The transcript has been transcribed and edited from English simultaneous interpretation, thus there may be potential semantic inaccuracies within it.
Daily Morning Lesson September 9, 2026
Part 1: Rabash. Go Forth from Your Land. Article No. 5, 1985
Reader: Hello friends. In the first part of the lesson we will learn from a recorded lesson from the third of November, 2003 based on the article, "Go Forth From Your Land." This article is from “The Writings of Rabash.” We will read the article together in the Tens. We have seventeen minutes for that.
Reading: (00:46) Go Forth from Your Land
Article No. 5, 1985
“Go forth from your land, and from your homeland, and from your father’s house to the land that I will show you.”
This is perplexing, for it is not according to the order of reality. This is so because first one comes out of one’s father’s house, then from one’s homeland, and then from one’s land. This is what the interpreters ask.
In the work, we should interpret that “your land” comes from the word Ratzon [desire] as our sages said about, “Let the earth put forth grass,” it was delighted to do its Maker’s will. Accordingly, “Go forth from your land” means from your desire, which is the desire with which one is created, called “desire to receive delight and pleasure,” which is regarded as self-love. This is why he was told to go out of self-love.
“From your homeland” means that father and offspring are cause and consequence, reason and result. This is so because the result comes from the drop in the father’s brain. By that, the result later emerges, as we explained in previous articles. In other words, the labor, when a person is going to work, is in order to receive reward. It turns out that the labor gives him reward. Were it not for the reward, he would not have made any effort. It therefore follows that a person keeps Torah and Mitzvot [commandments] in order to beget a son, which is called the reward.
Considering the reward, we’ve already said that there are two kinds of reward: 1. reward in this world; 2. reward in the next world.
It is written in The Zohar (“Introduction of the Book of Zohar,” item 190), “And those two, says the Holy Zohar are not the essence.” It is explained there in the Sulam [Ladder (commentary on The Zohar)], that it is because they were built on a foundation of self-love, called “desire to receive in order to receive.”
It therefore follows that if a person exerts in Torah and Mitzvot in order to receive reward for his will to receive, then both the father, meaning the labor, and the offspring, which was born out of that labor, and which is called “reward,” were all on the basis of self-love. This means that the drop in the father’s brain, called “labor,” from the beginning of his work his thought was only of self-love. Naturally the offspring that was born, meaning the reward he expects to receive, is also a reward of self-love.
He was told “Go forth from your land,” meaning from your will to receive, “and from your homeland,” meaning the offspring that were born. “From your father’s land” means the reward that was born out of your father’s house, which is the labor that begets a reward of self-love. From all these he should depart.
“To the land that I will show you.” That land means desire to bestow. On that land, meaning on the desire to bestow, on that land, that is, on the desire to bestow, he will be rewarded with the Creator revealing to him.
“That I will show you” means that the Creator will reveal Himself to him. Conversely, on the will to receive there were restriction and concealment, and it became dark there and separated from the life of lives, which causes darkness.
Therefore, I cannot be revealed to you on your desire, but only on the desire to bestow, called “equivalence of form.” At that time, the restriction and concealment are removed and the Creator is revealed to him.
“And I will make you a great nation.” In Midrash Raba (Chapter 39) “Rabbi Levi said, ‘When Abraham our father was walking in Aram Naharaim and saw them reckless and eating and drinking, he said, ‘I wish that I will not have a portion in this land.’ When he came to Sulam Tzor, and saw them weeding at the time of weeding, and hoeing at the time of hoeing, he said, ‘I wish that I might have a portion in this land.’ The Creator told him, ‘To your descendants I have given this land.’’”
To understand his words in the work, we should interpret that Eretz [land] means Ratzon [desire]. Be-Aram [in Aram] has the letters of Avram. When Abraham walked from Naharaim—Naharaim comes from the word Nahor [illuminated]—then he saw that there are people who desire only the lights. This is called “eating and drinking,” when the aim is for the reward. This is why he said “that I will not have a portion in this land,” meaning I will not have a portion in this desire, when the intention is only on the reward, and the work is not appreciated, only the reward is appreciated. This is why he said, “I will not have a portion in this desire.”
“When he came to Sulam Tzor,” Tzor comes from the word Tzar [narrow], meaning that they felt Tzarut [narrowness] in the work. He saw that they were in the Sulam [ladder], which is as a ladder set on the earth with its top reaching to heaven. “He saw them weeding at the time of weeding, and hoeing at the time of hoeing,” meaning that all their thoughts were about man’s work, and they were focusing their intentions on the correctness of their work. That is, the Kelim [vessels] where the abundance should come should be proper. And they did not pay attention to the fruits, which is the reward. Instead, they were looking at the order of the work, and this is the meaning of what he said, that they were weeding at the time of weeding, and hoeing at the time of hoeing.
