As we read The Zohar, what is important to me? Is it to know the text in all its details or to get to know the Creator? After all, The Zohar talks about Him and His actions. Do I wish to know what’s written about the actions themselves or about where and from Whom these actions come?

There is a breaking point concealed here which leads either to success or failure, Light or darkness, revelation of the Creator or remembrance of the text, studying the Torah or attaining the One who gives the Torah. The goal is to reveal and get to know the Creator who is behind the text. He is precisely what is important to me, and that is why I think about how to reveal the force through the actions that are described here.

It is like I sit at the table with the Host, who has prepared the most exquisite dishes for me. However, I don’t even look at the dishes or pay attention to anything around me. It’s not that I neglect everything; I use it just in order to reveal Him and to obtain a connection with Him.

Why did I come to this table in the first place? I came for the sake of the Host, in order to meet Him, not for the food. Once I perform various actions in order to get to know Him, I am then allowed to take anything I want from the table, to taste it and enjoy it. I can do anything as long as He is important to me and everything else is just a means.

As we read The Zohar, we study the Creator’s actions, and the only purpose of doing so is to reveal Him. We should concentrate on what is behind the text and try to permeate through it. On the one hand, the book seems to confuse me. On the other hand, through my effort to penetrate through the text, I suddenly begin to see the Creator behind it. There is no other opportunity to reveal Him. There is no other connection to the Host.

I don’t understand Him because He is concealed behind the table. I can understand Him only by studying the dishes given to me. For example, I like sweets and He has prepared them for me. He created me to like sweets and He gave them to me. What does He desire by this? In addition, I don’t really like sour things, yet He gives me sour. Why? I need to reveal Him through myself.
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From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/20/10, The Zohar

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Question: Please tell us, how can we advance by the path and method of Baal HaSulam in order to attain the goal as quickly as possible?

Answer: Overall we have already studied Baal HaSulam’s method and everything he wrote. We just have to actualize it. We have merited to be acquainted with this person, this soul, and his life’s work. We live with his thoughts, inside the "building" he has built. The science of Kabbalah develops because the souls develop. More and more souls are reaching the final stage of correction and are coming closer to realizing themselves.

The final exile is over and we are now the first to go from the final exile to the full redemption, the revelation of the Creator. To do this, we really need support, help, a great Light, and the teaching that Baal HaSulam left to us. We see how much it helps us to use it, and when we follow his method to the letter, we achieve success and awaken the Light that Reforms.

For now the Light influences us in a concealed manner and the results are not very visible on the outside. However, day by day this force grows, becoming more noticeable and perceptible. I really hope that we will soon start to feel what we read and to feel the same forms, qualities, and images inside us.

All of the pictures we read about in The Book of Zohar and Talmud Eser Sefirot will enter us and we will see that it is all a movie! Right now our desires depict the picture of this world for us, and likewise, later on our desires (which will be desires of bestowal) will depict the picture of a second nature, the Upper World. Then we will understand what Baal HaSulam did for us!

He writes that in reality people begin studying the Torah only after they reveal spiritual attainment. When you reveal pictures of the world to come, you have to know what all of this is for! It’s like a baby who needs adults. Then you will feel that Baal HaSulam and Rabash take care of you, like a baby, by explaining this entire world to you.

With their help you start going deeper and deeper into it, understanding it better and making some independent actions. You are more inspired each time, while these great teachers are by your side, always taking care of you and supporting you at every moment through every step of the way.

We have yet to see how great the enterprise that Baal HaSulam created is and to realize how great the preparations he made are. He built the "kindergarten," the "school," and the whole "university" of spiritual life. He prepared all of this for us. If not for him, no Kabbalistic school could help us. Others can only add something to the revelation that we make by the method of Baal HaSulam as we attain the spiritual world.

I really hope that we will reach this revelation and then we will begin to attain how truly great he is and his love for us. After that, we will be able to communicate on another level and understand each other. I really hope to meet you in the world of truth, where we will be able to discuss everything taking place, look at things from a true perspective, and understand each other.

We are doing all of this together with Rabash and Baal HaSulam. They are helping us, and you will feel how they always support us, surrounding us with care. Let’s try to be worthy of them!

From the talk at the meal in honor of Baal HaSulam’s Passing Day 9/18/10

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Question: What does the speed of spiritual advancement depend on?

Answer: The speed of the spiritual advancement depends on how often a person asks the Creator (The Upper Light, the universal property of bestowal and love) to correct him. As soon as he sees his egoistic attitude toward the world, reproaches himself for the past, hates others, starts performing calculations with himself and others, he has to draw the Light of the Creator because there is no other acting force in nature.

After all, everything that a person senses is what the Upper Light is purposely depicting for him in order to attract his attention to itself.
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We need to strive to always be in faith above reason. If the Creator were to reveal Himself, I would lose my independent “I” and become a “parasite” (one who receives) in the upper system.

It is similar to the way a person who lies in bed attached to tubes with artificial support doesn’t need to get out of bed. If the Creator were to reveal Himself, I would be unable and unwilling to make a single move because He would fill the entire world with Himself. This is why I always need to be independent from Him and conceal Him.

