The wisdom of Kabbalah is opposite to a layman’s opinion because spirituality is opposite to corporeality. Spirituality is focused exclusively on bestowal, while corporeality is all about reception, in line with their corresponding intentions. Although judging from one’s actions, it’s not always clear.

It is crucial in spirituality to never divide creation into different, opposing, contradictory forces, but rather attribute everything to a single force: “There is none else besides Him.” That’s the basis of Kabbalah.

Therefore, we have to attribute to a single force what seems to us as good and evil on every degree. A person should see himself as holding two reins: the force of good and the force of evil. The Creator holds these two reins from Above: the good and the evil and through them, converses with man in order to teach him.

One should understand that the Creator’s attitude comes to him or her in these two forms, meaning that the same upper force is at work, either with its front or back side: the Creator or Pharaoh. Then a person grows with the help of the two forces and is grateful for the bad as well as for the good. After all, both of them come in order to bring him closer to the adhesion with the upper force.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/10/2011, Writings of Rabash

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Question: How does the group oppose Pharaoh and escape from Egypt?

Answer: In the spiritual world all processes arise from each other, by a chain of cause and effect. Therefore, every new stage is a revelation of the preceding one.

However, until the next stage is revealed, it is completely imperceptible, and it is impossible to examine or picture it. A new sensation, thought, revelation, always comes completely unexpectedly, and a person suddenly begins to understand where he is and realizes that he just received some new state from Above.

Therefore, it is impossible to tell you ahead of time about all the stages that you have to go through, except for what the story about the exodus from Egypt relates to us. However, they all are directed at the unification between us by virtue of the upper force. This is all that can be said for the time being.

All the stages will be revealed depending on our effort to realize them, our attempts to unite due to the upper force, the force of bestowal. It is impossible to sensibly imagine these states based on our verbal descriptions until we approach them. You will feel them when you will be practically ready for them. I can only provide an explanation for the mind of what we go through in our sensations so that the mind puts the sensations in order.

However, if the person still lacks such sensations and impressions, my words will seem dry and artificial, devoid of real meaning. He will have nothing to grab onto, nothing to tie these explanations to. First we need to go through and accumulate various impressions in us.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/10/2011, Writings of Rabash

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Question: In order to come out of Egypt, I first need to reveal that the Creator is keeping me there….

Answer: The Creator is not keeping you in Egypt. He is teaching you how to come out of it. He does not want you to stay there. However, He teaches you so that you would be ready to come out from Egypt in new qualities (desires or Kelim).

This is like teaching a child to walk. You let him go, and he stands in place and cries out of fear. He cannot make a single step toward you since in order to do this, he needs to raise one foot and hold himself on the other. He is unable to do this. He can just stand on both feet. It’s still hard for him to raise one foot, stand on the other, take a step forward, and then do all this again. We need to teach him. And this does not mean that we wish to keep him in the former state; we are not restraining him.

Question: On one hand, I need to reveal the single force that governs reality: “There is none else besides Him.” On the other, I need to achieve mutual concern in the group. How do I work with these two components? What is the next step that I need to make at this stage, during the days of Passover which we have declared as an attack?

Answer: You should be together! Nothing else. Only together!

For the time being we are still in a state where if we think of “together,” we forget about the Creator. “Together” is we, and the Creator is like something foreign, something additional.

True, for now we still perceive it this way. However, we need to artificially try to remember about Him. And although we constantly think about our unification, we should make an attempt to occasionally have a thought that without the Creator we do not achieve unity, that we need Him. For now, we should do this in order to unite with each other. Crudely speaking, we wish to use Him in order to unite.

Then, as a result of our entire development, we will reach a state where we will want to be connected with each other in order to become similar to the Creator, to serve Him, to become included in Him. However, this occurs gradually, in steps. But now, in our current state, we should be together!

It is written that the Creator is revealed only during the exodus from Egypt. And prior to this a person is unable to imagine these qualities since he is still situated in his ego.
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From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/10/2011, The Book of Zohar

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Question: What does the group lack in order to exit Egypt (egoistic slavery)?

Answer: We lack mutual care for each other, a feeling that we won’t exit unless we do it together.

Do you remember the conditions under which Pharaoh agreed to let Moses go? First, he gave permission to Moses and a few other people. Then he agreed to free just one tribe of Israel. Afterward he said that only men could go, leaving women and children behind. But Moses did not agree to it. Then Pharaoh said that they could leave but only without the cattle. Moses did not subscribe to this either.

Moses and Pharaoh kept arguing until the people of Israel fled Egypt taking with them all their possessions and even what belonged to the Egyptians. We undergo an entire process before we prepare ourselves to exit Egypt.

