Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 34

How Should We Relate to Feelings?

It is written that the purpose of creation is “to do good to His creations.” It means that the goal is to experience pleasures, to feel goodness and benefit. Our path involves correcting the vessels of sensation, which are designed for enjoyment. However, until we complete our work and reach the end of correction, we must constantly monitor our feelings to avoid being misled.

As long as we lack a spiritual screen (Masach), following our sensations can lead to excessive use of the desire to enjoy for oneself. Therefore, we must constantly supervise ourselves to make sure that we use the desire to enjoy correctly; otherwise, we cannot escape the vessels of reception.

We cannot determine the validity of something solely based on good or bad feelings. For example, according to an analogy of Baal HaSulam, a person with a boil might enjoy scratching it, but the process ultimately leads to infection and death.

Until all corrections are completed—both in this world and on spiritual levels—we must not, even for a moment, abandon the guidance of reason and its connection to the purpose of creation: “What is happening to me now? What am I doing?”

The sole exception is acting with a clear intention to break free from all definitions and order, to “lose oneself” as in the Purim celebration. Even then, this must be done deliberately, as otherwise it holds no benefit. One cannot completely forgo supervision.

Related Material:
Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 33
Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 32
Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 31

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