Morning Lesson February 03, 2023 Transcription
Transcription is made from simultaneous translation which leaves a possibility for differences in the audio
Part 1:
Zohar for All. "Introduction of The Book of Zohar". Heaven and Earth. #157
1. Rav’s Introduction: Yes, we are continuing in our study of the introduction of the book of Zohar. It is important for us not to forget that it all depends on our connection to the extent that we can connect and unite and come closer to each other. We complete this picture this way so it will begin to clarify for us the picture of this world, the upper world, the whole reality so everything will become clear to us as to where we are and why we exist and why we are here. And all this inclination and connecting all parts of reality together into a single picture completing each other this way we will understand also the higher force that created everything and made it such that we will know through his actions, know Him. He himself. Let's read.
Reading 157 (Those two appointees swim..)
2. S. (15:02) When somebody is listening to these texts it is impossible to grasp what we hear. Every question we may have and another moment we read texts like on King David and Bat Sheva and we seemingly understand and ask questions, what is the essence, what is the essence of what we need to grasp as a sage to truly really understand these texts?
R. We are reading these texts in order for the light that is concealed in them to give to us and then gradually we are going to feel that we are coming closer to understanding and feeling and perception of what these texts are bringing us. This is how it works. It is exactly the natural form, how a little child is learning when he hears what they are talking about around him but he does not understand. He does not even know what they are doing, why they are opening their mouths suddenly they are laughing, sometimes they are saying something to each other he does not understand anything, but he is in that communication, in that connection that is happening between those who are bigger than him in that communication. For the time being he cannot grasp what they are doing, why they are doing it, what is the essence, the content of the message coming from them, nothing. This is how we are, but from us by wanting to know it is as it is written in the introduction to the study of the 10 Sefirot. From the great craving that we wants to know what we are learning, although we do not understand. Then we wake upon ourselves the surrounding lights and the surrounding light is operating on us and this is how we gradually come closer to their source and if you could please find the quote it is worthwhile to read.
S. Are these texts, are they the connections of our soul actually?
R. Of course. All the souls are built according to these texts. These texts are like formulas within which this formula we are made and connect and develop until we reach the end of correction. It is all governed within the text, we just do not understand yet what these texts include within them, but slowly slowly. It is also not so slow. We are progressing and we are being pushed forward. Did you find that text?
Reading point 155 from Introduction of TES (Why then did the Kabbalists obligate every person to study..)
3. R. (20:37) Meaning every person from Israel. Meaning if in every person there is a desire to come closer to the higher force, to get to know the essence of nature is and all of creation of his life, then he is drawn to this.
Reading on (If one who has not been awarded in this life will be..)
4. R. (21:16) Eventually everybody will merit this but it depends at what pace, and in what way how they will implement and realize themselves.
Reading on (And while one has not attained perfection...)
5. R. (21:57) This means that for the time being they are as surrounding light around the person waking the person up and accompanying him until he merits to reveal the entire upper system in full and use it and utilize it. How many questions we have, wonderful. I am very happy.
6. S. (22:38) We are learning this relation between the MI and ELEH lessons. We have read different versions, and there are new components Cain and Abel. Where is the ten in this process?
R. The ten is like the schematic itself. It is the whole vessel. In this vessel there is a higher part, GE, and there is a lower part, AHP, and there are other kinds of things there that we are going to see. The ten is everything that was built and it needs to progress until within that group the Creator and the whole structure of reality is revealed. The group is the whole vessel that includes inside the entire creation. There is no more than 10.
S. In a basic manner, GE, the higher and AHP, the lower part, that we learn maybe simply, what is this?
R. The GE is the Keter and the Hochma in the upper three parts of Bina, and the AHP is the lower seven of Bina, ZA and Malchut. GE and AHP, that is the ten Sefirot.
S. I mean within our qualities in our work?
R. In our discernments, we do not have these two parts yet but soon, when we are progressing we are going to discover them, and then the GE will be the vessels of giving in us and the lower part AHP will be the vessels of reception in us. We are going to have to first correct the GE, in bestowing in order to bestow, and then the AHP lower part in receiving in order to bestow, and connect them together into 10 Sefirot.
S. Why do we need so many components when it seems like a simple process?
R. There is nothing redundant there. Instead, all of the vessels are necessary. They emerge only from the light and vessel. First there was the light prior to the created beings that was the light fulfilling the whole of reality, and then in it the point of darkness was made in it, that is creation. It developed inside the light and began to be revealed as 10 parts from which all of reality was made, from these 10 parts. The whole of creation was made of them. There is nothing here as if it exists artificially. It all began from the higher light which is the Creator himself, which is above time and space, and the point of darkness which became apparent in him, called Bar, Bria, outside of the Creator. This point of darkness is where the whole of creation started from.
