Why was the Torah given to us? To bring us to action.

What is meant by “action”? A person’s soul consists of 613 parts, and from the very beginning, all of them exist within us in an uncorrected state. We must correct each one of them; this is called fulfilling the 613 counsels (Eitin in Aramaic).

Each time we correct one of the 613 parts of the soul, it receives the light corresponding to that particular part of the Kli. Then we are granted the 613 commandments, or deposits (Pekudin in Aramaic), which are deposits of light.

In other words, we correct the vessels and fill them with lights; we do so for all 620 parts of the soul (613 commandments plus the seven commandments of the sages). This is what is called an action. The Torah, study, and our efforts are all intended to bring a person to this action.

Afterward, we are granted the receiving of the Torah. The Creator is the all-encompassing light that fills the soul with infinity. Through this, the Kli (vessel) comes to perceive what the Creator is, because without a Kli, perception is impossible. The Torah is that very same light, which is divided within the collective soul into 613 parts or 600,000 parts, the distinction is not essential. The correction of each individual part is called a commandment.

Thus, Israel, the Torah, and the Creator are one. This state reaches its complete realization at the end of correction: first, the Kli becomes aligned with the particular light filling each of its individual parts; then, upon attaining the general correction, it becomes aligned with the all-encompassing light. This is the final state expressed in the words: “Israel, the Torah, and the Creator are one.”
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/2/26, Rabash, “What Does It Mean that the Torah Was Given Out of the Darkness in the Work?”

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Question: All our thoughts and intentions come from the body. What is the best way to take care of the physical body? I know from my own experience that if I have gotten enough sleep, I am ready to engage in things connected with spiritual work.

Answer: Of course, the healthier a person’s body is, the better prepared they are for inner work. This is well known. We are obliged to give the body what it needs. The ancient Romans said: “A healthy mind in a healthy body.” By “mind” they meant the animal soul, but nevertheless, the principle remains. Therefore it is necessary to sleep, eat, wash the body, and take care of it.

When I lived in Rehovot, there was a young man that lived nearby who was raising a very expensive horse. The way he was caring for and cherishing it was unbelievable! It was his whole life. This image remained vividly in my memory. That is how one should care for the body. Of course, our entire life should not be focused on it, but we must give it what it requires.

This is how we should act. Let the body work for us, for the human being within us! For that purpose, I am ready to take care of it.

Rabash took great care of his body. I bought him all the necessary groceries—vegetables, fruit, and chocolate. He regularly took blood tests, and paid close attention to maintaining his health.

We used to go to the sea together. Until he swam 600 strokes, he would not come out of the water. And if we did not go to the sea, then there was walking, an hour and a half at a time. I had to sing something fast-paced, and we would walk to that rhythm for an hour and a half. In the middle of the walk we would stop for ten minutes, during which I was allowed to ask a question, and then we continued. At that time he was already 80 years old.

We also attended swimming or gymnastics sessions with a membership pass. My wife remembers that we used to spend three to four hours a day doing sports and physical exercises. Some people can sit all day long, but Rabash could not; his body required physical activity. I bought him a bicycle, and every evening he exercised on it doing 400 revolutions. That was not easy at all!

Once I was going through a terrible spiritual descent. At that time a yoga instructor used to come to us, and he taught us, not philosophy, but exercises that helped develop the body’s flexibility. I was in such a state then that I said, “I am not capable of doing this.”

“All right, then do not,” Rabash replied. “I will continue alone.”

He continued practicing with the yoga teacher at home, and in a few days I returned.

Rabash did everything according to a schedule. He assigned time to eat, time to drink, and so on. He never drank while eating, and never ate while drinking. His attitude toward the body was always very precise and disciplined. There were also things that I found very hard to endure.

For example, he did not allow the air conditioner to be turned on.

“This is natural heat; there is nothing to be done about it,” he would say. And we endured it.

“If you want, turn on a fan. It is like the wind; that is acceptable.”

