The Creator is playing a game with us by hiding and revealing Himself, and hiding again—all in order to awaken us. At first, it is just material sensations when we feel either good or bad, until all these changes help us grow up.

In the meantime, our desire to receive pleasure grows not only quantitatively but also qualitatively, and undergoes four levels of development: the still, vegetative, animate, and speaking. In the end, it becomes aware of itself and understands the reasons why it feels good or bad, where these changes come from and why.

At this point we learn to discern not only good and bad states but also truth and lie, the reason and purpose of the occurring changes, Who sends them, and how to connect this all together, meaning to actualize it in a perfect form. So we advance in our development.

Kabbalah helps us understand the causes and reasons of the states we are being made to experience, and then we start arranging a different picture for ourselves. It isn’t the Creator who changes, hides, and shows up to play with us, but rather these transformations occur in us, in our desire to enjoy, against the eternal invariability of the upper Light, the Creator, who remains at absolute rest and informs: “I did not change my HaVaYaH.”

All modifications occur in the created being, in the one who receives. It is the created being that undergoes various internal states, good and bad, and that’s why it thinks that the Beloved abandons it and keeps revealing or concealing Himself.

At that point, we start seeing everything in a more authentic light and begin to understand that we stand against the constant, eternal, and perfect upper force. All the changes occur solely in us, and they are what we should be asking mercy for so we may use them correctly. First of all, we must learn not to depend on these changes and then to use them to bestow, as the upper force does.

Thus, we arrive at the state described as: “I am for my Beloved, and my Beloved is for me” when the Creator’s concealment is viewed as a blessing, as coming close to and merging with Him. It all depends only on us, on our perception of reality.

We no longer rely on luck, but rather start seeing cause and effect, the logic behind changes. First, we learn that all these transformations occur in us, and everything depends on our getting corrected. Later on, we realize that these corrections are needed not just to feel good, but to come to the truth.

And it all concludes with the state when the created being stands against the eternal and perfect, immutable Creator and evokes a greater sensibility in itself, in order to approach the Creator’s eternal and complete form of bestowal.
[36937]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 3/3/2011, Writings of Rabash

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Practically all materials in the science of Kabbalah are devoted to women. That’s because we learn how to correct our receiving desire, called “woman,” with the help of the Creator, the “male” force.

There are two forces in reality: the Creator and creation, the male force that bestows and the female force that receives. Stated differently, these two desires, the bestowing and the receiving, unite in us, forming two halves: male and female.

A man (Gever – גבר) means the ability to overcome (Hitgabrut – התגברות), a screen. We divide the Kli into the male, giving side (overcoming, screens, intentions) and the receiving, weak part that is incapable of bestowal, which is described by the verse, “Her strength dwindled in the female quality.”

In our lives the projection of spirituality also creates a division into the male and female parts. In spirituality these two parts of the vessels unite together and inside their unity, the desire (Aviut) is the female part, whereas the screen and Reflected Light is the male part. Their unity gives birth to a Kli, and as a result a new Partzuf is born, the reception of Light for the sake of bestowal, or in other words, the birth of sons and understanding (Avanot – הבנות). That’s because next to sons there are always daughters (Banot – בנות).

By the division of roles in our world we clearly see what a man is intended for and what a woman is intended for. A woman is the “home.” Her purpose is to maintain it, to give birth to children, and to take care of the family household. A man’s purpose, on the other hand, is to go out of the house in order to bring back earnings. This is an exact copy of spirituality where the receiving desire is a female quality, while the screen over it is the male quality. When they act in agreement, they attain unity with the Upper Light, with the Creator, and as a result new Partzufim emerge that receive for the sake of bestowal, “sons.”

It is written, “Husband and wife, and the Shechina is between them.” This is talking about the spiritual world where the Shechina, meaning the Upper Light sets in precisely between the receiving desire and the force of the screen.
[37210]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 3/6/11 on Women

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Our evolution in this world occurs in stages. For thousands of years we have developed from the still to the vegetative, animate, and speaking levels. The wisdom of Kabbalah explains how we ascend from the speaking level and up when we acquire free will, an opportunity to consciously participate in our own development. This participation brings us to the understanding, awareness, and revelation of the Creator, and in the end we become equivalent to Him.

This is what our goal entails, but we reach it by way of gradual development instilled by us. What exactly must we do on our part?

On the whole, creation consists of the Light and the vessel. The Light affects the Kli, desire, and transforms it. What then is the desire’s part?

Desire, which resides in our world, has a spark of Light that penetrated it due to inter-inclusion at the upper degrees. The Light and the Kli merged, and together descended into this world. As a result, there is a spark in the vessel now that yearns for the Light, aimed not only at the Light itself but equivalence to it as well.

If this vessel or man who feels the yearning for the Light desires to evolve in the right way, he must bring himself under the influence of the Light. The spark alone is not sufficient to change oneself and become similar to the Light. It is necessary to draw the effect of the Light to oneself.

