Morning Lesson June 28, 2021, Transcription
Baal HaSulam - Introduction to The Book of Zohar
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42. R. This is a unique introduction. Rabash usually would begin studying as I remember he started teaching me yes person-to-person, privately that he would call me and he would say let's learn something together and he would begin teaching and we would begin reading the introduction to the Book of Zohar. Let us begin the writings of Baal HaSulam besides what we are learning from this introduction and afterwards the Introduction to the Tree of Life but let us begin here. What I am asking is to be connected to the study and ask according to the topic and not all sorts of polar forms, do not run away from the text, only what the text is talking about is what we are learning otherwise we are not going to get out of it.
Item 1 “In the introduction I would like to clarify matters.” (01:32)
43. R. 03:33() We can continue these questions more and more and go into more detail. A lot of interjections towards the Creator in reality and our life where we have no deficiency in this. But we see in total in these five questions that Baal HaSulam sees that actually all of the objections and questions and misunderstandings of his in the world in general, all of man actually include everything in these five questions.
Item 2 “In order to fully clarify all of this we need to make some” (04:24)
44. R. (04:47) That is why it is forbidden in Kabbalah, it is forbidden and not possible, everything is allowed but do not get into such states, such investigations or deeds that you are incapable. So, the Kabbalists say ahead of time, for you this is still forbidden just like you tell a little child, this is not for you. But actually, everything later on is open to men to the extent that he develops correctly.
Reader continues: “We have no thought or utterance of him, but where we are commanded” (05:21)
45. R. (05:50) Meaning we can investigate in the actions of the Creator because all the actions of the Creator are towards us, towards men so it is worthwhile for us to know how to investigate him in actions and the relations towards us that later on we will also have to change our deeds and see his reaction. By this I bestow to him and he bestows to me and we will learn the Creator, this is called to know the Creator of your father.
Reader continues: “Inquiry number 1 is how can we picture a new creation….” (06:31)
46. R. (07:03) How can it be that the Creator created something new as there is always some previous state and from that something results, but here it says no, we are in something new. Before him there is nothing of it and then it was made. How is that possible?
Reader continues: “Inquiry number 2 if you say from the aspect of his on….”
“Inquiry 3 ” (07:25)
47. R. (09:14) These are questions that are really not simple but that we already know a bit of this that the soul is the desire to receive that will be corrected in an intention to bestow as a vessel of the soul and the light that fills the vessel is the Creator the desire to bestow that fills the soul, this is called the part of the Creator from above. By correction it will be on the intention to bestow and this light fills the desire because they are not opposing, the intention of the light and the intention of the vessel are the same and they are in connection between them.
48. S. (10:08) In the beginning of the introduction he says that I would like to clarify matters that are seemingly simple, ones that everyone fumbles with but when we talked to people today no one is interested in his essence, in our role as you can't even perceive it and don't think about it.
R. What do you want from human beings? A person that wants to know about the universe, his life, what is between life and death, before life and after death, he asks all of these questions.
S. Most of the public they don't want to know and they're aware of the fact that they just don't want to know as you ask them, they closed down and you feel this.
R. I don't understand the question, you're saying that most of the public doesn't have interest in these questions, correct he's not writing for the public he's writing for who is truly interested.
S. What does it mean when he says everyone fumbles with?
R. Whoever wants he enters into it and whoever doesn't want it does not, certainly the truth is everyone belongs to this but belongs to it in such a way like people who walk on the street what do they know of their life, but only what you eat and to drink, how to fix the things in their house how to make children and that's it. They look at only what belongs to their beastly, corporeal existence and we are not talking about them, we are talking about people who are asking about the purpose and essence of creation. That there is something above the beastly form, these are questions that are from the height of man not from the height of the beast. So, it is not clear to me what you are asking.
49. S. (12:38) In the introduction it said how can someone so Almighty make such lowly creatures who are the creatures being referred to?
R. That is speaking of the upper force that because he is entirely in bestowing and we are in reception, between us the distance is infinite in our aspects how opposite we are from one another and he is called high, above us. Beyond all measurements.
50. R. (13:39) We did not finish all of the inquiries and second these are just questions. He is not answering anything, if you want me to start answering instead of him, he is going to give an explanation we just need to understand the questions. If you understand the questions, good, if you don’t, I will explain. Not that I have to give an answer to the questions themselves just to open them a bit more for you to understand what he is asking.
51. S. (14:41) It says in the article that the soul is part of God and he compares it to a rock that is carved from the mountain. When is the rock separated it is separated but the soul is not a part of the Creator because it was created as existence from absence so I don't understand the comparison?
