How can I study the wisdom of Kabbalah?
"I am glad that I have been born in such a generation when it is permitted to disclose the wisdom of truth."
Baal HaSulam, "The Teaching of the Kabbalah and Its Essence"
Why Kabbalistic Writings Require Study
Kabbalah is studied because the Kabbalists write from attainment of spiritual reality. That is, they write from an attained perception of the roots of the branches of this world, roots which themselves require attainment.
Hence, their writings often require study before they can even begin to be approached correctly. In The Book of Zohar, the language might appear narrative or symbolic, because spiritual roots are clothed in images and stories taken from this world. In the writings of the Ari, the language becomes more systematic and technical, speaking of worlds, Partzufim, Sefirot, lights, vessels, and so on.
Even in the writings of Baal HaSulam and Rabash, which are much closer to the modern student and are written in a more explanatory form, the reader still encounters a precise sequence of reasoning. It is based on principles from which questions arise and which demand further understanding.
The reader wants to understand more about the attainment described in these writings. It follows that understanding them requires more than ordinary reading. It requires study.
Learning How to Learn
Thus, one of the first things to learn in Kabbalah is the importance of learning itself.
A person does not enter the wisdom by collecting impressions from here and there, because the sources demand continuity and gradual clarification. At the same time, one also needs to learn how to learn.
A person might spend continuous hours studying, yet the actual gain comes from the correct form of study. Study is not only a habit to add to one’s day, although that habit is essential. It is also a method through which the student gradually becomes closer to:
"Since the whole of the wisdom of Kabbalah speaks of the revelation of the Creator, naturally, there is none more successful teaching for its task. This is what the Kabbalists aimed for, to arrange it so it is suitable for studying."
Baal HaSulam, "The Teaching of the Kabbalah and Its Essence"
Establishing a Fixed Time for Study
This is why Kabbalists speak about establishing a fixed time for study, traditionally expressed as "setting aside a fixed time for Torah," or likvoa itim la-Torah (לקבוע עתים לתורה).
The expression comes from the Talmud, Shabbat 31a:
"Have you set aside a fixed time for Torah?"
The purpose is to invest one’s efforts in the study. Just as any serious field requires repeated engagement, which allows for patient clarification, the wisdom of Kabbalah develops through consistent contact with authentic sources passed down by the Kabbalists.
Thus, a person who wishes to understand Kabbalah begins to ask not only what to read, but also how to structure one’s day so that study receives a real and recurring place within it.
The student returns again and again to the same principles because the same sources begin to open more deeply according to the student’s efforts and development.
"Set times for Torah, without any cessation for idle conversations, God forbid. See that you dedicate no less than five consecutive hours. You can set them for whatever time you wish during the day, as long as you do not stop for any conversation in between, they are consecutive, and specifically in the study of the revealed.
"Be careful not to forget anything from the study, so repeat the learning as you should. Also, it would be good for you to learn to be a teacher; it will be very helpful for you."
Baal HaSulam, Letter 22
What the Study of Kabbalah Seeks to Develop
Before continuing, one should first understand what Kabbalah studies.
The wisdom of Kabbalah investigates:
Therefore, the purpose of study is not simply to know more about Kabbalah as a subject. Rather, its purpose is to gradually acquire a correct relation to the spiritual reality described by the Kabbalists.
The student studies texts written by those who attained that reality. Through this contact, the student begins to organize one’s questions and perception according to the method.
For this reason, the student repeatedly returns to the same concepts, texts, and principles. At first, many of them may appear abstract: desire, intention, light, correction, adhesion, and so on. However, through continued engagement with authentic sources, these terms gradually become connected to one another.
The student begins to see that Kabbalah is an ordered wisdom, which is why the method itself is transmitted through study.
The connection to the sources is maintained through study. The clarification of questions takes place through study. The gradual entrance into the language of Kabbalah also happens through study.
The Daily Lesson as a Framework
Within Bnei Baruch, the principal framework of study is the daily lesson.
This follows a long tradition among Kabbalists, who set aside a fixed part of the day for the study of spiritual matters, especially during the hours after midnight, called Hatsot ha-laila in Hebrew (חצות לילה).
