What
Are
the
Two
Actions
During
a
Descent?
Article
No.
32,
1988
Our
sages
wrote
in
Hulin
(p
7b),
“Rabbi
Hanina
said,
‘A
person
does
not
lift
his
finger
from
below
unless
he
is
called
upon
from
above,
as
it
was
said,
‘Man's
steps
are
from
the
Lord,
and
how
can
man
understand
his
way?’”
We
should
understand
what
our
sages
tell
us
by
this
in
the
work,
so
we
will
know
that
a
person
does
not
lift
his
finger
below
unless
he
is
called
upon
from
above.
To
explain
this,
we
must
always
remember
the
purpose
of
creation
and
the
correction
of
creation,
which
are
two
contradictory
things.
The
purpose
of
creation
is
for
the
creatures
to
receive
delight
and
pleasure
from
the
Creator,
as
was
said,
that
His
desire
is
to
do
good
to
His
creations.
The
correction
of
creation
is
the
complete
opposite—to
do
good
to
the
Creator.
This
means
that
the
purpose
of
creation
is
for
the
sake
of
the
creatures,
while
the
correction
of
creation
is
that
the
creatures
will
always
think
only
about
the
benefit
of
the
Creator.
As
long
as
the
creatures
have
not
achieved
this
degree—when
they
do
not
need
anything
for
themselves
and
the
only
reason
they
want
to
live
is
to
benefit
the
Creator
through
their
actions—and
they
want
to
live
for
their
own
benefit,
the
creatures
cannot
receive
the
delight
and
pleasure
that
the
Creator
contemplated
giving
them.
In
the
work
Lishma
[for
Her
sake],
reward
and
punishment
are
measured
by
the
extent
to
which
they
want
to
bestow
upon
the
Creator.
That
is,
when
they
want
to
bestow
upon
the
Creator,
they
consider
it
“reward.”
And
when
they
see
that
all
they
want
is
their
own
benefit,
and
they
are
utterly
unable
to
crave
to
work
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator,
they
regard
this
as
a
punishment.
It
follows
that
when
a
person
feels
that
he
is
in
a
state
of
descent,
when
he
has
no
yearning
or
desire
whatsoever
to
bestow
upon
the
Creator,
there
are
two
manners
in
this:
1)
He
does
not
feel
any
suffering
or
pain
from
this
state—from
coming
to
a
state
of
lowliness.
Rather,
he
accepts
the
situation
and
begins
to
seek
satisfaction
in
things
that
he
had
already
determined
were
trash,
unfit
for
human
consumption.
But
now
he
sees
that
he
cannot
derive
vitality
from
spiritual
matters
because
the
taste
of
spirituality
has
been
flawed
in
him,
so
in
the
meantime
he
wants
to
live
and
derive
satisfaction
from
corporeality.
He
says,
“I’m
waiting
for
a
time
when
I
can
work
without
overcoming.
That
is,
when
I
am
given
an
awakening
from
above,
I
will
return
to
work.
In
the
meantime,
I
want
to
remain
in
the
state
I
am
in.”
2)
When
he
feels
he
is
in
a
state
of
descent,
he
feels
pain
and
deficiency
at
having
fallen
from
a
state
where
he
thought
he
was
rewarded
with
being
like
a
man.
That
is,
the
nourishments
that
sustained
him
and
from
which
he
derived
all
his
vitality
were
only
from
things
that
are
not
related
to
animals.
He
thought
that
soon
he
would
be
granted
admission
into
the
King’s
palace
and
would
be
rewarded
with
the
flavors
of
Torah
and
Mitzvot
[commandments/good
deeds].
But
without
awareness
or
preparation,
he
sees
that
he
is
in
a
bottomless
pit,
which
he
never
thought
existed.
That
is,
after
he
has
come
to
clear
knowledge
that
he
knows
his
purpose
in
life,
now
he
sees
himself
in
the
company
of
cats,
standing
by
garbage
bins
and
eating
the
trash
that
people
threw,
since
people
cannot
enjoy
this,
as
it
is
unfit
for
human
consumption.
