In order to understand and feel where we are, we have to grow spiritually. In the material world, a drop of semen starts to grow in the mother’s womb and then, after coming out into this world, continues to live in a larger space, ultimately becoming a human being. Similar processes take place in our internal spiritual development.

At a certain stage of our earthly lives we begin to sense a drop of spiritual semen that is called “the point in heart,” a desire toward spiritual development. This means that the point has unwrapped itself. We didn’t exist in this world before our parents gave birth to us. Similarly, we are brought to spiritual birth by our father and mother (also called “Abba ve Ima” in Kabbalah).

Spiritual growth happens under the influence of a force called the Upper Light. It leads us through concealments and revelations of the Light. It “shakes” us by revealing itself and showing us reality and then hiding it from us again. It plays with us and  increases and decreases our aspiration toward it. The Light influences us by altering the states we go through: good and bad, and in clarity and confusion. If our reaction is right, we develop: one more moment, one more day, and one more week.

Our development can last for thousands of years or we can complete it in a year or two. Everything depends upon the individual. All we need to know is how to react to the force that triggers our development, and to start connecting everything to one source: “There is None Else Besides Him.” He hides behind our visible wrapping of reality.

I start to discern Him and dig deeper into this reality. I do this in order to feel this power and understand how it works through all the “coverings” of this world including: close friends, strangers, nature, and even myself when it changes me internally.

With the internal changes, I begin to sense myself as a black box that understands and feels to a small degree the influences it undergoes. I begin to understand that my only task is to react to what’s happening to me. Impulses come from a visible reality, from those who are close to me, from strangers, friends and enemies; all of them are shadows that block the Upper Force from me.

If I manage to connect with the Creator through this concealment, it is called “a shade of holiness” since I build my relationship with the Creator through the resistance of concealment. At this point I begin to understand the show He is playing for me, and through it, I attain Him.

From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 6/4/10, Shamati #8

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A question I received: Will my soul remember everything I learned in this life? Will I continue to learn Kabbalah and come to the group again in my next life?

My Answer: The only thing that a person takes with him from this life is the spiritual path that he went through; this does not vanish. After all, in regard to spirituality, we are, and continue to be in the same reality, but it is slightly hidden from us.

I am constantly situated in my soul, in spite of the fact that I don’t feel it, I continue to work with it and go through different states. All this occurs in my eternal soul. The fact that I now see physical bodies and this world around me is a “mirage” of my spiritual state.

If I work internally now, then I will begin my next reincarnation from a higher spiritual state, and I will come to a Kabbalah group faster and will be more successful in my studies. The entire previous path will remain within me in the form of spiritual genes (Reshimot); it doesn’t vanish. In the spiritual world nothing vanishes at all; things disappear only in our world because this whole world will eventually vanish. In the meantime, nothing that I have acquired through my egoistic desire remains, since the desire itself vanishes, only the external clothing remains.

Every time the soul goes through a new reincarnation, it builds an environment for itself according to its ability and the necessity to correct itself. Why do I exist in this environment and not a different one? It is because my soul requires this. No calculation is performed in regard to the bodies; they exist in connection with each other, in this world, in all of the situations that are necessary for the soul’s correction.

Meanwhile, the body is not taken into account. Actually, it doesn’t exist at all; it is a virtual illusion that presents itself to us in this form. In actuality, only the soul exists, but we are unable to feel it. And its development clearly determines what happens to the bodies.

Therefore, in the end of “Preface to The Book of Zohar” Baal HaSulam writes that only the correction of the souls will help us correct our world and perceive this corporeal life as more kind. All the offenses that occur in this world are a consequence of the necessity for the soul to be corrected. At the same time, there are no actions or corrections in this world: changes are only possible through the soul.

From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 6/2/10, Article “Which Degree Should One Acheive?”

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A question I received: What does “triggering the soul of a righteous“ (Ibur Neshmat Tzadik) mean?

My Answer: This means that a person who wishes to reach a goal and seeks how to accomplish this suddenly feels that he is being helped and supported. He feels a higher soul  clothing in him like NHY de Ima clothes in Zeir Anpin. It is like in our world when a baby is born, there are always grown up relatives around him, those who love and sustain him.They take responsibility for him. And the child reciprocates with his love and loyalty.

