Question: What can we do to prepare for the Arava convention?

Answer: Try to imagine that this is your last chance. It isn’t about the corporeal life that many are ready to give up. Half of the world’s population would happily push a button that would enable them to die painlessly if they could. People are not afraid of dying, but of the process of dying.

Therefore, we have to oblige ourselves to think about the conditions we are given today. After our conventions, after the preparation and the connection, there is simply no way back. The entire world worries about its future and doesn’t know what to expect. It is helpless in the face of the developing crisis. If we don’t find the power to connect, we will not be able to help ourselves or the world. If we fail, we will not end corporeal life, but spiritual life.

The women must understand this. They should worry about us and put pressure on us. The men, too, must understand this. We must rise above everything that separates us, above all the arguments and the misunderstandings, above the quarrels and the conflicts. In fact, they can stay the same—this will enable us to rise above them even more. A person grows only in resisting the growing egoism. So, as far as we are concerned, let the ego grow even more. All we need is endurance, and then we will succeed time after time.

I am optimistic. We have power in Israel and throughout the world. Even if several groups experience hardships, eventually everything will work out. This is our way. It is the same as with the childhood diseases that we cannot escape. What is more, they strengthen us and make us immune for life.
[68599]
From the 3rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/3/2012, “Preface to The Book of Zohar”

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Question: Before the upcoming Arava convention, should the group outline the desire, the feeling of deficiency, that is closer to the higher degree?

Answer: We don’t need the feeling of deficiency. We have to yearn for perfection, and from that we will arrive at the right deficiency. We are going with songs and joy; we are drawn to connection and to mutual guarantee, and to everything that is concealed in this higher degree.

No one intends to sit and cry, having covered his head with ashes.
[69668] 
From the 4^th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/13/12, “Introduction to the Study of the Ten Sefirot” 

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Question: How can I check if my appeal for correction is correct?

Answer: The appeal is correct if a person wants to unite with the friends and connects to this his desire to attain the Creator. Everything should lie on one single line, on one axis: me, the united group of friends, and the Creator. In this case all desires are in the correct order.

Find out if you can clearly draw this picture for yourself, if you can skewer together all the necessary factors.

Then you will move on to the other form to circles: outer, middle, and inner. The outer circle is you. You contain the second circle, the group, which in turn contains the third circle, the Creator. In the end they all merge into one whole. Then there is no difference between you, the group, and the Creator. Everything is one.

In this way every person, every soul comes to perfect attainment.
[69554]
From the 4^th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/12/12, “Introduction to the Study of the Ten Sefirot”

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Reaching the goal is based on practical work in a society, in a group. The group is meant to be joined by people who aim toward the same goal and received a natural aspiration toward revealing the Creator. The same way, the upper Light, the Creator, gives these people a desire to reveal Him and get close to Him. He gathers them around their teacher and passes this knowledge on to them to reach revelation of how to realize this desire, which the Creator invokes in them.

The Creator creates all the conditions–gives books, a teacher, a group, and a desire–everything except for something that should come from the person himself who needs to organize all these conditions, to focus and direct oneself toward one goal.

Friends help every person come to the lessons, participate in the group work, and study, just like in regular corporeal studies and groups. But the main thing is that one hears that it is impossible to reach the goal with the mere desire that was invoked by the Creator because it is not more than 10% of the desire that is needed to require revelation.

And you have to obtain a full, perfect desire which you get by being inspired from friends’ desire to reveal the Creator, by seeing that they are eager to reveal the Creator, by their talking about it, and by seeing how much they do and how many efforts they put toward it. All of that inspires and evokes the desire inside of you because by nature, we are made this way.

But in spiritual work, a person needs to make his own efforts to notice his friends and be inspired and impressed by them. After all, you can neglect them and everything they do and all their work will remain unnoticed. On the contrary, it is possible that you can pay attention to every little thing, get inspired from how much effort everyone puts into waking up early to come to the lesson even though it is hard for them, how many foreign desires appear in them, but they overcome all of them heroically, how they yearn to be together, etc.

On one hand, the group should open itself and show its strong desire toward revealing the Creator and reaching the goal of Creation. This inspires a person and gives him that additional desire that he lacks. In fact, we get every desire toward the Creator from the environment. The point in the heart is just an initial spark, which ignites this whole process, but afterward we have to advance.

There is work here that needs to be made on a man’s side: to lower oneself and see friends higher than oneself. There is work that comes from the group: to show itself as high, exceptional, and strong with respect to everyone. This is the individual work of each person and work of the group as a whole. We need to take care of that and not to accept a disdainful attitude.
[69548]
From the 1^st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/12/12, Writings of Rabash

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Baal HaSulam, “Introduction to the Study of the Ten Sefirot,” Item 94: It is written: “Those who seek Me shall find Me.” One might think that no special effort is required here, and even a small person who isn’t ready to exert himself in any way will find the Creator as well. But the sages warn us not to believe this interpretation. On the contrary, effort is essential here, and if one “didn’t labor and found, don’t believe.”

