The transcript has been transcribed and edited from English simultaneous interpretation, thus there may be potential semantic inaccuracies within it.

Daily Morning Lesson: August 27, 2025 

Part 1: 

Recorded lesson – Nov 8, 2021

Baal HaSulam. Shamati 53. The Matter of Limitation.

Reader: Hello, friends, in the first part of the lesson, we will learn from an article of Baal HaSulam, Shamati 53, The Matter of Limitation. Before we watch the recorded lesson, we will read this article, Shamati 53, The Matter of Limitation, from the writings of Baal HaSulam. 

Reading: (00:40) Baal HaSulam. Shamati 53. The Matter of Limitation

I heard on the eve of Shabbat, Sivan 1, June 4, 1943

The matter of limitation is to limit the state one is in and not want Gadlut [greatness/adulthood]. Instead, one wants to remain in one’s present state forever, and this is called eternal Dvekut [adhesion]. Regardless of the measure of Gadlut that one has, even if he has the smallest Katnut [smallness/infancy], if it shines forever, it is considered having been imparted eternal Dvekut.

However, one who wants more Gadlut, it is considered luxury. This is the meaning of “Any sorrow will be surplus,” meaning that sadness comes to a person because he wants luxuries. This is what it means that when Israel came to receive the Torah, Moses led them to the bottom of the mountain, as it is written, “And they stood at the bottom of the mountain.”

(A mountain [Hebrew: Har] means thoughts [Hebrew: Hirhurim]). Moses led them to the end of the thought and the understanding and the reason, the lowest degree there is. Only then, when they agreed to such a state, to walk in it without any wavering or motion, and remain in that state as if they had the greatest Gadlut, and to be happy about it, this is the meaning of “Serve the Lord with gladness,” since during the Gadlut, it cannot be said that He gives them work to be in gladness because during the Gadlut, gladness comes by itself. Instead, the work of gladness is given to them for the time of Katnut, so they will have joy although they feel Katnut. And this is a lot of work.

This is called “the main part of the degree,” which is discerned as Katnut. This discernment must be permanent, and the Gadlut is only an addition. Also, one should yearn for the main part, not for the additions. 

Reader: We'll move on to watching the lesson. 

Question (Piter 3): (03:56) It's understood how to do individual work here, personal work. But how to do it in the Ten, it's not so clear? You say you feel the limitation in the Ten, I don't understand what to do with the Ten.

M. Laitman: You talk about how you want to annul before the Creator. Our first work is annulment, or call it restriction. When we don't want anything besides in a state where we are receiving – and we are certainly receiving it from the Creator – in that state, we want only one thing: to receive what we are receiving from the Creator openly. To talk about it, and open ourselves up and enjoy the situation of receiving from Him. Because it certainly came from Him and, There is no one who is cruel in the King's house; but only the Creator controls everything. And be in this way, that's it; this is called, being on the way toward restriction. Afterwards, we'll see what the Creator does with us, how He arranges us, our first work is to restrict ourself. The Creator, in that same area, same desire, where we canceled our will to receive, there, He begins to fill us with Himself. In this way, time after time, we restrict our will to receive, and to that extent, we enter spirituality, we enter the zone of the Creator. Afterwards, we'll learn how to do it practically. Until we cross the barrier, until we are born and grow – all those periods are ahead of us. 

Student: This is personal work, how do we do it together, how do we help each other to nullify? 

M. Laitman: Just as in this world, you are in connection with the friends and you want to do some work together, spiritual, corporeal, it doesn't matter. Like, do the same here, the most important is to strengthen one another. And, together, pray to the Creator and from your prayer to the Creator you will see how much power you're getting. And in what state He descends to you, what are the states that you're going through. 

Student: So, we need to?

M. Laitman: It's not for now, it's not for now, in the meantime, accept what we're saying. I'm not going to detail all the work in the group for you now; try and see what you can do. You will not go wrong, it's very good that you're yearning for it and asking but you've already got everything in your hands. I can't, I don't have time to detail all those things, and also each group has its own different states – I'm speaking generally.

Question (ITA 3): (07:53) When I pray for the friends, can I ask them to receive the Gadlut and that keeps me in adhesion with the Creator? 

