Morning Lesson January 19, 2022, Transcription

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

Part 1:

Faith Above Reason - Selected Excerpts from the Sources. #20

1. Rav’s Introduction: Yes, we are continuing in the same topic faith above reason, that we want to rise to the degree of bestowal from the degree of reception from which we were born and from which we developed in our will to receive. It developed and one understands that he feels good or feels bad, but he feels in his place and that is the reason. We want to reach a state which is higher than that, which is the degree of bestowal called faith above reason. We are not capable of that, we don't have the preparations for it, but if we perform all kinds of actions in order to awaken the upper force, the reforming light, then we correct ourselves, we change, and we get a new quality that we didn't know about, we didn't see it, we didn't feel that it exists before us, but rather it's the quality of Bina that predates creation, it's above creation. This is what we have to reach.

Every time we need to scrutinize better and better the means, how to reach the quality of bestowal, how to rise to the degree of the Creator, eternity, wholeness, bestowal, revelation of the Creator to the created being. When it is revealed to us, the quality of bestowal that is called the revelation of the Creator to the created being. This is how it is; it is not that we discover something outside of us, we discover what was done already, in a new domain, a new quality that we acquire. This is how we will advance. Therefore, here we need to participate all of us together as much as possible, we should think about the mutual success, and in that way, we will break through ahead.

We are a great body, a very great one that there was none like it in quantity and quality, because we are all coming truly from the opposite form, from the shattering and with such quantity such numbers of thousands of people, who do want to understand what is expected of us, and we want to do, to implement what is desired of us by the upper forces, and to come closer, and to adhere to our source, the Creator Himself. So let's continue studying, let's continue entering into it, and each and every day what we scrutinize even though on the next day we may forget about it altogether, or not forget or maybe we do forget that doesn't matter the things that we go through they remain, they are registered for eternity, and each one of us and in all of us together, and therefore as it says they should be as new in your eyes every day, they should be as new in your eyes, however, what remains will remain, a penny and a penny accumulates to a great amount and this is how we will advance.

Excerpt # 20 (05:03)

2. R. (06:42) This means that we need as much as possible to invest in what the Kabbalists are telling us which is connection in the ten, bestowing to each other, awakening each other, holding each other, supporting each other, and then each one will have the powers of the others, so if I enter a group, then I have the powers of the group as much as I am able to, as much as I succeed in incorporating with them. This is why as much as I value and appreciate all the friends, and their appreciation in my eyes depends only on me, like with the example of Rabbi Yossi Ben Kisma, who had very small students beginners, however, he respected them, he loved them, he was concerned about them, and in such a way through his attitude to them, they seemed to him as great, as important, and it's like a baby becomes important in the eyes of the parents, his importance is through their relation to him, it is not that there is something in him, and therefore if we enter a ten and there are friends, who do want to some extent to reach the same goal like me, then I have to accept them as the most important on the path because eventually their desires, those that are directed to the goal to the Creator, I need to incorporate with these desires. In this way I can advance.

To the extent that I surrender before them that I want to come closer that I want to incorporate with them, by that, I achieve two things: first of all, as it says my soul be as dust to all that it doesn't matter to me what I am great at but rather I want to see them as great and as close to me as possible, and if I direct myself in such a way that they are all greater than me, and they are yearning for the Creator, and I incorporate with them, then I am truly in a state where I am like zero, and even more zeros as Rabash tells us, and they are as one, one, one, each one of them is greater than me, and in this way together with them I reach the Creator. It cannot be that I will reach the Creator before I annul myself towards the friends, and this is how we advance. This is called to raise the Shechina from the dust, that same connection between us, that connection between us, we need to awaken it to establish it from zero and more and more give it an importance until it reaches the state where the Creator is revealed in it. This is how it happens.

3. S. (11:16) He starts the verse with, if one decides that he wants to work as dust. How can you decide, I am in the will to receive and constantly it runs away from me?

R. Bit by bit when a person tries to be with his group and with these excerpts that he reads then over time he begins to feel that indeed the work in entering faith above reason, it is work that he has Malchut should bring himself from below toward Bina, to bestow, and this is how he advances. He agrees to being as dust that it is something truly great, because dust means that he lowers the importance of his own ego, of his own control of Malchut and he raises above it, the quality of bestowal, the quality of Bina, and these things gradually settle in in his brain and later on it is hard.