If a person walks alone, he has absolutely no chance of correction. It is written, “Group or death.” When the nation of Israel stood at Mount Sinai, they were given a condition: Either you unite as one man with one heart, or this will be your burial place. In other words, if you don’t unite, you will never acquire spiritual life. At least some part of the vessel must be corrected.

You may think, “How can that be? This means that everybody must be corrected. Am I only expected to correct a certain part of the common vessel?”

It only appears to us that we perform individual corrections. In truth this process encompasses the whole world, only in part (99.9%) of the vessels the correction happens without them realizing it, while in the other part it happens consciously, after they raise the required plea (MAN) and perform the necessary scrutiny. As a result the entire common vessel connects to the correction process, and this is something we should know. It is also why we need to care for everybody else.

We should also understand the principle of “labored and found.” Our entire work amounts to our efforts to unite, which lead us to “finding” the Creator. Only after these efforts are exerted does the answer come in the form of the upper Light, which makes the correction. We must present to it our genuine desire for unity, and it will then influence this desire, welding and merging us all together, once again turning us into a whole vessel.

Then all the desires—everything that was revealed during the breaking—connects to this vessel with us in it as Aviut, and we acquire a vessel that’s 620 times greater than before.
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From the 4^th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/13/12, “Introduction to the Study of the Ten Sefirot”

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When we speak about the Light we refer to the phenomenon that takes place in the desire. This means that I want to do good to someone without any personal accounts of self-profit. The more I check myself, the more I see that I really have no urge for personal benefit. This is the Light: It is as if some spirit is dressed in me and I want to bestow, to love others, and to want only the wellbeing of others, because by that I please the Creator.

When I work in a group, I summon the Reforming Light that builds in my “body”, in my desire, the phenomenon called the Light. Thus the surrounding Light (Ohr Makif) influences the desire so that it can feel the phenomenon of the Light internally.

Question: Where does the Ohr Makif come from?

Answer: It comes from a higher level. I can’t receive it inside me and so it “surrounds” me and prepares my desire, my vessel, in order to enter it later on. This Light is also inside me, but I don’t feel it yet. It is as if it is operating from a distance: Something ripens in me, but I feel it indirectly, according to the results.

One way or another, everything is inside a person: all the lights and all the worlds, including the world of Ein Sof (Infinity).

Question: In order to feel that, do I have to work in a group?

Answer: You have to follow the advice of Kabbalists, which we call the “faith of the sages,” and carry out their recommendations. You are brought to the group from Above, and you begin to work in it, even without asking any questions. Only later does the issue of freewill come up when you understand what is happening and can find your way around and realize: “So this is what I should do! I should love the friends…”

You approach the mutual work and from a “study circle” you become one whole, acquire one heart and one thought, make great collective efforts, and act in front of one another in order to evoke a deficiency in the friends and to raise the Creator’s greatness in their eyes.

Then people discover “the field that the Creator has blessed.” They don’t wander in the field like the sons of Jacob, but rather acquire the force of Joseph, which brings them together and takes them through the land of Egypt to the Land of Israel. This is all our work, and this is where our freewill begins.
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From the 4^th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/12/12, “Introduction to the Study of the Ten Sefirot”

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Our work is perpetual. The upper Light is in a state of absolute rest, and its rest is constantly pushing us towards the goal. It is the same with us: If we constantly “press the gas pedal” yearning for the goal, we are in a state of rest because there is nothing else but this and I only operate in one direction.

Here we might argue, but I am acting against my egotistic desire, which constantly confuses me.

Still, if you try to keep the right direction with the help of the group and the books, you are at least close to resting.

Actually, it is only a psychological problem. If we decide, if we determine for ourselves what is most important for us and we don’t divert our attention to something else, if we go straight towards the goal, towards adhesion with the Creator, and add everything we can glean from the study, the teacher, the books, the group, and dissemination to it, we lock ourselves on the target and we only have to keep the right course.

In order to do that, everyone must be connected. Only then can you choose the goal, because you don’t actually know it, and it is attained from within the center of the group. Where is that center? You are the one who draws the crosshairs on the sight. You pass through the circles as their diameter gets smaller and smaller, and in every circle, you better get to know the Creator and His actions, and eventually you find the center: and meet Him.

Today we have to work on several planes:

1. All the friends are equal; there are no great ones or small ones.
2. Everyone must do his best and act in front of the others and show them how much he wants to love them. The friends should see only this yearning in him. We must constantly set an example for everyone so that no one will be able to avoid an equal attitude towards others. This is our obligation.
3. We do all this on purpose, so that we will be able to connect, and in the connection among us, discover love: first conditional love and then absolute love, until we reach the end of correction, Gmar Tikkun.

The whole process takes place in the group. There is nowhere to run to: You have a place for fulfillment, you have friends who yearn for the same thing, and you have the evil inclination, which actually constantly helps us look for the center of the circle. We have all that we need and we should support one another and constantly rise above the interruptions, as it says, “Love will cover all the sins.”

