Part 2:
Rabash. Letter 11
Reading Letter 11 (00:19 - 08:34)
1. R. Okay, we read it once, certainly not enough, we will read it again here for now what do you want to ask?
2. S. (08:49) What does it mean that “Malchut can receive surrounding light without the equivalence of form”?
R. You can receive the surrounding light without the equivalence of form, yes, because it’s surrounding. We also receive many surrounding lights although we're not aware of it, only for the inner light we have to perform the coupling of striking and reach equivalence but for surrounding light, it can appear wherever it wants, whenever it wants and on whomever it wants.
3. S. (09:35) One of the part good and bad equally of the same importance and greatness over them and that's so called Dvekut with Him because everything comes from Him anyway so we just have to annulify to that. And the easiest way is to be present which is also given present from above, but we have to give the effort, and by all the efforts we are going to attain it because the Creator loves us being in effort for each other.
R. First of all, I'm asking you to ask a bit more succinctly, shortly so it will be understood by everyone and clarify your question, scrutinize them so that if you asked everything can benefit from it. It’s not that you want to know it but through it you wish for the friends to hear it and to enjoy it, derive pleasure from it. So scrutinize your questions more precisely and ask them later more shortly and the way that is understood by everyone.
Reading Letter 11 (11:38 - 20:02)
3. R. So the most important for us is to reach adhesion on the degree of Bina and raise to the degree of Hochma that is called Shofar(?) de Ima, Ima as Bina, and Shofar(?), her magnitude, her greatness, her beauty that clarifies as much as she's incorporated in Hochma; and then in Hochma and Bina together when it shines in us, we will be rewarded in the full correction and the whole degree.
4. S. (20:50) What does it mean that “a person can receive when he is remote from the Creator if he raises the importance of the surrounding light”?
R. That is because that is how he organizes his vessel that, on one hand, he is far, he has the will to receive and it hurts him that he is far; on the other hand, if he reaches the point that he wants to reveal the Creator as the one who fills everything and organizes everything and then from afar he depends on the Creator, he wants to be dependent on Him. to connect to Him which determines his whole life, all his states and he wants to adhere to the Creator, not in order to fill his life but in order to adhere to the Creator and aid the Creator and filling all the created beings, that is actually if a person comes close to the Creator in such a way, so it turns out that he starts becoming a partner.
S. So how to nevertheless reach such a state where the Creator determines everything that is happening in your life so you will be filled?
R. Exactly that, be His partner, you want to be closer to the Creator and adhere to Him in order that through you, you'll be filled and corrected all the created beings, that you want to be like a pipeline that through you the Creator bestows to everybody, the light of Correction, the light of connection, the light of redemption.
5. S. (22:58) So his words here in the article, “only when increases the greatness and importance of the surrounding light, meaning the exaltedness of the Creator and the importance of the light of Torah”. So, somehow, I do understand the meanings in the mind but not in the heart, yet. How can I also feel it in my heart?
R. By entering these actions in a practical way, that's it, then you will understand up on yourself that way works.
6. S. (23:56) How does the inner light that a Kabbalist receives influence the surrounding light on humanity?
R. As much as a person in this world that exists physically with all other people, with all of humanity, so that same light that he draws upon himself in the spiritual manner in equivalence of form above, a bit of it shines to all other people and helps humanity advance and that's what we need to try and to do.
7. S. (24:53) In the last paragraph, it says “because man's nature is to forget only bad things”, I, by nature forget only good things and remember bad things, what does Rabash say here?
R. Our will to receive guards us that’s why we, it organizes us in such a way that we try to remember all the good things and we don’t want to remember the bad, our ego guards itself. Yes, let's have our Workshop: What did we learn from this article that is now before us? It is short but very important for our time so please go ahead. Workshop between you.
8. S. (34:34) Rabash writes that, “all the deficiency in us is because we don't feel His greatness”, and after what he writes that, “what we can do is only to increase the importance of the surrounding light”. How do I give the friends the greatness of the Creator, how can I pass this feeling on?
R. I don't think we have a way to pass from one another, the feeling of the greatness of the Creator because none of us truly has that feeling yet, we have something of the surrounding light as we call it but the feeling comes to us because the inner light fills the vessels and gives them the feeling of His presence, this is the feeling of the revelation of the Creator inside a created being, we lack that for the time being, we only have from afar as you call it, “from afar the Creator was revealed to me”, as it’s written and that's what we have. But it's also something, and is not simple, so with our excitement, with our inspiration, we can pass that to one another as much as we want to pass and show the friends we connect, we wish to connect and support everyone, by that we share these actions that the surrounding light that is performing on us.
