Question: The Kabbalists, without difference, declare the principle of “love the other as yourself” as the most important thing. They all join in this. So where does the division in the Jewish state come from?

Answer: Because of the exile, because of the separation from the spiritual force, from the consciousness of spirituality, from the spiritual force. The people simply forgot the main thing, and this was done on purpose: as if part of the pipeline through which he used to receive spiritual nourishment was cut from him.

A person simply doesn’t feel that another, complete world exists, and that there are forces that direct him. He was left only with those channels that direct him in a corporeal way, and now he only exists in this world, seeing that the situation with others is identical to his. And all the rest of the threads that connect are disabled. From all of the systems, there remains only the operating system of the lower level of this world, which from a spiritual view is not considered as existing. Actually, it simply it not there.

And now we need to unite our spiritual sparks, our points in the heart that don’t belong to this world, in order to create from them a new spiritual reality. This is what we have been entrusted with. It isn’t just to get close to each other, like sheep in a herd. That wouldn’t give us anything. We are speaking here only about the sparks that we need to raise and unite.

So you need to think and worry only about the longing of the friends for the Creator, about sparks that are in each one of them. When we connect them together into one whole, then we will have enough force in order to reveal the Creator. That is what all our work is about.
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From the 4^th part the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/3/12, “Exile and Redemption”

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From Baal HaSulam’s article “Thou Hast Hemmed Me in Behind and Before”: …who connects the two worlds, discovers His clothing in the present: everything that is done is a clothing for the revelation of divinity.

If a person believes that any change that happens to him is caused by the Creator and every moment of his life he keeps building an adequate attitude and regards everything that happens to him as a manifestation of the Good that comes from the Creator, then he becomes similar to a “horse that is subordinate to the bridle and headstall of the rider.” This means that he stays constantly aware of his unwillingness to change the world, but rather he stays alert to his desire in order to change his attitude towards it.

He clearly realizes that he’s not the one who rules and makes decisions, but rather everything is defined by the Light. A person needs to acknowledge this fact every single time, thus “turning himself” correctly towards the events that happen to him. Any situation is presented to a person to the extent of his desire to receive pleasure. He has to behave “as if” he feels and realizes everything around him from the level as if he already is in the desire to bestow.

The only emanation of the Creator is “the good.” When we want to hear the Creator’s voice, every single moment we become subject to a constantly increasing impact: impulse after impulse. Our task is to stay alert, tune ourselves to them, and set up the correct attitude at each given moment. This will allow us to advance correctly in accordance with the genuine state of affairs, which means that it isn’t the horse carries the rider where it wants, but the rider leads a horse and brings him to the right goal.

The Creator will lead us by sending us various situations. Our part is to relate to our life circumstances as good and recognize that all of them come from the Creator; this is how we can straighten the route and turn our faces directly towards the Creator. If we apply effort and ask the Creator (the Light) to help us understand things that happen to us this way, He gradually will change us and give us a chance to build the right attitude.

Baal HaSulam writes in his article “Thou Hast Hemmed Me in Behind and Before:” Hence, that way there is contact, as well, but it is back to back, meaning not by the will of the dresser or that of the dressed. But those who follow His will discover for themselves the royal dresses in the present, connected face to face through the will of the dresser, for that is precisely His wish.

We don’t reveal Malchut per se, but rather divulge Her dresses; we take off Her concealments and coverings and turn Her around so that we see Her face, as if we are lifting a veil that is covering the beautiful face of the bride. So, it means that the external shell (Klipa), our egoistic attitude, helps us invert and amplify 620 times our connection with the Creator that is gradually revealing.
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From the 1^st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/30/12, Writings of Baal HaSulam

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The Wisdom of Kabbalah and Philosophy, Lesson 2

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Israel is a high degree. Every person who has separated himself from material interests and is only directed at adhesion with the Creator, with the force of bestowal according to the law of equivalence of form, and devotes every moment to this is called Yashar-El (straight to the Creator), Israel.

