- This topic has 1,087 replies, 422 voices, and was last updated 2 days, 18 hours ago by
.
- Replies
We have learned the Kabbalists hid the wisdom, but not anymore. This wisdom is here for some. Should I hide my understanding of Kabbalah and strong feelings from my partner while studying? I see her desires are sometimes at different levels than mine. She may misunderstand what I partially understand myself. To whom should I speak about my feelings?
Hi Sandor,
In general, we don’t speak about our personal attainments. Kabbalists don’t share their personal revelations with anyone, since people are not yet corrected and this evokes negative envy, which ultimately harms both parties.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2011/05/do-not-trigger-fire-upon-yourself/
The exception to this rule is with one’s spouse. Since the spouse is essentially considered an extension of ourselves, like one’s other half. But even then, it should be done very gently, without violating the rule that “there is no coercion in spirituality”.
Albert @ KabU
Hi, I have two questions about reality itself, the very thing that we can research with Kabbalah:
1) if the physical world is a perception, could I say that the physical world itself only exist in our minds? Like our physical world was a computer simulation?
2) If the physical reality is like a dream, if it is only a perception, then its existence is tied to the existence of the dreamer. When human souls did not yet exist, did the physical world already exist? According to the idea that the physical world is a perception of souls, it could not exist without souls, right?
Hi Flavio,
1. All that was created was a desire to receive pleasure. We perceive reality through that desire. If our desires are egoistic, we perceive this corporeal world. If we correct our desire to operate in the direction of love and bestowal, then accordingly we will perceive the spiritual reality. All of this follows the law of equivalence of form.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: http://laitman.com/2013/04/everything-is-attained-by-the-equivalence-of-form/
2. Kabbalah is a science with clear limits of what we can and cannot measure. One of those limits is that we can only measure things from the thought of creation. We have no way to measure anything before creation, so we cannot talk about it.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2017/01/why-did-the-creator-create-people/
As for the souls, keep in mind that by definition, the soul is the corrected form of the desire to receive, which is aimed fully at bestowal. Given that we’re not yet corrected, none of us have this thing called a soul. Only a soul in potential, which we call the point in the heart. If we develop that point, we can turn it into a soul. If not, this point continues to reincarnate again and again until it gets fully developed.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2015/06/what-happens-to-the-soul-after-death/
Albert @ KabU
Albert,
1)I’ve been reading the link you gave me, a preface to the wisdom of kabbalah. I’m a little confused. Do discernments of upper force come from the emanations of the Sefirot? The upper light arranges itself into Partzufim and there are five arrangements of the Serifot in each of the five Partzufim found in each Spiritual world. Is this correct?
2)I’m also a bit confused about Kli. Are Kli created because of desire, or are they created by light to be filled with light? Are there always kli waiting to be filled depending on which step of the ladder one is? How do Kelim come into existence from the will to receive? Not sure if I phrased that right.
Thanks,
Curtis
Hi Curtis,
1. The upper light never changes. We change, meaning our desires change, and accordingly we feel the light differently. It’s similar to how electricity is the same electricity but based on what appliance we plug in, we have different uses and results from it. Plug in a heater and you’ll produce warmth, plug in an AC and you’ll get cool air, etc. But the light itself never changes.
As for the arrangements, all that was created was a single desire to receive. This desire develops and is partitioned into worlds, partzufim, sefirot. There are 5 worlds in total, each world contains 5 partzufim, and each partzuf contains 5 sefirot. All in all this structure contains 125 degrees (5x5x5). We’ll learn about this structure in detail in the more advanced lessons.
2. The Kli is the desire. It’s used interchangeably. Kli (vessel) = desire to receive.
Albert @ KabU
Hello
I was wondering what kabbalists believer about the Messiah. I’m certain it’s different from the Christian belief.
Thanks
-CurtisHi Curtis,
In Kabbalah, the Messiah is not a person but a force. Messiah (Mashiach in Hebrew) comes from the verb “to pull” (Moshech in Hebrew). This is the force that has the ability “to pull” us out of our egoistic nature into the Creator’s nature of love and bestowal.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2013/02/what-do-they-expect-from-a-messiah/
Albert @ KabU
Hi Albert,
I didn’t realize KabU kindly provides the reading material. I am interested in learning, slow and steady.
