Writings of Baal HaSulam “Igrot,” Letter 1
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The Book of Zohar “Introduction,” “General Explanation for All Fourteen Commandments and How They Divide Into Seven Days of Creation,” Item 10
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Talmud Eser Sefirot Vol. 6, Part 16, Item 56
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Writings of Baal HaSulam “The Essence of the Wisdom of Kabbalah”
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Preparation to the Lesson
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Writings of Rabash “Letter 40”
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The Book of Zohar “Introduction,” “General Explanation for All Fourteen Commandments and How They Divide Into Seven Days of Creation,” Item 9
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Talmud Eser Sefirot Vol. 6, Part 16, Item 54
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Writings of Baal HaSulam “Mutual Guarantee,” Item 28
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Question: It says that “everything is in the hands of Heaven except for the fear of Heaven.” But if the fear of Heaven is not in my hands, how can I attain it?
Answer: You can attain the fear only from Above. No one says that you have to be a complete righteous, God’s servant. What you feel at the moment is what you are. The question is how you draw the Light that Reforms unto yourself so that it will correct you.
All the changes take place only in the egoistic Reshimot (spiritual genes), which are constantly awakened in us according to the plan of creation and lead us along the path of in its time. But if we draw the Light from Above, which is called I will hasten it, we will hasten our development and receive both the powers and the fear from Above.
First, a person is filled with corporeal fear, that he should feel good in this world. Then he worries about the next world and asks what is the point in his life and thus arrives at the wisdom of Kabbalah with this question. Eventually he reaches the fear that he doesn’t have a desire to bestow unto the Creator.
He has to be incorporated in the right environment and draw the Light that Reforms so that it will give him spiritual fear, the fear of not attaining bestowal. This is already a problem since he has no natural desire for bestowal.
This is why we need an environment that will convince us that bestowal is a good thing. If I see that everyone values bestowal, I will also begin to value it and will acquire the desire for something that I never wanted, a desire for the spiritual world, for bestowal.
This is called making an effort, asking for something I have no natural deficiency for. After all, a deficiency for bestowal belongs to the essence of the Creator. We turn to every person with this idea since they all have to reach the state “and my home will be called a house of prayer for all the nations.”
Therefore, we have to publicize the wisdom of Kabbalah so that everyone will hear the message of connection. According to Baal HaSulam, only this is called genuine “religion,” connecting man with the Creator. All the religions in the world were invented by people and are therefore not truly universal and have no real connection to the spiritual world.
Everyone already understands that the world is in a state of crisis, which will only get worse until we begin to correct ourselves. But we have to explain that this situation is predetermined for us by the plan of creation in order to force us all to connect.
Everyone has a chance to be impressed by the right environment and to receive the deficiency for a mutual connection from it. Our reality forces us to do so. If we don’t agree, nature will teach us to do so by blows and wars. We only need to understand that we must reach connection. If we want to, we will receive all the powers to connect the forces of nature.
Since the wisdom of Kabbalah was established starting with Adam and Abraham, it is aimed only at the connection between people. But it was impossible to publicize this to the world before because the world wasn’t developed enough. Kabbalists turned to those who followed Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to people who were ready internally, who were refined and developed spiritually and thus heard that call. But others didn’t hear it, and it was necessary to perform many other actions so that humanity would be sensitive enough to accept the message of the general connection.
Today, however, it is possible to shout it out all over the world through one great loudspeaker. It is necessary for our groups to do this all over the world appealing to all. If we don’t want to advance by the blows, then this is the only method.
Nature obliges us to develop by force, so let’s want to advance so we won’t have to run away from the blows but to find the good force by ourselves, which will draw us towards connection in the quick and easy way. This is the whole wisdom and the whole Torah.
The only problem is that a person is immersed inside himself and adhered to his own heart. He cannot distinguish himself from it in order to manage his heart and his desire, but is inside his egoistic heart and follows it.
