Preparation to the Lesson
 Video: Play Now | Download |
 Audio: Play Now | Download |
1st part of the Lesson — Writings of Rabash, Article 41 “What Should One Do If He Was Born With Bad Qualities?” (1991)
| Video: Play Now | Download |
Audio: Play Now | Download |
2nd part of the Lesson — Writings of Baal HaSulam, “Introduction to the Preface to the Wisdom of Kabbalah”
| Video: Play Now | Download |
Audio: Play Now | Download |
In our world there are people who engage only in external actions. No illumination from above reaches them, and they do not perform any inner actions. So, what is the difference between those who engage in inner actions and those who engage in external actions? The difference is very simple; it is their correspondence to Abraham.
Question: But where can you find a point of connection between our external and inner actions so that there is some logic to it?
Answer: If you perform actions with your body without any connection to spiritual corrections, like a good Jew who does what he was taught, then you establish correspondence on your own level: Domem deKedusha (the still level of holiness). You perform corrections, but since it is the still level of Kedusha, it does not give you the opportunity to grow. Nevertheless, they are corrections.
The light came from above, clothed in matter, and within this matter the spiritual replicated. Thus, in this world there are still, vegetative, animate, and speaking levels, and on the speaking level there are people who are descendants of Abraham or Gerim (converts), whom we will discuss later.
Those who are on the still level possess sparks of Abraham that they do not develop; for example, the illumination from above that awakens one to spirituality has not yet come to them, and so, they perform correction on the still level of holiness.
It is still a correction; you cannot deny it. But neither can you live by it, that is, you cannot add anything to it, because the still level is characterized by the absence of spiritual life.
If you desire something more, then you must begin to add your own effort: take deficiencies as though from outside yourself, add your own contribution through the single point of free choice available to you, and thereby evoke an additional illumination from above, or absorb more of the illumination that comes to you. Then you begin to carry out the spiritual commandments, to work for the Creator.
You must distinguish between these two aspects, because Kabbalah is, in essence, work for the Creator. Otherwise, you observe the commandments simply as a person who was taught to do so. One does not contradict the other; both approaches are necessary.
However, to one who exists on the still level of holiness, it appears that you are negating that level, because for him only the first aspect matters; if something else is deemed important, then the first loses its significance.
We observe that those who truly begin to study the inner part begin to neglect the external part—to the point that a person who meticulously observed all the commandments, upon beginning the study of Kabbalah, suddenly forgets that he has anything at all that he must do. He still does certain things out of habit, but his thoughts are floating in the clouds, above. We see how much the material action becomes weakened—in work, in the family, in everything. A person who is completely attached to spirituality greatly neglects the material.
Those who say that one who studies Kabbalah does not observe the commandments in practice with the meticulousness required in this world, are seemingly right. We ourselves see that this is so; let us not hide what, in the end, actually happens.
It is necessary to clarify the reasons for this phenomenon: either, God forbid, we are studying something incorrect; or we are mistaken and are not studying as we should; or this is natural and perhaps it will later return in another form, on another degree, in another existence—together, both in the spiritual and in the material.
[358689]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/2/26, Rabash, “What Does It Mean that the Torah Was Given Out of the Darkness in the Work?”
Related Material:
Performing Mitzvot Both Externally And Internally
Washing One’s “Hands” With The Light
Spiritual Roots Of The Traditions Of This World
Question: During an ascent, the inner light clothes in a person. During a descent, there is no inner light. Is surrounding light present in the external Kli instead?
Answer: The question is, in which Kli does the light clothe itself? If we are speaking about the preparation period, we have a person who has a desire to receive for their own sake, and who must gradually analyze, attain, and distinguish various layers, nuances, and shades within it. Among all their desires, is there one in which the light can clothe?
Question: I have a desire to receive that has no screen, and from above, through the Machsom, the surrounding light shines upon me. When I acquire a screen, this light will clothe within me, and then should all my work be on the screen, so that the reflected light will clothe in me?
