Question: How does the intention for the sake of bestowal differ from an intention for the sake of receiving?

Answer: The intention for the sake of bestowal and the intention for the sake of reception only alter the importance of what impresses a person most. That is why Baal HaSulam writes that the difference between working for yourself and for the sake of bestowal is purely psychological. In spirituality, “psychology” is a crude word because here we are talking about change on an animate level.

However, a person has to work on this because there are advantages to the importance of one or the other. If the Creator is important to me now and everyone around me is talking about it, then no matter how many thousands of different things are offered to me that previously seemed unimportant to me, it will not help. I could have devoted my life to this, or I could choose not to.

So what is the difference? In all other things except those concerning the Creator, my body will support me. But in what concerns the Creator, the body will always behave like Pharaoh. And if I am truly moving toward connection with the Creator, then from the beginning to the end I need the Creator to help me build a connection with Him, whereas I can achieve other things on my own without His help and support. The group and I acting together can provide that for me.

In everything I do in life, the Creator must be my partner, my source of strength, the goal, the reason, the empowering force. If this sequence is absent, then it is defined as a material action.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/19/26, Rabash, “Moses Went”

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When a person is standing on the street carrying a heavy load, and he is asking a passersby to help him lift the sack onto his back, everyone tells him they have no time.

But if a person is carrying a heavy sack on his back and the sack is dropping off and is about to fall to the ground, and people pass by him and he is asking for their help to put the sack on his back so it does not fall, we see that at that time, when the sack is about to fall off his back, no one will tell him, “I have no time; ask someone else to help you.” Rather, the first one next to him will immediately help him (Rabash, “Moses Went”).

Question: What compels any passerby to rush to help someone carrying a heavy burden?

Answer: The example of the burden that Rabash gives is very clear for one who intends to walk in faith above reason. Above reason means that I do not close my eyes to the obstacles, and I am even glad that they come. Even if I do not feel this way, I understand with my mind that it will ultimately be for my benefit.

When the Creator sends an obstacle, He is showing me precisely the point where I can find a connection with Him. I only need to begin working with this obstacle and, despite it, constantly strive to connect with Him.

At first, I try to connect with Him using my own strength. Then I see that I am unable to do so; I require the correction of Hessed.

After this correction, I want to reach a state where I am connected with Him and connected with the obstacle. Not only does the obstacle no longer disturb me or disconnect me from Him, but I already want to use it in order to receive for the sake of bestowal so that it will lead to an even greater connection than before it appeared. And then I demand His help.

But until a person cries out that his burden is about to fall and that he can no longer resist the obstacle that disconnects him from the connection with the upper one, the Creator will not help him. This is because the person has no Kli to receive the help and cannot properly use the obstacle.

The state in which he fears that the burden will fall from his shoulders and cries out is a very good state. For this, several factors are required: the burden must be very heavy and he must greatly fear dropping it. Although his body does not care whether it falls or not, for the goal, it is crucial. He understands that if the burden falls, he will not be able to connect with the Creator.

That is, first of all, a person must arm himself with a feeling of the greatness of the Creator; this must be extremely important to him. All these factors create a state called “standing in the middle of the street and crying: ‘Help!’”

Thus, from what seems like a simple situation (so what if the sack falls from his shoulders, what would happen?), he turns it into the most important matter in life. Then salvation truly comes; he receives help.

Moreover, he is given a feeling that it is not important, not frightening. He must increase the importance of the connection with the Creator from zero to the point where nothing is more important than this, and if the burden falls, it would be a catastrophe. Then the burden becomes the means by which he can reach the desired place.

Who needs this burden at all? The fact is that the will to receive was created precisely in order to build a connection upon it, to construct a screen above it and establish the coupling by striking (Zivug de Hakaa) with the light.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/19/26, Rabash, “Moses Went”

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As one ascends the spiritual steps, the descents become more profound. No spiritual renewal, deeper revelation, or ascent is possible without first falling. I detach from my previous state and feel as though I have never been spiritually elevated and never will be; I experience darkness, helplessness, and fear.

This fear is triggered by trivial, imagined reasons. I am frightened not even by people, but by shadows, like a small, scared child or animal.

This happens at all spiritual levels; the higher you rise, the more clearly you are shown that you are lower than everyone else. Everyone around seems to be fine, while you suffer from problems that are so trivial they are even embarrassing to speak about, yet at the same time, they are frightening. It is the feeling of a terrified infant who wants to hide in their mother’s arms.

One must value such states, understand their benefits, and try to work with them correctly. Then we will overcome them very quickly and return to the realization that “There is none else besides Him, the good who does good,” is the one who is playing with us. And so we unite and present our unity to Him as our response to this problem, and thereby rise above it.