M. Laitman: Yes, yes, we even say less than that: That we, all of us now, in the group, each one and – afterwards, everyone, together, in the group – we want to be in a state where whatever we receive, we're happy. We don't want more, we're following this article, yes, about the limitation. What is the limitation? We are limiting ourselves and don't want anything other than in the current state to be connected among us and think about connection with the Creator as much as possible. Even if we don't feel that we're connected, even if we don't feel that we're connected to the Creator. But we want to be in this and settle for it, that's the meaning of limitation which afterwards becomes restriction and all of spirituality is above the restriction. Afterwards, we'll talk about it.

Question (Latin 3): (09:25) Is it possible that we will notice that we are revealing the Creator through the friends, and what will be the indication for this? 

M. Laitman: The truth is, as we are now learning, the limitation is the first degree and, afterwards come connection and love. It's because we're egoists and we have to create in us some sort of restriction. Or you might call it some zone or state where we don't go with our ego. And that area where we build that is neutralized from our ego, where our ego is canceled, there we come to love. Therefore, in each and every Partzuf we always say that there is a restriction, then a screen, then the reflected light. Then the coupling by striking, the connection and in the connection, in the connection we – how should I put it – in the connection, we already do the calculation. 

Question (MAK 6): (11:38) What to do once you are able to relate the state to the Creator but not to agree with it being the best possible state?

M. Laitman: We have to work on it; we have to work on it. Every moment in life, I have to be satisfied with what I have because, first of all, it's called, righteous, if you justify the Creator. And beyond it, we're building degrees of bestowal and to the extent that we can bestow, we begin to attain the Creator, spirituality, eternity. It can all happen only on condition that we don't want anything for ourselves; otherwise, it's not considered eternity and it's not spirituality. 

Student: Is it possible to say that as long as we don't reach that state where we agree with everything then there's nothing to ask of the Creator. Not for correction or more connection, as long as we – until we agree with what we've got? 

M. Laitman: Yes, that's true, first of all, we have to be satisfied, as he writes, that I want to remain even in the state I'm in now, I want to return to that forever, that's the first condition. It's not the end of the way but it's the first condition. It's about me – I, for me, demand nothing other than to exist. In what way do I exist? As a dot, like a drop of sperm in the womb, that there is nothing there but a record, a Reshimo. In this way, I agree to exist, everything else is outside of me. The more I come out of this dot, which I restricted all the way, and the more I open it now and I want, through the friends, to bestow upon the Creator, this is called, the development of the embryo out of the drop of sperm. 

Question (Unity 2): (14:06) The feeling is that if I limit the will to receive, I limit my own existence.

M. Laitman: So, what?

Student: I don't know, I don’t know, I just don't?

M. Laitman: I want you to finally start asking to the point and not just convey your feelings. Sit and study, you only want to ask, you think that you'll learn by this. You'll learn by learning to think, that's it. In this way, you won't advance. 

Question (Heb 10): (15:00) When a person nullifies and makes actions in the Ten to bring contentment and achieves the smallest Dvekut. And then the will to receive comes and robs him of his actions, how do you get rid of that little lust? 

M. Laitman: You don't get rid of it, you pull out the theft from it and add it to yourself – to yourself, meaning to your own spirituality. It's actually very nice, very good; but I'm not sure this happens so quickly. For now, we won't feel that the will to receive wants to steal it from us. These are already special actions of Pharaoh. Wait, soon, then we'll talk about it.

Question (Safon 2): (16:03) How to not fall to egoistic thoughts and be in adhesion with the Creator? 

M. Laitman: Keep directing yourselves to: who do I want to bestow to, what do I want to reach, who do I want to turn to? First of all, it's to the Creator, There's None Else Besides Him, you have no one else to turn to. So, if you want to advance in your next moment in life correctly, you have to be constantly directed toward Him. When all kinds of disturbances come – ah wait – they don't come right away. When they come, then, together with them, you try to still maintain that same direction. This way, you'll grow stronger, you'll pray more, you'll feel that you need the group to strengthen you and position you correctly. Then, when you discover that you have to move toward the Creator – say in a boat, in a stormy sea – all kinds of disturbances will come to strengthen you, the connection between you, the mutual responsibility between you; and that's how we will advance. 

