Question: It is said in The Study of the Ten Sefirot (Part 8, Item 4, “Inner Reflection”) that the lower one raises MAN, a plea for correction, only to its upper one (Elyon), and from there, to the degree higher than the upper one (Ali Elyon). So it follows that there is a leap of two degrees?

Answer: No, you can never rise to the degree higher than the upper one. The text discusses three degrees to prevent you from thinking that the action is completed in your upper one. The upper one raises your MAN to the degree higher than the upper one.

And although the action does not end even at the degree higher than the upper one, we only consider three degrees in the World of Atzilut. However, it does not mean that everything ends at them.

Not a single degree can correct anything for the lower degree without taking part of the Light of Infinity. It must raise the desire, the need of the lower one into the World of Infinity since such a desire is completely new: It is a desire to unite Malchut with Bina that has never existed, does not exist, and it’s not to be found even in Infinity.

This desire has to ascend to the World of Infinity where Malchut of the World of Infinity enters a union (Zivug De Hakaa) with the Light of Infinity and passes the special Light intended specifically to that MAN of the lower one.

However, in order to discuss this entire chain we consider only three degrees: the lower one, the upper one, and higher than the upper one.
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From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/5/10, Talmud Eser Sefirot

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Question: How does Bina, who did not want to receive, suddenly discover that she must receive “in order to bestow?”

Answer: At the level of “to bestow in order to bestow” (GAR de-Bina), when Bina becomes similar to the Creator in that she does not receive, she discovers that the Creator is also a giver. Hence, she realizes that she has to give. But what can she give?

The Creator gives to her and she feels His love in this. Therefore, she understands that if she no longer refuses to receive and begins receiving from Him, this will give Him enormous delight, causing her to use the desire to receive, but in order to bestow to Him (ZAT de Bina).
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From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/2/10, “Mighty Rock of My Salvation”

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Question: Is it correct to build an intention while studying The Book of Zohar and to think about those who have been hurt by the fires in the north of Israel and those who are fighting the fire?

Answer: This is not a matter of the obvious and latent problems people are facing. By bringing the Light closer to Malchut de Atzilut, we enable Malchut to shine in her nine lower Sefirot, meaning in all of reality that lies beneath her, including our world.

We raise MAN, a plea for correction, to Malchut, which is then transferred higher, all the way until Arich Anpin, the source of abundance. By virtue of this, the abundance starts descending to Malchut and she provides this Light to the lower ones: the Worlds of BYA, our world, all the souls, and the still, vegetative, and animate levels of nature.

Of course, we thereby bring life to all the creatures below. This includes the inhabitants of the north of Israel, who are the same as all the people and all the creatures that continue to suffer.

We understand that they are suffering due to a lack of connection with the Upper Force. When we add the right intention to their suffering, we raise their desire upwards together with our intention. Then we receive additional abundance in response, which becomes transferred to the whole world.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/5/10, The Zohar

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Question: What should we actually do to counter nature’s blows, such as the fire in the north of Israel that’s happening now?

Answer: The only thing we need is the common intention, the unity of our thoughts. We need our friends all over the world to think about how our unity with one another will help eliminate all the disasters in the world, including the horrible fire that has broken out in Israel.

You have to include your personal plea into the common plea for the whole world and unite with all of the world’s suffering. That is the only way it works: If you think about everyone, then at the end you can also add “us” – but not yourself! This is the only thing that can help.

It is impossible to fight catastrophes or a crisis using the old methods if you find yourself facing the Upper Light that acts against you. We are yet to see how the financial crisis will come back, even though people have tried to extinguish it using all the possible means. In fact, it will explode much more powerfully than before. And the same thing will happen with everything else. We cannot cope with these problems using the usual methods. We can only suppress them temporarily, but later they will break out even stronger.

Correction is possible only through bringing hearts closer, only through unity. The world has to become global. The force operating on us from Above surrounds us, shutting us in from all sides and becoming revealed as one global force. Therefore, we feel how humanity is becoming as one organism where everyone is connected with each other.

We are yet to see that these very catastrophes will force humanity to unite. Now fire-fighters from all over the world will come to Israel to help fight the fire, and tomorrow something else will happen in another place and the whole world will come rushing there, and later it will be a new place. In this way, through disasters, nature will force us to unite and understand that we need each others’ help.

Nature will become so hostile that we won’t have time to think about how to fight with each other. If we don’t agree to it the good way, the Creator will force us to it. The situation will become so serious that not one nation will be able to single-handedly fight the natural catastrophes. Everyone will have to help each other. And suddenly, everyone will understand that they have to be together; otherwise we simply won’t survive,

Everyone will unite in the face of a deadly threat. But why should we wait for it if we can advance by the good path?
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From the lesson on Baal HaSulam’s article “Freedom of Will” on 12/3/10

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Question: Why did we start studying Part 8 of Talmud Eser Sefirot (The Study of the Ten Sefirot) instead of The Book of Zohar?

Answer: First of all, we are continuing to study The Zohar daily during the morning lesson, but only for forty five minutes instead of ninety minutes as before.

When we read The Book of Zohar, we constantly deal with Partzufim of the World of Atzilut, from which the Upper Governance originates: Arich Anpin (AA), Aba Ve Ima (AVI), Yeshsut, and ZON. Therefore, we must gain an understanding of how they are arranged, what constitutes the hierarchy and relation between them, and what program they are carrying out.

Hence, we need to study Part 8 of TES (Talmud Eser Sefirot), which is the major part of The Study of Ten Sefirot, essentially describing the World of Atzilut. Without it, we cannot even come close to The Zohar.

