Baal HaSulam, “Introduction to The Book of Zohar,” Item 67: If, God forbid … an individual from Israel enhances and appreciates one’s externality, which is the nations of the world in him, more than the inner Israel in him, meaning the externality in that person rises and soars, you yourself, the internality, the Israel in you, plunges down. With these actions, one causes the externality of the world in general —the nations of the world—to soar ever higher and overcome Israel, degrading them to the ground, and the children of Israel, the internality in the world, to plunge deep down.

This is what has been going on since the days of the Maccabeans and even in the times of the Second Temple, when they tried to disseminate Greek culture among the people. If we check this throughout history, we’ll see that every time we had a chance to avoid great trouble we didn’t do so.

But today, when we must finally fulfill the plan of creation and have all the necessary means, we surely have to feel that we are indeed responsible for the whole world. The Nazis brought suffering not only to the Jews—the pain and suffering were afflicted upon many people. According to the estimates of historians, 60 million people died during WWII.

We should understand that today we are facing the same danger, but it concerns the whole world. Hitler was no more than a puppet. This, of course, doesn’t justify his atrocities, but ultimately it’s about a very negative combination of forces that was created by those who have free will because of the disrespect towards the spiritual goal.

There are actually no “negative figures” in the world. These are simply the same “positive figures” that appear so that we will correct them. And if not, they are depicted to us as “negative figures,” up to such extremes. In general it’s about a unified system.

Today, as we enter a new era, we should draw conclusions and learn from what we’ve been through. As unpleasant as it may sound, we have caused all the troubles. We should be careful so as not to summon this nightmare upon the whole world in the future.

Baal HaSulam warns us about it in simple direct words. He says that Nazism can return, and we cannot be sure that it will not happen. People always say “never again!” as if they understand how to manage the world. Actually you can say that if you advance by the upper Light, you know for sure what is ahead. But you know nothing about the system and are not trying to correct it, so your words are worthless and you advance from one blow to another.

It’s time to wake up and to understand that the choice is in our hands.
[75746]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/19/2012 on Holocaust Memorial Day

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Baal HaSulam, “Introduction to The Book of Zohar,” Item 71: Each of us remainders should take upon himself, heart and soul, to henceforth intensify the internality of the Torah, and give it its rightful place, according to its merit over the externality of the Torah.

And then, each and every one of us will be rewarded with intensifying his own internality, meaning the Israel within us, which is the needs of the soul over our own externality, which is the nations of the world within us, that is, the needs of the body. That force will come to the whole of Israel, until the nations of the world within us recognize and acknowledge the merit of the great sages of Israel over them, and will listen to them and obey them.

Also, the internality of the nations of the world, the righteous of the nations of the world, will overpower and submit their externality, which are the destructors. And the internality of the world, too, which are Israel, shall rise in all their merit and virtue over the externality of the world, which are the nations. Then, all the nations of the world will recognize and acknowledge Israel’s merit over them. And they shall follow the words (Isaiah 14, 2), “And the people shall take them, and bring them to their place: and the house of Israel shall possess them in the land of the Lord.” And also (Isaiah 49, 22), “And they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried on their shoulders.”

On every level, everything depends on the correlation between internality and externality, and the upper levels determine what will happen on the lower levels. So each of us, meaning anyone who is studying the wisdom of Kabbalah and who belongs to “Israel,” that is, to the category that aspires straight to the Creator (Yashar – El), determines how things will develop by preferring internality over externality, by placing the spiritual advancement, love, connection, and bestowal over the external part in him, which is based on self-interest, success, honor, a desire to control others, and so on. This internal conflict within each of us and the way it’s expressed in the group determines where the world is headed.

But if everything depends on us, what do we need dissemination for? The point is that today the whole world needs to examine the relationship between internality and externality. On every degree, on every level, everyone should make a decision regarding this and prefer unification—in order to join us. Then “the nations of the world,” or our egoistic desires will support the altruistic part that leads the world forward.

Thus, as we’ve already said, everything depends on the correlation between internality and externality, between spiritual advancement and all corporeal interests. So a big question is: What can we do so that there will be no more disasters? As difficult as it may seem, we must accept what Baal HaSulam says: “There is none else besides Him,” and “the law is given and cannot be transgressed,” and no one can influence the advancement of the world except those who have access to the Light that Reforms.

