Freedom of Will

Based on the article of Yehuda Ashlag (Baal HaSulam) "The Freedom"

Lesson of April 3, 2003

Bold and in quotes: Original text of Baal HaSulam
Regular: Commentaries of Rav Laitman
Capitalized italics: transliteration from Hebrew
lowercase italics: emphasized words

Once again, I welcome everyone watching and listening to this broadcast.

The first part of our lesson will be a continuation of the famous article by Baal HaSulam, “Freedom of Will”. This fundamental article tells us that from all of the things in front of us, from all of our apparent opportunities, in reality we have to choose only one single thing in this life (and at the same time disengage ourselves), our most real opportunity: the opportunity to independently take a step towards the Creator. Because in anything else we are total puppets.

Take a look at the way you are sitting here, the way you are thinking, what thought comes to you in the next instant, and what is happening to us in general. No one knows anything in advance, no one can predict anything. Usually we know our own reactions, but they too are in principle unknown to us. Generally, they emerge in us subconsciously. So we do not even need to think very hard to see how much practically everything in us is automatic, played out without our will, and outside of our control.

Everything that happens around us and everything that emerges inside of us is actually the Creator commanding His will to us. We do not perceive the Creator who is inside of us. In other words, you and I are generally absolutely dependent people, absolutely! And the only parameter that is really the true freedom of will is the freedom to acquire the desire for the Purpose of creation.

We can enter all kinds of different environments and groups where we will receive some additional desires and realize them. Let’s suppose that we want to become scientists, doctors or other kinds of prominent specialists. In any case, even if we will use the means of receiving a desire from the environment to move towards some purpose, it will still not be free in us. It can only be free in the case when I receive the desire for the Purpose of creation from the environment.

So, we do not have freedom in anything in our life. We can enter a society and accept some desires and goals from it, supposedly choosing them ourselves. However, this would not be a free choice if the society tells us about other kinds of goals, such as knowledge or various accomplishments. Our choice will be free only if we find a society that talks about the only purpose of life, the yearning for the Creator, despite there being many other problems and goals in that society. If we receive such a desire from those around us then this is the only thing that will enter us as our own, as our own effort.

In response to this desire, which we receive from the society around us, a Kli will ultimately emerge in us, that is, a yearning for the Creator. This is the Kli in which we will receive the revelation of the Creator if we develop it to the sufficient degree. This Kli or yearning for the Creator is also called the ‘soul’. We have only the initial dot of this soul. I say ‘we have’ because the majority of humanity does not have it yet and it must emerge in the rest of the people. In us it has already manifested.

The development of this dot into a full Kli or the ten Sefirot is our task. It is the only freedom of action that a person has in this world.

That is the idea that Baal HaSulam wishes to explain to us in the following article.

The Will to Receive - Existence from Absence

"We need only the wisdom of Kabbalah in order to move a step forward here, in a scientific manner. For all the wisdom of the worlds is included in the wisdom of Kabbalah."

Baal HaSulam is always trying to get us used to the thought that the Science of Kabbalah is a science and not a religion and that it includes all the sciences of the world in itself, extending them further into the realm of the universe that is unexplored by us. However, it does this in a purely scientific way.

"We learn, in the matter of “the spiritual lights and vessels” of the book “Panim Masbirot” (this is Baal HaSulam’s commentary on Etz Chaim) that the main novelty from the point of view of creation, that He has created existence from absence, applies to one aspect only, defined as the “will to receive”". In other words, everything that was created by the Creator, everything that exists except the Creator, is only the desire to receive.

"All other matters in the whole of creation, are definitely not novelty, that they are not existence from absence, but existence from existence. Meaning, that they are directly extracted from His essence, as the light extends from the sun. There too, there is no novelty..."

In other words, there is nothing new in the light, there is only that which comes from the sun. The light does not constitute something new, but something that is born.

"…there is no novelty, since the substance of the sun extends outwardly. But the will to receive, however, is complete novelty. Meaning, that prior to creation, such a thing did not exist in reality, because He has no aspect of will to receive, since He precedes everything, so from whom would He receive? Therefore, that will to receive, that He extracted as existence from absence is complete novelty."

