Entries in the 'Unity' Category

A Person Starts With A Spark

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Why does the science of Kabbalah restrict its focus to just one single action: unity?

Answer: Kabbalah does not restrict itself. On the contrary, it has expanded to envelop the entire universe, the Upper Worlds and the lower ones in order to tell us that there is nothing besides unity.

It does not focus on select actions, but rather makes a synthesis of everything that exists. It brings us to the single principle that encompasses everything.

This science tells you: Don’t look at every problem separately whenever it occurs, as that would be a narrow-minded view. There is just one reason and explanation to all the problems: lack of unity. If you want to rise above the problem, then you should aspire to greater unity. If you are going in this direction, it means you are moving correctly.

Every science is based on one fundamental principle. In physics everything is attained through the basis of matter, through several elementary particles from which everything is made. In the past it made wonderful sense: you have an electron, a proton, and a neutron, meaning a plus, a minus, and a neutral particle between them, and that’s all.

But then they suddenly discovered that there are hundreds of elementary particles, and thus the entire theory was thrown into disarray. That’s because a scientist holds onto one principle, according to the truth that exists in nature. Science always aspires toward a unified picture.

A “simple interpretation” (Pshat) is the last, highest level of research and attainment. When we attain the World of Infinity, everything becomes very simple because the simple Upper Light fills the entire universe, the corrected desire. This is called realizing the single principle.

If, on the other hand, it seems like all our problems are unconnected, then this is what we have to correct by attracting the Upper Light that will unite everything.

In the meantime there is a great mess in our minds, hearts, and all of our actions. It’s unclear what is happening to me, this world, my family and friends, and my life and death. Every person would love to close his eyes so he won’t see this or think about it.

However, the path of Kabbalah is the opposite: to accept all of this as the revelation of the breaking and bring us to unity. That’s why the science of Kabbalah does not become revealed until a spiritual spark awakens in a person, a call for unity that the Creator gives us.

This spiritual gene has to start speaking in us, being a spark from the screen we once had. This is the beginning of a person’s birth.
[22648]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 10/5/10, “The Love for the Creator and Love for the Created Beings”

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: What Does It Hide, This Spark Of Light?
Laitman.com Post: When You Leave Yourself, You Gain Infinity
Laitman.com Post: Dead End Or A Gateway To A New Reality?

125 Steps From Me To The Creator

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: In our world, people unite in order to succeed in some type of deal. How do we unite our souls?

Answer: In order to succeed in spirituality, I need to connect with the people who wish to achieve the same condition and goal. And together, we have to discern that without such a special connection between us, we won’t envision this goal. As a matter of fact, it will suddenly disappear from between us!

It isn’t somewhere “up there” as it has to be between us. Yet, due to the fact that we don’t cleave tightly together but rather walk away, this goal falls into an abyss that separates us. Indeed, the hate that divides us is infinite and unfathomable. It turns out that there are you and me, and we are separated by an abyss of infinite depth, at the bottom of which lies the spiritual goal, unification. And there is nothing we can do!

We wish to unite with you and cannot as we keep uncovering this gap, so we strive to build a bridge above it every time. Thus, we construct bridge after bridge until we cover the entire, bottomless depth. In this way we get 125 degrees of revelation of hate which is revealed because each time we uncover love over hate.

Hate is determined by the depth of both our desires, and above it, we connect by way of the screen, the Returning Light, while we are building the vessel (Kli) that belongs to us both now. The screen is the connection between us, and hate is its internal desire.

Hence, the greater the amount of Returning Light that ascends thanks to our connection, the more Upper Light we receive and experience pleasure. And by feeling this pleasure, we delight each other! Everyone is delighted by the fact that the other is feeling pleased. Otherwise, there is nothing else we can give for we bestow to each other our own individual pleasure.

