Morning Lesson June 19, 2022 Transcription

Transcription is made from simultaneous translation which leaves a possibility for differences in the audio

Baal HaSulam. Shamati 219. Devotion

1. Rav’s Introduction: We are the created beings and this is why we need to see how we stand as created beings before the Creator. The Creator arranged for us this nature which is the will to receive, the will to enjoy, the will to sustain oneself and it is opposite to His nature. By that He gave us independence, the foundation for independence since we are not like Him. We can exist. We need only to change this quality, the will to enjoy, the will to receive into in order to bestow.

We can’t change it to true bestowal because that is the quality of the Creator but with that same desire He created in us, to perform an action that is opposite to the desire, this is something we can do by asking the Creator to change us. It takes a long time for a person typically to understand and feel these things and begin to take part in this change. Rather what is happening is that the Creator is performing all kinds of changes in the person, inviting all kinds of states in the person and the person is between his will to receive, his nature and a tiny bit of bestowal and from that he begins to feel that there are all kinds of changes in life, all kinds of colors as Kabbalists call it.

This is how we advance. In order to hasten development, to hold it in our hands a little bit, they let us study from the writings of the Kabbalists and they tell us how we need to behave in our tens. We have to organize them and then in these small groups to try and see how we can truthfully and practically reach the second nature. Although all of us are in the will to receive, how can we make actions of bestowal? Of course, we find out that there are no true acts of bestowal. It is not from us, we are unable but somehow seeming externally we are making such actions.

We sing, we participate in all kinds of events but in a sense Kabbalists say it’s all enough. If you are trying to perform these acts of connection, if you truly want to reach the second nature as much as you can of course but you try nevertheless then these external actions, you’re sitting, singing, eating together, all those things, all those group actions are highly beneficial. Because in them you seemingly connect and combine the desires and intentions and yearnings and it works in each and everyone. This is how a person is impressed by the environment and in the correct environment we learn about the influence of the environment on a person, how it can change a person greatly. So a person reaches a state where after a long time, it is not really the time it is after many different actions that he performed with the society or the society worked on him or they did this together and many times he turned to the Creator seemingly without any benefits.

Nevertheless there are changes over time, sometimes it takes years and they accumulate and they are added together. This is the matter of the accumulation of the efforts and those tiny lights connect and a person begins to feel a certain change in feeling, in his mind. He begins to understand what needs to happen in him, that the main thing for him is just as he is adhered to his will to receive as it is written the person is close to himself, he wishes to disconnect himself from himself and to cleave unto the Creator. How is it felt? He doesn’t want to sustain and maintain his ego, his will to receive. Rather he wants to know what is the will of the Creator for him, to keep that. It’s better even not to know. To simply to be adhered to the Creator's desire, to be incorporated in that desire and to do anything and everything this desire demands of him to do and this state is called devotion. Let's read what is happening here about devotion.

Reading Shamati 219 (08:22)

2. R. (11:47) Let's read it again.

Reading again

3. S. (15:39) How much do we have to work in order to feel the Creator? To what degree and what state we need to reach? Maybe you can share with us from your experience when you started feeling the Creator for the first time.

R. The feeling of the Creator comes in the first degree of devotion that a person attains and that is on the conditions that it truly comes to the situation where for the time being he doesn't want anything for himself but only to do a certain action for the benefit of the Creator, without anything to return to him. Not that he would feel the taste of it on the spot and not to receive any payment or reward but only the action itself, from him towards the Creator. Also he does not quite feel that it is from him and he’s doing it, rather the Creator will arrange these things and in this way he will participate in it and when does it come?

When we are ready to do it in a group, and not that we feel ourselves already in a group but the preparation for it has to be in a group. As of right now we are very close to it, we simply need to concentrate our efforts, for each and everyone to try and do it. It seems to a person that this is his individual work and what does it have to do with s group and doing it together with others, no. In the beginning, of course not but a person needs an example, support, help, a certain spirit that comes from the group since otherwise he cannot disconnect from himself, even a tiny bit. There has to be a certain impulse from the ten so he will be able to nevertheless take a step forward toward the Creator.

4. S. (18:44) I don't see here, where he talks about what we should fear, is this just the fear of not being able to bestow?

R. Yes, precisely, it is about whether or not I will be able to bestow to the Creator.

5. S. (19:18) It turns out that our desire to receive cannot work without the sense of fulfillment. When we come to an extreme state then the Creator gives us fulfillment, if I understand correctly?

R. We work, of course, with our will to receive, there is nothing else in the person but the will to receive, but the will to receive comes to a state where it wants to work in bestowal. But to himself, seemingly, later he checks and he might see it is correct or incorrect but for the time being he checks himself and he sees that he truly does not want anything in return for himself and he also he does not quite want to know if he is truly working for the benefit of the Creator because that, too, is also a form of payment and a great one.