Let’s hope that we will advance this way, from success to success.
[69561]
From the 4^th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/12/12, “Introduction to the Study of the Ten Sefirot”

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There is nothing but the soul, the one “round” desire to receive, that is full of Light. The Light begins to operate inside; it spurs the desire and “warms it up,” puts it out of balance, and is revealed to it gradually. Throughout the process, the Lights and the vessels influence one another and descend from Ein Sof (Infinity).

Let’s take a system, any system, mechanical, electrical, or hydraulic. If it receives an electric shock, it is put out of balance in “one blow,” and begins to gradually quiet down until it returns to the previous balanced state.

This is what happened with Malchut of Ein Sof: the system received a “blow” when it discovered the contrast between the Light and the vessel, the horrible gap between the infinite minus (vessel) and the infinite plus (Light). This nightmare is terrible for the desire, and it cannot bear and digest this. Therefore it restricted itself and moved on to the next chain of actions. The desire won’t calm down until it performs them. After the decision that has been taken in Ein Sof, all the other decisions come automatically, all the way from top down, until our world.

Now our work begins; the work of ascending back to Ein Sof. The way back totally matches the descent that preceded it: We go through the same stages, but in an opposite order and according to our will, as we request the correction (MAN) first. This is the whole difference.
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From the 4^th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/12/12, “Introduction to the Study of the Ten Sefirot”

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When the group attains spirituality, revealing the Creator and having a certain connection with Him, its actions become opposite to what they used to be: It begins to show a disregard for the goal and show levity to give the friends light disturbances in the work even before the Creator puts obstacles before us. When a person has a connection with the Creator, these disturbances will help him strengthen it.

Rabash writes that out of modesty it was a custom among friends to not show their strong aspiration towards spirituality externally, but in reality, there was a burning flame inside their hearts.

But this happens after crossing the Machsom (the barrier to spirituality) when the group achieves a spiritual connection, and its growth needs to be accelerated every moment. Then I need the disturbances to come as quickly as possible, and the group sets them up for me, helping me advance faster.

But before we enter the spiritual world, before people attain the revelation of and connection with the Creator, showing any levity is unacceptable because it will destroy everything. A person needs to try to see his friends as high and great. And on its part, the group needs to appear great, special, and strong to “pull the person out of this world” by awakening “envy, lust, and ambition” in him.

If the group will present itself this way in relation to every person, then he will see that he needs to attach himself to it, connect with it, be with his friends whom he sees as great people: This is how the group will help him so we quickly achieve a connection between us and the revelation of the Creator to the creatures.

There is no need to speak about it much. But you need to understand that your work is to awaken the desire of your friend. You work on him, presenting him with a spiritual image as if you and the entire group were high up in spirituality, displaying your devotion to and enormous desire for the goal, a greater than you actually have.

You must hold yourself this way before your friend so that you awaken him like we do in playing with a small child pretending and even deliberately making faces to take him through different states and help him grow.

If everyone needs to arm himself with a desire for attaining spirituality, we need to create the conditions for him to form a great desire. Naturally this is a game, but this is why we create the environment, which inspires everyone with the greatness of the goal.
[69544]
From the 1^st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/12/12, Writings of Rabash

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Question: How can I use The Book of Zohar to wake up the group for the attack before the convention in the desert?

Answer: We need to ask for a desire. We are constantly falling asleep in our life. It is no coincidence that our heart becomes burdened by the constant growth of the receiving desire. It has to grow to infinity, and thus we should react to this correctly. The desire becomes more and more violent and egoistic, more demanding and burdensome.

It is good if we try to bring it to correction, that is, to unity. And if we do not try, we experience troubles and misfortunes, which will force us to think about life only not because of the goal, but because of pain. Thus, we advance.

As for The Book of Zohar, it is possible to ask for the Light, which you lack.

Suppose, you are sick. You have fever, chills, you do not feel well, and want nothing, but to lie down and close your eyes. What do doctors recommended in this case? Indeed, you should not tire the body with physical activity; you need rest. You lie in bed, good for nothing, and even cannot eat; you lose your appetite, any food seems disgusting. But what can you do? Then, do the following: Open a cookbook, read the recipes, look at the photos in color, and gradually your appetite returns.

It is the same here: You are sick, you are sleepy, so open your book. Not necessarily The Book of Zohar, any book that is close to you and to which you respond. Depending on conditions, I use different books: The Gates of Intentions, Gate of Reincarnations, the 16th part of TES, and Shamati. Everyone is awakened by something else. It could be Psalms. It is written: “A man learns where his heart is.” The main thing is that they are our materials.

If a person is completely confused, the sages advise that he should think about the day of death. He can go to a cemetery and reflect on graves. Of course, this is just an example, but the point is to throw the body some calculations and shake it. In fact, it is not about physical death, but the death of the egoistic desire.

However, the most obvious of all the means is the group, the impact of the environment. If a person works in a way that he should be included in the others, it is very effective. As a rule, it helps a lot to organize an event for the public because he receives people’s desire and power to move forward.

Dissemination is the most effective method and the best solution. When one participates in it, he feels how much strength it gives.
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From the 2^nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/9/12, The Zohar

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