Morning Lesson January 28, 2021 Transcription is made from simultaneous translation which leaves possibility for differences from audio
Excerpts From the Sources for Tu B'Shvat - Feb. 10, 2020
41. A. I totally forgot that we have today Tu B’Shvat, 15th of the month of Shevat. There are names of the months of the Hebrew calendar and each month has its own name. The names that humanity is typically using come to us from ancient Rome, about 2,000 years ago, maybe less.
In Hebrew we count the years and the months long before that, for example today the year is not 2021 according to the Hebrew calendar today the year is 5781. Accordingly, the names of the months which correspond to the lunar phases each and every month. We count from the new moon, so each month gets a new name, now we are in the month Shevat, the 15th of Shevat, two is fifteen Tet Vav, we celebrate it as the new year for the trees. On that day the trees begin to awaken, toward their life towards a new year because a person, it is written in the Torah that man is like the tree of the field, that is why we celebrate this day as the beginning of the blossoming of man, the development of man. There are many things that the Kabbalists wrote about it, Rabash wrote a very fundamental, long article, not simple article, if you want to read it, you can. We won't read it because it will take too long, but we will read a few excerpts, what the Kabbalists said about Tu B’Shvat. We have the regular New Year for people when man was created and we have the New Year for the trees, there are four New Years, for we'll talk about that. So let's go to the Tu B’Shvat text. We have only six short excerpts, let's read them and talk about this a little bit because we should connect to that force that appears specifically today in the world as the New Year for the trees for the vegetative degree, man also grows and develops as not inanimate. So, let us see what the Kabbalists share.
Excerpt 1 Reader (07:51 - 09:08)
42. R. This is what we should try to organize, to determine that we determine the path, that we determine the process, our goal. There are no judgments from above acting upon us, rather it is us in our place in the connection between us who determine our process and this is how we execute it. Both the goal that we always have to examine how correct it is and also the steps, everything we should aim towards connection and then for certain in this way we will succeed. The Rosh HaShanah, the New Year, is a time of judgment where we judge ourselves, the world and everything to determine here the direct line of ours to the goal that we choose. Let us try to engage in that, the truth is each and every day we have to do that especially just as now as Rabash writes, when it is the new year for the trees. There is the still and the vegetative level, the vegetative level wants to obtain something, to raise something so let us try today in the connection between us to think again about the goal and how we organize ourselves more and more and to grow towards it.
43. S. (10:58) We read about the roots in the Rosh the head, that the person has to organize what does this mean?
R. It is when I have to organize for myself that I grow out of the ten and my Rosh is the ten and I am incorporated in it, by this I grow all the time, certainly when I reach connection I immediately discover that I am in a lack of connection and I reach more connection, then lack of connection and more connection this is how we grow all the time, one thing and its opposite, left and right, darkness and light this is the right way to grow.
44. S. (11:49) What does it mean that the person is the judge and the executor? I thought it comes from above?
R. Nothing comes from above, all you get from above is corporeal pressure until you have no choice and then you discover out of this life the entry into spirituality and the purpose of life, the essence of life, this is how it happens.
S. How does a person judge himself and even be the executor?
R. That is what we do every time, who am I, what am I, what am I for, what is the purpose, what is the goal. We are the ones who do these actions, the fact that from above the general light works on us, acts upon us more and more, coming down to this world is true. However personally, I can do it more intensively, better in the right connection. Nonetheless everything is under the influence of the general light that reforms but basically everything is only according to my personal advancement. If I won't advance personally, nothing can help me, there will be a certain pressure from above that is clear just like there is pressure on the entire humanity, we see that. The general light that reforms puts pressure on all the billions of people but it is general, they don't determine their direction or their goal yet.
S. What do you mean to advance personally you say connect to the friends?
R. That is true, but we should also see the general advancement of humanity, I sit among my people, we exist as the chosen part, as the Kli in order to discover the connections with the upper force and to bring through us a connection of the upper force with the entire humanity, that is our work. Our work is to be in between as we have learned in the articles of the Matan Torah and The Arvut, our purpose is to be the connectors in between the Creator.
S. What does it mean a man is a tree in the field?
R. That person has to understand that he grows and he has to choose for himself what he should grow into and what form, the main thing is what fruit he wants to get out of this grown tree.
S. The fruits are bestowal, right?
R. That is something you should answer to yourself.
Excerpt 2 Reader (15:12 -15:45)
45. R. This is basically the essence of the scrutiny of Rosh Hashanah, Rosh for his entire development so with respect to whom does he want to grow? Who does he want to come closer to and how does he examine how he advances every day, what are his days, what are his nights and what is the goal? This is why we read about Tu B’Shvat which is today the 15th of Shevat where we determine our goal and how we come close to it and what is the account, the calculation about our advancements, what is the right and the left in our advancement and how do we measure our steps of coming closer to the goal. That is how we add and add until we come to the purpose of life. The purpose of our life is to become 100% in bestowal to the Creator meaning giving contentment to Him and by that we discover that we are adhered to Him, He is for us and we are for Him and in this connection, in this embrace we reach a state of intermingling.
