Question: From what Baal HaSulam writes in the article “The Arvut (Mutual Guarantee)”, it seems that spirituality is passed down genetically. Once, thanks to the merits of the forefathers, their sons received it, and now we do as well. What does “the merit of the fathers” mean? Is it something passed on through genes?

Answer: Attraction toward spirituality is not hereditary. It is clearly stated that the Torah is not inherited. So what is the merit of the fathers?

The merit of the fathers means that within a great Aviut (coarseness of egoistic desire), there are sparks through which even a person immersed in deep egoism feels an attraction to what lies above the ego.

If a soul is in a state of zero-degree Aviut (Aviut de Shoresh), it naturally feels drawn to spirituality, to the Creator, to adhesion, to striving for mutual guarantee, for connection. Where does this come from? From the closeness of the properties of the Kelim (vessels) to the lights.

In this case, no prior actions or special limitations are required because it is clear that under such conditions we receive the Torah, spiritual life, and attain bestowal, which is felt as something special and exalted in a pure vessel.

But when the Kli (vessel) has a high degree of Aviut, meaning its desire to receive is more developed, it becomes difficult to understand how bestowal could fill the Kli and bring satisfaction. It is hard to imagine that the condition of Arvut—exiting oneself in order to serve the other, to unite with the other, to connect specifically with their vessels in order to fill them instead of one’s own desires—could be something good or elevated. This is not felt as something real in a coarse Kli.

However, if this coarse Kli is a result of the development of “refined” vessels, then it contains a pure part that has truly been close to the light and has fulfilled the condition of Arvut at the level of zero Aviut.

And even if the Kli now has a first-degree Aviut (Aviut Alef), it still has a foundational base called “the fathers within it.” It can be awakened through certain actions or, alternatively, suppressed, as if returning to zero Aviut.

This is what it means to “make use of the merit of the fathers.”
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From the 1^st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 5/8/2025, Writings of Baal HaSulam “The Arvut (Mutual Guarantee)”

Related Material:
Actions Of The Fathers—Sign For The Sons
The Forefathers As The Architects Of Correction
The Time Of Grandsons Is Here

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