Then he said, “I wish I will have a part in this land,” in this desire, which is aiming for the work to be proper. And the reward, which is the fruits, is not their business. It was said about this, “The concealed things are to the Lord our God.” In other words, the reward is the Creator’s business, and we need not look at the reward, but in any situation we are in, we are satisfied that we have been privileged with having any contact with the work. This, to him, is a great privilege. And only the revealed things are to us, which is the actions.
By this we should interpret, “and I will make you a great nation.” Gadlut [adulthood/greatness] is precisely the action. Among those who work, greatness is only work above reason. Only there they feel its importance, but they do not take into account the lights that they receive through their work, since the lights have to do with “the concealed things are to the Lord our God.” This is the work of the Creator—who does what He wants.
They did not ask of Him to give them because this was not their purpose. They have only one purpose: to bring contentment to the Creator without any reward, for all the reward is in that they have the privilege of serving the King. They do not care what service they do for the King, whether an important role or an unimportant role, since all they think of is how they can delight the King.
This means that, for example, not many people want to take upon themselves unimportant roles. They immediately jump on them because here they can delight the King, since not many people want it.
The lesson is that not many people want to go in the direction of work above reason, as everyone thinks it is regarded as a lowly work and regard such work as exile. Therefore, those who want to look at that—at their ability to delight the King—want specifically that role. This work of theirs is called, “Raising the Shechina [Divinity] from the dust.” This work is also called “Shechina in Exile,” and this is the only work they want. But work in order to receive lights and abundance from above is something many people want.
By that, we should interpret what our sages said (Shabbat 127), “Rav Yehuda said, ‘Rav said, ‘Welcoming guests is greater than welcoming the face of the Shechina, as it is written, ‘And he said, ‘My lord, if you have found favor with me, please do not pass.’’’ RASHI interprets, please do not pass, and he left Him alone and went to greet the guests.’” We can say that he learned this matter from what the Creator had told him, “And I will make you a great nation,” meaning that the main thing is the act and not the lights. That is, the essence of their work is love of others, and he has no consideration of himself.
Therefore, although welcoming the Shechina certainly delights the body more than work on love of others, here, after the Creator had told him, “And I will make you a great nation,” it means that you will have the greatness primarily in actions. Therefore, here he had a place where he could show himself, meaning that he would be certain that he does not want to look at the profits, as it is a great profit to be rewarded with welcoming the Shechina. Still, he chose the act, meaning he did not intend for any reward for his work, but the main thing was the work.
Here he found the place of scrutiny—for this is certainly a great thing to relinquish the reward and receive the reward of work. Normally, it is to the contrary: one labors in order to receive reward. But he did the opposite—giving the reward in order to receive labor. He learned this from what the Creator had told him, “I will make you a great nation,” as was said, that the greatness is primarily the action.
Reader: We'll move to a lesson from 2003.
M. Laitman: (17:40) We heard from the article from the weekly portion, "Go Forth, Go Forth From Your Land," “Rungs of the Ladder,” Volume One which says that a person needs to exit all of the desires, his earthliness, corporeality, "your land," "your father's house," all the qualities that he is immersed in and to acquire a new position, a new status called "the land which I will show you." The person doesn't know in advance what these qualities are that he needs to acquire, but when the Creator is revealed, this allows a person to understand what that means, and it also gives the person the power to accept this change and also the understanding of how to do it, how to execute on it, and also the qualities themselves, when they are executed within the person, and the person acquires them and he enters these desires, these new intentions, "the land which I will show you." Before the Creator is revealed showing the person both this change and the new qualities, the person is incapable of it. It's only the Creator Himself has to show the person exactly the change that happens from one state to the next. And so, on each and every degree, when a person changes himself, that is how it happens, and especially, of course, this is true and clear that it has to be in the first degree when a person crosses over into the will to bestow, but also later as he grows. He keeps growing according to what the Upper One shows him, showing him all the changes according to the examples that the Upper One gives, according to the desire that the Upper One shows to him. He shows him in what form, what desires, what intentions, what intentions have to be special or unified in the person in order to acquire the next state. We never gain the ability to understand the next degree. We always need an example and also the power to accept it. And that is what the Creator tells Abraham, that the new desires that you are going to obtain, you will receive them. I will show them to you. I will transition you to your next state.
