Ask Anything

Hey Luke,

This means one who engages in bringing their hearts closer to the desire to bestow and having the light work on the will to receive in order to bring it the corrected intention of “in order to bestow”.

Chris

Hi Varda,

1. Why did the sages not mention in their teachings that things would have to change as generations pass if the physical aspect of Torah and Mitzvot is not needed this way anymore? It’s not that things “need to change”–we changed–and as a result our whole attitude to what is Torah and what are Mitzvot has completely shifted. Not that it’s “not needed”, but they are supplements to spiritual attainment.
2. If even one of the main and respected Rabbis would rise today and start emphasizing what we learn here in Kabu, would it make a great change within the Jewish communities, religious or secular? Well, yes, if their point in the hearts were awakened, but “no” if their hearts are still the same as they are today.
3. Why does Kabu ignore some of the major Torah Laws, like those regarding activities on Shabbat? Kabbalah today needs to be as open to as many people as possible. Those are things that would limit the interest of some or turn-off others. There’s no reason to, “put an obstacle before a blind man”
4. Should I follow my passion for learning in Kabu without considering how it affects my family, or should I consider them first and try to navigate my studies in such a way that it will not hurt them? You should consider your family, certainly. Don’t do anything that directly harms others. We never suggest trying to “explain” Kabbalah to others since this will always typically fail if they have no awakened point in the heart. Same with family members. The best route is to do it in private, as much as you can, shield it from them, and let them see that you’re happier and more peaceful. There shouldn’t be any evidence of connecting negative behavior with the study of Kabbalah.
5. Why are there no new interpretations taught in all the Yeshivas, adjusting to these new times by easing the burden of all the restrictions if they are really not needed anymore? Kabbalah works only with those who’s point in the heart awakens. When those individuals feel it, they will find it. 

Hey Luke,

This is why when our curriculum does not begin with teaching new students how to interpret the Torah, the Zohar or any other Kabbalistic texts other than Baal HaSulam and the Rabash–generally. It’s a lot of material and a lot of changes that a person starts going through. Part of these changes is redefining words, so to speak, or creating a new library of words paired with emotion which is what gives us the feeling behind every word.

We have to understand the language the Kabbalists used when they wrote these things and why they used that language. Someone who is in attainment of the upper forces cannot really speak about them in a clear way because there are no words to describe those things. They can however use the words we have in this world and point to their spiritual root. Remember, spirituality is the attainment, the revelation of the causal forces of reality. We can’t “see” a force, but we can talk about that force as an expression in a reaction with matter.

This is what the Kabbalists did to describe to us the forces at play, the will to receive and the will to bestow–how the Creator influences the created being, the will to receive. Kabbalists don’t talk about the force itself, but rather how it’s expressed in matter-in the will to receive. Therefore, when we read these texts, we have to remember the Kabbalists are pointing to the spiritual forces at work and how they come and fill, detach, correct, reveal etc., many, many actions and interactions a person has with the light and they are sensed as feeling–emotion.

When a person begins to yearn to feel these things and reveal the purpose of their existence in an eternal manner and they find the wisdom of Kabbalah, they will they begin to hunt for new and greater feelings, ones that fill this specific desire. They are very hungry for it. What they don’t know, what they can’t see yet, is how this is all so perfectly set up from above–from the future. We are heading towards what Kabbalists say “correction”, something that the created being must perform and achieve. This awakening point in the heart wants the pleasure in adhesion but our logical brains that serve only the ego has no sensation of what that can even be. The logical brain serves this desire of wanting to “know” while our heart yearns for fulfillment. These two are often contrasting one another since on one hand the ego wants fulfillment and on the other, and the fulfillment it wants cannot come into that desire without a change in intention.

Therefore, this disagreement doesn’t let a person rest, which on one hand is good, it pushes us forward, but on the other hand truth is attained along with false. Meaning, once we discover that this reality is false and truth is bestowal, only then can we solve this dispute between the mind and heart.

The correction is change in intention, a change in how our matter is used–what new force does it acquire. We need to long for this. This is the whole path, the whole work–building the desire, because as said above, the Kabbalists write only about how the light influences the desire. The light is there, it’s infinite, we just need to change our matter to perceive something different. We change, we change reality.

That’s why their advice relates to bringing ourselves as close as we can to the forces that guide us towards correction, through correction-things we encounter on the way–just like a mother or father who prepare a path for their child to grow and help them stay on it. We come closer to these forces by yearning to feel them, to be like them. This yearning shapes our desire. We start wanting that contact, and it “shines” from a far.

You can understand now, that wanting to be as close to those forces to be with them in heart, mind and soul, that would include bringing the expression of those forces into our world. That’s why they’re things that don’t really make logical sense. They’re meant to be used more like…a reminder, along with other things, but the significance of the action is not the action, it’s the intention with the action. Action without the intention is like dust. Kabbalists exist in intention, there’s no other way to exist from their point of view. But physical actions weigh much less because this world is the world of consequences. Yes, there’s a certain contact from physical action but it’s not the main thing. I don’t want to add percentages or numbers, but if you were to imagine what the “essence” of a thing is, it’s “main thing”, you’d imagine that it’s the majority–it’s what counts.

It’s also important to mention that the Creator wants our hearts. Yes, we can offer this if we receive correction and I want to do the most to enable the best conditions for this to happen, but often, if we are concerned about the action, it’s because the intention has already eluded us.

• This reply was modified 1 week ago by Chris - KabU Instructor.

Hi Luke,

Of course this is the main thing. Kabbalists of the past had all kinds of physical customs tied to spiritual meaning. That certainly was incorporated into religion and the spiritual significance was completely lost while the physical action continued. This, in fact, was one of the reasons they initiated the physical customs–particularly because they wanted to keep the nation tied with some kind of thread to spirituality.
In our case today, when the points in the heart are awakening around the world–like yours and mine–the Creator wants the hearts, and not the “arms and legs”. In our times, the most important thing is the correction of the heart, the change in intention. This is the path of Kabbalah, the “work in the heart”.

Chris