My blood pressure would rise terribly. I felt as if I were about to explode. The temperature all around us was 40°C (104°F). Rabash tried to behave in relation to nature in the simplest possible way.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 6/7/26, Rabash, “What Are the Times of Prayer and Gratitude in the Work? ”

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Comment: You say that if a person does not cross into the spiritual world in this life, then they will in the next one. But surely this is a waste of time.

My Response: And what can you do about it? A waste of time. So what? When I look at my children, my parents or other loved ones, of course, they will have to return to this world once again. But am I myself in complete correction? No I am not. We will meet again as well. I have not yet finished all my corrections.

Question: Do you think that you will not be a Kabbalist in your next incarnation but simply as an ordinary person?

Answer: I do not know. And maybe I will be born as my own grandson.

Question: Are you afraid that you might have to change your current ?

Answer: If I were afraid of what the Creator does, I would not be who I am.

Question: Aren’t you even afraid that you will lose your present spiritual sensation?

Answer: Well, let it vanish! This is entirely in His power. He could take all this away from me even now.

Do you imagine that my strength, my position, or some personal means hold me in the state in I am currently in? It is only that the upper light has raised me a little and sustains me.

Question: How can one make a contract with the upper light?

Answer: “You do this for me, I’ll do that for you”? “Save me a spot”? In spirituality, this cannot be.

On the contrary, I completely give myself over to the power of this force, and only in this way do I receive the possibility of being in contact with it. I want it to rule within me for me to become a part of it and for it to become a part of me.

And what else do I possess other than the capacity to nullify myself and thereby acquire all the qualities of the Creator?

Comment: I do not know. You have a different perception; therefore, you make different calculations.

My Response: A person indeed must make a calculation. What is there in us besides foolishness, arrogance, and the desire to dominate? Why should I cherish what is in me? What is there in me that would be worth keeping?

After I begin to examine myself, I see that there is absolutely nothing, except for one thing—that spark that tells me that everything else must be changed. It is this spark that I cherish deeply. Everything else in me is flawed.

And I am feel no shame. Therefore, I do not hide anything, I do not try to be good, kind, corrected, or beautiful in the eyes of others. In reality, who am I? I am even worse than others, because I see more in myself due to the influence of the upper light. And it is not that this is pleasant to me. What is pleasant to me is that this is being revealed, and that I can replace my qualities with the opposite ones.
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From KabTV’s “I Got A Call. Cycles of life…” 10/8/10

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Question: It is written that a person cannot lift a finger if it does not lead to pleasure. How can we do something without any pleasure?

Answer: We know that in no way, no matter what, can one make the slightest move if they do not benefit from it. Neither our spiritual body, i.e., the desire to receive, nor our animal body can move without food, without fuel.

The Creator does not need fuel, because His “matter,” if you can call it that, is the desire to bestow.

Our matter is the desire to receive, which is our foundation. This desire can be either with the intention to receive or with the intention to bestow. Both intentions are additions, like a cap placed atop the desire to receive that determines how it works, what drives it, and what motivates it.

In order to make any move with the desire to receive, you must give it the strength to do this action, i.e., energy, fuel, which is motivation, so the next state will be better than the current one.

You can plan for the importance of the next state compared to the present, and the ego will agree with this. You only need to tune it to this program.

We see people who run from morning till night over something they consider important. It may depend on upbringing, advertising, fear, or other factors; it doesn’t matter what, the main point is that a person can be programmed and trained, and one can acquire an inner program according to which he will work, because this will seem to him the most important.

But if the desire to receive does not regard it as important, it will do nothing, like a car without fuel. Thus, before we start working with it, whether for the sake of receiving or for the sake of bestowing, we must define its value system: what is more or less important.

Right now, for example, it is more important for me to go to sleep than to read a book. Even though I was interested in the book just half an hour ago, I decided I feel tired now, and it is more important for me to rest. But suddenly, in the middle of a dream, while I am reveling in it, I remember something more important and jump out of bed.

A person is constantly choosing what is preferable. Only what is more important at the moment draws strength from the ego.

