Genesis, 6:9-11:32

Portion Summary

The portion, Go Forth, begins with Abraham being commanded to go to the land of Canaan. When Abraham reaches the land of Canaan, hunger forces him to go down to Egypt, where Pharaoh’s servants take Sarai, his wife. In Pharaoh’s house, Abraham presents her as his sister, fearing for his life. The Creator punishes Pharaoh with infections and diseases, and he is forced to give Sarai back to Abraham.

When Abraham returns to the land of Canaan, a fight breaks out between the herdsmen of Lot’s cattle and the herdsmen of Abraham’s cattle, after which they part ways.

A war breaks out between four kings from among the rulers of Babylon, and five kings from the land of Canaan. Lot is taken captive and Abraham sets out to save him.

The Creator makes a covenant with Abraham—“the covenant of the pieces” (or “covenant between the parts”)—the promise of the continuation of his descendants and the promise that they would inherit the land.

Sarai cannot have children, so she offers Abraham her maid, Hagar, and they have a child named Ishmael.

Abraham makes the covenant of circumcision with the Creator and is commanded to circumcise himself and all the males in his household. His name changes from Abram to Abraham, and his wife’s name changes from Sarai to Sarah.

At the end of the portion, the Creator promises Sarah that she will have a son whose name will be Isaac.

Commentary by Dr. Michael Laitman

All the stories of the portion we read happen within us. In the correct perception of reality, this world does not exist, nor do history, geography or the story of the portion. All of them are occurrences that take place within us.

The wisdom of Kabbalah explains that perception of reality is a profound matter, relating to our innermost psychology, our senses, and our physical structure.

The Torah describes honestly the way we developed. Everyone and everything that is described reflects our mental forces. Abraham, for instance, is the tendency to develop toward spirituality, the desire to approach and discover the Creator.

The story of Abraham in Babylon is really the revelation that only one force exists and runs the world, and the desire to discover that force. Those of us who wish to discover who is managing our fate and why, or asks, “What is the meaning of my life?” are at the same starting point as was Abraham, and the force of Abraham is alive and working within them.

Abraham realized that he had to advance to the next state. In fact, he felt Nature prodding him forward, telling him, “Go forth from your land and from your kindred, and from your father’s house, to the land that I will show you.” There you will find the balance and will be able to realize yourself.

Maimonides and other Kabbalists wrote that this is how Abraham moved to the land of Canaan with his entire household, and thousands of the people who left Babylon along with him, and which he had established as the “house of Abraham.” When Abraham reached the land of Canaan, he had arrived at a new desire, called “Canaan.”

The word, Eretz (land), comes from the word, Ratzon (desire). Abraham discovered that this desire did not sufficiently elevate him; he was hungry and did not know what would sustain him and keep him at this point of the land of Canaan. Because this was a land of bestowal, and he was still not in a state where he could achieve bestowal, a new situation formed, compelling him to become attached to the will to receive. This is what made him go down to Egypt.

A great desire appeared at this point, where one feels that more steps with the intensifying ego are required, as the ego is shifting from a state of “Babylon is not enough.” As the ego grows, it demands satisfaction. But this arouses fear that if one should work with the ego with the intention to bestow (“Abraham”), it will not be enough to keep oneself, and thus one might ruin the intention.

This is why people are unwilling to work with their egos, the obstruction that is growing within. The desire within tells that person, “This is my sister, not my wife.” A person becomes ready to completely abstain from the whole of the desire, called “Sarah,” and remain solely in the intention to bestow, called “Abraham.”

Because of our growing egos, we lack a sense of fulfillment. Instead, we feel increasingly deficient and empty. “Pharaoh” is the state imprinted within us that asks, “What do I get out of it?” It seems that the current state is worse than the one we were in before, which is why Pharaoh tells Abraham to take back the desire (“Sarah”) because he wanted to remain in corporeality, as he was, while that desire, Sarah, extended from spirituality.

These two parts within us are in a constant struggle. They alternate: first, Abraham grows and falls, and then Pharaoh grows and falls. It resembles how we walk, stepping with the right foot, then the left foot. It makes little difference what we call these two parts within us because they acquire different names at different degrees.

When Abraham and his entourage returned to the land of Canaan, a problem arose between the herdsmen of Lot’s cattle and the herdsmen of Abraham’s cattle. The word, Lot, means “curse.” The question actually is, “Which way should one go, in the direction of the aim to receive, or in the direction of the aim to bestow?” When faced with this choice, we become perplexed and do not know what to do. This is the quarrel over the place and the wells in the story of Lot, describing the choice to distinguish between the two forces—reception and bestowal.

This story teaches us that during our spiritual development there are many events where we must look into our egos and see how it is intensifying in us.

And yet, while we must disagree with the direction of the evil, we must also refrain from destroying it. Rather, we should abstain from it, as Abraham abstained from Lot, who later saved him from Sodom.

These are the changes that happen within us. We use our bad Kelim (vessels), as well as our good ones, meaning our good qualities and our bad qualities, as well as all our thoughts because we learn from them.