M. Laitman: (21:35) Why does it specifically say, "from your land," "from your homeland," "from your father's house?" These desires that you have now, you received from Me as well, and I built in you all these qualities, which today, right now, appear to you, seem to you as wrong, bizarre in relation to the next degree, but you could not think about and be prepared for the next degree, for "the land that I will show you" without “leaving your father's house.” This change is what builds in you all these vessels in which you will later receive the divine revelation. Meaning, we need to respect, although they seem bad to us, we need to respect the current states, the negative qualities that are revealed in us in light of the upcoming degrees. Those new degrees appear to us enlightened and good, but we have to understand that we're only going through, we're passing between states, through these changes, these forces, these understandings that the Upper One shows to us. And, all in all, we gather through all these changes, we gain this upper education, schooling. Knowing these changes, this knowledge, helps us understand the Creator and to become like Him. As we learn in the wisdom of Kabbalah that the Partzuf changes its state, alters its state. Let's say, it has an expansion from above downwards, Ta'amim [flavors], and when it reaches the next state it has coupling by striking, it has the expansion from above downwards, and then decisions are made, and he has to depart from that state, and he has to go through the Bitush, the clash of the lights, and then come the Partzufim of Nekudot, many Partzufim, phases, many exits, entries, and again and again until it is completely refined. From all these states, well, within, occur very, very unique, very refined processes where the lights and vessels are mixed together and the records rise and are lowered within different levels of the vessels. All this in order to choose the Partzuf and build in that Partzuf states, new vessels, new discernments, new feelings which are, in essence, the true vessels which the Partzuf acquires — same thing here. It's not so clever to be in the state of "your father's house" or just to be in "the land that I will show you." Rather, it's the transitions: "go forth." That is what builds within the person these unique vessels, and specifically in those meetings between contrasting states, all these sharp changes, through that he acquires new discernments as the advantage of light out of darkness and he's awarded with having a complete vessel with which to feel the purpose of creation.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (26:39) He ends the article with, “that the main greatness is the action”, and we learn the main greatness is the intention. What's the difference here between action and intention?
M. Laitman: You said that in the end of the article it says that the main thing is the act, the greatest is the act, but we learn that the intention is the greatest, so it's a question. What do you think the action is and what do you think the intention is, right? In spirituality, the intention is the act.
Student: In the article, he writes that he plows during the plowing and sows during the sowing and that he shouldn't aim for the reward but for the labor and the work. We learned that we do need to aim for reward, the reward of bestowal.
M. Laitman: Do we need to think about the profit or not? Yes, the whole difference is, what is the profit, right? What's wrong with me looking for greater and greater profits, rewards, and I set this as a goal?
Student: It's not bad but it's like not what's written with regards to the reward.
M. Laitman: If giving up the reward—that is the goal, right, the profit, then, if I reach that state, for me, it's called profiting, gaining. You don't relinquish; you don't give up the pay. It depends what your payment is. The definition of the payment, of the reward changes but you have to work for something. Baal HaSulam says only a baby or someone who is insane can work without a goal, an objective. How can you work without a goal? Your body must use the goal as fuel. From where does it receive its fuel? From the importance of the goal, when it appears to be important to him. It shines to the person from afar and he works for that. He can't work otherwise. The will to receive doesn't vanish. It remains and it works only to fulfill itself. Now, the question is, what is this filling or fulfillment? So, you always, you remain always working with the will to receive even though it's called the will to bestow and towards some reward. You don't work in an empty space with some abstract idea and that's it. You have to make of it a depiction which is sufficient to give you the ability to make very, very great efforts, so much so that the will is at work, and a very, very strong, powerful will, very big. You know, you need to move a very big cart, right or wagon. It's a system which is unrivaled in terms of its load, its heaviness, coarseness and if you don't magnify the goal, you won't be able to move it. Everything depends on the definition of the goal.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (31:18) Once I don't think about myself, do I still care about fulfillment?
M. Laitman: Once I don't think about myself, do I still care about receiving fulfillment? What does it mean, you thinking about yourself or not thinking about yourself? It's where you imagine to yourself some different state. You always work with yourself, with your vessels. The Creator - there's no such thing as a Creator which exists outside of you. There isn't. Anything you imagine, you imagine within your vessels and the group - you imagine all the external forces, that you imagine them. It's all inside. The depiction is inside. Other than your vessel, there's nothing other than your vessel. As we say that when a person sees and feels the world, we say that this is simply the reaction of his senses towards something that happens outside. Maybe outside nothing is happening but we feel that something is happening outside, but these are inner changes in us. Who are Abraham, the Creator, all these qualities? They're all internal, mine. So, how can it be that I'm not working with my vessel? I'm always working with my vessel. Even when I say that I'm under restriction - I don't receive, or we say differently that the vessel of Ein Sof which, to begin with, is at the end of correction, later, imagines to itself, sees that it's not receiving. Then it receives a little, it builds the worlds, it builds the soul and all those things. We already say that these things are simply, they're all descriptions, imaginations in that vessel of Ein Sof. It imagines this to himself, so to speak, that he's in that and he's only in the first state, to begin with. Each time, every subsequent state that the vessel goes through, within, is there to determine the right attitude towards the first state, which will be called the third state, and we never exit the screen. It's all the vessel. Everything is described within the vessel, all these discernments which are more inner, external: Creator, created being - it's all inside the vessel.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (34:37) We know that a person is held from above. When we say a person advances by the society, so the society is a law like the Creator?
