It is really not easy to arrive at the sensation of need of true love. In our world, the only love that exists is love for one’s own self. When I love something, I want to come closer to it, bring it close to me, and fulfill myself with something. In other words, I wish to “get hold of it.” For us “love” is acquisition. “I love” means that I like the fact that it is mine—this is what the desire to receive pleasure says.

Naturally, it brings a good sensation. But we value this quality in man as if it was referring to his good qualities, which is because our entire world is made of “consumers.” We do not love anything in any other way but in our egoistic desires.

Love that Kabbalah speaks of is completely different, and we are not able to understand it well. There is the upper force that does not depend on us and that has existed before we were created, without us, that is, before the Creator had the desire to create the creature. The creature is something that exists outside this upper force, the Creator, and perceives Him.

To perceive Him means to understand, feel, and attain His qualities. To bring the creature to the point of perceiving the Creator, it was necessary to create the creature with the qualities opposite to the Creator’s: in egoistic love. And development must bring the creature to love of the Creator referred to as “love thy neighbor.” After all, no one else exists beside the Creator and the creature.

We must go through this development on our own, that is, we must feel, understand, examine, and evaluate all the details of perceiving the Creator. And at the end, we must change our egoistic love—the desire to enjoy that only allows us to perceive ourselves and encapsulates us within ourselves—to the development of perception of what exists outside of us. This is why the one external to us is called a “neighbor.” And since this perception is given to us by the Creator’s degree, position, it is referred to as the good inclination.

There is nothing beside these two states: either I perceive myself or I perceive the Creator. But this transition is absolutely not clear to us since I am absolutely separated from the second state and am unable to feel it. To help me go from perceiving myself to perceiving Him, the Creator prepared a certain illusion within my egoistic desire, my perception of myself, which gives me the feeling of not being alone.

This is why I feel like I am in an environment that is referred to as my “neighbor” and includes the still, vegetative, and animate world, and the people, that is, different creatures, different parts of creation. And I, a certain regular person, feel how I can use this environment either for my own interests or as an exercise to try to do it for the sake of the environment.

My need to act for the sake of the environment arises when my desire for the Creator awakens. I do not understand this desire yet, I do not know the Creator, and this is why I am given this exercise: Try to treat your neighbor, those who are outside of you, altruistically. This is the place where you will be able to build your love for your neighbor.

When through these exercises you will acquire new qualities and understanding and will perform multiple clarifications, then you will be able to come closer to having a connection with the Creator.
[62041]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/29/2011, Writings of Rabash

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Question: It is very hard to find some connection between the words or the letters in The Book of Zohar and the love of friends. How do you do that?

Answer: We’ve already said that we don’t define the word “love” correctly. Love means connection, equivalence of form, equivalence of attributes. It is not the concept of love that we use in our world: I love what belongs to me, and I don’t love what isn’t mine.

We build love, we actually acquire love: Through the efforts that I make, by changing and correcting my attributes, I attain love. It isn’t a love that is typical to my nature and my character, when I love one thing and not another. I naturally love those who are close to me, and not those who are distant because I want to use them in order to fill my ego. We are not speaking about such relationships. Everything that takes place inside our ego has nothing at all to do with the love the wisdom of Kabbalah speaks of.

When I am in the group and try to work on the connection with the friends, I know that it is all depicted only in my imagination. Actually, there is no group or anything else. Only I exist. All of the external images that I see are only a play of my imagination. My ego, that still dominates me, divides me into internality and externality.

If I corrected myself, I would return to the real picture of reality that actually exists right now, but it is hidden from me by the degrees and the worlds (concealments). I would return to the world of Infinity where there is no “I” and no “others.” Everything is my desire, my vessel, where there is the Creator, the fulfillment, and where there is none else besides Him. This is how I should imagine all of reality.

So, what is love? It is the attainment of the attributes of love and bestowal, bestowal upon others, the love of others. Eventually, it is all about overcoming the lie I am in. That is all.

The infinite reality divided by the force of separation into numerous forms that seem to be outside of me. This was done intentionally. This is a false image of reality. If I work on the basis of this false form that I cannot annul, if I rise above it and reunite Infinity into one whole, then even though the false form remains, I attain the feeling of Infinity that is 620 times stronger in my true sensation, understanding, and awareness.
[62045]
From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/29/2011, The Zohar

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Question: Each time after an intensive day, the morning lessons seem to “heal all the wounds,” opening a new page and giving us a new urge.