7. S. (26:58) My question is about the last passage in 157. The text seems to separate between thinking and action. The question is what is the thinking and what is the action? And why does it write here that the Creator is punishing for the thinking as much as for the action? Why does He punish for a thought?
R. The Creator punishes for the thinking sometimes more than for the action because the thinking can cause much greater damage than the action at least sometimes and therefore there is a punishment here. The punishment is not like what we are saying, when we receive blows and it hurts us or something like that. Some correction instead, it is like that of the educator but we do not punish, we educate children and then giving them some blow or limiting them and they think that mommy or father are evil. We do this not in order to cause pain but to educate them so they do not do that again because it is not for their benefit and only for them to remember these things, to influence their memory and then they start working in this negative feeling and this negative feeling is because we are all from the desire to receive. It is remembered in us powerfully and they just distance themselves from the evil action. This is what is happening to us. This is what is happening in our daily life.
8. S. (29:35) Does this Zivug refer to the GE, AHP relationship or reaching equivalence of form?
R. Zivug, a coupling, usually talks about connection. Zivug, connection, a coupling is a connection. It could be between two things that are opposite to each other that are somewhat different, but somehow they also want to become similar, and the question is ‘what kind of a desire do they have to be connected?’ although they are separated. So this action that they do in this mutual nearing between them is called Zivug. Let's say the GE and AHP, the vessels of reception and the vessels of bestowal, and they are connecting together so there would be a complete vessel between them. When we are entering between us there is a spiritual Zivug, and there is a physical Zivug, and this is only for the sake of two opposing contradictory things to connect between them in order to extend their development onwards and then this action is called a Zivug. That is between the male and female and between all of creation is actually result of Zivugim and sustains couplings and through these couplings we actually come to a one big Zivug that includes in it all which is the Zivug of the end of correction, which includes in it everything.
9. S. (31:44) We are talking about Cain killing Abel. What does it mean in the group?
R. In the group, we do not want to observe. That is what is written in the text. The text is going to take place one way or the other. In the group we just want to observe connection; therefore, without entering into the little details of what is happening there in the Sefirot, in the worlds, we just want one thing, to be closer to all the friends, to each other. That is what we want.
S. What is the greatest evil we can do towards a friend?
R. The greatest evil we can do to a friend. I do not want to talk about this, but anything that every moment that I do not draw a friend to connection with me and with everybody else that is a transgression, that is a harm doing. That is evil, this is an act of crime every moment that I do not draw my friends towards connection.
10. S. (33:40) The big puzzle that is in front of me and I do not know where to start, I am just listening like a baby. How can I benefit from this article to connect?
R. I will give you a trick. Take a box with all of the pieces of the puzzle in it and shake it up really good, really really good. Shake it up and say ‘I want to see a complete creation!’ and that's it and the Creator will finish it for me. He will complete it for me. We do not need anything else but that, only for me to connect to all the parts that there are. I want to be included in them and Incorporated into them and nullify to them and for the Creator to do with us everything that is needed to be done. Everything is in the hands of Heaven, except the fear of heaven and he will do it. This is how it works.
11. S. (35:12) To clarify, in the desire to receive we do acts of whoring?
R. Of course. Whoring is in order to receive. This means that I do it only for my own benefit, G-d forbid, this is whoring. If I do it for the benefit of others then that is called commandant. If I do it for the sake of myself, it is a crime. That is all there is.
12. S. (36:15) Two fallen angels, Aza and Azael and the question is about them. What are they? Are they negative qualities inside of us? What do we do?
R. Yes. You do not have to add anything. These are the negative qualities inside of all of us, yes. Angels, Malachim is from the word Malchut, so angels, Malachim are parts of Malchut that is operating in a way of separating and lowering the qualities of people. To bother them in coming closer to each other in the right way, but for what reason are they doing this. Because everything as it is written, everything the Creator created for his sake. What does that mean? That he created everything in order for the need to reach the final correction. So why did He create such evil angels? They are not evil. It is in order for us to get to know through these angels, through these parts of the Malchut, the way in which we can err and not follow them, but to go above them and this is how we come closer to the final correction.