S. Does he agree with it, meaning he answers the state that he agrees with it, but it does not mean that he wants to work as dust

R. Because he begins to feel that is as much as he becomes dust in his will to receive that is him really that is a higher state according to that he comes closer to bestowal, he comes closer to Bina to faith, and this is how he sees himself in coming down to the dust and rising to the quality of Bina, of bestowal.

S. Is he truly happy about it?

R. Of course, there's joy there you bet it says my soul shall decline to the dust and receive life.

4. S. (13:54) You opened the lesson by saying: when we study, we forget but it does not matter because it will remain in eternity, and I asked you what do you mean?

R. Of course nothing goes away like we think, because all in all our will to receive feels whatever it feels right now, but it also has a few memories from beforehand, these are the Reshimot, the records which it also measures the present, but besides that nothing, whereas in spirituality, I have all the records from all the states. I'm not saying times but states and with respect to them I measure, I check myself, and therefore they have experienced so that I can say what is the highest state, the best state, the one that is most worthwhile, most worthy that is to be as dust why is that? because if I am in my will to receive, what can be better than if I can give it up, and that is called dust. I simply give it up, I relinquish it, it does not matter to me that I will receive in it that will always be incorrect, and what I need is only to rise above the dust. This is called to “raise the Shechina from the dust.” The Shechina is the vessel for the revelation of the Creator, and I elevate it specifically by understanding that I am in the dust. The dust is the lowest thing that has no importance, and it does not spoil along with that, it remains as it is, you cannot do anything with it. It is matter that does not change. That is the dust.

5. S. (17:05) What body does the excerpt speak of? Even when someone feels the worst possible physical state there is something inside of a person that tells him, he needs to exert even more?

R. This is clear, however, give an exertion where and which direction? That is the question. You see; therefore we need to calculate.

6. S. (17:55) It says here that seemingly the Creator does enjoy the work since there is no mixture of the will to receive there, but how to work specifically with the greatness of the Creator? of the importance of Him, because I am so strong and in the state of dust and I can work in this?

R. One comes instead of the other, when I replace the importance of my ego, the importance of myself with the importance of the Creator. It is according to the condition that when one rises the other falls, this is how it happens. So there is no such thing that I feel myself as dust and at the same time I do not appreciate the Creator. I have to check one opposite the other.

7. S. (19:05) I could not not notice when you spoke about the dust, something permanent and changing just like you speak of the light. In the fall, it is not a fall but an opportunity to take advantage of this momentum to rise back systematically speaking, is this the meaning of it?

R. I was not thinking in this direction, but maybe yes.

Excerpt 21 (19:44 - 24:03) Twice

8. S. (24:05) It is not clear: when a person despises the work and he is empty and all that, and then he writes that he has something to give to the Creator?

R. What is unclear, tell me what then I can answer?

S. If you can explain how come a person despises the work and he feels empty and everything that is written here, and yet he has something to give to the Creator? What can I give when I despise in the work?

R. We cannot give the Creator anything except the way we relate to Him, our attitude regarding what a person feels, which for sure he feels it from the Creator and not from anywhere else; so out of that one answers, his heart answers. The person does not need to say anything, it all depends on the prior work and how much he had prepared himself so his heart response. This is what is received in the Creator and in this way a person should see that all of his work is in the work of preparation, in the work of preparation. That he prepares himself to receive all of the sensations that go through him, that one: they come from the Creator, there is on else besides Him and they come in order for a person to respond to it. Because in that same consistent response that he makes over whatever he feels each and every moment, ascribing what he has to the Creator and that it comes to him in order for him to build above it an attitude to the giver in order to come closer to Him, in order to be as adhered to the Creator as possible through the friends. If one performs the right guidance as much as possible, as precisely as possible towards the Creator that is one's work. There are many things here, first of all, it is assuming the burden of the kingdom of heaven that whatever comes, for sure, it comes from the Creator, there is None Else Besides Him and what one should do is to aim himself back to Him. How does he direct himself; it is through the device called the group and that is all? To scatter yourself as least as possible to other peripheral conditions: here is the person, the group, and the Creator, this is what we need to establish for ourselves.