Answer: That’s right, throughout the day you do many things, prepare yourselves, and do your internal work so that the next morning we can make a breakthrough.

Question: How can we keep this trend from slowing down before the convention?

Answer: We will not slow down. After all, we’ve become a great global vessel, world Kli, and we have the power to unite and not to lose the deficiency. Besides, we should understand that we have to do only half the work: to create a deficiency, a vessel. The filling will come from Above, the Light that Reforms will do the work. We have to recognize evil, our lack of power, and this will be our greatest accomplishment. At the same time, we need hope, readiness, and confidence that the Surrounding Light will do its job.

So in order to raise a request for correction (MAN), we need two things: a feeling of helplessness and confidence in the power that comes from Above. You believe in Bina, which is called “faith,” “bestowal,” and at the same time you also see that you, meaning Malchut, cannot do anything.

Question: We are riding on a certain wave now. How can we not feel “drunk with success”?

Answer: Everything will be alright. We don’t have to be absolutely sure of ourselves, and at the same time we shouldn’t worry. There are always two opposites that operate here: How can I be worried if I believe in the upper force? I have to worry that we will all connect in one desire. We don’t need anything except for that. Only mutual guarantee will enable us, by the prayer of many, to demand the upper force to be revealed. The more we connect, the more we will reveal its Light.

Question: How can I fine-tune this yearning and not be satisfied with the natural joy from the gathering?

Answer: You cannot avoid the ups and downs. Someone my feel emptiness now, and someone else may be dancing with joy. This is how we complement each other. Thus, the shattering of the vessels manifests: By working on themselves, they connect and actually incorporate into each other.

We have to increase our efforts. The main thing is to reach the prayer of many that will burst out of our unified heart.
[62070]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/29/2011, “The Essence of Religion and Its Purpose”

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Question: We know that a person needs to humble himself and connect with the group through mutual guarantee. But what does one do when he is at home on his own? How does a person act with the correct intention when he is doing mundane things such as eating, cleaning, and so on?

Answer: Be under our influence with our channel of communication turned on.

Question: I am a 70 year-old lady. I have been studying Kabbalah for seven years now. I have some health problems, which make it very difficult for me to be away from home, drive, attend congresses, and so on. I watch you every day during the morning lesson, and since I am retired, I do translations and work with texts most of my time.

However, it bothers me that I cannot be with the group very often. Yet, I have found that many discernments and changes within me are the result of interacting with my own family. I wonder, do you think this is the correct path?

Answer: You are advancing wonderfully; continue, this will give you strength and add years to your life.
[62085]

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Question: You say that it is necessary to be in constant worry and fear before the convention. How do we raise such a feeling inside the group?

Answer: In The Book of Zohar it is said that there are two degrees in reaching the goal of creation. The first degree is fear, but it’s not a physical, animalistic fear for oneself. It is a quavering, a worry, about whether I can reach the quality of bestowal. We have to have that specific kind of fear, to ask ourselves: “Am I ready for that? Am I capable of that? Will I be able to reach that?”

If such a fear exists in a person, he relates to the friends, the group and even perceives the world in a completely different way. He feels constant internal worry in the search for the quality of bestowal. He wants to know how to find it, how to determine it, and what it is exactly.

If he is in a constant search to find that quality of bestowal inside and outside of himself, to see its examples, he gradually reaches the quality of quavering that is required of him. Then, from the quality of quavering (his worrying about revealing bestowal to some extent, feeling it, and letting it fill him), he comes to the quality of bestowal.

Thus, a quiver is a vessel, a condition, a desire, that has to be inside of us in order for us to receive a fulfilment inside of it. But what kind of fulfilment do we get? We get the ability to give.

Nothing else is required because as soon as a true intention to bestow appears in me, the upper Light instantly becomes revealed to me, and the Creator gives me everything He has. If I want to and can bestow to Him, I begin receiving from Him to the extent of my desire, my intention to bestow. The contact between us happens in such a way that I rise above egoism, and I am working in the quality of bestowal.

The more I receive, the more I give to Him. I become filled, receiving pleasure from everything I get from the “Host.” At the same time, I feel the enormous pleasure that I invoke in Him, how He enjoys me. In this way, we please each other.