13. S. (38:10) Thank you for the example that you are giving us and how to work with our hearts and the question we are talking about is being a desire to receive Hochma. Why is this desire insistent on us all being together, why don't we want to connect, why don't attain this desire to connect, what is missing?
R. What is missing is our own force and the effort from our part, a prayer of ours that is missing for the Creator to do it. We cannot connect, we also do not want to connect, we do not want to do anything. Each and every detail the need to ask the Creator to make of us closer and more connected and more helping one another, more and more understanding what is the purpose of creation and so on, this is our work. The more we will talk about it and help each other and give examples to each other and in this manner we will get closer to correction and this is not far so do not be afraid it is not far. The main thing is to grasp the principle and by this principle how we will come closer to correction and then we already go in a manner that is more and more sure.
S. Are we in this opportunity now before the coming of the Convention?
R. Yes of course we are all the time in this opportunity.
14. S. (40:34) At the end of 157 there is an interesting sentence, we are talking about the birth of this girl whom the harm doers because they are coming from the great separation in the world. Could you explain what is the separation, this prostitution, why does it happen from separation?
R. There is no greater difference more in the world than the will to receive against the will to bestow and thus the will to receive needs to be corrected with the intention to bestow and then it will be as the desire to bestow. To use the desire to receive, meaning that I want to enjoy, that I want to bring closer to me everything that is interesting and comfortable and good and pleasant to me, that is the greatest possible sin. That I'm using the will to receive as it is and the opposite that as much as we raise ourselves above the will to receive in order to bestow to the others according to their will to receive not according to our own, this is specifically a Mitzvah. By that we come closer to each other and you could say that when I do something for the others that is good for them, I am not pushing them into the shells that I am doing the good things for them. Maybe it is better if I don't do anything in order not to harm them or cause them to fall from this and not to be an obstacle for him and so there are a few questions which we still have to talk about.
15. S. (43:26) Our children grow under the guidance of their parents, where is the material and parental guidance in our spiritual path, why can't we feel the power of the guide and why don't we feel it that it is the Creator like a parent guiding us?
R. I think and I know that I have students who come to the lesson like the lesson now, the morning lesson, even though it is not the morning everywhere in the world right now and they receive this lesson as guidance. After the lesson during the day they make an effort to find the lesson in the relations between them and this is how they advance day to day. I hear questions that according to them I see how they went over the material and spoke between them and did some summary and already they are advancing. It all depends how you work with the material, you need at least one more time but carefully to go over the text that we read with you in the morning during the lesson, then you will see how much you will advance by this both in knowledge and also in sensation. That you will begin to connect with what is written and to understand and feel it more, to be more connected to what is written and you will begin to understand the style of The Zohar and what is happening and why it is written in such a manner.
16. S. (46:05) After they did this act of prostitution and they skipped over and jumped over the 60000, what is that meaning?
R. We are going to learn later but the matter is that the shell needs to grow, it needs to grow along with the Kedusha with holiness. Otherwise there wouldn't be balance and no ability to rise, left, right and so on. Thus what happens is interchangeable between left and right and right to left and all these leaps are all in order to raise us higher from the left side and to the right side and it is interchangeable. If we do not fall, we do not rise.
17. S. (47:42) The surrounding lights are more than a thin so is this the greatest care that you're receiving from Ein Sof?
R. It is a collective care that we receive from Ein Sof by the surrounding lights, yes. Yes that is the general treatment but we are receiving from the world of infinity through the surrounding lights.
18. S. (48:14) In 155 it is written that although he does not understand he wants to understand, what is it that he wants to understand?
R. He wants to understand what is happening and who is managing us and what are they doing for in each and every action. Our will to receive wants to reach the essence of the actions to their foundation, this is how it is built and thus we yearn for this and ultimately we are going to reach this and we see the whole of creation from one end to its other end in all its depth.
S. We meet once or twice a day and read the text and one is flying with the text and the other one is repulsed by the text and those don't understand. Where are we going to connect inside the reading?
R. You need to connect inside the text, it doesn't matter how you receive it you need to enter inside the text as much as possible and that text will swallow you up, truly. That is what you want to feel that you are swallowed up In the text and it is encompassing you and it is rapping you and it is taking care of you. The text itself is that same upper light which corrects us and connects us and brings us to such a form that the Creator can already be revealed inside that form.
19. S. (50:23) Is Cain the light of Hochma and Abel the light of Hassadim, so how should we understand them, Cain and Abel?