9. S. (27:40) Resistance of the egoism, does it belong to a certain kind of bestowal?

R. No, our ego is built in such a way that we have to work upon it, not to disregard it but rather to work on it so that upon all the different forms that we get, the egoistic ones, that's called “help made against him”, that it always gives us a state which is the opposite of how it needs to be and we upon that need to direct ourselves, to establish ourselves in the right form towards the Creator, that's it. So in the previous excerpt it says, “my dust, my soul shall be as dust to all” and now it also adds that above that I also connect with the group, and I aim myself to the Creator. So these are two stages.

10. S. (29:05) How to connect when I feel various states that I have to ascribe it to the Creator and friends that are not related to the ten and states where the work is in the ten?

R. I do not tie one with the other. For the time being I do not know what to do with it, so I choose only our states that are inside of the ten. That in these states we need to discover the Creator and, in this way, to advance towards Him; and all the rest, all the other things that happened in my life, I cannot take care of them. Meaning I do take care of them but only in a couple real manner. Just like the whole world.

11. S. (30:09) How does the work in the ten prepares a person to accept the state of blackness as joy?

R. The work in the ten cannot do any more than it awakens me to connect with the Creator and to ask of Him for forces of scrutiny and forces of correction; however, after I from the ten reach the right prayer to the Creator then the prayer becomes a Kli, a vessel, and then I begin to get from the Creator the correct responses according to my vessel because I already understand what is it that I am asking for because I learned that the group, from the ten, and I also feel what the Creator wants to tell me through that, this is how we advance. But this is on the condition that I feel myself that I am in a single boat with the group otherwise I have no connection with the Creator. The Creator is the general force that exists above us, above the ten, and as much as I incorporate with them then I am closer to Him. And I feel what is it that He is giving to the ten, the Creator is always tending to the group or you might say the entire Kli that He created and as much as I am Incorporated in that Kli more and more according to that I begin to decipher more correctly how He is answering, how He is influencing us and this is how I advance. But our work is really to incorporate in the entire vessel that He created and according to that I will feel Him, and I will know how to relate to Him correctly, how to change myself. It is all there inside of the connection. But the connection is not with the Creator but with the Kli, the Creator comes as a result, Come and See. That He seemingly is revealed to us in the form, if we can say so in a passive form, out of our work in the connection between us, the Creator is revealed as a result.

S. Meaning when a state of blackness comes, it is a sign that we are corrected, is a desired state from this work?

R. Yes.

12. S. (33:30) We learned that during the state of dust, a person has to overcome himself and say that this work is pleasant to him. Where would he feel this joy and pleasantness?

R. In that he raises himself above the dust and he wants to be in that more, and he ascribes importance to this state, great importance since he elevated himself above the dust, above the in order to receive. So by that he will already have a new Kli, he already brings himself closer to Bina. Then according to that he begins to feel the forces of bestowal.

13. S. (34:36) Why this work is called “adornment''?

R. All of our work is called “adornment'' because what truly happens, well the truth is it’s our will to receive, and the Creator that stands opposite it. All of our work that we require the restriction, the screen and reflected light. By this we “adorn the bride,” as we call it. By that we only create a coating, an adornment, yes and adornment. But this adornment is very important because by that we appreciate the quality of Bina, the quality of faith as higher than the quality of Daat, reason, the quality of the will to receive. This is how we advance.

S. This is the adornment that allows us to reach faith, is it because of that?

R. Yes certainly, adornment means that I replace my values where earlier when the will to receive was greater for me and now the act of bestowing is greater.