Question (PT 27): (17:29) I'm a bit confused because it sounds like there's something very rewarding for the ego, here. If I don't have fulfillment in the present state, and if I agree with the present state, that could be a potential for fulfillment. How can you make sure that you do this work in a really clean way and not just because you can't get satisfied in the present state? 

M. Laitman: A beautiful question and, truly this state is in between the will to receive and some intention to bestow, yes, that's why you're asking correctly. Advance in this and you will find an answer.

Question (PT 35): (18:15) It says that sadness comes to a person when he longs for luxuries. What's luxuries really? 

M. Laitman: M. Laitman: When he asks for more than what he has. 

Student: But I feel that if I don't cling to the friends enough then I get sad, I feel bad about it. Is that luxuries? 

M. Laitman: No, with respect to connection with the friends, there are no boundaries on that. Besides these, besides adhesion with the friends and with the Creator, everything else is luxuries. 

Student: Only to engage in connection with the friends, everything else I do is also called luxuries? 

M. Laitman: It's not like you have to throw it all away but on top of everything you receive, you still have to determine your relation to the current state. That more than that you're not demanding and it's enough for you in order to achieve adhesion with the Creator through the group. Try and see, if you see that you need something more, then you will start praying. How are you praying? By realizing that you need a few more forces, conditions, information, to be in greater adhesion; by this, you will develop MAN. MAN means I'm asking for this and this and this and that because I need them in order to achieve greater adhesion, the next degree. We will deal with it. 

Question (PT 17): (20:02) It says, here, that in Katnut there is the work of discovering joyfulness when you don't have it naturally. What is that work? 

M. Laitman: If you have no joy in the state you're in, it's a sign you're not in spirituality but, on the contrary, you are turning to this world, to corporeality. The sign of being in the right direction – even if not in spirituality yet but in the right direction – is that you are glad, happy, you're doing everything that you're told to do and not demanding anything in return for it, anything. Only one thing: to have a thought about bringing contentment to the Creator, wherever you are. 

Student: Joyfulness is an indicator? 

M. Laitman: Joy is a result of good deeds, yes. 

Question (Florida): (21:15) Can we use an example with the world of Katnut of Nekudim, where the upper and the lower only use vessels of bestowal. And, thanks to that, the lower one can feel the upper one and that feeling of the upper one is the state that we can stay in, in eternity? 

M. Laitman: Well, that's a little more advanced from where we are but, basically, the direction of your thought is correct. 

Question (Unity 4): (21:51) Please say again, is it correct in this stage of progress when we work with the prayer to typically just be in a prayer? 

M. Laitman: Yes, this is already good, excellent, keep going this way. Keep going this way and you'll succeed. 

Question (W Florida): (22:19) When Moses led them to the end of the thought, what was that state? 

M. Laitman: That they checked and saw that they don't want anything other than to be adhered. And no luxuries whatsoever other than to be adhered to the Creator, to remain an embryo, even as the smallest dot. Beyond that, I'm not asking, not demanding, why? What? I want to stay behind, I want to stay retarded? No, because all the other degrees are from the upper one, the upper one develops me and I just have to annul myself. By this, I'm allowing the Creator to nurture me, to raise me correctly. To tend to me, and then the embryo doesn't interfere, doesn't interfere with the work of the upper one on it but only annuls. Whatever the Creator does, it's for the best, and the sign of the good progress, correct progress, is joy, gladness; and that's what we need to work on. Not to get into ourselves and be sad. This is called, The fool folds his hand and consumes his own flesh. Not vex the ego and work with it. But rather, try to change direction; not for me but for the Creator, that's it, forcefully. Try to think in this way and you'll see that it's possible. Otherwise, we'll remain as beasts, on the level of beasts. 

Question (W Latin 15): (24:22) Justifying the Creator is also justifying the Sitra Achra? 

M. Laitman: Justifying the Creator and justifying the Sitra Achra, I don't understand. 

Student: Because it all comes from the Creator including the Sitra Achra. 

M. Laitman: Right, so what? 

Student: Do you justify everything? Justifying the Creator means justifying Sitra Achra too because it comes from Him? 

