Entries in the 'Body and Soul' Category

Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 16


Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 16

What Is “Back” or “Behind”?

When the Creator reveals His actions as if they are not in humanity’s favor, it is considered a descent. All doubts come to a person indirectly from the Creator. Just as with Moses, who asked to see the Creator’s face, the Creator responds, “I will show you only My ‘back,’ for it is impossible to see My face.” This means that revelation always happens indirectly, through the “back,” or through vessels.

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Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 15


Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 15

Why Is it Written That the Creator “Descends” to Mount Sinai?

For the Creator, “Mount Sinai” signifies a descent. The term “Creator” itself implies descent, from the word that means “outside of the level.” The Creator is also called a “groom,” derived from the word for “landing” or “descending.” The myriad titles given to the Creator are based on His appearance before humanity, which is defined as a descent.

The Creator’s descent to Mount Sinai also has many interpretations, both in the literal sense and in Kabbalah. Essentially, it is unbefitting for the Creator to appear to humanity as a harmful force, but He does so in both positive and negative ways together in order to create correct discernments in humanity and to form a vessel. The vessel itself is formed from both the light and the lack of light.

It is impossible for only a lack or only a fulfillment to appear. A true lack always includes a Reshimo (record), some fulfillment, a small illumination. Thus, the Creator needs to reveal Himself to humanity in both forms, through suffering and fulfillment. These actions are essentially a descent on His part. The Creator’s name (“Boreh” in Hebrew) can also be divided into two words: “come” (“Bo“) and “see” (“Reh“). This all describes the descent of Godliness.

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Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 14

Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 14

What Is the Reception of the Torah?

The reception of the Torah is to stand at the foot of the mountain and receive the Creator who resides at its summit. The mountain itself symbolizes all the doubts that come to us. If we can overcome these doubts and all the questions that the Creator intentionally places between Himself and the person, then this mountain will become the vessel for receiving the Torah.

The Torah is received solely within these doubts, within feelings of despair. On one side is the Creator, who intentionally sets these challenges against us and for our sake. On the other side is us at the foot of the mountain, viewing all the doubts above us, with the Creator above them.

The reception of the Torah happens only after we succeed in forming a vessel from all these doubts. Then, within this vessel, comes the revelation of Godliness. We discover that the Creator is at the summit of all such doubts. Only when the Creator resides above the doubts that come to us do we reach the revelation of Godliness, the acquisition of the force of bestowal and the revelation of eternity and perfection.

We ourselves rise a level, not only the point in the heart, but “Moses” ascends Mount Sinai solely by means of these doubts, through his “people” who sanctify and prepare him, and then he fully receives the Torah. This relates to the topic of the holiday of Shavuot.

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Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 13


Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 13

How Do We Suddenly Realize that We Have an Evil Inclination?

The phrase “the inclination of man’s heart is evil from his youth” means that from the outset we have only one nature: the desire to receive for the sake of receiving. The desire to receive is not nature. It is matter. That is, it is neither good nor evil but merely a desire to enjoy. Divisions into good and evil depend on what exactly we want to enjoy.

The intention to enjoy for oneself is called “evil.” Why should a desire to enjoy be considered evil? It is because the Creator designed a system where the desire to receive for the sake of receiving causes suffering. It takes several years, however, to learn that the desire to receive for its own sake leads to suffering. Generally, it takes thousands of years for the soul to become consciously aware that the desire to receive for oneself is harmful.

In the incarnation where we receive the point in the heart, we start fearing our own thoughts, which constantly act out of self-interest. We sense that such thoughts bring trouble, yet we are clueless as to how we can escape them. How can we stop a thought that naturally operates beyond our control? We see this desire within us and try to uproot it, and in such a way, we realize that “the inclination of man’s heart is evil from his youth.” In the wisdom of Kabbalah, this is referred to as a person’s encounter with the serpent.

Only after we observe ourselves from the perspective of the point in the heart, question who we are, and realize that we cannot confront our own desire to receive for the sake of receiving (since our entire being is absorbed in this desire, i.e., we were born to suffer and have only the thought that critiques and analyzes ourselves as support—do we turn to the Creator to release us from this affliction.

This is the correction. We can then understand how complex the situation is. A long time passes before we discover that “the inclination of man’s heart is evil from his youth.” However, when we reach this realization, we become willing to impose a restriction on ourselves, the result of which is called “prayer.” The feeling in our heart of wanting to free ourselves from ourselves, which we cannot achieve, leads to this restriction. After the restriction, we live a different life.

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Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 11

Chapter 2. The Encounter Between Man and the Serpent

Man goes through many reincarnations. Each time, his soul is dressed in an additional desire to receive. This process is called “being dressed in a body.” The soul repeatedly undergoes these kinds of states, which are known as “reincarnations,” and thereby increasingly enhances its desire to receive in various forms through garments of power, wealth, honor, and knowledge. These garments are unnecessary for the soul. They are but desires for enjoyment. The question is, what is the source of this enjoyment?

Since the soul is dressed in a body, it seems to perceive that the light comes from these different garments—power, control, money, honor, and knowledge. The light assumes a particular form and reaches the soul that is dressed in a specific desire. The soul, now dressed in material desires, encounters the light which is also dressed in physical forms within these garments. In other words, we find ourselves in “this world.”

If both the soul and the light are dressed in physical garments, it is called “materialism.” If we remove our desires from all garments—from desires for enjoyment that are coverings such as honor, wealth, knowledge, sex, and so on—and even strip the pleasure itself of its covering, it is called “spirituality.”