Answer: That is not the case. Naturally, I think about wanting to attain Him, and I yearn for Him, but the correction does not take place according to this. Of course, I aspire to the light so that it will fill me; however, the correction takes place when this light is absent, when it departs. Do I fill myself, in its place, with the light of faith?
The light of faith shines not simply from the surrounding light, but from the fact that my attitude toward the Creator is related not to how much I receive from Him, but to what my attitude toward Him is, to the measure in which I aspire to Him.
[358464]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 6/29/26, Rabash, “One’s Greatness Depends on the Measure of One’s Faith in the Future”
Related Material:
A Kli For Receiving The Light
The Mutual Influence of the Light and the Kli
When the Kli Becomes like the Light
There is a contradiction between the desire to receive and the desire to bestow, and therefore, we are always in a state of uncertainty and lack of understanding. Baal HaSulam writes that every spiritual state contains two opposites within it; that is, contradiction is inherent in its very nature.
He explains what the real problem within us actually is. As long as we exist simply in the still, vegetative, or animate desire to receive, which is our nature, there is no problem, and everything is in order.
There are the four phases of the expansion of the direct light: the root phase (Shoresh), the first phase (Aleph), the second phase (Bet), and the third phase (Gimel). But as soon as the fourth phase (Behina Dalet) begins, problems immediately arise, and the restriction (Tzimtzum) takes place.
Before the fourth phase, there is no restriction because everything is governed from above. I have no desires of my own. The Creator gives me thoughts, impulses, desires, fears, anxieties, and hormones. And I, like a puppet, merely carry out everything that He gives me. There are no problems or contradictions here. I am the desire to receive, the Creator governs me from above, and that is all.
But when the point in the heart awakens within the desire to receive, it is already a messenger from that world, from beyond the Machsom, from the desire to bestow. Then a rupture occurs within a person, and a problem arises: two opposite natures coexist within him—the spiritual nature and the corporeal nature. The inner tension within a person grows, and he begins to feel like they are exploding or losing their mind. They cannot coexist together. This is why we are so unhappy.
One must understand that there is no choice. At a certain point, the Creator implanted both the desire to receive and the desire to bestow within us, as well as within all of humanity. We will remain in this inner division until we “join” the two together—that is, until the desire to receive acquires the intention to bestow as its second, spiritual nature.
We are obligated to reach spirituality. We are simply not asked whether we want to. We will remain in this inner fracture until we transform our desire to receive into a desire to bestow. Then these two forms of nature—the spiritual and the corporeal—will once again become as one. Only then will we attain a sensation of peace.
Until the end of correction (Gmar Tikkun) however, this contradiction will continue to exist within us.
[358514]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 6/29/26, Rabash, “One’s Greatness Depends on the Measure of One’s Faith in the Future”
Related Material:
Striving To Reveal The Meaning Of Life
Being Infected By “The Meaning Of Life” Virus
Expand The Meaning Of Life
Preparation to the Lesson
| Video: Play Now | Download |
Audio: Play Now | Download |
1st part of the Lesson — Writings of Rabash, Article 24 “What Is ‘Do Not Slight the Blessing of a Layperson’ in the Work?” (1989) (7.4.2002)
| Video: Play Now | Download |
Audio: Play Now | Download |
2nd part of the Lesson — Writings of Baal HaSulam, “Preface to the Wisdom” (5.31.2001)
| Video: Play Now | Download |
Audio: Play Now | Download |
Question: Why do we agree that some people engage in inner actions while others engage only in external ones?
Answer: Why should we agree or disagree with it? In spirituality, there is no such concept as agreeing or disagreeing. In spirituality, there is only the definition of the state in which I exist.
If a particular light comes to me and sustains me on a certain degree, then I am a “thief.” If a greater light comes to me, I become a “robber.” And if an even greater light comes, I become a “righteous person.” Everything depends on the measure of the light descending upon me.