So we have to admit that we are responsible for the afflictions in the world and the troubles we experience. This is what Baal HaSulam says: Since Israel preferred externality over internality and didn’t open the wisdom of Kabbalah in the right time, to this extent they summoned the Holocaust upon themselves….
[75749]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/19/2012 on Holocaust Memorial Day

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It’s difficult to speak about the Holocaust because this topic is closely tied to people’s feelings. It’s easier to discuss wars that went on thousands of years ago, even though they were often waged between our people, for example, between the Hellenistic Jews and those who adhered to the fundamental principles. And on the whole, the people of Israel have certainly led many wars with external enemies: the Romans and others.

We know that all the past wars were an outcome of Israel not fulfilling its purpose. We know from the Tanakh and Gemara that if the people of Israel acted correctly, then no nation would rule over us. Baal HaSulam writes about this in the article “The Arvut (Mutual Guarantee).” Even earlier the Ari had said that had we remained as guarantors for one another, like it was at the period of the First Temple, and had we not fallen from it, the impure forces wouldn’t have gained power over us.

However, our fall was laid down in the program of creation so that in this world, as an analogy with the spiritual one, we would go through the breaking of the kings of DaHGaT (the destruction of the First Temple) and the breaking of the kings of TaNHYM (the destruction of the Second Temple). In our material world we also had to go through these two breakings, and this is why we fell from the spiritual degree to the very bottom.

At the time, Rabbi Akiva laughed when he saw the wasteland in place of the Temple. “I never believed that this would come to pass,” he said, “and since the Second Temple was destroyed, now there is no doubt that the Third one will rise up and that complete redemption will come.” So, these two destructions and the long exile were necessary. It can be said that then there was no free choice yet, all the states were determined by the interaction of the Light and the vessel on the way down.

And today, when we came to the lowest degree and achieved the greatest egoism, a new world is starting to rise. It’s already “rounding off,” already manifesting the breakage, and as Baal HaSulam says, we stand on the threshold of redemption.

As a consequence, new laws are now acting on us, not the “mechanical” principles that previously propelled us forward along with all humanity. In parallel with its development, we went through various states of ascents and descents all the way until the present time, but from this point on, a new epoch is starting, the era of free choice.

After the breaking, after the fall and mutual inclusion with the world, today everything is ready for correction. And we are the ones who realize this correction through good deeds and the request that comes from broken souls. However, these broken souls aren’t capable of the request and good deeds. What can we do?

We are trying to unite into one whole as it was before the breaking, before the destruction of the Temple. And even if we can’t realize it ourselves, it’s our efforts that are the “good deeds.” I keep on trying until the point when I beg for help, until I cry: “Save me!” Thereby I raise MAN, the request for correction, and in response help comes from Above, called MAD.

And in this we have free will: We can accelerate our history, the process which we need to go through. If we don’t carry out in every second everything that we’re capable of through our free choice, then the missed and unrealized state doesn’t arrive as a long-awaited dawn in the property of mercy (Hassadim), but turns to properties of overcoming (Gevurot). As a consequence, in place of “still waters” come “turbulent waters,” instead of waters of Bina come the waters of the flood, and so on. And instead of going forward on the path of Torah and the Light, in loving your friend as yourself, we wander, spurred by troubles that don’t advance us but simply force us to actualize the actions that we missed. After all, one way or another, we are obliged to complete them.

This brings up a question. At first I was able to produce a certain action aided by unification within the group, by understanding and feeling, by the mutual inclusion with friends, mutual support, and so on. I could reach for what didn’t seem to be a pressing need, even if it meant artificially raising the importance of this action in my eyes. But now, when I’m being spurred on by catastrophes and necessity, am I actually realizing my free will? No. Does it mean that I am heading toward the end of correction like an animal fleeing the blows of a whip? And this is spiritual development? Where is the free will in that?

The thing is that misfortunes will lead us to think and reflect, and through their help, we’ll begin to grope around and recognize evil. However, for this we will have to pay and in such case, our free choice will be a lot more complex and multi-layered. After all, there are no concessions here; a person still needs to go of their own free will through every step on the 125 degrees of ascent, from the lowest point back to the end of correction. Otherwise he will not be a human being.