S. How do I increase the importance?
R. We can increase the importance only by connecting and by trying to come close to increasing the actions of the light upon us. We think more, we act more according to the light in bestowal, that’s all we’ve got, the main thing is through our connection
S. Is there an act that a person can perform in order to remind themselves, he speaks about memories, so is there a way that I can remind myself about this importance, maybe in a psychological way?
R. Psychologically no, only to come closer to the Friends otherwise it will be psychology and not Kabbalah.
S. For example, I am doing some kind of duty for the friends, how do I use this duty, this activity with the group to raise that memory in importance?
R. Talk to the friend, see what Rabash is writing about it, how you need to sit and talk in the assembly, look at what you have to do in practice. You can see here and ask, you have to sit with them and talk and get inspired by them, connect the vessels using at least what we have here in this corporeal world when we connect to one another. Through that if we connect our vessels we have more at least in our level, we will have additional light.
9. S. (38:28) How can we awaken the Creator to blow the Shofar, with the friends, with the ten because it leaves the impression that there is only man, Creator and the Torah so where the work with the friends?
R. Our work is specifically in the Shofar, the horn. Shofar is . . . ., meaning the rising of the importance of the connection between us in which we reveal the Creator, that’s what Rosh HaShana is all about, the beginning of the year. Rosh HaShana is the holiday that symbolizes for us the greatness of the Creator in our eyes, He is the head, He is the root of all the changes which we anticipate. So if we come to such a state where in the connection between us we wish to raise their Creator in our eyes, this for us is called Rosh HaShana, the beginning of the year.
10. S. (39:50) If I understood you correctly from the article we see that “a person can get pleasure in his darkest state with the help of the surrounding light from afar”, what does he mean?
R. If the surrounding light is shining on us, the surrounding light has a special quality, it’s not limited, it’s not limited. It shines everywhere to whomever wants it, it’s like the light of the sun, when it shines whoever wants receives it, whoever doesn’t want can hide from it but it shines and that's why we need to understand that our advancement depends only on how much we will respect, value, the upper lights that shine on us and correct us.
11. S. (41:02) The importance of the Creator: you have to put that on our heart and from this work of reminding each other, for now on the mind, the importance of greatness of the Creator from that it gradually settles on the heart too?
R. On our desires.
12. S. (41:33) The surrounding light is felt on us on pressure from more connection in adhesion or is there a bit of a filling in it too?
R. No it’s only in order to awaken us, it works from the outside, it simulates us, teases us.
S. So it is felt as a push?
R. Yes.
13. S. (42:05) In the beginning of the article it is written by our Sages, “ . . . . “memories, and horns”, what does the Creator need our horns for because He has our hearts? What, we need to cry that we’re receiving the Torah and everything?
R. Of course, He want us to be independent, to be like Him, meaning to be to come to know His greatness, His place, rise to His degree. And that's why we need to come to the Shofar, the horn, the . . . , the recognition of the greatness of the Creator. To that extent we will be able to activate us in restriction, screen and reflected light, and receive Him, assemble our vessels and enter into a Zivug, a coupling with Him with Him, that's what adhesion is all about. It depends how much you are in the Shofar, how much you appreciate the greatness of the Creator.
S. So we need to cry out from the center of the ten, “we thank You and in every moment we don’t stop thinking about You”?
R. Yes, yes exactly, just like you say in the prayers of Rosh HaShana.
14. S. (43:34) You said something nice for us: you said that we need to be more in bestowal to the friends, what does that mean, I don't have it, what should I give them?
R. You have give them the greatness of the Creator so they have more of it.
S. How do I do it, what should you say, how do you behave in the ten? How to bring the Creator in there, can you give me an example?
R. No, I cannot tell you how to do it but just try in all your movements, in your bones, your words, whatever possible.
S. The greatness of the Creator?
R. Yes.
S. Thank you.
15. S. (44:22) From this excerpt, what does it mean ”to remember to the good and to a good signing”?
R. I didn't get it.
S. What does it mean “to be rewarded with the good writing and signing”?
R. “Good writing and signing”, he explains this, not here but elsewhere, that we want to be written, meaning the Creator will arrange us on the degree of bestowal and love of others which is called “writing, good writing and signing”, that's the inner meaning.