But
now
he
himself
is
enjoying
this
trash,
which
he
himself,
when
he
was
in
a
state
of
“man,”
said
that
such
a
life
is
trash.
But
now
he
himself
is
eating
the
waste
that
he
threw.
Hence,
when
he
looks
at
his
lowliness,
it
invokes
in
him
pain
and
suffering
at
the
state
he
has
come
to.
However,
sometimes
a
person
adds
insult
to
injury.
That
is,
not
only
has
he
come
to
a
state
of
lowliness,
but
at
that
time
he
falls
into
despair
and
says
that
he
cannot
believe
that
the
Creator
hears
the
prayer
of
every
mouth.
Instead,
at
that
time
he
says,
“Since
I’ve
already
been
at
the
highest
level
several
times,
and
since
I
have
fallen
into
this
state
several
times,
I
must
conclude
that
this
work
is
not
for
me.
As
I
see
it,
this
matter
is
endless
and
could
continue
for
the
rest
of
my
life.
Therefore,
why
should
I
afflict
myself
in
vain
thinking
that
perhaps
the
Creator
will
finally
hear
me?
After
all,
every
person
learns
from
the
past,
from
what
has
been
registered
in
him
and
from
what
he
has
been
through.”
This
despair
pushes
him
from
the
work
and
he
wants
to
escape
the
campaign.
However,
a
person
must
believe
two
things,
for
only
by
this
can
he
progress
in
the
work:
1)
All
the
descents
that
foreign
thoughts
he
has
in
the
work
did
not
come
from
himself.
Rather,
they
all
come
from
the
Creator.
That
is,
the
Creator
sent
him
these
states,
and
there
is
no
other
force
in
the
world.
It
is
as
Baal
HaSulam
said,
that
a
person
must
believe
that
there
is
no
other
force
in
the
world,
and
everything
comes
from
the
Creator
(see
Shamati,
No.
1,
“There
Is
None
Else
Besides
Him”).
Indeed,
we
should
understand
why
the
Creator
sends
these
states,
since
this
is
very
unusual,
for
our
sages
said,
“He
who
comes
to
purify
is
aided.”
But
here
we
see
the
opposite:
Where
he
should
have
been
given
help
and
to
see
that
each
day
he
is
progressing,
he
sees
that
he
is
regressing.
That
is,
each
time,
he
sees
how
immersed
he
is
in
self-love.
Instead
of
coming
closer
each
day
toward
the
desire
to
bestow,
he
sees
each
day
that
he
is
nearing
self-love.
In
other
words,
before
he
began
the
work
of
bestowal,
he
did
not
taste
such
flavors
and
pleasures
in
self-love.
He
thought
that
whenever
he
wanted,
he
could
immediately
revoke
his
will
to
receive
for
himself,
and
he
could
work
without
any
reward
for
himself.
But
now,
he
sees
that
he
cannot
make
even
a
single
step
without
the
permission
of
his
receiver.
He
has
come
to
a
state
that
our
sages
describe
as
“A
wicked
is
under
the
authority
of
his
heart.”
Conversely,
“a
righteous,
his
heart
is
under
his
authority.”
“Heart”
means
desire.
That
is,
he
is
in
exile,
the
will
to
receive
for
himself
has
absolute
control
over
him,
and
he
is
utterly
powerless
to
go
against
his
heart,
which
is
called
“will
to
receive.”
This
is
the
meaning
of
the
words,
“A
wicked
is
under
the
authority
of
his
heart.”
Yet,
the
question
is,
Who
is
considered
“wicked,”
that
we
can
say
that
he
is
under
the
authority
of
his
heart?
It
is
precisely
when
a
person
has
come
to
a
state
where
he
sees
that
he
condemns
his
Maker,
when
he
cannot
observe
Torah
and
Mitzvot
in
order
to
bestow,
and
sees
that
he
is
immersed
in
self-love.