Thereby, the law “I Was Borrowed On, and I Repay” is fulfilled. This means the person accepts their assistance and caring and then compensates or pays – not directly to them, but to the other souls. This is how the cycle is completed. Similarly in our world, a baby is born and his parents take care of him, and when the parents get old, the child, now grown up himself, looks after them and his own young children too, thus linking all generations with the previous and the following levels.

Only this arrangement of linking all the levels gives us an opportunity to ascend. Actually, it is impossible to ascend from step to step without the external help. Every time I ascend to a new spiritual step, I am reborn. To ascend, I need assistance from the group (through mutual guarantee), from the Creator (who works on us through the group), and from the special souls (our teachers and helpers).

It doesn’t matter whether they are in our world or are helping us from the system of souls. We receive help from all the Kabbalists who corrected themselves. Their corrected souls have already reached the common system of Adam HaRishon in the World of Infinity, and they are helping us. Thus we ascend. This system of help is called the shepherd of the mules; it is the common soul (the collective help) helping to correct our “donkey” (our matter).

From the Evening Zohar Lesson 6/2/10, Article, “Which Degree Should One Achieve”

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People don’t know what the state of Lishma is, and often use this name to label completely non-spiritual states. They don’t understand that to attain Lishma is a great work, which is impossible without studying Kabbalah, the group, and obeying the rules of ascension explained by the Kabbalists.

In fact, Lishma means that you rise above your egoism and are entirely in bestowal. In the quality of bestowal, you see the spiritual world, and in this world, you exist only for the sake of spirituality. You identify yourself entirely with your soul, but your body still needs to be healthy in order to exist in both worlds. The soul can’t really advance if its other half, the body, doesn’t exist in this world. The soul needs the body until the very last step.

People don’t understand that to attain the quality of bestowal, Lishma, one has to draw the Light that returns us to the source of bestowal, to equivalence to the Creator. Afterward, a person is called “angel”, meaning he is openly receiving the Creator’s orders and following them through. He either “hears” or “sees” the Creator. He uncovers the Upper System, his relationship with the Creator in the Light Hassadim or maybe even Hochma. This attainment doesn’t have anything to do with the quantity and quality of knowledge, but only the measure of attainment of the quality of bestowal and love.
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From the 3rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 6/1/10, Introduction to the Study of the Ten Sefirot, Item 122

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A person cannot acquire a spiritual vessel, the desire to receive the property of bestowal from Above without annulling himself before the group. Without this, he will study but to no avail. Moreover, if he puts himself above others, then his study will become “the potion of death” and turn him into a “bat in the night.” Conversely, if a person puts himself below the friends, then his study will make him a “rooster greeting the dawn.”

Therefore, everything depends solely on one’s attitude to the group and the friends. Furthermore, it’s not what one does outwardly; most important is what is happening inside one’s heart. Namely:

1) To what extent he feels (still egoistically) that without the friends he will not achieve the goal;

2) How much he works in order to see them as greater. In reality, it is very difficult and one should at least understand that the Creator has chosen these friends for him.

Until one starts relating to the others like to his own family, who are important and necessary for him, the Light will not affect him positively.

I ascend the first step if I perceive everyone as “1” and myself as “0”; that in relation to them, I am proportionately  “0.1,” meaning that I perceive myself as 10 times lesser than them. But at the second step, egoism brings me the “burdening of the heart,” and I will have to perceive them 100 times more important than me; and at the third step, 1,000 times. Otherwise, I won’t be able to ask the Light that Reforms to affect me. Every time I wish to ascend, I must first descend even deeper. Thus, every time one feels a greater gap between himself and the society (10, 100, and 1,000 times more).

This advancement is impossible without the support of the environment and the common objective burning passionately in everyone. By this, everyone gains motivation, inspiration, importance of spirituality, as well as the understanding that this is the only worthy occupation in life.

We begin with the love of friends which helps us draw the Surrounding Light, which corrects us and gives us a genuine love of others, whereby we come to love of the Creator. Therefore, this principle applies throughout our whole spiritual ascent, in every action, from start to finish along the path.

From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 5/30/10, Article, “According to What is Explained Concerning ‘Love Thy Friend’”

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A question I received: Why do 90% of the obstacles I get pertain to my physical body (I’m hungry, I’m tired, and so on)? After all, corporeality is far less important than spirituality and contains only a small spark of life.

