From the book Light and Sun by Rav Kook: The main thing in a gathering is general unity, when everyone asks one thing: to find the Creator.

If we unite for the sake of one goal: to find the Creator who is revealed inside our unity, this is the correct connection. This is the main thing we need to achieve. We are already on the way to this, having done a variety of actions and preparations. Today’s meeting is just preparation.

We are constantly moving closer to this state, and it depends on us how we can reduce this path and reach the first minimum connection in which the Creator will be revealed on the degree of Nefesh de Nefesh de Nefesh. This is exactly what we need, and it will have our first spiritual degree.

There are 125 degrees in total, and the first degree of Nefesh de Nefesh de Nefesh corresponds to the Malchut of the world of Assiya. We want to rise to it and inside it to reveal the Creator as one vessel filled with one Light. One vessel is all our desires connected together. And one Light is the Creator, the Light of the world of Infinity that fills the entire universe, but revealed only to the extent of our degree of Nefesh de Nefesh de Nefesh. However, it already means our entry on the spiritual ladder.

Therefore, “the main thing in a gathering is general unity, when everyone asks one thing: to find the Creator.” We want to connect strongly enough and qualitatively so that through our unity, that is, self-nullification and inclusion into each other, we achieve power and form that allows us to reveal the Upper Light according to the equivalence of our properties. Then, inside the vessel that has revealed the Creator, we will be able to understand the Upper Light, to feel it.
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From a Preparation lesson for the Arava convention, 1/30/14

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We all become integrated with each other. All our thoughts are in each other. No matter how we express them, we still experience the same states internally. Which ones, it does not matter.

We study the wisdom of Kabbalah from the top downward, from the world of Infinity to our world, and here, at the convention on integral education, we pass it from the bottom up, discussing how to rise from our world to the world of Infinity.

It is all one methodology, the same at all the levels. The difference is only in understanding, in the depth of solutions to the questions that arise. But they are solved in the same way: by greater unity among us, integration with each other, connecting the wider circles of humanity to us, and naturally, together with this, even greater yearning for the Creator. That is all.

I am very glad that we have found this brief, simple scheme, because it could be difficult to express. Now, we have come to the state when seemingly we have succeeded and it is in front of us in a compact form.

We will still have to learn it well, put it inside ourselves so that everyone feels: “That’s how I have to work, and then everything will go smoothly.”

We will start to work on this whole scheme internally, will begin to perceive everything through it.

In general, well done! Thank you.
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From the Integral Education Convention, Day Two 2/3/14, Workshop 3

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Question: In what manner are we included in the ascents and descents of the friends?

Answer: We want to unite and be included in the feelings of the friends in that we nullify ourselves in regard to each other as much as our heart is ready for this. We want to take sandpaper and rub our heart so that it will be more sensitive to others; we want to do something with him so that he will not be so opaque. If I am linked to the heart of the friend, I acquire all that is in his heart: all his ascents and descents, everything that he did in the past, both the good things and the bad things.

In fact, it is not important if they are good or bad, for I acquire the intensity. The Creator arranged the bad things for a friend from the start. The good things could happen to him in the way of suffering or in the way of Torah and they pass over him. I can acquire, receive, all of this experience. It was specifically for this that there was the shattering of the desires so that everyone could do his small part of the work and could we could enrich each other through mutual integration.

We don’t understand what a spiritual level is. It is not so high that it is impossible to attain, but only if we take the entire history of each from each other. Through my inclusion with a friend, I acquire all the incarnations through which he passed, the entire way through which his soul passed, in that he descended from the world of Infinity (Olam Ein Sof) and was shattered together with my soul. And after this, we underwent a multitude of incarnations together, and now we have met in order to be linked with each other.

After the shattering of the collective soul, the souls were divided and distanced from each other. They passed through a long process of change, passing through Babylon and the rest of the trials. And now that they have finally reached connection, I can receive all that the rest went through and experienced throughout all of history, and therefore I become a complete Kli that includes the whole world within it. And this is how it is for each one of us, and nobody bothers another!  This is the unification of the integral Kli.

