Question: It is written about the holiday of Sukkot: “Come out of your permanent home and dwell in a temporary abode.” Do you believe that a sane person can leave a secure and comfortable home and move to a temporary hut?

Answer: We will be compelled to change our egoistic dwelling despite our wishes anyway. No matter how solid your home seems right now, everyone knows that it is temporary, and we will all move to another, permanent place.

But Kabbalah invites a person to “come out of your permanent dwelling” that seems to be so reliable and move to a “temporary” one in advance. Our egoism pictures our world as permanent, but studying Kabbalah reveals a different relationship between the worlds: The world of bestowal is permanent because a person actually unites with the Creator and attains eternity and perfection in the World of Infinity.

We, like little children, are attached to our current dwelling; we are afraid of moving away from it, leaving our favorite toy. Even as adults we have a problem giving up our current views and looking at the world differently. The difference between a permanent and a temporary dwelling is that with the help of a new environment, I’m trying to separate from the previous environment, our “permanent home.”

In my previous environment, I was under pressure from the media, the opinions of co-workers and neighbors; I was obligated to be and think like everyone else. I was dependent on a multitude of factors that defined my “permanent dwelling”; I owed everyone and ran around like everybody else. Everyone understands and agrees with this.

But then the permanent dwelling turns out to be like a concentration camp for me and I can’t escape! I begin to see outside of myself and how this permanent life is actually temporary, and that it will end soon. Under a new influence from books and the opinion of the group, I gradually leave this “rat race” called life and see the “permanent dwelling” (state) in the Upper Light, in its absolute rest, in this world and the next one, now.
[21766′]
From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/22/10, Baal HaSulam, Letter 51

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Mutual guarantee is a special space between us, our common desire. All spiritual revelations take place there. And if there is no such space, there is no common desire, but only our individual egoistic desires. We construct this common space to the degree that I annul myself and enter this collective desire, you annul and put yourself there as well, and so does everybody else. Otherwise, it does not exist!

The vessel into which we can receive the Light is not ready-made; we have to build it, we have to aspire to oneness. By cultivating our unity, from 0 to 125 degrees, we perceive, at each degree, a new picture, a greater revelation of the Creator. All “sacred” books (the Torah, The Zohar, etc.) tell us exactly about this: the degrees of the connection we create by turning our evil and rejection of each other into love and unity. Thus, the entire Torah is comprised of stories that describe how we unfold and correct the evil.

We feel our world in the “place of unification” as its absence; we feel our separation and not the Creator, the One. Yet, even this world resides in that very “place” between us with one difference: Here, we reveal the degree of our broken oneness and absence of the Creator.

Meanwhile, unity acts similar to a resistor which connects plus and minus. Inside it, my ego, my rejection of all others, is concealed. But above it, I make an effort to unite. By doing so, I create resistance between rejection and exertion. And the greater the difference, the resistance between them (“faith above reason”), the greater Light is revealed.

The same law applies to electronics and the spiritual world. Ultimately, all Nature consists of “plus” and “minus” or the forces of bestowal and reception. The only way to connect them together is through a resistor, which could be any receiver. This receiver is Adam that we are constructing: our soul.

Therefore, on one hand, we have the breaking force, and on the other, the force of our effort in creating unity. But it doesn’t annul the breaking; we unite exactly above it! As a result, we create a space where the Light that expands from the two lines, plus and minus, is able to work and start affecting us. Through this work, we build ourselves: “human reality.”
[21583]
From the 3rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/20/10, Talmud Eser Sefirot

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In the beginning, the Light created the will to receive. Then it developed and removed it from itself in order to give it independence, an opportunity to govern itself and to be equivalent to the Light. In this process, the Light was primary; it was the cause, whereas the will to receive was secondary, the effect.

Every action occurs through the impact of the Light on the will to receive (the desire). The desire itself is unable to act. Only the presence of the Light in it gives the will to receive the opportunity to ask the Light for a certain kind of effect.

Once the Light has prepared the desire for independent correction, giving it the ability to become similar to itself, the Light is no longer primary with regard to the actions done by the desire. It remains solely a motivating force. It awakens the will to receive to action, creating all the necessary circumstances for its correction so as to enable its attainment of equivalence with the Light.

The process of the Light creating all the necessary conditions for the desire’s attainment of equivalence with itself is called the descent of the Light and the will to receive from above downward. The desire’s gradual maturity to equivalence with the Light is called ascent from below upwards. During the descent from above downward, the Light establishes the degrees of ascension from below upwards, leaving the desire with free will (freedom of choice and action). That free will amounts to forming the aspiration for similarity or closeness with the Light by turning to the Light.

The Light programmed the stages of ascension to lead the desire through the forms it must acquire in its gradual correction. All we must do is to be able to comply with the form of the specific spiritual degree at each stage and ask for the Light of Correction, which will make us similar to the Light.