When
his
heart
tells
him,
“Do
what
I
tell
you,”
he
mindlessly
follows,
and
does
not
even
have
time
to
contemplate
what
he
is
doing.
Our
sages
call
this:
“A
person
does
not
sin
unless
a
spirit
of
folly
has
entered
him.”
Only
after
the
fact,
he
looks
at
himself
and
sees
what
folly
he
has
done.
Only
then,
in
that
state,
he
sees
what
our
sages
said,
“A
wicked
is
under
the
authority
of
his
heart.”
The
answer
to
the
question,
Why
did
the
Creator
send
him
the
states
of
lowliness?
is
so
that
a
person
will
see
the
truth,
meaning
what
the
will
to
receive
is
willing
to
do
in
order
to
increase
self-love,
that
it
has
no
regard
for
anything,
and
whatever
can
bring
it
pleasure,
it
is
willing
to
do.
It
follows
that
the
Creator
helps
him
each
time
to
see
his
real
state.
That
is,
it
was
concealed
in
his
heart
and
he
did
not
see
his
illness.
Hence,
the
help
of
the
Creator
came
and
revealed
to
him
the
severity
of
the
illness.
In
other
words,
we
need
not
believe
that
the
will
to
receive
is
a
bad
thing.
Instead,
now
he
sees
it
for
himself.
This
is
similar
to
a
person
seeing
that
something
is
wrong
with
him,
and
he
goes
to
the
hospital
for
tests
and
X-rays.
The
tests
show
him
that
he
suffers
from
certain
illnesses,
such
as
a
heart
disease,
and
also
in
the
lungs.
The
family
members
come
to
the
hospital
management
with
complaints
saying,
“We
brought
a
person
with
a
little
fever,
and
not
dangerous
illnesses,
and
you,
meaning
your
doctors
and
the
X-ray,
inflicted
fatal
diseases
on
our
son.”
It
is
likewise
with
us.
Our
will
to
receive
was
not
so
bad
as
to
be
dangerous.
When
we
came
to
work
here,
we
were
told
that
pretty
soon
we
would
achieve
the
wholeness
that
we
thought
about
the
evil
in
us.
But
suddenly,
after
tests
and
examinations
that
you
do,
we
see
that
the
evil
in
us
is
very
dangerous,
that
it
can
kill
you
and
cause
you
to
lose
your
spiritual
life.
As
it
is
in
corporeality,
we
should
thank
the
hospital
for
diagnosing
the
illnesses,
meaning
the
evil
in
the
body.
Likewise,
we
should
thank
the
Creator
for
revealing
to
us
the
danger
of
the
evil
in
us,
which
is
really
mortal
danger
that
could
cost
us
our
spiritual
life.
And
certainly,
we
should
thank
the
Creator
for
assisting
us
in
discovering
the
illness
we
are
suffering
from,
since
previously,
we
thought
that
we
were
only
slightly
unwell,
but
the
Creator
revealed
to
us
the
truth.
It
follows
that
we
did
progress
toward
seeing
the
truth,
meaning
the
real
form
of
the
evil
in
us.
By
this
we
can
interpret
what
we
asked,
What
is
the
meaning
of
“A
person
does
not
lift
his
finger
from
below
unless
he
is
called
upon
from
above,”
in
the
work?
A
“finger”
means
that
a
person
sees
within
reason,
as
it
is
written,
“Each
and
every
one
shows
with
his
finger,”
or
from
the
words,
“pointing
with
the
finger.”
“Lifting”
means
a
lack
from
below.
That
is,
a
person
who
feels
deficient,
that
his
importance
is
low,
meaning
that
he
is
far
from
the
Creator,
does
not
feel
this
awareness
unless
he
is
called
upon
from
above.