14. S. (36:30) How can a person that declares “dust in the work” feel Joy?

R. Because even though it is against his desire, it has greater importance, which is the way it is. Because he begins to appreciate that society as greater than himself, the form of bestowal as greater than the form of reception and in such a way he advances. What is important for us here is not that we will be able to do it, we will not be able to do it; and therefore the whole expectation that I will now perform such an act is a false act and of course it will bring me to failure. But rather as it says, “man's pride will lower him,” I have no possibility not in power and not in action to do anything which is above reception, it cannot be. However, when I try to do that in order to see that it is impossible and in order to ask of the Creator that He will do it, this is called, “the Lord will finish it for me.” That I begin the work and I see that I am not capable of it and then I turn to the Creator, and I ask of Him, and He does it, and then in such a way I see that I do advance myself.

That I try, I see that I cannot, and it is impossible to simply say in advance that I simply decide that I cannot do it because, there's none wiser than the experienced one.” Therefore it says, “a thousand times shall the righteous fall and get up.” That upon each detail we have to try and do something and later on to see that we are not capable of it, that after this we turn to the Creator, and we ask. And then if we come with such a record that we have done those things, we tried to do it and we did not succeed and we understand that only the Creator knows how to do it, that He is capable of it, then we come to Him and already in that appeal we have both the coarseness and also the goal and the direction, and then the Creator responds. We have what to come to Him within our demand to Him. That we did it, we tried, we saw it and only You can do it. That is, in our appeal to Him we have the depth of the desire to be corrected.

15. S. (39:47) Did I hear correctly that specifically thanks to the darkness, the blackness, we should appreciate it because thanks to the darkness we reach a connection with the upper one?

R. Yes of course, only thanks to the darkness, we begin to yearn for the light, to get to know the light and it cannot be any other way as the light excels from darkness.

16. S. (40:29) At what point in the work will we already be called “created beings”?

R. When we are capable of rising above our will to receive to the will to bestow, and then when we are included, incorporated of these two discernments we are called “created beings.”

S. “Created being” means that the action comes from us? Why exactly are you saying this is the created being?

R. The beginning of the act is always in the Creator and the end of the act is in the Creator as it is written “I am the first and I am the last,” but we are in the middle, we connect the beginning to the end.

17. S. (41:21) The feeling is that when we come to the darkness, the blackness, how can we develop even more joy towards the Creator in the ten?

R. Yes, it depends, you said it correctly, it depends on the ten. If we know that we succeed with certainty if we are together then it is not important to us, and we are not afraid either of the stormy sea nor of the boat that is about to break. But it is certain that it will be good, it is certain that we will make it. It all depends on the degree of our connection in the ten. When the Creator, which reveals all these stormy waves among us, the Creator will only simply be happier that he is doing it.

18. S. (42:40) If a person built the importance in the state of dust and starts to rise to the state of bestowal, how can he keep advancing from here and not fall?

R. Again, only maintaining himself in the ten, you will never get a different answer, never. This study depends entirely on its realization in the connection, which is what we have to look for daily: how much our connection is becoming more internal, greater, more understood by each and every one. Although we do not speak about it perhaps, because it is not customary with Kabbalists to talk about it too loudly, nevertheless we have to see that this is the importance of the connection with which we solve each and every problem of our spiritual ascent so the importance of spirituality, of connection, keeps rising.

Excerpt 22 (44:04 - 47:39) Twice

19. R. (46:36) That he is happy about his share, he demands nothing more than that.

Reader continues…….

20. S. (47:54) What does it mean that he does not give advice to the Creator?

R. Meaning he receives from the Creator each and every moment as he sees it each morning as the correct thing that comes from the Creator, and he has to respond to that, and he is concerned only with his response. Meaning each and every moment in his life he understands that what he has comes to him from the Creator, because there is None Else Besides Him. But his question, his problem is how to correctly respond to what he is receiving each and every moment. It turns out that each and every moment he is in a dialogue with the Creator where he feels that what he has inside, the Creator arranges it, and correspondingly he needs to establish a response for Him, the correct response, so in this way he is in this mutual relationship with the Creator.

S. If in the dialogue with the Creator you see that nevertheless you do have advice to give Him?

R. That is okay, we can raise that. You only have to have the feeling that you are in constant connection with Him, that whatever you feel He gave you because you are an empty vessel and what you think and what you feel and what you sense everything you have, comes to you from the Creator. Good things, bad things, it is not important, the thing here is your reaction to it, your reaction, what will you do.

