The transcript has been transcribed and edited from English simultaneous interpretation, thus there may be potential semantic inaccuracies within it.
Daily Morning Lesson: September 10, 2026
Part 1: Rabash. What Is Half a Shekel in the Work? - 2. Article No. 20, 1990
Reader: Hello! In the first part of the lesson, we will study a lesson by Rav from May 21, 2002, it is based on the article, What Is Half a Shekel in the Work? – 2. You can find it in The Writings of Rabash, Second Volume, page 1253. Let's read the article together in the Tens, we have 32 minutes for that.
Reading: (00:34) What Is Half a Shekel in the Work? - 2
Article No. 20, 1990
The verse says, “When you count the heads of the children of Israel to number them, each one of them shall give a ransom for his soul to the Lord, when you number them, and there shall be no plague among them when you count them. This is what they shall give: half a shekel in the shekel of holiness. The rich shall not give more and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, to make a contribution to the Lord, to make atonement for your souls.”
We should understand what specifically a half shekel implies to us in the work, and not a quarter or a third of a shekel, where the whole point is to know the number of Israel. What does specifically the half imply to us? Also, why does it say, “The rich shall not give more and the poor shall not give less”? Even a small child understands that if we take from someone less or more we will not know the number of Israel. And also, what is the meaning of “there shall be no plague among them”?
It is known that the purpose of the creation of the world was because He desires to do good to His creations. However, in order for this doing good to be complete, meaning not to have any shame in it while receiving the delight and pleasure, a correction took place, called Tzimtzum [restriction] and concealment. This means that before a person can aim his actions to be in order to bestow, they will not feel the delight and pleasure unless when they engage in Torah and Mitzvot in order to bring contentment to the Creator.
Afterward, when he has vessels of bestowal, the delight and pleasure found as a deposit in Torah and Mitzvot will be revealed. At that time he will receive the delight and pleasure that was in the thought of creation, and for which He created the world.
Since man was created by nature to yearn only for his own benefit, from where can one work on the intention to bestow upon the Creator? This is regarded as a person exerting himself in all kinds of works so as to please the Creator, since then the body asks, “What will you gain if the Creator enjoys”? You should do things so you will enjoy, and why did our sages tell us, “All your works should be for the sake of the Creator?” How can we do something against nature?
The body also asks, “Why should the Creator mind if the creatures work for themselves, meaning that they will enjoy? After all, His desire is to delight His creations.” It follows that on one hand, man can enjoy life, meaning work for his own sake, which is natural. On the other hand, it is said that man should not go according to the nature with which he was born, but should work for the sake of the Creator.
And as much as we may explain with all kinds of answers, the body cannot understand this. Although sometimes the body agrees that it is worthwhile to work for the sake of the Creator, in practice, when the body faces something it will enjoy and it must give it up because it will benefit only the Creator, the body chooses its own benefit and relinquishes the benefit of the Creator.
Therefore, we get two things out of this: 1) Since we must believe in the words of our sages that we must do everything for the sake of the Creator although the body does not understand it after all the explanations we give to it, our sages said, and so did Maimonides determine in practice (Hilchot Teshuva, Chapter 10), “Therefore, when teaching little ones, women, and uneducated people, they are taught to work only out of fear and in order to receive reward. Until they gain knowledge and acquire much wisdom, they are taught that secret little-by-little.”
The question is, What is, “Until they gain knowledge and acquire much wisdom”? That is, what is “wisdom” and what is “much wisdom,” so we will know how to determine when we are permitted to reveal to him that secret little-by-little.
At the beginning of man’s work, we must say to the body that it is worthwhile to relinquish corporeal pleasures, which are only a “tiny light” compared to the delight and pleasure found in Torah and Mitzvot [commandments/good deeds]. It follows that to the extent that he believes and faith illuminates for him, the body agrees to replace a small pleasure with a big one. As in corporeality, when a person makes his effort, the reward he acquired for his work and gives it in order to obtain nourishments to sustain his household, since he has more pleasure when he buys groceries for his household with the money he earned through the labor.
Also, to the extent that faith illuminates for him and he feels that it will give him more pleasure to engage in Torah and Mitzvot, he can relinquish corporeal pleasures in order to obtain greater pleasures. However, sometimes a person gets a descent in the faith that he will be rewarded. At that time, it is difficult for him to concede corporeal pleasures. However, if he watches over himself and is in a good environment, the body does not resist this work because this is not considered against nature, since he says that he will receive a greater reward, meaning greater pleasure from observing Torah and Mitzvot. It follows that this reason is a strong reason that can compel a person to relinquish the corporeal pleasures that the Torah forbade, and all in order to receive greater pleasures.
