The main requirement for a person is the proper reaction when the Creator addresses him. The Creator is primary. The Creator always begins. A person is the consequence, the reaction to the Creator’s influence on the desire. I am a reaction of the desire to the Light’s influence on it. The Upper Light comes to us from Above through the four stages 1-2-3-4, HaVaYaH (Yod-Hey-Vav-Hey). The created being has no other connection to the Creator.

Therefore, we should try to react properly to the Creator’s appeal to us; that is, to our perception of ourselves and the world at every given moment. We should recognize a constant dialogue with the Creator in our existence. He created a connection between the initial point of addressing us, the tip of the letter “Yod” (Kutso Shel Yod) and the last letter of HaVaYaH – “Hey,” in which we and our world are situated.

The connection between the initial point of the letter “Yod” and the last “Hey” can include all five worlds, 125 degrees, and then we do not feel a connection with the Creator. The connection is revealed immediately as we ascend to the first degree, number 125, Malchut of the World of Assiya. And then follow the degrees 124, 123, and so on, until we ascend to the World of Infinity, the uppermost degree.

And all this is within HaVaYaH, between the beginning of the letter “Yod” and the last “Hey.” This HaVaYaH (my connection with the Creator) starts to become more and more clear to me, as though the fog (the concealment) clears.

I achieve revelation of the connection, by continuously directing myself to the Creator in response to His influences on me, trying to connect everything to Him, according to the principle “There is none else besides Him.” How can one react in the most proper and effective manner? The most effective reaction, directed precisely at the Creator in any circumstance, is to try to carry out a common action of “appealing to the Creator” together with the friends.

However, the appeal is only effective if it is directed back through the HaVaYaH. This is achieved by reading authentic Kabbalistic sources. When you read about what happens in the HaVaYaH, you direct Malchut to Keter; that is, you direct your unification to the source.

To the extent that we unite, we exist in Malchut. This is only if we come together. And as we read The Book of Zohar all together, we desire to launch the HaVaYaH back through the reflected Light to its beginning, the letter “Yod.” After all, Kabbalah books only tell us about the connection between Keter, “Yod,” and Malchut, the lower letter “Hey.” Therefore, when we read without the revelation and understanding of the connections in the HaVaYaH, we rouse this connection onto ourselves and cause this system to be revealed.

From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/28/10, The Zohar

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The Light Is Inside Me, Not Outside
Laitman.com Post: The Genius In Simplicity
A Guide to the Hidden Wisdom of Kabbalah: “The Building-Blocks of Life”
5 Minutes Of Light: “Life Is A Dialog With The Creator”

Filed under: Daily Kabbalah Lesson, Group Work, Zohar - 1 Comment →

Shamati #15 “What is Other Gods in the Work”
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

The Book of Zohar – Selections, Chapter “Lech-Lecha (Go Forth),” Item 237
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

“Preface to the Wisdom of Kabbalah” Item 70
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

Rav Yehuda Ashlag, Article “The Teaching of the Kabbalah and Its Essence”
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

Filed under: Daily Kabbalah Lesson, Zohar - No Comments →

The Zohar, Chapter “Lech Lecha (Go Forth),” Item 153: NR are not two separate degrees from one another. Rather, they are one degree, and they are two that are conjoined. And there is one that is superior who governs them and clings to them, and they to her. And she is called Neshama.

The Zohar tells us how, after achieving the first spiritual contact, we intensify this connection and see the subsequent manifestations of spirituality in it. Then we feel not only the first degree of unification called Nefesh (N), a state of rest (Nefisha), and the ability to maintain ourselves in this connection, but also the common great life, which is revealed from within the point of our first contact as another higher, deeper dimension called Ruach (R).

If we do not reach the first contact, the place of our unification, we will not reveal the entrance to the upper dimension (the quality of bestowal). Yet, when we establish this contact among us, the Upper Light begins to affect it. It reveals it, and we enter a completely different dimension through it: the spiritual world.

Everything that happens within this connection is called the spiritual world. First it seems to us that attaining this universal connection between people promises us a good life, safety, and pleasant sensations. However, that is not all! Within this common point, an entrance into the spiritual world is revealed.