As a matter of fact, all of us are created as receivers, so we can only receive. We can bestow solely in intention. And what else can I possibly give to someone other than my intention?
[21980]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/26/10, “600,000 Souls”

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The Sum Of All Feelings
Laitman.com Post: When You Leave Yourself, You Gain Infinity
Laitman.com Post: The Strength Of Love Is In Resisting Hatred

Unity Is The Bridge To The Creator

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Why should I support a friend? Why can’t we just turn to the Creator and ascend with the assistance of the Surrounding Light?

Answer: None of us can turn to the Surrounding Light, the Upper Force, the Creator, unless it’s done from the place of the breaking, a discernment of the connection to the group. A person cannot contact the Light directly due to a lack of similar properties, even the opposite ones. Therefore, it is necessary to carry out one’s request together with others, either in unity or the lack thereof.

The Creator created one will to receive and that hasn’t changed. It’s what we call the World of Infinity where we all exist together. Below the World of Infinity, we exist in a state of separation; we are unconscious and unaware, totally disconnected from spirituality. These states are included in each other and manifest solely within our sensations. In order to attain Infinity, I have to do the following: 1) come to the state of separation, 2) discover that we are broken, and 3) finally ascend to the place where we are all together.

I cannot turn to the Creator directly since the Creator is the force that exists in the corrected Kli. I either ask for the strength to be corrected along with everyone else, or if I have already gained connection with the others, then I turn to the Creator. There is no Creator without the created being, and there is no Upper Force that I can find without the Kli.
[21960]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/26/10, “They Helped Everyone His Friend”

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Preserving The Spirit Of Life
Laitman.com Post: Love And Hatred Of "600,000 Souls"
Laitman.com Post: Unity Happens Only On The Spiritual Level

“Turn Your Face To The Wall”

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe Zohar, Chapter “VeYechi (And Jacob Lived),” Item 392: A wall is the Lord of all the land, Divinity, as it is written, “Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth.” Thus, the ark of the covenant, Divinity, is the Lord of all the earth, which is a wall, and for this reason, “Hezekiah turned his face to the wall.”

We must turn to Malchut, our collective spiritual vessel (Kli, desire) where we are all connected. This is called “turning to the wall” with a request that we want to wholly assemble it and to see that it separates us from the Creator.

As we restore this wall by uniting all our desires, it begins to link us to the Creator and transforms from a separating screen into a connecting one.

What is the condition that makes it possible? If we “recline,” meaning we do not perform any actions ourselves, then the Rosh (head), Toch (body), and Sof (extremities) of our spiritual Partzuf (soul) are on the same level. Thus, we turn our face to the wall and wish for our connection to truly become a connecting point to the Creator.

That is when the Shechina, our unity, becomes a vessel (Kli) of fulfillment.
[21907]
From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/24/10, The Zohar

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The House For The Creator
Laitman.com Post: Unification Of The Souls = Equivalence To The Creator
Laitman.com Post: The Path To Revealing The Creator

A Common Space Between Us

Dr. Michael LaitmanYou are not aimed at the goal if you are not looking at it through the group. The group is like a lens that collects all beams of sight and aims them at the target. Without it, you won’t be able to focus your eyes on the goal. Only in the group, in the collective relationship of the friends, will you be able to uncover the work of the Creator.

If we do not build a common area between us, a “common space” where only bestowal and our unity exist, we won’t have the "place" where the Creator can be revealed. I need at least one other person as the minimal number in a group is two persons. I decide to unite with the group and now I constantly think about it. In our union that we ourselves create, in the “common place,” everything The Zohar and the Torah are talking about is occurring. But if I am not connected with the others, I don’t have a place to reveal what’s described in The Zohar.

If I unite with the others, all the stories in the Torah, The Zohar, the Study of the Ten Sefirot, and the Talmud are solely about the types of our connection and what is revealed in it. Through my own actions aimed at a greater connection, I evoke the revelation of the Creator. This is called “Israel (I), the Torah (Kabbalistic texts, studies, and the group), and the Creator are one,” and I unify them from the beginning of my correction to its end.

It isn’t difficult at all to get concentrated in one point. If not, the aim immediately disappears, and you must focus anew. There are obstacles, and the challenge lies in focusing on the goal by way of unity.

