Only a person that can rise above his egoistic desire attains the sensation of fear. He sees that he is unable to ascend, yet he definitely has to because the spiritual space, the realm of the Creator, perfection, is located precisely above his will to enjoy. Then he is seized by fear: Will he be able to receive help in order to ascend above himself?

This fear can be egoistic, when I am worried about whether or not I will receive the spiritual fulfillment. This kind of fear is also useful: Even though I am thinking about myself (which is called Lo Lishma), at least I am thinking about the spiritual goal, the quality of bestowal (Lishma). It’s just that for the time being I interpret it as something that will provide me with personal benefit.

However, later on we reach “perfect fear,” when we understand that the results of acquiring the quality of bestowal must also be beneficial to everyone, and through benefiting the society, they will be beneficial to the Creator. All of this is done to a person by the upper Light, and therefore this entire process is called “Torah.”

On this path we always meet “an ugly man” who lives inside of us and doesn’t want anything besides personal benefit. He always tries to twist everything in a way that makes him be above others so he can assert his own power and pride. But if I am able to stand up to this freak, even though I fear this quality inside of me, and if I can avoid killing him, and even be able to recognize him and thank him for revealing my own evil to me, then I will develop the right kind of fear that will help me acquire the desire, vessel, or Kli for revealing the Creator.

Gradually all of the concepts will take on the right definitions and I will start to realize that spirituality is above my egoistic desire. I will understand that I will be able to reveal the Creator, perfection, bestowal, love for the neighbor, and the spiritual world only once I can rise above my “self.”

Therefore, everything is based on the force of fear and worry: Am I inside of my egoism without even noticing it, or did I really ascend above it already? And once we do ascend, there are many degrees of ascending above one’s desire, which we gradually discern.

At every level I think that I have already ascended above my egoism, in which case I rejoice and thank the Creator for what He has done to me. After that, I see that that’s not so: This was also my egoism, but it was just hiding from me. And then I have to rise above it as well.

At the beginning of the next level I rejoice immensely once again because I have finally succeeded in rising above my ego and now I am entirely aimed at bestowal. But then I again gradually reveal that this is still not the end and there are still egoistic calculations left inside of me. And then I hate my state all over again and demand a greater ascent, and this process continues until the end of correction (Gmar Tikkun).

It is written, “What is garbage for the upper one is food for the lower one.” That is how we continuously ascend up the levels by virtue of the Light that reforms. This Light is called Torah. It reveals fear (Iraa) in a person. And inside of that Light a person can see (Ireh) the Creator, the quality of bestowal that rules above everything, as well as the creation’s all-enveloping will to enjoy.
[42246]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 5/5/11, Shamati

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Question: What do we need in order for the system called “Zohar” to bring us to unification?

Answer: We need to have more intention, desire. The Zohar is the integral system of all of reality. But why is it called “Zohar”? And why do we have to open a specific book, read a specific text that is written by a specific person, and listen to specific words?

This general system of reality is designed to be connected to us through the great Kabbalists who are the mediators in creating a tie between this system and us and who express this connection in words and sentences.

I read this Book and understand nothing. I might as well read it backwards. The point is that I desire to connect with them, these Kabbalists that passed on their writings to me, because they wanted me to connect to them, these souls, their unity, and to come to them with this unity as well.

How will I know that I am connecting with them? If I unite with my group, my aim is definitely correct: to unify with these great souls, enter the same global, integral system, become its indispensable part, and to aspire to it at least in some small degree. This is precisely what we need.

One person is thinking about it, another not so much, and the other sometimes. But in general, if we strive to be as one whole, everyone’s individual aspirations will unite as one.
[42171]
From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 5/4/2011, The Book of Zohar

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Question: If the Creator created everything as perfect in the first place, why should we correct anything?

Answer: Yes, but we are not yet in the state that He created. We are outside of it, behind all kinds of veils, concealments. These screens have to do only with us since we are the ones who feel concealment.

The Creator created only one state regarded as the world of Infinity. However, in order to feel that we are actually in this Infinity, we need to accumulate all sorts of experiences.

Suppose someone wants to treat me to some exotic dish, but in order for me to really appreciate its taste, I need a desire for it. I am supposed to have an idea of what it is and how it is eaten. Otherwise, I won’t get it, like the farmer mentioned in The Book of Zohar who lived on a farm all his life, grew wheat, and, until he once visited a city, hadn’t even suspected how many delicious things could be made from it. All he had ever known was the rough grain.

So, while being in the Light of Infinity, we feel it only as a donkey does, chewing on the rough grain. Except for the simple “grain” and “water,” we don’t desire anything else. We don’t sense in the Light of Infinity all the delicacies that the Creator has prepared for us.

