated by an abyss is manifested.

If all the stones in the universe were gathered together, it would be impossible to grow even a single flower from them. For a flower contains life, that is, development, which does not exist in still matter.

The development of a human being, however, is completely unique and incomprehensible to the ordinary view. It would seem that each person possesses only a very small force, yet it is of an extremely high quality.

Therefore, an event such as a congress, our connection, gives tremendous strength. What are all the stars in the universe compared to a single human thought?

Today, scientists are discovering that our thoughts influence physical processes, the behavior of elementary particles in the collider. In fact, our thoughts govern all the stars, the entire vegetative and animate nature. All of this is the consequence of a person’s attitude, thoughts, and desires.

Therefore, it is said that all the parts of nature are included within the human being, and that there is nothing in nature that we need to correct except our thoughts. By doing this, we correct the entire world.

The light enters this world through the system called “Adam” (Man), for it is above everything else, and the light spreads from above downward. To the extent that this system is connected or, conversely, divided, that is, corrected or corrupted, to that extent the light passes to all the other parts: the still, vegetative, and animate, and it determines how we perceive the world.

Therefore, it is said that all of nature is included within the human being and rises and falls together with him. If I ascend and attain a greater connection with others, thereby correcting the common soul, then through me a stronger light passes to all of nature, and it too becomes connected in greater harmony.

I am the center of all this nature, and around me are the still, vegetative, and animate levels, and I determine their correction. When I complete my correction, they disappear and join me, for they are all my own parts—my reflection.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/10/10, Baal HaSulam “Introduction to The Book of Zohar”

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Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 201

How Is the Correction of Bestowal Carried Out in This World?

When we discuss bestowal, we do not mean that we should go and help in a hospital or in some remote place where there are unfortunate people. In this world, we should not bestow simply because the Creator made it flawed and filled it with suffering. This is an incorrect way to relate to reality. Instead, this world should be viewed as a means through which we develop our relationship with the Creator.

If we help others improve their lives, we act like social workers. There is nothing wrong with that, but it is not the spiritual goal that we ultimately need to reach. The Creator intentionally arranged things this way, deliberately creating difficulties, and we are meant to use them in order to reach Him. Only through our yearning for the Creator does true correction come to human suffering.

At times, it might seem as if our good deeds toward others can bring them benefit, but in truth, ultimately it does not help; it might even worsen their state. Attempts to externally fix another person’s life do not lead to real correction. The same applies to punishments. Placing someone in prison often results in their becoming more sophisticated in wrongdoing instead of becoming corrected. Likewise, simply providing material support, such as filling someone’s refrigerator or wallet, does not truly improve the life of the recipient of that support, nor does it bring them lasting happiness. Even winning the lottery, which many dream of, does not bring real fulfillment.

In other words, the correction of bestowal is not merely about our outward attitude toward others. Instead, it is about correcting our relationship with the Creator. Only this can truly benefit others, because the Creator influences everything in reality. Everything descends from Him. Therefore, if we want to change the state of this world, we must change what comes to us from the Creator.

This can only be done when we bestow to the Creator. To the extent that we bestow goodness toward Him, the need for the world to appear in a negative form diminishes.

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Comment: Let’s take a month off, gather together, isolate ourselves in nature, and study The Study of the Ten Sefirot every day for ten hours, The Book of Zohar for six hours, and speak only about what is written in the books so we can draw more and more light each day.

My Response: Why shouldn’t we try such an approach: to escape from this world for a while, though not forever?

By the way, “not forever” already indicates a certain imperfection. After all, if we are speaking about something good, something that leads to spiritual ascent, then you should simply do it. Why compromise?

You are saying that we should withdraw in order to gain strength, acquire the right direction, establish ourselves in it, and then bring this world into the state we have already attained. Let us leave this hectic world, cross the Machsom, and then return to this world and begin drawing it into the spiritual world.

The problem is that this question stems from not seeing that the state in which we now exist is itself the degree called “this world.” It is the lowest, the smallest, and the darkest degree. Yet, it is only one among many degrees. How can I leave it if I do not work with what exists on it?

I have been placed into specific surrounding conditions that are, in essence, my own qualities copied outward. I see the surrounding world according to how I am arranged within. If I were to arrange these qualities differently within me, then instead of “this world” I would see the spiritual world, which would replace the picture of this world as a lower degree, as a lower level of perception compared to the one built above it.

So how can I free myself from “this world” if everything that exists in it now is nothing but my own corrupted qualities? Without correcting them, I cannot rise to a higher degree. How can I run away from that?

One may perform certain actions that seem to separate him from this world in order to strengthen himself a little. However, afterward, I must return to the original degree in order to reconnect with it, receive more and more Aviut (the depth of the desire to receive) from it, and continue studying with this additional Aviut, wishing to purify it.

Then I return once again to work, to my family, spend time with my children and my wife, and deal with all the external concerns of everyday life. After that, I return once again to study for several hours in order to correct what I have absorbed from the surrounding environment.

But if I do not absorb these things which constitute my Aviut in order to correct them, then why should I study? Why should I come to correction? What is the surrounding light supposed to influence and correct? If I were already pure, what would the surrounding ight attach itself to? What would it have to work on?

Therefore, we have no other choice but to immerse ourselves repeatedly in “this world,” bring it to correction, immerse ourselves in it again, and once more bring the desires absorbed from it to correction.

Thus, our work consists, in general, of three main states:

1. This world, with all the “brainwashing” it constantly imposes on me.
2. Then I come to the group, wanting it and not the external society to “brainwash” me instead and thereby help me.
3. Finally, with the Aviut I have acquired from the external society, and with the desire I have received from the group to free myself from it, that is, to purify it, I begin the study.

In the end, we have three states or, I would say, three means. Based on them, we build our daily routine. The fact that you sit here for several hours is your escape from evil in order to study the Torah in a quiet place.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/14/26, Rabash, “What It Means that “Law and Ordinance” Is the Name of the Creator in the Work”

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