This is the only thing that is created, that exists besides the Creator, and that we can say is something new.

"But all the rest (or everything that seems to us to supposedly exist, everything that we reveal around us, inside us, in this world and all the other worlds) hasn’t any novelty to it, which can be called “creation”. Thus, all the vessels and the bodies, both from spiritual worlds and from physical ones, are deemed material or spiritual substance, of a nature to “want to receive”.

In other words, everything comes down to just two objects: the Creator and the desire to receive created by Him, one against the other. In addition, the Creator and the desire to receive are equal to each other, and they are opposite only in their primordial desires, the Creator: the desire to bestow, and creation: the desire to receive. And all of creation consists only of different varieties of this desire to receive.

There is Atzmuto, and we totally do not say anything about It, It is something that can not be investigated by us. This Atzmuto appears as the Creator in relation to us. It is the desire to give. The Creator’s "desire to give" gives rise to the light that comes out of Him to us, and this light, in turn, gives birth to creation or the desire to receive. Receive what and how much? Whatever the light builds for itself. So, naturally, the light is equivalent to the Kli. This equality is not in quality but in quantity.

In other words, the light builds a Kli for itself that is absolutely equivalent to it, so that all of the desires in the Kli, the desires to receive, would be completely similar to the light, so they would be completely directed at the light and would perceive it as pleasure. In other words, the light inside the Kli is perceived as pleasure.

There is nothing besides this.

Then this desire to receive divides into the worlds: Adam Kadmon, Atzilut, Beria, Yetzira, Assiya, and here I note something separate: our world (actually it is not separate, but let it be noted this way for now). All of this is inside of creation.

Besides the worlds inside the creation there are the creations themselves. They are called: still, vegetative, animal and human souls, as well as souls that are inside these worlds. It does not matter what kind of worlds, it all relates only to the desire that was created by the light.

Drawing 1

If we take any science such as chemistry, physics, psychology, astronomy or any of the others, we will also come face to face with the concept of the confrontation of two opposite elements.

For example, in math there is zero and something other than zero, something different out of which grow all the other numbers, the dependencies between the numbers, and so on.

In music: one sound and something different to it, and already there emerges a whole variety of different sounds, their combinations, harmonies, chords, and so on.

Chemistry: the valence of elements, the difference and similarity of their properties: it dictates to the elements the way in which they must exist with each other in some specific dependencies. This is already a consequence of how removed or how close these properties are between each other. And so on.

In anything we observe, in any science, ultimately we can see two opposite elements inside it: one of them relates to the light and the other to the Kli.

The next section:

Two Forces in the Will to Receive: the Rejecting Force and the Attracting Force

In other words, the desire to receive itself has two forces. What does ‘two forces’ mean? How is this possible, if it is singular?

"And you need to see further, that in that force, named the “will to receive”… (Desire is a force. If I desire to receive, then in a way I attract the thing that I desire to myself.) …we distinguish two forces: the attracting force and the rejecting force. The reason is, that each body, or vessel, defined by the will to receive, is indeed limited, meaning the quality that he’ll receive and the quantity."

So there is no desire to reject in the Kli. However, the desire is limited and as a consequence of this limitation or boundary a rejecting force emerges. This does not mean that the desire to receive suddenly turns into the desire to reject.

"Therefore, all the quantity and quality that are out of bounds for him, appear to be going against his nature, and therefore he rejects them. Thus, that “will to receive”, although it is deemed an attracting force, it is compelled to become a rejecting force as well."

We know the extent of our ability to accept any, even the best and most pleasing fulfillment. There is a limit to everything. When we are completely filled by an unlimited fulfillment we lose our taste for it, we even want to push it away. This is because the perception of pleasure transpires in us only in the change between suffering, or, the desire to delight and the perception of the desired thing. In other words, the perception of pleasure transpires in us only at the junction of the light and Kli.