R. You still don't understand what a soul is, wait and you will get your explanation over the course of this article. You are saying that you don't understand what he is writing, we will get an explanation and it will become clear to you.
Item 3 Inquiry 4 (15:51)
Inquiry 5
Inquiry 6
52. R. (18:36) These questions in sum total what he is putting before us is that undo words on them he is going to build his explanation of all of creation because we are speaking about the introduction to the Book of Zohar. The Book of Zohar is actually all of the study of the upper force, what he did, who is he, what is he, what for and so on. This is what the Book of Zohar engages in and all of these questions and investigations call my everything in creation in the most general manner and in the most private manner. So, he says in total all of these questions and investigations what he has put together here is that if he answers them, we will know more or less all of creation, we will see. In the meantime, yes, he just didn't explain anything he just asked. When I read these, I wrote each thing to myself a little more simply and then I get one mind from each inquiry, if you want you can do this later on your own.
Item 4 (20:22)
53. R. (23:58) There are a lot of questions here and we could understand where it continues, what he is telling us, that we can't look at our present states but rather only at the end of creation because in the beginning or in the middle we don't know and we can't really see anything. It's like in everything that we do, everything that we make, in the middle of our work you can't really determine the results whether it is good or bad and so we need to rise to the degree of the end of creation. It's not the matter of the time, it's the matter of the degree, if we rise to that same height and quality of the Creator, we will see everything and then we will decide if this is correct or not. And also, by man in the world this is all the result of the action of the Creator. Like he continues here that we cannot decide anything about creation but rather if we attained the upper force, it is because then it is the beginning, the middle and the end of the work together.
54. S. (25:38) What is the meaning that the dead are destined to live with their flaws?
R. The same desire to receive is called dead will see life which the intention is to bestow.
S. Is the wisdom of Kabbalah only about the upper world or does it speak about this world as well?
R. Also about this world if there is something to speak about, what is in this world you don't understand that everything is from above.
55. S. (26:39) If everything comes from the Creator and everything is perfect and pure, what we read, why is it that Rabash speaks about the body being contemptible?
R. the body is the desire to receive not a biological body, meaning it is thinking about the desire to receive, that the intention to receive as the corrupted body and the intention to bestow is the corrected body. The body of the Partzuf is not speaking about Torah, the wisdom of Kabbalah does not speak about biology at all about membranes and all the biological life that it seems to us. We will speak later about this we are only speaking about the desire to receive which is only a matter which is created and all of the forms that this desire to receive exists, it is called that there are all sorts of forms, creatures in this world, in the upper world but that it is all a result of the desire and so we are only speaking about the desire.
56. S. (28:28) Making an inquiry is a commandment. What does this mean?
R. That way must by the desire that the Creator gives each and every one, that there is a commandment to investigate and to know, to become familiar with the upper force that by this we get closer and closer to him. Ultimately what is written is to know your Creator and how to worship him as you must become familiar with the Creator and work with him to bestow to him so he can bestow to you and by this you connect.
57. S. (29:26) Earlier in the introduction it said that before the body rots entirely the soul cannot ascend to its place in the Garden of Eden, while there are still remnants of it. It does not feel as if this is only speaking about the rotting of the body so what does this mean?
R. We didn't learn anything of this yet, what is the body, what is the correction, what is the soul and all of these things that you are starting to read in to become like a wise guy that you understand what is written. It is telling you that in these questions we are engaging in them over the course of this article and that is it. Not that he is explaining to you in these two sentences such things. I understand that you are not used to studying properly but understand that not in such a manner will I now ask what a body is rotting and what is the soul rising from the body. What are you asking? You need these questions to write down next to the book and then you will see that towards the end of the article, which is about 25 pages, at the end of the article you will have the answers to all of your questions. Write down the questions before you so that you will have them and this is how you should study. Maybe write them in the computer next to the article or on the paper next to you but then you will see that you will get your answers to all of your questions but not now that you're going to burst out in a question of what is happening with the soul of whether it is rotting or not, you don't know what the body is you don't know what the rotting is you don't know what the fulfillment is so what are you asking? You simply need to study with all of these questions.
58. S. (32:09) Is it true that you are saying, everything is the inquiries and here he no longer writes the question or inquiry “in order for you to be tormented all of your lives like us but rather by taking care of him” he is not asking a question he is giving a fact.
R. He is placing a fact before us that all created beings are in sorrow and this sorrow truly comes to them from the same source of life which is the Creator. So why is the Creator called the good that does good, if he is placing the created beings in such sorrow? This is a question but no answer here, it is just a question. Once again, I am saying we are learning articles of Baal HaSulam and his introductions, especially because he wants to explain the general observations of all of reality. In the beginning as is usual for his style, he asks what to do and what you need to ask and he clarifies, so let us relate to these matters, let us flow along with him. You can't ask because he hasn't explained anything, only if you understand the question and so I am willing to hear, but not more than this because the answer to the question is still not here before us. I am not going to explain what he has not yet as he will do this later on.