2) Since man has to come to a state where “All your works should be for the sake of the Creator,” meaning against nature, and this is for the purpose of the correction of creation, which is for the creatures to be able to receive the delight and pleasure without shame, a correction was placed where one must aim that all his enjoyment will be only for the sake of the Creator. That is, that the Creator will enjoy the creature’s pleasure, since this was the purpose of creation. However, sometimes the body feels that it is impossible that with the same intellect and understanding he had when he began to do the holy work, he is constantly in the same intellect and is making no progress, but only in quantity.
When he begins to ask about this, this is regarded as what we asked, What is “wisdom” and what is “much wisdom”? “Wisdom” means that he already observes Torah and Mitzvot. “Much wisdom” means that he wants to understand the meaning of Torah and Mitzvot, to what state it should bring a person. This is called “intention,” which is to aim while observing Torah and Mitzvot, that it should bring him to some degree. This is called “much wisdom.” At that time they begin to reveal to him this secret, meaning what is the work Lishma [for Her sake]. In other words, they begin to let him see that he must work not in order to receive reward, but completely for the sake of the Creator.
When he obtains “much wisdom,” he begins to understand that in Torah and Mitzvot there is what was said, “For it is your wisdom and understanding in the eyes of the nations.” However, there is concealment on it. At that time he is told that this is true, there is a concealment on it for the purpose of correction, since the purpose is for man to achieve Dvekut [adhesion] with the Creator, and this is obtained by equivalence of form, regarded as “all his actions should be in order to bestow.”
Here is where man begins to be a servant of the Creator. In the work, “serving the Creator” means that he is working for the sake of the Creator and not for his own sake. At that time, the work he does, meaning the fact that he wants to work for the sake of the Creator and not for his own sake, is the beginning when a person begins to enter the exile, under the rule of the will to receive for himself.
Also, he has no hope of emerging from this exile unless with heaven’s mercy. That is, the Creator Himself should deliver him from exile, as was in Egypt, where it is written (in the Haggadah [Passover narrative]), “And the Lord brought us out from Egypt, not by an angel, but the Lord Himself.” However, the fact that a person feels that he is in exile under the rule of the will to receive for himself, a person cannot feel this at once, meaning when he begins to work to come out of its control.
Rather, this Kli is called “a lack,” meaning a need to overcome his vessels of reception. A person does not acquire this at once, but it requires time and effort. Then, over time, there is room for a person to feel that he cannot emerge by himself, but time causes a person a need and suffering, to feel how good it would be if he could emerge from exile, and bad when he is in exile.
For this reason, a person is given ascents and descents, and he must believe that both the ascents and the descents come to him from above. At the same time, during the work, he should say, “If I am not for me, who is for me?” When a person comes to a state where his lack is complete, this is considered that he has a Kli [vessel] to receive the filling, to satisfy his lack. Then comes the time when the upper one fills his Kli.
It is known that there is no light without a Kli, as there is no filling without a lack. Accordingly, a complete thing is called “light and Kli,” which divides into two halves: The first half is the Kli, namely the lack. The second half is the light, namely the filling.
It follows that when a person prays to the Creator to satisfy his lack, it is called “half,” meaning making a lack, which is the Kli, for the Creator to satisfy his lack. This is as our sages said (VaYikra Rabbah 18), “A prayer makes half.” We should interpret that a prayer is when a person prays to the Creator to satisfy his lack. This is already regarded as “half,” meaning the first half, which is in one’s hand. The second half is in the hands of the Creator, meaning that the Creator must give the light, and then there will be a complete thing.
However, there are many interpretations to light and Kli. If we are to define a Kli, we can say that it is a lack, and it does not matter what is lacking. For example, sometimes a person feels that he is lacking a Kli to receive abundance, since the abundance cannot reach a Kli that cannot aim in order to bestow. Since he feels that he is under the control of the will to receive for himself, it follows that he lacks a Kli that can receive abundance.
It follows that he is not praying to receive abundance. Rather, he is praying to be given a Kli called “desire to bestow.” Thus, in this case, “a prayer makes half” means the prayer made half a Kli, and the Creator should give the other half of the Kli. It follows that these two halves are actually a complete Kli and not light.
On the other hand, we should say that the lack is in man’s hands. This is called “the first half of the Kli.” And the filling of the Kli, meaning having the desire to bestow, considered the “second half of the Kli,” is regarded as light, since the desire to bestow that the upper one gives him is a filling for a lack, and any filling is called “light” with respect to the lack.
According to the above, we should interpret what we asked, What does the half a shekel imply to us? for the Torah said specifically half: “The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less.” The thing is that we should interpret the words “When you count the heads of the children of Israel to number them,” we should interpret the meaning of “heads” as it is written, “May we be the head and not the tail,” meaning that they will be regarded as Israel, which are the letters Li-Rosh [a head to me].