Real pleasure is perceived only at the point where the light enters the Kli. It then disappears. That is why all of our tastes, all of our receptions of pleasure have to do with the alternation of exit and entrance. This may be sex, or our taste perceptions that are built on the duplication or acceptance of two opposing properties, and so on. We have to simultaneously feel all the things that are not within us. In order to feel pleasure we have to simultaneously feel the desire, the Kli and the light, so that they would not overpower one another.

That is why when the light fills the Kli it overpowers it, it does not leave any unfilled space in it, and we cease to feel the pleasure. That is why a feeling of rejecting or pushing away emerges in the Kli. Everything that is outside of the boundaries of the Kli, everything that we are not able to accept into ourselves, we do not want. “It is too much for me”, we say, “I cannot do this, I even feel bad because of it. A little at a time is better”. Because this is how pleasure is perceived.

We can very easily see this in children. Give chocolate to a child and he will fill his mouth with it, choke on it, and yearn to swallow the whole thing.

We, however, take a little bit of something yummy, put it in our mouth, suck on it, and experience it a little at a time, knowing that in this particular way we can get the greatest pleasure out of it. So, subconsciously, we are always using the Kli in such a way as to maximize its contact with light, so that it would not become fully filled by the light, but only at its boundary.

That is why rejection emerges in the Kli, despite the fact that it is a force for attracting pleasure. Specifically in order to experience pleasure rejection emerges in it. This is a very important parameter and we will talk about it later.

In other words, do not ever forget that the Kli does not only attract. If it only attracted then it would completely plug itself with pleasure and cease to feel it. Specifically in order to feel pleasure the Kli must reject as well. We can see how this relates to our world as well, however, it is not yet a screen or an intention. It is just the condition for any regular created pleasure: the feeling of pleasure must be kept within some kind of boundaries, and when you are able to alter it, control it, then you can receive pleasure from it.

One Law for all the Worlds

"Although the science of Kabbalah… (this is the translation of Baal HaSulam. In addition, I am reading to you the original translation, without any changes. He is always saying, “the Science of Kabbalah, the Science of Kabbalah”). "Although the science of Kabbalah mentions nothing of our corporeal world, there is still only one law for all the worlds. It is described in the article, “Essence of the Science of Kabbalah”, and this law is called “root and branch”, meaning: correspondence. The law or the correspondence of root and branch.

"Therefore all the corporeal entities of our world, meaning everything within that space, be it still, vegetative, animate, a spiritual or a corporeal object, if we want to distinguish the unique, self aspect of each of them, how they differentiate to one another, even in the smallest of particles, it amounts to no more than a “will to receive”, (‘no more’ means that all that was created is composed of nothing else but the desire to receive), which is all its particular form, from the point of view of the renewed creation, limiting it in both quantity and quality, that induce (inside any molecule and any little part of the universe) the presence of the attracting force and the rejecting force."

As we have already said, if any little part of the universe and any creation consist of the desire to delight or the desire to receive, then there are two opposite forces in it: attraction and rejection, or attraction of pleasure and rejection when the pleasure exceeds the boundaries of the desire itself, that is, the boundaries of the Kli.

"But anything other than those two forces (attraction and rejection) within it is deemed the bounty (abundance means filling or light) from His essence. And that bounty is equal for all creatures…"

The Creator’s light that descends on everyone is completely the same; everything else depends only on our Kli. The light fills us and is around us absolutely uniformly and of equal value for each of us. We are all immersed in it as, for example, parts of the ocean. The way in which we can experience, evaluate and perceive this light depends only on us, on our desire. We are building such an opportunity for devouring or absorbing the light on the correspondence of these two forces in us (the attracting and rejecting forces) that would be completely boundless.

And so, Baal HaSulam says:

"But anything other than those two forces within it is deemed the bounty from His essence. And that bounty is equal for all creatures as there is no novelty ascribed to it by creation, being extended existence from existence. (i.e., as light coming out of the Creator. This means that there are two forces in the Kli and there is the light that comes out of the Creator into this Kli). And it cannot be ascribed to any particular unit, but only to things that are common to all parts of creation, small or large. That each of them receives from that bounty according to his will to receive, and under that limitation each individual and unit is defined."