One of the stages on the path is to enter into a pact, when a person integrates the others, those who are also called Israel, into himself. Once they were already united, but the desire to enjoy, the evil inclination, entered between them and separated them. And now, in spite of the fact that they reveal it, they nonetheless work on their connection all the time in order to reach connection, and to provide the Creator with the vessel for the reception of pleasure.

The goal of creation is the delight of the created beings. This is the action on the part of the Creator, so why was it given as the task of creation? Because the creation has to bring itself to such a state to give the Creator an opportunity to bring it pleasure. Our work is to reveal this vessel for receiving pleasure. And the pleasure is to give the Creator an opportunity to bestow.

As is it said about the miracle that happened at Mount Sinai: “Today we have all gathered here,” that is, from this point forward we receive the ability to connect and be worthy to be clothed in the upper force. And now we are called the chosen people; this general vessel is called the people of Israel. And He who fills this vessel according to the law of equivalence of form shall be called our Creator.

Therefore, there is a condition: “Today we have all gathered here,” that is, we should all get together to become as one—one common vessel for the realization of the goal of creation, to benefit the created beings.

It is said: “And the people stood under the mountain,” that is, having broken all doubts (Har – mountain, Irurim – doubts) to achieve unity. We need to take care of our common connection so that none of us forgets about it.

Real mutual guarantee is needed for that. That is what we lack, and this is the reason why we have not yet succeeded in building the common vessel. This is all because of the lack of mutual participation, care that each friend is concerned about connecting everyone into one, so that we “have ALL gathered here!”
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From the Preparation to the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/03/12

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Rabash, “Self Love and the Love of the Creator”: There is self love and there is love of the Creator. And there is the transitional phase, which is the love of others, and by the love of others one arrives to the love of the Creator. This is why Rabi Akiva said: “Love thy friend as thyself; this is the great rule of the Torah.” And as Hillel said to the convert who asked him, “Teach me the whole Torah while I stand on one foot.” And he said to him, “Don’t do unto your friend what is hateful to you. The rest is commentary.” Since by the love of others one comes to the love of the Creator, and then all the Torah and all the wisdom are in a person’s heart.

It is very difficult for a person to agree internally that the road to the Creator goes through the love of others and that it is true that it is the same love, but in two different vessels.

The others don’t exist, but it only seems to us that way so that we will have a chance to perform actions in order to expand our vessel. Later, it will be revealed that there is nothing but a person and the Creator.

He corrected, fixed, and connected to himself the desires that he previously thought were the others, all the huge world that surrounds him. First, he found more and more connections in this world. He has seen that he is increasingly more connected and, eventually, he understands that this is all his vessel, and, thus, he connects to the Creator.

So, “From the love of others to the love of the Creator” isn’t just a nice slogan, but the fulfillment of the desire, which is the only place where a person can reveal his upper world.

This path is a result of the “shattering of the vessels” that took place especially in order to allow us to expand our feeling and, at the same time, to be independent and loyal to the Creator forever.

“Love thy friend as thyself” is the great rule of the Torah, which includes the entire general desire in which all the Light is revealed. We can study it “on one foot” (in brief), which means that by just one action, we can acquire the whole attainment. We discover that behind what seems to us, like the others, there is the whole reality.

The only problem is to perceive it internally. This is all our work, and, here, we need mutual guarantee since we can hear about it for many years before we even begin to get close to it. Then, a few more years are needed in order to decide to implement it. Thus, many years go by, and only mutual guarantee, mutual responsibility, pressure, envy, lust, and using all the means a person has, can help him become committed to and to internalize this principle as deeply as possible into his heart.

We have to measure how deeply it enters us and brings us to internal agreement and by that to value our advancement.
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From the Preparation to the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/2/12

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Baal HaSulam, “Exile and Redemption”: The Creator will evidently show us that Israel cannot exist in exile, and will find no rest as the rest of the nations that mingled among the nations and found rest, and assimilated in them, until no trace was left of them.

