The concept of “prohibition” in Kabbalah implies an “impossibility.” What does it mean that “one must not teach Torah to idol worshippers”? The Torah refers to the lights that fill the vessels of bestowal. Torah consists of acts of bestowal.

An idolator is defined as the will to receive [in Hebrew, the acronym “AKUM” (referring to a pagan or idolator) literally stands for “one who worships stars and fate.”]

The intention of an idolator is directed not toward the Creator, but toward various other forces, those that are within the will to receive, because there is nothing besides the Creator and the will to receive.

An idol worshipper is one who worships the will to receive. It is impossible to teach him Torah, simply because he has a different intention. He does not perceive the concept of “the intention for the sake of bestowal,” and therefore it is impossible for the upper light to reside in him. But the term “impossible” is expressed in our language by the word “forbidden” or “must not.”

But why “must not”? Why not call the impossible “impossible”?

Because the sages are speaking about the path of correction, they mean the following: “Do not do this because nothing will come of it. It will not succeed.” In short, it comes out as “It must not be done.” “Must not” serves as advice: “Do not do it because it cannot be accomplished.”
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/28/26, Rabash, “What Is the Prohibition to Teach Torah to Idol Worshippers in the Work? ”

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Question: In the context of the shattering of the Kelim (vessels), we speak about the Kelim of the “stony heart” (Lev HaEven), AHP of AHP, which we cannot correct.

It is only by concealing them that we achieve their correction, so that subsequently we can truly receive a Masach (screen) for them, and work with them for the sake of bestowal.

Can we say that it is precisely into these Kelim of the “heart of stone” that we acquire the lights of the three first Sefirot (Ohr de GAR), by arriving at the secrets of the Torah and the intention of the Creator?

Answer: Yes, and that is not all. We can put it this way. The eighth, ninth, and tenth millennia are the descent of the world of Atzilut into the place of the worlds of Beria, Yetzira, and Assiya. This marks the beginning of the work and correction of the heart of stone. This is not the whole story, but let us say that this is the case.

Your question is the following: if I do not work with the heart of stone at each of the degrees, does this mean that by doing so, I conceal the secrets of the Torah, and do not touch them? The answer is: also this.
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From Daily Kabbalah Lesson on 8/16/26, Rabash, Article 2, 1991 “What Is, “Return, O Israel, Unto the Lord Your God,” in the Work?”

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The upper one reveals His lower part, Malchut, to us as empty and black; it promises us nothing good.

The spiritual world, the upper world, is specially presented to us in this unattractive way. Yet in this world, perceived within Keter of the lower one, there is at least some pleasure.

I am in a state where even this world holds no attraction for me, yet the state of the upper one seems even worse.

After all, I lack fulfillment in my egoistic desire to receive, and the upper adds even more heaviness to me, by suggesting, “But you wanted to be in a state of bestowal!” I have nothing to eat, and yet I am told: “Go ahead, share with others!”

Therefore, the conditions set by the upper can be accepted only without reason, without any conditions, and not by one’s own strength, but by the strength of the light, without plans and without hope of filling one’s egoism and gaining profit in this world.

The main thing is to attain the state of bestowal, and then you will have everything, but only after you have renounced everything! You will receive fulfillment (satisfaction), not from receiving, but from bestowing.

This is how we should perceive the month of Elul before the beginning of the new year, the beginning of the spiritual path. “ELUL” stands for: “I am to my Beloved, and my Beloved to me.”

The upper one present me with these hopeless conditions that promise no fulfillment, so that precisely through them I will be able to free myself from my egoistic state.

If He had promised me something good, I would never have been able to tear myself out of my egoism, chained as I am to pleasures.

As it is said: “The Creator places a person’s hand upon a good fate, ”immerses his life in darkness and emptiness, and on the other hand, reveals a small ray of light to them that shows the person where they can turn to escape from the darkness.

The ray of light is not about egoistic, material gains. The Creator assists me on the spiritual path by bringing me to a Kabbalistic group, the place where I can freely choose the right environment, and by illuminating the way for me; that is, He gives me the sensation that bestowal is the light. Light is rising above one’s egoism when it does not matter to you whether it is empty or filled, but the important thing is with whom you are connected.

The Creator makes it clear: if you are suffering in your corporeal state, do not seek material fulfillment; instead, look upward from that state and consider the possibility of a different life, based on other values, on bestowal, and on another dimension (of happiness).

This means that a ray shines for me through the slits in the wall that separates me from the upper world, a world of tranquility (free from egoism and the endless pursuit of fulfillment) and perfection (found in the aspiration of bestowal and love).
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/6/10, Baal HaSulam, “What Is the Acronym Elul (I am for My Beloved, and My Beloved Is for Me) in the Work?”

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In our world, an intermediate stage exists between a curse and a blessing. Our world is defined as al menat lekabel (for the sake of receiving) and the future world al menat lehashpia (for the sake of bestowing).

