Question: Before the lesson I think about the Creator, during the day I think about the connection with the group, when do I also think about the Light that Reforms?

Answer: The Light that Reforms is in all the gaps between my desire to reach a certain state and my reaching that state. The Light that Reforms is also between my current desire and the correct desire I should have.

The Light is in my lack of connection with the group, the lack of attraction that I feel, and the need for it, between the state of yearning when I am attracted to the group since I strongly feel its importance.

The Light is everywhere and in everything, in building the spiritual vessels, the restriction, the Masachim (screens), the intentions; in other words, whatever we do, we only need to think about the Light. Any change of the desire and any correction of the intention is possible only by the Light. Nothing operates except for the Light, neither negatively nor positively. We only need to add our component each time but without dictating to the Light what it should do exactly.

We only add the need for the changes, like a baby who wants something: He doesn’t offer any clever clarifications or specify exactly how it should be done, what should be done, and to what degree; he is totally dependent on the grownup.

I express this dependency in the society to such an extent that I don’t determine how the Light should operate and what it should do. The deficiency that is revealed is enough to help me adhere to the group even more, and the Light does everything else. It may even throw me to some new discernments, or to an unknown dimension; it is its business.

I use the only component that is up to me: the connection. I don’t even build this chain—my special connection with the group to affect the Light that Reforms—I don’t determine anything at all since I am always on a level of an embryo with regard to the new state, and I prepare myself to complete uncertainty. The most I can do is to be in state of smallness, like a small child.
[129432]
From the Preparation to the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 3/9/14

Related Material:
Our State Is Excellent!
If There Is No Joy It Means There Is No Faith
The Main Thing Is To Be Inside The Circle Of Light

Filed under: Daily Kabbalah Lesson, Group Work, Spiritual Work - No Comments →

Question: When does the Light that Reforms influence a person and bring him to the love of others?

Answer: The Light constantly influences us: It either influences us according to the natural pace of evolution that is called Beito (in its time), or according to a program called Achishena (I shall hasten it), which is hastening time. But it’s always the Light that acts.

On one hand, it is said that “the Light is in a state of absolute rest.” On the other hand, we call it the Light that Reforms, which means that it can influence us in a different ways, either more or less. Of course, the Light is in a state of absolute rest, but I spur myself by the environment: the books, group, and teacher, thus increasing my sensitivity to the Light.

Lets say we are going out to disseminate. Before we go out we really think that we want to attain the love of others in order to attain the love of the Creator, and thus delight Him. We would like to perform this action out of real love, but unfortunately we don’t feel it yet.

So we act even out of self-interest (Lo Lishma): We want to attain spirituality, to know about it, to feel it; we expect that the heavens will get revealed to us. When we operate this way, even with the intention of “not for its sake”—as it is said: Mitzvot (commandments) don’t require the right intention—it still works. The Light illuminates on me from a distance (this is why it is called the Surrounding Light), and thus advances me.

So all my work is to check which of my actions are the most beneficial in order to spur and to draw the Surrounding Light. The most beneficial action, according to the law of the equivalence of form, is the one closest to the properties of the Light, namely: bestowal, love, involvement, closeness, embrace, kiss, and coupling.

We should yearn for that, and I am ready to yearn for that, but only on the condition that I get something from it, i.e., I will be rewarded with new feelings, understanding, and by opening my eyes to reveal the secrets of the Torah so that the heavens will open up for me. I want this and cannot do anything with my desire!

Never mind, I need to work with the desire that I have. It is not up to me, but is arranged that way by the Creator. I work with whatever I have, even if it is clear to me that I do everything for my own sake, and the Surrounding Light will gradually impart right intentions to me. This is how we advance.

If we reach the love of the Creator from the love of the created beings, then the most beneficial thing we can is to take care of the created beings! So dissemination—or as it is said, the role of the Israeli nation, obliges us to bring all of humanity to the Creator—is the most beneficial action for anyone who participates in it. We only need to understand this, to interpret it correctly, and to tell each other about it. Then we will understand that we are in an excellent state. We have received unique opportunities.
[129425]
From the Preparation to the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 3/4/14

Related Material:
Willingness For The Obscurity Of The New Level
The Main Thing Is To Be Inside The Circle Of Light
The Light Operates Without Any Days Off

Filed under: Daily Kabbalah Lesson, Dissemination, Group Work, Prayer and Intention, Spiritual Work - No Comments →

Question: When we work together a “collective head” is created,which helps us clarify things and quickly leave bad states. But on the other hand, I hear friends say: “This state must simply be.”

Is “must simply be” always possible or is it only with the close connection with friends, or can you train yourself psychologically?

Answer: You can train yourself so that the distance or the circumstances will not come between you. It is possible since everything depends only on our state.

A mother, for example, can feel her child and constantly think about him, even if she is at work or far away from him.

Question: So why should we work so closely on mutual guarantee? What is the benefit in that?

Answer: Mutual guarantee provides us with the place where we receive the revelation of the Creator. Everyone has to be incorporated in mutual guarantee. Nothing can be fulfilled without mutual guarantee. An individual is not a soldier in the battlefield.