This is the meaning of “each one shall give a ransom for his soul.” That is, a person must come out of exile, which is called “a ransom for his soul” from the hands of the Sitra Achra [other side]. This is why it is written, “This is what everyone who is numbered shall give,” meaning those who feel that they are breaking the commandments of the Torah because they are placed under the governance of the will to receive. Half a shekel means that they must pray that the Creator will deliver them from exile.
“A prayer makes half” means that the Kli and the desire for something are regarded as half, meaning that by this they will have a complete thing, meaning that they will be rewarded with the “shekel of holiness.” That is, they will have a half shekel, which is the Kli, and the Creator will place the light on this, at which time it is called “a complete thing.” This is the meaning of the words “This is what everyone who is numbered shall give,” meaning those who feel that they are breaking the commandments of the Torah and want to pay a ransom for their souls so that their souls will enter Kedusha [holiness], meaning that they will have the strength to do everything for the sake of the Creator.
They must give half a shekel, meaning a prayer. That is, they must pray and not stop praying until they have a complete measure of lack and desire to emerge from the exile, where they are placed under the control of the will to receive for themselves. By giving their half, they will be rewarded with the shekel of holiness, where the other half, which is the filling for the prayer, will be together the shekel of holiness, meaning it will be one complete shekel of Kedusha.
By this we will understand what we asked, What does it tell us when it says, “The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less”? Even a small child understands that if we want to know the number of something, everyone must give the same amount. We should interpret this in the work. The Torah is telling us a great thing here: We should know that to the Creator, great and small are equal, as it is written (“All Believe”), “Who is equal and equalizes small and great.”
This means that a person thinks that he is rich in good deeds, therefore he deserves the help of the Creator, and he does not need to pray so much for the Creator to satisfy his wish. Therefore, if he has prayed, to the extent of his virtues, the Creator should have promptly granted his wish. And if the Creator does not help him right away, according to his understanding, he stops praying and says that the rest of the people, who are inferior to him, must pray a lot for the Creator to help them. Therefore, he escapes the campaign.
This is why it is written, “The rich shall not give more.” This means that the rich should not think that he is praying too much, according to his understanding. Rather, there is a certain measure of lack and need, and precisely by praying a lot, a person receives a greater lack than he has. That is, a great light requires a great lack, meaning to have a feeling of lack in that he is in exile under the governance of the will to receive and he cannot come out.
As long as he does not have true suffering, it is still not considered a true lack so as to be called “a prayer that counts as half a shekel.” We must know that in the work, a prayer is a lack, meaning that which a person feels in his heart that he lacks, this is called “a prayer,” and not what he utters with his mouth. This is as our sages said, “A prayer is work in the heart,” meaning that which the heart feels it is lacking. To the extent that his heart feels a lack because of what he does not have, by this is the size of the prayer measured.
Concerning the shekel, The Zohar explains that this concerns the balance scales on which we weigh the deficiencies and fillings, since they are regarded as light and Kli. Hence, the light can come only to its proper Kli, since the lack for the filling is in the heart. For this reason, the light, too, comes to the feeling in the heart, and it has nothing to do with what the mouth says while he is praying.
It therefore follows that when a person gives his half in prayer, which is a sense of deficiency in the heart, the Creator will give the light, which is Kedusha. Out of both the lack and the light, will be one shekel of holiness. This is the meaning of the words “half a shekel,” since then this half is still not holiness. But when the Creator gives him the light as in “The light in it reforms him,” the two halves are shekel of holiness, as it is written, “in the shekel of holiness.”
Now we can understand the words, “And the poor shall not give less.” That is, one who feels that he is poor in virtues and good qualities, and he is poor in the sense that he has a weak character, when he prays for the Creator to help him and give him the power to overcome the bad in him and to be able to work in order to bestow, he sentences the Creator to the side of merit when the Creator does not grant his prayer, since he is poor.
Thus, what should he do? Only escape the campaign and say that this path is only for the rich. The writing warns us about this, “The poor shall not do less.” Rather, “Each one of them shall give a ransom for his soul,” to emerge from the exile and be rewarded with redemption. To the Creator, everyone is equal, as it is written, “And all believe that he is easy to please, equal and equalizes small and great.”
In other words, for the part of the Creator, there is no discrimination. Rather, He answers everyone. However, everyone should come to feel the lack, to know what they are lacking and to pray for this. And the prayer itself increases the lack and the pain at being far from the Creator. When a person does all the prayers he should do, he receives the other half of the shekel, which at that time is all holiness, as it is written, “in the shekel of the holiness.”
Then “there shall be no plague among them.” This means as it is written, “The wicked in their lives are called ‘dead,’” as presented in The Study of the Ten Sefirot, that it is because the will to receive is in disparity of form from the Creator, and disparity of form creates separation. Hence, they are separated from the Life of Lives. This is why they are called “dead.” It follows that through the prayer, which is the half shekel that a person must give, if the giving is complete the Creator gives the other half, meaning the light. By this, a person can already work in order to bestow. This is regarded as being rewarded with Dvekut with the Creator, to adhere to the Life of Lives.