How then do we start desiring the Light that fills Infinity and feel it in all its manifestations, through its entire depth, with total clarity? We don’t have such a need. We must create it within ourselves.

In order to build up a desire to smell the sweetest pie instead of the rough grain, in order to sense Infinity instead of the minimal Light of Nefesh de Nefesh while being in the same state and the same Light, we need to cultivate desire. Desire grows by way of concealment, when I am shown a little bit of the Light and then it is concealed again, exposed and then concealed. This is regarded as “flirting,” playing.

This is a very serious game since concealment increases desire. This is how the Light is playing with us, by exposing and concealing itself. This is why we withdraw from the world of Infinity and become separated from it by numerous concealments, until we end up in this world, in its total concealment.

All we need is desire. At the instant I do get it, I will receive the precious “pie.” As soon as it grows some more, I will be given an even bigger treat. With every new step, I need to increase my desire, and the upper Light starts illuminating me in full force. My desire opens me for connecting with Him and allows Him to enter me.

The Creator created all of these states from the start, but out of the whole of Infinity, you can feel only the minimal Light of Nefesh right now. It’s because you don’t have a desire of your own to wish specifically for it and to feel pain because you are lacking it.

This desire has to be totally new, unlike your instinctive desire. You receive it by forcing, overriding yourself and struggling with your entire nature. When you start wanting the Light this much, it will be an authentic desire. In other words, you need to wish for bestowal!

At present, it seems to be something totally silly, some strange bestowal and love. However, these are simply familiar words that mean a new type of desire which doesn’t exist in us yet.
[42186]
From the 3rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 5/4/2011, Talmud Eser Sefirot

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We should disseminate the wisdom of Kabbalah in the world much more actively so that people, influenced by common thought and collective desire, would understand it sooner. After all, attainment, understanding, and thoughts move from one to another. Thereby, we can hasten our development by way of the environment and buy a lot of time.

Thanks to our common effort and mutual assistance which is regarded as a “guarantee,” we will reach the point when we will demand change. The upper force will be revealed, and with its help, we will rise above egoism, exit “Egypt.”

This is how it will be for the Kabbalistic group as well as all of humanity. If the upper force does not unfold in the world, if there is no chance to reform ourselves with the help of the wisdom of Kabbalah, we will switch to the path of correction accompanied by tremendous suffering, including world wars.

The Creator hates egoistic bodies and is willing to do anything in order to break our ego, including the most dramatic events that have already happened in history. Man faces two paths of correction for egoistic desire: the path of the Light (Achishena, hastening time) and the path of natural progression by suffering (Beito, “in its time”).

We either will have to experience how much hate nature, the Creator, is dropping on our egoistic desire, or we will develop the same kind of irreconcilable hate toward our egoistic nature on our own, within ourselves.

We need to reach the state of a “cry,” after which the Creator, the Light, will reveal itself and reform our intention from egoistic to altruistic. Until this state has been reached, we need to come to the conclusion that there isn’t a worse state than this, and we are not going to stay in our ego another moment. The question is, though, how we will come to this state: by suffering the blows or by scrutiny.

The result, however, is only one: I do not agree to tolerate my ego any longer, and I hate it more than anything in the world: “I’d rather be dead than living this kind of life.” If I feel through to the depth of my egoism like this, the Light will start working on me.

Everything takes place according to the laws of nature. I can’t just maker a louder cry and draw the Light thereby. We are faced with a strict law, the upper Light, and undergo specific states, stage by stage, when the Light starts working according to the order of the spiritual degrees, the Lights and desires that unfold in them.

Therefore, it’s pointless to sit and wait until it happens on its own. It never will. Before anything else, we need a desire for correction, total hate for our egoism. We will definitely come to it, either by way of pain or by way of the Light, one or the other. Then, the Creator will reveal Himself and reform us.

There was a time when only the few chosen ones were capable of such a correction, but today the entire group, even the entire world in general will go through it. Yet, we must pass through the same degrees and the same states.

However, when there are many people, they can assist and support each other and come to a collective revelation. Because all of them are connected, everything that one person feels and understands is passed on to the other. Thus, thanks to the guarantee, one can very quickly reach general understanding and experience, and decide that we have to rise above egoism.
[42214]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 5/4/2011, Shamati No. 19

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Question: What is “intention”?

Answer: Let’s say desire is in one state now and wishes to move to another. To do so, it needs to induce an action that will transfer it from the first state to the second. The plan implies the following: precise knowledge of where I am, where I wish to be, and what action and forces are required to move me from state to state. This whole program is what we call “intention” or the plan.

It is as though “the plan of creation” is the complete program defining how to start and what to finish with, what steps to take on the way, how to use the materials, forces, and instruments to carry out its initial thought. It is said: “The end result is in its initial thought.”

