Question: What is the connection between the Holy Shechina and Adam HaRishon?

Answer: There is a significant difference between them. The Shechina is a part of the Creator, while Adam HaRishon is the general form of all created beings.

Question: We always begin the fulfillment of commandments with some transgression. What changes when we have the opportunity to put intention on this commandment?

Answer: Your attitude toward the action changes, the correction of intention occurs, and then the action becomes a commandment.

Question: What does it mean to attain the upper abundance in practice?

Answer: The upper abundance is the revelation of the Creator. If you want the other souls to receive it through you, they do it with the light you received from the Creator.

Question: Can we say that in spirituality, the forces of good and evil stand before each other and are somehow equal?

Answer: No, because even the smallest particle of egoism corrupts everything completely.

Question: If the Creator wants to delight His creations, why does it say in the sources that He does not need practical realization?

Answer: The Creator needs nothing, not even to fill us. We need this to become like the Creator.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/22/24, Writings of Baal HaSulam “A Mitzva that Comes through Transgression”

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Question: How can I check the correctness of my intention?

Answer: Usually, this check occurs when we perform an action, add an intention to it, and see from the result that the intention coincides with the action. For this, we deserve a blessing.

Question: If there is a result at the end, then the intention is correct. But how can we avoid deceiving ourselves in the process of acting?

Answer: There is no way to do that. You must complete the entire action, and only after its completion, see the result and understand whether you have fulfilled the commandment or not.

Commandment (Mitzvah) comes from the word “instruction” (Tzivui), which means an instruction from the Creator.

Question: What internal checks can we use to ensure that the actions of keeping the commandments are not superficial but contribute to spiritual growth?

Answer: This is clear from what we are studying. Everything that concerns coming closer to the friends, connecting, and turning to the Creator are positive and necessary actions. Everything else, as a rule, are negative actions.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/16/24, Writings of Baal HaSulam “And You Shall Keep Your Souls”

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Question: Should a person, as he approaches the Creator, come to the understanding that he would perform the commanded actions even without instructions from above?

Answer: No, without instructions from above one would not have fulfilled the commandments. These instructions prompt a person to take spiritual actions because the commandments are the desires of the Creator, which He commanded to people.

Question: Must a person feel himself what actions are commanded to him?

Answer: No, he gets knowledge about them from the primary sources.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/16/24, Writings of Baal HaSulam “And You Shall Keep Your Souls”

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Conversely, those who do not walk on the path toward achieving Dvekut with the Creator, which is to obtain the desire to bestow, are called “wicked” in that they are not walking on a path where they will be able to do everything for the sake of the Creator, but rather for their own sake.

Yet, here, “wicked” is a different discernment, a completely different interpretation. That is, there are no righteous there in the middle, but all their actions are as wicked, meaning not for the sake of the Creator, but for their own sake.

In the work, they are called “wicked,” but to the general public, who observe Torah and Mitzvot, they are called “righteous” (Rabash, Article  9, “What Is, ‘The Smell of His Garments,’ in the Work?”).

We need to try to fulfill those laws of the Torah that lead us to unity because “love your neighbor as yourself” is the most important commandment. We must strive for it. We must examine this condition and implement it.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/12/24, Writings of Rabash “What Is, ‘The Smell of His Garments,’ in the Work?”

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“All the commandments in the Torah that the Creator gave to Israel are written in the Torah in a general way,” in the verse “In the beginning God created,” until the verse “And there was light.” The Zohar explained that the verse “In the beginning God created” is the commandment of fear and its punishment, and all the commandments in the Torah are included in it (Zohar for All, “Rabbi Shimon’s Exit from the Cave,” #188).

The most basic commandment is fear of the Creator because the entire Torah is based on it. The fear is that if you do not fulfill the commandments of the Creator, you will be rejected. Therefore, this commandment is the cornerstone.

Question: What is the connection between the phrases “In the beginning the Almighty created” and “the commandment of fear”?

Answer: The fact is that our nature is absolute egoism, and the only thing that can force us to work, do something, and bring us closer to something is fear.

That is, “In the beginning the Almighty created” is our desire to receive, constantly fearing that it will not be filled. And then it says: until the words, “and there was light.” Light is already filling.

It turns out that a person’s fear changes since there is a difference between filling: either for oneself or for the sake of the Creator.
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From KabTV’s “Introduction of The Book of Zohar” 12/24/23

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Question: After they came out of the cave, Rabbi Shimon and his son gathered eight more disciples and began writing The Book of Zohar, which is a commentary on the Torah. Does it turn out that despite the complexity of The Book of Zohar, the Torah is even more encoded?