S. I did not understand, how do I shift from giving advice to that state where I go with my eyes shut?

R. You can have an internal dialogue with your feelings, since what you feel comes from the Creator each and every moment, and how do you respond to Him each and every moment? Try to be in this state and you will begin to feel that you are connected to Him. In order to increase this connection you also need to be in contact with the society with your group. In this way you come to a state where suddenly you begin to feel that you have what to say to the Creator and what to hear from Him and what to receive from Him. The connection between you becomes a living connection. That is it, start developing it.

S. That's exactly the problem, when you yearn for this permanence with the friends, but the criticism grows when I actually scrutinize with my eyes shut, so what does it mean with my eyes shut?

R. You shut your eyes, overall everything you might claim before the Creator without any complaints or anything, now you feel something in your life. Over what you feel and what you understand build a connection with the Creator. Start relating to Him in return. Do this each and every moment try try every time. I to my beloved and my beloved to me.

S. Are there possibilities to somehow connect so it is not through complaints, otherwise how do I connect with Him if it is not through claims or complaints?

R. All the complaints can be on the fact that you cannot respond correctly to what the Creator is invoking and inviting in you. I now feel and understand that what I have in my brain and heart comes to me from the Creator that is a certainty. The question is how much above what I feel and understand, this is all my being, how do I respond from my egoistic desire or perhaps I want to change this reaction? Before any change to my reaction I have to determine that anything in me everything in me comes from above. It all comes from above; this is number one. Number two how do I respond to it, the fact that everything comes from above? This is our work, we read a lot about it.

21. S. (53:54) Here it says to settle for little to be content with whatever little feeling and mind he has, so is this enough in order to reach?

R. We need nothing outside of what we have only to respond correctly with anything the Creator invokes or invites.

S. What does it mean to respond correctly?

R. It means that I annul my will to receive, my ego and I wish to identify with what the Creator’s attitude towards me with my heart and soul. This is the work.

22. S. (55:01) It is certainly felt that the Creator is operating truly each and every moment for all the different states and Kabbalists say, talk to Him like you talk to a friend. Constantly indeed, there is this dialogue all day. The thing is that Kabbalists for example when they write, Rabash etc. they nevertheless say the Creator Blessed Be He, they give him a lot of respect and talking to a friend let us say I'm a certain friend then I don't turn to him and say, blessed friend how are you, and how is this going on today, so how should the dialogue with the Creator be all day long?

R. We do not have anyone closer to us than the Creator, who arranges everything, establishes everything, who is inside of us, He arranges inside of me all of my desires, all of my thoughts, there is no one else. Therefore it is simple. We just have to try and understand that if I do not activate faith above reason then I am in my will to receive. Then I am completely managed by the Creator and there is nothing of myself in it and if I wish to rise above reason then by that I acquire my independence, this is the meaning of “my sons have defeated me.” The Creator gives the will to receive, and we want to rise to the will to bestow from the degree of Malchut to the degree of Bina. Then gradually over many actions and times we awaken on ourselves nevertheless the upper light that builds this in us. He builds it and we begin to feel that these are two levels, it is a matter of internal feeling, there is nothing we can do but to try more and more each time.

S. But the Creator knows what we have inside of our heart so in the appeal to the Creator there is nothing you can hide from Him simply whatever we have in our hearts?

R. We're not talking about the Creator, we are talking about ourselves what does it have to do with how the Creator feels it is the general force of everything. What can you say to a baby who is inside his mom or in her arms, but he is 100% under her control? What can you say to him? We are under the Creator’s authority and all our organs, all our thoughts, in everything. We talk only about ourselves, how can we in spite of this concealment that comes to us from our ego, from our will to receive, how we can construct ourselves in such a way that the concealment will not stand in the way that we wish to neutralize it and adhere to the Creator. Against the concealment. This means that we seemingly return to the womb, into the Creator from the point we came out of Him, we wish to return to the womb but in a way, in such a way where I wish to do this work, to do this path on our own. Where we cancel our ego and by that we identify with the Creator. That is the end of correction where we return to be in adhesion with the Creator, just like all of creation does not bother us but only awakens us.