In intention, all of this exists in potential and then is actualized in practice. This means that intention appears in me only when I’m well aware of the present state and know exactly what I want to achieve. What do they usually ask: “What are your intentions? What do you want to gain? What results do you expect?”

Intention is an expression of the need for change that we already plan, understand, experience, implement, and bring to completion. The action itself is carried out by way of the force of Light and, hence, it doesn’t pertain to the created being. Only intentions have something to do with the creature: how well it has known itself, the Creator and how and in what form it makes the Creator act. A person needs to know as much as possible.

As I keep growing, ascending the ladder of the spiritual degrees, I demand more from the Creator, specifying all of the details of His actions. I already know how He acts and how it will affect me. I know, in every detail and peculiarity, how it will take place within me, in my “body” (desires). From my experience of Him and myself, I already know how it will all occur.

In the end, I obtain such details that I can manage His program for Him: I understand this entire program, every element of it, all of its mechanisms to the tiniest twists. When I come to the end of correction (Gmar Tikkun), I get to know His entire plan from the beginning to the end, all of the steps, from His side and mine. It means that I have acquired complete intention.

The Light is always in action. But how it acts and how I should demand from Him to transform me, all of this is the work of a person who needs to know the Creator, the relationship between the Light and desire.
[42121]
From the 3rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 5/3/2011, Talmud Eser Sefirot

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The Light begets desire and controls it. Initially, desire has no independent motion that’s not prompted by the Light. But if that’s the case, how can I show any initiative, the so-called “awakening from below” (Itaruta de-Letata), that’s demanded of me?

This awakening is possible because the Light strives to bring desire to self-awareness and conscious behavior so that desire feels autonomous and independent of the Light. And then, once it’s on its own and free of the Light, desire can decide what it is it wants and to demand change from the Light.

This demand can be egoistic, when desire wants to fulfill itself on account of its original nature. However, with the help of the Light it is possible for desire to reach a state when it wants a real change and asks for fulfillment not for its own sake, but for the sake of the Light, the Creator, and others.

People who wish to achieve this kind of demand and ask for the well-being of others are called “Israel” (from the Hebrew – “Yashar Kel” – straight to the Creator). Whereas everyone else, who wish to simply fulfill themselves without any connection to the Light, are called “secular people.” And if a person thinks that the Light can help him fulfill himself, he is called “religious.” All of humanity is divided into these three parts.
[42116]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 5/3/2011, Shamati No.5

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Question: Why is it that my mind understands that the Creator is worthy of being justified for what He is doing to me right now, but I am feeling bad nonetheless? Why can’t I affect my inner state with external actions such as a prayer?

Answer: What your desire is feeling at the moment is, in fact, you. In spirituality, you can’t pretend and say something you don’t feel. You have to come to the correction of your heart. And before anything else, we still have to figure out what exactly is in our hearts.

If you are crying, what is crying in you: your eyes or your heart? That’s the difference! The problem is that everything we do is on the outside, while the science of Kabbalah is the internal wisdom, the inner part of the Torah. You must dig into the heart of hearts, study, and test it.

Then you’ll understand that external actions only stand in your way and cover the authentic image up; they deceive and confuse you. You need to bare your heart and work with it without any outer theatrics, laments, and tears!

If you take a sedative and stop raging, will it really turn a sinner in you into a righteous one? No, everything is evaluated by the inner feeling in the heart. And we know what it is like. We think that all we have to do is to become embittered and make ourselves cry. Kabbalah doesn’t cancel external actions, but it wants them to reflect the internal state since without it being true, our work is pointless, and we won’t fulfill our designation.

Therefore, don’t fear that you’ll have to become a “sinner” at one point and “righteous” at another. They are two stages of the same spiritual degree, as it is said: “One cannot carry out a Mitzva (commandment) unless one breaks it first.” This means that one first undergoes the burdening of the heart (an additional load of egoism), and he is regarded as a “sinner” who broke the “Mitzva” and feels to what extent he is unable to do it.

And then, he gets stronger with the help of the environment, demands the Light that Reforms, corrects his desire, and becomes “righteous,” only to fall again. After all, he receives another dose of egoistic desire and turns into a “sinner” once more, in order to keep correcting himself in order to become “righteous.” It is said: “A thousand times the righteous will fall and rise again.”

Every spiritual degree starts with a new load of egoism, and you start it as “a sinner.” Afterward, you finish correcting it and reach adhesion with the Creator at this degree, and then you are regarded as the righteous.
[41999]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 5/2/2011, Shamati No. 16

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Question: I feel that when I started studying Kabbalah, I could hear the Creator’s voice more clearly. And now, I feel my receptivity has decreased.

Answer: That is because the Creator wants to tune you to Himself even better and demonstrates to you that you are not attuned to Him well enough. And you should search so that the most exalted feeling that you have experienced so far would constantly be alive in you. You must, regardless of the obstacles, constantly tune to that previous feeling, while it will be new nonetheless.