There
are
two
interpretations
to
“above”:
1)
“He
is
called
upon
from
above”
means
that
it
came
to
him
from
private
Providence.
That
is,
it
cannot
be
said
that
since
he
did
not
guard
himself
from
“lifting”
[the
finger],
meaning
that
he
was
not
careful
with
guarding
the
body,
we
were
given
laws
by
which
man
should
guard
himself
from
harm,
so
the
body
will
not
suffer
some
damage,
but
he
was
not
careful
so
his
body
received
a
flaw,
which
is
called
“lifting.”
Yet,
even
if
he
did
watch
himself
with
a
hundred
types
of
care,
it
would
not
help
at
all
because
so
it
was
sentenced
about
him
“from
above.”
It
is
as
RASHI
interpreted,
“‘called
upon,’
he
is
sentenced.”
That
is,
it
is
a
sentence
from
above
and
it
is
not
the
person’s
fault.
Yet,
we
could
ask,
Why
was
he
sentenced
to
this
from
above?
2)
“From
above”
means
that
it
is
of
high
importance.
That
is,
the
person
received
a
flaw
in
his
work
that
he
did
within
reason,
which
is
called
“lifting
his
finger
from
below.”
In
other
words,
now
he
sees
that
he
is
in
a
state
of
lowliness,
meaning
he
sees
that
he
is
bare
and
destitute
in
matters
of
work
on
the
path
of
truth.
This
brings
up
the
question,
Did
seeing
his
lowliness
come
to
him
for
not
observing
Torah
and
Mitzvot,
or
is
it
the
other
way
around—because
he
began
work
more
enthusiastically,
which
brought
him
to
a
state
of
descent,
called
“lifting
his
finger
from
below”?
We
should
say
that
it
came
because
he
put
more
effort
into
the
work.
According
to
the
rule,
a
Mitzva
[commandment/good
deed]
induces
a
Mitzva,
he
should
have
seen
that
he
was
in
a
state
of
“above,”
so
why
is
he
in
a
state
of
“below”?
The
answer
is
that
he
is
“called
upon
from
above.”
That
is,
he
has
been
sentenced
from
above
to
be
admitted
into
a
place
of
high
importance.
For
this
reason,
he
has
been
shown
the
real
state
of
the
evil
in
him,
so
he
would
know
what
to
pray
for.
There
is
certainly
a
difference
when
we
see
in
corporeality
that
a
person
comes
to
ask
someone
for
a
loan,
to
lend
him
money,
or
when
someone
comes
to
another
to
ask
for
a
favor
and
speak
on
his
behalf
so
he
will
not
be
thrown
in
prison,
or
when
someone
is
sentenced
to
death,
and
he
asks
the
one
person
who
can
save
him
from
death.
There
are
big
differences
among
the
pleas.
In
spirituality,
we
understand
these
matters
with
regard
to
the
Kli
[vessel].
In
spirituality,
a
prayer
is
regarded
as
a
Kli.
According
to
the
rule,
“There
is
no
light
without
a
Kli,”
there
is
a
difference
between
a
person
praying
to
the
Creator
to
help
him
so
he
can
receive
wholeness,
meaning
that
in
truth,
he
observes
Torah
and
Mitzvot
and
engages
in
charity,
but
he
understands
from
rumors
he
had
heard
that
there
is
more
wholeness
than
his
observing
of
Torah
and
Mitzvot,
both
in
quantity
and
quality.
He
believes
in
the
verse,
“There
is
not
a
righteous
man
on
Earth
who
does
good
and
did
not
sin,”
therefore
he
asks
of
the
Creator
to
help
him.
It
follows
that
he
needs
only
one
small
thing.
For
example,
when
someone
comes
to
get
a
loan
from
someone,
he
is
told
that
he
can
get
it
elsewhere,
too.
That
is,
we
do
not
pay
much
attention
when
it
comes
to
the
lending.
Therefore,
normally,
when
a
person
refuses
to
lend,
he
leaves
him.