M. Laitman: No, because from the Creator we get the forces and spiritual elevation or faith above reason, etc. From the Sitra Achra, we get disturbances, so that on top of these disturbances we advance toward the Creator – it's called, Help made against Him. It's opposite from the Creator, as if pulling us away from the Creator, disrupting us from connecting to the Creator. But we develop the powers to grow closer – this is why it's called, Help made against Him. In this way, we advance and truly come into mutual work between us and the Creator. You'll see, it will soon happen to many people, and also to many women.

Question (W Kyiv): (25:41) In our world, a person develops when he wants Gadlut. Why is it opposite in spirituality? 

M. Laitman: Because in this world, we already exist, we exist as animals, small animals. When we grow, we raise the human in us beyond the animal in our minds and hearts, in the way we communicate with one another. But it's not spirituality, in spirituality, we are operated and we operate completely different forces. Not those of this world, forces of bestowal, forces of love, forces of connection, which are all, all those forces are above our egos. This is why, this is what we're looking for: How to rise above the forces, the disturbing forces, the egoistic forces, and connect in a manner of a, a manner of connection between us. We don't need our own intellect for this, all we need for this is help from above. The less intellect we have, the better, meaning, we need to worry about having the right feeling. Afterwards, we should help this feeling with a little bit, with a little bit of intellect so we can direct our feelings more correctly, according, only according to the recommendations of the Kabbalists. We learn, in the lesson, every day, what we need to add in order to advance correctly, quickly, and not go wrong. 

Question (W Moscow 8): (27:51) How is it possible to justify and be happy in a state where you internally feel despair and emptiness and crisis with regards to the Ten and everything else? 

M. Laitman: This can happen, this feeling can happen in a person and can control a person for many, many years. Baal HaSulam writes that it may even take 10 or 20 or even 30 years – although, in our times, it's a lot quicker. But still, it can stay in people for years until they eventually receive the understanding and the feeling from a higher degree, through an illumination from above. Which builds in us some impression, some feeling, some relation to the degree above us. Then, we're willing to bow our heads and let go of ourselves and think mainly about the Creator. This is what I started talking about approximately two weeks ago – maybe even a week ago – that we have to change the direction of our thoughts. Not think of myself but in the direction of the Creator, by what can I help Him, how can I bestow upon Him? This way, when we turn ourselves in this way toward the Creator, and constantly think about Him, Him, Him. In every single movement, every thought, every action, I want to please Him by this, I want to give Him pleasure. So, if we arrange ourselves in this way, in a short time, you will feel how effective it is, how instrumental it is, for all your thoughts, all your feelings and how, through those efforts, you begin to think about bringing contentment to the Creator. And how, by this, we actually begin to change ourselves because with our efforts to think about Him, that it will be good for Him. By this, we draw a great light which tends to us, nurtures us. 

Question (W MAK 21): (30:43) How can the group help me stop wanting luxuries? 

M. Laitman: It is written, envy, lust, and honor bring a person out from the world – out from our world into the upper world. Envy, lust, and honor. You, among yourselves, talk about how you can help each other in the group to develop envy, lust, and honor so that people will want to rise above their ego and think in the direction of the friends, the direction of the Creator. Otherwise, we will remain beasts. 

Question (W Moscow 6): (31:41) How is it possible to say that Gadlut is not our work but the Creator's work, like MAD? 

M. Laitman: From where do we have our work at all, that we can achieve something by ourselves? Anything we come to is only through an additional illumination from above, from the light of Ein Sof. And then we receive this illumination and advance, but if we receive no illumination, we will have no chance of changing our situation. All the changes in us are done only by the upper light, which changes and moves us. We, the will to receive can truly be, if the upper light doesn't show us better states, we can remain within ourselves as we are now. Therefore, we have no chance of advancing without increasing the influence of the upper light on us. 

Question (W Moscow 18): (33:18) If I don't want Gadlut in my state, how do I work to receive the Gadlut that the Creator ultimately wants to give? 

M. Laitman: Whatever the Creator gives, we receive, but for myself—we're talking about the desire within a person. The person himself does not want Gadlut but wants to stay in the state he is in, this is called, neither praised nor condemned. In that state, when you don't want anything, more or less, but you're satisfied with what you're receiving because you're receiving it from the Creator and I'm willing to remain in that state.