You may lament, “Oh, I’m a robber!”, it will not help you at all because a state is a state. You can only give it a name; you cannot change it. If you want to deceive yourself, put the label “righteous” on it. It will not help, though perhaps it will make you feel differently.
“Why don’t we oppose this? Why do we agree with it?” I am speaking about the state itself, not about how I should react to it. Whether I want it or not, whether I agree or disagree, this is my state. This is how it happens: A person who begins to engage in the inner part almost completely neglects the external part.
Conversely, there are people who studied Kabbalah in the correct way and, as a result, neglected the practical commandments. Later, having forgotten what true study is and returned to some pseudo-system, they begin observing the commandments and become good Orthodox Jews. I see all these changes, the entire spectrum of possibilities.
Thus, I am describing a phenomenon without judging whether it is good or bad. You cannot say that when a lion devours its prey, it is doing something wrong. That is its nature, which dictates its actions. It is the same with us: every step we take at every given moment is dictated by our nature.
This has been known for many generations. There are many stories dating back three or four hundred years. For example, someone looked through a window and saw a Kabbalist lighting a candle at a time when it was forbidden. I do not think these stories are false or that they were invented by opponents of Kabbalah. I am saying seriously that such phenomena are well known. I have seen them and experienced them myself.
Why is this so? We will speak about that later. There is a reason for it and an intention from above. First of all, everything that happens is done from above. As for how we should relate to it, how we should behave, whether by adapting ourselves or by overcoming it, we will discuss that separately. But the phenomenon itself exists. This is not the army where you can simply say, “No, that’s impossible!” It exists, and first of all we must define the state and acknowledge the truth.
To study yourself, you must see yourself through someone else’s eyes.
[358694]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/2/26, Rabash, “What Does It Mean that the Torah Was Given Out of the Darkness in the Work?”
Related Material:
External Actions And Internal Intentions
Can There Be Intention Without Action?
Opposition To Unity, Part 7
Question: When a person sees that they are capable of handling a situation on their own, without outside help, does it mean they have not examined that situation deeply enough?
Answer: If a person thinks that they can cope with a situation by themselves, it means they have not examined it deeply enough. In other words, they have not penetrated to its deeper level.
Take, for example, the situation in our country. We all witness that we are under the threat of destruction. People have become desperate; they do not see a way out of the current situation, and no one has a miracle solution to this problem. People do not know how to go on living. Some are thinking of leaving the country, yet they do not even know where they could go. We can feel how desperate people have become as they consider moving to a more peaceful place.
But if we examine this situation more deeply, we will see a completely different picture. We must understand that, as a nation without spiritual aspiration, we have no right to this land. We are not connected to it and do not belong to it. Our place is in exile, outside the Land of Israel.
We were brought here for spiritual elevation so that we would acquire the spiritual qualities of the root of this land—Eretz Israel (“Eretz” means desire, and “Israel” comes from Yashar-El, meaning straight to the Creator). Thus, Eretz Israel means the desire directed toward the Creator.
If we are unable to acquire these spiritual qualities, then our place is not here. This land simply casts us off and rejects us like a foreign body.
Who has created this situation for us and why? Perhaps we should look for another comfortable place to live? Maybe Uganda, Madagascar, or, if nothing else, Birobidzhan. But the Creator says: “No! Your place is here, on this land, but only on the condition that you become Israel—one who aspires to the Creator. Otherwise, very difficult states will be awaiting you, even worse than those experienced by the nations of the world.”
Galgalta ve Eynaim (the bestowing Kelim) must fulfill their role with respect to all of AHP (the receiving Kelim). We are not carrying out the role entrusted to us, and therefore, AHP dominates us. But if, in examining this situation, we penetrate a little deeper, we will see the true causes—what is really happening and what can be done.
We will see that there is simply nowhere to run. There is only one absolute solution: spiritual elevation. This is the difference between a superficial understanding of reality and the understanding of its underlying causes. And this situation will not change until we look into the level from which the true cause becomes visible. Only then will the situation begin to change for the better.