Thus, we raise a request for correction (MAN) and receive an answer (MAD) from Bina. If this doesn’t happen, we transition to the properties of overcoming, Gevurot. And this means misery and disasters, both personal and collective, including the Holocaust. On the whole, this process ripples through all of mankind, but the people of Israel are affected several times stronger since they are not fulfilling their function.

At the end of “Introduction to The Book of Zohar,” Baal HaSulam writes about the fact that the world is divided into two parts: internal and external, “Israel” and “nations of the world.” “Israel” is also divided into two parts: the inner one includes those who study the wisdom of Kabbalah in order to correct themselves, and the external one includes those who don’t care about correction. And in turn, the internal part of the “nations of the world” is their “righteous,” and the external part is their “wicked,” “those who cause harm.”

A connecting mechanism operates within this system: The way that the two parts relate within “Israel” is the same way that they relate within “nations of the world.” And therefore, when those who study the wisdom of Kabbalah rise above, then correspondingly, within the “nations” the people who yearn for unity and good coexistence also gain force. And conversely, if “Israel” disregards the inner Torah, the wisdom of Kabbalah, in other words, if they disregard their purpose, then within the “nations” the pyramid inverts also: The external ones rise above and take power over the entire world. Of course, these events are far-reaching and they negatively impact “Israel,” whose message and purpose descend, giving way at the top for the wicked and casting to the very bottom those who study Kabbalah and who are close to spirituality. This is how the “hierarchy of power” is laid. 

This is what happened with us in Hitler’s times. Israel acted contrary to its role, preferring corporeality to spirituality, and in accordance with this, within the nations of the world the destructive part rose above the good one, until the pyramid flipped over. And at that point, “the one who brings harm” came along and did his job.
[75754]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/19/2012 on Holocaust Memorial Day 

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Question: Which part of the world do the non-Jewish people who study Kabbalah belong to?

Answer: Today they belong to the category of “Israel.”

If before the term “Israel” referred to the actual people, today it refers to those who aspire “straight to the Creator” (Yashar–El), that is, to the spiritual idea. Today it makes no difference any more who your parents were. What’s important is whether you accept the method of correction, whether you have the “point in the heart” (•). According to this point you are called “Israel.” If you don’t have this point, you belong to the part called “the nations.” So it follows today you can belong to “the nations,” and tomorrow you can become “Israel.” Eventually everyone has to reach the goal.

 

 

Whoever has received this spark must disseminate the wisdom of Kabbalah and at the same time take care of their own advancement, the group, and the means necessary for that so that the general pyramid of humanity will not turn upside down and land on its head, thus placing all the harmful parts of “the nations” at the head of the pyramid.

Moreover, Baal HaSulam emphasizes that these categories exist in every person, and today the entire world has to identify and correct them because we are now at the final phase of the correction. This is the reason that today “Israel” are people who yearn for the Creator and not anything else. 
[75737]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/19/2012 on Holocaust Memorial Day 

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The role of our general, international group is to give the world the method of correction. This group is in contact with the Light that Reforms—for itself and for the whole world. This group today is called “Israel.” What is special about it?

Let’s start from the fact that the Surrounding Light (Ohr Makif or OM), meaning the Light that Reforms, is at the upper degree, and it is abstracted and concealed from us. But it can shine upon us to the extent that we awaken ourselves. Thus we can turn to the Light and it can respond to our request.

When does it answer our request? When the request matches the Light, that is, if we ask according to the way it is designated to respond. We are Galgalta ve Eynaim (GE), or Israel. And besides, we have to connect to AHP and to get a response from it. Together, GE and AHP make up ten Sefirot, meaning a spiritual Partzuf, or the general creature.

From this we can understand what is happening to us. We have to awaken the nations of the world (1) so that they will want change (2) To do that, we have to turn to the Light that Reforms (3) and to get its help (4) so that we will change ourselves and will serve AHP.