It therefore follows that there are two manners that cause a person to escape the campaign even when he enters the work of being adhered to the Creator. Once a person begins to walk on the path of truth, he is shown from above his lowliness, meaning that the more he overcomes, the more hardening of the heart he receives from above, because as it is written, “That I may set these signs of Mine within him.” This means that by this, there will be room for the revelation of the light of Torah, called “letters,” and this reforms him. That is, since there is no light without a Kli, through the hardening of the heart, the lack appears sufficiently, and the Creator knows when the measure is sufficient, when the Kli is completed.
Therefore, sometimes a person escapes the campaign when he sees that he has already prayed a lot in his opinion, but the Creator does not notice him. At that time, sometimes a person sentences the Creator to the side of merit for not granting his prayer, and says that it is because he has a poor character in every way, in virtues, and in good qualities, etc.
It was said about this, “The poor shall not give less,” meaning that a person should not belittle himself and say that the Creator cannot help a lowly person such as him, for it was said about this, “The Lord is high and the low will see.”
And sometimes, a person leaves the campaign because he knows that he is rich, meaning he has much Torah and many good deeds, and he knows that he is superior to others. Therefore, when he asks the Creator to help him be able to do everything in order to bestow, why is the Creator not granting him, for he knows that he has already given many prayers for it. Therefore, he says that the Creator does not want to answer him, and therefore he runs.
And yet, a person must always overcome. Moreover, the more he overcomes, the more hardening of the heart he receives from Above. Because it is as it is written, "that I may set these signs of Mine within him." This means that by this there will be room for the revelation of the light of Torah, called "letters," and this reforms him.
That is, since there is no light without a vessel, through the hardening of the heart the lack appears sufficiently. And the Creator knows when the measure is sufficient, when the Kli is completed.
Therefore, sometimes a person escapes the campaign when he sees that he has already prayed a lot, in his opinion, but the Creator does not notice him. At that time, sometimes a person sentences the Creator to the side of merit for not granting his prayer, and says that it is because he has a poor character in every way, in virtues and in good qualities, etc. It was said about this, "The poor shall not give less," meaning that a person should not belittle himself and say that the Creator cannot help a lowly person such as him, for it was said about this, "The Lord is high, yet the lowly He sees."
And sometimes a person leaves the campaign because he knows that he is rich, meaning he has much Torah and many good deeds, and he knows that he is superior to others. Therefore, when he asks the Creator to help him be able to do everything in order to bestow, why is the Creator not granting him, for he knows that he has already given many prayers for it? Therefore, he says that the Creator does not want to answer him, and therefore he runs. And yet, a person must always overcome.
___________________________
Reader: And let's move on to the lesson.
M. Laitman: (32:30) We heard the article, What Is Half a Shekel in the Work? - 2, from The Rungs of the Ladder, Second Volume, page 233. What does Rabash want to tell us here? Probably, he wants to say here that it is not upon the person to think about himself, that he is strong or he is weak, he is mighty or not, he is wise or not. But rather he should give the labor that he is certainly able to give, according to how he is – the way he’s built. It is written, The prayer of every mouth, that the Creator hears the prayer of every mouth, what does that mean? It doesn't matter what a person feels, it doesn't matter which person feels; that is, each one, whatever he feels in his heart, or more correctly, not what he feels, even deeper than what he feels. But rather what is truly in his heart — this is called his prayer to the Creator – this deficiency influences his attitude towards the Creator, and the Creator's attitude in return towards the person. There is a higher, more external layer in the heart where we feel our desires and we can direct them to the Creator.
Let's say right now I feel, well, we have the following: right now I want to direct some desire towards the Creator. Let's say I want something, according to Him, in relation to my spiritual work, in relation to the purpose of creation, I turn to Him, I want this and that. This desire, because it is external and artificial, that I now awaken it, it is somehow also received above but to the same extent that it is external for me, so it is external over there. My more inner desire, that is, if I truly delve within me and I will check what my heart wants, maybe my heart doesn't want at all what I now seemingly prayed for. My heart wants something else – it wants rest, it wants some small pleasure, something which is not the purpose of creation and all these sublime things. That, too, is considered a part of the prayer, and as I now discover that this is my inner desire, this is how it is received above. And there is another desire, even more internal in my heart, which I do not discover at all, I don't feel it. It is deeper than the threshold of my feeling and it is the true desire that, in its true strength, with its full force, is perceived above because it is the most internal. And when I, later on, receive from above a response for my desire, for my prayer; all in all, the response is sometimes understood by me – sometimes I don't understand it, usually we don't understand it. Each one of us, every moment, is in some state, and that state is certainly a result of the feeling of the heart, of our prayer. But we don't know how to make the connection between what I have in my heart internally, and in the middle, and externally. Accordingly, also this response from the Creator – we don't know because we don't feel the most inner desire I have in my heart. So, first of all, if I would feel it truly, then one: if I would feel to what extent it is in contradiction to what I truly should feel in order to advance in my state, with my qualities, with the way I am today, right now. But how I should advance towards the purpose of creation, if I could feel the mismatch between them, I would know what kind of correction, of course, I should have been given from above. And then I would realize what state, probably, the Creator will send me so that I will be absorbed in it. And then, through this state, I will correct myself, all of these things, in the meantime, are hidden from me.