Question (W Rehovot): (34:10) After we made the scrutiny for myself and the scrutiny for the good of the Creator, what is this scrutiny of thought for the benefit of myself or the benefit of others?

M. Laitman: Well, that's all clarified in the thought: When I begin to think, from where am I receiving the awakening, the intellect, the feeling – through the friends or directly from the Creator? Out of this, I awaken and organize myself to be correctly in the society toward the Creator. Everything is clarified in the thought.

Question (W Moscow 18): (35:06) In the state of smallness, do I not demand more from the Creator, or do I demand from myself? 

M. Laitman: In the state of Katnut, I don't demand anything of the Creator except for the forces that I want to hold in this state, to be there and no more. It's not luxury, if, in this state, when I'm in Katnut, I need to strengthen myself, I can ask the Creator to give me such forces that, in any state, I'll be adhered to Him. That's it, that's what I'm asking for.

Question (W Moscow 4): (35:59) How to be in smallness and adulthood at the same time? Is that possible? 

M. Laitman: No, that's impossible and also in Gadlut, in adulthood, we can't be. Gadlut means we can work with the lights in order to bestow. First, we need to establish ourselves in a state of restriction. Then, in the state of Katnut and then we come to the state of Gadlut from which we can bestow to others. 

So, thank you for the smart questions by the women. And we're going back to the article. 

Reading: (37:15) Baal HaSulam. Shamati 53. The Matter of Limitation

I heard on the eve of Shabbat, Sivan 1, June 4, 1943

The matter of limitation is to limit the state one is in and not want Gadlut [greatness/adulthood]. Instead, one wants to remain in one’s present state forever, and this is called eternal Dvekut [adhesion]. Regardless of the measure of Gadlut that one has, even if he has the smallest Katnut [smallness/infancy], if it shines forever, it is considered having been imparted eternal Dvekut. However, one who wants more Gadlut, it is considered luxury. This is the meaning of “Any sorrow will be surplus,” 

Question (Turkiye 1): (38:13) How can I be happy with the situation that I am in? How can I pretend to be happy when I am not satisfied with the Creator? What can I hold on to, to rise above my condition? 

M. Laitman: I am not content with the Creator because my ego is not content with what it gets in its life; however, on the other hand, if I suppose, annul my ego, so I don't want to feel what it requires of me, what it demands. I want to be adhered to the Creator, to what He gives. And even though He gives me things that are unpleasant, unclear. However, I accept it on myself, it's like an embryo developing in a womb. He too is receiving a new life it didn't have before. And also, he seemingly doesn't want this new state, however, nature obligates him to agree, to accept it, and to develop – that's in corporeality. In spirituality, we need to be like an embryo, to connect between ourselves, to connect to the Creator as much as we can in our thoughts, in our desires. And to agree to all the development. If we establish ourselves this way, we go right ahead, we're starting to develop until we start feeling the force that develops us. We start feeling the womb, which is the spiritual world, the upper world, when we start feeling we're in it. And this is how we start developing, that’s it, throughout nine months of pregnancy, that's how we call it. Nine spiritual months, Chodashim – Chodesh, a month – is from the word, Chidush, something new. There are nine Sefirot until you reach the tenth Sefira and you are born, that's the development. So, this is what's before us, do you understand, this is before us, we can't run away from this. Let's do this work, I will shift to the feeling of the spiritual world. You don't lose this world, you don't lose your families, or your profession, or your workplace, your health, your money, nothing. Go ahead, you want to add something? It's an eternal life, recognition of what's going on in the whole of reality, the whole of the universe, go ahead. You got this desire, but to develop it from a small desire, it's like a point, to develop a big desire where you can feel the spiritual world, the upper force. That's what we need, to aid, to help; by that, we need to be partners with the Creator, and our partnership is that we don't disturb His work on us. This is considered to restrict ourselves, as it is written in Article 53 in Shamati, A Matter of Limitation, I limit myself and the Creator, He can do whatever He wants with me, and the more we advance, we'll have to do this. Handing out ourselves. That's called soul devotion, for Him to do whatever He wants. And believe me, it's not difficult, all you need is to understand the principle, how to enter from the corporeal.