A question I received: Today the wisdom of Kabbalah isn’t passed down the way it was in the past, from a Rav to a student. Instead, it is implemented in a big group. Spirituality is attained in a group, where all 600,000 people reach attainment together like at Mount Sinai. Is it true that there are no more individuals who can attain spirituality by the old method? Is this the reason why the mutual guarantee, “love your neighbor as yourself” in a group is now the method for attaining equivalence with the Creator?

My Answer: Kabbalah was revealed by Abraham in ancient Babylon. It’s a method of correcting the egoism of the whole civilization, bringing it to equivalence with the Creator – eternal and perfect existence. However, since the people of Babylon did not want to correct their egoism, but wanted to develop egoistically, we have now reached the dead end of such development, just like The Book of Zohar predicted.

Today that entire Babylonian civilization has spread around the whole planet, and it is reaching the conclusion that it’s necessary to implement the method of egoism’s correction. There is simply no other way to go, as otherwise we will destroy ourselves. The way to implement the method of correction is for everyone to unite into one soul, to “love your neighbor as yourself.” In the Torah, this is explained as the condition of the Creator’s revelation at Mount Sinai.

Throughout the past 4000 years the method was preserved and adjusted to fit the times. This was done by a lineage of individual Kabbalists who lived in every generation. Today it is presented to us through the compositions of Baal HaSulam in a form that’s ready to use. I am a faithful student of Baal HaSulam’s oldest son, Rabash (as stated in Rabash’s obituary in the newspaper “HaModia” on September 15, 1991) and my role is to help people understand these materials.

Related Material:
Kabbalah Today Article: Who Are You, People of Israel?
Kabbalah Today Article: Camp Mt. Sinai
Baal HaSulam Article: “The Arvut (Mutual Guarantee)”
Lecture at the Educational Center “Nekuda Shebalev”: Unconditional Love

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Last weekend our friends in Mexico held a dissemination event where they gave out the newspaper La Voz de la Cabalá (The Voice of Kabbalah) at a very popular tourist site – the city of Valle de Bravo, 150 km from Mexico City. They disseminated about 1000 newspapers in two hours. For several years now our groups in Latin America have been setting an example in study, unity and dissemination!

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Dissemination in Mexico
Live Kabbalah Classes in Spanish

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A question I received: Baal HaSulam writes in his article “The Last Generation” that altruistic deeds will lead to a better society only if they are made “for the sake of the Creator.” Please give an example of an altruistic deed and explain how one must aim his thoughts, or what image one must have in mind, in order for his deeds and intentions to be for the sake of the Creator. Your explanation will be important for work I am doing with a group of children.

My Answer: In order to really attain the intention of bestowal, of “not for oneself,” to come out of ourselves and have goals that serve others, we need a field in which to work, a place and model that we can use for correcting ourselves. We have to become similar to the Creator even though He is concealed from us. That is to say, the Creator cannot be that model because He is concealed from us. However, He broke the only creation He made, the soul, into many pieces – particular souls. Within each of these parts, He created a perception of self, its “I,” and of others opposite to it. This is our egoism.

When we unite, and when each of us fights his own egoism within, we will then be able to see whether we are attaining spirituality – the quality of mutual bestowal and love. Then we will discover that we cannot attain it and will turn to the Creator. We will discover Him and His readiness to correct our desires, provided that we are mutually responsible for one another and support each other in this regard – and if we turn to him precisely through this force of “Mutual Guarantee.”

Baal HaSulam writes that in our times, this is the necessary condition for entering the Upper World or the quality of bestowal. Hence, all altruistic deeds can only take place inside the group or virtual society, among friends who desire to attain mutual aspiration and support – the mutual guarantee.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: How Do You Turn a Bat Into a Rooster?
Baal HaSulam Article: “The Arvut (Mutual Guarantee)”
Baal HaSulam Article: “The Love for the Creator & Love for the Created Beings”
Kabbalah Today Article: From Racial Rifts to Spiritual Harmony
Kabbalah Today Article: Rabbi Hya’s Vision

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Dear friends!