When Abraham concludes the quarrel with the herdsmen of Lot’s cattle, he wages war on the four kings who live in the country. Once again we see that as we develop, we are in a constant struggle. The kings are our great forces, our great desires. They do not allow us to enter the land of Canaan and encircle Canaan. Therefore, when we wish to achieve a certain spiritual degree in which we begin to feel the Creator, the common force of Nature, and the eternity and perfection in Nature, those Malchuts, those “kings,” are standing in our way, blocking it.

Following this war, the Creator appears to Abraham and says to him that he is making a covenant with him. He promises that this land will truly belong to the quality of Abraham that is growing and developing atop the quality of Pharaoh, the wars, and on top of Lot.

Now that quality is powerful enough to enable one to enter the land of Canaan. This is the quality that allows one to achieve the purpose of Creation, the revelation of the Creator, and to achieve Dvekut (adhesion) with the Creator.

In order to actually attain the next degree, the contact with the Creator, we need a force that will “beget” the next degree. It is we who beget the new states, but the will to receive, which is “Sarah,” still cannot be the force that is giving birth under the quality of Abraham. The quality of Abraham is still weak in its intention to bestow, and cannot deliver us from the will to receive. However, it can do it with the right line, the force of the right, but only with that part of it called “Hagar.” The offshoot of that is “Ishmael,” a force that belongs to the right of Bina, called the Klipa (shell/peel) of the right.

In the end, following the covenant and the numerous corrections, Abraham comes to a state where he can also work with Sarah, the overall will to receive. This is when Sarah gives birth, hence the great joy reflected in the portion.

Questions and Answers

Abraham is told to go from Babylon to Canaan. What does it mean to move from one desire to the next, and what does it feel like to be in the land of Canaan?

We are in a process of constant changes, except that we are not aware of it. The Torah speaks of the changes we go through consciously, after having decided that we really want to change our desires. The will to receive has been our entire substance, and we shift from one desire to the next, from place to place. There is a maxim that says, “Change of place, change of luck.” A “place” is the desire from which we observe the world. The desire is everything; it is the foundation from which we embark on every action.

Each name or word mentioned in the Torah actually denotes a desire. In the wisdom of Kabbalah, we speak of Aviut (thickness), Masach (screen), and Reshimot (recollections) that determine the state of the Neshama (soul). Here, too, we are speaking of the same changes we go through, except the terminology is different.

“Go forth” means that we should always feel that the beginning of the path is Yesod (foundation), and we advance precisely when shifting from state to state. We must carry out those instructions and move from state to state until we arrive at the end of our correction. Therefore, “go forth” is the act that the Creator expects us to perform.

This means that we can move forward only if we understand that change can only happen through unity. The whole difference between spiritual degrees is the level of connection we achieve, which allows us to connect all the elements within us to attain our goal.

Nothing is created without a reason. We need all our mental powers, including Pharaoh, Lot, Abraham’s cattle, Lot’s cattle, the kings that are in the land, Balaam, Balak, Haman, the wicked, as well as the righteous. In the end, the Torah teaches us how to connect all our mental powers and become a whole individual.

What is the meaning of the land of Canaan with regard to our desires?

Canaan is a land that existed prior to the land of Israel. It is one of the degrees, the one before the land of Israel.

Is a person already on the way to spirituality if the point in his or her heart has awakened?

Yes. Once the point awakens in a person’s heart, he or she cannot stay in Babylon. Such a person must leave Babylon and ascend to the degree of the land of Canaan. One progresses along with those who join in—those desires that one can work with—and rises to another degree, where one thinks in the direction of bestowal and Hesed (mercy), in the direction that Abraham symbolizes.

From The Zohar: Go Forth, to Correct Yourself

Since the Creator saw his awakening and his desire, He immediately revealed Himself to him and told him, “Go forth,” to know yourself and to correct yourself. Meaning, he should stop weighing the upper forces but raise MAN and extend a high Zivug on the Masach that appeared to him, by which he will be rewarded with extending Daat for himself and correct himself.

Zohar for All, Lech Lecha (Go Forth), item 28

Attaining a higher degree is done by the Aviut (thickness) of the new desire, and through the intention over that desire. If a person performs a Zivug de Hakaa (coupling of striking), he or she achieves the revelation of the upper light at the degree in which the Zivug was made.

What does it mean that the Creator “saw his awakening”?

A person receives the awakening from the overall plan of Creation. Each of us has a time in which we begin to awaken. The general “engine” of all the souls turns like a counter and issues orders to each one. All of a sudden, you wake up, you have a desire, and you are being led. You are awakened to spirituality once or twice or thrice in life, and you must respond; you must take the initiative and begin to advance on your own.

What happens when a person discovers that he or she cannot advance any longer?

When you suddenly begin to feel that you cannot advance in spirituality, it means you are once again falling into the egotistical desire (“Pharaoh”). You are descending to Egypt once again.