So the person wants to be disconnected from himself and work on the side of the Creator, not on his side but on the side of the Creator’s side. And this way the person constantly tries and tries to transfer himself from his half to the Creator’s half until he starts to acquire certain impressions, excited feelings and he can do all kinds of actions back and forth, and this is how it is clarified in him, the matter of reception and bestowal, in order to receive and in order bestow, so on and so forth.

6. S. (21:25) He says here in the article, in the last paragraph, that there are two states: the state of Katnut where he feels no pleasure for himself, and then he writes that the Creator should have mercy on him and give him taste in the servitude, so what are these states?

R. Well, we are not quite in them so it is hard for us to scrutinize them, to clarify them. It is not worthwhile; for the time being we can only confuse what we discussed. When he feels that he has to receive something in order to perform an act of bestowal or he can already say that he is capable of doing an action of bestowal without receiving anything for himself.

7. S. (22:37) I don’t want to say that if we work in adhesion with the ten if we work together on the fear and love of the Creator in the ten then the spirit of the Creator dresses into us?

R. Yes, correct.

8. S. (23:14) We go through many states here every day, every moment, but there is a state that accompanies me in each and every moment and this is the fear of detaching from the friends, the world Kli, the daily lessons. You always try to make a calculation of how to stick close to the friends, what is this thing that accompanies us all the time?

R. I do not know maybe it is the lack of connection, the lack of participation, deficiency of participation, try. You have to feel how much you need the friends and how much the friends need you and your common goal which cannot be for one but rather for everybody and how each and every one invests with everyone in order to attain the goal. It is impossible for one to attain rather we all have to move towards the attainment of the goal.

We are in a state as Baal HaSulam writes where the entire generation must enter the revelation of the Creator so to some extent we have to do it. Meaning the big difference in principle between our generation and previous generations is that in our generation we have to attain the Creator in the form of a group and not individually as it was in the past generations, and it is a huge difference, So there are all kinds of connections in our times, look at all those connections, those links between countries and nations and how the families is built, how the industry is built, all of us suddenly discover, especially during this war between Russia and Ukraine, we see how we are all dependent on one another.

Soon there will be famine around the world and not just a shortage of bread but all kinds of supplies; and not because those are things themselves are missing but because there is no good connection between every one, this is the problem, this is what upper Providence wishes to teach us in our current state. That although you can grow anything and do anything but whatever you do without connection between you is all working to your detriment and this is why you suffer and this will teach us that there is no other way but we must connect between us above all calculations to feel ourselves as one body,’ one nation in few things’, as it is written.

9. S. (27:08) Why does Rabash write that the body does not agree to the work?

R. Repeat slowly and speak correctly into the microphone.

S. Why does Rabash write that devotion, the body does not agree to the work? Devotion is such a high state to reach that the body does not agree?

R. Of course our body does not agree to work in soul devotion because this is the worst possible thing for it.

The will to receive cannot work unless he sees some form of benefit to itself, it is incapable above benefit to himself. If he does not see any benefit for itself there is no way for it to work, if it lacks fuel he cannot make any movement, this is how we are built we are a biological machine that works only on the condition that it has fuel and our fuel is pleasure, the pleasure we receive by either doing the work or as the result of the work, we see that it is clear to us that we will receive it. But this is our nature, there is nothing can do about it, it’s called the will to receive. And this is why we need to acquire here a new form of fuel so we would be able to work in order to bestow contentment to the Creator, that we will receive fuel from that, that we will receive the power and pleasure from that.

So in this instance the Creator has to be greater than myself, than my body, the one who I serve and here is the question: how can I convince myself my will to receive that the Creator is more important than my own body, my own nature? There is nothing we can do about this, we have to build such a relationship where we all work somehow for the sake of the ten. To the extent we can do this we can perform such intermediary action meaning from the person to the group, to that extent we can begin to feel that we can come out of the self to the Creator. That there is a certain upper force here which can give us the opportunity to work outside of ourselves in bestowal. This happens not all at once, of course, but that is where we’re headed.

10. S. (31:04) You answered before that we do a calculation, a test within, and then I see that no intention for self remains in me. How is this even possible, what is this test and who tells me that I do not have intention for myself?

R. All the actions we perform we try to perform such actions that influence our nature, this is the main thing, how will they influence our nature when I will be able to perform actions not in order to receive pleasure but to bestow pleasure to the Creator? I have to imagine to myself before Him, and then ‘who am I doing it for either for myself or for the Creator and if I check myself and I constantly try to work and scrutinize who am I doing this for then each and every time a certain tendency, a certain desire appears in me where I do want to do something that is disconnected from myself and is aimed at Him.

