Shamati #68 “Man’s Connection to the Sefirot“

The Book of Zohar — Selected Excerpts, “Rejoicing in Holidays and Not Giving to the Poor,” Item 176

Writings of Baal HaSulam “Peace in the World”

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Preparation for the Lesson

Shamati #69 “First Will Be the Correction of the World”

The Book of Zohar — Selected Excerpts, “Rejoicing in Holidays and Not Giving to the Poor,” Item 174

Talmud Eser Sefirot, Vol. 1, Part 2, “Histaklut Pnimit,” Chapter 4, Item 38

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Question: When at the lesson, how do you renew your intention between the opposites that pull you in different directions?

Answer: It is a good thing to have disturbances. As soon as one renews his intention, it slips away once again, and other calculations start dragging him down.

And once again he is being reminded from the heavens that his thoughts do not relate to spiritual advancement. And once again he finds the strength to analyze his situation and ask to quickly come out of the quagmire towards unity.

He returns to the topic of the lesson with this point of unity, in order to cling to The Zohar as much as possible.

This is the “study of the Torah” – not “hitting the books” but studying oneself. Because in the end we reveal ourselves. It is written: “I will see the Creator from my own flesh.” This way we approach the truth.

Those who think that they need to know the material studied are mistaken. One must know who he is and  learn who he is through the written text. “Who am I, that the Torah teaches to pertain to the Light?” I discover all my contradictions, all the disturbances, and types of spiritual connection, all the “pros” and “cons.”

This is what I must learn. The Torah gives lessons to my evil inclination, by putting it before the Light. It is written: “I created the evil inclination and the Torah to accompany it.” When both of these factors manifest before man, and he begins to verify one through the other, this is the studying of the Torah.

I do not study the text; I study myself. When I strive towards the truth, the text brings me the sensation of the extent of my separation from it. People are like machines; they study the text, but there is Torah that you study on yourself. It is written: “We will see the Light in Your Light.”

This is a different kind of study where you work together with the disturbances, resisting them; this is a practical self-study. “Who am I in comparison to the Creator?” This is the essence of this study.

All the disturbances and problems that prevent me from immersing myself into the reality that I am reading about are the differences between me and the Creator. And when I rise above all the faces of my egoism, I demonstrate readiness to move ahead, towards Him.
[28042]
From the lesson 11/29/10, Introduction to The Book of Zohar

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Preparation for the Lesson

The Book of Zohar – Selected Excerpts, “Who Is This?” Item 169

Talmud Eser Sefirot,” Vol. 1, Part 2, “Histaklut Pnimit,” Chapter 4, Item 37

Writings of Baal HaSulam “The Unity of the Nation”

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Shamati #36 “What Are the Three Bodies in a Man” 

Workshop

“The Book of Zohar” — Selected Excerpts, “Among All the Nations of the World, There Are None Like You,” Item 166

“The Book of Zohar” — Selected Excerpts, “Ki Tetze,” “The Exile Continues,” Item 21

Talmud Eser Sefirot, Vol. 1, Part 2, “Histaklut Pnimit,” Chapter 4, Item 33

Writings of Baal HaSulam “The Unity of the Nation,” Lesson 5 

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Preparation for the Lesson

“The Book of Zohar” — Selected Excerpts, “Among All the Nations of the World, There Are None Like You,” Item 165

“Talmud  Eser Sefirot,” Vol. 1, Part 1, “Histaklut Pnimit,” Chapter 4, Item 33

Writings of Baal HaSulam “The Unity of the Nation,” Lesson 4 

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It is said that Abraham begot Isaac, and Isaac begot Jacob. In our world, a son continues the business of his father and therefore he is considered higher than his father.

In contrast, in the spiritual world, the preceding one is higher. The son is a result of actions of his father, but in a worse state, in a more coarse desire. Thus, Isaac is a lower state than Abraham, and Jacob is lower than Isaac.

On the other hand, the deeper and stronger desire, the more opportunities it has to be corrected in similarity to the Creator. Therefore, from the point of view of the generations’ development, every new generation is worse than the previous one. However, from the standpoint of using the level of desire, every following generation rises higher, i.e., it attains greater Light.