Thus, the method of Kabbalah offers us the means to cause the Creator’s actions toward us. Hence, there is an expression of “the work of the Creator,” meaning that the Creator is working on us. There is none else besides Him. But these acts may be realized only “upon our request,” which is regarded as a plea for correction (MAN). We ask to be unified in our desire with the desire of Bina. This is the work: to prepare ourselves to demand correction from the upper Light.

A person who has lit up with this passion is regarded as “human” (Adam) since he acts driven by the desire to be similar (Domeh) to the Creator. But if he doesn’t have such a desire, he is regarded as being at the “animate” level of evolution for now.
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From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 3/2/2011, Writings of Rabash

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Question: To reveal the upper force, we need to come out from within ourselves, from within our egoism. But essentially, we do it for our own sake, in order to receive eternal pleasure. Isn’t this the most egoistic thing that can ever exist?

Answer: That is true! Naturally, all of our actions are purely egoistic. And no matter how much I lie to myself about wanting to connect with others, attain love for my neighbor, all of it is for my personal pleasure.

But something very special happens in the middle, something we do not even realize. When we agitate one another: “Let us unite! Let us sing and dance! Study together!” we evoke the upper force. It influences us and changes us even without our intention. This is called “Segula,” the “miraculous quality” of the upper Light.

And then I suddenly feel: “Really? I truly want to change? Why all of a sudden? What am I, crazy? To bestow? To love for real? Think of others? Then what will happen with me?”

I suddenly begin to feel that thinking of my neighbor has become more important to me. I do not yet exist in this quality, but I begin to want for this to happen. Before I rejected even the thought of this, but then gradually I come to a state when I really want to acquire the quality of bestowal and love for my neighbor.

Why all of a sudden? It’s because the Light influences me. This is called a miracle, which we refer to as: “The Light that comes reforms.” The same Light that created us to only think about ourselves changes us. And this is a miracle referred to as “the miracle of exit out of Egypt.”

When this happens, we feel something change, switch inside us. This changes all my foundations, my attitude towards the world, my view of the world and humanity, and my thoughts of everyone. I suddenly become my absolute opposite.

This is an act of creation, the Creator’s action. We see the actions of the Creator by feeling this inner revolution. And this is why this entire process that we experience is referred to as the Creator’s work. After all, we only evoke this action, and the Creator realizes it.

So do not be afraid, be honest: We really do not want anything but receiving pleasure and only thinking about ourselves, and we are all still egoists on the inside, regardless of the pretty words we use. But the Light comes and changes us due to all our actions in the studies, dissemination, and unity.

Let the Light work!
[36809]
From Lesson 1, Metzoke Dragot Congress 2/24/2011

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Question: Where should my confidence about tomorrow come from: society or the Creator?

Answer: Confidence comes and is revealed only in the connection between people. Material confidence is expressed in the material society, whereas spiritual confidence is revealed in spiritual society.

Spiritual confidence does not mean that I do not need anything. It has a different meaning: I am sure that I won’t lack the forces to bestow to others and the Creator.

My confidence is not aimed at myself, but at the goal. I am sure that the people around me will support me in this according to the principle of mutual guarantee. And what other confidence do I need from them if I am in the spiritual world?
On the other hand, in this world I want to be confident that I will never have a lack of egoistic fulfillment.

Question: Still, I can’t just restrict myself to spiritual confidence. Don’t I also need confidence on the material level?

Answer: While you are in this world, you have to take care of its vital necessities. While being in society, you have to take care of it. No matter how high the society’s spiritual degree may be, as long as the material world has not disappeared from people’s perception, they have to take care of what they need today and tomorrow. They need goods and products, storehouses, and so on.

However, you will do this by the command of a different law. When you ascend up the spiritual levels you will still have to provide for yourself in the material sense because you still haven’t corrected the Kelim in which you cannot make calculations, your “stony heart.”

Therefore, it is important to differentiate between material and spiritual confidence. In corporeality I care for myself, my relatives, and even all of humanity. But spiritual confidence lies higher: It is confidence in the fact that we are able to bestow as much as possible at every moment of our lives.
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From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 3/3/11 on Confidence

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We are controlled by egoistic desires, vessels of reception, although we do not know what this is. That’s because everything is attained from comparison; the advantage of Light is attained from darkness.

Nevertheless, once we receive a little bit of Light, we begin to feel that there is another form of existence besides vegetating in egoism. There is life in bestowal.

Only the Light creates these desires or Kelim in us, and inside of them this anticipation or weak sensation emerges. Then we begin to form a certain anticipation of bestowal. However, it only surfaces on the condition that a person can correctly place himself before this picture.

Right now this egoistic desire pulls me into its bosom. That is why I have to absorb the importance of the goal from the environment by attracting Light and taking steps toward it in spite of my desire.

After that, obstacles of a different sort are placed before me: I am shown what kind of pleasure is concealed in bestowal. Then I have to be salvaged from another danger: from falling into Klipa, which says, “Let’s enjoy bestowal. Do something for the sake of bestowal. And now do some more, and then some more….” Thus, exceeding the limits of my abilities, I begin to feel egoistic pleasure from bestowal. After all, enormous Lights become revealed to me instead of the thin glow we feel in our world.