The soul’s readiness to be naked, without a body or shell, and also the exposure of the pleasure requires progress through and growth within the four levels: inanimate, vegetative, animate, and speaking of this world. It includes the experience of all bodily desires and pleasures: raising a family, eating and resting, and especially the desire for sex. Afterward, it must advance through all of the social pleasures: wealth, honor, control, and knowledge.

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Whose Soul Does the Creator Give to a Person?

294.4Question: Second grader Stasik asks the Creator: “Did You give me my own soul or someone else’s?”

Answer: No, you received your own soul. But if you are not satisfied with it, you can work to correct it.

Question: What kind of soul should one aim for?

Answer: One that loves everyone.

Question: Do people have this desire?

Answer: I do not think so.

Question: But what about children?

Answer: Personally, I think children are more inclined toward correction than adults.

Adults have already settled into their ways and believe that things will not and cannot get better, and they simply should accept what they have.

Question: Do children still hold on to hope?

Answer: Yes.

Comment: Ideally, with experience, we should…

My Response: But we do not. Where would we get the patience, experience, or determination to resist what we have? We just accept it as it is.

Question: Is this because of the blows? Because we constantly experienced setbacks and received blows?

Answer: Yes, it is because we are too lazy to correct ourselves.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 11/4/24

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Above Life and Death

712.03Question: You described negative phenomena that we will reveal in the future due to lack of unification. But I have a feeling of trust, a kind of calmness. Is it because I am in this community or is it because we are such egoists that we do not care about the whole world?

Answer: No, we are simply acquiring connection with the upper force that is leading us forward. We understand that nothing could be worse than breaking this connection. Whatever happens, I am connected to it. This is the most important. It is above life and death.

Soon you will feel that you have gotten rid of this part of your life, and then what?

Meaning, you will not feel a great loss in the fact that the body will die. You will have such a point—not just a point—it will already contain a Kli, it will have its own life, and you will begin to identify yourself with it and not with the body.

Naturally you will stop looking at life the way other people do. This will come to you very quickly. I think many already have that feeling.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/28/20, “Questions from World Kli

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The Place of Everyone in the Soul of Adam

264.01Question: If everyone originated from one soul of Adam HaRishon, then what is the root of the soul?

Answer: It is the root that every person has in the soul of Adam HaRishon—the place in the soul of Adam from which everyone originated.

Question: What does it mean to unite souls if there is no distance in the spiritual world and everything is unified?

Answer: To unite souls means to return them to the place of Adam HaRishon where they merge into one single desire.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/10/24, “Growing Stronger in the Ten”

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The Specifics of Kabbalistic Writings

541Baal HaSulam was a very private man, a man of his narrow circle. European culture was clearly manifested in it. This is even evident in his music, which had a prevalence of the Eastern European, Polish melodies, with some Italian accent.

He is very specific in his presentation. Even when he talks about science, Kabbalah, and everything in general, his expression and style are based on knowledge of the deep layer of the Talmud, the Mishna, the Prophets, holy writings, and the Torah.

For example, sometimes he mentions a few words and at the same time casually refers to some source. If a person catches this, he understands the subject right away and perceives the text in a different way.

For example, sometimes even in our conversations we say that “Love covers all transgressions.”

However, in Kabbalah we mean that this phrase is from the Psalms of David, and at the same time we understand what kind of sins they are, what kind of transgressions they are, what kind of attitude a person has toward a person when he hates the other and is ready to destroy him. In the end when he moves to the state of love for the other, then all those so-called previous transgressions and the previous hatred on the contrary support the love he has achieved.

It means that this phrase includes such a huge layer, the order of states that one has to go through in order to say “Love covers all transgressions.” Without that it is just a nice phrase.

Another example is: “I have washed my feet, how can I rise from my bed?” Who knows what it is talking about?

This is a passage from Song of Songs. From the Kabbalistic point of view, Malchut says my “Reglaim” (legs), meaning the end of the Partzuf, the Kelim, the desires that receive the entire Light of Hochma are already up above. I am in the horizontal position, meaning I have already washed and cleaned my limbs, my final states. I cannot use them anymore.

How can I rise now also from this state “to embrace you, my Darling?” meaning to connect with Zeir Anpin in the receiving desires when I already annulled them. This is how the soul of a person, i.e., his desires, speaks with regard to the connection with the Creator.

It means that a multitude of various states, conditions, and interpretations of what is happening are implied here. This is a very serious system of relations. This is how it is said “How can I rise to you, Darling, open the door, since I already washed my feet and lied on my bed?”

Phrases like this can also talk about anything: a rider and his horse, a donkey and his driver, etc. Therefore, we need to adapt all of this to today’s generation that does not understand or know anything, and after all, has not heard about the existence of the Song of Songs, or even of the Psalms of David, or other sources.

We have to show them a short path. We do not have time to study all these sources even though they talk about pure Kabbalah. However, they speak in an allegorical way, while we have to bring a person directly to the revelation of the upper world. This is the reason we create our own media sources.
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From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. Expiration Date of Kabbalah” 1/31/10

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What Does the Body Have to Do With It?

49.01Question: If the corrections we go through are meant for the soul, what sensations do we feel in the body? It seems like they complicate the work of feeling correction. Why are they given to us then?

Answer: Honestly, I do not understand what you are talking about. If I focus on clarifying my relationships with my friends and clarifying my relationship with the Creator through these relationships, what does the body have to do with it?

Of course, the body also suffers; it shakes and feels various tensions, but I would say these are minor side effects. There is nothing significant about them.

You can rest assured that nothing will happen to your body. The body only becomes healthier if physical states result from your spiritual efforts. I guarantee you that.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/28/20, “Questions from World Kli

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