When I am asleep and told to get up for the lesson, even though I got up yesterday, the day before, and for the last five years, I just do not have the energy or fuel to get up. But if I perform all sorts of “operations” on myself and convince myself, then suddenly I see that where I had no strength to get up, it appears, and I suddenly get up with ease. That is, I did some “brainwashing” and prepared my ego for this.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/19/26, Rabash, “Moses Went”

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Question: Suppose I am blind, how can I not feel that I am blind?

Answer: Look within yourself!

Question: What will I see there?

Answer: You will see everything: the sky, the stars, everything! Within yourself.

Question: And if, for example, I am deaf, can I be a musician? Will I hear music?

Answer: Anything you want. You do not need your five senses. You do not
need your body! If we did not have a body, we would be so happy and perfect!

Question: So, in that case, would I not feel any deficiency if I sort of live within myself?

Answer: Yes.

Question: Can you teach me how to live like that? How can I get to this? It sounds so good.

Answer: I cannot explain it.

Question: Why do we become still when we look at the stars?

Answer: Because it is a part of the universe that is opposite to the one in which we exist. And it immediately tells us about its infinity and our finiteness.

Question: So I see infinity in this? Can I find it within myself as well?

Answer: You can find it within yourself. You can connect with these stars. You can feel how they exist.

Question: And by this, do I sort of pass into a state of infinity?

Answer: Yes.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman,” 3/14/26

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Question: You said that a person must understand this system we exist in. Then everything start to fall into place for him?

Answer: Yes, of course.

Question: We can say that the world is interconnected, but we cannot really picture this. Is it actually like that?

Answer: It is like that, yes.

Comment: And these connections are, as you said, benevolent.

My Response: These connections are benevolent, and they do not end in this world. They continue in the next one as well. Therefore, we must also understand where we are, and how we are included in one another, how this kind of interplay happens between us, so that we have no way out. We have to be in a good state toward each other all the time.

Question: Meaning, I leave and return, leave and return, and everything is within this system?

Answer: Yes, everything is within this system. This is what is meant by saying that there is no death, so to speak, and everything is infinite.

Comment: That is beautiful! How can a person grasp this?

My Response: There is no need to, it is very difficult.

Question: But will he come to this understanding?

Answer: Yes, we must be prepared for this, but on the other hand, we must be ready for this and understand that it will be better for us this way. We must not look at it as a tremendous obligation.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman,” 1/26/26

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Question: Why do we need physical suffering? Is it to awaken the point in the heart?

Answer: Our material essence is a body that we want to provide with the maximum comfort.

We live in a family, and want everything to be good there: house, children, health, pension, rest, etc. Meaning, we want to live comfortably in this world.

However, if a person achieves it, and everything is fine in his life, he becomes an animal because he already does not aspire anywhere; he is not doing anything. Give him everything that exists and you will see that nothing will change. We see how without wolves, sheep begin to get ill and decline.

It is the same with the Jewish people. Without antisemites, there would be no Zionists, there would be no Jewish home and Jewish nation. It means we have to respect antisemites and understand that they exist as a certain force in nature that is holding us. Otherwise we would run away in all directions.

It is the same with a person in general; he cannot exist without suffering. Suffering directs us because we are egoists. Our desire is absolutely egoistic: to become filled, to do nothing, and to have everything at the same time.

How is it possible to accomplish this? It is impossible! After all, the task of a human being in nature is to reach his highest development. But if I enjoy and feel good about everything, then I will never fulfill this task.

We should not forget that “love and hunger rule the world.” Therefore, only suffering pushes us forward. “One beaten man is worth two unbeaten.” This is true indeed. Therefore, “through thorns to the stars.” We lack precisely these thorns.

The wisdom of Kabbalah says that a “point in the heart” that has awakened within a person triggers depression in us, a question about the purpose of life and its futility. If this weren’t the case, how would we go forward? Thus only suffering leads us.

Moreover, it has to be suffering that is directed to the achievement of the goal, its anticipation and aspiration—the suffering of love. However, if we lack it, we become urged on by other suffering. This is how the entire system of nature is structured, and it is doing it.