So, the desire to receive exists inside each of us and these desires (I want to receive, as so do you) are what separates us from one another. And every person, besides this desire to receive, also has the opposite desire: to reject. However, the latter is manifested only when the light comes and we begin to interact with pleasure, with what comes to us. Then we begin to grasp it in some way, to limit it, we want to rule over it and regulate the whole process of delighting.

"Thus, says Baal HaSulam, I have evidently - and scientifically - proven the self (ego) of every individual scientifically, completely criticism proof from all sides, even with regard to the system of the fanatic automatic materialists. From now on we do not need those crippled methods, dipped in metaphysics.

And of course it makes no difference, whether this force, being the will to receive, is a result and a fruit of the structure that had materialized through chemistry, or that the structure is a result and a fruit of that force. (i.e., these casings on our desire to receive have no importance) For we know that the main thing is that only this force, imprinted in every being and atom of the “will to receive” within its boundaries, is deemed the unit, where it is separated from its environment."

In other words, we are all created in the desire to receive, and each person differs from the rest namely through this desire to receive. In addition, this desire to receive is unchanging, and the only thing that depends on us is how we will use it.

"And that holds true both for a single atom or for a group of atoms, called a body. And all other aspects, where there is some surplus of that force (i.e., if these desires to receive are filled by something) are not related in any way to that particle or that group of particles, either from the aspect of its selfness (i.e., something personally inherent to it), or just in general, which is the bounty (general abundance), extended to them from God, where it is a collective matter for all parts of creation, without distinguishing specific created bodies."

So the abundance that comes down from the Creator is intended for everyone, and it created everything in such a way that no one can receive this light at someone else’s expense. This light pours out on all creation, surrounds it, fills it, and each desire cannot take pleasure in any other pleasure that was intended and is perceivable only in another desire. That is why when man exits out of his own Kli and begins to look around he sees that there is no one and nothing to be envious of, because each of us receives only what we desire from the light. And there is never an occurrence when someone receives something from the light at the expense of another, and takes something away from another person.

"Now we shall understand the matter of the “freedom of the individual” according to the definition of the first factor, which we called the “bed”, (we call this “Matza” or basis) where all previous generations, which are the ancestors of that individual, have imprinted their nature. And as we’ve clarified, that the meaning of the word individual is but the boundaries of the “will to receive”, imprinted in its group of particles."

Look at how Baal HaSulam writes. He does not want to speak in a language more exalted than our world. He says that particularly in our molecules, inside them this spiritual information is imprinted; spiritual information! And the whole truth for all the previous generations is located inside of us, inside our genes.

" Thus you see that all the tendencies he has inherited from his ancestors are indeed no more than boundaries of his “will to receive”, either from the side of the attracting force in him, or from the side of the rejecting force in him, that appear before us as tendencies for stinginess or generosity, a tendency to mingle or to stay secluded and so on…" i.e., attracting and rejecting. Against each one of our strengths and each one of the properties of our general desire to receive, there is also one opposite to it.

Because of that (the sum of all of these forces) they really are his self (ego), fighting for its existence." I would say, “for the right of fulfillment’.

"Thus, if we eradicate even a single tendency from that particular individual (an inherent one, one he was born with, his natural property), we are considered to be cutting off an actual organ from his bones. (Look at what he is saying) And it is also regarded as a genuine loss for all creation, because there is no other like it, nor will there ever be like it in the entire world."

So, you can imagine, that when a person exits out of his Kli and looks at the whole creation from the outside, how much his relation to the world and to each of us changes, when he considers each person to be unique and necessary in order to bring the world to perfection.

"After we have thoroughly clarified the just right…" Why ‘to freedom’? Because only this individual is able to realize his desires, and without the realization of his desire the common Kli will never reach its realization.

" After we have thoroughly clarified the just right of the individual according to natural law (from whatever is originally present in him), let us turn and see just how practical it is, without compromising the theory of ethics and statesmanship. And most important: how is this right applied by our holy Kabbalah."