M. Laitman: (38:16) But whichever way you look at it, whatever may come, what comes up from my heart is absorbed or received above, in the general system. And there, there is also a mechanism that takes care of me personally. And from there, according to the root of my soul and what I have to reach, comes the response to me. And this response is simply a course correction and it is always my next state; a person always raises a prayer, MAN, and he always receives in return MAD. However, before we enter spirituality, we don't understand it, we don't feel it, we can only hear that this is how it is. But after one enters spirituality, he begins to see it clearly, and to work in a way that is very much related – how can I say – related and connected to the MAN and MAD. He sees that he truly has a connection and a dialogue, truly a conversation with the Creator. And this actually, already, binds him and determines all of his actions, and determines all of his life. This is actually called, Half a shekel: the person gives a half. and the Creator gives a half, all in all, for the work.
We remember the examples that Baal HaSulam said about the Kibbutzniks in the Negev, in the desert, who also don't know about their prayer. But nevertheless their prayers for rain are accepted above, and certainly they will receive for that some response below, and so on. That is, always, whatever is in man's heart, with all of its layers, the internal, the middle one, and the external — well, let's say it like that, I'm saying it in general, it always goes up and is accepted. What does it mean, It goes up? It is simply felt in the mechanism that brings every creation to its correction, to its root. And accordingly, the heart, called man's desire, is corrected through all kinds of external conditions that are required to give to him in order to make a correction, a course correction towards the purpose of creation. As much as our inner desires will be aimed towards the purpose of creation, we will need a more subtle, small, soft course correction, which will be felt in us as pleasant, in the same direction. Truly, it's the same thing, just like a mother hugs and helps the child to walk. The greater the deviation between what I have in my heart and what I should feel in my present state, already, towards the purpose of creation, towards returning to my root. The correction will be greater, according to the gap that exists between the desire and the existing desire. And then certainly, the force that reforms me will be felt in me as more cruel, the surrounding conditions that will come down on me will be more harsh, and so on. It is actually a simple mechanism, this is what we learn in TES: MAN and MAD in the souls with respect to Malchut of Atzilut, and in return, the way it influences or bestows upon the souls.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (43:04) How can I cause that inner desire, if I can?
M. Laitman: How, from the present state, can I cause something to be in the right direction?I need to know what is the purpose of creation, what the Creator wants of me, what is the desire in my heart – this is called, The recognition of evil. To what extent, in my present state, I’m not the same, I, that should already be in the present state. Not how I need to be ideally, there in my root, when I reach the end of correction, but now. You don't relate to a five-year-old child as to a ten-year-old child, you relate to him as to a five-year-old child. And if, God forbid, he is falling behind, then we feel sorrow, and there are all kinds of treatments and corrections just to somehow give him some supporters that will help him, right? You always need to be good compared to the state that you have to be in. Not someone else, or you in some other level of development, but for the time being.
Therefore, a person should always — and for the time being, how you need to be — you now have all the data, all the elements to discover and check and see whether you're okay or not. That already depends on your effort, there are no corruptions from above, all of the corruptions, the corruptions exist in you, and you were given the permission to discover them and cure them. This is why we need reforming light, light that shines, and a person sees in it his nature. How much he's dirty with all kinds of thoughts and urges and so on, this is all in man's hands. It is the study, only the study can assist us to see this mismatch between who I am, versus, who I need to be. Bit by bit it comes, it's impossible from the fact that I now want, and I truly tremble from such a great desire — I want to see now, that's not going to help. Bit by bit, the amount of the exertion, the quality of the exertion brings a person the ability to see this. Bit by bit means over years because the iniquities and mistakes, our feeling of the deviation of how much we're different, separated, opposite to the correct state. We need to collect them bit by bit to see them because in them, later on, we feel precisely the revelation. And it takes a lot of time but I mostly wanted to speak about this mechanism, that we always have a prayer, and we always have a correction over our prayer, over the desire in the heart.