Then the problem disappears and a new one appears, an even smaller and more insignificant one, yet one that frightens us even more. For the higher the ascent, the deeper the descent. This process continues until the final correction; through it we can increasingly clarity regarding the true nature of our states. There is no other way to understand our nature.
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From the Kabbalah Congress Preparation Lesson, 4/26/18

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Preparation to the Lesson

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1st part of the Lesson — Writings of Rabash, Article 44 “What Is the Reason for which Israel Were Rewarded with Inheritance of the Land, in the Work?” (1991) (10.4.2002)

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2nd part of the Lesson — Writings of Baal HaSulam, “Matan Torah (The Giving of the Torah)”

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Question: How can I determine for myself what state I am currently in: the right line or in the left line?

Answer: You can determine this by whether you feel joy. The sensation of joy should always accompany a person. This is a great commandment to always be in a state of joy.

Question: Even during the revelation of a Hisaron (deficiency)?

Answer: Yes, even during the revelation of a Hisaron. This is the primary test.

A person has to search for deficiencies in fulfillment precisely in order to advance forward. This means one must constantly be guided by the principle: “The end of the act is in the preliminary thought.”

First of all, I must keep the final outcome I wish to achieve before my eyes: attainment of a completely corrected state, union with the Creator. My first thought has to be: What must I do right now to achieve this?

If I advance in this manner, then my approach is correct. I can even search for a Hisaron: what else is not corrected in me? However, I will be searching for it from the perspective of that distant point, my final correction, asking: “What I can reveal within myself now that will pull me a little closer toward the goal?”
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/7/26, Rabash, “The Connection between Passover, Matza, and Maror”

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Comment: The desire to receive demands results, both in spirituality and in corporeality.

My Response: The desire to receive demands results. It means that, in addition to fuel, it requires a goal. And if the goal is important, that itself becomes fuel because a person knows that in the next state, they will feel better than in the current one.

For example, I want to move my hand from one place to another. Where do I get the strength for this? It comes from the fact that it will be more comfortable for me; otherwise, I cannot simply fill my body with energy. I cannot perform some extra action just because I have some extra energy. Those who do not make such calculations are called insane.

Egoism, from the lowest levels to the highest (even in spirituality) uses a goal as motivation, as fuel. It cannot be that fuel exists separately and the goal separately.

A person must know that in the next state they will feel better, that they will gain something. And the greater the gain, the more strength they have.

The problem is that our attitude toward the goal usually does not coincide with the goal itself. I am, say, in state A, and I must reach state B. So my problem is to convince myself that in state B I will always feel better than in state A.

Suppose I want to become a professor in twenty years. Have I already become one? No. I simply imagine, according to my current understanding, what it means to be a professor in twenty years. But when I actually become one, it will be completely unlike what I imagined twenty years earlier.

Right now, I imagine that a professor must be great and respected. But how, with my present mind and understanding, with what I have today, can I imagine a higher level I can aspire to? It will only be something imaginary. And the system of values that I currently have must give me the strength to strive toward it.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/19/26, Rabash, “Moses Went”

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Preparation to the Lesson

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1st part of the Lesson — Writings of Rabash, Article 40 “What Is, ‘For You Are the Least of All the Peoples,’ in the Work?” (1990)

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2nd part of the Lesson — Conversations of a Kabbalist with His Students

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3rd part of the Lesson — Writings of Baal HaSulam, “Peace in the World”

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‘When Moses went to heaven, he found the Creator sitting and tying crowns to the letters. He said to Him: ‘Master of the world, who is holding You back?

He told him, ‘In a few generations time, there will be a man whose name is Akiva Ben Yosef.

He said to Him: ‘Master of the world, you have such a person, yet You are giving the Torah through me?’ He replied, ‘Be quiet! Such was My thought’ (Rabash, “What Is the Difference between Law and Judgment in the Work?”).

Question: It seems as though the Creator gave Moses something he did not desire. Is it possible to have fulfillment without a Hisaron (lack)? Does it mean that the Kli receives something it does not want?

Answer: The discussion is about Malchut, about law and not about desire. On the contrary, Malchut stands against its own desire; it requires work in concealment in observing the laws as “an ox to a burden and a donkey to a load”; only afterward does it become like “judgment.”

Moses is the quality of faith. That is, the work begins with faith, with Malchut, and only afterward turns into the reception of the Torah.

When the people of Israel united and came out of Egypt, they became a Partzuf, and then were rewarded with receiving the Torah from the first nine Sefirot.

Question: Before receiving the Torah, does Malchut resist the desire to receive for itself?