Now, we understand why Malchut, once she experienced this state in the World of Infinity, was unable to handle it: This cancels the “I” which is the essence of creation. The Creator awakens the “I” in us, and we become ready to refuse the entire fulfillment, the entire knowledge. This is the feeling of shame when it seems to us as if we have ceased to exist.

This is why our entire work is in constantly preserving ourselves as the creature that is distinct from the Creator, but, on the other hand, similar to Him. This is possible only when we keep a divider between us. However, this divider does not really separate us. We connect above it through similarity, meaning the connection that we have built between us to the extent of our similarity.

I do not let my desire to enjoy receive the Light directly. We unite with the Creator and are inseparable from one another in the Reflected Light where I build the similarity to Him. Knowledge and reason are below, while faith and bestowal are above them. It is in this faith and bestowal where I connect with the Creator.

The Creator never reveals Himself in such a way as to do all of my work for me and cancel my “I.” The Upper One only shows me examples by lowering His lower part, AHP (Awzen, Hotem, Peh), to me, while I take these examples and make myself similar to Him.

This is what is referred to as “the Creator’s work.” He does not do the correction for me, but teaches me how to correct myself. And the pleasure comes from our adhesion or connection.

From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/15/10, “What is the Advantage that There is in Work Which is More than the  Reward”

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Right now we are thinking about the unity between us because we have discovered that we can reveal the Creator only inside it. I don’t want to feel myself inside the connection between us; I want to feel everyone together. And no matter what problems come to us, it’s only in order to give me the opportunity to strengthen the connection even more. Then the problems are called “a descent in order to ascend,” but we have to prepare for them.

Imagine that you have already attained the sensation of “outside yourself.” If we want this field of connection to exist between us, then inside the descents, disappointments, and efforts to stay together, we will feel that the only force that can hold us together is the Creator.

Why do we need the Creator? Why can’t we connect together on our own? In order for a connection to emerge between us, we have to reveal the inner force that hides inside us. This force does not belong to us at all, but the field of connection between us will be able to exist only if this force (the Creator) becomes revealed.

We need the revelation of the Creator because otherwise our unity will be lifeless. It will be similar to dead cells that were taken from different bodies and brought together – but where do you get the force of life? How can you breathe life into a body from outside? We don’t know how to do this. This is the force of the Creator who is inside matter and enlivens it.

You can take atoms or molecules and connect them however you want to. But where will you get the force of life in order to bring your creation to life? We are unable to do this, and will never be able to. We can connect things that are already alive, meaning, use something that’s already there.

The same thing happens to us: We can unite and create a connection, but who will bring it to life? That’s why we will demand the Creator! We are already starting to feel that this connection cannot exist without Him.

From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/17/10, Selected Excerpts for Yom Kippur

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Question: It is written, “Don’t believe in yourself until you die,” meaning until your egoism dies. How, then, can I be sure that I’ll reach the goal and won’t lose the path?

Answer: I have a spiritual goal and the means to attain it, and I have to hold on to them. I cannot be sure about tomorrow, which is why I have to make a covenant with the group and the Creator today in order to guarantee that I will reach the Upper Goal!

If I can’t manage to stay on the path, then I will fall into the animate existence and will view life from that level. Then the Creator will not take me into consideration at all.

Alternatively, I can bind myself to the group and give myself over to them completely so they will guard me. Then I am tied to the group and I can’t fall, as if I’m on a ship caught in a storm where the sailors tie themselves to the deck so they don’t get washed into the sea by the waves. Every person should see himself as being in such a perilous state.

I have to organize the covenant between us while I am still full of energy and inspiration, while I am in the state of ascent. That’s when I sign the covenant because I understand that later on there might be a time when I won’t be able to justify the spiritual goal. Everything will seem hopeless and bad and I won’t have a doubt that I am right about that.

Therefore, it is written, “Don’t believe in yourself until you die.” If a person doesn’t give himself over to the group so it governs him, then he will be governed by his own egoism and won’t have a chance to break out of it. It’s useless to waste time in vain: Either make the covenant or go back home to sit on the couch.

From the 1^st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/17/10, Shamati #52

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Beginning with Adam, the earlier a Kabbalist lived, the closer he was connected with the root and the higher he stood. He was the source of Light for all who came after him. However, for those who desire to connect with the beam of Light expanding from Infinity, the main source is the latest or the nearest Kabbalist for it is he who “hooks up” and connects you with the Light, the Creator.

For us, such a Kabbalist was Baal HaSulam. He writes that he was given the privilege to hand the science of Kabbalah down to us. We are privileged that such a soul has been revealed to us who is passing the method of Kabbalah forth which allows us to uncover the Creator.

Baal HaSulam’s writings are the only works that can guide us to reaching our spiritual goal today. The books written by Baal HaSulam are the only texts that channel the Light that we need for our correction. And in order to prepare ourselves for them, we need the articles of Rabash.

The revelation of the Creator to the created beings, or our spiritual liberation, must be complete for everyone. This means that the teaching provided by these two masters is the teaching for the entire world.