M. Laitman: I don’t know what the connection is exactly between this and what you said previously. You said two sentences: the society is held from above…
Student: I'm asking whether the society is a law, like the Creator is a law?
M. Laitman: Is the society a law the same way the Creator is a law? However a person imagines to himself what the society is, what the Creator is, who are the society, who is the Creator, that's what he has. The Creator isn't something outside of us. It's how we can describe, can imagine that quality.
Student: The Creator is the quality of bestowal. What is the society?
M. Laitman: The Creator is the quality of bestowal. The society is not the quality of bestowal. The society, it's like you - people that you accept as an example. For you, they are an example for something in life, in your existence, and because the Creator is concealed, you cannot imagine Him, however much you try. You try to build some kind of image, but you can't, so instead of that you decide that I will make it so that the society, for me, will be a force that compels, the upper force which will bring me to the recognition of the Creator who is concealed and who I can't imagine to myself. If you could depict Him, then you would not need the society.
Student: If we say the Upper One gives the person an example, so if the society is like me, how can they give me an example?
M. Laitman: How can the society give me an example if it's made up of people like myself? This is because I, to begin with, I'm built in such a way where I depend on them. I have an ego. I have envy. I have self-respect and I thus depend on them to fill these vessels.
Student: Why am I envious of them? What am I envious of?
M. Laitman: You're afraid they'll have more than you do. That is called envy.
Student: What is the point that I'm envious of?
M. Laitman: You make some comparisons, so to speak, between what you have in your vessels and what they have in theirs because you share similar qualities and you have lacks, then seeing that another is immersed in goods, is feeling good, for you that's suffering and the trouble of the many is half a comfort. If everyone feels bad, then it's not so awful - it's everyone. Then, you're not growing your vessel through the others, but if you have a little less than the others then you feel that as a horrible state.
Student: What do we need to do in our society?
M. Laitman: (39:04) Because your vessels include your lack and the lacks of the others, to begin with, from the shattering of the vessels, you have a preparation for that, for feeling the others, and only mankind has that. The still, vegetative, and animate do not have that. They have no envy. They simply do not feel.
Student: What do we need to do in our society to make it really become corrected?
M. Laitman: We need to use these forces which, to begin with, make us into social creatures. We need to use those. That's envy, hatred, self-respect, all those things in which I have lacks which relate to others, to the public, the external ones, and I need to use that correctly because whether I want to or not, I am envious of others. I check myself in comparison to others. However much someone else has, that's how I appreciate what I have, according to that. I cannot imagine to myself more profits than the whole world has, right? I have a dream: there are no other people in the world except for me. I go through the streets - everything is mine. I go into houses, shops - it's all mine. Yes, it's a common dream, well known, right? I can't imagine to myself something which is more than that vessel, but that I can, I'm drawn to that. Well, what are you asking? We use these impulses when building the society, meaning these natural qualities are in me and now I need to use them towards the right goal. That is all. That's all of it - to build a system which will utilize these qualities as much as possible.
Student: Let's say, envy can come to a person in two forms, in two ways.
M. Laitman: Well, if I'm afraid of the society - they can shame me, they can … In short, it's the opposite. I now make such a condition, set such a condition that the society will take care of me and take care of these qualities of mine that I want to improve. Against that, it should activate shame that I can feel towards them, my self-respect, all those qualities, so I'll have no choice but to take care of the desires that truly need to be taken care of.
Student: We have to be very exposed towards each other all the time?
M. Laitman: No, no, it depends on how the person is. We don't need to be exposed towards one another. It depends on how a person establishes himself internally towards the society, and externally the society needs only to take the qualities that we want to reach and to cultivate those as the most important things. Then, a person who doesn't acquire these things will feel shame, will feel fear that he might be harmed by the society, that he will be seen as inferior in the society. To want to acquire them, the greatness of the Creator, the greatness of the goal, yearning for the goal, investing in the society, love of others, showing interest in others, if we elevate those as the highest ideal, highest thing, then I will be afraid not to have these things because the society will simply shame me.
Student: (43:57) Then, that's how a person needs to arrange himself?
M. Laitman: That depends on how the society arranges itself and how a person arranges himself towards the society. And it shouldn't be revealed by the person, but the society, the society - yes, the society needs to be talking about that. We have the standard: the greatness of the Creator, the greatness of the society, the greatness of bestowal, the greatness of love, and so on. By the person, the individual, he doesn't have to show it to the society. Who am I? I'm bad. I'm wrong. That, a person has to feel inside and above that to immediately bestow to the society what it requires: the greatness of the society, the greatness of the goal, and so on.
Student: Can the society compel a person, force him? Doesn't it mean that it takes his freedom?
