Morning Lesson November 28, 2023

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

Part 3:

Baal HaSulam. Introduction to the Book Panim Meirot uMasbirot. #3

https://kabbalahmedia.info/sources/DrsQS1MO

Reading #3 (00:14) “Let me explain the matter, We distinguish four divisions…”

1. S. (12:55) In the end we read that since that wall has been broken the masses savages come and kill and murder, commit adultery; we say that the people of Israel, the Jews have the biggest will to receive, the biggest ego, the hardest ego. but we see today as well in our reality all kinds of horrors that I don't think the people of Israel, Jews would be able to do like our neighbors can. So how do we say the Jews have a bigger and crueler ego then..?

R. It's not on the degree as the other nations, he draws us upper, above all that. It’s not that it's less, the ego, it’s greater; we want to swallow the entire world, and in all degrees, to control all these little things we're not interested in.

S. When Baal HaSulam talks about mothers cooking their children, God forbid, is it about people of Israel or the nations of the world. Who is it talked about, referring to these states? 

R. First the nation of Israel.

2. S. (14:45) When he writes that the sages went near the masses and they sold The Wisdom and everything was ruined, what does it mean? How does it express itself in our life?

R. We don't really know that ancient history, but as much as we do know what we have heard about the sages and the big philosophers that were only drawn to knowledge, only to know nature; and they were willing to pay with their convenience of life it didn't matter what they personally had until throughout time meaning, when the will to receive grows and grows in every generation so those people that to begin with, they didn't want all kind of Corporal achievements and money and honor, they started wanting it. That is why they sold the Wisdom meaning, they started accepting students and they had nothing to sell only the wisdom they had; and they started just scattering it between everyone, whoever wanted it. Then their students already started more and more to open the Wisdom for everyone and in this way the Wisdom reached people who had the lowest desires.

S. The wisdom of the nations you mean, science technology things like that, it’s not the Wisdom of Israel he’s talking about?

R. Yes. But also it came to the wisdom of Israel. except for the Wisdom of Kabbalah, all the rest of the things were also sold to the nations of the world.

S. What do we have that we can sell them?

R. I don't know, but only the Wisdom of Kabbalah; they were not drawn to it. 

We will see what we had, that they didn't want to sell to the nations. We will learn about it.

3. S. (18:14) These degrees of Baal HaSulam describe here of Still, vegetative and animate and speaking, do they exist on every level of development?

R. Actually yes but it depends what type of wisdom we are speaking about.

S. Can we assume that these states, these degrees, because we know there are in every degree, so are they in every form it appears to us even in the Ten, there are these four degrees?

R. No, here we are speaking about in man, more correct to say in me.

S. In me, there are also these four degrees.

R. Yes, but it's not that next to you your friends are sitting, and you all divide yourself into still, vegetative, animate and speaking.

S. What makes the changes between the states in me?

R. The upper light. The upper light that bestows upon you and raises you up and lowers you down. it performs all kinds of actions on you.

S. If a situation happens where I am on the degree of say vegetative and it increases in me for some reason, can incorporation in the ten change it and lift me above this degree? 

R. Why not? I don't understand. You usually grab on to some degree and you are given an opportunity to ascend the degree. It's always like that for each and every one; that's a matter of development. 

Maybe I didn't get you?

4. S. (20:55) He writes that there are desires, right envy, lust, honor, but some people have no clear desire, they want a little bit of this and because of it they don't have a chance to develop?

R. They develop, but in the general way.

S. Why is there a connection between the natural tendency and development because development is made for everyone no?

R. We need to develop. Our development is the increasing desire, and that is what is happening. What are you asking?

S. Our method well, our method it's to go into a Ten and in this laboratory in the ten we increase yearning for spirituality yes. So one comes with the tendency for Honor, one comes for a tendency for something else, each one is different but who has a real tendency only for Honor, only for control or something like that as he describes here?

R. That doesn't depend on us, that's above us already. And…

S. Then he says, one who doesn't have a clear distinct inclination will not grow?

R. He grows a bit in everything.

S. How do we in the Ten bring out a clear tendency for envy for example, so it will lead us forward?

R. We need first of all to be unique people, to yearn for it; and research how we can increase our envy in us and affect it? Afterwards ‘man will help his friend’ in the ten when we influence one another, so that is how we move ahead.

S. It seems like a very precise craft, not something general.

R. The craft is at the hands of the upper One. But we have to know especially , in order to be ready for that development.

S. So We only need to annul in the ten and let Him work on us, and let Him raise His qualities in us?

R. We have all kinds of other types of actions: we have to be connected, to study, to annul, to give an example to one another, to pray; there are all kinds of types of work that we need to do.

S. So What's the connection between the natural tendencies that everyone comes with and what develops in the Ten?

R. I would say it’s two degrees. Just as we reach, come here with our natural tendencies, the Creator chose it, and He pushed us into the group, and the next step ahead we take, that is already some of our choice in there.

S. Choosing what?

R. By wanting to develop together and to help us all advance because we start understanding the one without the other can't advance, that our advancing to the next stage after we reach the Ten, that we need to push, each one pushes the other.

S. Then these three tendencies grow in us?

R. Yes.

S. It’s not according to nature anymore?

R. That is our choice.

5. S. (25:33) He says that there are these three tendencies. The question is, which tendency advances the person to spirituality because still vegetative and animate stop at envy that brings a person to wisdom and then what how does the person get the spirituality from wisdom?

R. We advance and then the forces that work on us in such a way, they push us ahead.

S. But what specific tendency does he describe in the still, vegetative, envy, lust, honor and then what? With envy I can be smart, so if I want something beyond being smart, what can I do, how can I be a spiritual person?

R. Spiritual is already by not studying things even if you're doing them together with the group but, we read this didn't we?