This, however, is what should happen. You need to intensify your ego in order to advance, as this is all your matter. It is all the substance of Creation—the great will to receive. Without Pharaoh, you will not be able to reach Mount Sinai.

You have to have a “mountain” of evil and hatred, which you took from Pharaoh. All the desire that appeared in you became a mountain around which you feel your hatred of others. When you reach this point, you tell yourself, “I have to have the Torah; I have no choice; I have to have the force that will correct me, which is called ‘the light that reforms.’”

Progress is always made from two directions: on one side is the growing egotistical desire; on the other side is the intention to bestow.

What is the Klipa of the right, and why did Abraham, the quality of Hesed, beget a Klipa?

The quality of Abraham is only just beginning; it is not entirely corrected. That is, it is the initial desire of a person, which is clear, lacking Aviut. When one connects Aviut to oneself in order to advance, the right and left connect through one’s scrutiny of the desire. A person must scrutinize with which desires one can work, and with which desires one still cannot. The latter will be corrected when one reaches more advanced degrees.

Moreover, by begetting his son with his partial desire, called Hagar, the conditions change. Sarai becomes Sarah, and Abram becomes Abraham. These are not just different names. Through these corrections, we arrive at a state where we are working with a new, different desire known as “Sarah,” and a new, different intention known as “Abraham,” who together beget the beginning of the nation.

Is Isaac the beginning of the nation?

Not only Isaac. There are three lines altogether: the left, right, and middle line, which is Israel. Additionally, there are two Klipot (shells/peels): Ishmael on the right and Esau on the left. It does not mean that they are completely flawed, but only that in time they, too, will be corrected.

The Klipa of the right, Ishmael, is still fighting against everyone, even today.

It will remain so until the end of correction, until we all mingle together and unite.

Does circumcision mean “cutting” into the desire?

Yes, but circumcision is more than just cutting; it is also the Klipot, which are desires that you cannot work with. For now, they are Klipot until they become Kedusha (holiness). The problem is in you; you cannot work with such intense desires with the aim to bestow, since if you receive pleasures you will take them for yourself instead of bestowing them to others.

What does it mean to make a covenant with the Creator?

Making a covenant with the Creator means that a person makes whatever pledge is required. The covenant is a special, inner reorganization that allows one—along with one’s forces—to attain a state where one will never make mistakes, through all the future degrees, provided one maintains a certain principle.

Is the Creator going to help me because of the covenant?

The covenant means that the Creator is helping you. The Creator = Nature. “I, the Lord, do not change” means that from now on you recognize a certain principle. If you stick to it, you are guaranteed to avoid any mistakes, any deviations, and any sins. Your spiritual advancement is always toward a degree that you still do not know. Therefore, you must be certain that when you advance, you will not fail. The covenant is the force that takes you safely from one degree to the next.

There are two covenants: the covenant of the pieces and the covenant of circumcision. Circumcision has become a Jewish conduct in the corporeal world, and it is a commandment to this day. Some say it is a cruel tradition. What is the spiritual root of circumcision?

The root lies in the need to be rid of the will to receive that one cannot correct. It is what we do all the time, including with Sarah, Hagar, and so forth. On the one hand, we scrutinize the will to receive, which is growing. On the other hand, we realize we must “cut out” some of it, similar to the end of the Partzuf (face). We need to decide that we cannot deal with this part for the time being. This is also what the positive and negative (“do” and “do not do”) Mitzvot (commandments) refer to. Why “do” and “not do?” Because there is a will to receive that we cannot use.

Therefore, in every situation, we must distinguish between the desire we use and the desire we do not use. The “place” of our scrutiny is called the “Rosh (head) of the Partzuf,” and this is the primary scrutiny that we must always make before every decision.

Is the foreskin the desire that we cannot use?

Yes, the foreskin, the exposing, and the drop of blood are all the corrections that engage in the intensity of the desire and its nature. We cannot currently work in favor of others, nor also in our own favor, since we are not in spirituality and we do not use them. The decision to refrain from using them is called “circumcision.”

It is mentioned that Lot is taken captive. Who captured him and what is captivity?

He was taken captive by the egotistical desire of Sodom. Sodom, compared to the state we are in, is a state of great righteousness, and we even dare to say, “Sodomite rule.”

Do you mean that we are worse than “Sodomite rule?”

Yes. The Sodomite rule is, “Let mine be mine and let yours be yours.” I do not touch you, and you do not touch me. Even if I can steal something from you, I won’t. Or even if I can use you, I will avoid it. I do not sell you something bad or manipulate you through advertisement. In short, I do not exploit you.

“Sodomite rule” does not sound so bad!

Of course. If we were in Sodomite rule today, this would be a step forward for us. It is with good reason that Lot was included in it. After all, he was close to Abraham; these qualities are not so far from one another. Abraham came to save him because the quality of Sodom is required in order to elicit anything for correction. This is why when Abraham came to Sodom, he scrutinized the desires that could be salvaged from them while the rest, which could not be scrutinized, had to go through the upheaval of Sodom.