Convention in New Jersey, Day 3, Lesson 6

Convention in New Jersey, Day 3, Workshop 4

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We gather in order to unite and help one another overcome self-love. Everyone has to think about canceling their egoism, stop worrying about their own fulfillment, and strive only toward loving their neighbor when it is possible. In other words, throughout the entire convention, from this moment forward, we need to think about rising above ourselves and exiting our egoism. This is the only way for a person to feel the need and the desire to acquire the new quality called the desire to bestow.

When egoists like us connect and I look at others, I begin to realize that my egoism is very wisely made. Essentially, it is made in a way that helps me come out of it. In reality, nothing in my personal life interferes with spirituality. With the right attitude toward my nature, I will reveal qualities in it that help me attain the spiritual world.

The rejection I feel for others is given to me to show me how far I am from having spiritual qualities. Moreover, there is envy in me. When I see how others connect, and how every person tries to come out of himself and become closer to others, I envy them. Envy is a huge, egoistic force but essentially, it begins to work to my benefit, helping me to rise above my egoism.

Also, ambition—my desire to be higher and more successful than others—works to my benefit. I see the success of others and feel ashamed. I want to have what they have, at least not to fall behind, but to surpass them. It turns out that there is not a single quality in our egoism that we could not use to liberate ourselves from our egoism. This inner work is called “help against him.”

We need to delve into this work with our friends, but in reality we discover that there is nothing in our lives that we need to fight. Overcoming is spending every moment trying to be sensible toward heading in the right direction. Then, we will see how all our natural qualities help us attain the goal in a direct or an indirect manner.

There is no need to fight any of our inclinations. Instead, we need to study how nature plays us. If we use all our impulses wisely, we will be able to break through into the spiritual world.
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From a Talk on The Importance of Gathering 5/10/2013

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Question: I really would like the world to be a better place after the convention, a place where no one takes advantage of others, where there is no more pain, my bank account is fine, and life is good. Is that possible?

Answer: I think that it is in our power. Just imagine that many of our friends all over the world unite around this convention. These are the people who have the spiritual sparks, the particles from the upper world. If we connect them all, we can do anything!

Since our entire world is still, it doesn’t have the power to change anything. Now, when this becomes so clear, we see that no one can manage the world, and no one knows how to manage it either.

A century or two ago, we could do so since our ego was not so developed yet, and we could change the way we used it. However, now it is impossible. The ego has become closed, it has become round, and so no one in our world knows what to do with it.

Only we can take advantage of the fact that it has become round, which means connected and tied with others, while the egoists cannot since they are all separated. So, when the world becomes global, strongly connected, and mutually interdependent, everyone throws up their hands in despair, and no one knows what is going on. We see that they cannot manage even financial systems, not because they aren’t knowledgeable enough but because the rules in the world have changed.

The integral connection, the analog system that is now taking over, won’t let an individual or an egoistic group manage things. Only if you establish an analog system between several people can you change the world somehow, by using it like a management panel. The egoists cannot do that. Only we can, and this also includes your bank account.

So, everything is in your hands. If you ask us to connect to you, you will see how this happens. It isn’t mysticism or magic but real spiritual laws, which means that they are above our world. If you positively change the way the system works, you will see to what extent things change in the corporeal world since our world is an outcome of the spiritual forces. Nothing happens on its own. Everything is managed by an inner force to which you will have access.

Thus, you will understand why we need suffering in this world, including an overdraft in your bank account and everything else that is happening in the world. All this is meant to awaken us to rise to the upper force, even if it is in order to manage our corporeal life. From the height of this force, we really can do something; but as long as we don’t do that, the problems and troubles in our world will only grow. Therefore, the ball is in your hands.
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From a Talk On Preparation for the Congress in New Jersey, 5/10/2013

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When we begin to investigate our nature, the major breakthrough in discovering the truth is to stop focusing on our animal degree with which we usually identify ourselves: with our body and all its desires, thoughts, and longings. This is a primitive egoism, inherent in the whole human race, and every inhabitant of this world feels its manifestations to a higher or smaller degree, in various forms—everyone according to his nature.