46. S. (17:19) It is written that a person does the judgment for himself if he should keep doing the work or God forbid otherwise, what does it mean to continue or God forbid otherwise?
R. Through the connection, the path of everything although the path is through the ever-growing connection from day to day. This is why I must always decide that I have to connect more. I have to overcome to a connection with the friends because this way we reach a state where the Creator can be revealed between us as the only force. We are so connected to each other in the ten that He as the one force may be revealed between us.
Excerpt 3 Reader (18:13- 22:06) reads twice
47. R. To summarize things in a simple way, if we hold Hesed mercy we develop in the right way and we can be certain we will reach corrections, there is nothing more, just to hold mercy the quality of Bina, bestowal, which is within the Partzuf within the Guf of the Patzuf, in the Rosh its called Bina and in the Guf it is called Hesed.
48. S. (22:45) Then you continue from Hesed to Hod what does that mean?
R. That doesn't matter, the main thing is to continue with Hesed all of the time in the work, to be rewarded with fruits. Fruit is life, everyone wants to get something out of the process is only through Hesed. When we work in the quality of bestowal called Hesed we are awarded with adhesion in the Creator and then we are rewarded with everything. We don't need to go into the details because by that you will get confused and it will blur your acute direction. You shouldn't, only by advancing in the right way as much as you know how to aim yourself correctly on the path you will discover all of the rest.
Excerpt 4 Reader (23:54 - 26:41) reads twice
49. S. (26:42) It turns out that in our ten I see a lot of great examples. I feel this love that covers all the crimes with all of the pandemic and the problems can I implement everything that I learned from them towards humanity?
R. No, we don't yet know how to do it with humanity and it will disconnect us from our connection in the ten. The main thing is to build the vessel in the ten when we are connected together and out of the connection between us from the center of the connection between us when we attain it we turn to humanity. Otherwise, we have no way to be a transition from the Creator to humanity if we are not connected between us, do you understand? So first it is the connection in the ten, to build a pipeline from it, then from the Creator we pass on through this pipeline of the upper light to humanity and only in this way. If we now start turning to humanity it won't do any good because we ourselves are not yet ready, but rather after the congress we are going to start explaining to humanity externally, in a simple way about this whole matter of the world, the pandemic, the connection where the world should get to, why is this happening to us.
Today these processes that are connecting us to a more integral world where we understand more where each one is, it is all so we can start feeling that we are together ultimately the entire humanity and accordingly we should also explain to humanity that we all depend on the upper force, one force, nature, not all kinds of ways the religion think. Nature, as nature is all one integral and in this is why we need to reach an integral connection between us and this one force that motivates everything, the entire humanity, everyone and by this we will reach a good, happy life. That is what we're going to have to explain to humanity. Along with the explanation of the force of connection we need to bring a deeper understanding we have to be connected between us, each and every ten has to be like a pipeline from the Creator towards humanity. If we are connecting between the tens then we are going to have and be able to be an even stronger pipeline between the Creator and humanity, so the good force in nature we will connect it to the bad egoistic force human beings have and this good will cover the evil. This is the meaning of love covers all of the crimes, all of the ego, the lies in humanity. Then we will be in this big egoistic, evil sandwich and the good will be upon it and this is how we discover the light upon the darkness.
S. I understand, but it happens when we read Rabash, I come out with a lot of happiness and excitement. Is it right to show such a feeling?
R. No, to the external people you cannot show such a feeling from the text from Rabash, because they won't understand what you are impressed by, they will think you are crazy. Between us we have to be in this impression but not with the external people. For the broad public we have to reach them gradually to explain things the way they can understand us, like little children, truly so.
50. S. (32:24) Before we come to the expansion of the wisdom in humanity also the first three parts that we read about Rosh Hashanah where it is man and where do we have that renewing in this time from being frozen like we learned to know where we are flourishing and growing because it happens to man every day, not just once a year?
R. So what is the question?
S. Is it really like that it's saying it's a parallel between us and nature, but it seems like it's a constant not just once a year?
R. Yes, it is like that with everything we're not like in nature and nature it's once a season or once a year. Or once in a thousand years, so I don't understand your question.