M. Laitman: You claim that in this, the society takes a person's freedom. What freedom does it take? Before, he was completely, he was devoted to his beastly nature, he had no freedom. And now also he has no freedom. Before, he was under just some society. He had no choice under whom to be, but now he chose a society in order to reach freedom. For the time being, of course, he isn't free. He is still in a state where he did not acquire this quality of freedom. His quality of freedom can exist only on the condition that he acquires some kind of compatibility with the Creator. There's no such thing as being free or under the will to receive. It's either under the will to receive or under the will to bestow. And what's in between? We say the middle third of Tifferet. That's where, well, from that we need to decide that we build our affiliation with the Creator instead of belonging to the will to receive, and by that we build the middle third of Tifferet, the middle line. The middle line is built because I choose to be like the Creator, to be in His vessels, to take upon myself, to assume His nature. This is free, because He doesn't force me to truly reach Him. He doesn't force that. What He does, all He does is He pressures me to be in that state of choice. When I reach my choice, He lets go. There's no pressure.
Student: (46:53) How can a person then perform this action of above reason? From where does he gain the ability to choose the right thing if he depends equally on bestowal and reception?
M. Laitman: How does a person reach a state where he freely chooses to be similar to the Creator? How can you imagine such a state where I'm completely free, found between two forces, and not under any of them and still chooses to resemble one of them? How to imagine such a state? Meaning, based on what am I choosing? There are a few examples for that. The matter is that I'm not choosing, I rather go out to a different level of choice. My choice is not, it's not between the will to receive and the will to bestow. My choice is in resembling the host, the giver. It's not to bestow, it's to be as the giver. This is something that is completely unrelated to my vessels, and after I choose to be as a giver, then I look into my vessels, and in order to be as a giver I have to use my vessel to receive in order to bestow, and then I already go and do that. If I could have done it differently, then I would resemble the Creator differently. It doesn't matter, the action here. The use of my vessel here is a completely and totally just a means. The difference between the bestower and the status of the bestower is that I begin to use the vessels as means, just like the Creator wanted to benefit the created beings; and then He created the will to receive as something necessary to benefit, to do good. But, in the thought of creation the will to receive doesn't exist. There's only the root of it, the desire to bestow, to do good. At that root begins to be some darker point which is the beginning of the will to receive but it emerged as a result of the thought of creation. Same thing here. You come to a decision that you wish to be like the Creator. What does it mean, like Him? The bestower, what does it mean to be as the bestower in my state? Then you use vessels of reception. So, the free choice is above the will to receive. This is what we learn from the Rosh of the Partzuf. Ultimately, it doesn't engage in the initial thought there, how will I activate my Guf? No, the beginning is about how will I resemble Him? I want to be like Him.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (51:19) Why is it so difficult to work on the greatness of the friend? Outside of here, there might be a person that I don't even know, I didn't invest in and I already admire. Here you need to invest years and still.
M. Laitman: Why it's so hard to work on the greatness of the friend? I'll tell you. In every society outside that we are in, it has demands towards its members and according to these demands, the society treats its members and educates them. In human society, we have many different societies and we also build specific societies: the Ministry of Education, the government, police, all kinds of auxiliary forces, all kinds of social environments. Whether it's school or kindergarten - it's all society, with respect to the person it’s the environment. The question is, how much does this environment demand from man? Our society doesn't demand. It doesn't sufficiently demand from each one, and then the person doesn't feel that if he doesn't do it, he will be harmed. He will feel shame. His “I” will be hurt by society. He finds all kinds of excuses to not do what the society essentially places as the goal, the standard that we have to reach, but the society doesn't sufficiently insist on it in its demands towards each and every one of its members. You're saying that our work outside with an external society is a lot more effective than in our society? Well, on the outside, you work with your vessels that don't change. When you work towards an external society, it doesn't change. Here, you change your vessels each time. You, each time, discover how corporeal and coarse you are, how you are immersed in your ego and you don't care about the society. Everything's changing in you in order to advance you and so you think you're always failing, and it's not failures, it's additions. You have more and more additions of what we call burdening of the heart. There's no other way.
Student: (54:45) According to what do we prioritize things?
M. Laitman: According to what we determine, according to what we think of as the attainment of the main goal. If love of friends is important to us, then whatever is closer and more effective for that, both reward and punishment for that will be better.
Student: That's the question. We actually don't know. I mean, we know what the goal is but not really. You don't feel.
M. Laitman: How do we know where to put the emphasis and where not to put it? We have to discuss how important are these things or not for the attainment of the goal?
Student: How to do that without failing?