It is a wonderful state when people feel that their common actions are in pleasing one another. Such a relationship, when I do everything to please you and you do everything to please me, is called love. It doesn’t matter which one of us receives or gives physically, whose it is, and to whom it is attributed. The main thing is our intention to fill one another.

It doesn’t matter that initially, the Creator had the pleasure and I had just the desire. What counts is that we come to a state where we feel love by filling each other with pleasure. It cannot be unrequited. Love is a mutual fulfilment of one another.

We have to come to that state. Let’s try reaching it at our upcoming convention.
[61928]
From the Sunday Virtual Lesson Series 11/6/2011

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Question: I am trying to imagine 72 hours at the convention. How will this process bring me to the One, Unique, and Unified?

Answer: I enter the convention hall like a holy pool (Mikveh), a place that will purify and correct me. This is a place filled with holy water, the quality of Bina, the mother’s womb that I become included in and grow in. I don’t need to do anything besides settling in there like a drop of semen inside the womb. I must only cleave to it, and everything else will be done by others. I must simply become part of what is happening.

It is written, “The Creator dwells inside of his nation,” where “inside of the nation” means the place where everyone gathers and each person annuls his egoism as much as he can for the sake of uniting together. Then we reveal that there, inside of this unity, the upper one is present—Malchut, the Shechina. And inside of it—the Shochen, the Creator.

We don’t need anything else! Just come there and don’t be a smart alec. Lose your “I”: You come in and dissolve. Someone asks you to do something, so do it. Just connect to it, without any clarifications. The most important thing is to go with the common flow.

That is why the convention is appropriate for everyone, for every person. If a person can just come there, then a powerful force will arise there that will take us over and will spin us all in one whirlpool, like one whole. And we don’t need anything else. We won’t need a special mind or lengthy studies, but just that force. With it, you will already receive an impression of the upper one, of the upper level. So come!

You came there and you’re singing, dancing, eating, and preparing food, and you annul yourself before what is happening as much as you can. This will bring you to the upper level because it is there, inside, in the connection between people.

The tradition to hold mutual meals, to sing songs, and dance was established by Kabbalists. All of this leads to unity, and without unity, it’s impossible. Abraham once invited guests to his tent and first of all, he sat them down at a common meal, while explaining that it is necessary to unite and love the neighbor.

We won’t manage anything without unity. I understand that our egoism, our nature is against it. I was also opposed to unity once, and even more than you are. But that doesn’t scare me: For any egoism, there is a force capable of defeating it. Most importantly, try to be as determined as you can and set your mind to coming there and losing yourself.

Get lost in some unknown place, like a wallet that you had and is now gone. There’s just nothing you can do about it: It was there, and now it’s gone! Try it!
[62141]
From the 3rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/28/11, Talmud Eser Sefirot

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Question: Can I bring my body to the convention, even if I have no desire or intention…?

Answer: At least I lack the desire, I have a negative intention. Coming without any intentions isn’t good. You should at least feel: “I don’t want to, but I am doing it.” Then you should do everything that is required. When you cannot dissolve in your friends, doing what needs to be done is also a wonderful state.

One way or the other, you should be aware of what you are going through in the convention: I incorporate myself into them with all my thoughts and desires, and I put everything else aside. Only my point in the heart enters the convention, and besides it, I have nothing else with me.

Question: But I have no control over that.

Answer: This is precisely why we need the preparation that will enable you to be free of the unnecessary load. You come in order to expand the point in your heart, that is, to connect it with all the other points. No one needs the extra “load” that you have. Only our sparks, which connect into one, should glow in the space of the convention hall. I don’t bring the load of all my problems there.

Question: How can you lose yourself among the friends, dissolve in them?

Answer: You should do everything that they do, everything they want you to do, and try to add your desire to these actions. In other words, you try to “clothe” in the group.

Question: Will these physical actions influence my thoughts?

Answer: Of course, the hearts follow the actions.
[61962]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/28/2011, “The Essence of Religion and Its Purpose”

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Question: What should we do if a friend is no longer imbued with an aspiration to spirituality? Should we pressure him or should we wait?

Answer: The convention is such a special thing that we must wake the friend up. In other cases it could be possible to wait, but now we have a very special and rare opportunity. Therefore, if we see that a friend doesn’t intend to come to the convention, we must do our best to convince him.