We need to consider the history of humanity not as a life of animal bodies, but as the development of desire on the speaking degree. When we look at the world, we see how difficult people’s life is, how much they need to fight for it and apply efforts. Everyone is fighting for his existence. But why is it arranged so? It is all so that we understand the futility of our desire.

It’s no accident that we complain about life and suffering so much. This life intentionally forces us to suffer so that we decide that our egoism—our desire to enjoy—is killing us, and we then want to rise out of it to the next degree. If we don’t pay attention to bodies but look at the common desire, we will see that it grows from epoch to epoch and as it grows, it suffers more and more, more qualitatively.

Although a person has all the material things, his desire has grown to a more human level, and he doesn’t feel the satisfaction of a well-fed life. If once people were fighting for a piece of bread, today they don’t die of hunger but suffer from other causes.

In this way the common desire of which we are part develops and advances and, as a result brings us to the need to solve this problem. It’s impossible to continue living inside of this egoism that is born only to suffer. There is nothing else to do but to decide that we desire to rise above it, to grow in a different direction.

We don’t want to increase this desire further so that instead of a hundred we will want two hundred, and according to this, will double our suffering, then will want four hundred and will suffer even more. We need to use our desire differently, not to try to fulfill the animal body, but our true body that is outside of this animal: to rise above the animal—above the horse—to the level of the rider. This task should be the goal of our life.

Humanity reveals this and is now at a crossroads. It gradually begins to realize that it will bring itself to total destruction if it doesn’t change its nature. And we have the knowledge and understanding as to what needs to be done. We have the method that we try to realize for ourselves and to use as an example for the entire world, becoming a light to all the nations.

We want to break away from egoism that states “I will reign!” and forces us to serve our animal body; we want to rise from its degree and connect to the human within us. This human being within us does not exist; there is only a point from which we must develop it. This spark, called the “point in the heart,” exists in every person. But there are people in whom it burns and requires its realization. That’s why, around us around throughout the whole world, there are people who are able to realize this opportunity and build from this point the rider, the human, meanwhile hidden within it like in a drop of semen.

It’s necessary to implant this drop in the womb, which is the group. And when we adhere to the group, like a drop of semen to the uterus, then from this adhesion we start to get the upper force, the revelation of the Creator. There are three components: my drop, my group, and the Creator, who is revealed in it. Then I start receiving nourishment nourishment and strength through this group, and thus I grow.

In reality, I grow due to the fact that through the group I receive the force of the Creator; my desire to enjoy is also growing and seemingly wants to intercept me. But due to the fact that I draw the Light that Reforms to it, this raw, formless material begins to acquire the form of man, Adam, similar (Domeh) to the Creator.

I don’t know what it means to be like the Creator, and I feel various disturbances. But these very disturbances show me the form in which I should resist them, to ask adherence to the group and demand the influence of the Creator. Due to this, my desire begins to take a human shape. It’s just as the embryo passes through the different stages of its growth, undergoes all kinds of changes and takes different forms until it finally looks like a human being. Thus, we reach a state of readiness to be born in the spiritual world. And the very first stage is to adhere to the uterus, that is, the group, and to try to get nourishment through it from Above, the Light that Reforms.
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From the Men’s Convention “The Next Step” 4/26/13, Lesson 1

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As we ascend 125 spiritual degrees, we return to an “embryonic” state again and again, at deeper and higher levels. This is the special ladder in which every level of self-annulment takes its own form, with its unique characteristics.

And this is why the embryo submits to constant changes throughout its growth until it becomes similar to the upper one in its self-annulment, thereby completing the first stage. In this stage, the lower one is carrying out only its first self-annulment: It accepts everything that the upper one does, sends, or says to it as something perfect, even though it may seem to the lower one that it’s against it, that it’s repulsive to its mind and feeling.

Then when it completes the stage of conception, it actually begins to nullify itself by constructing the head of its Partzuf. It is born with its head turned downwards, that is, in self-annulment, and it begins to raise it, that is, to accept the mind of the upper one instead of its own. In other words, now it works actively against its own mind and feeling, and not only nullifies itself, but checks with the upper one at every step.

And even if it doesn’t agree with the upper one, whose words seem to him absolutely illogical, contradictory, and inadequate, it still it accepts them; this is already actual self-annulment. Before, in the stage of conception, it acted without examination, and now it accepts the mind and feeling of the upper one in defiance of its own.