My Answer: You’re asking why we weren’t given the opportunity to work with spiritual desires, lights, and screens, instead of the corporeal ones. But to the extent that you begin to view the world in waves of bestowal, you naturally stop noticing this world. It stops being the determining world for you. You continue to exist in this world and connecting with people, but without this world being connected to the spiritual world, it loses its meaning. It is merely a consequence, a reflection, of the spiritual worlds that project reality to you.

There is a special technology that projects three-dimensional, holographic images in the air via laser beams. They make all kinds of figures appear in empty space. In a similar fashion, this world is presented to you in illusory images, for this world is but an imprint of what exists in spirituality.

It is our egoistic desire that projects this world for us. For the time being, it can only exist in this form that does not disappear until the very end of correction. Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai could be sitting here with us and he would be seeing our corporeal world despite being fully corrected himself. Indeed, this world will only disappear from our senses following the general, final correction.

This world pertains to the general desire to receive pleasure. It is an egoistic desire, yet it is not against the Creator. It is simply a desire to lead an animal life and receive pleasure.
Therefore, it is not considered criminal and does not require correction. You simply need to use it like an animal and shape it into a desire to bestow – the soul.

From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 5/26/10, The Zohar

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We are yet to discover our need for all seven billion people living on Earth. Society serves as an amplifying force because an individual’s own strength is very small. Thus, the more people in society under whose influence we put ourselves, the greater the strength we receive. It determines the height of the degree in our resembling the Creator, as well as the measure of adhesion we attain with Him.

We wouldn’t be able to achieve this alone on our own. A Kabbalistic group is a place where a person attaches himself to the Creator, and this determines how high he’ll climb to Him. The group becomes the house where the Creator and the creature dwell together. And when we dwell together there is no longer “I”; rather, there is only “we,” which now becomes the person’s “I.”

It is said, “A prisoner cannot free himself from the prison.” However, the friends can free him by providing him with their inspiration and strength. Therefore, everyone should think about helping a friend connect each state that occurs to its importance toward the purpose, along with understanding its necessity and rejoicing when the “sinners” are revealed in them.

It’s not important what states, what ups and downs, we go through; most important is that we progress toward the goal. Then we understand that we have to go through all states, like a patient undergoing treatment that might be unpleasant, but the recovery is already anticipated. Therefore, it is necessary to elevate each other’s spirits, not by acting silly or frivolous, but by giving each other the spirit of life, that is, spiritual life, which brings one happiness.

The mood is so important because it gives us the force of life. However, material life, wealth, or power won’t bring us an uplifted mood. If a person lost the power of faith, the force of life,  if he no longer feels the support of the society, the only means of advancement, then he can be helped only by another person. Only the other person can imbue us with the feeling of how important bestowal, confidence, and a fulfilled life are. In this, everyone has to help a friend. Everyone has to set an example of his burning passion toward reaching the goal at any minute.

From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/25/10, Article, “They Helped Everyone His Friend”

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A question I received: How does the Upper bring the lower one up the steps of the spiritual ladder?

My Answer: The Upper degree switches into his lesser state (Katnut) and descends to the lower presenting himself to the lower as smaller. We do the same thing when playing with children. We want the children to have success, so we lower ourselves and let them win the game. We lower ourselves to establish a connection with them.

This is like a mentor, who acts among children just as if he is like them; then gradually he begins to change, to model more desirable behavior, so that the children could see him as an example of a corrected child. First, the mentor displays an example as a child, not as an adult, so that the children can relate to him. We know that children learn more readily from other children than from adults.

This is because the environment impacts people only if the people in it are equal. Friends must be on equal terms; then they can serve as an example to each other. If I feel that a friend is greater than I am, he is not my friend anymore. I learn from the same level I am on.

It is the same way in the spiritual world. The Upper descends to the lower and becomes identical to the lower in everything, and by doing so, he unites with the lower. The lower doesn’t annul himself before the higher one since they are seemingly equal; hence, they unite on equal terms. After this, the Upper one can ascend and bring the lower one up with him.

In order to ascend with the Upper one, the lower one must annul his receiving desires (AHP), but remain united with the Upper one as an equal, in the bestowing desires (Galgalta ve-Eynaim). Thus, when the Upper one descends to me, I will not perceive him as higher because he has become the same as me. If a 7 foot tall adult plays with a child while matching the child’s emotions and behaviors, the child won’t perceive him as a tall adult. The child thinks that the adult is just like him. Without this similarity from the child’s perspective, there wouldn’t be any contact between them!