So what should we do in the meantime? Kabbalists say that in the meantime there is nothing we can do. Similarly, the wisdom of Kabbalah was concealed throughout history: People kept and passed it on in secret because the masses didn’t feel the need for it. But when the world went into a new era that requires the revelation of the wisdom of Kabbalah, then the “corporeal” people of Israel got their land back in order to carry out their mission and Kabbalists began to talk about this wisdom.

Everything exists for AHP, for the nations of the world, generality that essentially includes all of humanity. In this sense everyone is equal in the eyes of the Creator. And indeed, it says that in the end of correction all people in the world will know the Creator.

Still, before we perform the first action and turn to the nations, we have to be ready for that. Therefore, we are given the chance to make the first steps without any connection to them, without their knowledge, and so we develop during the first years, thus preparing ourselves for the job.

But at a certain point we cannot advance any further if we don’t become the means for the correction of the nations, that is, if we don’t bring them the method of correction. And while doing so, we don’t correct anyone—it is the upper Light that corrects everyone, including us.

So we should ask ourselves about our role more assertively. The answer is that we exist only in order to bring correction to the world. We can stay on the level of Hafetz Hesed, on the level of Bina, that has no desire for itself and is totally aimed at the needs of the lower one. For this purpose Bina is divided into GE that are aimed at the Creator and AHP that are aimed at creation, and the cutting line between these two parts is our free will.

This is the role of Bina. All our dissemination, all our attitude towards people should be determined by this schema.
[74893]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/9/2012, “The Role of Israel and the World” 

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Baal HaSulam, “One Commandment”: The essence of prophetic success is to extend the upper Light to the dwellers below. The one who brings it lowest is the most successful.

This is very important because the corrections are performed from the lightest to the most difficult. The light layers of the broken vessel have already been corrected in previous generations, while in our generation we begin to correct the lowest, thickest, and worst layer to which we ourselves belong.

The general desire is divided into five levels (0-4) of Aviut, or “thickness,” depth of the desire. In the drawing, they are marked on the time axis according to which we perform our correction, from the lightest to the most difficult one, as said before. The principle of the “descent of the generations” stems from this: Each generation is worse than the previous one in terms of its ego. As a result, we advance from the lightest Reshimot (reminiscences) to the most difficult ones.

Today we have reached the final stage of the generation of Mashiach (Messiah): the correction of the last layers of the desire to receive. Of course, this is difficult. The world is immersed in the ego, people are unable to be considerate of one another, they distance from one another: a person from a person, a man from a woman, and children from parents. Countries, nations—everything is falling apart, disintegrating.

So it says: “The essence of prophetic success is to extend the upper Light to the dwellers below. The one who brings it lowest is the most successful.” And so we should “descend” to the masses, not only to those who lead a good life, but also people who have the worst attributes and the greatest resistance. We are trying to reach everyone and to convey our message to them, considering, of course, the circumstances in each place.

Our success depends on this. It is measured namely by how deep we can dive. Baal HaSulam writes about this in “Introduction to The Book of Zohar,” Item 63: “Thus, in our generation, although the essence of the souls is the worst, which is why they could not be selected for Kedusha thus far, they are the ones that complete the Partzuf of the world and the Partzuf of the souls with respect to the Kelim, and the work completed only through them.”
[75104]
From the Preparation for the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/11/2012 

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The Zohar, Chapter “BeShalach (When Pharaoh Had Let the People Go),” Item 11: And she said, “I dwell within my people.” What does that mean? When judgment is hanging over the world, a person should not separate himself from the public, and he should not be distinguished from Above, and he should not be known separately.

Because when judgment is hanging over the world, those who are known and registered separately, although they are righteous, are caught first. And so a person should never detach himself from the people. Because the Creator’s mercy is always with all of the people together. And because of that she said, “I dwell within my people and I don’t want to separate from them, like I did until this day.”

It relates to both the external, corporeal perception and to the inner, spiritual one. Let’s start with the latter.

A unified soul was divided into many parts. “Within my people” means within the commonality that was created from the combination of the disconnected parts, which correct themselves by connecting with one another. They overcome their individual ego that repels them from one another and form “the Creator’s people.” After all, these parts share the intention of in order to bestow and by that they resemble the Creator. That is why they are called “My people.” It refers to a collection of individual, shattered vessels that gather with the intention of in order to bestow, which the Creator also has.