In order to comprehend the Light’s work on us and its program of our correction and to desire this program’s implementation on us, we gather in the group, study Kabbalah, and inspire each other to give importance to gaining equivalence with the Light and to not resisting it. In this process, I must first annul myself by making a “restriction” (Tzim Tzum), as if I don’t exist. I have to just let the Light come and do the work. This passive participation allows me to “find the path to the Light.”

After that, I need to actively desire the impact of the Light since by doing so I increase the pressure of its flow with the agreement I received from the group. By agreeing to receive a powerful effect of the Light (by saying, “Let it be”), I gain the quality of bestowal, similarity to the Creator. I put in my minimal desire (agreement), but, thanks to the powerful stream of the Light, I receive an enormous property of bestowal (intention to bestow) at the output, and that is my new “self.”

The Light enters my initial “point in the heart” (Netzotz, the spark) and “blows” it up. By agreeing with its actions, I “grow" until I reach the 125^th spiritual degree, the Creator, and acquire the same might.

This is what the holiday of Sukkot symbolizes. In fact, all the holidays in our world are symbols of what happens to us in the spiritual world.
[21914]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/24/10, “Waste of Barn and Winery”

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Question: What happens if I don’t make efforts while studying Kabbalah?

Answer: If you don’t make efforts, then you are left alone for a short while and are awakened again at a later time. If you still don’t make efforts at that point, then you are left alone because you’ve proven yourself unworthy. This time, you may be left alone for years or even until the next life cycle.

The first time around, a person is given an opportunity to attain self-realization. The second time, he is sent a reminder, a new opportunity, and a punishment. In truth, it isn’t a punishment but a correction because he is “stung” with negative sensations in order to aid him even though it appears like something else. A person was wasting his time without being productive, and then suddenly something bad happens to him. It could be related to work, money, or anything else.

This serves as a reminder, as if to say: “You wanted to get more comfortable in this world instead of continuing on your spiritual journey, so see for yourself how unfriendly this world can be.”

And if that doesn’t help and you continue to seek other paths that don’t follow the spiritual direction, then you are left alone. It is written: “He who has sinned again, henceforth he is allowed”; now you can do whatever you like. Your turn for correction will come only after the other souls correct themselves, but reaching this measure of separation is extremely undesirable.
[#21812]
From the 1^st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/22/10, “The Agenda of the Assembly”

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The Zohar, Chapter “VeYechi (And Jacob Lived),” Item 376: Wherever blessings are required, the Creator, Malchut, should be blessed first. And if the Creator is not blessed first, the blessings do not persist.

When we read holy books, we read about the states we will have to go through in the future. However, we don’t yet feel the text which the Kabbalists wrote in this form.

It is impossible to describe spirituality in any other way besides taking words from the material world. There are no words in spirituality. So how can someone narrate about it? How can one explain phenomena that do not exist in our world?

It is necessary to take something similar from our world and use those words to describe spirituality. In any case, a person who is not in the spiritual world does not know what is being described. He simply reads.

Nevertheless, if we read about spirituality even without feeling it, but desiring to adhere to those who revealed spirituality and wrote about it in their books – Rabbi Shimon and his students, the authors of The Book of Zohar, and Baal HaSulam, who added his commentary to The Zohar, if we desire to unite with them so their attainment and force would influence us, then we develop as naturally as children who desire to be next to an adult, to learn from him, and to get everything they can from the adult. That is how they grow.

Therefore, while reading The Book of Zohar, we must be as close as possible to its authors. In spirituality, someone who is close means he has the same quality; closeness is not measured by distance or proximity in space. In spirituality, I am considered close to someone if I have the same quality, if I am similar to him.

The quality of the authors of The Zohar is bestowal, whereas our quality is reception. So how can we become closer to them? I have to imagine that I am together with my friends and nullify myself before them. Then I attain a state where we are all together in one desire to unite, trying to adhere to the authors of The Book of Zohar. That is how we come closer to the state of unity that influences us. We are influenced by the state where we are more connected with each other, with bestowal, and with those who have the quality of bestowal – the authors of The Zohar and the text they wrote.

It works even though we do not understand what they tell us about, like babies, we desire to receive from adults. Then their entire force and the attainments they put into those books influence us and we start to change like a baby. This is our work, which takes place according to the same natural conditions and the same phases of development as in our world. That is how we advance.

Therefore, when reading The Book of Zohar, we mustn’t forget how to unite with its authors. Then we will reveal its inner meaning, will enter The Book of Zohar, and will become its participants.
[21910]
From the 2^nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/24/10, The Zohar

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The wisdom of Kabbalah speaks solely about the desire. As for the Light, there is nothing much to say. It is static and exists at absolute rest. It only bestows and has only this single property of bestowal. If you wish to receive from it, then your actions must be similar to it. The Light doesn’t change; rather, it is your desire that causes it to act upon you.