M. Laitman: Do it. Even go wrong about it. It doesn't matter. You'll study the articles and process these things with the friends and, thus, you'll see from within what are you included with and what to put the emphasis on. It’s like we had the initial question, who is the Creator? We know, we imagine some quality and we give it the name “Creator.” Who is the society? Accordingly, we build some sort of an image and we say, the society needs to be such and such. What? On the one hand, it's an example for me. On the other hand, it's a force that obligates me to reach that example, that, basically, in my external actions towards society, I ultimately resemble myself to the Creator. That's the difference. I work towards the society, but I actually become similar to the Creator. It's like a kind of a cross paths here, crossing paths of sorts. Where's the difference? If we begin to discuss it in society, if we begin to appreciate this in society, then we invite the general surrounding lights and it starts influencing each and every one, and from within one begins to become sensitive. You don't need to activate the forces of society. If the society just pays attention to these discernments, then a person receives from that, from the higher illumination, from the general illumination, where the society takes care of that, then he receives the sensitivity to it. Let's say that we now raise the level of importance in society with respect to something, right? Let's say it's very important for us that everyone will get married, let's say. It'll be very important for us that everyone, everyone will be married. And we won't pressure the singles, but we will just think about it and talk about it positively, not negatively. That this is the standard that everyone has to have, and you don't speak to them or pressure them, nothing like that. You'll see, they still can't just exist here. They'll run away or get married. That's just an example. I'm not saying let's do that. I'm just giving a neutral example. They won't be able to continue like that because the opinion of society, and besides the opinion of society that we awaken upon us, it corresponds to some discernment of light from above. It will influence them, they will see. With respect to qualities, let's say, we raise some unique quality towards the society or towards the Creator to its highest level that we can be, that we can have, and you will see that all of the society's sensitivity to that will rise. And here you don't need punishments, the person himself from within will feel some fear of not being part of it. Society obligates. We don't reach a state where we determine and demand some very important discernments that will happen in this society like a burning fire.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (59:56) One of the examples that you give, maybe that's our problem, when you talk about something extreme like getting all the bachelors married, it immediately has an effect, an impact, but when we start setting inwards, even if we try to bring something up, you're right about that thing in the morning, we even sit and ponder it, but something's still missing there. It's as though we can't really crack that thing, you know. There's not enough, there's not enough, I don't know ...
M. Laitman: You will always feel yourself weak, incapable, that even if they push and yell, you'll belittle it. And for months, you can see some standard in front of you, some demand and you won't be able to touch or improve yourself at all with respect to that. That's the way until this feeling will overpower to such a point that you'll have to break it because you hate it. That's how we work with respect to each and every quality we have, and it could take years. Disregarding something, or that you don't want, you're incapable. You can't. You are in the evil and you can't destroy it. It's clear that you're not doing it, and everyone demands you to do it, and you can't do it.
Student: How to make it not take years but turn it into moments, days?
M. Laitman: How to make it so that it doesn't take a long time, that I will activate myself and not just keep sitting under this evil and not touch it? How can this be done? Only if we, how to say it, only if we pressure by society, raise the standard, the attitude of society with respect to that quality. I can sit here, and I have something evil, something bad, I have to do something, and I don't do it for months. I know and I can't, can't raise my hand to do it. Only if the society raises the importance of that, then I'll suffer and I'll do it. Otherwise, until that suffering accumulates in me to some portion where I do it. It'll take a long time. A person who is in society and the society doesn't awaken in him a desire to overcome, he's miserable, to overcome all kinds of qualities or things he has to do or qualities he has to correct. That's just the inefficient society. It has to provide a sense of pain to the person opposite anything that he neglects, even for a moment, and doesn't take care of. This is basically the main help that we need from society. That's from the negative side, from the critical side and from the positive side to carry out love and participation. Each and every one has this problem and he knows what he needs to correct, to improve, to do something even in action, not even in intention or inner work, just action - he can't. And it will continue for years unless the society will insist on it. We also have to distinguish whether it has to do with man's nature and character or his advancement towards the goal.
Student: How to distinguish these things?
M. Laitman: It's a matter of… we have to learn how to tell whether it's character or the extent of the desire. We'll talk about it at some point.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (01:05:28) Is it important not to lose focus? Let's say, now we said that we want a certain level of appreciation towards every member of the world group. Is it important to work on for a year or two years, or how?
M. Laitman: No, we can't just work on one value and leave everything else. That's not going to work. We have to build a ladder of values, where there are all kinds of, as if actions we do that will ultimately just be one thing, which is from "love thy neighbor as thyself" to "love thy Lord." That's it.
Student: What do we need? I can't hold it in my mind always.