[358268]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 6/23/26, Rabash, “What Is the Importance of the Groom, that His Iniquities Are Forgiven?”
Related Material:
In Compliance With The Land Of Israel
The Land Of Israel On The Map And In The Soul
The Promised Land In The Desert
Preparation to the Lesson
| Video: Play Now | Download |
Audio: Play Now | Download |
1st part of the Lesson — Writings of Rabash, Article 30 “What It Means that ‘Law and Ordinance’ Is the Name of the Creator in the Work” (1990) (6.25.2002)
| Video: Play Now | Download |
Audio: Play Now | Download |
2nd part of the Lesson — Writings of Baal HaSulam, “Preface to the Wisdom” (5.31.2001)
| Video: Play Now | Download |
Audio: Play Now | Download |
In the work, meaning when we want to come to work in order to bestow and not receive for ourselves, of course we must observe the 613 Mitzvot [commandments/good deeds] in actual fact.One who learns Torah but does not want to observe the 613 Mitzvot de facto, is learning knowledge, the way one learns external teachings (Rabash, “What Does It Mean that the Torah Was Given Out of the Darkness in the Work?“).
Question: Does this apply to us in the sense that a person who still does not observe the Torah and the commandments in practice is, in essence, merely “acquiring wisdom” rather than studying the Torah?
Answer: I can tell you, as I understand it, what Rabash most likely means, not as others explain it, but according to his own interpretation.
A person who studies the Torah is one who is learning to become like the giver of the Torah. But if he does not draw the guidance for becoming similar to the giver of the Torah from the Torah, then for him the Torah is merely a science. He is not studying it in practice. It is written: “Good is the study that leads to action,” but such a person does not come to action, to correction.
If the Torah does not lead to action, it becomes merely a science, mere intellectual knowledge. About this it is said: “Believe that there is wisdom among the nations of the world.” What a person studies from the Torah while wishing to remain a non-Jew is called a science. But if a person wants to become a Jew, even though at present he is still a non-Jew, that is, he remains in the desire to receive, then he is truly studying the Torah, not merely a science. One who studies the Torah seeks through its illumination to attain the lights.
An action is called the correction of the screen over the desire to receive. Action is the fulfillment of a commandment. You take an evil desire and transform it into a good one. Therefore Rabash says that the commandments of the Torah consist first of 613 counsels (Eitin) for correcting the soul, and then 613 commandments (Pekudin), through which these corrected parts are filled with the lights.
In the end, after you have corrected and fulfilled all these commandments, all these parts, and filled them with the light called the Torah, you are rewarded with the general Torah. And when you come to the correction of the entire vessel, and the truly all-encompassing light is revealed to you, this is called Kadosh Baruch Hu (the Creator).
[358637]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/2/26, Rabash, “What Does It Mean that the Torah Was Given Out of the Darkness in the Work? ”
Related Material:
Levels of Studying the Torah
A Handmaid Devoted To Her Mistress
Studying the Torah
Question: We say that creation cannot attain the Creator. What is the Creator and what is the intention to bestow?
Answer: Every uncorrected quality in a person corresponds to a corrected quality in the Creator. We will know who the Creator is only when we correct our damaged qualities into the intention to bestow. You can only attain what is clothed in your Kelim (vessels). You cannot attain the Creator while uncorrected.
As you correct yourself and become like Him, you attain your corrected vessels, and then you will know who the Creator is. However, you will not perceive Him, but rather your corrected Kelim: “Everyone judges to the extent of his corruption.” You judge only according to the extent your own vessels are corrected.
[358581]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/2/26, Rabash, “What Does It Mean that the Torah Was Given Out of the Darkness in the Work? ”
Related Material:
Prepare To Perceive The Creator
What Is The Creator?
The Miracle Of Creation
Daily Audio Version-MP3
Get the Weekly eNewsletter
Follow on Twitter