It is completely unimportant if the friend feels this or not. If I subdue myself and connect with him, I receive his effort, his connection, all that is in him.
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From a Preparation Lesson for the Arava Convention, 1/30/14

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Integral Education Convention, Workshop 1: We must not forget that every second each of us will experience exits from the state of unity and will return to it again.

It is actually thanks to such exits and returns that each of us and all of us together will gradually begin to feel our common space, until it becomes permanent, until we dwell in it permanently. We have to do this as quickly as possible.

We have to attain a new state in our group in the connection between us by rising above our ego, by connecting in mutual guarantee, and as if sacrificing ourselves for it. But in fact, it isn’t self-sacrifice at all.

It simply turns out that I prefer the desires and the goal of the group over my personal ones, although we understand that there is nothing personal here. It is all the advice and the instructions of the Creator to each of us: He gives us different hardenings of the heart, obstacles, problems, etc., so that we will be able to ascend above them.

Everyone has his own problems and everyone experiences them in his own way, but we have to collect them all, reject them, and ascend to the level of mutual guarantee.

There we connect and attain the connection correctly. We begin to feel the need to ascend to a higher level, to the Creator. Our next level is the Creator.

Thus we need to advance. When someone falls, we have to respond immediately and to pick him up. We have to constantly keep everyone floating with their heads above the water, until we become like a float, and thus constantly ascend, ascend, ascend. This refers to both women and men, to everyone personally. In this state we actually complete the whole work.

There are three parts in the spiritual Partzuf: HBD, HGT, and NHY. So on the lower levels they are fulfilled in greater details, but there is nothing new, only increasingly greater revelations of the same principles.
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From the World Zohar Week “Integral Education Convention” Day One 2/02/14, Workshop #1

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Preparation for the Integral Convention: Crisis

“As the advantage of the Light out of the darkness.” We have to explain to people what a great gift we were given. We are the ones who have to guide the whole world to the end of correction, which means to the revelation of the corrected state of humanity.

This is the reason that the world is revealed as global and the connection between all its parts is revealed as integral: Everyone is incorporated in everyone else and everyone depends on everyone else, and it’s impossible to correct one part of the world without correcting another part.

Why do all our plans fail? Why do we waste billions of dollars and nothing happens? Look at the world leaders who set the tone in politics, economics, industry, commerce, technology, education, culture, and the family: The higher their status and the greater the number of people who are affected by their decisions, the more mistaken they are.

Now we see more and more often that anyone who makes a decision by himself agrees that he is wrong. The reason is that we can only make decisions through unity. It doesn’t matter what level of unity it is, and you don’t have to reach the end of correction for that. You should only make a decision from a point where you really try to resemble the Creator as much as possible, even if the Creator is concealed.

A new leadership is revealed in the world these days. Previously the leadership was fulfilled along one line only and we advanced only by the power of blows. We felt bad and we escaped the bad feeling to the good, like animals. But now the leadership is revealed in two lines and so one person cannot make a decision since only a group can deal with it. A group should find a solution as the middle line.

In light of the five previous points of integral education, we can assess correctly why the world is in a state of crisis. On the other hand, there is no crisis in our group and we are advancing towards increasingly greater unity. This is why we discuss the crisis and solve it by ourselves.
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Preparation for the Integral Convention, Nine Stages On The Path To Unity, Point 6

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From the book, Likkutei Halachot: The essence of love and oneness is in the desire where each one wants what his friend wants, and there is no difference in their desires, all are included in one desire, and through this they are included in the higher desire—unity.

I don’t know what this higher is. It has no form; it is not found. There is no higher by itself. Where is the spiritual ladder found? Was it in Jacob’s dream as the Torah tells us?