Berakhot 3b describes this tradition through King David:
"A harp hung above David's bed, and when midnight arrived, a north wind came and blew upon it, and it would play by itself. Immediately, he would rise and engage in Torah study until the break of dawn."
In the contemporary framework of Bnei Baruch, the main group of students studies live from Israel during the early hours of the morning, usually from 3:00 to 5:30, with students connecting online from more than seventy other countries.
Students connect to this lesson according to their ability, whether for the entire lesson or for part of it.
"When a person rises at midnight from his bed to engage in Torah, a herald calls out about him and says, 'Behold! Bless the Lord all servants of the Lord who stand in the house of the Lord at night.'"
Zohar for All, Vol. 8, VaEtchanan
Integrating Study into Daily Life
There are also practical reasons for this arrangement. The early morning is generally quieter and less occupied by the demands of ordinary life.
At the same time, this form of study allows a person to continue living normally throughout the day: working, raising a family, fulfilling responsibilities, and participating in society.
Thus, study is integrated into life rather than separated from it.
However, not every student studies in exactly the same way. Some participate in the full daily lesson, while others join for one hour in the morning. Others study through recordings later in the day because of work schedules, family obligations, health conditions, or time zone differences.
Throughout the years, Rav Dr. Michael Laitman insisted on developing an archive of all the lessons for Bnei Baruch. Within this archive, students can access thousands of recorded lessons, which are updated daily, and follow the lesson later according to their circumstances.
The common element, and the most important one, is the effort to maintain regular contact with the sources.
The main point is not the external form alone, but the seriousness with which a person builds a consistent relation to study. This consistency allows the wisdom to become a stable axis in one’s life, rather than an occasional source of inspiration.
"From the tenth hour until the prayer is the time of delving in the holy books, Beresheet Hochma, and the like, and in the writings of the Ari.
"See that you thoroughly understand and internalize everything you learn. If you do not fully understand, give the Creator no rest until He opens your heart and you understand Him, for this is the most important, that the Creator gives wisdom."
Baal HaSulam, Letter 22
Studying Authentic Sources Gradually
The study itself is based on authentic Kabbalistic sources.
For this reason, the central materials studied in Bnei Baruch come primarily from:
These writings form a continuous chain of transmission through which the method has been preserved, clarified, and adapted for each generation.
Although a person may feel a strong need to delve into all of these sources, a beginner does not need to approach all of them at once. Kabbalah is studied gradually.
First, one acquires familiarity with the basic concepts and principles. Then, little by little, one becomes capable of approaching more detailed and technical texts.
Because of this, the question for a beginner is often: Where should I begin?
"The meaning of 'Torah and work' is that he learns Torah in order for the Torah to bring him the light of Torah.
"By this, he will be able to invert the vessels of reception to work in order to bestow, and with these Kelim he will be rewarded with Dvekut with the Creator, called 'learning Torah Lishma.'"
Rabash, Article No. 12 (1988), "What Are Torah and Work in the Way of the Creator?"
A Structured Beginning for New Students
A person who encounters authentic Kabbalah for the first time may find an abundance of materials: books, articles, lessons, videos, courses, clips, and archives.
Therefore, a structured introduction is important.
Bnei Baruch Kabbalah Academy provides multiple entry points for beginners. One of the principal frameworks is the fundamental course taught from Israel by long-time students of Rav Dr. Michael Laitman, Avihu Sofer, Laitman’s student since 1997, and Michael Sanilevitch, Laitman’s student since 1998.
This course is designed as a one-year course, taught once a week for an hour and a half. It is open, free of charge, to anyone from any country who wishes to begin the study in an ordered way.
It gives the beginner a stable first framework:
Learning Together in Small Groups
Beyond this framework, there are different approaches.
For students who are not yet ready to enter a full course, or who need a more flexible framework, Kabbalah Academy also offers small learning groups.
These groups allow beginners and continuing students to study selected materials together at a fixed time, without the same structure or commitment as a complete yearly course.
Here, the learning group serves as an entrance into the habit of study.
A few students gather around an article, a lesson excerpt, or a short sequence of materials. By reading and clarifying them together, they help one another remain focused on the study.
"I learned much from my teachers, from my friends more than from my teachers, and the most from my students."
