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All assignments and homework for the Young Group with Dave and Danny
Homework #Lesson 5:
Each friend leaves in the forum a short message:
What did I take from the lesson?Read the quote by Dr. Laitman:
“What I do in this work is demand the Reforming Light. And when the Reforming Light comes to me it brings me closer to the friend, I begin to feel him close to me, and I begin to care for him, that I have a certain warmth to him, still far from the actual flame, but I can somehow say that I am beginning to get close to the matter of love. And then, when I feel such a sensation, this sensation makes us equal, equal by me not being able to think of myself, only of two, and first of him and then of myself. And so on, these are the degrees, but this is all from the Reforming Light. That’s it, so you have an exercise, be above, be below, and demand the Light that brings you the feeling of love, and then you are equal”.Discuss on the forum:
How do we make sure that we draw the reforming light with every action of ours?Leave in the forum a message that will help build between us a demand so that none of us will be able to differentiate themselves from the others, and we will feel as one.
Last but not least:
Remind each other of the connection throughout the week without overwhelming the friends in the GE Forum. If you’re naturally active on the GE Forum, make efforts to leave room for others. If you’re naturally inactive, make efforts to inspire the friends.
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The Paradox of Choice – Kabbalah Explained Simply
January 1st, 2023 – Lio Spiegler“It’s (kabbalistic attainment) reminiscent of the experience with a baby. I’m not certain if you have children, but if you are fortunate enough to spend time with them, raise them, and witness their growth, it’s a deeply profound process. Sadly, many of us are denied these moments in our modern world. One of the most magical aspects of being with a baby isn’t just when you feed them and they relish their meal. It’s that incredible moment when they lock eyes with you, recognizing and acknowledging your existence. They might not even be aware that you played a role in bringing them into this world – in my case, it was primarily my wife’s doing, though I did have a part in it.”
“This acknowledgment of your existence by another being is unparalleled. It’s a sentiment that can’t be artificially recreated. While we might project emotions onto inanimate objects or even robots, often out of desperation, it’s incomparable to the genuine recognition from a baby. The process of such acknowledgment, when shifted from us to the Creator, is simply transcendent. This Creator, or nature with a capital “N”, seeks our genuine recognition. To achieve this understanding and acknowledgment, one must invest immense effort, much like feeding a child countless meals, changing numerous diapers, and assisting them in countless ways. Over time, this profound understanding grows, bringing us closer to being on par with the Creator. Kabbalists who have reached this level of enlightenment confirm this journey.”
Reason for choosing: Because of what I felt.
What I felt: When Lio described the analogy of making eye contact with the creator, I felt a sensation as if I were a fetus in a womb. Encompassed, warm, and completely at rest. The key word being REST. It felt as if the creator is carrying me around like I am a child. In this last class, Danny and David described the light that reforms and how it works on us. Their point being that the light that works on us is doing all the work, not us! That evokes a feeling of rest within me.
This is also described in the picture below in the red box. I have heard Kabbalists from this source often describe the early stages of spiritual development as similar to a fetus in a womb. The creator is like a loving parent and wants only good for creation. Danny described the creator babbling to the creation. The point he was making was that until we grow spiritually, we hear the creator as a baby hears the parent. Danny described that a baby does not understand anything the parent is saying but the baby knows it is good, so good.
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Purpose of Society -2
Article No. 1, Part 2, 1984Excerpt:
”Also, it is important to remain serious during the assembly so as not to lose the intention, as it is for this aim that they have gathered. And to walk humbly, which is a great thing, one should be accustomed to appear as though one is not serious. But in truth, a fire burns in their hearts.”
Why did I choose this part?
This part starts with calling upon the group members to “remain serious during assembly”; this, on its own makes me feel uncomfortable, bringing back memories when my childlike, curious, creative, explorative, somewhat silly nature was suppressed not allowing me to express/discover what was deeply intended to be manifested. The word “serious” is somewhat linked to cold, strict, limited, caged, forced qualities to me.
This also ties with the concept of the freedom of the individual in spirituality discussed in The Freedom article. Where is my contribution of individuality if I am “ordered” to stay serious?