This means that each and every moment where you feel something as your presence in the world, it is actually the gap between you, who you are inside of your heart and what needs to be. The pressures, or the good things that you feel from the world, all in all, are forces of correction over you. When a person is corrected, the worlds disappear; all of these worlds exist within man. These worlds are a kind of a mechanism, a system, that simply all the time turns, corrects the person a bit more and a bit more, and a bit more, in order to direct him, to bring him closer to the goal. When a person reaches the goal, these worlds disappear. These worlds become more refined each time, from Assiya to Yetzira to Beriah to Atzilut, and they truly become more refined, they disappear. Instead of them, the simple light is revealed between this simple light and the person. There is no longer some mechanism of concealment, but rather the person already becomes adapted to the simple light.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (48:51) There are states where a person is in the midst of a good feeling or a bad feeling but, you know, he wants to go to the Creator, wants to persist, okay, because it comes from within. What happens when you're in a state where there's no desire? Can I also use the mouth, I have no desire in the heart, but with my mouth I can even say that at least I’m willing to be given this desire. Is there any action I can do with my mouth to awaken my feeling, perhaps, to awaken the feeling?
M. Laitman: I said that we don't feel the inner desire in the heart. The middle desire in the heart, we do feel it, but when we feel it, we usually feel it with a desire for all kinds of things that I'm ashamed to talk about. And there is the external desire, where in my external desire I now arrange my appeal to the Creator, Give me, seemingly, forces of bestowal, and all kinds of things that are correct. You understand, whatever is written in the books; now, there's a question: why should I engage in this flattery, in this lie, in my external desire, if I see my inner desire, not the inner one, my middle one — that I only want beastly pleasures of all kinds, and that's it? Because this lie, that I know I'm lying, that my heart certainly wants beastliness. But this lie that I truly, seemingly cry out, I cry, Bring me spirituality, bring me something so I can bestow, I can be good. This actually is, nevertheless, a prayer. And it is based, whether we understand it or not, on faith in the sages. That nevertheless I, to some extent, believe the author, and this thing, it works because only this, actually, only this, actually is through my free choice.
What does it mean, my external prayer? It’s what I seemingly would have liked to be, as if I would love the friends, to be in some kind of embrace with them. It is all, as if, all of it; but nevertheless, when I look at it from the other side, bit by bit, I see that this is something that I'm willing to take upon myself. Even though my beastly heart inside doesn't want it, the inner heart, the Creator created it. This external desire is artificial, it's false, in the meantime. But this is already something out of it, that I want to absorb, to accept, to receive, to accept it and agree with it in some way. That I wanted – certainly, I do want it to certainly be this way – that is, this is already some kind of a free choice that I have, in how I want to see myself in the future.
M. Laitman: (52:54) Therefore, even though it is something that is artificial and false, but from above they treat it very seriously, that this is certainly what I want. And what my heart inside, the beastly heart, or even more internally, that I don't even feel what it is, who it is — these are things that the Creator has a problem with that, He needs to engage with it. I'm telling you seriously, I am completely disconnected from those things, I have no control over them. So, from the other side, even though before we said the opposite, when I receive, I receive it taking into consideration specifically this false external desire, this hypocritical flattery. I, specifically, receive from above, a correction, in order to advance towards this correct picture, this correct form that I depict to myself. I depict it, not quite correctly, and the Creator brings it to me in a more correct manner. But this means that He always gives me a response from above, according to the difference: the gap between how I want to be good versus what is the true good that I already need to be. This means between my external prayer and what my external prayer should be with all of its falsehood and the untrue form, according to my heart.
Now, where can I find a true scale, here? As much as a person understands and feels the gap between what he truly is – that is, my middle prayer – and what he would have liked, nevertheless. He doesn't want it, but nevertheless the way he depicts to himself how he needs to be, even though he doesn't want it. This means the gap between the middle prayer and the external one. This gap is important, accordingly, as much as I feel that accordingly I'll be able to understand correctly the Creator's response to me, and agree with this response and accept it truly as a course correction.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (56:10) How is it possible to be precise with the external prayer — sorry, that middle prayer, the one in the middle, the one I truly feel? How can I know what I truly feel, and then, in relation to that, to know that difference, the gap?
M. Laitman: The middle prayer is called, Recognition of evil, meaning how much I can see that: my heart — who is it, its qualities? The outer prayer, the external prayer, is what I imagine to myself that I need to be. Although I don't quite agree with it, but I lie to myself that perhaps I want this, or I agree with the middle prayer. I'm speaking around those things, more or less, if we live inside those things, inside a person's heart, we'll be able to gradually see the connection between these things: where the Creator certainly arranges all those things, and how we can relate to Him in return.
Student: How can we do it, how can we reach greater and greater sensitivity towards these things?