Therefore he needs an environment, an environment that will enable him to look at himself from the outside and start working on himself like on a stranger that is external to his desire. Therefore, the more a person is adhered to the environment, the more he can draw the Light that Reforms and thus advance.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/17/14, Writings of Rabash
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Our task is to make an effort, “Like an ox to the burden and a donkey to the load.” (Masechet Avodah Zarah 5b) There is a goal and we must reach it anyway. Either the host will sit on us and give us blows with a whip, and then we act like beasts, or through the environment we ourselves will develop the importance of the goal within us, yearning to be like an Adam (man) who is “similar” (Domeh) to the Creator and reach adhesion with Him. And then we advance on our own, without waiting for blows.
In this way we give the Creator satisfaction. We don’t give the Creator any satisfaction through what we do because of blows. This is the entire difference between the natural path of development “in its time” (Beito) or the path of accelerating time, “I will hasten it” (Achishena), the way of Light.
It is impossible for me to reach my correction by the way of suffering, the way of “in its time.” Each and every blow changes something in me, but it is not considered to be me and is not recorded on my account. For the greatness of the Creator, the importance of the goal and devotion are what is required from me, things that must come from the person, what characterizes the person; whereas, it is through blows that I am just shaken a bit to awaken and push me towards scrutiny, work, and changes in values. So we must understand that it is impossible to advance through blows.
Either we develop the importance of the next state through the environment from the start, which according to our nature is not at all important to us, but through the environment we build its importance and advance, or we receive blows that oblige us to begin this process. But ultimately we will be doing the same work with the environment, the importance of the goal, the importance of the Creator, and the clarification of the inferiority of our ego.
So the “path of suffering” doesn’t exist. The way of “in its time” is not a path. It only helps us to understand that the Creator pushes us towards changes and forces us to wake up through these blows. Then I enter a group for this, which is the right environment that will begin to push me.
Even though for me this is unpleasant, I don’t flee; rather, in spite of it all, I go further inside. We all need to be aware that in a state such as this it is impossible to flee; on the contrary, it is necessary to forge ahead. If I want to enter and I come across opposition, I can back off and leave, and I can also push even more and break in.
Therefore there is no path of suffering. If I will not push myself through the environment by myself, then from above pressure on me will be increased. And then the very effort that I had to give to advance in the path of “I will hasten it” and didn’t give, will take the form of suffering and blows that compel me to return to the right way.
It is not necessary to wait for the blows and suffering for us to advance. We don’t advance anywhere through suffering. In the best circumstances, we will want to flee from the blows to the right environment, and there we will already begin to clarify how to go on the path of “I will hasten it,” meaning the importance of the environment, the importance of the Creator, the importance of the teacher and all the means that can pull us forward. This must be our first level, and then we accelerate time and our development.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/26/14, Writings of Baal HaSulam
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Writings of Baal HaSulam “Mutual Guarantee,” Item 28
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We are found in the center of creation. And specifically we, those who are with doubts, problems, and confusion, through our small efforts carry out the most desirable work for Creator, what is most pleasant for Him.
That is how a small child gives pleasure to his parents with each of his unconscious acts. Everything extends from above to below. So we need to learn about the spiritual world from the physical world, and then we see what great actions we are doing.
And the very many states that are constantly changing in the world are the revelation of the Shehina (the presence of the Creator), an immense vast field that includes within it all the worlds, all the souls, all the conditions, all the Reshimot (reminiscences); everything is found within the Shehina. Above it are the first nine Sefirot, the bestowal of the Creator. Under it is its nine lower Sefirot; these are the shattered Kelim, desires. And the Shehina herself, meanwhile she is Keter of Malchut of Atzilut, and her nine lower Sefirot fell into the three worlds of BYA.
Everything that happens in our world, everything that is portrayed in front of us, is a small copy of what is found in the shattered parts of the lower nine Sefirot of Malchut. But the person’s problem is that he isn’t ready to absorb this from everything that exists.
I must prepare myself for this state,first of all, to understand that everything that happens descends from the world of Ein Sof, and each and every moment this appears before me in the best form, given to me for correction. And so I don’t get involved at all in any of the problems that exist in the world, all that happen with me, with the friends, with the families, with the people of Israel, with the whole world, no matter what.