These two factors do not touch one another; the only transition from one to the other exists within a person, who seems to be able of alternating between being in one state and the other. I say “seems” because this does not yet occur in reality, but rather at a level below Kedusha (holiness) and the Klipa (impure forces).

From above downward, down to the Machsom (barrier), there are two lines: true holiness and the true impure force, true blessing and curse. Below the Machsom, the roles of the true concepts of “curse” and “blessing” is played by what may be called a “set of exercises,” this world, given to us to prepare ourselves a little, exert an effort, and begin the real work.

Thus, here we do not have holiness (the intention for the sake of bestowal), and strictly speaking, nor do we have the impure force (the intention for the sake of receiving), the curse. We have neither one nor the other. Therefore, what we do can be done. We do nothing inherently bad and nothing inherently good here. Everything is allowed to us, much like to small children, so that we might learn something from the experience.

If a person truly wants to approach genuine actions that one determines and performs themselves, and wishes to leave infancy, like the adults of this world, then one must go through stages of learning, preparation, understanding, and a certain level of awareness.

This process is called from Lo Lishma we come to Lishma (from the intention for one’s own sake to the intention for the sake of the Creator). This is the state before the Machsom that we must attain. No matter the circumstances, a person must seek ascent and awakening, a desire to do something for the Creator, for the higher force, even while in a state of concealment (both double or ordinary).

A person can acquire this desire only from the group. There is nowhere else to get it from, because when in concealment, one does not see the Creator. By working with the environment, annulling oneself, and realizing the importance of the Creator, understanding that it is worthwhile for him to annul themself before the group in order to realize the importance of the Creator, a person thereby shows how important and necessary this is for him.

For this, a person is ready to sacrifice himself and is truly capable of constantly finding the drive to act and be impressed by the environment so that one’s efforts invested in the group with the aim of receiving the awareness of the importance of the Creator from it, become a sign of how important it is for one to come to the Creator, to spirituality.

In the action that one performs toward the group, annulling oneself in order to attain the Creator, all the actions against one’s own desire toward the Creator and toward the group are present. Everything in one action.

The awareness of the importance of the Creator is similar to one’s attitude toward a great Rabbi whom a crowd of admirers meets at the airport, when a person finds enough energy within himself to carry his suitcases. But if an ordinary person gets off the plane, it would never occur to anyone to do such a “foolish” thing as help him with his luggage.

Therefore, there is nothing else for us to work on except the awareness of importance through which we move from curse to blessing.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/18/26, Rabash, “What Are “Blessing” and “Curse” in the Work?”

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Question: What is the danger inherent in the secrets of the Torah?

Answer: If there is a prohibition to engage in the secrets of the Torah, then, apparently, I could do it. And if I can, then how? After all, we are talking about the vessels (Kelim) and the lights (Orot) of the first three Sefirot with which I don’t have the slightest connection.

The point is that a prohibition signifies an impossibility. But if it is impossible, why is it forbidden?

Suppose a dangerous object is located at a height of two meters. I cannot reach it because I am only 1.7 meters tall. So I ask someone to get it for me. In spirituality, it doesn’t work that way. There, if I cannot reach it, I simply cannot reach it. So, what does it mean that it is impossible to reach, yet still is forbidden?

The prohibition applies to the intention: do not intend to reach it or touch it. Even though you cannot reach it, and know this, you might still strive for it or desire it. You are told, “No! You must not touch this, you must not desire this. Even those who are advance must conceal these vessels and lights.”

Therefore, there is an obligation to correct one’s attitude toward the secrets of the Torah by intentionally concealing them. We do not yet know exactly what is being discussed here. This correction takes place above reason.

So, “prohibited” means “impossible.” And “impossible” means that you perform an action that confirms this impossibility. Despite your desire, you perform an action defined as “impossible.” In spirituality, every word denotes an action—building my internal spiritual attitude toward a subject. Hence the prohibition, which also implies that I will perform the corresponding action. Thereby my vessel will become perfect.

There are desires in me in which this prohibition must be enacted, in which I must establish an attitude specifically toward the first three Sefirot: I do not touch nor desire them. Even if I do feel the urge, I structure my attitude as if I do not want to or intend to, and effectively conceal the first three Sefirot from these desires.

This constitutes the correction. This does not mean that I pay no attention to the matter, such a thing does not happen in spirituality.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/16/26, Rabash, “What Is, “Return, O Israel, Unto the Lord Your God,” in the Work?”

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But when a person is in an ascent, he thinks that he no longer needs the Creator’s help, since now he has a basis of feeling, which he called “knowledge.” In other words, now he knows for what purpose he is working. His work is no longer above reason because he has a basis to rely on, meaning this feeling that he feels that this state is good for him. On this basis he determines the work (Rabash, ‘What Is, ‘Return, O Israel, Unto the Lord Your God,’ in the Work?”).

Rabash does not specify here what kind of ascent he means: an ascent according to one’s feelings, according to the true state, or according to what appears to a person. Perhaps he is speaking about a person who has passed the Machsom, for whom an ascent consists of receiving in order to bestow, when the pleasure and the inner definition of an ascent are determined by a completely different understanding of the concept from our present one.