We still lack mutual concern that unless all of us care for each other, we will not escape from Egypt. Each one has to care about everybody, and my desire determines how strong their concern will be. I ignite the hearts of the others with my own heart. I have to worry about each of us rising above their own egoism and connecting above it with the points in the hearts. Let each of us have a big desire; otherwise, he is drilling a hole in our common boat.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/10/2011, Writings of Rabash

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Question: Where is the Creator in the entire system of the worlds?

Answer: The Creator is everywhere. This system of the worlds exists only in relation to us. Let’s say I exist in the middle, and all the degrees surround me like the rings of the expansion of the upper force’s field.

The Creator fills this entire universe. For Him there is no big or small, inner or outer. All division exists only in relation to me. I exist in the center point and I have to expand myself, my senses, and my corrections in order to grasp one world, then another one, a third one, and so on. Each time, my ego grows from level zero to the1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th one. I correct my egoism and thereby reach bestowal.

This way I include all the worlds within myself. Before they seemingly existed outside of me, but now I return them to myself, to my inner desires.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/8/2011, Writings of Rabash

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The story of the exodus from Egypt and the traditions related to it are intended only to point to our inner states. We are in a notch, in trouble, with blows falling upon us, in the atmosphere of an escape, a rush, and darkness. In essence, this is the process of spiritual birth, comparable to the birth of a physical body.

This is what we have to achieve. But how? After all, we are always running away from suffering. So how can we not run away from the state of coming out of Egypt? In the material world I can find myself in a situation where there is only one way out. But in spirituality everything happens according to my desire. If I don’t want to experience Egyptian plagues, then I don’t experience them. But then I will take the thorny path along with all humanity under pressure from the “developmental press.” However, I want to accelerate the path. So will I really put myself under the blow?

Kabbalists answer: You shouldn’t reveal the blows and problems somewhere out there, but only in the current state. How? Could it really be that in my sensation I have to “turn” reality from good to evil? That’s right! You might say, “But when I feel the evil, I will run away!” Actually, no, you won’t. That’s because you will reveal the evil in relation to the higher goal. You have to assess spirituality as something desirable and truly priceless. Then the current state will seem bad to you. That way you will be able to move forward without abandoning the path.

We awaken the spiritual goal so it would shine for us. Then we desire to attain it, while the current state becomes exile, darkness, Egyptian plagues. This enables us to raise the importance of spirituality in our eyes, to elevate the importance of bestowal, love for the neighbor, and the unity of friends to such a degree that the exile will become unbearable and we will have to run away from it.

Question: If the exit from Egypt happens in such difficult conditions, how should this be combined with the optimism and energy that fill us after the convention?

Answer: We aspire only to goodness, and then the current state seems unbearable to us. On the path of acceleration I reveal good states ahead and compared to them the current situation seems bad to me.

I do not have to suffer in a dead-end at all, not knowing what to do with myself. The latter approach is called “advancing in due time” until the “developmental press” will nevertheless We have to reveal the goodness ahead. This makes all the difference. By comparing the current state with the desired unity, with love for the neighbor and bestowal, I feel that I am in trouble, in darkness. That is how I prepare myself for spiritual perception, already now forming spiritual values within myself. By elevating bestowal in my eyes, I prepare for redemption and accelerate the path.push me forward.
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From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/10/11, Preparation to Going Out From Egypt

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Our egoism is “help from the opposite,” which we have to use in order to ascend to the Creator’s level. And it works in two areas. The first is a person’s connection with the group where his egoism works against “Israel” (the intention “straight to the Creator”). The second is when our ego comes forth against the only force that controls the world, meaning against the Creator. Our ego rises up against these two forces and resists them by every means possible and at every moment. That is why all of our work is aimed only at this.

The more we aspire to attain a connection among us in bestowal, love, and mutual guarantee, the faster we will reveal that we are incapable of this! And then we will have to turn to the Creator and deal with Pharaoh who stands against Him. We know from the story of Egyptian slavery that Moses, the leader of the nation of Israel who spoke with the Creator, did not appear right away. All of this occurs after many years of exile in Egypt when the nation of Israel already cried out from the difficult work and screamed out to the Creator. Only then did one Jewish woman give birth to a boy Moses, and then this entire story begins to unfold. This new force called Moses rises up in a person.

That is where the work against Pharaoh begins. We discern whether it is worth it for us to attract the upper force in order to create a connection in the group that will fuse us together as one nation with one heart, so much that we will reveal the Creator inside of that unity. That is to say, the work takes places in two areas. First of all, this is difficult work that made “the sons of Israel cry out,” which is when we want to build our spiritual vessel (desire) and are unable to. And then we scream, not knowing what to do.

That is when the second phase begins, where we discern: Whom do we yell at and how? We have to reveal the upper force. We want it to be present inside of our union, and not just in order to make our connection with each other come true. Our entire connection has to happen in order to reveal the force fo the Creator, the force of bestowal and love.