These parts connect with a mutual intention of in order to bestow in order to become the support, the vessel for the revelation of the Creator as the general attribute of bestowal. And of course, the phenomenon called “Creator” (Bo–Reh), which means “come and see,” is revealed in this assembly. This is the formula for the revelation of the Creator in the corrected vessels: “I dwell within my people.”

On the corporeal plane, it means that the great masses of people are under the general Providence, which sets them in motion.

Later on The Zohar speaks about judgment that “depends on the world.” “The world” means concealment, an egoistic connection, in which the general collective ego is revealed.  And “a person should not retreat from the collective.” We may ask why? If the attribute of the ego, “judgment,” is revealed in the people, then why shouldn’t I escape it?

The fact of the matter is that looking through the spiritual prism, I see a totally different picture. I see all my desires that depict the imaginary “external world” for me. If I discover the attribute of judgment in them, I have to correct them by the attribute of bestowal and lead this rule to the attribute of in order to bestow. This is the mission of Israel: Instead of running away from the collective, I should be inside it trying to correct it.

The Zohar continues, “when judgment is hanging over the world, those who are known and registered separately, although they are righteous, are caught first.” Why? Because if a certain attribute of a person is aimed at bestowal, it is “caught first” and begins to operate in order to receive as the source of the Light lies specifically in it.

It is the same in our world, as Baal HaSulam says at the end of “Introduction to The Book of Zohar” that “judgment” strikes the best of us. Therefore people who reach the heights of attainment live in distress.

“The Creator’s mercy is always with all of the people together” because this is where correction is performed. So if we want to be corrected and to advance, we mustn’t detach ourselves from the public. We must do everything possible to be in it, to feel it as much as we can although it isn’t pleasant, and to worry about people, introducing knowledge, sensation, and everything possible to them just to make sure they advance. They are the Creator’s real goal and He is revealed only in our connection with the people, like the spark in the desire to receive.

Therefore it says, “I dwell within my people and I don’t want to be separated from them, as I was until today.”
[75107] 
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/11/2012, “The Role of Israel and the World” 

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Question: The Jewish nation (Israel) is supposed to unite and be a light unto the nations, but in Israel you have so many divisions between people that the only time we have truly united is the War of Independence (after immense suffering from the Holocaust) and the Six-Day War (out of great fear of being destroyed). Will we not have to go through more immense suffering to realize we must unite as one people?

Answer: We are talking not about Jews by birth, but Israel—those who aspire to the Creator, regardless of their nationality. They have to unite and lead the entire world to the Creator.

In Kabbalah, souls have no nationality, but the level of their development. Thus Abraham once chose his students and called them Israel: those who aspire to the Creator.
[74134]

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Question: In your opinion, how many Jews are there in the world?

Answer: According to some scientific estimates, there were about 100 million people in the world during the exodus from Egypt. Jews comprised 3% of the population, which means that now there should be 6.9 billion x 3% = 200 million. The number of Jews in the world, left of the two tribes is 14 million. One tribe is 7 million. As of today, all the tribes amount to 7 million x 12 tribes = 84 million.

Many were killed during the persecution of the Jews in the Middle Ages. But let’s take only the 6 million who where murdered in the Holocaust. Since 1940 the world population has grown three times, and so 6 million x 3 = 18 million. This means that there could have been 18 +14 = 32 million Jews, together with those murdered in the Holocaust. And one tribe is 16 million.

16 million x 12 = 192 million Jews in 12 tribes as of today. This means that the number of Jews is about 200 million: 3% of the world’s population.
[71866] 

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In the News (from 7kanal): “The Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appealed to the Israeli youth to take part in the ‘Next Generation Government,’ a project overseen by the Prime Minister’s Office. It is a virtual platform that allows Facebook users to make suggestions with respect to the management of the state and government, and to discuss them.

“Those wishing to participate in the “Next Generation Government” have to register on the project page on Facebook.”

My Comment: Undoubtedly, the Mutual Guarantee movement should use this call as it has a solid platform and opinion on all matters of public, state, and world development. Prepare a document and send it as a proposal to the address provided.
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