It is similar to a source of energy. I can come closer to it or move away, approaching it from one or another direction. As with the sun, we can be burned by it or use it for our benefit. And like the sun, the Light is absolutely constant. You can pray or scream to it, but it will not change.

All transformations take place solely within you, regardless of whether you lament or give thanks. In accordance with your changes, you receive different results from its effect. The Light doesn’t change. You discover a fixed, motionless field. To the extent of your inner changes, you discern how to feel its various states. And yet, it is you who experiences the differences, whereas the Light remains the same.

The Light is like the sun that never ceases to shine. You may use its energy as you please: to heat, to cool, and so on. The energy itself has no form, and you are the one who defines it.

So it is with the Creator: “Good Who does good to the bad and the good,” to everyone who desires it. Does He do good to the bad as well? Yes, He does. However, since their properties are inverse (opposite) to those of the Creator, then to the degree of their incompatibility with Him they receive blows instead of good. This helps them to realize the evil of egoism and gradually changes them.

However, there is a better option: to receive instruction on the correct use of the Light. Accordingly, Kabbalah allows us to change ourselves under the effect of the Light, quickly and easily.
[21662]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/20/10, “600.000 Souls”

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Everything seems so stable to us in this world, like a habitual cradle for a little child. However, we need to come out of it and check if it’s really so reliable.

Most importantly, we need to come out of the influence of society. If a person comes out into the so-called “temporary dwelling,” that is, he builds a new environment for himself in order to become independent and see this world from afar, like from space, then he draws even closer to the Light. It’s important to reveal the world “on the other side” (on the other side of egoism) without changing anything in “this life,” to rationally evaluate our world as temporary, and add the permanent one to it by uniting with the Creator.

This world is given to us only so that we could value the Creator’s world as the perfect one. In order to rejoice in this world and in the next one, we need to assimilate the Upper World while being in our current state. This is achieved by altering the importance of reception to bestowal, changing waste into essence, and the permanent into the temporary. We need to switch them around and discover harmony and perfection.
[21765]
From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/22/10, Writhings of Baal HaSulam, Letter 17

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Question: What should I do if the Simulator doesn’t give me any inspiration or importance?

Answer: It doesn’t matter; the Simulator is the obligation. I don’t get any inspiration from the mutual guarantee, but I must realize it. You have to put efforts into it again and again. While you are investing in it, you are seemingly losing since you are taking care of it and giving everything to it from “yourself.”

This will continue until everything becomes connected to the extent that you are able to reveal the first spiritual degree. Then you will feel the efforts you have given not as a loss, but rather as a reward. But for the time being, this is really a loss: Your family, friends, and people who surround you look at you with astonishment, “What are you investing yourself into?”

You can not explain anything to them, although this will last until you receive a response for all your efforts. Therefore, we have to try to complete this process as soon as possible.
[21751]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/22/10, Shlavei Hasulam, Article 17, 1986

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Question: What is the middle line? Is it the ability to act correctly between the two lines (left and right)?

Answer: The middle line is a marriage of the Light and desire. It is adhesion comprised of desire and intention, combined with the Source of Light, the Creator. By using the will to receive with an intention to bestow pleasure to the Creator, man uncovers the source of pleasure, the Creator. It turns out that desire and pleasure were merely a medium to find the connection between man and the Creator. These three components: desire, pleasure, and intention come together as one: I and the Creator.
[21747]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/22/10, Shlavei Hasulam, Article 17, 1986

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Why is it that after a soul (Nukva) completes a stage of its development, limitations still apply to it? The analysis of the desires (realization of evil) occurs on 100% of all the desires (Kelim), and the correction, meaning the implementation of the desires for the sake of bestowal, happens to the extent that it’s possible, that is, only on some of the desires. The Nukva restricts the other desires by limiting itself.

We know that some of the desires pertain to the “stony heart” (Lev HaEven), and they cannot be used to receive for the sake of bestowal until the very end of correction (Gmar Tikkun). However, why is it necessary to wait? Why can’t this “stony heart” be corrected right now, along with the other desires?

The fact that we constantly correct only a part of the desire (leaving the “stony heart”) pushes us to obtain an additional desire, and thus this limitation acts to our benefit. A person is forced to separate his desires, making a decision in regard to every desire and every detail. Where is the GE (Galgalta ve Eynaim), where is the AHP, which desire is to receive in order to bestow, and which desire is to bestow in order to bestow?

One sees such differences in all the desires precisely due to the fact that the “stony heart” is partially present in them, and this helps a person determine the boundaries of the desire. Precisely at the border of clarifying our capabilities do we acquire the sensation, the contrast of qualities according to the law of “to prefer the Light out of darkness.”

These limitations, when we feel that we can proceed only to this boundary but cannot cross it, give us the ability to perceive different qualities and their combinations (inclusions). We reveal new qualities, the Creator above creation, at the border line between desires.
[21674]
From the 3rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/21/10, Talmud Eser Sefirot

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