Answer: Of course, the Torah is more encoded than The Book of Zohar. It cannot be understood in simple terms. It is revealed gradually over many thousands of years.

Question: When Rabbi Shimon meets with Rabbi Pinchas, he says that all the commandments of the Torah that the Creator gave to Israel are written in the Torah in a general way (“Rabbi Shimon’s Exit from the Cave,” Zohar for All).

What does “in a general way” mean?

Answer: Each person must reveal the commandments individually, for himself, since each of us is a consequence of the Torah. Therefore, in studying The Book of Zohar, one must rise to such a level that he would see the root of his soul and what he must correct in this world.

In other words, the Torah describes the general laws of communication between a person and the Creator. A person, reveals it for himself and attains spirituality in a private form. At any given period of time, someone, in whom this desire awakens can somehow implement these general laws.
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From KabTV’s “Introduction of The Book of Zohar” 12/24/23

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The thirteenth commandment is to do redemption for his son, to tie him to life (Introduction of The Book of Zohar, “The Commandments of the Torah”).

Everything that is born from the earth, animals, or people, initiates such actions that we must raise up to the Creator.

There are two appointees, one over life and the other over death, standing over a person. When he redeems his son, he redeems him from the hand of the one appointed over death. He cannot govern him

Question: Can you explain what this is about?

Answer: We sort of separate the evil force from the good one and make a corresponding sacrifice in the form of a son’s redemption.

Usually, a son in spirituality means the next state of a person.
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From KabTV’s “Introduction to The Book of Zohar” 12/10/23

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Question: The twelfth commandment is to bring the first fruit of the tree (Baal Hasulam, Introduction of the Book of Zohar, “The Commandments of the Torah”, paragraph 245).

What does this mean in spirituality?

Answer: From everything that you have in the vegetative and animate world, from everything that is born and comes to you as suitable for consumption, you must separate a tenth and not use it. In this way you confirm the governance of the Creator in all nature.

Question: What is the difference between the eleventh and twelfth commandments? One says that one should separate the tithe of the fruits of the ground, and the other says that one should separate the tithe of the first fruits of the tree.

Answer: The only difference is in the technique, how and when it is done. But in principle, the essence is the same, separating the part that you cannot correct.
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From KabTV’s “Introduction of The Book of Zohar” 12/10/23

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The eleventh commandment is to give tithing [10% of the produce, Maaser] from the land (Introduction of The Book of Zohar, “The Commandments of the Torah,” paragraph 244).

Question: How can one fulfill this commandment today if a person does not work on the land?

Answer: In our time, it is done somewhat differently. But in principle, we should understand that out of everything we receive from nature, we are obligated to set aside a tenth part that is not for our use. In this way, we separate what we can use for the benefit of all.

Comment: So there is a part of me that I cannot correct, and I set it aside in advance.

My Response: Yes, that includes humans and the surroundings, and animals, and plants, everything.

Comment: But physically, people also used to give tithes. It symbolizes that they cannot correct a certain part of their desires, Malchut.

My Response: We still do it now, but we do it in an organized manner as a community.
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From KabTV’s “Introduction of The Book of Zohar” 12/10/23

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Our sages said, “He who comes to purify is aided.” The Zohar asks, “How is he aided?” and it replies, “with a holy soul (Rabash. Article No. 41, 1990. “What Are the Light Mitzvot that a Person Tramples with His Heels, in the Work?”).

As a result of all his efforts in spiritual work, a person gets help from not turning off the path and adhering to the rule “just do not leave.” He cannot leave the group, the ten, and continue to move forward.

Question: What does it mean he is helped with a holy soul? What happens to him at the same time?

Answer: He opens his eyes a little and rises a little higher up the steps of the ladder of spiritual elevation.

Question: But is it revealed to him as a gift for his work or from the fact that he made an effort and found, i.e., earned?

Answer: It does not matter, either this or that. We cannot determine exactly why we received this or that attitude from above.

Question: Is the help of the holy soul carried out as a once-in-a-lifetime exit from Egypt? Or can it happen systematically?

Answer: No, it happens at specific points along the way.
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From the 1^st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 1/1/24, Writings of Rabash “What Are the Light Mitzvot that a Person Tramples with His Heels, in the Work?”

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