In other words, can we really allow each person to realize himself fully in his desires? Each person wants to devour the whole world; each person wants to rule over everyone, each person wants all kinds of things and every instant all of this change inside of him. Can we allow a person everything in order for him to fulfill himself? After all, if the Creator has created these desires then they must be realized.

Baal HaSulam wants to show us that these egoistic desires cannot be realized, not a single one of them. However, when they exit the Kli with the desire ‘for the sake of the Creator’ they all receive realization and they all receive the fullest pleasure. So, there is an astounding contrast, a total difference between the impossibility of realizing our desires through our regular way of life and regular use of desires, in comparison to what Kabbalah offers.

So, without Kabbalah it is impossible to receive absolutely anything, except our way of life that is filled with suffering and practically no pleasures.

Question: Why does the desire to receive separate us? After all, differentiation exists only in properties, but this desire is generally single?

The desire to receive is individual in each of us, but in principle it is perfect. In principle, it is the same in each of us, and the difference is only in the particulars. You and I have talked about how the common soul called ‘Adam’ consists of, for example, the ten Sefirot. Each Sefira consists of ten more, each of those of ten more, and so on until infinity. Then how does one person differ from all the others? According to this scheme it turns out that if I take one person (I will write ‘Adam’ without using names); for example Adam #5 and Adam #4. To us it looks as if Adam #5 seems to come out of Adam #4, we do not see the reverse connection. On one hand the Partzuf Adam #5 happened after Adam #4, but on the other hand it is not important that he came out of him. However, Adam #4 did not become filled by the light if Adam #5 did not become filled by the light. In other words, the main Partzuf of Adam will become filled only to the degree that all of the preceding Kelim are filled.

Drawing 2

In other words, there is a total dependency from up - down and from down - up. If a light is entering any Kli, then first enters the light Nefesh, then it descends; then enters Ruach and so on, until Nefesh is on the bottom and Yechida is on top. The lowest Kelim (you and I are the lowest Kelim of all generations), that is, ultimately, you and I, attract such a light that will arouse the Highest lights in the Highest worlds.

Drawing 3

That is why we cannot say that someone was created earlier or later than someone else. There have been generations before us and there will be generations after us. All the same, ultimately we are included in such a system in which the state of the whole system depends on each one of us. That is why Baal HaSulam says, “The individuality of each person is unique and it is valuable to each one of us the same as our own Kli, because no one will become filled without everyone else”.

Now we have a different question, “How is individuality manifested?” For example, how is Adam #5 different from everyone else? Where exactly does he come from? This set: from Bina, from Keter, from Hesed, from Gevurah, and again from Hesed, this is his ego. A unique individuality. This can not exist anywhere else.

Drawing 4

So it turns out that each one of us is a totally irreplaceable little part of the common Kli. Naturally, there is a difference between an earlier or later Kli, in realization…

Question: The scheme which you just drew says that if we are not going to do a very precise dissemination of Kabbalah and its methodology around the whole world, bringing it to practically every person, or to every degree of desire that exists in our world, then we will not be able to perform the full Gmar Tikun (Final Correction)?

I completely agree with you that if we will not disseminate Kabbalah around the whole world then, naturally, we will not reach Gmar Tikun.

It is totally correct that if we do not bring information about Kabbalah to every person in our world and do not give him the freedom to realize his “I”, if man will attempt to realize his growing egoism in the form that his egoism demands from him then, naturally, we will annihilate each other, and nothing will come out of it. We understand this.

This way, Kabbalah is a methodology that allows one to correctly realize one’s egoism, to remain satisfied, appeased, to attain eternity, perfection, the fullest fulfillment and pleasure. If we do not give this to people then, naturally, they will exterminate each other.

On one hand, in order to reach Gmar Tikun (the Full Correction of the world) this methodology must be brought to everyone born in this world and, ultimately, realized by every person. But on the other hand, this methodology can only be absorbed and accepted by a person if he has the primordial point in him from which it can begin to realize, the point in the heart.