R. Cain and Abel are two lights that in each and every state can bring us closer to the goal. That we cannot get closer to the goal without going through both and do not think that Abel is better or nicer than Cain and so on. Rather these are two forces like in physics something technical. They operate on us in order to arrange and ultimately we need to be incorporated in both together.
20. S. (51:29) Thank you for explaining how to read The Zohar, when we are reading with full connection with the friends to really want to enter that it comes inside and it swallows you and lets the text flow through you. It gives impressions, it gives feelings, it gives pictures, it gives imagination and so on. Also thoughts of negative impressions or demons what you see, also the positive and negative side, how do you work with these pictures like for example with demons, how to work with these connections with these flowing thoughts?
R. These are all forces that operate in a positive or negative manner in all sorts of forms and variations and relations between us and this is how we call them in such names, but all in all they are all forces. You can always say a positive or negative force but it is like scientists once thought that there are special forces like positive and negative, heat and cold, and then they would call them demons and this is how people would describe it to themselves. All in all these are the forces of our spirit and that all of it is incorporated in man and includes everything and the Creator is also inside man and accompanies him and develops him. Man includes everything.
S. How to use these forces that you just said, that we swallow them up and let them come inside. How do you work with these forces and thoughts for instance, these plus and minus forces working in us, that would be negative impressions and positive impressions. How do you work correctly so that it really comes closer to each other?
R. We are going to start to feel them inside of us, to clarify them and to work with them, to sort them and thus we will have connection between us. Just like now we can connect in something with our sensations, as such we are also going to correct ourselves in connection and also with the more higher and spiritual sensations.
S. Is it like faith above reason that we are constantly say in a prayer and asking that you receive forces in working in faith above reason for others during the reading?
R. Yes, it will come naturally gradually bit by bit. We are going to enter now just from the reading in potential, to the reading in action actively. We are seeing how we are stabilizing these forces, how they connect by us, how they break apart by us and how we are entering creation. But again just have patience and persistence.
21. S. (56:24) It is written that those spirits appear as half angel half man and the person has to do the right action and eventually he enters himself and this is how it seems like this, half and angel half a man. Eventually he overcomes this after all these spirits overcome him and he is doing the right thing, but eventually he's enjoying himself all day?
R. The more we advance we have such positive and negative forces and they interfere with each other and we need to work with them, meaning sort them out and divide them and to know how to work with them. It is not possible to use any force without its opposing force and we will learn this gradually.
22. S. (57:59) Lately we are feeling more responsibility and more joy towards the spiritual work. Is this a result of the positive effect of the text upon us?
R. Yes the text is influencing the friends around the world and an influence on everyone and we are getting closer and getting closer to the Congress we are getting closer to each other. We understand and feel more, maybe even we don’t understand so much but it becomes more familiar to us, it is very nice. We have something to look forward to.
23. S. (58:56) You said that we cannot establish a connection between us alone, so if we already come to such a state where we feel that we are not capable to connect how can we convince the Creator, to compel the Creator to intensify the prayer so we will compel the Creator to connect between us?
R. By request of a prayer women actually can do this much better than the men. A woman if she wants something, it is like in the family even she may be silent but her silence is so screaming that she gets whatever she wants. It is the force of a woman, the force of Nukva. I highly recommend to the woman connect your request to one request, one main request and every day and demand it. You will see that not the men and not the Creator nobody will be able to stand up to you. All the best.
24. S. (01:00:37) Throughout the reading of The Zohar and towards the Arava convention we are trying to build between us the inner connections and the question is in our efforts, where is the border between confidence and the fact we are trying to draw the Creator to the connection between us?
R. We need to be confident that if we will turn to the Creator in a correct and positive manner then we will surely succeed. If we will not attain it then we won’t succeed in our work of correction.
S. This request to the Creator to connect our connections is there a place for that?
R. Of course it has a place, it means that we are obligated to ask because without this nothing will happen.
25. S. (01:01:56) Earlier I heard that you said about the punishment, it is not a punishment but a correction like a parent who punishes his child and he wants him to have a bad feeling for the side of the action so he will not repeat it. When the Creator gives a blow to a person we feel that bad feeling but we do not know what is to connect it to what we did not do okay, so how can we understand better what the Creator is giving us a blow for. How to understand better what He is trying to correct in that situation?
R. I didn't understand the question.
S. How in the education that the Creator is doing towards us when he punishes or gives a blow or it's correction, a person doesn't know what to connect it to, he doesn't know what he didn't do okay, he just receives a blow. And when a parent gives it below he explains now I'm angry at you because you did this and that. How can we understand better what the Creator is giving us a blow for and what he expects for us to correct?