First of all, we need to create a common space between us. And The Zohar will tell us what takes place in it, how to annul oneself in order to bring our unity to compete correction, and to reveal the Creator within it in accordance with the law of equivalence of form.

[21591]
From the 3rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/20/10, Talmud Eser Sefirot

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The Law Of Communicating Vessels
Laitman.com Post: The Worlds Between Us
Laitman.com Post: A Simple Scheme Of Creation

How To Expedite Unity

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Is it possible that some of the friends in the group disrupt each others’ work by saying that we lack unity now and that there are elements that prevent us from it? Could it be true, or is this person’s perception distorted? How long should it take for the accumulative system to operate before our unity is revealed?

Answer: It depends on those who have made efforts to reach this state. It is not the question of how long it takes. It can be done relatively quickly, through intense effort, or the process can be stretched by way of little effort. Ultimately, a certain level of desire (shared with other friends) must surface in a person, and this desire should be "willing" to "unplug itself" from each of them and become common for all of them. And in this collective whole, (called “one,” “united,” or “a point,"  "a drop of unity”) the Creator will be revealed.

This unification shouldn’t occur under some extreme circumstances, but in a normal setting.
[21241]
From talks with Vladek Zankovskiy

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The Path To Revealing The Creator
Laitman.com Post: The Pyramid Of Unity
Laitman.com Post: A Station With Infinite Energy

Unification of Souls = Equivalence To The Light

Dr. Michael LaitmanBaal HaSulam says that only by uniting in the group is it possible to unite with the Light. Otherwise, the Light does not "perceive" us since we need to become similar to it. And when we unite together, we are like a plug that enters an outlet due to the exact opposite equivalence of form. The Light can already influence us in all the empty spaces within us and correct them by making them similar to it according to our desire during the studies.

In order to organize the right form of studying the articles of Baal HaSulam, his elder son, Rabash, created a method of connection to the writings of his father. If we use it, we can be sure that we will realize everything correctly.

We shouldn’t forget that all the Kabbalists talk about the need for a group in which we implement this method and make ourselves similar to the Light. A person is unable to do this alone. Even if one exists at a great spiritual height, he will be unable to rise further or even remain at the degree that he achieved without unification. Even if he has already reached the 124th degree, he will be unable to rise to the final, 125th degree if he works alone.

Remember the story of Rabbi Yosi Ben Kisma who said that if he were to leave his students, he would be unable to advance and would lose the level that he already possessed. The fact that they were small and he was their teacher was irrelevant; what was important is that they were together.

If there is unification, there is equivalence to the Light. Without unification, there is no equivalence. This is a completely mandatory condition.

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

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Maintaining The Spiritual Trajectory
Laitman.com Post: Where To Search For The Creator
Laitman.com Post: The Easiest Path To Spirituality

The Spiritual Reference Point

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: If we are advancing in the darkness, then how can we orient ourselves in order to go through all the phases of spiritual work and reach the understanding that we have exhausted all our efforts so we can then ask the Creator to help us?

Answer: We do not see the Creator and cannot play with Him the way a child plays with an adult. Instead of showing Himself to us, the Creator made a playing field for us: the group of friends. For this reason, He deliberately broke the soul he created into parts. This wasn’t done so we would relate to each separate part, but so we would relate to the unity of the parts as to Him. In this way, we make the Kli similar to the Light and go from love for the creatures to love for the Creator.

Therefore, in relation to the group (but not to separate friends), I have to separate myself from all the material calculations and see "myself, the group and the Creator as one whole." I should check my state and attitude to the Creator by my attitude and state in the group. I don’t see the Creator, but I do see the friends! By concealing Himself, the Creator gives me the opportunity to build myself and become independent and equal to Him.

I desire to hit the target that hides behind the horizon, and this is possible if I have a visible reference point. If I correctly aim at it, then I will definitely hit the unseen target. This reference point for attaining the goal, the Creator, is the group which the Creator artificially created for us (and out of us) by giving us the illusion that we hate each other.