However, the explanation continues “as not to lose the intention”, and my initial discomfort eases, it really feels that the emphases is on INTENTION, keeping the INTENTION alive and in the driver seat of the assembly, any action is fine if correct INTENTION is maintained … Oooook then, I have no problem with that, I know what my INTENTION is, and it is SOLID! So seriousness linked to INTENTION transforms my past memories of being serious, and the grip lifts.
As I further feel into what the true message is here – or better said what message I can get with my current level of comprehension – the last part of paragraph “And to walk humbly, which is a great thing, one should be accustomed to appear as though one is not serious. But in truth, a fire burns in their hearts.” gives me comfort, a warm feeling of coming home, being allowed to transform the burning, restless, silly, untamed fire in my heart ❤️🔥 into my unique individual offering, place it outside of Me in the middle of the Circle of the Group, to unite it with the rest of other unique offerings. This way my individuality gets annulled, but lives as part of a something newly created with other individual unique qualities of Friends. That newly assembled “puzzle” will be the vessel for the Creator to reveal His Glory.
Kind of hard to describe the feeling, it is like being a dynamic piece of puzzle, constantly changing shapes/colors within it’s own individual limits, to match other dynamic pieces of puzzles and put an “out of this world dynamic, perfect something” together – which would be what Kabbalah Kabbalahcalls a vessel I assume. This Vessel serves as an adaptor for the will to Bestow and will to Receive to finally have a common ground and bond. All individual pieces are annulled, yet as part of a bigger “picture” they receive the benefit of all pieces through the glory of revealed Creator.
I can feel the great effort the Kabbalists made writing down their experiences 💗, I have this insignificant task to feel into a paragraph – one short paragraph out of multi 1000’s pages and books and articles and … and … and … and already lost in the process 😵💫. There ends my homework 🤭.
Unity of friends.
Do what you can and the Lord’s salvation is in the twinkling of an eye. The important thing that stands before you today is the unity of friends. Toil in that more and more, for it can compensate for all the faults.
It is written, “An exiled student; his Rav is exiled with him.” Our sages were perplexed: How can complaints govern the student’s Torah and work to the extent that repels him from being in God’s domain, especially once he has become attached to a genuine Rav?
And they explained that when the student declines, it appears to him that the Rav has declined with him, as well. And because this is so, it is indeed so. That is, he will be able to benefit from his Rav only to the extent that he assumes in his heart. Hence, he only has a lowly and inferior Rav to the extent that he has measured him thus. And so, his Rav is exiled with him.
The beginning of the exile and enslavement in Egypt begins with the words, “Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who knew not Joseph.” This means that a new dominion appeared in everyone’s mind, a newly risen dominion, for they have fallen from their previous degree, as it is written, “An exiled student; his Rav is exiled with him.” Thus, they did not know Joseph; that is, they attained him only to the extent that they assumed in their hearts.
For this reason, they pictured Joseph’s image the same as they were, themselves. And for this reason, they did not know Joseph and the enslavement began. Otherwise, the righteous would certainly protect them and no exile and enslavement would be depicted for them.
281Why do I chose this article
I chose this article which I have read a few times because it reminds me of the importance of my Integration in the society/group/ten. It reminds me that every time I detach and do not annul and see the merit of the friends I am engaging in self love and by engaging in self love I am detaching from the society and not only declining myself but bringing the group and the Rav along into the exile. yet if I see the merit in the friends, unite and uplift the spirit I uplift the society including the Rav.
How I feel about the article
tjis article gives me a dealing of good fear and responsibility
Rabash – Social Writings
According to what is explained concerning “Love thy friend as thyself”
… Yet, even once he acquires that strength and can keep the love of others in actual fact, and feels his own gratification as bad for him, still, do not believe in yourself. There must be fear of falling into self-love in the middle of the work. In other words, should one be given a greater pleasure than he is used to receiving, although he can already work in order to bestow with small pleasures and is willing to relinquish them, he lives in fear of great pleasures…
Shamati – 19. What Is “The Creator Hates the Bodies,” in the Work?
…This is the meaning of the verse, “And you shall take for you.” It specifies “for you,” since everything is in the hands of heaven but the fear of heaven. In other words, the Creator can give abundance of light because He has it. But the darkness, the place of lack, this is not in His domain.