We work through these two phases, and as long as we don’t complete them fully, uniting all of Israel and attracting the Creator instead of Pharaoh inside of us, we will not be able to come out of Egypt. This exodus occurs as an escape in darkness, extremely rushed.

There are several steps that we have to make in the direction of this exodus. The Light that illuminates these steps leads us to realize that there is just one upper force, “There is none else besides Him.” Only He influences us and leads us through all of these steps and all of the states. All of our sensations, thoughts, and desires comes to us from above. What depends on us is only one single point of freedom: To relate everything that is happening to the Creator.

We realize this free choice in the group by uniting as one man in order to reveal Him, and He is present inside of the group. That is how we prepare for the exodus from Egypt in order to ascend above our ego and to shift to being ruled by the force of bestowal.

This is the greatest event in a person’s life. It’s not an accident that the whole Torah starts with the Exodus, and the month when it happens is called the beginning of all the months. The beginning is enumerated from the exodus from Egypt because all of the Torah and all spiritual life is built only on this foundation. This is the beginning of a “human being” who starts to grow up from the animate existence, the growing force of faith called the force of the Creator, which rises above the earthly, animate knowledge. All of this begins with the exodus from the egoistic Egypt.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/10/11, Writings of Rabash

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Question: How can I learn to place more importance on the intention rather than the understanding of the text when we study the Kabbalistic sources in the group or when I read them alone?

Answer: When I read alone, I also have to think that we all are connected together. It is as though I plunge into our collective desire which connects us into one, where we are united all together even though we don’t feel it.

I try to be on the same level. Being together with everyone inside the system that connects us all, where we all share the same desire and energy, I wish to sense that there are no differences between me and the others.

Then, when reading the text, I try to penetrate into its essence as much as possible and, most importantly, not to disconnect from the inner connection between us. If I need to give 99% of my strength to the thoughts about our connection, I have to do that. Then I use only 1% for understanding what I read. Sometimes I don’t even know what I am reading about: So big are the distractions that come to me.

However, I should not worry about the fact that later on I won’t be able to tell what I just read. The key is to wish to connect with everyone when my eyes follow the letters. This is enough for the text to influence me.

I specifically want to emphasize that first of all you have to think about the connection between us, and only then you may read and understand the text as much as you are able to.
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From Lesson 4, WE! Convention 4/2/2011

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Question: Does it make a difference in a person’s correction process whether he reads Kabbalistic sources from a book or from a computer screen?

Answer: When I’m talking about something, in my mind I picture the source of my words: a book or Rabash’s words. I never had this question because at that time I couldn’t have had it; therefore, I don’t have a clear answer. But in my opinion, there is no difference.

There are people who are used to reading a written text, and there are those who have become used to reading from a computer screen. I open the books only during the lessons. All of our books can be found and downloaded from our website. One can accommodate his or her needs: make notes, change the font size, and so on. Yet, it’s still important to open up a printed book.

I think that all our books should be a part of every friend’s home library. After all, a book is more than just a collection of printed pages. It is a reflection of a spiritual object, a certain idea that contains a deep inner meaning.

A book’s prototype and its predecessor is a scroll (Megillah), from the word “Gilui,” meaning revelation. Try reading from a book and from the screen: You will sense a greater depth in the way you relate to the written pages.

During our lessons, when millions of people are studying together, I would like all of us to read from the books and to see each other on the computer screen.
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From Lesson 4, WE! Convention 4/2/2011

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Question: How is our intention while reading The Zohar different from the intention to win a lottery? Isn’t it egoistic in both cases?

Answer: A little child playing with his toys doesn’t know what he is really doing. He breaks the toys apart, puts them back together, spoils them, and in the meantime learns, grows, and gains wisdom. Had he not been given the games that develop him, had he lived in the forest, he would have grown up as an animal.

It’s amazing how much wisdom we put into toys, constantly improving them and adapting them to each age group, to enable a newborn person to become, within a few short years, a part of the modern world!

Games are a very serious engagement, and all of our development happens through them. Playing a game means that I am trying to reach a higher state than my present one. That degree is unknown to me, but I am aspiring to it. Game means development, it’s just that the word “game” misleads us.

We are in the same situation. If we are occupied with something serious but don’t understand that future state, it’s called a game. The only question is whether our game has the developmental power or not? If I play with animals in the forest, it doesn’t bring the Light that Reforms; there is no developmental impact. That means that I will stay on the level of a beast because such is my environment.

But if, with the help of the Surrounding Light that shines to me while reading The Zohar, I make the environment of Rabbi Shimon part of my own, I associate myself with a higher degree. Then I progress to the degree of Human.
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From Lesson 4, WE! Convention 4/2/2011

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