This way, gradually, it constructs the head of the Partzuf and becomes similar to the upper one in terms of its inner program, its vessels (desires). Eventually, on a certain stage it is able to replace the upper one in all acts of the latter.

This is the order of the degrees, and we rise in them through the power of resistance. Baal HaSulam tells a parable about a servant and the ministers, when the king wanted to place the servant as head of the ministers. In order to do this, he told one of them who was skilled in buffoonery to pretend that he was the leader of the enemies and the bandits so that, through fighting with them the person could examine himself as to what degree he could “protect the king,” meaning to adhere to the mind of the upper one. After all, when the king’s assistant dresses like a criminal, it is not easy to recognize this. On the contrary, a person always thinks that he is right, and he needs a strong power of overcoming to rise above reason, not like it was on the first stage.

And this is the state that we call the “second conception.” After all, even though the person matured, came out of the embryonic stage and infancy, the conception continues even here: the actions are the same but on a new level. Now he actually nullifies himself in order to be similar to the upper one in practice.
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From the Men’s Convention “The Next Step” 4/26/13, Lesson 2

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Convention in New Jersey, Day 2, Lesson 3 

Convention in New Jersey, Day 2, Workshop 2

Convention in New Jersey, Day 2, Lesson 4

Convention in New Jersey, Day 2, Workshop 3

Convention in New Jersey, Day 2, Lesson 5

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Suppose I hurt someone. Can he love me in return instead of feeling resentment and hate towards me? For what? Maybe I am bigger and smarter. Or maybe he loves me since by the blows I want to bring him to the good, to something special and sublime?

For example, I pressure my little son to study so that he will grow smarter and become a “great man.” He may not like that now since he may want to play, but I oblige him to study.

In response he doesn’t love me, but hates me. However, later as a result of my blows he grows smarter and thanks to the study develops internally. I force him to develop, and with time he understands that I do it for his own good. Yes, I pressure him and force him to follow the hard way, but it doesn’t mean that I don’t love him, as he previously thought. No, I do it this way because I want what is best for him and I suffer even more than he does because of my toughness, but I simply have no other choice.

So, the Creator has no other choice either: This is the only way He can create the created being. Only then, as he develops, he will turn to the Creator not because of the blows or the pleasures that come from Him, but in a different purposeful manner, understanding that the Creator awakens him to exert and to ascend, to reach eternal, perfect life, to come to eternal understanding, and to reach a new, special level.

When he reaches that he already has two types of nature:

1. The feelings of pleasure and suffering that come from the Creator.
2. And above them, a new love that he feels for the Creator, instead of the hate he felt before.

This is how the created being becomes independent of his initial nature and receives a second nature.

In this world I sometimes also want people to love me, not because I am nice and good, but that they will love me just as I am, even if I treat them badly. I want you to love me and to appreciate me, although I treat you toughly and I cause you pain. I want to you to love me not because of how I treat you and others, but because of who I am.

It’s somewhat like the game that the Creator plays with us when He establishes direct relations with us and at the same time allows us to focus on another “direct line.” It’s like the relationship we see between parents and children, when the parents love the children although they cause them great troubles and worries. It says: “Love will cover all the sins.”

Thus we can understand the game that the Creator plays with us. All our work involves transcending the body that feels only pleasure or pain, establishing the right attitude towards our Teacher, who teaches us to transcend our “animal,” and appreciating His essence: Why does He do that and for whom? He does it only for our sake.

It says that He suffers more than we do since He has to conceal Himself and to put our “animal” part through different sufferings. He does that so that we will transcend this level and become human beings, sublime, eminent, mature, and developed. He wants us to appreciate His attitude according to its essence and not according to how He evokes us to transcend the “animal,” ignoring the pleasures and the sufferings that He intentionally sends us, and see everything with regards to the goal.

In Kabbalistic terms it means that we perform a restriction (Tzimtzum) on the “animal” feeling of pleasure or pain and aim only at the goal, that is, we perform Zivug de Hakaa (coupling by striking) above all the corporeal pleasures in order to be only in mutual bestowal with the Creator, regardless of all my “animal” pleasures and sufferings. This is already a different, higher level, in which I establish my connection with the Creator according to how much we both think about this connection, about the unique goal, about the special state.

