Preparation to the Lesson

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1st part of the Lesson — Writings of Rabash, Article 15 “Two Discernments in Holiness” (1987) (6.16.2002)

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2nd part of the Lesson — Writings of Baal HaSulam, “Study of the Ten Sefirot,” Vol. 2, Part 6, Item 20

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3rd part of the Lesson — Preparation for Convention

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Question: The Kli constantly feels some kind of resistance. Does that mean resistance is an essential part of the process of correction?

Answer: It is not that resistance itself is a necessary component. You do not eliminate the body’s resistance by telling yourself that it is for the best. You only want to put it in order, as though by doing so you are making a restriction. At the same time, together with the resistance, you want to acquire the qualities of the Creator as the opposite of it, so that I and He, and the ways of attaining Him, will merge into one. Only then is there the greatest benefit from this state.

If I enter only into the resistance, into the bad qualities, and there is nothing opposite them, I will attain nothing from it. It seems to us that by feeling suffering we attain something, but this is not true. There is no commandment to suffer, not even for a single moment. Suffering is a problem of the body, of the Klipot, which constantly confuses us and tries to convince us that something can be achieved through suffering. Nothing of the sort!

A great Mitzvah is to be in joy. And this is truly so. The moment a person is able to come to joy, he should not think that he has not yet experienced enough suffering. You will attain nothing from the evil inclination.

If, having risen above suffering, you immediately pass into joy, do not think that this is frivolity. In another moment you will again be brought back to suffering, and once again you will come out of it. “From Zion,” when you come out of suffering, “the Torah will come.”
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/7/26, Rabash, “What Are Holiness and Purity, in the Work?”

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Question: How can we constantly remember that, aside from the connection with the Creator, all sensations (good or bad) , all occurrences (fortunate or unfortunate), and everything that happens serves only to increase our connection with Him?

Answer: Even on the highest degree, in both your mind and heart, you must constantly seek connection with Him, and continuously hold on to that point. Everything that happens is necessary only in order to add more and more to your connection with Him. How can this be done? How can you hold on to it? Build a system, both internal and external.

It seems to you that through suffering you at least remember the Creator. Understand that the suffering you now feel, through which it seems to you that you remembered the Creator, was sent to you by Him, and within that suffering you felt Him. Of course, this came with a certain purpose, but that is not the purpose itself. The purpose is not to feel Him in suffering, but to feel Him in adhesion, in closeness.

Through the path of suffering, He reminds you of Himself to the point where you begin to feel a need Him. But what happens after you feel a need for Him? Then you say: “Fine, I will sit and suffer. It is worth enduring the suffering just so I do not forget Him.”

No? Would you prefer to be in a state of joy? Then move toward joy.

Suppose you experience suffering. That is how the Creator reminds you of Himself; it is His tool. He plants a thorn in you, you remember Him, but you remain in your suffering. Is this really the kind of connection with Him that you want? At that moment you are in the system of the impure forces that drains spiritual abundance through this connection because you agree to remain in that state, and the Klipa (shell, impurity) only grows stronger.

What is a Klipa? It is the evil that you perceive as coming from the Creator. This is the exact opposite of what should be. You must convince yourself that you are under the control of the Klipot, forces that must be overcome so that you may feel that the Creator is goodness and delight.

Do not think that because you receive evil from Him, you are reminded of Him and thus form a connection with Him. On the contrary, you must bring yourself to a state of adhesion, of connection with Him because you share a common joy. Pain cannot be shared.
[358829]
From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/7/26, Rabash, “What Are Holiness and Purity, in the Work?”

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In the article “When Should One Use Pride in the Work?” Rabash explains the multitude of desires, properties, impulses, and laws that exist within our soul. He describes how we can acquire and master them in order to begin governing the soul, which is the Kli (vessel) in which a person perceives the spiritual world, the Creator.

One can master all the forces of the soul only by exerting personal effort during descent. This is known as MAN (an awakening from below); it is precisely then that a person acquires something and gains mastery.

Falls (states in which a person feels removed from spirituality and holiness) are deliberately induced. Suddenly a person sees that they have no interest in spirituality; they feel they can live without it, that it no longer holds any special attraction for them; there is nothing special about it.

But if in such states one goes above one’s feelings; meaning that, despite lacking interest, one understands this sensation was given intentionally and despite lacking interest, proceeds regardless, gritting one’s teeth to acquire the spiritual—then on advances.

Advancement happens precisely in such states. To the extent one can advance during these descents constitutes their true progress. All the other states given to a person are awakening from above originating from the Creator, and thus involve not contribution from the person, and leaves no lasting impression  within them.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/6/26, Rabash, “When Should One Use Pride in the Work? ”

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Talks about the Steps of the Ladder, Part 187

How Can We Reach the Creator Through Our Attitude to a Friend?

In the society of those who wish to become Kabbalists, people behave according to the rule that from the love of friends we come to love of the Creator, as RABASH writes in his articles about what the love of friends should give us. Therefore, we should understand that in our attitude to the friends we ultimately determine our attitude to the Creator. Even if we are incapable of relating to them kindly, but we are aware of it and wish to check whether we are improving, we must examine whether something in our attitude toward them has changed. If something has changed substantially, or even slightly, it is a sign that we have made a great step forward in spirituality.