M. Laitman: You don't need to keep many things in your mind. You have this as a mission that you have to do in the society "love thy neighbor as thyself," on the condition that from the beginning and at the end, there's "love the Lord your God." From the beginning, it's the goal, and at the end, it's attainment. And in the middle, "love thy neighbor as thyself" as the means. So, in the beginning, does society agree to it? Meaning, the importance of the attainment of the goal, the adhesion with the Creator is a great and exalted matter that has to be carved in our minds, in our hearts, throughout the whole path. Now, to perform, to reach this quality, I can't. I have no touch in it. It can rather happen only on the condition that I build the vessel with the friends, with the souls of Adam HaRishon. So, with this same intention, now I have to relate to some group of people that to the extent they accept this mission, they are considered a society of Kabbalists. And accordingly, I now determine with them the nature of our existence, the character of our life. What is the motivation? What is the means? And what is the goal? Now, to what parts does the means divide? To what actions? So that from my starting point to reach "love the Lord your God," that I'll truly get there. So, how do I build the society from what I'm capable of extracting from it now? And how do I need to activate the process in it that will take me through the society? It will take me. As the society advances, it will also advance me within it. From now, where I basically as if just have that aim to reach "love the Lord your God," that it will bring me to realize this action, this…aim of my plan. How does the society take me from the state that I'm in now, an egoist, like this and that? And I'm just thinking that I somewhat agree to reach "love the Lord your God." Until the society convinces me, treats me, transforms me by it changing in its demands, in recognizing the goal, and so on. And thus, it is pushing itself and me along with it, I'm pushed forward. It will appear. As much as I'm cranky and as much as I yell, I'm quite happy with what's… The stages are good stages. That's true. Of course, we have to invest more and more. But all in all, we have quite good progress in that. Since we started to also get involved with the big global group, there's a very meaningful change. Also, precisely when these changes come, I feel more as if everything is sharper. Because everything touches more. There begins to be greater precision of what's right and wrong. It begins to be felt more sharply. The tolerance becomes more subtle, that difference. But it's okay.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (01:12:12) If each one has something that disturbs him, maybe he doesn't see it, maybe he ignores it, he tries to beautify it, and the society sees it, why won't you help everyone see it? Then we can all rise up a degree.
M. Laitman: It won't help. If you prod a person, you can yell at him. Not only that, you can not only yell at him, you can obligate him if it's a technical thing, but if it has to do with spiritual correction, you're not allowed to touch it. You're prohibited from saying to him, “you're lacking in love of friends. Why aren't you engaging in love of others?” I don't know, there's something in general or something like that. You can say, “why didn't you come at 3 a.m.? Why didn't you do something that was on your duty there, that you were obligated to do?” You understand? That's for the sustenance of the society, that's simply like soldiers, we have to observe those things. Someone received a mission or a task, he has to do it. But internal demands, first of all, it won't help, because it all stems only from one's awareness of what he discovers within him, the deficiencies. If he has yet to reveal deficiency and you're saying to him, “come on, come on,” he doesn't even know what you want from him. It's like you should say it to a cat. Let's distinguish: if a cat didn't reach that degree of hearing, discerning, then what do you want from him? It's the same with a human being. If he has yet to develop one millimeter he's still missing, and then he'll start to feel? But that millimeter, and we're done, he doesn't hear. And if he reaches it, then he'll hear from within himself. Hence, we're not allowed to show one another such things that seem to you… First of all, it's not allowed altogether. I don't know. I see flaws in external functioning, and it really stands out. But in the inner functioning, I have no demand. I have no demand there. There's a demand for the society so that the more the society develops its general attraction, then everyone will advance. But towards each and every one, have you ever heard me saying something to someone about their internal laziness, spiritual, internal laziness? Maybe it seems that way, but I usually don't see such a thing; really not. I could yell at a student about the sound there, or all kinds of things, and there was someone in his place we paid a salary. I would also yell, it's the same; for me, it's not important. But for his inner efforts where with that, let's say, he's laboring and he wants 100% for the benefit of the society and the goal, and what he holds on to - that I don't touch, and there he's righteous. In technology, let's say, for me he's a wicked person, poor thing, he got to be an example. But that's it; I don't understand, I altogether don't understand how it's possible to show the other, besides example, we cannot relate in any other way to the spirituality of a friend. External example from which he will understand that he must check himself. We don't even check him; we just give an example to everyone. Yes, that's how we are. And who are you? You check.
Student: (01:16:11) No, don't touch his internality, but let's say that you see that he neglects the social side; maybe recommend him to take a more social role, or if someone else neglects…
M. Laitman: So you're talking about external things.
Student: External, that will create the atmosphere.
M. Laitman: That's something else. Of course, we need to make sure that everyone has a role, so that by that each will feel whether they want or don't, belong to the society or not. That for sure. But it's not that we will start giving them moral talks about their inner efforts, their spiritual efforts. No, through externality, yes, of course.
Student: Through externality, but a bit more pointed.
M. Laitman: In short, you're not allowed to come and say, “you don't have love of friends”, in this way. Even in whatever way, even if it seems to you that that's how it is, you're not allowed to. And in truth, it's not even allowed to see that it is as such, that it's that way. It's not that it's prohibited. It's only if a person can truly disclose this outwards, that he disregards everyone, that he hates everyone, then we take him outwards, we take him out. But in a regular person, and I don't see this, I'm talking seriously — it doesn't seem to me that there are people here, that there isn't in them… No, I don't know how to say it.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (01:18:03) Can you say more details about this, this concept, if the society doesn't awaken us?