The Light operated and influences the mixing of the shattered vessels. If two liquids are mixed and left together for thousands of years, the heavy components of this mixture will sink and the light ones will float. Accordingly, the Light that shines from Above shines more on the light components, which as a result feel that they want to attain the goal of creation. This feeling awakens in them and so they can find no rest among the vessels of receiving. They can correct themselves, and they are called “Israel” which stands for Yashar – El (straight to the Creator).

The general desire can be divided into two parts: the upper (Galgalta veEynaim – GE) that can easily be corrected and the lower (AHP) that is difficult to correct. The vessels of GE don’t feel an immediate awakening, but a gradual one, first on the level of the “forefathers,” then on the level of the “sons,” and then in the 21^st century, it comes to us. Still the vessels of Israel awaken by themselves, because they have a point in the heart (•), which begins to appear at one point or another, starting from the time of Abraham to the present day to the Bnei Baruch organization (BB).

There cannot be any awakening below. Here the desires to receive are in control, and they cannot awaken by themselves. Only after the first upper vessels correct themselves, they begin to awaken the lower by using different methods. First there were beliefs that Abraham had sent with the sons of the concubines to the East as gifts. Then different religions appeared. Finally we are using dissemination, which Baal HaSulam writes about in his article “The Messiah’s Shofar,” saying that we must bring the world the information about the correction that the Israeli nation has to perform. Thus we act and influence these layers, and in response they begin to join us and to rise.

This means that the order of our correction is as follows: First we correct the vessels of GE (1), then the vessels of AHP of Aliya (on the rise) (2), and then the vessels of AHP in their place (3). Today we are in the first phase when Israel is being corrected.

In general, this drawing shows the whole vessel that was created with its two parts: GE and AHP. In it, the people with the point in the heart are above, and it can be anyone, no matter where he lives. The layer marked in yellow is also divided into two parts: the “nation of Israel in the land of Israel” and the “nation of Israel in exile.” Both parts have points in the heart, but they haven’t awakened in the second part yet.

The upper part of this vessel is the level of the forefathers, and it is already corrected (in red) and below there is a “white spot,” which we have to correct. Then it will be the turn of the “nation of Israel in the land of Israel,” and then the “nation of Israel in exile.”
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From the 4^th part the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/2/12, “Exile and Redemption”

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Question: Among the “nations of the world” there is the category of AHP of Aliya (rising) that joins Israel first. Who are the people who belong to this category?

Answer: Some join this process according to the order of correction and others are corrected only in the end. But in fact, it isn’t about human beings, but about vessels. It is not in kilograms of flesh and not in animal attributes, all this has nothing to do with spirituality. Another thing is important, and that is how big a person’s ego is and how deeply the point in the heart is buried.

The only thing that a person has is his ego. So where is the spark (•) of future bestowal in him hiding? In which layers? On which of the five level of thickness (the thickness of the desire)? According to this a person awakens to correction.

Basically, everyone has a point in the heart. After the shattering and the mixing of the vessels, there is even an initial part of it in the stony heart, since otherwise it will simply not be able to be corrected. But if the fourth level is corrected only in the end, then all the other levels belong to AHP of Aliya.

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The rising of Malchut to Bina is called “the sanctification of the moon.” This means acquiring the faith by which a person has to sanctify his work above reason. He understands that he mustn’t work with his desires to receive, but that all his work should be within the vessels of bestowal.

But in the meantime he has no desire to bestow, and he doesn’t even understand what it means. Therefore, the Creator points by using a “finger”: “Look, this is the form of bestowal!” That is, a person gradually begins to discover the form of bestowal and understands that this is the desirable form.

Before that, he couldn’t discover it, appreciate it, or imagine it. After all, what we call bestowal in our world is not bestowal but latent receiving, false altruism. Undoubtedly, as long as a person is managed by his egoistic desire, he must feel some pleasure in his actions, since otherwise he wouldn’t be able to move.