If there is nothing inside a person except egoism, then he does not understand how it is possible to realize it, except inside egoism itself. However, if inside him also emerges the point in the heart then it is not egotistical, it is a part of the Creator, the so-called part of Bina that fell into us from the total outside, from the Upper world.

That is why, if a person experiences a desire for the Upper world, if the question about the Upper world emerges in him, a yearning for it, that means that he already has this point and it must be developed. It is developed with the help of Kabbalah and ultimately gives us the answer to the question, “How to properly utilize egoism, how to transform it, how to put it into such a state relative to the filling by the light, in which the light would really fill it?”

However, if there is no such point then the person will not understand, because from inside egoism itself he thinks in a purely egotistical way and ultimately, constantly suffers. That means it is necessary to wait for this point to appear. That is why we cannot come up to any person in this world and begin to reveal Kabbalah to him, to tell him, “You are an egoist, you want to delight, and this means that you must become a non-egoist”. You can not beat him in the head with this, he will not understand it. This offer can be understood by a person only gradually and only by those who have a point in the heart.

That is why a great many people come and it seems that yes, they really do have the question, “How can I realize my egoism correctly”? They really feel that it is impossible to live without this. But, unfortunately, it ultimately turns out that 90% leave because they have the question of life for other reasons, for example, something is missing in their life. They do not yet feel that it is impossible to realize egoism from the inside.

And those people that subconsciously feel this also do not agree, do not yet understand, and do not yet know. But somewhere subconsciously they already have some kind of preparation, some kind of basis for understanding. They vaguely understand that something in their life is not right. This subconscious ‘something is not right’ is what brings a person to Kabbalah and makes a Kabbalist out of him.

Rambam says that in the beginning people must be taught gradually, so that they would feel that they will get something out of it in this world. That they will become big, they will become scientists, they will control their own destiny, rule over the world and over themselves. Everything will be good for them, for example, they will get married, be healthy, and so on. In other words, a person must be taught what the light really does bring to him, but not what an end in itself is.

And then, when a person gradually, due to these stimuli, will study Kabbalah then, ultimately, from the inside he will already begin to understand that generally the purpose of studying is something completely different: to exit out of one’s ‘self’, out of one’s own ego. And then, when you exit out of it, you use your egoism and correctly operate it. That is when you can really fulfill it, and its fulfillment will be infinite and perceived as a totally different life.

Whatever we experience in our egoism today is called ‘our life’. If we were to close this desire off, cut off everything, then the person will die. What does ‘the death of a person in this world’ mean? It is when the desire to live in him disappears. I am not talking about murder, - that is a regular death. So, the correct realization of this desire can exist only on the outside.

We must carry this knowledge to every person in the world, but it is carried gradually, not in bursts, and we must clearly know what to talk about.

For example, today I had a conference with our scientist students. These scientists completely did not understand what I was trying to say, although they have been studying with me for a few years already. Prominent scientific doctors, professors: one is an atomic-physicist, one is a chemist. So, what do we have to do? We have to lay out Kabbalah in a scientific language.

Question: Rav, is it really possible to annihilate any property in a person?

Is it possible to annihilate any property in a person? That is a great question. In principle, Baal HaSulam says that if we annihilate any property in a person then we take away an individual’s right to freedom.

Can any property be annihilated? ‘Annihilate’ here means that we suppress it to such an extent that is it not realized at this moment, and as a result of this all the other Kelim that might have been able to fill due to this property, also lose that opportunity.

If today in some of the people the realization of their free property is not happening, then all of those Kelim lose the light that would have come through them onto it. And they, in turn, would have been stuck.

Drawing 5

In this case, how is the complete correction realized? It is obvious that nothing disappears. It is impossible to alter desire in any way, it is impossible to break it in any way; it was created by the light and is constant.

We are talking about the possibility of realization, the possibility of freedom of will. Freedom of will presumes our freedom to meddle with the realization of this desire. That is why if we do not allow an individual to develop correctly when he already has a precondition for it, that is, a point in the heart, then we are really taking this possibility away from him right now. And not only from him, but all the previous souls as well.