Excerpt 5 Reader (33:59 - 35:40)
51. R. This means we have to examine are we out of our actions, as we study and try to carry it out, are we by that reaching actions of bestowal, connection, some kind of dialogue between us? That we are scrutinizing better what is the essence and purpose of life, are we coming closer to the upper force that will govern us, are we demanding it to connect us? This is how we, bit by bit are rewarded with the fruit. Certainly, the tree as it grows until it yields the fruit takes a long time, however we have to examine ourselves each and every day are we advancing correctly, this is why he says to take care of these trees. There are many actions and taking care of a tree that has fruits in order to bring it to a state that it bears the fruits and man can enjoy this tree that grows. The fruit that it grows continues its life in the animate level and from that to reach the speaking level. Here from this, we learn how to get all of the force is required to reach adhesion with the Creator from the still, the Domem which is the land, to the vegetative which is the tree, to the animate which is the human body and then from the human body to the degree of the speaking level that resembles the Creator. That is how we build ourselves and is why we have four New Years, that is how we grow. Certainly, the main Rosh Hashanah is the general New Year where we reach the degree of Adam and build ourselves, equalizing ourselves with the Creator.
Excerpt 6 Reader (38:29- 39:22) reads twice
52. S. Is there a connection between bearing fruits and reaching receiving in order to bestow?
R. In every stage in spirituality you have all of the stages in every stage. We learned that all together from science and nature and the wisdom of Kabbalah, that is why you want to know what exactly we need to do from Malchut until Keter in our corrections, in our corrections on the vegetative you have to go to the article by Rabash where he explains the New Year for the Trees meaning Tu B’Shvat 15th of Shevat, everything is there.
53. S. (40:28) You said there are four New Years Tu B’Shvat and more ?
R. You don't need to know about it, you will learn about it today. The time will come where we will speak about the rest too, we have Pesach against Rosh Hashanah, which is the head for the years, there is a head for the months, we will learn.
54. S. (41:19) We always learned that we have to carry out actions without taking the results into account, what does it mean to check that there are fruits?
R. Because without that you can't advance, you advance from you seeing on your actions or what you attained by it, how you take the next step. The thing is that every time you raise yourself in order to bestow in an even greater way, even more disconnected from your will to receive, from your initial corrupted will to receive in order to receive, this is why you don't take it into account. You take into account what you are about to attain now.
55. S. (42:28) We just read that he says we should say that from now on we are on the right path and we are strong. How can we as the last generation measure that we believe in the words of the sages that we read for the thought of creation and God forbid what happens if I die tomorrow what is taken into account?
R. I didn't understand what he wanted to say.
S. How can we really enter faith that what we do is working?
R. That you have to demand from the Creator through the group to shine on you with the force of faith, you yourself are only a beastly will to receive, that is it, no more than that. You want any qualities above your beast level that you can get from above if you asked for it. If you ask through the ten you have to awaken the Creator to give you these qualities, please.
56. S. (43.59) When he writes that we have to forget about our past how is that expressed in the work?
R. A person has to see before him the only state that he wants to reach and the more to be disconnected from the past and to be immersed in the future that means to go according to your eyes. You implemented only in the connection between us, no more than that. As much as I am connected to the ten for certain I am taking a step ahead because I dwell amongst my people, I have no way to come closer to the Creator but to take another step into the ten.
57. S. (45:04) How can a ten examine itself every day that it is advancing properly?
R. According to the increasing connection between them, according to the disturbances that come against the connection, according to the gap between the disturbances and the connection and according to as much as they can from this give a prayer to the Creator. That is what we have, it is like a lab, the ten, where we stabilize all of the relationships between us and between us and the Creator, where we check what was there yesterday, what is today and what is tomorrow, how we want to organize our advancement.
58. S. (46:15) In the previous excerpt he wrote that the work done to the trees that everything comes from man, what is this work?
R. We are included from four phases: still, vegetative, animate, and speaking we have to take all of these degrees and implement it upon ourselves from the ten and from the ten to the Creator. So, they explain what the work on the coarseness of 1, 2, 3 or 4 is and this is how we grow. That is why it is explained in such a way, like the children through the trees, through the animals because in spirituality there are no such things, this is why they use the corporeal branches in order to explain to us something about our spiritual roots.
59. S. (47:31) In the past few days the ten is elated and is connected in a way we never felt before?
R. Why is that?
S. We are working hard and we really feel it through all the friends who are making an effort, everyone is focused specifically on this connection between us so it is scary that maybe we're missing something?
R. So the fear is good, that is called awe not fear.
S. How to use that to be ready to advance to be ready for the next states that come?
R. If the pressure is pushing us to the connection between us so it's right, then it is a correct form of pressure in the right direction. We need to be concerned about the vessel that the light will be revealed according to the vessel.
S. So just to add to the connection all the time what we should do?
R. From here to the end of correction you have nothing else to do; it all depends on the vessel. As much as you in return put together the Kli of the first Adam, the merciful will raise the Fallen Tabernacle of David. That's it right?
60. WSQ: (49:24) How do we still advance to the congress? Do you understand and feel from day-to-day that there is an advancement, a connection that something is changing, something is working on us? I am really concerned that before the congress we will have the new degree of connection. Are we from day to day, do we feel that we are coming closer to the connection worthy of the congress?