M. Laitman: Greater sensitivity for everything you can reach only when a person thinks about it, delves deeper into it, accustoms himself to it. There's an article in Shamati where he explains that everything in the world, everything in reality, a person can feel only through habit – Habit Becomes Second Nature, Article 7 in Shamati. There's nothing in the world, where even if he doesn't feel it at all with his feelings, through exertion and work he cannot begin to feel it, what does it mean, exertion and work on it? That's that same prayer, and then he develops that system, and he enters it, and he feels it. There's nothing here besides work on that will to receive. There aren't that many solutions in spirituality, only one solution: work on that desire through the upper light, through turning to the Creator, who will take care of it in return. That's it, the movement is very simple: from below above, below, that's it.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (58:57) These three degrees of the desire, the external, middle, and inner one, which of them is me?
M. Laitman: Which of them is me? Well, certainly I'm not the external one.
Student: Why?
M. Laitman: Because externally, I'm seemingly imagining to myself what I might want to be. But what does it mean, what I might want to be? Because if I'm looking at my heart, more internally, I see what I really want to be.
Student: From where do I get what I want to be?
M. Laitman: Where do I get what I want to be, it is from books and authors. As they tell me in the books, I have a desire, and an even more internal desire that I can't feel in the heart. Inside my desire, truly inside my heart, there you find either the stony heart, which is something you cannot even imagine or There's None Else Besides Him, which is really the same thing. It's the face and the posterior of the same thing that's concealed from me. I don't really get there, I can get only to the middle desire and the external desire.
Student: What is the relationship between them?
M. Laitman: Oh, the relationship, the system of relationship between the middle desire and the external desire is important to me. Because the way I relate to these two desires — the inner desire, I sometimes see it, and then it's clear to me who I am. Let's say, when I'm in a state of descent, when I fall, when I suddenly see myself in these moments where I'm amazed, shocked by myself, then I can see these middle desires. The external desires, it's more accurately during the ascent, when the upper light works on me, what I seemingly would have liked to be disconnected from the middle desire. If I will analyze critically these two things together, then what is my relationship between the two? That's how you can relate to them; or, you can just relate to them in such a way where a person is in neither one.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (01:01:45) Can we say the external desire is a result of the environment, and the middle desire is already the inner work of the person, or is that not quite related?
M. Laitman: The external desire is a result of books and authors, and the inner desire is still the true desire of the degree I'm in; and the external desire is the degree I seemingly wish to reach.
Student: But the external desire seemingly should be unchanging, it seemingly should be uniform all the time, fixed towards the goal?
M. Laitman: Which one?
Student: The external one.
M. Laitman: The external desire, no, but the external desire changes, because each time I depict to myself differently the degree I wish to reach. My external desire is – we still don't think of it this way, but – ultimately my external desire has to be a copy from the Creator, to whom I wish to resemble.
Student: Which I get ultimately from the book?
M. Laitman: From the books.
Student: And let's say from the environment, it increases for me?
M. Laitman: Yes, the books and the authors.
Student: So how does it influence my middle desire? There is None Else Besides Him, let's say?
M. Laitman: According to the gap that I have between the external desire and the middle desire. Maybe it's enough to speak of only these two desires because the third, inner desire, is irrelevant. You don't feel it or anything, there is my true self, like in the beginning, in the end, in the end of correction.
Student: Which is only beyond the barrier, that inner desire?
M. Laitman: So, what determines my attitude between these two desires – the middle and the external?
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (01:03:56) Why does a person run away from the campaign, because he hasn't yet reached the true prayer?
M. Laitman: Why would a person escape the campaign? For many reasons, ultimately the reason is simple, when he doesn't get enough support from the environment. That's what he says in Free Choice, The Freedom. He did not equip himself with supporters from the environment, from the books, from the study, then he escapes the campaign. It doesn't matter what kind of environment it is, it could be next to a really great Rav, a very strong environment. But the question is how connected he is to them? I mean, the environment is not where I am, where I find myself, you know, one group here, the people around me are good, they're strong, the Rav is okay, the place is fine, they will influence me. They will influence me ultimately to the extent that I want them to influence me, there's no coercion in spirituality.
It's not simply that we cannot coerce anyone, rather there's no coercion in spirituality, it's simply a law that there cannot be coercion. It's simply there's no such thing, even if I want them to coerce me, they cannot do it. They can beat me up, vigorously, it won't do any good. There's no coercion in spirituality, meaning that I cannot change through external coercion, I change only to the extent that I want them to influence me. Then it's no longer coercion, you understand? There's no coercion, doesn't mean that I cannot coerce anyone; rather that no one from the outside, even if they want it, no one can change anything in me coercively.
Student: Here Rabash writes that actually a person runs away.
M. Laitman: That's why we see from here that all the changes can be only as a result of a person's agreement. A result of his willingness, his free choice: how much he makes an opening for the light to enter. On the outside, it's Ein Sof, but how much of it can enter? On the outside I have this great group, I have next to me all these Rabbis, I'm in the holy society of Rabbi Shimon. But if I don't make an opening, to the extent that I open it, they'll be able to influence me. And if I don't open it, they can sit around me and discuss and do, there'll be a burning fire between them – and with me, I'll feel this coolness, you know, Bring another cup of coffee, okay, I'll sit here a bit more. There's no coercion in spirituality, is a sign that they will not be able to influence me with all their good desire.