Notice how ignorant we are when it comes to fully understanding what the place is where we reveal the Creator. So we have to keep on working and clarifying all the concepts and states much more.
[129407]

Related Material:
To Be Or Not To Be Together, That Is The Question
You And Me And The Whole World Too
Floating Together Above The Water

Filed under: Conventions, Group Work, Mutual Guarantee, Spiritual Work - No Comments →

Question: When a disaster happens to someone, the first thought is that “There is none else besides Him,” but the second thought is, “It’s good this didn’t happen to me.” And this smallness shows you that if you dig a bit deeper, you will see that there is nothing there.

Answer: No, this is not showing smallness, rather the Creator is showing you that you are an egoist and that in your relationship towards others there is nothing besides ego.

Question: So what is there to do?

Answer: Ask to be corrected to a state where you will be concerned for another to such a degree that it would be preferable that you would be sick instead. When the person wants to be sick instead of another, he becomes absolutely healthy. But this is only if he asks for the sake of correction.
[129496]

Related Material:
All The Troubles Of The World
How Can I Stop Thinking About Myself?
It Is Easy To Correct Others!

Filed under: Conventions, Group Work, Spiritual Work - No Comments →

Question: What is the spiritual source of the daily Kabbalah lesson that is held from three until six in the morning?

Answer: It is in order to get up with the thought about the Creator and immediately create a connection with Him because He further determines all of your workday during which you need to maintain the same connection that you built in the morning lesson for all of the realities of this life.

Question: Why do we begin to study specifically at three o’clock and not at 2:40 or some other time?

Answer: In principle it is necessary to begin to study at midnight, but midnight is not 12 o’clock at night as we usually think it is. It is necessary to divide the night into two halves, and this is also a time that varies. So it is necessary to begin studying at midnight.

Question: Why don’t we use the lesson form that was organized as customary in the time of Abraham? He would invite people to a table, give them food and drink, and give a lesson.

Answer: It is said that he had a tent and he would call everyone there. The tent stood along the road and merchants would pass by, all sorts of passing traders, and they would come to him to rest and drink tea. At the same time, he would tell them about his teaching.
[129494]

Related Material:
Preparing For Dawn From The Evening
Only Preparation Counts
Why Do I Get Up For A Lesson?

Filed under: Conventions, Kabbalah Study, Spiritual Work - No Comments →

Question: We need to nullify ourselves towards the friends. Is there anything that we don’t need to cancel?

Answer: We need to nullify ourselves towards everything, except for those urges and awakenings that direct us towards the center of the group and the Creator.

In other words, there is nothing I don’t need to nullify myself to. So what is in me?! You want to ask: “Is there some beneficial ego in me that I cannot contact and live in agreement with it?” No.

Question: When they asked you: “What is there to do, if someone isn’t liked by the group?” You answered: “It is necessary to change internally and externally.” What did you mean?

Answer: We need to attain such a state where we like everything and in spite of everything that happens we love our friends anyway.

You must change yourself. Indeed you love your children even though they have many negative characteristics. Why? It is because they are yours. So the group must also become yours.
[129491]

Related Material:
Toward The Man Within Me
The Group As A Spiritual Entity
Getting Lost Among The Friends

Filed under: Conventions, Group Work, Spiritual Work - No Comments →

Recommendation for how to work at the time of reading The Book of Zohar: I read along together with everyone and I listen. But in the beginning I don’t listen to the reader, I don’t want to hear and think about the text. I think only about adherence with the group and adherence with the Creator, wanting the Upper Light to hold me all the time and increase my state of adherence more and more.

If I succeed in holding a few minutes in this state, I allow myself to begin to start listening. I keep bobbing all the time, like a buoy on water, constantly checking myself: Am I listening, more or less, seeing the letters or not? But the main thing is to “float” all the time, to be in adhesion.

To the degree that I can add my impressions from the text here (suppose that it touches me because I have already gone through similar states), then I allow myself to combine the text with adhesion. And if not, then even though I don’t hear it at all, the main thing is that my thoughts will always remain correct.

That is, first of all we all want to remain in adhesion with the upper power, in mutual Arvut, in connection, and the Creator strengthens and adheres us together. And as much as possible, we add to this what The Book describes. The Zohar talks about all kinds of changes, all the kinds of guiding routes, roads, paths: capillaries, cells, body parts of this entire system of unification; it explains how it works, how it acts. To the degree that I am also ready to be in this, I do this, and if not, then I don’t.

We want to feel ourselves under a shower of Ohr Makif (Surrounding Light) or in a sea of Ohr Makif, in the depths of this sea so that it will influence us all the time. The closer we join together, the stronger its influence. We need to feel that we are in a sea of Upper Light and that the words of The Zohar pierce us. To the degree that we are prepared to combine them to intentions and to our state of connection, we make it possible for them to enter into our feelings and intellect. And to the degree that they disturb us and distract us from connection, we don’t allow them to enter into us.
[129245]
From the 4^th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 3/2/14, Writings of Baal HaSulam

Related Material:
How to Read The Book of Zohar
Before Reading The Book Of Zohar
The Secrets Of Reading The Zohar

Filed under: Daily Kabbalah Lesson, Group Work, Kabbalah Study, Spiritual Work, Zohar - No Comments →

Question: How is it possible to attain equivalence of form with the Creator if everything is already determined by Him from the start?