59. S. (34:19) About the story with Rabbi Eliezer, does this come to tell us that anyone whom we don't love we should also cover this with love or is it the Creator giving us an example that you don't have to be this way? Let's say he gives us a person who doesn't want to be like him or maybe we should cover it with love.
R. This we need to learn. I don't understand why you were asking this and how this is tied to what we are studying as there is no connection one to the other. So have some patience and if there is something here as truly an obligation, I will hear the question.
60. S. (35:30) In the beginning of the lesson someone asked about Item 5, how is it possible from Eternal that has no beginning or end that such lowly creatures came
R. This world is full of all sorts of things that we are born exist and die and over the course of their life that they exist they have all sorts of deficiencies, problems, illnesses, sorrow, suffering so he is asking how it can be that the whole complete operator would build such life that there is nothing worse than that. Ultimately, each person is born who didn't choose to be born and he suffers from it and then he dies. All of this you want to ascribe to the upper force, the good that does good, the Eternal and whole, that this is what he did? There is no greater gap from the upper force than the lowly created being, no greater than this as it is such an opposite form. Look at what he is asking and what is happening as he wants you to connect with the questions and then he will answer you, why do we see things as such and what is truly happening here.
Item 5 (37:20)
61. R. Look at what he writes, he is making a summary here.
Reader continues: “and decide that we are truly noble creatures….”
62. R. (37:56) Not like it seems to us that we live and die, but rather that we are eternal creatures truly above everything.
Reader continues: “Meaning truly worthy of the worker who has made us….”
63. R. (39:09) This is clear, we need to investigate, to understand and to reveal and then we will decide who is right, the Creator, the good that does good or the created beings that don't agree with what he is doing with us.
Item 6 (39:32)
64. R. (39:58) The world is created in order to give us as much as possible.
Reader continues: “we must bear in mind since the thought of creation….”
65. R. (41:28) If the Creator wants to give us infinite pleasure, he must create in us infinite desire to receive that pleasure, if we still don't feel the desire and pleasure, it must be. Slowly we will open the questions and answers in such a way that all of creation needs to be clear to us from the beginning to end what is happening here.
66. S. (42:38)
R. There's no such thing whether it's corporeal or a spiritual desire there's only one desire. it is as the will to receive on the intention to receive and we need to correct it to the intention to bestow and to the extent that we correct it like the desire of the Creator, to the intention to bestow that we will be able to feel the spiritual reality in the whole and complete manner.
S. Why in Item 6 does he say that it is necessary that he created an excessive desire to receive so they can receive what he thought to give them, since the size of every pleasure is according to the desire to receive it, what does this mean the size of it?
R. The light which is the pleasure actually created the desire precisely in the manner that is suitable to him, matching to him so everything that is in the light is pleasure is created in the desire as a deficiency that in the contact of the deficiency with the lack they have a mutual completion.
67. S. (44:38) Yesterday we met and concluded that when we have a question it takes two minutes until we get an answer. Sometimes our questions, we can never get an answer so how can we get answers to these questions?
R. This we will also learn in the introduction, not now. The questions and the answers certainly all come from above, all we are is the vessel that feels what comes to us.
68. S. (45:30) The Creator keeps this law that one is not shown the middle of the work for a person because the whole world is asking this question about why is the world so bad?
R. Yes, a person is not shown the end of the work when he's in the middle of the work.
69. S. (46:05) In Item 6 there is an interesting question as it says we know that they desire to receive is existence from absence and here it is written that the Creator created the size of the desire to receive according to the size of the pleasure so how did he know what is the size of the pleasure if they desire to receive is existence from absence?
R. The Creator wants to give creation from a certain quantity, measure of pleasure and according to this quantity he creates the deficiency for the pleasure. What is not clear?
S. The desire to receive his existence from absence, it's not in the Creator?
R. Correct.
S. So how does he know the size of the pleasure?
R. The pleasure is in the Creator and from this he builds the desire to receive, the pleasure is first, the light precedes and the desire is secondary.
70. S. (47:36) Everything comes from above but we read that when we decide that the Creator is the one who does the work, did we decide that?
R. That he says is an investigation if we decide such, these are invested, that we will reach solutions and it will be clear to you why he asks in this way and not in another. Okay friends, read this on your own and prepare questions, we will learn the introduction onward and you will see that there will be nothing left that you don't understand. Just learn how to learn.