Even when he fills others, he must feel some profit, or that the other is dearer to him than himself. Then he feels natural love towards him, like a mother who is ready to give her baby everything. Another option is that we are so closely connected that the wellbeing of another is inseparable from my self-benefit, or that I am managed by fear!

The motive can also be benefit, an additional profit, or a desire to cut down my sufferings. It is also felt as an egoistic profit and usually even a greater profit than the pleasure.

I can feel a profit from the addition and also a profit since I don’t lose. In that case my joy is even greater.

A person can find 100 dollars on the street, feel happy and quickly forget about it. But if he loses 100 dollars, he will regret it much more than if he found that sum of money, since it is like cutting something off oneself.

Therefore, we have to understand that the power of faith is above the desire to receive and is acquired in two phases: first in the vessels that work for a profit and then in the vessels in which we feel the loss. Our whole desire is divide into two parts: levels 0-1-2 (the thickness of the root level, phase one, and phase two) that are called GE, and levels 3-4 (the thickness of phases three and four) AHP. First bestowal is performed in the vessels of bestowal and then in the vessels of receiving.

Clearly, it is much more difficult to work in order to bestow in the vessel of receiving, since a person feels an immediate loss then. He could have received a direct pleasure in those vessels, and now it is the opposite, he intends to bestow with these vessels, and so it turns out that this is a double loss for his ego.

But he “sanctifies himself,” which means that he acquires the attribute of bestowal and thus advances until he is rewarded with the “sanctification of the moon,” when the attribute of bestowal becomes holy for him.

He himself cannot shine like the moon, but he illuminates to the extent that he is adhered to the upper force, to the source of the Light, to the sun, with the help of the power of faith. Thanks to that, the moon is sanctified.

Just like the earth, the moon cannot generate any light, but it loyally adheres to the sun above the earth and thus begins to shine. It isn’t its own light, but it shines thanks to the fact that it doesn’t receive anything for itself, but only in order to illuminate for others.
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From the 1^st part the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/30/12, Writings of Rabash

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Preparation to the Lesson

“Introduction to the Study of the The Sefirot,” Item 57, Lesson 17

The Book of Zohar – Selected Excerpt, Parashat “Emor,” Item 270, Lesson 22

Talmud Eser Sefirot, Vol. 3, Part 8, Question 258 “Answer-Seder Siba uMesuvav,” Lesson 47

The Wisdom of Kabbalah and Philosophy 

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If the spiritual path were felt as pleasant and beneficial to our nature, our egoism, who would reject it? The entire world would run to us to study and sit at the desk. Everyone would come if he felt joy and sweetness in this.

No one would refuse such a tempting opportunity to reveal the future before him and obtain all the knowledge. Our ego would have pushed us forward, pulled us, not giving us a moment of rest. Envy, lust, and ambition would be burning in a person, promising him all sorts of fulfillment in this world and the upper world, the Garden of Eden. All this would have inspired and attracted him more and more.

Of course, this is not so, and it is difficult for us to understand and impossible to agree that all of reality, except ourselves, is opposite of what we see. It is full of contentment and pleasure, the revelation of the upper force. All this is revealed to the extent a person acquires the property of bestowal.

It is impossible to achieve spiritual fulfillment, the degree of the Creator, in any other way. So, true management is hidden behind its opposite form, and we are not able to appreciate it, to understand and taste what the intention to bestow means. We do not have the tools to enjoy bestowal.

Please give to anyone! However, you will not feel any pleasure from it because your desires are opposite. And only one in whom the spark was lit in the darkness of egoism, forcing him to seek bestowal, and one who cares about that spark, trying to increase it through studies and the environment—advances. Indeed, there are few chosen ones, of all the thousands.
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From the 1^st part the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/02/12, “Introduction to the Study of the Ten Sefirot”

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