That's what he writes in the, Speech for the Completion of the Zohar, that everything depends on the extent to which a student serves his Rav. Meaning, a person serving the group because that measure makes an opening; where, in return, either the Rav or the group can influence a person, and this is called, Free choice. Free choice is that measure, that amount that you allow the good environment to influence you. Now make a calculation: how much you truly relate to the society in this way, so you'll be rewarded with receiving forces from it. To that extent, to the extent you receive the forces from it, you will advance.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (01:08:29) If a person reaches despair and doesn't let others help him?
M. Laitman: If a person reaches despair and doesn't let anyone help him, there's nothing to do. Wait until from above they will change the times — times will change, that's what you do. Meaning, it doesn't depend on a person or the society, he disconnected himself from society, shut himself in. Then from above there's a mechanism that will change the state. You have to be prepared for it and relate to him this way.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (01:09:13) Between the middle desire and the external desire, there's some kind of a chain of linking desires?
M. Laitman: Yes, but I don't want to get into greater detail.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (01:09:27) From what does this agreement inside a person come from, because he has no choice? What are the reasons, what does it depend on?
M. Laitman: The agreement with the influence of society on him comes reluctantly, out of desperation of his own forces. How does he write in, The Sages' Fruit: No happier moment in a man's life than when he has despaired of his own forces, and there's no remedy because then he's rewarded with true prayer from the bottom of his heart.
Student: Could there be such a thing that, to begin with, there's a friend in the group that has that? Or does he have to go through all the stages on the way?
M. Laitman: The what?
Student: Could this agreement be a result of someone's investment, or could he have this agreement to begin with?
M. Laitman: No, to begin with, I don't agree with them influencing me, I can't agree with that, I don't have in my nature a readiness for that. To be able to let other people be lords over me, I can't, I have no choice. I come to the hospital, I lie in a bed there, and I give my body to them and say, Do what you can. I am gravely ill to such an extent, disconnect my feelings, put me to sleep, open me up, do whatever you think. I remember with my second surgery, Well, do it already! Oh, finally they'll do it. I remember I entered the operating room, I lay down, and they started like this, Turn this way. Just do it quickly, put me to sleep, and later turn me. I don't care about anything." I was happy, finally they're about to – you understand, recognition of evil – I can't breathe.
So before that, we don't agree, how is it possible? Our, I, is so independent on its own, it was created this way. It feels itself as unique and the only one in the world, and in truth, the way it is, it's the only one, there is no more. So how can I give it to someone else, to someone?
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (01:12:19) Such desires, like the people in the Kibbutz in the south?
M. Laitman: No, the desire of the members of the Kibbutz in the Negev, it's truly a prayer, but it's not a prayer that belongs to, or that is – it doesn't exist in us as well. You're asking whether it belongs to our central or medial prayer. I wouldn't say, because this central prayer of ours is, also, it's different, and changing. And also all the events that are in us have an impact on it as well. In us, nothing is the same: if a person has but one prayer that he can see in his heart, that's called still of Kedusha. If he doesn't relate to his heart as to prayer at all, then he's just another human being that is of the animal kingdom.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (01:13:39) So, how to relate to the point in the heart?
M. Laitman: The point in the heart is, maybe we could say that it's the more internal point. The point in the heart is not exactly a point or a dot, it's a complete system. You know, look at a computer virus, we don't just call it a disturbance, it's a special program or software that knows how to take all kinds of things and connect them in a way that corrupts something. But in its way, meaning within it, there's a structure and a certain logic of its own, and it's not just some scribble. But rather people with great brains sit and manufacture these viruses. Also in our body, the virus is a certain biological program that develops incorrectly, or not in a good way; also cancer cells, these are complete programs. And to distinguish between that, the point in the heart, we just say it's a point, just a desire that suddenly a person has from above, and it's some spark from the Creator maybe that enters into a person, or a little of the vessels of bestowal, or some. No, it's a mechanism, it's a true system on its own that is revealed within a person's heart, this point in the heart; we will gradually see these things more.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (01:16:02) We usually talk about a desire like matter and intentions, so is that? Usually we talk about a desire that receives the pleasure, and there is an intention to receive or to bestow – this or this?
M. Laitman: We're going to the study of the Ten Sefirot. You guys are too smart, you want to get confused. I have a small head, a small intellect, I don't know more than one and one. I just want to solve this problem: one is me, and one more is Him, that's it. And it should be clear, it'll be tomorrow. We'll talk again!
Reader: Let's share impressions from the lesson. What are we taking from it to implement in the Ten? Then, we’ll go to the next part, and sing a song, first!
Song: (01:23:20)