From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/27/10, The Zohar

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: A Step Into Infinity
Laitman.com Post: The Pathe To Ultimate Harmony
Baal HaSulam Article: “The Creator’s Concealment And Revelation”

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

The Zohar, Chapter “Lech Lecha (Go Forth),” Item 211: Seven firmaments did the Creator make above, which are the ZAT (seven Sefirot) de Atzilut, HGT NHYM. All of them are in order to know the glory of the Creator and all of them are poised to announce the meaning of the high faith.

Why are the Sefirot called firmaments? A firmament is a screen, and there are many types of screens. A screen that partitions spiritual levels is called a firmament.

We are talking only about desire, and above it there is a screen and Reflected Light. The desire is under restriction. It has Aviut (thickness or size of desire) and to the degree it overcomes it, a screen.

These are all technical terms. However, when we work with desires and the opposition to them, we reveal feelings and impressions. There is a will to enjoy, and inside it various phenomena become revealed. We are talking precisely about the phenomenon and not the actual desire that evokes the phenomenon.

Suppose I am able to give a detailed explanation about a violin, its structure and material, and exactly how I slide the bow across the strings, with what pressure, speed, and so on. Alternatively, I can verbally convey my feelings and impressions of a melody. In both cases I am describing a phenomenon, but I do it in different languages. One is a technical language that is understood by the mind, whereas the second is a language of feelings, understood by the heart.

The Book of Zohar speaks in a language of feelings, and therefore it is clear to those who feel these phenomena. Baal HaSulam added the language of Kabbalah to The Zohar‘s text, which is a description of The Zohar using technical terms (Sefirot, Partzufim, Aviut, and screen). Thus, we have a parallel description in two languages, which helps us to connect these two languages and come closer to revealing and uniting with the actual phenomena.

In order to reveal the text, I must unite with the environment, the group. That is exactly how the authors of this book, the group of Rabbi Shimon, revealed it. It was precisely through the connection between them that they attained all 125 levels of Upper Light and called it “Radiance” (Zohar).

From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/29/10, The Zohar

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Searching For Spiritual Sensations
Laitman.com Post: A Thin Bridge Into The Spiritual World
Laitman.com Post: What Is The Book Of Zohar And The Sulam Commentary About?

Filed under: Daily Kabbalah Lesson, Zohar - No Comments →

Rabash, Shlavei HaSulam, “What is the Difference Between the Field and A Man of the Field in Work?”
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

The Book of Zohar – Selections, Chapter “Lech-Lecha (Go Forth),” Item 201
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

Rav Yehuda Ashlag, Talmud Eser Sefirot, Vol. 6, Part 15, Item 5, Lesson 3
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

Rav Yehuda Ashlag, “Introduction to the Book, Panim Meirot uMasbirot,” Item 3, Lesson 3
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

Filed under: Daily Kabbalah Lesson, Zohar - No Comments →

Rabash, Shlavei HaSulam, “Who is He Who Causes Prayer?”
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

The Book of Zohar – Selections, Chapter “Lech-Lecha (Go Forth),” Item 174
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

Rav Yehuda Ashlag, Talmud Eser Sefirot, Vol. 6, Part 15, Item 2, Lesson 2
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

Rav Yehuda Ashlag, “Introduction to the Book, Panim Meirot uMasbirot,” Item 3, Lesson 2
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

Filed under: Daily Kabbalah Lesson, Zohar - No Comments →

Question: If we don’t really understand the state of having to unite together as one man with one heart, then what should we focus on or imagine while reading The Book of Zohar?

Answer: There is nothing more than this. We live in a world that contains all the exact components that enable us to come together physically or virtually in order to join our aspirations to reveal the Creator while reading The Book of Zohar.

Our world is identical to the spiritual world in every detail with the only difference being that the spiritual world is a world of forces while our world is a world of material objects that are the results of spiritual forces. Every level is an imprint of the Upper Level, and in this manner they descend from Above downward, from the World of Infinity to our world along 125 levels. The only difference between the levels is their matter, which becomes increasingly less spiritual during the descent. However, every level consists of the same details.

"Ascent" means the revelation of a greater connection between the world’s components. Everything that is happening in our world today is pushing us toward this. What do you lack? A connection between people. Inside this connection you will reveal the spiritual level called "Ruach," and when you attain a greater connection you will reveal the level of "Neshama."