But when a person is in an ascent, he thinks that he no longer needs the Creator’s help. We can already see that we are talking about feelings, rather than the true state. A person has received some fulfillment and does not need the Creator because his Kli is satisfied by this fulfillment. This means that he is not above the Machsom, but below it. For above the Machsom, a person’s fulfillment is the establishment of a connection with the Creator, whereas below the Machsom, fulfillment depends on the degree to which his Kli is filled.

Below the Machsom, I “take a reading” from my Kli, whereas above the Machsom I “take a reading” from His vessel, checking to what extent I have filled Him, rather than myself. This is the difference between being below the Machsom and being above it.

Comment: It turns out to be the opposite.

My Response: Of course, the opposite. Everything depends on where I am, where my heart is: Whether I am checking within myself the degree to which my own “belly” is filled, or whether I am checking in the Creator to what extent I have filled Him.

But when a person is in an ascent, he thinks that he no longer needs the Creator’s help, since now he has a basis of feeling. I have filled myself, so what more do I need? Give me fulfillment, and I don’t need any Creator.

Which he called “knowledge,” when he thinks: “I know this. This is what I have. This is mine.”

Now he knows for what purpose he is working. His work is no longer above reason. He, his heart, his intentions, everything is in his belly, in his Kli. He has a basis to rely on: “I have filled myself, and that’s it.” This feeling that he feels that this state is good for him. On this basis he determines the work.

At that time, as soon as he reaches this state, he is immediately thrown from above, and it is as though he is asked, “Where is your wisdom? You said that you already know on what the work relies.”

Thus, through this, a person is taught that he must never abandon his intention, his connection with the Creator, or his examination of himself in relation to Him: Where exactly am I in relation to Him, and what am I filling? One must never, God forbid, disconnect from this and withdraw into one’s own shell. This is how a person is taught.

How is he taught? He is filled, and by doing so he is thrown off course: “Enough about the Creator. What do you need Him for? You already have everything.” If the person really does stray from the path, then he is lowered in his feelings, and he falls, feeling bitter and bad. Then he begins to cry out to the Creator; through his cry he renews his connection with Him and gradually rises again toward connection with Him, filling himself.

As soon as he again abandons the Creator, he is once again lowered in his feelings, and he cries out again, until he comes to understand that the connection with the Creator itself must be his fulfillment, his satisfaction. The connection with the Creator, and not the degree to which my Kli is filled.

Thus, a person begins to feel the Creator’s vessel: what He gives and what He fills. A person lives through Him, “for in Him our heart shall rejoice.”
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/16/26, Rabash, Article 2, 1991 “What Is, “Return, O Israel, Unto the Lord Your God,” in the Work?”

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Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 216

How Do We Make a Movement in Spirituality?

A movement is made through a change of form. If we become somewhat more similar to the Creator than we were before, it is a sign that we made a movement. In other words, movement takes place through the effort we make upon ourselves. To the extent that our qualities change in relation to the Creator’s qualities, to that same extent we have advanced toward Him. The distance from the barrier to the Creator is measured in 125 degrees. According to the extent to which we can achieve equivalence of form with the Creator, this is the place where we stand on this ladder of degrees between ourselves and the Creator, moving ever upward upon it.

In this work, we are never in a worse state than the current one. We can only advance. At times it seems to us that we retreat, as though we “fall away,” but this is only how it appears to us. It happens in order to awaken us, to seemingly trip us up, to give us various opportunities to feel new discernments. Usually, disturbances come so that we will delve precisely into them and view ourselves more clearly, because it is specifically through disturbances that we will later feel a special attitude from the Creator. The place where we are given blows is the very place where a special relationship develops, both now and in the future. Evil becomes replaced by good.

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Preparation to the Lesson

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1st part of the Lesson — Writings of Rabash, Article 35 “What Is, ‘He Who Is Without Sons,’ in the Work?” (1989) (8.12.2002)

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2nd part of the Lesson — Recording of Rabash, Writings of Baal HaSulam“Study of the Ten Sefirot,” Vol. 2, Part 6, Item 20

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3rd part of the Lesson — Writings of Baal HaSulam, “The Arvut (Mutual Guarantee)”

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All the states that we go through can and certainly should be experienced can; however, we need to keep them under constant control and not succumb to either negative or positive sensations. We must constantly control our feelings with our reason. In this way, the reason and feelings are balanced with one another so that one does not outweigh the other.

If the intellect prevails over feelings, it means that you become a “wise guy”: “Why should I do all this, I won’t be able to anyway. The Creator is greater than me, so let Him do it. And if not, well, so be it.” And so on in the same spirit. But if feelings prevail, then a person immersed in them is unable to use their head.

So what is the solution? We must find forces in the group that will help us break free from this state and achieve balance. There is no other way out.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/13/26, Rabash, “What Is Do Not Add and Do Not Take Away in the Work?”

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