This action where I disconnect from myself and I am aimed at the Creator, this is actually the restriction, and after this I might be able to perform acts where I truly bestow to Him and I have no connection to it from myself, whatsoever. It depends on top of what kind of ego I am willing to do this, this is already the coarseness that is in the screen, in the act of bestowal, so on and so forth. There are additional developments here but let us first try to feel what it means to perform an action that is entirely aimed at the Creator and not at me, this is what we should try and do.

S. Could there be a state that, let's say, we have a state that is within reason and above reason, is it possible to determine that there are only these two states and there is not a third state?

R. It’s incorrect what you’re saying, what I am checking here in my desire is can I do this or not above the desire, that's it. Can I perform an act of bestowal to the Creator above my desire? Let’s say I imagine that I am rising above my desire.

S. It is not clear at all, within me there is this inside voice, I ask a question and the inner voice says, ‘give an answer and make a scrutiny’ and then I get an answer, so the ego is answering me. How can I say I am in bestowal if I do the test with my own mind?

R. It doesn't matter, start doing such actions and by that you awaken the reforming light and it influences you and will bring you to exalted discernments, keep going.

11. S. (35:56) What does it mean that if I make any action I have to make sure that you see whether I am doing it for myself or the Creator. I want to reach the quality of bestowal to resemble the Creator, in my perspective it is for myself. How do I then aim this to the Creator without me being in the equation?

R. Try, in the way you start to think about the host, of a friend, that you are doing certain actions and you want nothing in return for it, only to have the strength to perform this action from you to Him.

S. Ultimately, this is what I want, that nothing will come out of it for me when I get there I do not have yet the vessels so that nothing will come out of it for me.

R. Okay but you have the intention, the intention for the intention for this to happen and that is enough to awaken the reforming light.

S. And here in the article he says “the more that the work increases, the suffering increases”, what is the source of suffering: my inner resistance or the light that reforms?

R. Both, the light versus the desire, you wish to use the desire not to attract the light but rather you wish to use the light in order to have the possibility to work above the desire.

S. And the more I work, the more the suffering. We’ve learned that when there is suffering without even saying anything I’m blaming the Creator, so how does it end? I do not want to blame the Creator but if I have suffering this is the result?

R. You have to keep going and there will come a time where you’ll get through this and you’ll feel that you do, you wish to belong only to soul devotion. That you have no other affinity to yourself or what will happen to you or what happens to you in the next world or this world or anything, you just simply want soul devotion.

12. S. (38:38) You said in the intro that He created us opposite to Himself and this is the basis for our independence but He adds suffering to us in that state. How do we maintain our independence, ourchoice

R. Suffering? The suffering is a very important thing, the suffering, the feeling of suffering always aims me for or against so we have to look at those things as necessary discernments for our development.

S. How do we not escape suffering but advance with it ?

R. You rise above it, you rise above it, you agree with what will happen as long as you can take part in the act of bestowal.

13. S. (39:48) How do we build the aspect of fear correctly?

R. The important thing is to constantly reach a state where there is some fear ahead of you and then you make a calculation: why, what this is for, where did it come from, how to rise above it or how to use it in order to keep going.

S. What does it give us, to the work? I am not sure how to ask this: what am I supposed to look for, what is this fear that will take me to love?

R. It is the fear that you will not be able to reach the love of the Creator, that you are opposite to this.

14. S. (40:47) It says, “the Creator gives taste in the servitude of the Creator”, does it mean that there is room to ask for taste in devotion.

R. Yes there is a prayer for this as well. I wish to be connected to the Creator in the good connection from the bottom of my heart.

15. S. (41:22) How can we bestow if we don’t enjoy?

R. Look for bestowal and for pleasure from something else.

S. My qualities have to change or you can do that even before?

R. If it will change, it will change, why are you calling for this right now? You want to change your qualities right away, you wish to bestow contentment to the Creator, this is the goal, this is what is ahead of you. How do you go from yourself to the Creator, how instead of thinking what will be good for me in the next moment, you are thinking how can I do good to the Creator in the next moment. Start thinking in this way and then you see what you’re missing and you can ask for that.

16. S. (42:26) The question is what happens after we pass this war of attaining fear will it continue with the war or it will stop?

R. You will see that it will all stop.

17. S. (42:47) Can you clarify the expression where there is work there is the Sitra Achra what does it mean?

R. There cannot be a spiritual action without resistance from the will to receive very simple take it from the definitions of the Kabbalists to something simple that is clear to all if I work in bestowal then I’ll always have a resistance from the desire to receive.

18. S. (43:33) What's the difference between exertion and devotion?

R. The difference between labor and devotion that labor means that I have to do this forcefully this is exertion and soul devotion is not an action that I can perform forcefully or not soul devotion is at state there I am capable of describing my inner forces to the action of bestowal to the Creator.

