Discussion
What do you remember from the latest lesson?
The main principles of the wisdom of Kabbalah
The lesson we had on Sunday is mostly a recapitulation of essential concepts we saw so far from the beginning of the course.
The goal of creation
“Man is the center of the whole Creation” – Baal HaSulam, “Introduction to the Book of Zohar”, p. 18
“The entire purpose desired by the Creator, in all the creation He made, is to bestow pleasure upon His creations so that they may recognize His truth and greatness and receive from Him all the goodness and delight He has prepared for them.” – Baal HaSulam, “Introduction to the Book of Zohar”
We are one soul
“It is said that there are 600,000 souls, and each soul is divided into several sparks. We need to understand how the spiritual can be divided, as initially only one soul was created – the soul of Adam HaRishon. In truth, there is no more than one soul in the world. For the spiritual does not come with divisions and separations, as these pertain specifically to the realm of the physical” – Baal HaSulam - “Shishim Ribo”
We need to reach the root of our soul
The initial state of the soul, called the root of the soul, where we were all connected into one soul united with the upper light of Ein Sof.
“Every person is obligated to attain the root of his soul.” – Baal HaSulam “The Acting Mind”
To reach the root of our soul, we need to achieve equivalence of form (intention) with the Upper Force.
“Spiritual adhesion can only be depicted as equivalence of form. Hence, by equalizing our form with the form of His qualities, we become adhered to Him.
This is why they said, “as He is merciful.” In other words, all His actions are to bestow and benefit others, and not at all for His own benefit, since He has no deficiencies that require complementing. And also, He has no one from whom to receive. Similarly, all your actions should be to bestow and to benefit others. Thus, you will equalize your form with the form of the qualities of the Creator, and this is spiritual adhesion.” – Baal HaSulam “A Speech for the Completion of The Zohar"
The surrounding light
To reach equivalence of form is made possible by the force of correction we attain through the study of the books
“Therefore, we must ask, Why then did the Kabbalists obligate every person to study the wisdom of Kabbalah? Indeed, there is a great thing about it, which should be publicized: There is a wonderful, invaluable Segulah (remedy) to those who engage in the wisdom of Kabbalah. Although they do not understand what they are learning, through the yearning and the great desire to understand what they are learning, they awaken upon themselves the lights that surround their souls.
– Baal HaSulam “Introduction to The Study of the Ten Sefirot”
This process of correction is universal
“The purpose of creation applies to the entire human race, none excluded.” – Baal HaSulam “The Love of God and the Love of Man”
“The purpose of creation rests upon the entirety of humanity together: whether black, white, or yellow, without any fundamental distinction” – Baal HaSulam “The Mutual Guarantee”
Workshop
- How can we put together the pieces of the soul?
Questions & Answers
- (Either during the meeting or at the end)
Next Week
We will finally get into the details of the creation - as explained in kabbalistic sources like the “Tree of Life” of the ARI and we will go over a fundamental process, called “Four Phases of Direct Light”.
We will also talk more in details about the International Convention happening in Israel in February.