In the beginning of creation, in our first state of existence (1), we felt only the Light of “Nefesh,” the smallest Light. And then, we descended into our world, into the broken state (2), and are now ascending from our world back to the third state (3).

The third state is the same as the first one, although we feel the Light of “Yechida” in it, which is 620 times greater than the initial one that we used to have in the first state. It is the Light of NRNHY (Nefesh, Ruach, Neshama, Haya, Yechida).

Why is it so? It is due to the fact that we have attuned ourselves in spite of the obstacles! On the way from the first state to the third one, we were given numerous obstacles of all sorts, but regardless of them, we have attuned ourselves to the same Light of “Nefesh” that was in the beginning. The Light doesn’t change.

I have raised my receptivity and become a vibrating string instead of a thick metal pipe that I used to be at the start. I have become more subtle, sensitive, sensuous, and receptive.

As a result, in the first state that I used to exist in, I experience, not the Light of “Nefesh” that used to fill me at the still level when I didn’t feel anything, but rather I discover myself as equal to the Creator, that is, I reveal the great Light of “Yechida.” Why is it so? Just because I tuned myself to it. This is the process we undergo.
[41981]
From the Virtual Lesson in Russian, Fundamentals of Kabbalah 4/21/2011

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Kabbalah is a science about reality. Man is a creature that strives to understand why and for what purpose he exists and how he can come to the truth. He yearns to uncover the meaning of such notions as “truth,” “facts,” “purpose,” or “reaching the goal.” He is made to demand this kind of fulfillment.

Man’s greatest need is to know who he is, as it is said: “From my flesh shall I see the Creator.” Indeed, to learn who I am, I need to know who the Creator is. This necessity mandates me to search.

The entire wisdom of Kabbalah is dedicated to the study of man since besides him, nothing exists. All of reality is within man, and everything occurs solely in him. I don’t see anything in this world except myself. All that is happening around me is me, images within me. I don’t have the slightest idea what is going on outside of me.

This means that Kabbalah is the study of the self, self-attainment, self-awareness. All other books describe some kind of illusions, as if there is an external reality around us. Therefore, everything but these sacred books is a total lie made up by man; they are the fruit of his imagination.

We don’t realize how unique these books are; besides, as far as the truth is concerned, we have nothing to hold on to. Without these books, we would exist in this world as some little insects that live only for as long as the time allotted to them permits. Only with the help of these books can we gradually develop ourselves and start examining, measuring, and learning “who and what we are.”

Thus we find out that we contain the whole worlds, Partzufim, Sefirot, and numerous parts that seem alien to us, which in the end turn out to be the parts of your own soul. This is your very desire split into the still, vegetative, animate nature, and humans as well. And at the last, fourth degree, we must collect all these parts together in order to come to the intention “to bestow,” which is mandatory for this final, fourth, stage of creation.

When I gain this intention to bestow for all parts of creation, I will finally find out who I am; I will know myself. And there is nothing else to study in reality.
[42014]
From the 3rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 5/2/2011, Talmud Eser Sefirot

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There are only two forces in the world: the force of bestowal and that of reception. By interacting with one another, they must come to equilibrium, adhesion, and oneness.

The will to receive starts forming inside the desire to bestow, the Light. The Light constantly influences the desire to receive by developing it, while the latter responds to the Light. Thereby, they begin to interact. As a result, the desire to receive pleasure evolves to an ability to act on its own, to experience, think, and react to the desire to bestow.

Thus, these two desires gradually decrease, descending lower and lower. In the end, this allows us to analyze very fine details that combined, allow us to construct the complete system. It is as if from a global analysis we move on to a very fine research (as if we are using tweezers), which enables us to get information unavailable in a general approach. And the latter provides what is missing in the particulars.

As a result, we need to come to a state when the general and the particular will be fully analyzed and completely corrected. This is why there was the descent of the spiritual worlds up to this world, followed by development in this world. In the process of its development, our world undergoes the same four stages and arrives at the creation of the desire to bestow: from below upward, in order to return to the world of Infinity.

Kabbalists take great care to explain this process to us. First of all, they are scientists, and this is the physics of the two forces acting in creation, which explains how these forces come down to us in order for us to connect and start working with them. After all, they become realized only in our desires, intentions, and discernments.

In nature, these two forces are balanced. But we are supposed to get in between them and assemble ourselves, completely incorporating both of them within. As nature, the Creator, consists of both of these forces, His own force of bestowal and the force of reception through which He influences us, so must we construct ourselves from these two forces. That is what the entire program of creation and evolution entails.
[42017]
From the 3rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 5/2/2011, Talmud Eser Sefirot

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