Coming back to the example of the father and son: When the son already understands why the father treats him toughly and forces him to study, he transcends the sufferings and rises to a new level of relationship with his father, as they both worry about his success. Thanks to this they are in unity, in adhesion, and in a common intention; they are connected and understand one another. This is already a spiritual level, the unity of spirit, despite the pain and the limitations that the son has experienced by his father on the corporeal level.

These two levels are essential since otherwise the father and son will not be able to establish a real, personal, inner connection between them. Without the spiritual connection they will be connected only by what they receive from one another, which is on the “animal level,” where the created being is undoubtedly operated by the Creator and remains dependent forever. This example clearly explains the basis of our connection with the Creator.
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From a Talk On Preparation for the Congress in New Jersey, 5/10/2013

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Convention in New Jersey, Day 1 “Importance of the Gathering” 

Convention in New Jersey, Day 1, Lesson 1

Convention in New Jersey, Day 1, Workshop 1

Convention in New Jersey, Day 1, Lesson 2

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Rabash, Shlavei HaSulam (Steps of the Ladder), “The Purpose of Society” (1984 part 1): And this is why we gather here—to establish a society where each of us follows the spirit of bestowing upon the Creator. And to achieve bestowal upon the Creator, we must begin with bestowal upon man, which is called “love of others.”

Thanks to this we will be able to bestow upon the Creator, the general force of bestowal. This is what we call the attribute by which we rise above our ego.

Mutual bestowal is love of others. If I love someone, I want to give him everything and I make sure that he feels good. It is as if I am constantly in him and I see myself only as a means to bestow upon him, which helps me transcend myself.

This is the reason that such a big world with so many people in it was created. It allows us to gather and establish a group where by the mutual connection between us everyone will be able to transcend his ego and see that he has the means to acquire a second nature: bestowal. In fact, this is what we call the exit from the ego, from its limited system.

And on the other hand, be proud that the Creator has given us the chance to be in a society where each of us has but a single goal—for Divinity to dwell among us.

Our goal is that the revelation of the upper world will fill us. This is called “the revelation of Divinity,” which takes place namely among us. Each of us is an egoist, but when we exit our nature and begin to rise above ourselves, a great collective force is created between us, full of mutual bestowal. We make sure that we achieve this mutual force when we mutually bestow upon one another, and our concern is called mutual guarantee.

We all feel the upper world in this general force. There we discover the forces of all the people who lived before us and who live in this world together with us, of all the people who transcend themselves and live in an eternal state.

This general force is one collective soul. There are no separate individual souls, but only one soul for everyone. But in it everyone feels the eternal world in different depth and width, to the extent that he rose above his ego.

We go through ascents and descents along this road that summon different states in which the eternal world seems to be changing. The truth is that it doesn’t change, as it says: “The Light is at absolute rest.” But we feel as if it changes since we are actually changing. Our ego is transforming all the time, we overcome it in different ways, and accordingly, the picture of our world and the feelings we experience are very dynamic.

Thus we advance until everything is totally revealed and this is the end of correction. All the people in this world must reach that. Even if the bodies change, our spiritual parts remain the same. The bodies separate us from the general feeling into individuals, but if we leave the body, we immediately feel one world and ourselves as one. This is precisely where we are headed.

The efforts that we make in the convention depend on us. We may experience this eternal sate for a couple of minutes. It may be temporary and it may disappear, but the actual phenomenon will remain and will draw us forward forcefully helping us overcome the future phases.

If we really make great efforts, then besides this world we will feel the spiritual world and live in two worlds. It is all up to us. If we can initially think about this and are getting ready for this, then whoever comes to the convention will join us and we will all advance together.

So let’s hope for the revelation of the upper world, which we must always see as the goal that is attained by our unity.

And although we have not yet achieved this goal, that is, we have not felt the upper world by exiting our ego, we have the desire to achieve it. And this, too, should be appreciated by us.

It is true that we have just started, but we hope to reach the goal, and it should be appreciated by us. It is up to us and depends on our efforts. It says: “A person can buy his world in one hour.” If people, who are part of a group, really want to transcend themselves, they will really feel this ascent.
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From a Talk On Preparation for the Congress in New Jersey, 5/10/2013

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