Bnei Baruch is hosting an international Internet campaign in conjunction with the FLIX website. The campaign is called “Shana Tova” (Happy New Year), and it’s dedicated to the Israeli New Year, which will begin on September 29, 2008. The campaign is a competition of the best video wishing people a Happy New Year.

Every time someone views a video clip on the FLIX website, they will see an ad of our website – “Kabbalah L’Am.”

Click here to watch an explanatory video on how you can easily help disseminate the wisdom of Kabbalah by participating in this campaign.

So far 345 video clips have been posted and watched by 121,571 people! Here are just a few to sample – by watching them, you will be helping to disseminate Kabbalah (please wait for the video clips to finish playing):

• Taxi – by the evening group
• Shana Tova… Scared? – by the young group
• Shana Tova from Eliezer and the Carrot – by the Haifa Group
• Shana Tova from Noah – by the Eilat Group
• A New Reincarnation, a New Year – by the Ashdod Group
• A Moment Before “Closing Shop” – by the virtual group

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Happy New Year from the Odessa Congress!
Laitman.com Post: “Shana Tova!” or “Happy New Year!”

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Our friends in Columbia have created a new blog where they publish articles, news, photos, and videos about Kabbalah.

The most rigorous spiritual development is taking place in Latin American countries.

Good luck to you, and may you succeed! Only together!

Related Material:
Kabbalah website in Spanish
Rav Laitman’s Blog in Spanish
Kabbalah Learning Center – Lessons in Spanish
Kabbalah Bookstore: Books in Spanish

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Questions I received on different projects people would like to see completed by our Kabbalah Academy:

Question: Why doesn’t your website have all the chapters of the Talmud Eser Sefirot, and where can I find the entire Talmud Eser Sefirot in English?

My Answer: All of the translations are done by our friends. This is an enormous job, and in order to accomplish it we would need a whole group of people to work on it full time. We just don’t have the funds to make this happen. Whoever considers this project a priority is welcome to finance it, and we can provide the workers who can complete this project.

Question: Is it possible for your site to display a map of the world showing all the participants of the virtual friends’ gatherings in real time, represented by blinking dots on the map?

My Answer: If someone can create this map, then we will be happy to display it on our site. There are many good projects, but there aren’t enough funds from the Maaser nor people who can work to complete all the projects. You’re welcome to help us in both ways, or try to do it on your own.

Question: The books that help correct us are the books of Ari, Baal HaSulam, and Rabash. When will these books be available in English?

My Answer: When we have the people and the funds for it. You’re welcome to help (yourself)!

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Whose Money Supports the Existence of the Kabbalah Academy?
Laitman.com Post: The Cycle of Descents and Ascents, and the Correction of the Maaser (Advanced)
Laitman.com Post: Life Goes On and It’s In Our Favor
Laitman.com Post: Hello from the Black Sea Resorts
Laitman.com Post: Worldwide Map of Bnei Baruch
Help Share Kabbalah
Spreading The Wisdom of Kabbalah

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Here’s an interactive map of the world Kli that was made by our friends in Germany. By clicking on “All Contacts” at the bottom right, you can view all the contact addresses. When you move the mouse over any point on the map, the local group’s contact information appears at the bottom of the page.

Please notify us of any additions that should be made, and we’ll be sure to update the map!

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The World Kli News, 09-07-08

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Three questions I received on sharing one’s personal attainments, staying connected with the Creator on every new level, and overcoming disgust of Kabbalah:

Question: Why is it harmful to share your personal attainments with others? And if so, what is meant by “attainment” in this case? Is the prohibition only on sharing one’s “communication” with the Creator, or are there other forbidden topics? Is it harmful for people to share their experience of going through different states, such as how they came out of descents, and their relationships with the environment? I feel that other people’s experience really helps me, and enables me to discover new perspectives on how to do inner work in Kabbalah.

