Question: Where is the line where I can tell myself if I am in self-sacrifice or in the work?

Answer: Devotion of the soul (Mesirut Nefesh) is called self-sacrifice; it is when a person comes to a state where he is ready to give everything for the sake of the quality of bestowal and love.

Question: Do the stages of self-sacrifice and work transform into one another: from self-sacrifice to work and from work to self-sacrifice?

Answer: It is the same thing. This is work, only on the terms of self-sacrifice.

Question: But a person can get stuck in a state of self-sacrifice because egoism is so tricky that it will always find some kind of pleasure in this state?

Answer: But we must fight against this in order not to plug our egoism with all kinds of false gifts or handouts. We want to be only in the quality of bestowal to the Creator, and in no other way.

When we fulfill all the laws of connection between ourselves, the group and the Creator, that is, we act only in the name of bestowal, then we come to perfect work.
[320090]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 10/31/23, Writings of Baal HaSulam “Devotion”

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Question: What is common prayer?

Answer: Common prayer is the connection of all your private prayers into one prayer, which is assembled by the Creator. He assembles all the prayers from your hearts and connects them into one prayer, into one heart.

Question: Why does the Creator do this work?

Answer: How can we do this work? He connects, He sorts, He does it all, it is all Him.

What are we doing? We only see our helplessness and ask Him to gather us together, connect us, raise us, and fill us.

Question: What conditions must be met for this to happen on the part of the Creator? Do our relationships, fulfilling the principles of Rabash, and nullifying ourselves before each other affect the quality of common prayer?

Answer: Of course they do. We influence each other a lot and we cannot even imagine how much.
[320031]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 10/29/2023, Writings of Baal HaSulam “Lishma” [for Her sake]

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This is similar to what is written in the “Introduction to Panim Masbirot” (Item 16): We should thoroughly know the two types of scrutiny applied in us: The first scrutiny is called “scrutinies of good and bad,” and the second scrutiny is called “scrutinies of true and false.”

The first scrutiny is a physical active force, which works through the sensation of bitter and sweet. It loathes and rejects the form of bitterness because it feels bad, and loves and attracts the form of sweetness because it feels good.

In addition to them there is the human species, in whom the Creator has imprinted an intellectual active power, which works in the second scrutiny: rejecting falsehood and vanity by loathing to the point of nausea, and attracts true matters and any benefit with great love. This scrutiny is called “the scrutiny of true and false.” This applies only to the human species, each according to his own extent.

Know that this second active force was created and came to man because of the serpent. By creation, he had only the first active force from the scrutinies of good and bad, which was enough to serve him at that time (Rabash, “What Is a Great or a Small Sin in the Work?”).

Question: How does our egoism help us recognize them every time?

Answer: Egoism shows us where we are and where we want to go. We fall from this level and find ourselves in egoism. Thus, we get two marks: the highest and the lowest. Thus, we can already navigate how to ascend through bestowal and how to descend through reception.

In order to use egoism as a springboard for determining truth and lies and to continue to follow the Creator and not the ego, you unite your egoisms in the ten and rise above the common ego.
[320096]
From the 1^st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/1/23, Writings of Rabash “What Is a Great or a Small Sin in the Work?”

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Question: We listen to the lessons, work in the ten, and participate in dissemination, but there are moments when egoism traps you and says: “Take a rest—you have worked a little and that is enough.”

How can you refuse to follow the lead of the ego at this moment? After all, you need to strengthen yourself, and it pulls you back. Can you advise us what to do?

Answer: Look at each other, and you will see how to work.

I am looking at you, at men and women who are all on my one screen, and I see and feel how each one of you, to a different extent, of course, strives to be closer to the Creator. And all this is achieved by rapprochement with the friends.

In this way, we move together toward the goal of creation, and by connecting closer and closer we achieve one heart, one opinion, one desire, and inner unity. This is the end of our correction.

A person in this world needs nothing more. Nothing. One must carry out worldly affairs only to the extent that one’s body requires in order to exist, and direct everything else only toward getting closer to everyone in the soul, and then, in this common soul—to the Creator.
[320138]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 10/30/23, “One’s Future Depends and Is Tied to Gratitude for the Past”

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Rather, they should calculate how many corrections they must do in order to have ransom for their souls to the Creator, meaning that they will not look at the deficiencies, but at the correction of the deficiencies, by which their soul, which was in the Klipot, will emerge from them and cling to the Creator (Rabash, Article No. 18, 1989. What Is, “There Is No Blessing in That Which Is Counted,” in the Work?).

Question: Is it necessary to make calculations from the states of our path?

Answer: How will we know what we are asking for otherwise?

Question: But we have never summed up in the ten how well we are advancing. What are we missing?