16. S. (45:13) He said that “we are praying from afar, we don't really know the Creator” so we are praying to the degree we are on or can you pray to the King of Kings, which is His greatness?
R. I don't know how you pray to something that you don't know, do know of, you cannot even imagine or depict. Each one prays from where he is, and to the degree that’s slightly higher but he can receive in his surrounding light.
S. Thank you
17. S. (46:06) In the beginning of the article it says, that “a prayer in addition to Rosh HaShana and all the surrounding light will enter the inner light?
R. That’s a great thing, yes, you just said it nicely.
18. S. (46:40) Rabash writes in the middle of the article that “even if a person is still distant from the Creator meaning he has no equivalence of form, he can receive surrounding light”, and the ARI wrote that “the surrounding light is greater than the inner light”? Why does the Rabash state that?
R. We can advance and get corrected only by the influence of the surrounding light and it will draw us to the next degree, it is always the surrounding light, it shines to us from afar. It is as we learned about, “my beloved is like a deer that turns his face backwards”, all those things. We always receive an illumination from a higher degree and it attracts us, it pulls us.
S. So what is the purpose of that inner light?
R. Inner-light is today, this is what I have right now, and thanks to it I can feel what I'm at but all my aspirations are towards the surrounding, so the surrounding light of today will be the inner light of tomorrow.
S. So the inner light, we don't need to have a certain attitude or yearning towards it but only the surrounding light?
R. We always wish to be impressed and to act according to the surrounding light.
S. Thank you
19. S. (48:25) What is the difference between the Creator and “the Creator clothed in the 22 letters of the Torah”?
R. The Creator, blessed be He, is the Creator, that's one of the names of the Creator, and when He's “clothed in the 22 letters of the Torah”, is when I receive nine direct lights and nine reflected lights, these eighteen lights plus another four when I receive these illuminations and in this way advance, I correct my vessel and I rise about myself.
S. In the inner light do we receive pleasure from the Creator and in the surrounding light we bestow to the friends?
R. An inner light we receive a degree of our equivalence of form with the Creator and in the surrounding light, you said bestow to the friends? You can say there’s something to it, in the surrounding light we receive from above the influence and, yes we can connect it to others.
20. S. (50:25) It says here that “all the memory we have should be only for remembering the Creator”, meaning that also the memory is like the Malchut that we have to get inspired from”. What does it mean memory here, it is not a corporeal memory.
R. No, it is like a Reshimot, like a record, records.
21. S. (51:01) Is our inner light is felt as surrounding light of the group, and our surrounding light is the group, and once it becomes inner light it becomes the group’s surrounding light?
R. Yes, we can say that, there’s a connection between inner light and surrounding light of each and every one and all of us together, that is the connection.
S. So it’s the feeling that you swallowed them in your heart and then you want to make sure they don't get lost; and the second part is that you are swallowed in them?
R. That is also correct and you just said it nicely.
22. S. (52:17) Is blowing the Shofar, a prayer
R. Yes, it is a prayer, it’s a prayer of gratitude and we raise the importance of the Creator above everyone.
23. S. (52:39) How to use the pressure of the surrounding light on us correctly?
R. So there will be no pressure, we have to hasten with our corrections especially in the connection between us.
24. S. (52:58) What influences what type of surrounding light the person will receive in every moment?
R. I cannot say, there are many states, but the person always gets what he needs for advancement either from the side of the vessel or from the side of the lights.
25. (53:26) What does it mean “to invest my efforts in the Creator”?
R. Invest my states.
S. Efforts, efforts.
R. Invest my effort, that means that I do as many connections as I can with the friends so the Creator will be able to be revealed in them or at least shine in them to each time improve our relationships.
26. S. (54:02) Are the Commandments streams of connection with the Creator?
R. The Commandments are channels of connection with the Creator, that's very correct.
27. S. (54:46) What do you wish for this new year?
R. I wish for us in the new year, what do I wish for you? Let's together wish to ourselves, first of all certainly it has to be connection and in the connection the Creator should shine for us and according to this help, illumination, we will be able to rise and come closer to Him, from the connection between us to the connection with the Creator. And accordingly we have nothing else to do, only to come to that, we all connect ‘as one man in one heart’; and in this heart, the Creator will fill this heart with His light and that's the end of correction. Let's start approaching it gradually, more and more and more, that's what I'm wishing to all of us in this new year.