We cannot measure spirituality, but we can assess from the perspective of the heart how we look at others: whether we are less envious of them, whether perhaps we are already capable of caring about them a little, and whether there is already some preparation within us for this. This is the test. We can never imagine a higher spiritual degree. When something suddenly becomes revealed to us, if we suddenly understand something, for us it is a true revelation.

So how can we long for a higher state? What we should do is remember the last good state we had, when we longed for the Creator, thought about Him, enjoyed feeling Him, and were connected to Him. We should try to hold on to that state even when it has already passed. In some way, we need to continually build the position of the relationship between ourselves and the Creator, because an example was given to us for that purpose.

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Question: Can it be said that a person ascends to the Creator from a state of darkness?

Answer: It all depends on what darkness is for me. I can be full of life while in that state.

For example, the World Cup has just started, and people are engrossed with it from morning until night. If I could interest them in the purpose of creation as intensely as they follow the ball, it would be simply wonderful! In other words, it all depends on what I see as darkness.

Suppose I am deeply drawn to this World Cup, yet I realize that all my thoughts and desires connected with it are darkness! But there is nothing I can do about it! And indeed, what is the purpose of creation matter compared to this? This championship contains the entire taste of life for me. But I define it as darkness. In fact, it is light for me, but my state, my attitude toward it is darkness! And then I begin to search.

Of course, my search is artificial, but I hope that someone will eventually change my state. So I force myself, willingly or not, to join a group that will help me, that will “brainwash” me, so that I will acquire different thoughts. Thus, everything depends on what we define as darkness.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/5/26, Rabash, “What Does, “Everything that Comes to Be a Burnt Offering Is Male,” Mean in the Work? ”

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The depth of spiritual attainment is determined by the depth of the corrected desire. With each new generation, increasingly coarser (more egoistic) souls descend into this world.

For this reason, the Kabbalists who lived before the ARI (16^th century) had a small ego and could not reveal the elements of creation in full detail, such concepts as the Masach (Screen), Tzimtzum Aleph, Tzimtzum Bet (the first and second restrictions), and Ohr Hozer (Reflected Light).

They worked with these spiritual forces, but their origin and actions were not yet fully clear to them. Consequently, they could not describe them with complete precision.

It is like seeing a picture and even being able to paint it while not knowing how colors are decomposed into a spectrum, what wavelength each color has, how those wavelengths affect us, and how they are perceived as sensations.

Without sufficient depth of desire, it is impossible to reach the underlying causes and explain how the light connects with the desire.

The ARI was the first to reveal the distinction and connection between the direct light and the reflected light due to the uniqueness of his soul in its full depth.

In addition, the era of the Messiah was beginning and souls requiring correction started to be revealed in the world.

Before that, came the period of exile during which the ego had not yet manifested itself in a form ready for correction.

Therefore, it is said that all the Kabbalists before the ARI explained Kabbalah primarily from the perspective of the direct light (the Kabbalah of the Ramak), whereas the ARI explained Kabbalah from the perspective of the reflected light (the Kabbalah of the ARI).

Baal HaSulam continued the ARI’s method and made it applicable for our generation.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 10/8/9, Baal HaSulam, Letter 29

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In spiritual work, a person must constantly choose the right line and turn toward the right. According to many Jewish laws, we are required to give preference to the right over the left: in putting on shoes, clothing, and so on. All of these are hints to spirituality. But how can we choose the right line over the left in our actions?

A person must perform such actions that will lead him to choose the right. He never performs the action itself, for he is the result of a combination of forces descending from above. Therefore, one must try to ensure that, under the influence of these forces, he becomes more connected with the right line.

Rabash gives various pieces of advice on how to achieve this: study more, and during the study ask that this happens; be with the friends and listen to their advice on what the right line is and what the left line is; try to clarify for yourself what this is and exalt the right line within yourself.

So start thinking about it and try to clarify this concept. This is precisely what we study: how to make the right decision. Many things operate according to the same principle: choosing a goal, selecting the means to attain it, making an accurate analysis of the situation, and then trying to connect all these things together.

For example, we want to gather together and decide how to publish books in Hebrew, specifically in what external form. We still do not know the details: what the cover should be, what illustration it should have, and everything else. I must clarify what the issue is, by what means I can solve it, and what questions I need to answer, in other words, how I arrive at the certainty that a particular format is the best possible one.

In this simple way, without unnecessary philosophizing, we choose only what is essential. We do not feel that this relates to our spiritual work, but in fact it does, and it is very closely connected to it. If we know how to present our work in the group correctly, and indeed everything we do in life, then we will never make a mistake.

This is the process of clarification and decision-making. We do not know on what basis to make decisions or how to make them, but the decision is the result of the process of our work, and it will be correct if the process itself is correct. This aligns perfectly with our spiritual laws.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/15/26, Rabash, “What Is “Do Not Slight the Blessing of a Layperson” in the Work?”

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