In other words, we all lose the immense, special, and wonderful opportunity to acquire additional attainment and the perception of exaltedness.

In principle, that is what Baal HaSulam wanted to say to us.

Question: Where is the line between maximal egoism and Klipot?

Klipot begin beyond our world.

Question: The essence or material out of which creation is made is the desire to receive or egoism. Its purpose is union with the Creator. Does this mean that, correspondingly, after this happens the Creator will partially consist of egoism?

We are not talking about the Creator Himself. We are talking about us, the created beings who attain the Creator, that receive the fulfillment by the light. This light completely enters us, into all of our pleasures, into all of our desires to delight, and manifests there as the intention ‘for the sake of the Creator’. And ultimately, we attain the Creator, we attain Him. No perturbations are included in Him, we are talking about something outside of us. In general, there is no such thing as egoism, the desire to delight is not egoism. What are we saying? That as a result of the diffusion of the four stages of the light there came to be the Malchut of the world of Infinity. After that, it performs a Tzimtzum Alef on itself and then builds the worlds. Then it does a breaking (Shevira) of these worlds and as a result of this there emerged Klipot or tainted desires. These tainted desires are what finally appeared. And now it is possible to do something.

Beginning with this stage (the emergence of Klipot after the shattering, or what we usually study in the world of Nekudim) the contrast to the Creator emerges in us, called ‘Klipa’. So now we have: Klipot – Creator. Before that there was nothing. In other words, everything that was before this was not egoism at all, but only desire, the desire to receive.

And what is Klipot? Klipot is not a desire, it is an intention: an intention for one’s own self. And they are opposite to the Creator, because He wishes to bestow everything, and they wish to only receive everything. However, the desire by itself is completely neutral.

This is how Klipot were created. Then, these Klipot are corrected and a system of bestowal and reception is created: these are the worlds. Two seemingly opposite worlds: ABY"A de-Tuma and ABY"A de-Kedusha. There is the Malchut of the world of Infinity, the very central one that has never participated anywhere or in anything. Out of it a Partzuf is constructed called ‘Adam’. This Partzuf is in the regime of Tzimtzum Alef as well as in the regime of Tzimtzum Bet. Then it also goes through the Shevirah, and after the Shevirah, when it has an intention ‘also for the sake of oneself’ (‘Shevirah’ is ‘also for the sake of oneself’), it is now located between these worlds.

Drawing 6

So, absolutely all desires, that is, all of us and all of our desires, are egoistic after Shevirah, and they are located between systems: the system of receiving and bestowing, between the system of light and dark forces.

During the course of 6000 years we are correcting ourselves. These worlds are totally on the outside, there is nothing in them, it is nature, it is not what we have to correct, it is what is around us, the system. In other words, it is a dead system that the Creator made, and we ourselves are a soul. Adam – soul.

When we undergo a correction the worlds disappear, fall away, and we again become a Kli. The same Kli in the world if Infinity that is entirely filled with the light. In addition, the desire to delight in this Kli is the same as the one here, but the intention is ‘for the Creator’. So what egoism can there be here? There is no egoism here, because the internal desire itself is simply the desire to receive. The desire to receive is not egoism. It used to have egoism: the intention ‘for the sake of oneself’ (that is what egoism is). But here the intention ‘for the sake of oneself’ has corrected into the intention ‘for the Creator’s sake’, so no egoism is left. We need egoism only in the midst of this journey.

Drawing 7

Correction is already altruism. In other words, egoism exists only on a specific stage. Egoism simply appears in the Shevirah and then it is corrected.

But inside us the desire to receive is not egoistic, it is only the desire to delight. It is the same as in nature. For example, a lion or a wolf kills a sheep. So, is this his egoism? It is his nature, he has to fill himself. He will not eat ten sheep, he does not need this, he will not even look at them if he is full. He does not need anything more. In other words, nature demands this.

That is why, naturally, there is no egoism left in Gmar Tikkun.

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Clip from the "New Life" program #898

Clip from the "New Life" program #898

Clip from the "New Life" program #898

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