My Answer: You cannot bring your personal relationship with the Creator outside of you. The Creator is envious! This can be compared to a situation where you love someone, or your intimate relationships, or how much money you have in the bank, and so on. There are things that you don’t want to share with everyone.

In Kabbalah, there are several reasons for the prohibition:

• One does not speak with anyone about the things he holds most dear;
• Any person can harm your spiritual path with his thoughts and desires, even unintentionally;
• Corrections are done through the intention, not through words.

Question: On every new level, what can help me stay connected with the Creator, and perform a correct analysis of my thoughts and desires, considering that everything starts from zero on every new level?

My Answer: The only thing that can help is a framework that you set ahead of time:

• systematic studies for 1-3 hours a day;
• dissemination for 1+ hours a day; and
• attending a gathering of friends once a week together with other people who are physically near you.

Question: Over the last week or two, I feel disgusted during the morning lessons. But I also feel an inner urge to persist in studying and coming to the morning lessons. This also happens in relation to the friends in the group. How should I deal with this situation?

My Answer: You should overcome yourself, but without breaking or forcing yourself – only by raising the importance of the goal, “The Attainment of the Creator.” You should see all the disturbances as a mountain that you have to climb in order to reach the goal, the Creator.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: What Will Help Us Along the Way?
Laitman.com Post: The Surrounding Light Influences Us Only When We Evoke It
Laitman.com Post: In All Life Situations, Your Behavior Should Be Determined Only by the Spiritual Goal
Chapter from Book The Kabbalah Experience: “Reflections and Thoughts”
Shamati #79: “Atzilut in BYA”

Filed under: Spirituality - 1 Comment →

A question I received (my answers appear in bold font): In this blog entry you wrote: “You shouldn’t fight against anything, except your own laziness in carrying out the instructions of Kabbalists.” If a group of men has agreed to carry out the instructions of Kabbalists – we have composed a charter and created a group – but then began to experience group laziness, then what should we do?

• Admit that we’re not ready, that we can’t carry out the part of the instructions that deal with friendship and the group, and then get together to discuss what to do next? Try to fight this state by elevating the importance of the goal.
• Pretend that nothing is happening? Definitely not! Otherwise this will go on forever.
• Focus on dissemination? This is the only way to work together and perform actions of bestowal. Hence, the best thing to do is to get together only for dissemination and weekly gatherings of friends. Later, once you mature, you will be able to expand your relationships.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The Group Is the Place for Discerning All Your Spiritual Questions
Laitman.com Post: By Disseminating the Wisdom of Kabbalah, You Correct Your “Self”
Rabash Article – “The Purpose of the Association”

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A question I received: What is the connection between Reshimot and the history of humanity? You have said that the first Reshimo that developed in this world was the point in the heart. Does this mean that the history of humanity is the sequential expression of Reshimot?

Answer: All matter descended from above downwards, from the World of Infinity to our world, and each level of descent left behind Reshimot (reminiscences, informational data). In our world everything unravels from this spiral of Reshimot in the reverse order, from below upwards.

First comes the development of Reshimot on the still level of nature, then the vegetative level, followed by the animate level and finally matter on the speaking or human level. Man also develops gradually through the chain of Reshimot, and this constitutes the historical development.

However, the first spiritual Reshimo of our movement back (from below upwards) surfaced only 5768 years ago in a man named Adam, and then in more and more people. This is why Kabbalists use Adam as the starting point of the calendar. The nation of Israel was born from the group of Kabbalists, and hence it too considers Adam to be the starting point of its history. Adam was the first man to attain the Creator, and he told us about Him in the book The Angel Raziel.

Today the Reshimot are surfacing and developing on their final stage, and they are demanding their spiritual realization by all people – the ascent of all people to the World of Infinity.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: History Is the Unraveling of Reshimot Inside Us
Laitman.com Post: The Formula of the Soul
Article – “The Freedom of Will”
Kabbalah Today Article: “Creation, Evolution and Beyond”

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