Answer: A person should feel himself where he is, where he is being pulled, and in which direction he is moving.

Question: Before I do this kind of work, I have to adjust myself correctly. The article says that the blessing should be before and after. How can we bless in order to perform this calculation correctly?

Answer: It means that you bless the Creator for allowing you to see your uncorrected desires, and then you bless Him for correcting them.
[319927]
From the 1^st part of the Daily Kabbalah lesson 10/29/23, Writings of Rabash ‘What Is, “There Is No Blessing in That Which Is Counted,” in the Work?’

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This is similar to a person who has the power to build a whole country, and he builds only a shack that is ruined by a strong wind. You find that all the efforts were wasted. However, if one remains in Kedusha [holiness], then all the efforts remain in eternity (Baal HaSulam, Shamati 30 “The Most Important Is to Want Only to Bestow“).

Question: Sometimes I have a feeling that I was given great opportunities, but I managed to build just a shack. What should I pay attention to if this state constantly haunts me?

Answer: When you stop thinking about yourself, then you, as they say, give up the shack, and you can build whatever you want. You will have time and materials for everything, anything you want. The main thing is not to think about yourself.

Question: Does it mean that because I want to build for myself, it turns out to be a shack?

Answer: Yes, of course. This is the difference between spiritual construction and corporeal construction.

Question: What if I feel that I do not have the strength to build for others?

Answer: Then, at least you know the truth.
[319954]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 10/27/23, Writings of Baal HaSulam “The Most Important Is to Want Only to Bestow“

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All that your hand and strength can do, do.

Question: How can we reach a state where we feel we have already done everything in our power and come to a prayer? How can we grab it and hold on to it?

Answer: To do this, you have a group that you need to connect with and bring to a state of equivalence to the Creator where it is completely and correctly connected. Then you can begin to work with the Creator through this group.

In a correctly connected group, everyone will participate and aim for a common goal—to unite in the center of the group, as in one heart.

Question: Is this within my power?

Answer: Everyone can and should do this.

Question: What does it mean that a strong desire does not allow other desires to enter?

Answer: If you have any desires that are not aimed at reaching the goal of creation, they prevent you from reaching it. They must be neutralized, and then you can work with the desire for the purpose of creation.
[319915]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 10/28/23, “Conduct War Like King David”

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Hence, when one has accustomed oneself to walk in ways of bestowal, one has no vessels of reception anyhow. When one walks in ways of reception, he has no vessels of bestowal (Baal HaSulam, Shamati 15 “What Is Other Gods in the Work?”).

Question: What are the stones to weigh with? Are they just our internal thoughts, scrutinies, or actions in the group?

Answer: It is both thoughts and feelings, as well as the relationships between us and between us and the Creator—all together.

Question: It is unclear how both the Kelim of bestowal and the Kelim of reception are acquired with the help of weighing stones?

Answer: It depends solely on the intention. It does not matter whether I am receiving or giving. What matters most is my intention: for the sake of the Creator or for my own sake.

Question: And how are the stones to weigh with helping here? For example, I want to be in the quality of bestowal, in connection with friends, but then some disturbances arise, and this is what pushes me away.

Answer: It is good that there are disturbances. If you resist them and go against them, you will definitely come to the quality of bestowal. By resisting disturbances, you are already acquiring Kelim of bestowal.

To resist disturbances means to justify the Creator. When external thoughts come to you, the questions “who” and “what,” the Creator observes how you respond to them.

Question: But these thoughts are about friends. Does that mean that I have to justify my friends first?

Answer: It does not matter. Even if there are several actions, ultimately, one specific thought is being pursued.
[319835]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 10/26/23, Writings of Baal HaSulam “What Is Other Gods in the Work?“

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Question: Due to what does desire for the Creator become longing for Him?

Answer: It is due to the fact that a person sees how the Creator watches him, how He leads him from state to state, higher and higher, and therefore, he is imbued with love and gratitude to the Creator.

You must try to recognize within each picture that our world presents to you, the Creator’s desire for you.
[320047]
From the 2^nd part of the Daily Kabbalah lesson 10/31/23, “Conduct War Like King David”

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Question: On one hand we ask for mercy in the ten, for the Creator to connect us. On the other hand, we are grateful for all the judgments that are coming down on us. How do we equalize these two forces in order to receive the middle line for the correct prayer?

Answer: The judgments descending on us are the obstacles that we must overcome in order to properly build ourselves in one desire. Then we will be exactly like the Creator. That is all.

We need to understand that the Creator’s impact on us is necessary only in order to properly attune us.
[319958]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 10/28/23, Writings of Rabash ‘What Is, “The Shechina Is a Testimony to Israel,” in the Work?’

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