Answer: Yes, of course. At first, the work is directed against receiving; initially, it is only Malchut, the observance of laws.

Until we acquire screens, we must work in the quality of faith. That is, we must not see the light.

Moreover, while in darkness, we must constantly try to mobilize our strength. Because when the image of the Creator appears before us, it becomes a problem: there is such a powerful nourishment of the Klipot! Working in such a state is very difficult.

There is a mandatory condition: the Creator is revealed only after you have the strength to withstand Him; otherwise, the revelation you receive will harm you.

You would “sell yourself” to Him and become like a madman, fixated on Him, you would no longer want anything else. There would be no other force in you to create a kind of “iron partition” so that you would not become an absolute slave, sold into servitude to pleasure, but would remain independent.

You would have no freedom of action, and the Creator would compel you through the full force of His revelation.

This is forbidden because His desire is to make of you a free being.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/17/26, Rabash, “What Is the Difference between Law and Judgment in the Work?”

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Question: It is written that a person cannot lift a finger if it does not lead to pleasure. How can we do something without any pleasure?

Answer: We know that in no way, no matter what, can one make the slightest move if they do not benefit from it. Neither our spiritual body, i.e., the desire to receive, nor our animal body can move without food, without fuel.

The Creator does not need fuel, because His “matter,” if you can call it that, is the desire to bestow.

Our matter is the desire to receive, which is our foundation. This desire can be either with the intention to receive or with the intention to bestow. Both intentions are additions, like a cap placed atop the desire to receive that determines how it works, what drives it, and what motivates it.

In order to make any move with the desire to receive, you must give it the strength to do this action, i.e., energy, fuel, which is motivation, so the next state will be better than the current one.

You can plan for the importance of the next state compared to the present, and the ego will agree with this. You only need to tune it to this program.

We see people who run from morning till night over something they consider important. It may depend on upbringing, advertising, fear, or other factors; it doesn’t matter what, the main point is that a person can be programmed and trained, and one can acquire an inner program according to which he will work, because this will seem to him the most important.

But if the desire to receive does not regard it as important, it will do nothing, like a car without fuel. Thus, before we start working with it, whether for the sake of receiving or for the sake of bestowing, we must define its value system: what is more or less important.

Right now, for example, it is more important for me to go to sleep than to read a book. Even though I was interested in the book just half an hour ago, I decided I feel tired now, and it is more important for me to rest. But suddenly, in the middle of a dream, while I am reveling in it, I remember something more important and jump out of bed.

A person is constantly choosing what is preferable. Only what is more important at the moment draws strength from the ego.

When I am asleep and told to get up for the lesson, even though I got up yesterday, the day before, and for the last five years, I just do not have the energy or fuel to get up. But if I perform all sorts of “operations” on myself and convince myself, then suddenly I see that where I had no strength to get up, it appears, and I suddenly get up with ease. That is, I did some “brainwashing” and prepared my ego for this.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/19/26, Rabash, “Moses Went”

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For this reason, when a person comes into a descent, he should not be startled and escape the campaign. On the contrary, this is the time to make a heartfelt prayer (Rabash, “What Are the Four Qualities of Those Who Go to the Seminary, in the Work?”).

Question: What kind of advice is this? If I were able to offer a true prayer from the depth of the heart, I would not call it a descent.

Answer: I do not know how you define ascents and descents. A descent is characterized by your distancing from the Creator; an ascent is your drawing closer to Him.

So what is a descent? It is when you see your true state: your Kelim have become coarser, your desires have worsened, and your mood corresponds to that. If you weigh all this, you see yourself as such. And this is the time for prayer.

And when else can you ask? Can you really turn to the Creator in a state of ascent?

Comment: When I am in a descent, I cannot ask Him for anything.

My Response: Why? You feel yourself in a descent, but Him, you feel as exalted and powerful.

Question: But it is said that when I fall, everything around me falls together with me?

Answer: That too is a kind of descent. And when can you raise a true prayer?

Comment: When I am just beginning to descend, maybe something can still be done, but not when I have already reached the very bottom.

My Response: If you are at the lowest point, then nothing can be done. In the lowest descent, a person has no strength at all. He must go through this point as if by inertia.

During a descent, when you cannot pray, you must try to do something, seek some means of exiting it. For example, when I work on a book, there are periods when I cannot write. Then I edit existing texts. If I cannot work with the text, I answer questions, do some simpler work. If I cannot do even that, I go and engage in something distant, unrelated to writing the book.

In order to find a means, one must use everything possible. Any means by which you wish to advance is called a prayer.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/11/26, Rabash, 1988 “What Are the Four Qualities of Those Who Go to the Seminary, in the Work?”

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