Answer: Certainly everything is painted by the Creator in advance! How you will reach this state is not painted: will it be from receiving blows or voluntary? And this is very important.

Sometimes we think: “What difference does this make?! Maybe they will give me blows; in any case sooner or later, I will be in the completion of correction and everything will be okay.” No.

Advancement by blows is like being a disobedient son; this doesn’t bring contentment to the Creator. You neglect this opportunity. With this you think, “It doesn’t matter to me, I got tired”;  in fact, you are saying with this, “I don’t want to bestow pleasure to you.” Turn this question correctly; turn it over to the Creator. In this case you will be able to direct yourself correctly.

In truth, every state is determined from the start, all 125 levels. But how you rise from level to level, this is determined by you.

So I want to emphasize that people who simply want to rise from level to level are egoists! They think only about to what level they must rise. Whereas, people who want to give contentment to the Creator say: “The ascent to the coming level itself is not important to me. What is important to me is how I behave between the stages so I will give Him contentment. I don’t have any need for the levels; take them. I want to give You contentment, and nothing more.”

And it is called “complete bestowal” when a person doesn’t think about and doesn’t ask for a payoff. So the question here is crucial: Do you want to enjoy what you are doing or do you want to give pleasure to the Creator?
[129405]

Related Material:
The Devious Sweetness Of Pain
The Bitter Sweetness Of Bestowal
The Burden Of The Efforts You Haven’t Made

Filed under: Conventions, Spiritual Work - No Comments →

Question: In recent days we have passed through an immense number of states. The rate of changes and advancement has become more and more rapid. We have lots of new students, among whom there are those who truly have a strong desire, but they don’t succeed in following the rapid changes in any way. What can we do in order to help the group that has a very great desire, but simply can’t keep up?

Answer: When I plan to go somewhere far away with a small child, I put him in a stroller and go with him. That is also how we must behave with the new students.

We must create conditions like these so that it will be easier for them to advance. It is possible to arrange additional lessons for them so that they will feel that we are helping them to overcome the obstacles. Or they won’t even feel it that they overcame these obstacles. I don’t have other suggestions.

We have lots of different levels: evening groups, young groups, beginners groups, etc. for studying Kabbalah. So we must be concerned about everyone. They need to hear many times what we have gone through in these conventions and even in the previous conventions.

I looked at the previous conventions material again and this was very interesting for me also. After feeling your past and current congress presence, I felt a difference between the old and the new vessel, how all this has been poured from that vessel to this vessel.

Listen to a convention from two or three years ago and you will hear many new things. You have a mass of supporting material. Don’t be lazy.

You can’t imagine what kind of a charge this will give you. You will get the impression that you are participating in conventions every day. Try to do this and you will be under their impression all the time. A completely different cushion of air will appear for you and you will begin to sail on it, like on a flying carpet.
[129402]

Related Material:
Open The Doors Widely For Everyone!
Relating To Everyone With Warmth
Common Forces Against Individual Egoism

Filed under: Conventions, Group Work, Spiritual Work - No Comments →

Question: After we conducted such a gigantic event as the convention, with great help and power, we could feel and understand its real results. What is the influence of this convention on regular people?

Answer: The problem is not how much the convention influences society. On this level the Creator doesn’t influence the world the way that we influence it.

The idea is that the influence of the Light on our world exists through the higher power, the control of the Creator and the influence of the Light through us, through our control, through our agreement, through that amplifier, that system that we ourselves create. This is a completely different influence on the world that the Creator cannot carry out by Himself. It is not in His ability! We can because we are on the level of this world and within it.

Suppose that my child is going to kindergarten. At home I cannot influence his behavior at all, so I ask his friends to influence him on their level and under their influence he will easily begin to change. But I, with my abilities, cannot do anything.

This is to say, what we did in this convention had a big influence. But again, there is a hidden part of this influence and there is a part which is revealed: a part which is revealed in the upper worlds and a part that gradually begins to be revealed in our world already.

First, we hasten the movement of the world; we shorten the time of its ripening.

Secondly, an understanding of the movement is beginning to be awakened among many people: where we are going, where this world is moving.

Besides this, individuals who are close to this are beginning to wake up, the point in the heart is awakening in them, just as it once was with you. And now under the influence of this powerful convention that we held and on the level of our world, a more intense influence of the Light is being revealed to them, and under the influence of the external surrounding field their point in the heart, their personal potential, is beginning to be awakened.

And the most important thing is that we have passed from the way of suffering to the way of Light in our world. We have truly added a lot of Light into it.
[129318]

Related Material:
Connection That Changes The World
The World Depends On Us
An Opportunity To Bring Goodness Into Our World

Filed under: Conventions, Group Work, Spiritual Work - No Comments →