Of course, we do not use force, but persuasion because if we don’t do so, he will miss this great, once in a lifetime opportunity. We should leave him alone only if he finally says: “Leave me alone, I am not going.”

There should be two attempts. Imagine that your friend is leading his donkey along the road (this example is brought in the Babylonian Talmud that was written in exile, at the time between the first and the second Temples). And even if he isn’t your friend but your enemy with whom your relations are bad, if his donkey falls under his load, you must help him.

You take the load off the donkey, put it back on its feet, give it food and water, and then put the load back. If the donkey falls again, you repeat the whole process: You take the load off its back and strengthen the donkey with food and water, meaning with the Light of Hochma (Wisdom) and the Light of Hassadim (Mercy). After all, the “donkey” (“Hamor” in Hebrew) is the human matter (Homer), egoism. And then you put the load back on it. If he falls again, you are allowed not to help him any more.
[61965]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/28/2011, “The Essence of Religion and Its Purpose”

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Question: Can you advance in spirituality only by suffering?

Answer: No. Advance by goodness, it depends on you. Sufferings come from Above according to the plan, and you, on your part, can move forward with the help of the Light. Raise MAN (a request for correction), and then the Light will come and draw you forward in goodness. If you don’t ask for it, you will advance by suffering.

There is the force of evil and the force of goodness. The question is do I ask to receive the good force that will draw me forward more strongly than the evil force that will push me from behind? The negative force operates according to the plan (in its time), and the positive force acts according to the desires and the connections in mutual guarantee. My role is to do my best so that the evil force won’t reach me and to place the good ahead of the bad.

Question: How can we do that if we all suffer?

Answer: All the friends are happy every moment of their lives, except for you. We feel that we are inside the Creator who fills and envelops us. We feel eternity and perfection; we swim in the growing abundance. So join us and so that you will place the good ahead of the bad.

Question: How?

Answer: Do what we want.

Question: What do you want?

Answer: We want you to dive inside and detach yourself from your egoism. A “friend” is someone who forgets himself. Why should you worry about yourself if there, inside, you feel bad? Leave the desires and the thoughts that make you feel bad and come empty. Here, you will get new thoughts and desires from us. The choice is in your hands.
[61968]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/28/2011, “The Essence of Religion and Its Purpose”

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Question: Studies show that a person learns more when he gets incentives and rewards and not punishments. So why do we feel that the Creator educates us by punishments?

Answer: An undisciplined child doesn’t want to make any efforts or to receive rewards. He prefers to be idle despite the threats and punishments.

I, for example, was very stubborn as a child. I didn’t want to study what was taught in school. I didn’t find it interesting. So I received many punishments, but still refused to dedicate time and effort to something that I didn’t like. I read and learned a lot, but only things that interested me and not what was taught in school. Despite the punishments, I didn’t give up because the freedom to do what I wanted was more important. So I paid a double price: I didn’t get a reward and I was punished.

We too are in the same situation. First, we have to give up our ordinary life. Well, this isn’t such a big problem because today’s world is preparing us for that. Second, we have to give up our egoism, our “self,” the familiar reward: self-fulfilment. Our reward should be the opposite, the opportunity to fill others, and this is much worse than the school curriculum.

In the meantime, I don’t feel any punishments for not bestowing upon others, and of course, don’t see any reward in giving everything to others. So who would agree to such a thing?

Why did people come here from all over the world? Why did they give up their holidays and their convenience? Why did they spend so much time and money? A person is given an initial urge to connect, and then he has to respond to that call and not to miss it, to work with this initial desire.

Imagine how much money, time, and effort our friends have invested in order to fly here. Now they have to examine the situation in the following way: “Everything that I did until now wasn’t really done by me because there is none else besides Him. The Creator brought me here and has transported me thousands of kilometers. And now after I have received the urge from Above, I have to worry about how to add myself to Him.”

The more efforts a person makes in order to come here, the more important it is for him to add himself because otherwise he will not bring his “self” into it. It means that the Creator has taken him “by the ear,” put him on a plane, and brought him to the convention.

The upper governance is everywhere, so where is the “self?” It is the same “self” that has to reveal the Creator and to participate in His actions. It isn’t easy to add myself to them, but it is here that I have the chance. Thereby I reach the Absolute Good. After all, the Creator has brought me to this special action, and now I, on my part, have to become special as well.
[61972]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/28/2011, “The Essence of Religion and Its Purpose”

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