That is how I become overtaken by a state that Kabbalistic books call “impurity” or “the fire of hell.” Today our egoism is giving us only a small challenge, not allowing us to come close to bestowal. But later on we will make our way into the worlds of impurity which will have to be corrected to bestowal. There, we will discover a cunning force, a great egoistic desire that opposes the Creator. It tells us, “Bestow, do as the Creator does. There is great pleasure contained in that act.” Will we be able to keep our footing in the face of it?

Right now we are placing a “screen” (Masach) against our receiving desire, whereas later on we will build real screens against the Light, against the pleasure of bestowal rather than reception.
[36819]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 3/2/11, Writings of Rabash

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The Creator wishes for His palace to be filled with guests equal to Him. And this means that they have to include into themselves an enormous desire that has two sides: the good and the evil, the Creator’s nature and the nature opposite to Him.

If the created beings in their desires ascend to His exalted degree, while their nature is egoistic, aimed at their own benefit, and completely opposite to the Creator, they thereby detach from Him and take a position opposite to Him, as it were.

Later on, they correct themselves by clothing their ego, the will to receive pleasure, in an external “garment,” the intention to bestow. It is the Creator, the Light that Reforms, that helps them make this correction. Due to this, they gain the Creator’s force. As a result, the created being already contains two forces: its own internal force, the will to receive pleasure, which is enormous and equal to the Creator, and a force above it, the force of bestowal, as great and equal as the Creator’s.

This is how the creature comes into being. It is opposite to the Creator and dependent on Him by nature, while on the other hand, it is totally equal and similar to Him.

By comparing and distinguishing between these two parallel systems, the internal egoistic one and the external bestowing one, a person learns wisdom and understands creation from end to end. After all, there is nothing else besides these forces acting in all creation.

And then, possessing both these forces, the properties of reception and bestowal, as well as knowing how to employ them, that is, having wisdom, the created being can become similar to the Creator while remaining a creation nevertheless.

When this entire program begins to get actualized in practice and all these forces start participating in it, it overtakes all creation, and no force is able to object to or resist it. In truth, every force has its own role and each one contributes to perfection.

Therefore, at first the angels seemed surprised at why the Creator created such evil and egoistic man and asked: “Why on earth do you need this grief?!” But eventually, they saw that all these forces add to one another to a fully complete, perfect system, and it cannot be achieved otherwise. At that point, they agreed and said: “How great is Your Name in all the earth,” meaning in this whole desire (Earth in Hebrew, Aretz, means desire, Ratzon) created by the Creator.
[36518]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/27/2011, “Introduction to the Book, Panim Meirot uMasbirot”

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Question: What is the connection between the root of a person’s soul and his ability or inability to connect with others souls, the degree of his desire for unity?

Answer: Every person in the world has a root of the soul: a spiritual spark, a point in the heart. This point can develop to such an extent that the person will feel attracted to something higher, beyond this world. Then he comes to the science of Kabbalah and enters the group.

There are also people whose point in the heart has not developed yet and each of them lives his private, material life. But even if this point “burns” strongly in a person and he passionately wishes to attain spirituality—the Creator, the goal of his life, and its meaning—this is just a point and no more.

What should he do next? He has to understand that a person’s soul is formed out of the spiritual sparks that he attaches to his point of the soul from each person of the seven billion people. The soul of every person is the aggregate unity of all of these points together. Therefore, if I now unite with everyone who is here at this convention, if I attach these 600 spiritual sparks to myself, then I attain the might of unity of all 600 points together.

How is that possible? How can I unite with their desires to attain spirituality? I can only do it with the help of “love your neighbor as yourself” in order to become “as one man with one heart,” as it is written in the article, “Matan Torah.”

If I connect with them in this way, then I acquire a field of unification—a desire consisting of many sparks. It’s as if we become “as one man” and inside of that desire I can reveal spirituality.

This desire is called the vessel or Kli of my soul because I have attached all of these points to myself. If someone else, one of these points which I attached to myself, also attaches everyone else to it, this will be called his soul. Meaning, his point is the initial one and he attaches other points to it. This is his soul.

Every person attaches all the points outside of him to himself, and that is how his soul forms. But if he hasn’t attached them to him, then he has no soul. He only has a point, the root of his soul.

According to the force of unification of these points inside me, their quantity and the force of the unity among them, inside of them, I reveal Light, life, and existence. As they connect with each other, they begin to unite and to be revealed in the form of a single system, similar to a living body through which blood and lymphatic liquid circulate, nervous impulses are passed, and many different actions take place. I begin to feel life there.

I attach the points to myself gradually. By connecting to them, I begin to feel how a tiny device forms inside of me: an embryo. Then it grows, developing over the course of nine months. I feel how I attach more and more points to it, and that is how it constantly grows.

Various inner actions already take place inside of it. Some kind of life emerges. I begin to recognize various processes in it, until finally, it is born. That means it begins to live its own life. Then it breaks away from the upper force and lives by itself. This is the soul. That is how each of us builds his soul.

From the 1st lesson at the Dead Sea Convention, 2/24/11

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