R. That comes gradually, it is in accordance with our questions. Where was I wrong where did I make mistake and why, what did I receive a punishment for?
S. It is simply to ask from the Creator?
R. Yes, ask the Creator, pray to Him and ask, ask for an explanation, and ask Him to teach you. See yourself instead of this little kid who just got a punishment from her mother and she doesn't know what to do next, she is crying what is she supposed to do next. If she has an ego then she doesn't turn to mother but if she is really smart and wants to correct herself to get closer to mother, then she comes to mother and asks for an explanation. What did I do wrong, why did mother punish her and why this specific punishment and not a different one and so on. start to be a bit more with understanding and what is happening.
S. All that separates us from understanding the Creator is our pride that we do not want to ask?
R. Yes, yes only this.
26. S. (01:04:43) We learned from you that we are in the world of results of consequences, how can we influence the consequences for them to be good and not as it appears to us now as it is not good?
R. If you will talk amongst yourselves and you will understand that from day to day we are advancing only to good that there is nothing worse than the beginning of creation from the shattering. Every step forward we are advancing towards corrections of the end of correction. Start to talk about this and be in joy from this and to take steps forward yourselves towards the end of correction. Meaning correction between us and to the Creator and each time to scrutinize by what can you do this and by what means.
27. S. (01:05:54) What does it mean to bring a friend to connection?
R. To hug him convince him that connection is actually a step forward and that is how we will advance. We have no more to do than connection because initially there was a shattering and we need to reach connection.
28. S. (01:06:32) When the negative forces come should we battle this ourselves or ask Him for help?
R. Both, because look, you got something that is broken meaning not that it is just disconnected like let's say you buy from a store some box of something that needs to be put together and you put it together. Rather from all these things that you are trying to connect they have flaws, they don't look like they're suitable to connect and you try to connect between them but it seems to you it should go this part with this piece, but it is not working. And you see how much also we connect thousands of years and we are just going from war to war separation to separation, why, why? It is because we do not know how to connect the matters and what can you do, so here we need between us to make the effort to somehow connect and ask of the Creator to connect us. Meaning all of our connections that we just do is only in order to pray to the Creator, to make connection between us, not that we will be the ones to do it, we will surely not succeed in this. Rather that the Creator will make connection according to our request and then we will surely succeed.
S. What do we acquire from the Creator to the connection between us in the prayer, what do we actually acquire?
R. By the prayer we acquire from the Creator not the knowledge of how to connect, the connection he does himself. Rather that we acquire from Him the fact that only He can and is the one who is doing the action of connection.
29. S. (01:09:24) It is known that everything begins with education and education begins with personal examples, who and what are the personal examples for us at the center?
R. Each shall help his friend, each one should give an example to the other.
30. S. (01:10:00) If you could refine the question we do not know how to connect you say but we don't know how to disconnect to battle and unravel these connections. It is also written that we should get to know the light from darkness meaning from the shattering we somehow know or recognize this connection, or will we not know and it will simply happen through prayer?
R. The shattering of the breaking it is not possible and thus we need to separate, to break to get farther from one another, to be in opposition from one another in contrast and oppositeness to one another and to be familiar with the contrast between us and then we begin to see how we can go correctly. It is like between kids when they are small they don't see exactly boy or girl but the more you they grow you see the differences between them, these need this type of game and these need those types of games and then not just games they begin to look at one another and it is not enough for them to be with one another as they have self interests. Meaning between us in such a manner we gradually connect until we begin to feel specifically in what manner, for what purpose we need to connect and that is how we grow.
The same thing happens in spirituality in a spiritual manner, first we are repulsed from one another by all sorts of shattering, separating and such and then we begin to sort ourselves out, who can connect with whom, how and of course troubles arise problems. We see even in our world how many problems there are, we see what manners we would like to connect but we are not capable, there are marriages, divorces and so on. There are a lot of problems here that are unsolved and how to make between us the correct connection is only if we will see forward how we need to be and how we should be, by what we can be similar to The Creator. If we understand that all of our connection is to bring us to the Creator to adhesion with Him and then everything will be excellent with the family and with the kids and work, the study and everything, and that everything that we do will connect to one system but this we need to reach.
31. S. (01:13:42) You answered part of the question just now, the other part is will we take pleasure in correcting ourselves and advancing our recognition of evil for the Creator, will it become a pleasure for us to do this?
R. Yes, that is how we will be gradually.