If you want to go forward correctly and willingly, no problem; there is the wisdom of Kabbalah for you. It shows you the entire system and the correct direction to the destined goal. The goal is defined in advance. There is nothing to make up.

However, if we are not going toward it, then nature causes suffering in us through various alternative ways. It still leads us to this goal, but already through the long and tangled path.

Question: Does it turn out that our earthy (animal) suffering leads us to the suffering of love?

Answer: Not right away and not directly, but it does lead us. Any little suffering in our life pushes us forward. Had a person understood this, he would himself aspire to the goal, and there would be no need to “move with a stick to happiness.” He would be moving forward faster than the stick could reach him.

This is the sensible development, and this is what Kabbalah shows us: the goal, and the shortest path to reach it, so you would not be pushed by suffering from behind.

Come and join the kind, good, and correct development. We look forward to seeing you!
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman,” 11/21/16

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We are discussing the topic of perception of reality in order to gradually orient ourselves in the right direction. After all, everything depends on intention. There are many people who study Kabbalah, and in particular, there are currents that have nothing in common with it.

The science of Kabbalah is intended for the correction of our nature, and the more we correct ourselves, the more we feel the upper force, reveal the upper world, become included in it, enter it, and rise above our material life. This is called “liberation from the angel of death” because we stop feeling completely dependent on our body! We rise above our animal, biological body to the degree of general nature.

I do not feel pain from cutting my nails or hair, because my body belongs to the animate level, while nails and hair belong to the vegetative level, one degree lower. And from the height of the animate level, I do not feel any loss from the loss at the vegetative level. In the same way it will happen when I rise from the animate degree to a higher degree, to the degree of Man.

“Man” is not us today. “Man” (Adam) comes from the word “similar” (Edomeh) to nature, the Creator, light. And when I become such a “man,” I will stop feeling loss from what is happening in this material life. Therefore, the science of Kabbalah is called “a remedy against death.”

Let us hope that we will attain such a degree and begin to experience spiritual life today. It all depends only on our inner efforts. Let us try to connect our inner points and appreciate this special state.
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From the International Kabbalah Congress 4/1/11, “We!” Lesson 2

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Question: Does suffering really contribute to the development of the soul?

Answer: Naturally suffering distances a person from egoism, purifies, and elevates. But they should not be elevated to the rank of something holy or desirable, because the purpose of creation from the side of the Creator is to delight the created beings.

He created us in order to give us pleasure, not to punish us. Therefore, we must avoid suffering. It is undesirable both from our side and from His. Suffering comes only because we misuse what the Creator sends us.

Question: If I relate to suffering correctly, do I stop feeling it?

Answer: No. It stops being felt only if you correctly realize it. But this does not mean that you sit and suffer and engage in self-torment.

In principle, ideal spiritual work says that suffering should be the “suffering of love,” not because I am not receiving, but because I am not giving, not loving enough.
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From Kabbalah Lesson in Russian, 5/21/17

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Question: If the soul is the quality of bestowal and love, then what does all these pieces of knowledge about the nature of the system of the spiritual worlds have to do with it? Are they conditions for the existence of the quality of bestowal?

Answer: The point is that our world is built on reception and hatred. The spiritual world is its complete opposite; it is built on the qualities of bestowal and love. If we replace our qualities from hatred and reception to bestowal and love, then we will begin to feel completely different phenomena and processes within ourselves. All of that will be called the upper world.

Comment: But some people do have certain altruistic impulses.

My Response: For the sake of what? For their own benefit. Then it is not goodness but self-interest. If it weren’t beneficial, a person would harm others.

Egoism (evil) is the fundamental nature of our world, and we must change it within ourselves. The world is me, and if I change myself, I will exist in another dimension. Right now, everything I perceive is inside me, inside my egoism.

Question: Where can one find a good force to balance the evil inclination?

Answer: If you truly want to acquire it, you must study Kabbalah. Then a good force will gradually form within you, and you will see that you suddenly acquire qualities that, by definition, could not exist in you, but you begin to receive them.
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From Kabbalah Lesson in Russian, 3/4/18

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