23. S. (01:0015) As I understand it the relationship with the Creator is personal is it correct?

R. Yes. We cannot be connected to one another except through the Creator.

24. S. (01:00:42) The state that we go through it does not matter how it will be filled how we will be filled by the Creator so long as we implement that stay and move on to the next state right?

R. I do not understand what you are saying.

S. The states that we go through we always have a choice whether to fill these states with the Creator that it comes from the Creator in order to give Him contentment or to somehow do something different. So, how do we implement it correctly so it will go through that state will move on and the next state will come, but it does not matter how we feel that state?

R. No of course not. The Creator cares deeply about how we respond because this is our vessel. That is why when we respond correctly, we are ready for the next state, the next correct state, and, if we do not respond correctly, we need to extend our path until we get to know why not and how to do it, so it absolutely depends on our response.

25. S. (01:02:25) About “being happy with one’s share”, how can you be happy with your share if you feel that you do not feel anything right now, there is no feeling?

R. Even when there is no feeling, that is a feeling. On top of that you now have to establish your work.

S. There's no feeling towards the ten, towards the Creator.

R. Start from that, start developing it remember just like the Baal Shem Tov-Aleph, Bet, Gimel, ABC how he recuperates from all these things, in this way until he returns to consciousness.

S. So what does it mean to be happy with one share in that state?

R. He's happy with his share even in this. it is possible that he fell to such a deep state, such a low state, and corresponding to that he is looking up to a greater ascent.

S. Is this something that I have to do? be happy with one share means that you accept the situation, and you are describing something that is active.

R. Okay you have something to do if it is active, you feel yourself low and if you adhere to the group, you understand it is not simply low, but it is purposefully low.

S. So to be happy with my share it means that…

R. …Happy about his share means that he accepts this work and the state is the correct state for work, that you have the energy, the vitality from the group; the goal that directs you towards the group and you're going to do it, without a group you don't know where you're going; you are like on a raft in the open stormy seas.

26. S. (01:05:02) When is a person truly capable of working for the Creator and accepting that state of dust? What states do we have to go through beforehand?

R. In anything and every state a person is invited to it, it all depends on one's attention. And of course if he begins to awaken from a state of disconnection, it is not so simple, but the result can be much prettier when he wakes up with knowledge, with a feeling and understanding, the best thing is when a person is in a deep slumber and gradually from that he begins to awaken himself. This is the sign of a new state, and it is worthwhile to realize it.

27.S. (01:06:07) What to do if I feel that I do not succeed in responding correctly to whatever the Creator sends me?

R. So respond even more correctly or ask for the strength to do so, discover the importance for help, be more active as active as possible in this all depends on the friends. If you are inside the ten or inside the world Kli then certainly you be able to receive all the strength you need to wake up because envy, lust, and honor work on a person and take him out of this world.

28. S. (01:07:09) What does it mean that the connection between us and the Creator comes to life?

R. I want to bestow to the group, and through it, I want to bestow to the Creator. Although, in return for that I subconsciously aim for a certain reward, payment, but nevertheless, reluctantly I do it, okay if my connection is egoistic for now, nevertheless, I am trying to not sever that connection. We begin in our ego just as we see with babies, they come here, they soil their diapers, and they break stuff, they cry, they know nothing, like a piece of meat that is before us this baby and we have to care for it. These are the forms that came to our corporeal world from the spiritual degrees that is how we are in spirituality. We great ones that are seemingly important ones, but in spirituality we are not even babies yet. So we have to understand we need to go through all those states as quickly as possible until we come to the state where we truly know ourselves, we will grow up.

S. (01:09:26) Are we in a dialogue with the Creator through an appeal for request or through gratitude? Is there another kind of connection?

R. No there is not, because the Creator is the one who gives and we are the receivers, so there cannot be a reaction whereby we are happy or not happy, or wish to receive or not, we ask of Him on what was and what will be or not. Our dialogue with the Creator is very simple, very direct, there is concealment, but ultimately, if a person wants to advance quickly to the Creator, he cannot do it on a great deal of philosophizing.

29. S. (01:10:36) Do we want to be under the Creator's control or emerge out of His control?

R. You have to ask yourselves by yourselves. Want it or not.

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