19. S. (44:15) In our degree it is easier to come to devotion specifically on top of great resistance?

R. We come to soul devotion after many many actions if we connect between us then we also connect and combine our actions and we get quickly to devotion.

20. S. (44:44) Why is it called Nefesh and devotion means soul devotion?

R. Because this is the beginning of the spiritual vessel that is revealed.

21. S. (44:57) Can a person himself realize that he's causing contentment to the Creator or the Creator must reveal this to the person?

R. Everything new that we have especially in spirituality comes to us from the Creator and not from any other source if it's a physical action in corporeality there are laws there in order of development that is also from the Creator but this corporeal order of development. That’s what it’s called this is the corporeal nature then in spiritual actions in each and every action that we can realize or that is happening to us each action like that comes because there is an additional reforming light and that is why there is participation of the Creator first and foremost.

22. S. (46:09) What is the meaning that love is as strong as death?

R. These are two forces these are the two forces working one against the other and that’s how they establish one and other there cannot be love without death and death without love they are opposite forces that sustain one another we will talk about it and these things are ahead of us.

23. S. (47:07) Is there an action from myself that I can do with the Creator's participation?

R. No you do not need to turn to the Creator if you're doing it for yourself whereas a spiritual action cannot be unless you include the Creator in it you do not have any forces of bestowal.

24. S. (47:51) Why do we have to suffer can’t there be work done by hastening time?

R. Go ahead and take the path of Achishena I shall hasten it of course you can include everyone and connect everyone and everyone to turn to the Creator in return He will help you if you do it in a good way together there is no problem you can advance until the end of correction on a paved road as if you are sitting in comfortable recliners and you advance in this way you enter Heaven.

25. S. (48:56) How to build the desire to bestow to the Creator?

R. You think about it all the time it does not matter in what form in what incidents you constantly think about how we can bestow to the Creator that’s the first thing and the second thing is that I cannot bestow to the Creator individually personally because we are already in the state of The Last Generation so the Creator wants to have before him a vessel that comes to correction in the complete form and more or less that is the ten so bestowal to the Creator means that my vessel should be incorporated my desire, my connection to the friends and in this way we advance.

26. S. (50:12) Are love and fear consecutive states or one state?

R. There are two states two discernments that we wish to connect in order to reinforce one on top of the other.

27. S. (50:35) How does spiritual suffering manifest how to identify it in our feelings and how to work with it?

R. Spiritual suffering is when I feel pain from lack of love to the Creator that I do not love the Creator and that pains me and these pains are called spiritual sufferings, when I feel that I do not love the Creator, those are spiritual sufferings.

28. S. (51:16) How will the suffering of the ego become a spiritual suffering of love?

R. If we constantly think about it we’ll constantly think about how do I come to love the Creator.

29. S. (51:39) It doesn’t matter what you do, by necessity there’s always some response in the will to receive from the action you’re doing even in getting some approval from you in a question I’m asking how to detach from this desire to get a response all the time?

R. We cannot disconnect from the will to receive we only need to arrange our will to receive in such a way that it will be aimed at bestowal, that’s it, the will to receive remains. As much as it grows, it grows all that’s important, is the direction, what is it aimed at. The will to receive by itself is neither good nor bad, good or bad depends on how do I use it for myself or for the others and for the Creator.

30. S. (52:44) How to incorporate with the Creator’s desire when the will to receive always captures you and overpowers your vision of the Creator?

R. The fact that the will to receive constantly cuts you off on the way and does not let you perform any actions or any prayer in wholeness, that too is correction because by that He wishes to correct the person with respect to what he needs to add to this attitude to the Creator.

31. S. (53:21) What part does the ten have in the success of each friend in making actions with an intention to the Creator?

R. The ten has a huge part in helping each and every friend be in the correct plea and connect with the friends in the ten is to mostly to think about the common power of everyone where in this common power we wish to connect everyone and in this way the Creator will feel them and will approach that ten.

32. S. (54:10) A state where the will to receive becomes an intention to bestow does that symbolize a state where the ego starts nullifying?

R. Yes.

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Denní lekce٢٨/‏١١/‏٢٠٢٣(Morning)Part 2 Ba'al HaSulam. Učení Deseti Sfirot. Kniha 2. Část 6, odstavec 22

Part 2 Ba'al HaSulam. Učení Deseti Sfirot. Kniha 2. Část 6, odstavec 22

Ba'al HaSulam. Učení Deseti Sfirot. Kniha 2. Část 6, odstavec 22

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Denní lekce٢٨/‏١١/‏٢٠٢٣(Morning)
Part 2 Ba'al HaSulam. Učení Deseti Sfirot. Kniha 2. Část 6, odstavec 22

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Copyright © 2003-2026 Bnei Baruch – Kabbalah L’Am Association, All rights reserved