From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/16/10, Lesson for Commemoration of Baal HaSulam’s Passing Day

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When we read The Book of Zohar, we try to create a common space where we aspire to connect our points in the heart. This is the meaning of “studying the Torah.” It’s impossible to "study the Torah" without such an intention.

The point in the heart is “Israel.” "Isra-El" translates as “aspiring to the Creator.” Through the study, we want to attain the Torah: the Light that corrects us. Then, we reveal the Creator in the connection between us. In that connection and, accordingly, in revealing the Creator, there are 125 degrees, or 5 worlds, 5 Lights of NaRaNHaY.

Our world is the total lack of connection from which we commence our efforts to unify. The end point of unification between us is called the “World of Infinity.”

This is how the entire system of the common Soul, called Adam Ha Rishon, Shechina, or Malchut of Infinity is revealed. The form of this spiritual vessel (Kli) is called “the Creator” (Kadosh Baruch Hu): the quality of love and bestowal.

Everything exists within this system. The entire science of Kabbalah speaks only of how to reveal the Creator in accordance with the law of equivalence of form, as it is written, “From love of the created beings to love of the Creator.” By uniting together, we create a system between us which matches the Upper Force of bestowal.

This is the picture we must always have in our heads when we read The Book of Zohar. I must always check where I am on this ladder of connection between us, what The Zohar speaks of right now, whether I want to unite with others or I resist, and what is it that’s stopping me. The whole time I think of one thing only: how I (Israel) am connected with the others through a force which unites us (the Torah). Within our correct connection, I reveal the true quality of bestowal: the Creator.

From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/14/10, The Zohar

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Our entire path consists of revealing the Creator’s actions toward us and finding the right reaction to them. It is called “work of the Creator,” when I wish to learn two things: Who is doing this to me, and what He is doing. In other words, I wish to reveal the action and the One who acts.

My attitude to the actions and the One who acts is formed through my attempts to reveal them. And in this regard I can already be referred to as a “human being,” the “I” that somehow relates to “what happens to me” and to “the One who controls me.”

The attitude to the action occurs “within reason,” that is, within and according to the mind. If I relate to the One who acts, to the Creator who controls these actions, in opposition to what I feel from His actions, then this is called “above reason” or despite of reason. If I relate to the Creator in direct dependence from His actions, this is called “within reason.”

However, we evaluate our whole work only in relation to the Creator. I may feel His actions as “bitter or sweet,” perceiving them as “good or evil,” according to my sensations. Yet simultaneously, I also have the attitude of “true or false” in regard to the Creator.

Not necessarily is bitter always true and sweet always false. If I rise above my sensation of “bitter or sweet,” and instead of caring about the sensation, I reveal that it comes from the Creator (who is good and does good), then it means that I am in faith above reason.

I am incapable of this on my own since I live by my sensations. However, I can receive help from the Creator, and the difference between “bitter and sweet” will no longer exist. Then this means that I am in bestowal and relate to Him by faith above reason.

I rose above my sensation due to the force that I received from Him, and now I accept pleasant and unpleasant states, “good” and “evil” equally. I don’t just succumb to the circumstances; I truly feel that way, and this determines the height of my relationship with the Creator.

The more opposition there is between good and evil, while perceiving them equally and blessing the Creator for the bad things as well as the good, the higher is my spiritual degree. It is the height to which I rise above my desires and fulfillment, be they pleasant or not. This is called the measure of faith in the Creator.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/14/10, “Preparation for the Reception of Torah”

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Question: What is the difference between the Light that we try to attract from The Zohar and the Light which nullifies us and turns us into the animate level?

Answer: There is only one Light, but the way it is expressed depends on us. It’s like electricity, which either cools or heats something depending on what you connect to it.

How the Light becomes expressed depends on a person’s preparation, but the Light itself does not change; neither its intensity changes, nor its nature. It is written that the Creator remains at rest, He is “Good, who does good,” the World of Infinity.

The system of the souls’ connection, which was created by the Creator in the World of Infinity becomes revealed to me gradually, step by step. The nature of its revelation depends on my preparation, my attitude toward this process, whether I desire it or not.

When I see the process as desirable since it brings me closer to the Creator and this is the most important thing to me, then I feel that “I am my beloved’s and He is mine.” This means that I am always in a state of ascent; I am righteous because I justify all of the Creator’s actions. I am in the World of Infinity, at peace.

However, if I desire to be closer to Him only when it benefits me, then my love depends on what I receive. This means that I go from ascents to descents depending on the way I feel, and for this reason I am a sinner. I depend on the conditions, not on love. Everything changes, sometimes for better and sometimes for worse. Thus, what changes is not the Light, but myself: my attitude towards my Beloved.

We can see this through a famous example: a young lady (the soul, Shechina, Malchut) strives to be with her destitute beloved (Zeir Anpin, the Creator) for the sake of love above any calculations, while her family (egoistic relatives, Klipot) are against this union, and they offer her another suitor, one who is wealthy and cares only about fulfillment where everything is calculated.

From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/15/10, The Zohar

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