The truth is that I cannot unite with anyone if he isn’t on the same step with me, at the same level, in the same qualities, no more, no less. Then there can be a connection between us, but not before!

This is like in high frequency waves, if you step slightly beyond the limits of the frequency, the connection disappears. It is the same for the spiritual connection: We have to attain absolutely precise congruence, not more, not less, at the same level. Otherwise, there will be no contact; one will not penetrate the other.

From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 5/25/10, “Preface to the Sulam Commentary”

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Question: Do you sometimes get angry at someone and later look back and regret because you remember from Whom it came?

Answer: I don’t get upset as long as it doesn’t concern one’s free will. If it lies within someone’s capacity for free will, I could get really mad. By “free will” I mean that it concerns spreading the wisdom of Kabbalah. In that case, beware: This has nothing to do with the Creator. This is directly connected to one’s sense of responsibility. Here I am unforgiving.

Question: But everything comes from the Creator?

Answer: No, not this. Spreading Kabbalah efficiently, correctly, and well lies within one’s free will; it’s one’s duty and one must see to it. Otherwise, why study Kabbalah? Why do we need it? We just remain as animals. We are humans only inasmuch we use the wisdom of correction that was granted to us. It is our duty to draw Light for our correction. When a person doesn’t do his part or does it poorly, especially when given an opportunity, I can’t put up with it.

It’s the only thing that causes my anger and nothing else. In all other areas, I don’t even have the power to force a person to do or not do something. I specifically refer to free will and the fact that it is given to a person to use.

Question: Does free will imply not only dissemination but studying as well?

Answer: It concerns studies, attitude to the group, the Kabbalah books, the teacher, and the Creator: everything that is related to individual and general advancement toward the purpose.

Sometimes a person needs to go through bad states. One must experience them. His free will strengthens when he suffers through them on his own. I can’t interfere. Otherwise I would be acting like the Creator, as it were, externally, from Above, but it’s not right and I am not allowed.

Question: So there are two types of free will: one with a liability (dissemination) and one without it (painful states)?

Answer: No. They are the same in that they both demonstrate one’s attitude to his spiritual growth. They are fully connected.

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By studying Kabbalah, we come into contact with the Light itself. By uniting with others who desire the same goal and studying together, we actively tune into Malchut of the World of Infinity where all people exist in their inner oneness, as one whole. As we desire to exist in this state actively, we draw the concealed Light to ourselves from this perfect state, thereby hastening our spiritual development. This is called becoming Isra-El, aspiring “directly to the Creator,” one who “hastens time,” who draws the Light to himself on his own through his studies and forces Him to be revealed. It also means one who “illuminates time,” meaning one who wants the Light to direct him to bestowal (Sanctity is the quality of bestowal).

It turns out that studying in a Kabbalistic group gives us the “reins” or the “steering wheel” through which we can control ourselves – our forms of development and its speed – as we become independent of the Light. However, on the other hand, the Light is very powerful and it has a program of development for each of us, as well as for all of us together. Therefore, when we try to hasten our development on our own, suddenly we begin to feel how dependent we are on this Light, on its awakening. Only with its help can we advance.

The Light raises and lowers me, which rouses within me the desire to develop in order to make myself “similar to the Creator,” a human being, by rising above this animate level and this whole material life. I wait for the Light to begin to influence me. I prepare myself to surrender to it completely, to attune as much as possible to the studies, the group, dissemination, and to solve all the questions that have accumulated during the darkness and the concealment.

I am like that “rooster” from the parable about the rooster and the bat that waits for the dawn. I am waiting for the Light to come and illuminate the path for me, and I rejoice when the Light comes. However, the “bat,” who does not prepare himself for the coming of the Light, perceives the awakening from Above as darkness.

Although we exist in one common system, only those who await the coming of the Light perceive it as something desirable; for them it is truly Light. On the contrary, those who do not wish to draw closer to the Light, to bestowal, and to love one’s neighbor, will feel continuously greater crises and problems in this world.

We all exist in the World of Infinity, but everything depends on our preparation. We can either feel infinite Light or infinite darkness there, or we can feel nothing at all as though we are unconscious and merely carrying out an animate existence. Everything depends on our desire to become human, meaning “similar” to the Creator in His love and bestowal.

From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 5/21/10, Shamati #241

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