The ladder doesn’t exist without us. I create and build the higher the moment that I connect with the friends; with them I reach a complete degree of unity, and then a higher level that didn’t exist before is presented to me. So the Creator is called, “Come and See” because we build and create Him ourselves; we give Him His form.

Therefore it is written, “The essence of love and oneness is in our desire, where each one wants what his friend wants, and there is no difference in their desires so they are connected with each other, and included in one desire; through this they are included in the higher desire, and by reaching one collective desire we discover the higher—our unity.” Then we understand that we have reached the higher level.
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From a Preparation Lesson for the Arava Convention, 1/30/14

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Question: How can we unite if we don’t feel the pain of our shattering?

Answer: Connection is only possible with a united effort. Alone you can scream for even a thousand years, but this won’t help. Here there must be a group effort where everyone is attracted to each other and ready for mutual guarantee (Arvut). Everyone must be ready to be responsible for the others: one for all and all for one.

These are the necessary conditions; it is impossible to replace them with anything else. And you want to finish the work yourselves, but this is impossible. You forget the formula and don’t take it into account. The formula is that we are making efforts to try to connect among us, to carry out all kinds of activities within the group in order to resemble the Light that Reforms. It must influence us and change us.

We are not changed by our connection. Through our inclination to connect, we awaken the intensity of the Light, the influence of the energy field in which we are found. The more that we try to connect between us in all kinds of forms, with this we awaken the action of bestowal, meaning the Creator who fills the world. And He illuminates us according to our efforts, and it is not important that they might be incorrect and confused. The main thing is the effort that attracts the Light that Reforms. And then this Light changes me.

You ask: What form must we attain? This doesn’t concern me and doesn’t matter to me; I never reach that form myself. It is the Light that influences me and connects me with the friends in this form that is suitable to its revelation. Then instead of Ohr Makif (Surrounding Light) that arranges and corrects our connections, it transforms into Ohr Pnimi (Inner Light).

This is the same Light; no changes are made in the Light itself. But it sometimes appears as Ohr Makif and sometimes as Ohr Pnimi, sometimes as NRNHY and more. There exist a multitude of types of Light: Ohr Yashar, Ohr Hozer. But it is precisely the Light that makes the form for me.

You say: “We want to reach connection!” Where is the Creator within this sentence? And what do we want this connection for? Also for His sake! The Creator realizes this connection and He is also discovered within it. And from our side, we are only attracted to this connection, but certainly we don’t succeed in doing anything if the Light does not connect between us. All that is required of us is to attain the right intention.
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From a Preparation Lesson for the Arava Convention, 1/30/14

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Question: This convention is a convention of our connection with the Creator. What does this mean?

Answer: There cannot be connection without feeling the Creator. Otherwise, how do we know that we have reached connection? We test it only by discovering the Creator within the connection. Only in this way can we be sure that we have connected.

Therefore unity between us cannot exist without that one force that is discovered within us as a characteristic that fills and connects us, that stabilizes us. This is what we call having reached connection. Without the Creator, the connection will not happen: He must stabilize our connection and testify that we have attained Him.
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From the Talk at a meal 1/26/14

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World Zohar Convention, Day Three, Lesson 7

World Zohar Convention, Day Three, Workshop 4

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It isn’t by chance that our big global group is divided into two parts which are necessary in order to express our prayer, our deficiency for correction correctly. Because of different reasons, the first part is given the chance to connect physically during the convention, while the other part cannot come to the convention and connect physically.

This is why there is another important element in our prayer where we must ask for the friends who are not physically with us so we will feel as if they are here with us. We shouldn’t feel any distance between us, but rather that the distance between us is meaningless since there is nothing but the connection with the friends.

We ask the Creator to bring the friends who had to stay at home closer to us and to convey all our feelings to them and their impressions to us. There shouldn’t be virtual communication lines between us, but heart to heart communication lines which are so strong that we will feel that the friends are not just beside us, but inside our hearts!
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From the Preparation for the World Zohar Week 2014 1/29/14

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