[Albert – KabU Instructor]

Hi Paul,

It’s not about knowledge, rather it’s the process by which we grow towards our next degree of development. In order to develop to the next spiritual degree, we need to picture it and play it. This is similar to how kids grow and develop. They imagine what it’s like to be an adult, a fireman, a doctor, a builder, etc. Then they play out these things. By that they grow and develop. Same with us, by picturing these higher degree of bestowal and playing them, we attract the light to help us to develop to those degrees. This is the process by which we activate this prayer.

Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2012/03/building-blocks-of-the-first-spiritual-degree/

Albert @ KabU

[Albert – KabU Instructor]

Hi Marion,

1) What I meant by high spiritual degree is that this is still WAY ahead of us. It’s like demanding a 3 year old to do the work of 23 year old. We’re simply not yet ready to do such work.

2) As for feelings, we’re not built in such a way that we can compare feelings. Each person is unique and feels the world through his uniqueness. As such, it’s impossible to compare how one person feels spirituality with another.

3) How can we reach the spiritual degree of receiving to bestow in practice? Ultimately everything we attain is due to the force of the light. The light makes all the corrections on us. Our work is only to extract more and more of this light.

So from now, while we’re still in the fundamentals, all the way until we attain spirituality in practice, and even beyond that point, to the very last spiritual correction, everything depends on us drawing more and more of the light.  So the best thing you can do for your spiritual advancement is to set aside some time to regularly return to the Kabbalistic sources, lessons, videos, books, Q/A forums, etc. Such a habit of regularly returning to the source of the light will help you throughout your entire spiritual development.

Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2013/02/sunbathing-in-the-rays-of-the-reforming-light/

Albert @ KabU

[Albert – KabU Instructor]

Hi Muhammad,

In the wisdom of Kabbalah, we learn that we are like a seed. What happens to the seed ENTIRELY depends on where you plant it. If you plant it in the desert, nothing will come out of it. If you plant it in good soil, something good will come out of it. Likewise with us. All of our choices are the result of the environment that we plant ourselves in.

Baal HaSulam writes about this in the article “the Freedom“. Here’s an excerpt:

there is freedom for the will to initially choose such an environment, such books, and such guides that impart upon him good concepts. If one does not do this but is willing to enter any environment that appears before him and read any book that falls into his hands, he is bound to fall into a bad environment or waste his time on worthless books, which are abundant and more accessible. In consequence, he will be forced into foul concepts that make him sin and condemn. He will certainly be punished, not because of his evil thoughts or deeds, in which he has no choice, but because he did not choose to be in a good environment, for in this there is definitely a choice.

Therefore, he who strives to continually choose a better environment is worthy of praise and reward. But here, too, it is not because of his good thoughts or deeds, which come to him without his choice, but because of his effort to acquire a good environment, which brings him these good thoughts and actions.

For this reason, it’s important that we find a good spiritual environment for ourselves. We’ll learn about these things in depth in the next semester.

As for “sinning” and “punishments”, these terms have a different meaning in Kabbalah.  Essentially there are no sins or punishments in Kabbalah the way religions depict it. Punishment in Kabbalah is simply a cause and effect relationship. If I disregard the law of gravity and jump from a 100 story building, then I’ll be “punished” by falling to my death. Meaning it’s not a punishment, but cause and effect, jump off 100 story building -> death.

Likewise with our spiritual work:

If build a good spiritual environment for myself -> correct my egoistic nature and become similar to the Creator.

If I don’t build a good spiritual environment for myself -> I’ll waste my time and not reach the spiritual correction in this life.

So there are no sins nor punishments, but there are laws of nature. Our work is to come into balance with these laws.

Albert @ KabU

[Albert – KabU Instructor]

Hi Douglas,

Yes, it’s like the Guest & Host allegory from Chapter 3 of Attaining the Worlds Beyond. Just keep in mind that receiving in order to bestow is a very high spiritual degree. It’s not something we can start with in practice right away.

As for the Creator receiving pleasure from us, although we sometimes say that we are trying to bestow to the Creator or to bring Him contentment, but in truth it’s just a game to help us to develop. It’s just like with kids. When we spoon feed them, they see the example from us and want to pick up a spoon and feed us back. Do we really need them to feed us? Of course not. But we still accept this from them, smile, show them how happy they made us by feeding us, etc. Since we know that through this game, they grow and develop. So ultimately the Creator is not lacking anything and does not change. And all of our attempts to bestow to Him are nothing more than a type of game for our own development.

Albert @ KabU

[Albert – KabU Instructor]

Hi Christianne,

I’m not an expert in other methods, even others that seemingly teach “kabbalah”, so I cannot comment on what they do or teach there. But in general, if we want to succeed in Kabbalah (or in any spiritual practice really) we should practice it without mixing in other things into it. Otherwise it’s like following two different GPS systems. One leads you to the goal through the west highway, while the other through the east highway. If you follow both, you’ll just wind up going in circles.

Also keep in mind that Kabbalah is not a religion, it’s a science. Everything that the Kabbalists wrote, including the Torah, they do so out of their attainment and research of spirituality.  Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2015/01/the-torah-is-a-program-and-a-guide/

As for 600,000, this is less of a quantitative number and more of a qualitative number. It represents the strength of the spiritual desire after it’s been fully corrected. So essentially all of humanity is included in this number.

Check out this blog post to see how this number is derived: https://laitman.com/2010/09/love-and-hatred-of-600000-souls/

As for being Jewish or not, this is not relevant here. The only condition to studying Kabbalah is the desire. If a person has such a desire (the point in the heart), then this entire wisdom is open to them, if not, then no. Furthermore, even if you see such words like Israel, Jewish, Gentile, etc used in Kabbalah, these terms are not referring to our corporeal bodies, but rather to our desires.

Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2008/08/can-a-gentile-study-kabbalah/

Albert @ KabU

[Albert – KabU Instructor]

google translation of the question:

Dear teacher Tony. I have so much respect for you and the way in which you can explain these difficult concepts understandably and clearly to me, who is starting with the study of Kabbalah. Thanks for this

My question: I read somewhere that in the Torah the arrangement of letters is ordained by God. Therefore, no letter may be changed. May I say then that the Torah is a scripture inspired by God, the higher light? Just like in the Christian bible I think.

Another question: Kabbalah refers to the 600,000 souls that come back again and again. The soul of Adam Kadmon.
Every primordial soul has a letter from the Torah and that is the root of the individual and that will reveal the Torah to the individual. But I’m not Jewish, I still belong to those 600,000 souls and can I also get that letter and find out where my roots lie, I would love to know what aspect of God I carry in my soul. I was born on 25/12/1952 and have a twin sister, did we get the same letter?

Kind regards Christianne

[Author]

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