I must accept this as a given, and think only about what I must do above all of this. I don’t need to enter and go deeper into all the events that appear before me, otherwise I will be immediately be detached from the Creator. First, I must rise to a higher level, identify with the higher supervision and management, seemingly see this situation from its perfected supervision and management, and say that I see the world in such a damaged form because I myself am not corrected.
I must correct myself to see the world as perfect instead of this world with murders and all the terrible events; all this is done and created within my Malchut, within my desires; I absorb all of this, as it is said: “All who condemn do so through their own defect” (Talmud Babyli Kiddushin 70b).
From what I see in this world, I must now correct myself so that in this place I see the Malchut of Infinity. I think only about my correction, bringing myself to a state in which I will see that everything is perfect.
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From the 3rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/19/14, The Zohar
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Question: What does it mean that every day and at every moment everything starts all over again?
Answer: We never begin from the same state that we already went through. Each time there is a new subject, a new feeling. But every time we start from zero, we forget what was before as if we had done nothing.
There are such states that we don’t remember anything at all; it’s as if we are found in some fog, confusion, in a state that we don’t understand and are not used to. You feel that you are lost, as if you lost your way and don’t recognize what is happening around you. Everything seems strange and unfamiliar.
That is how they bring you to a new state in which you must make a clarification, an investigation of where you are found and what you are doing. That is how you must begin each new stage, for it includes within it ten complete Sefirot in desires, lights, and situations.
After that, a person gets used to it, as if they exchanged a diskette inside of him, installed a new program, and then he begins to behave differently, reacts differently, sees the world in another form; everything is different. We must get used to needing to pass through many changes. Only someone who has not developed is not changed.
All of nature evolves: even the still, vegetative, and animate, and also ordinary human beings, meaning all of humanity. But with the Kabbalist, evolution is expressed in a different absorption of reality, in a division of reality into why and what I absorb and feel. And this happens even before we begin to go up the spiritual ladder where already a very strong change happens as well as the quality of the states. The difference between two adjacent states on the spiritual ladder is immense. They are simply different dimensions.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/26/14, Writings of Baal HaSulam
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The Book of Zohar “Introduction,” “General Explanation for All Fourteen Commandments and How They Divide Into Seven Days of Creation,” Item 8
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Writings of Baal HaSulam “Mutual Guarantee,” Item 25
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Everything depends on the efforts exerted by a person. It’s natural that every time we discover a bigger desire. This is why a bigger effort is required of us, more desperation for which there is no answer.
Again, we make efforts, and again reveal a greater desire. So again and again until we employ the full measure of effort and frustration.
As a result of all these efforts, they remain unanswered; a realization comes to us signifying that we have nothing to depend on! Everything is in the hands of the upper force, and if only it will have mercy on us then we can start working towards bestowal.
We change and become more aware of what a true prayer is, adhesion, and dependence upon the upper force at every stage of these efforts. It becomes clear why there is no answer still: because our prayer is impure. It hides an egoistic intention for oneself.
It’s impossible to reduce the number of these unsuccessful attempts because every penny is added to the total bill. We are obliged to go through them all one by one, and it all depends on the speed of our commitment towards this sprint, it depends if we don’t apply brakes when the Light is beckoning ahead or pushing us back, or doesn’t work.
Finally, we come to a genuine prayer, knowing what we require while agreeing with this request and desiring it. It already emanates from us, because we really want to achieve bestowal, without any regard for ourselves, desiring such bestowal with all our heart and soul. We believe that there is no better state than the power of devotion to bestowal, to the Creator, and we ask only of this.
Because all of these actions, our request transforms from egoistic to altruistic, then it reforms and becomes a correct cry, which receives an answer that comes from above.
It’s impossible to get anything without a need for it. All of our work and all of the states we find ourselves in are essentially intended for us so we ask for the correct things, which previously had already been prepared for us. As soon as we ask for them, we immediately get an answer.
[148560]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/26/14, Writings of Baal HaSulam
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