1.) My first question is what is meant ego-ism. It’s not clear to me. The text seems to imply altruism is an antonym of ego-ism
2) Some of the videos mentioned we don’t have the senses to perceive the spiritual worlds or upper force. The reading, however, mentions “spiritual sensations”. What is meant by that? I understand there are degrees of attainment. Does each degree have a different “spiritual sensation”? My guess is a sense of the inner self perceives these “spiritual sensations”.
3) I’m confused about desires, kilum, and the will to receive. We all want pleasure. When the kli is fulfilled, we are left with more desire. We have the will to receive which creates more kilum. Is this right?
Hi Curtis, great questions!
1. Our nature is the desire to receive pleasure. It simply means that every calculation we make is to chase pleasure or avoid pain. This is similar to how any other animal functions. By itself, there is nothing wrong with this nature, it’s simply the program by which we function and preserve ourselves.
Egoism is when this program begins to be used in a way that harms others. Not only do I want to receive pleasure, but I want to receive it at the expense of others, at their detriment. This is the corporeal ego.
There is also a spiritual ego. Spiritual egoism is everything that stands in the way of our connection with the Creator. Normal people don’t have a spiritual ego. This is only something that we discover after doing some serious spiritual work.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2010/10/true-evil/
2. Spiritual perception works according to the law of equivalence of form. Meaning that in order to perceive spirituality, we need to become similar to it, to the qualities of love and bestowal that reside there. This is just like how a radio can pick up an external wave, when we tune the internal frequency of the radio to that wave.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: http://laitman.com/2013/04/everything-is-attained-by-the-equivalence-of-form/
And yes, each spiritual degree is felt differently. Just like in our world, the way a newborn perceives the world is different to how a five year old perceives it, and that is different to how a 25 year old perceives it, etc.
3. These terms are interchangeable. Sometimes they are translated from Hebrew as will to receive or sometimes as desire to receive. And sometimes they are called vessels (Kelim) of reception. So these terms can be used interchangeably. (Kli is Hebrew for vessel, Kelim is the plural form, vessels).
Albert @ KabU
Thanks Albert,
I appreciate the correction.
1) So, the spiritual ego receives light, which means a greater reception of pleasure. As you develop you receive pleasure it becomes a spiritual sensation through the spiritual ego according to the equivalence of form. Is my thinking clear according to Kabbalah?
3) Could you explain a bit more about the spiritual ego? You said it’s everything that stands in the way of connection to the creator. I am a bit confused. I think the psychological definition is different than the definition in Kabbalah. That would mean no form of egoism is good like vanity or pride.
2) Our nature in the world of outcomes is opposite to the world of causes. So, when you attain equivalence of form there is a similarity between these our nature and the creator’s in both worlds. Is this correct?
4) When there is an equivalence of form does that mean the above downward and below upwards move you into a different level or reception?
5) Is there material that outlines the degrees and their state of attainment?
Thanks
Curtis
Hi Curtis,
1. Yes, but keep in mind that spirituality is built upon greater and greater levels of bestowal. So if we just receive, we will not come into equivalence of form with it. But our nature is reception, so how can we ever bridge this gap? We can use our nature to receive with the intention to bestow. In that case, even if the action is one of reception, the intention converts it into an action of bestowal.
Check out the Guest & Host Analogy from Chapter 3 of Attaining the Worlds Beyond for more details.
3. Kabbalah indeed defines these things different than psychology and also different than religion or philosophy, etc. If we just stick to our preconceived notions of these matters, we will not understand Kabbalah at all.
2. Equivalence of form means that we correct our egoistic nature to operate in the direction of bestowal. As a result, we reach the state of complete adhesion between us and the Creator.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2019/04/the-purpose-of-creation/
4. Equivalence of form is a gradual process broken down into 125 degrees. To the extent that we become similar to spirituality, to that extent we reveal it in practice, degree by degree.
5. In the book Kabbalah for the Student, there’s an article called Foreword to the Preface to the Wisdom of Kabbalah (http://www.kabbalah.info/eng/content/view/full/64187) which lists these 125 steps in the language of sefirot/partzufim/olamot(worlds). For now, these are just technical terms for us, but in the future lessons we’ll dive deeper into these things and learn how to feel and experience them.
Albert @ KabU
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.