To the degree we unite, we "hit" Him more and more precisely. If we unite precisely in order to find Him, then this is the right kind of work.

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”

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Concealment For The Sake Of Salvation
Laitman.com Post: Why Kabbalists Desire The Creator’s Concealment
Laitman.com Post: Returning To Malchut Of Infinity

Desire, And The Light Will Come

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe Book of Zohar is being revealed now because it is a source of strength which can carry out all the corrections and advance us. Just as a train or a car cannot move without electricity or gas, we cannot advance without The Book of Zohar which gives us energy, “fuel” for advancement.

In addition, The Zohar reveals to us where we are situated, who we are, where we are advancing, and for what purpose. It reveals the whole path to us. In essence, it is the Light that illuminates the whole space that surrounds us in order for us to see where we are. The Zohar is the Light that gives us an opportunity to feel in our minds and hearts who we are and what we represent, how we are arranged, how we sense, think, and make decisions. It is the Light that illuminates the goal to us so that we understand to where we are advancing, with what speed, what is happening, and what to do.

The Zohar is the Light that gives strength, the Light that corrects us, and the Light that advances us on the path. It does everything. However, we need to rouse this Light and it’s not easy. After we rouse it, there’s nothing more to do because it knows how to arrange and carry out everything. We merely need to rouse it.

We think that the science of Kabbalah demands some impossible effort from us. However, the entire work is actually in our hands. After all, the Light needs to come and influence us. This Light is called Surrounding Light since it cannot clothe a person directly, clearly, and openly. It does this indirectly and we only feel the results of its actions but not it itself.

Under what condition is the Light drawn? It is drawn according to law of equivalence of form or the law of equality: The Light comes to the extent that I desire to become similar to it. How do I perform this action in order to become similar to it? Something that is called the group has been placed before me, and initially I hate it. In the same manner that I am opposite to the Light, I am also opposite to this Kli (the spiritual vessel) called a “group.”

To the extent that I try to unite with the group, to enter it, the Light affects me to the same exact degree. I am situated below, “under the group,” and it is on top, “above the group.” It turns out that I work on uniting with the friends, and to the extent that we unite the Light influences and corrects us. It unites us and the Light (the Creator) is revealed in our unification.

If this is the case, then everything is in my hands. The Light waits for me to perform this effort. I cannot unite with others; I merely need to desire this and to exert effort. Then it will happen.

Therefore, before we read The Book of Zohar, the strongest source of Surrounding Light, I need to think about the fact that I must unite with others, thereby preparing the vessel (Kli) for the Light that will glue it together and be revealed in it. After all, the Light is revealed only in the unification, in the place of the former breaking.

From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/3/10, The Zohar

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The Zohar Is The Most Powerful Thing In The World
Laitman.com Post: There Are Five Worlds Between Us
Laitman.com Post: The Field Of Intentions
Laitman.com Post: Why Do I Need This Whole World?

There Are Five Worlds Between Us

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: What does it mean to reveal The Zohar in our common sensation?

Answer: Nothing is revealed in an individual person, but only in his proper connection with the friends in the group. My first ten Sefirot, the first spiritual vessel (Kli), is my aspiration to come out from myself and unite with others (the group). My spiritual state is determined by how much I will try to create this unification.

There is you and I. Between us, there are five worlds: Assiya, Yetzira, Beria, Atzilut, and Adam Kadmon. When I draw closer to you until the distance between us fades, my state is called the World of Infinity. But not yours. The World of Infinity is when you and I, on my side, become as one whole. Therefore, the extent that I am able to draw closer to you determines the spiritual degree that I am on since all 125 degrees are between us.

We can conquer the distance between us together. This is much more effective because what matters is the unification between us, rather than you or I. I don’t need to accept you, receive pleasure from you, or unite with you. We need to unite together. This unification is in fact the Creator, the third component, as it is written: “Israel, Torah, and the Creator are one.”

From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/1/10, The Zohar

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Light Instead Of Medicine
Laitman.com Post: Together Through Good Times And Bad
Laitman.com Post: Find Life In The Connection Among Us