Right now the connection between us is egoistic. You have to start turning it into a real, spiritual connection. Whoever desires to reveal the Upper World in this lifetime must first and foremost understand that this revelation takes place according to the laws of nature.

Therefore, Kabbalah advises people not to invent their own methods, but to heed the advice of Kabbalists.

From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/27/10, The Zohar

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The World Of Infinity – Here And Now!
Laitman.com Post: Our World Is A Shadow Of The Spiritual World
Article : "From the ”Preface to the Book of Zohar”"
Kabbalah Moments: "Deficiency For Unity"

Filed under: Daily Kabbalah Lesson, Zohar - No Comments →

We exist in this world on the animate level, where we are completely controlled by our nature. However, at some point in time, we reveal that this life is insignificant and pointless, and experience a desire to rise to a higher level. Yet, how can we ascend above the animate existence, which is automatic and involuntary? How can we become “human,” free and above the life of our animate bodies?

“Human” means “similar” to the Creator (because the word “Adam” comes from the word “Domeh,” similar). In order to realize this ascent, to build a new, “human” nature inside the “animal,” so that our new nature will be equal to the Creator, we have to draw the Light that Reforms upon ourselves. This is a special Upper Force that influences and changes us so we ascend, raising our understanding, sensation, abilities, and perception. That is how we rise to a higher level called “Human.”

This is not just a mechanical ascent or an accumulation of more knowledge, but a transition to a different level of nature. We don’t understand how it occurs because right now we are all looking at the world from within our animate bodies. I am hiding inside this animal and I perceive this world through its eyes, ears, and other senses. I am unable to see the world differently until the Light comes from Above and enables me to be liberated from this animate skin and its sensations, and to clothe into a human guise. Then I will see and feel a new reality.

Right now we don’t know what kind of reality we exist in or where we have to arrive. Each of these things can only be assessed and researched based on the other. However, in order to set this entire process in motion, we were given two main pieces of advice: Be in a Kabbalistic group and study Kabbalah books. Through the group and the desire to unite together, we are able to come out of ourselves and become human. A human being is one who is connected with others and has the ability to bestow to his neighbor. With the force of our desire, a book draws Light upon us and turns what we desire into reality. That is how we actually attain the human level, equivalence to the Upper One.

Each of us has this desire to become human and not remain an “animal.” And we have the group which affords the opportunity to make efforts in order to come out of the animate sensation and unite together. Our connection is what will enable us to be called “people.” The Upper Light that we draw through our mutual reading will complete this work for us and will transform our efforts into a new, actual reality. So let us study together with this hope.

From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/27/10, The Zohar

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: We Have Assembled Here To Become Human
Laitman.com Post: The Kabbalistic Group Is A Spiritual Booster
Kabbalah Today Article: Love, Love, Love
Kabbalah Moments: “Love For Others And The Creator”

Filed under: Daily Kabbalah Lesson, Unity, Zohar - 3 Comments →

Rabash, Shlavei HaSulam, “A Congress is no Less Than Ten”
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

The Book of Zohar – Selections, Chapter “Lech-Lecha (Go Forth),” Item 146
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

Filed under: Daily Kabbalah Lesson, Zohar - No Comments →

The Zohar, Chapter “Lech Lecha (Go Forth),” Item 117: Similarly, it is written about the exodus from Egypt, “And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go,” by which Pharaoh gave him the Kelim of his own decision and his own will. This discernment is considered the scrutiny of the Kelim, the Mochin de VAK of the degree of the light of Haya, since he [Abraham] did not attain it through the word of the Creator but through a sin and a test.

Perception of the spiritual world is devoid of any corporeality; there is neither Egypt, nor Abraham there. We use these words to signify the spiritual forces that form these objects in our world. This means that we take the words of our world and use them to name the upper forces. We read The Zohar as if knowing nothing about our world and its history. After all, The Zohar tells us about the spiritual states that lie in wait for us.

From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/23/10, The Zohar

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The Book About You
Kabbalah Today Article: Kabbalah Explains the Bible
5 Minutes Of Light: “Tuning Yourself To The Zohar”

Filed under: Daily Kabbalah Lesson, Zohar - No Comments →