Therefore, something that was impossible to do for Abraham, due to his small depth of desire, is manifested in Isaac, in his left, egoistic line. This work does not belong to Abraham. He only has to “tie,” to limit his awakening egoistic desire. Whereas, Jacob connects with both forces and begins to realize himself. As a result, a soul begins its development and it consists of two properties.
[27827]

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If you open a Kabbalistic prayer book, you will see individual letters instead of complete words; they express sensations, inner actions, screens, the repulsion and attraction of Light. There are no words in spirituality.

We usually use the words of this world and relate them to spirituality; it is common. But we can do without words. A person who attained spirituality doesn’t operate with words.

Baal HaSulam prayed to descend from his level to a state where he could find adequate words, by dressing those attainments into “material” words so that they could be understood, to convey to those below him what he attained

In spirituality, there are only sensations. I don’t have to dress them into words, since I have Reshimot and tastes (Ta’amim). I don’t have to explain them to myself unless I am willing to share my impression with others. But sharing is always limited. Not a single word can include the whole meaning that it actually embraces.

Therefore, a prayer is the work in the heart, a cry from the depths of the heart, without any language or a prayer book. Prayer books were written for us by Kabbalists (members of the Great Assembly) before the exile when we all fell from the spiritual level. If you fall from the awareness of the spiritual worlds into this world, you have nothing to say about spirituality. And so they wrote prayers for us so that we could at least talk about spirituality in the form of prayers. Nonetheless, the connection with spirituality still remains, and when during the exile numerous people pronounce the words that are written in the prayer book they cause a certain “agitation” in the Surrounding Light that in turn protects the nation. But they work only at the time of exile and not for long. It is not a real prayer.

Currently we are arriving at the state when we have to start working on the point in the heart that draws us back into Bina.
[25361]
From the lesson 10/18/10, The Zohar

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Preparation for the Lesson

Writings of Rabash, “Shlavei HaSulam,” “What Is the Substance of Slander and Against Who Is It? “

Workshop

“The Book of Zohar” — Selected Excerpts, “Among All the Nations of the World, There Are None Like You,” Item 161

Writings of Baal HaSulam “Preface to the Wisdom of Kabbalah,” Item 75

Writings of Baal HaSulam “The Unity of the Nation” 

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The question is whether we were given a mind so that we can examine things by it and delve deeper inside or whether it was given to us so that we will actually confuse ourselves by it and let the upper force enter us and correct us.

This is the question: How do we use the data that are inside of us, which control us, in our inclinations, in all the attributes a person has?

Why were they given to us? In order to reach a certain correction or to use these data and our abilities the way they are?

If I want to use them just the way they are, I thus negate the fact that there was a shattering, which means that I want to keep on working with my mind and my heart directly, using them to discover the world.

Then we see the gloomy outcome and the crisis that such an attitude brings us to. Although we haven’t even reached the initial awareness of the unfolding of the crisis, it is about to be revealed soon.

It is because it is only the shattered vessels that are revealed. If I use my mind and heart and don’t listen to the Kabbalists’ warnings saying that it is all shattered, and keep on working with them, I eventually will discover that it is all shattered. When I discover that the system is shattered it means that I have reached the crisis.

It will take a long time and lots of pain until I recognize the crisis and understand it. It is because this attitude is called the path of natural evolution, “in its time” (Beito), the path of suffering, the path of the shattered mind.

But there is another path, the path of “I shall hasten it” (Achishena), hastening time. Along that path I am told: “Do you know why everything is shattered? So that you will be able to feel distracted, feel your helplessness, and realize that you have neither a mind nor a heart and that you cannot exist this way. Isn’t the crisis that you see before you enough in order to want to stop this stupid chase and say: enough!”

Now I begin to use my heart and mind differently: I am out of the egoistic focus and this is actually the reason that I open up a passage for the Light by allowing it to influence me and to change me internally. This means that I use my heart and mind, but differently.

I don’t want to use my heart and mind directly, as they were given to me. My mind was given to me so that I will understand that I don’t have a mind. All my feelings were given to me so that I will understand that I don’t have any feelings. My heart and mind cannot help me discover the true reality.

There are only two ways to use the data that I was given correctly: either within reason or above reason. Choose!
[137628]
From the 3^rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 6/13/14, The Zohar

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