Babylonian Talmud, Masechet Taanit, 7a
This corresponds to the traditional idea of havruta (חברותא), meaning "companionship."
Bereshit Rabba 69 describes the principle:
"Just as a knife can be sharpened only on the side of another, so a disciple of a sage improves only through his haver, his study companion."
The student does not advance only through private reading, but through shared engagement with the material. Students return to the text, clarify, ask questions, summarize, and keep the direction of the study alive together, usually in a small group of two to four people.
Thus, the learning group gives the beginner a concrete place in the study. It may not yet be the full rhythm of the daily lesson or the yearly course, but it already provides a stable connection to the method of Kabbalah, its sources, and other students who are learning how to approach them.
"Each one should assemble with his friend and come to him to hear from him a word about the work of the Creator, and how to find the Creator.
"He should annul before his friend, and his friend should do the same toward him, and so should everyone do.
"Then, when the assembly is with this intention, then 'More than the calf wants to suckle, the cow wants to nurse,' and the Creator approaches them and He is with them. Therefore, all the salvations and all the blessings, and all the good bestowal, open to them from the source of mercy."
Maor VaShemesh, VaYechi
Articles, Books, and Guided Study Materials
Introductory articles can serve this same progression in a more individual form.
They explain the main concepts of Kabbalah little by little and help the student become familiar with the language used in the sources.
These articles can prepare a person for entering a course or a learning group. They can also accompany the daily lesson, books, and other forms of study.
The common and most important point of these forms, which exist side by side and support one another, is to help the student remain continuously connected to the method in order to arrive at the same attainment as the Kabbalists.
The different forms of study are ways of adapting the study to a person’s situation.
The Role of Books
From there, the student may want materials that can be studied with more continuity than a single article. This is where books have a specific role.
A book allows the beginner to:
In Kabbalah Academy, this can take the form of a recommended reading path. Attaining the Worlds Beyond by Rav Dr. Michael Laitman can serve as one of the central first books because it presents the wisdom of Kabbalah in an accessible and, most importantly, ordered way.
Other introductory books, such as Kabbalah Revealed, can also help the beginner receive a first orientation in the purpose and method of Kabbalah.
The goal is not to send the student immediately into the full breadth of the library. Rather, it is to provide a first set of materials that can be studied seriously, revisited, summarized, and gradually connected to the broader sources.
The Role of Studybooks and Guided Notebooks
This also explains the usefulness of studybooks and guided notebooks.
A person who begins to study often needs more than a text to read. One also needs a form that helps one work with the material.
A simple studybook in A4 format can provide a concrete framework containing:
Such a format is especially helpful because Kabbalah often requires returning to the same ideas, writing them down, comparing them, placing them in order, and slowly forming a relation to them.
A guided study material can therefore support both personal and group study while still directing the student back to the authentic sources themselves.
Progress Comes Little by Little
Ultimately, and most importantly, a person sometimes approaches Kabbalah with the expectation that understanding will come quickly.
However, Kabbalists describe study as a gradual process, because the whole wisdom of Kabbalah deals with the development of perception itself.
Concepts that initially seem abstract gradually acquire meaning and their proper importance. Questions that once seemed theoretical begin to become practical.
Thus, progress in Kabbalah is measured less by the quantity of information acquired and more by the stability of one’s engagement with the sources, the environment, and the method.
"What is the meaning of the verse, 'Wealth gotten through vanity shall be diminished; but he that gathers little by little shall increase'?
"If a person turns his Torah into many bundles, by studying large amounts in a short period of time without reviewing, his Torah will diminish.
"But if he gathers his knowledge little by little, by studying slowly and reviewing, his knowledge shall increase.
"Rava said: The Sages know this, but nevertheless they transgress it. Rav Nahman bar Yitzhak said: I did this, as I studied little by little and regularly reviewed what I had learned, and my learning has in fact endured."
Babylonian Talmud, Avodah Zara, 19a
The Purpose of Studying Kabbalah
The purpose of studying Kabbalah is the development of spiritual attainment of one’s root.
Through regular engagement with authentic sources, participation in a suitable environment, and a progressive relation to study, a person gradually acquires the means to approach the spiritual reality described by the Kabbalists.
This is why the Kabbalists give such importance to study.