Since there is a rule that there is fear of heaven only from a place of lack, and a place of lack is called “the will to receive,” it means that only then is there a place for labor. In what? In that it resists…
Why I chose this and what I felt from the text:
I chose this because I needed to understand fear more deeply, and these verses spoke to me, explained what I needed to hear.
I find these 2 complementary, in the first excerpt, Rabash is warning us not to get swept away with the little pleasures that we would eventually start receiving and feeling, and drift away in the middle of the work thinking that we accomplished all and be satisfied with those accomplishments. Because our nature is to dwell in a place where we feel comfortable, somewhat happy, at least not unhappy, so here we don’t feel lack. The most difficult thing for each man is to start and stay on the path of self-discovery. Because it is completely unknown, one never knows what can find there, on the other side, and the evil inclination inside us always assumes the worst, uncompelling things for us, thus diminishing the importance of the Creator and our spirituality.
So, the most frightening state should actually be the one when we feel satisfied and happy on the path, as then we don’t feel lack, which might slow us down, if not completely divert us from the path. And exactly at that moment, we need to force ourselves, to labor, to leave that feeling and continue with the work, but then a resistance appears in us, as the evil inclination is happy in that state, and does not want to give up this satisfaction and continue to work, it would disrupt its comfort zone.
“And you shall take for you”, meaning, we must be vigilant and detect these states and labor, as fear of Heaven is the only thing we have as a tool to achieve equivalence of form with the Creator. And that is exactly the resistance that Baal HaSulam mentions in Shamati no. 19. So, we must keep the fear alive, fear that we might not recognize the state, that we might become lazy, not do enough, that we might not detect the lack that we need to work on… I can talk about this forever 😊
I picture this as a black, empty bubble, Kli, unaware of the Light, so the inability to see that it is empty, that it lacks something, is maintaining the hard shell around it that prevents the Light to enter. With labor, it becomes more and more aware of the lack and that frightens it, and that fear starts to puncture small holes allowing the Light to enter bit by bit, until one day the shell cracks and fills the whole Kli with Light. Happy End 😊
Homework:
Choosing an excerpt and explaining why I chose it and what I felt.
Excerpt:
“Each of us sees not another person, but his own reflection in the other person.
You don’t see others, you see them in your perception: whether it’s good or bad for you, depending on your mentality.
You perceive not him, but, the correlation between him and yourself.
The world is a reflection of your desire. All you see is your desire outside of you.”
Why I chose this:
I chose this excerpt because It reminds us where the work of correction actually is: inside ourselves.
What I feel about this (my interpretation):
I cannot change the world outside of myself. I can do nothing about another persons actions; what was said or done by them. I cannot change the color of the sky or the brightness of the Sun.
The only thing I can do is adjust my attitude towards whatever reality I perceive at any given moment, and this is the only thing I must work on.
I must take control of my perception and make the world perfect from the inside, out.
Kabbalah teaches that this can only be done successfully if the adjustments we make within are in accordance with the laws of Nature i.e. the Thought of Creation.
Last Sunday’s session (Aug. 6, 2023) Danny asked us to read the Article “Purpose of Society – 2. Then we were to pick one issue from this article that appealed to us and put it in this forum for the GE group. There are 9 paragraphs in this article, each paragraph had a major point of interest.
1. annul self-love, 2. against our nature, 3. unanimous agreement amongst group, 4. seeing each others merits, 5. remain serious, 6. be wary of non-goal issues, 7. Kabbalah is for those interested in Kabbalah, it is not for others in your everyday corporeal life, 8. Kabbalah group are all equal, 9. treat a new comer in the group as an equal.
Then we were to choose one issue that is of more importance to you. I chose paragraph 4 on seeing each others merits. These are not merits from their social lives in the corporeal world. We are to see their merits from the Kabbalah world. I believe that we need to see our friends merits in our GE group such as, their commitment to their studies to Kabbalah; their enthusiasm, sincerity, love for their friends, their willingness to learn, their good study habits, their knowledge on the subject matter that we are currently studying. Merits are their qualities to becoming a Kabbalist.
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