Indeed, the more a person knows, the more he understands and acknowledges that in reality he knows nothing, which better enables him to determine his prayer, not a baby’s cry, but a clearly analyzed request. Besides, if we study TES with the same intention that we apply to The Book of Zohar, it affects us and performs the same work in terms of our correction.
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From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/2/10, Talmud Eser Sefirot

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Question: I see joy and frustration in my friends. They don’t realize what has happened yet: a huge blow to Pharaoh. How and what can I do to help the friends and myself to draw the right conclusions from the convention and continue advancing together? Who is to blame that we merely approached the goal, only the ego?

Answer: No one is to blame. We should appreciate that the aim has been clarified. We thought we are able to defeat our ego and unite by our own effort, but we were wrong: Only the Creator can defeat Pharaoh, whereas our job is the ask Him to do so. It is our common cry to the Creator that we must be working on together right now. That is what the major conclusion from the convention should be.

Question: Lots of people cried during the opening ceremony. Was this crying a lament over everyone’s personal egoism, or was there a moment when they were not thinking about themselves and could have done it?

Answer: They were tears of collective enthusiasm, egoistic for now, and the Creator was absent from it. Therefore, although we felt unity between us, we couldn’t keep this sensation. Let’s not despair though; on the contrary, let’s rejoice because it became much clearer what we need to be working on.
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Question: If the Creator created only two forces, reception and bestowal, then what does “shame” pertain to, and where is its root? Why does it have such strength that it is even stronger than desire?

Answer: “Shame” is an independent “creature.” Had the Creator not created shame, we would not feel that we are receivers and opposite to Him. Shame is a purposely created quality which is meant only for humans.

We are not even talking about shame in this world, which, being an imprint of upper shame, resembles it somewhat. Upper spiritual shame is a sensation that you are situated across the Creator and are opposite to Him. You feel how this opposition belittles you next to His bestowal, and to what extent your egoistic thoughts are opposite to thoughts about bestowal. This shame is so strong that a person cannot tolerate it!
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From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/30/10, The Study of the Ten Sefirot

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Question: If there is no life after death, then why is it written in The Zohar that the soul rises to heaven after death, and angels take it to its judgment, and so on?

Answer: Not a single word of The Zohar talks about the physical body. The Zohar refers to the death of egoism, after which the Upper Forces called “angels” begin to influence it.

They take my desire to receive pleasure from two sides, the right and the left, and lift it “on their wings” (screens) to the first, second, and third “heavens.” This is the name for the different levels of Bina where I increasingly begin to receive more properties of bestowal.

Thus, these “angels” lift me to the “sky,” the common property of Bina. There, I reveal an entire Creator’s palace behind this property. Bina includes the properties of Malchut within it, the receiving desires within the bestowing desires, and thanks to this I reveal the Creator.

However, is it really connected with my material world and the physical senses, the life and death of this animal body? Actually, I only think that it exists; it does not exist in reality.

Does anything really exist behind the image on the computer screen? These are nothing more than electrical signals, forces, and vectors that paint this image for you. In the same way, you are being drawn this three-dimensional image which you perceive as this world.

We already have laser devices which can create three-dimensional images in the air of people around us that speak among themselves. These sensations are a complete illusion. You just cannot touch them with your hand because everything is “in the air.” However, soon, it will become absolutely “real,” just like the illusion of our world.

This is exactly how we see this world although it does not exist. So what life after death can there be? The television got turned off, and that is it: You did not have the desire to reveal the Upper World “in this life.” However, there is no need for the body to die in order to reveal spirituality. There is no connection between one and the other.
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From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/25/10, “Body and Soul”

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Question: While reading The Zohar, who can I identify with in the text instead of imagining some abstract forces?

Answer: We can imagine only one thing: the connection between us. In the end, we exist inside Malchut. Parts of Malchut unite with each other in all possible connections. It is a net of connections that constantly change, like in an electric device or computer. The matter, the desire to receive pleasure, remains an unchanged, rigid desire.

The forces inside the desire begin to work, serving as the material with which they can connect to each other. We exist within this desire along with the force that works in it. And everything that this force does inside the desire is done because we created it this way, as though we printed it using a model, and that’s it.

Inside this desire are “impulses,” the forces of good and evil, Light and darkness, two influences from the Creator which pass through this desire. We perceive and feel our reality as “me” and “the world” I live and feel within this material. We are talking only about the forces that act inside this matter, the desire to receive pleasure.

Thus as we read The Zohar, we wish to completely leave the picture of this world since it is false. I am situated in the desire to enjoy, and the force that acts in it is presented to me. And there is nothing else, no pictures or images.
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From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/28/10, The Zohar

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Question: What does raising MAN mean?

Answer: MAN is a plea to become like the Creator. It occurs when a person feels helpless, as though he’s in a middle of a desert. He is stripped of all things, he’s withered, and others can’t help him. He understands that he has no chance of reaching love and bestowal. He feels weak and “surrounded by lions,” desires that are “devouring” him. His life is in danger and he is unable to get out of this state and enter bestowal.

The whole world is at a person’s feet except for bestowal and love for his friend or the Creator. It doesn’t matter what pleasures the ego fills itself with; if the quality of love and bestowal doesn’t stand behind all of these things, the person is lost in the desert. In this desert, this empty ego, a person’s spiritual desire becomes so powerful that it makes him cry out, and this cry reaches the goal.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/28/10, The Zohar, Introduction, Article “The Rose”

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