When a person breaks free from egoism and crosses the Machsom, a period begins in which they receive the upper light to purify Galgalta ve Eynaim, that is, his finest desires: Aviut zero, one, and half of Aviut two, up to the middle of Binah—Shoresh, Aleph, and GAR de-Bet. All this takes place during the period from Passover to Shavuot. What does this mean?
The exodus from Egypt, Passover, is the crossing of the Machsom, the exit from egoism. It includes many transitions and states too. Can you imagine how many intermediate states a person must pass through before it can truly be said that he has passed through something? Afterward, he receives the light and purifies within himself 49 Sefirot up to the 50th Sefira (the 50 gates of Binah) and enters Binah. Why 50? Is Binah not 40?
The letter “Mem” is a closed letter and symbolizes Binah, because Binah is, as it were, closed like Noah’s Ark. Its form resembles a closed box, a spiritual knot inside which only one quality is concentrated: complete bestowal, complete detachment from oneself. In such a case, a person fears nothing and nothing can influence him; he is above himself, without any connection to himself. Such qualities bring spiritual light to our egoism.
In this case, this box (that is, our soul, all our qualities) is filled with the light of Hassadim. This light of complete bestowal, of complete detachment from oneself is also called Noah’s Ark, because in this form, a person can save himself and is dependent on no one and nothing. He is not afraid of either a hurricane or a flood.
The flood, too, is caused by the forces of Binah (water). But this is water in which all of Malchut and all of Hochma are revealed, the entire light of Hochma and Malchut’s fierce desire. In other words, the flood is like a concentration of external and internal forces: from within, the forces of pure Binah; and from without, all the other forces, which are supposedly also included in Binah.
Binah is a very complex category. It builds the soul in such a way that, from within and from without, the soul is under these waters: from within, under the quality of pure Binah, complete bestowal; and from without, as if under qualities opposite to Binah, which make intense use of Hochma and Malchut. At the same time, the soul becomes stronger and acquires such qualities that it can later raise from within itself a light of Hassadim sufficient even to receive the light of Hochma “Al Menat Lehashpia,” “for the sake of the Creator.”
After all, Binah simply bestows; it wants nothing. But when it is hardened by passing through the flood, it develops such strength that it can even receive the light of Hochma. It is no longer afraid of anything.
When a person acquires the qualities of Binah, all his qualities say: “Naaseh ve-nishma”—that is, “we will accept the Torah and fulfill it”; we will correct egoism. For when the qualities of Binah, GE, are acquired, nothing yet happens to our original qualities; we simply acquire the qualities of Binah. Only afterward do we begin to work with the genuine qualities, with the qualities of Malchut.
Therefore, it is said that when the entire people gather (the person is described as a people, meaning that he consists of all kinds of qualities: men, women, children, and elders, all of these being qualities within a person) at Mount Sinai (Sinai comes from the word “Sinah,” hatred), that is, when hatred arises within him from the side of Binah toward the qualities of Malchut, then everyone, as it were, cries out with one voice: “We agree!” In other words, all the qualities of a person have already been purified and prepared to such an extent that they agree to accept Kabbalah.
Kabbalah is the method of working with egoistic qualities, from the word “Lekabel” (to receive), that is, how to receive the upper light, the light of Hochma, already in order to bestow. Then the state called “the giving of the Torah” arises, and in this way egoism itself is corrected.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/25/26, Sitrin Convention, Sukkot 2003