This
is
not
so
when
a
person
is
sentenced
to
death,
and
there
is
one
person
who
can
save
his
life.
If
that
person
refuses
to
do
him
the
favor
of
saving
him,
he
will
not
leave
him
and
say
that
he
will
go
to
another
person
to
save
him
from
death,
since
only
the
king
himself
can
pardon
him.
For
this
reason,
we
do
not
leave
the
king,
and
we
seek
out
every
possibility
for
the
king
to
give
him
the
absolution.
Similarly,
in
spirituality,
we
need
a
real
Kli,
meaning
a
real
need
for
the
Creator
to
give
us
the
filling.
For
this
reason,
when
we
are
shown
from
above
our
true
state,
that
we
are
truly
bare
and
destitute,
we
can
place
the
filling
in
that
Kli,
since
a
person
has
realized
that
he
is
lacking
spiritual
life,
called
“complete
faith,”
and
he
has
no
grip
on
spirituality.
In
other
words,
he
cannot
say
that
he
is
doing
something
for
the
Creator,
but
it
is
all
for
his
own
benefit.
This
means
that
the
entire
structure
of
Kedusha
[holiness/sanctity]
is
ruined
in
him,
and
everything
he
does
is
only
lip-service.
This
is
called
a
“real
prayer,”
since
he
has
no
one
to
turn
to,
and
only
the
Creator
Himself
can
help
him,
as
was
said
in
the
exodus
from
Egypt,
that
it
was
done
by
the
Creator
Himself,
as
it
is
written,
“I
the
Lord
your
God,
who
brought
you
out
from
the
land
of
Egypt.”
This
is
similar
to
a
person
who
was
sentenced
to
death,
and
only
the
king
can
pardon
him.
It
follows
that
when
a
person
feels
that
he
is
in
a
state
of
“wicked,”
and
“wicked
in
their
lives
are
called
‘dead,’”
this
is
considered
that
he
has
been
sentenced
to
death.
However,
when
a
person
asks
the
Creator
to
give
him
his
life
as
a
present,
this
is
considered
that
he
has
a
Kli
that
can
receive
the
filling,
since
the
person
is
not
asking
the
Creator
for
luxuries,
but
simply
for
his
spiritual
life.
Thus,
on
one
hand,
a
person
should
say,
“If
I
am
not
for
me,
who
is
for
me?”
That
is,
he
should
choose
by
himself.
This
means
that
anything
he
thinks
that
he
can
do,
anything
he
thinks
will
help
him
emerge
from
self-love,
he
should
do.
On
the
other
hand,
a
person
should
say
that
everything
comes
from
above,
as
was
said,
“A
person
does
not
lift
his
finger
from
below
unless
he
is
called
upon
from
above.”
Once
a
person
has
come
to
the
recognition
of
the
evil
in
him,
which
is
risking
his
life,
this
is
called
an
“act.”
But
he
should
attribute
this
act
to
the
Creator,
too.
Afterward,
he
should
pray
for
the
action.
That
is,
a
person
must
attribute
both
the
lack
and
the
filling
to
the
Creator.
That
is,
once
a
person
has
begun
the
work
of
bestowal
and
worked
devotedly
to
achieve
the
truth,
the
Creator
sends
him
a
sensation
of
his
lack.
A
person
can
feel
this
only
after
he
has
made
great
efforts
to
achieve
the
quality
of
bestowal.
At
that
time,
he
is
notified
that
he
is
remote
from
Dvekut
[adhesion]
with
the
Creator,
which
is
called
“life.”
It
is
written
about
it,
“And
you
who
cling
to
the
Lord
your
God
are
alive
every
one
of
you
this
day.”
At
that
time,
when
he
prays,
it
is
regarded
as
a
prayer
for
lack
of
life,
and
not
as
praying
for
things
that
one
can
live
without.
Instead,
he
simply
asks
for
life,
called
“complete
faith
in
the
Creator.”