M. Laitman: The individual education by the society takes place on two planes. On what two planes? One plane is, we'll say, a sensational plane where one senses, and I feel that I'm not at the level that the society is at. I discover in my senses that they are higher than me. And they're not telling me about this, but rather I see with my eyes the extent to which they're holding on to something that is more lofty, better, more spiritual, and I am not. There's no need to give ethics, or morals to any person about this. Let's say, we all agree not to, I don't know, trash things on the ground. So, we do this meticulously, and if someone doesn't, it's immediately disclosed. And also, to the extent in which we hold on to this condition, then he will see himself as despicable, lowly, harmed, hurt, you know, someone that's blemished. Meaning, on the regular plane where he sees this with his senses, the extent to which he's not at the height of the society. And another form of education that the society gives to each and every one is on the spiritual level where the society truly — by truly holding on to a certain spiritual quality as important, even though it's not in the society yet, but it longs for it, respects it, and by that awakens in its desire the surrounding light. And this surrounding light operates in the society in general to advance it within, and to the extent in which each and everyone in the society doesn't quite join that attraction or is less than it, then he feels a difference between himself and the rest of the society, towards that collective, towards that quality that they want to attain and respect especially. He doesn't see it in the examples in his senses but rather feels it within. And this only depends on a social agreement. Let's say, today we agree about something being holy for us, and you will see how people who cannot agree with that, that are not at that, in that, how bad they will feel. We won't say any word to them.
Question (Petah Tikva Center): (01:21:54) If this behavior will become externalized, and they decide to object to it. For example, a general agreement in the society, a person said, I disagree with that.
M. Laitman: Wait, wait, wait, wait. If it's not a general agreement in the society that let’s say, we are respecting certain special quality that we want to hold on to, if it's not a social agreement, then we didn't do a thing. It must be a social agreement on this. Even those people who are not quite in this, or don't know they're not quite in this, it seems to me that, yes, I'm in it also. And suddenly, when the society starts to hold on to this, and awaken the surrounding light against it, and to invert this quality to an extent, some measure that says: this is very important for us. And in me, it was kind of like, yes, I was also with them. Suddenly, I feel how much I'm not. But whoever doesn't agree, then there's no room in the society. But it can't be that he won't agree. He'll feel hell. He would want to do anything possible to just destroy within him the resistance and connect to the society. This is considered education, where the society is educating him. He will feel hatred to his quality to such an extent that he's resisting, that that hatred will tear him away from there and move him to another state.
Student: Maybe the difficulty is that in our society there is a blending of many different social customs. It's like, you know, some people will propose, let's say, harsher rules, and others might see it completely opposite. And it reflects a little bit the social customs and mental habits that, I think, have the difficulty that creates the work and the progress, because you yourself said, you're saying that if those are personal spiritual qualities, we can't touch them anyway.
M. Laitman: (01:24:40) Look, our society is very diversified. I think it's not even enough yet, as it includes all kinds of even contradicted parts, different, foreign to one another. Baal HaSulam writes that it has to be a small society which includes within it the entire character of all that is in the world. Everything is in it, and then it advances. I'm not talking about the actual group, but about the society. Because the group today begins to be a very concealed or disappearing part. We will soon feel ourselves where you won't be able to do something here without taking into account the rest of the groups. It will simply be that way soon. We, how should we say, also from within, we will start to feel ourselves incapable of doing it any other way due to shame, a lack of interest, fear from the response, all kinds of pressures. But that's how it will be. So, the fact that we need to be included of all kinds of attributes, mentalities, demands, levels of willingness to advance - that, probably there's no choice. We tried to do it in small groups, even five people, you remember? Five, well, what can there be compared to today, yes? What is this? What is that number? It seems like it's in five, in ten, you can observe everything. You remember that also eventually it didn't work. We're already built in such a way, and we're in such a state, in such a time, that we must do it specifically in a big mass, and very rich with all the types and all the drives. Only that there is a willingness, or a readiness for one goal, or a readiness to build one goal, one group. Only that there is this readiness to begin with. And beyond that, there's nothing to demand. And the rest is already our work. And how pleasant it is or not pleasant, we should not disregard one, any piece of this whole system, from any group, or any something there. Do not disregard; we don't know why specifically they're joining us. You will see what people, seemingly strange people, will join us. But no, with a normal desire, but how different they would be from us. Because in the beastly level, in the animalistic level, the difference is huge. Inside the point in the heart is the same longing: Israel. But in externality, this is something that, you understand, it's hard altogether to appreciate it. Also related to this, look, I'm even ashamed that I won't be able to stand before this, before such a disturbance. But it, this cuts you off so immediately, it's like there's a certain concentration and a certain point, and suddenly you fall from it completely. I don't know, maybe it influences me that way. Also with Rabash, it was like that. In him, even the smallest murmur was enough to… he would exit from… Maybe, according to your advancement, you'll also feel it. Yes, it's a problem.