S. He stops at the speaking and defines it as knowledge as if there is no further degree of development. Or and also we often say envy, lust, and honor about spiritual development as well?

R. No, no no. Envy, lust, and honor, are still in between.

S. What tendency advances the person to spirituality?

R. We reached number four? No…Let's read.

Reading Item #4 (28:01) “From this you can deduce about The Wisdom of Truth…”

6. S. (37:41) he writes something that brings a lot of hope and it’s felt that is connected to our generation, he writes here ‘since the days of the generation of the faces of the generation is as the face of the dog and they bark like dogs Hav Hav and all this wisdom goes astray and it's permitted to open the gates of wisdom’. Here today then the will to receive is so big and people are so busy with themselves and their wars, specifically now the expansion of the wisdom can reach the final correction if I understand correctly, he says everything is open now?

R. Probably. 

S. It gives a lot of hope, specifically in such tough times to know that with our dissemination we can advance?

R. Let's hope.

7. S. (38:43) Why is it that today is it possible to circulate the Wisdom, to spread it, what's the difference between today and that time?

R. We just read this throughout a few pages; nobody is going to want the Wisdom. That's why you can publish it, advertise it.

8. S. The question is why can it be made public before, that they said that this study will blemish the Wisdom if it were to be published?

R. Because the people will yearn for the Wisdom itself. Today they have in their eyes so many other things to obtain that you can advertise it, and only those who are between us here and there people of The Virtue let's say, they will reach The Wisdom. 

S. It was also written in previous items that it was possible to use the Wisdom negatively?

R. Yes.

S. What does it mean? How can we use this wisdom in a detrimental way?

R. You see that in all places that it was revealed, there's a way to use it in a negative way for a person.

S. But this Wisdom is..?
R. It was like that throughout all generations; you read it in the communities of those wise people like Archimedus, the way they use it.

S. it was written that it could destroy the world, but it's not the wisdom about some Atom or nuclear bomb, or maybe it is?

R. Why not? Today it's nuclear science.

S. But when we engage in the Wisdom, we're not getting some information with which we can do something bad. What does it mean that it could destroy? what could we attain that could cause ruin? Today, we can't bring out the study something we can use negatively?

R. You can get something negative out of everything; from everything, on the contrary. If not for the hope of extracting something bad you wouldn't develop the science of wisdom, you wouldn't reach weapons and all these things. So, everything is from a tendency to control. look what is happening now, we are at the central point of development and where else it will still pull us into, who knows? It's a wonder to see how it is happening.

9. S. (42:39) he writes about the animate species that is constantly attached to the moment, it doesn't leave in the past or the future. I see in myself that I am constantly busy with the future and the present, I'm almost never in the moment, the only times I feel I'm in the moment is the times we are closer to what we talk about, spirituality, love of friends, Etc. so it sounds the animated level is on a much higher level than I feel myself?

R. okay.

S. Is there a connection between being in the present moment and advancing in spirituality?

R. Connection of course; but how do you use that connection? That is the whole point.

S. Is it something to learn from the animate in order to advance in spirituality?

R. As much as it wants to be adhered to this present moment, and only get enjoyment from this.

S. Can we say that being adhered to the moment, is to live in the reality of ‘there's none else besides Him?

R. You can. 

10. S. (44:00) There's something that seems to contradict: it says that people who are lustful, it's forbidden to tell them the Wisdom and today the biggest lust, it says that the face of the generation is as the face of the dog. So how in such a time is it possible to make Kabbalah public, people could use it to do harm?

R. I don't understand your question? I am not allowed to advertise the Wisdom of Kabbalah, why?

S. because today the lust is so big?

R. But they're drawn to the pleasures of the body, the lust of the bodily pleasures. What's the connection between the Wisdom of Kabbalah and the bodily lust?

S. So what lust do they mean that it could do harm?

R. To the general development.

S. like and thought, can the thoughts do harm?

R. Yes.

S. How can we prevent negative thoughts to do harm?

R. Only time.

S. What does time mean?

R. With due time, everything will start working out and they’ll understand that it's not worth being drawn to that type of lust. Just as it always happened in history, you see there is a line of development, where does it come from? from learning.

S. Yes, but the desire to receive is always, even when we are in spirituality the will to receive still operates. How can it not do harm? How can we neutralize it, how can we be only beneficial?

R. How can it only be beneficial?

S. Yes, and neutralize the will to receive, because every time we have a bad thought too how can I neutralize it?

R. That is not something we can do; that is only by the Torah as the remedy.

S. So, how is it possible to?

R. what?

S. Because if a person may harm he's not going to enter this Wisdom if he's doing harm? So how can I constantly guard myself from having bad thoughts, so I don't do harm?

R. Nature will teach you how to only yearn for actions and thoughts which are good.

S. So it's only in the hands of the Creator?

R. Well, of course.

S. So how?

R. How can anything good come out of man?

S. I don't know how else to ask this question, when do you know that you will not do harm anymore so you're worthy of receiving the Wisdom?

R. When the right time comes, you will get it; for now do everything that's in your power to do.

11. S. (47:44) What is the expansion of The Wisdom if no one wants it?

R. In all ways that it spreads out, even in a state that they don't want it or are not ready for it; it is still the way it spreads.

S. How is it revealed to those who want it to come and reveal it, and those who don't?

R. Specifically the ones that don't want, start feeling that they do need it.

S. It feels like?

R. The need for it.

S. The need just filled but it's as if there is already an understanding that the words and power are not the way to attain it?

R. Yes, through the negative way we discovered the necessity for The Wisdom of Truth.

S. So, how will necessity come out of negativity?

R. That there is no choice. There is no choice, we need these things. It's like man needs medicine and operation; all kinds of things like that in order to be healthy.