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Hi Koriander,
1. You can say that. But keep in mind that avoiding the path of suffering also requires an awakened point in the heart. Otherwise a person is not at all interested in taking the path of light to correct their egoistic nature.
2. There are 613 desires that we need to correct. Corresponding to each desire, there is a mitzvah (commandment). These are the INTERNAL processes by which we correct that specific desire. In other words, Kabbalists don’t look at the 613 mitzvot as physical actions to be performed by our hands and feet, but rather as allegories to the internal process of correcting our desires.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2016/02/mitzvot-commandments-the-correction-of-desires/
Keep in mind that the 613 desires are spiritual desires that we don’t yet have. This is similar to how a single cell in a body only has some basic desires. But when that cell is part of a greater body, it reveals there higher desires which are impossible for the individual cell to have: desires for money, honor, power, etc. Same with us, until we integrate with the general body of Adam HaRishon, we don’t reveal or understand these 613 spiritual desires.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2008/12/all-you-need-to-know-about-the-613-desires/
3. We learn from the lesson on the perception of reality that the external world is a reflection of my own internal world. It’s like I have these dirty glasses through which I see the whole world as dirty. The moment I clean my own glasses, I’ll look at the same world, but now it’s clean and perfect.
So we don’t need to go out to the world and start correcting things we see there. We only need to focus on our own correction. And when we correct ourselves, this correction will be reflected in the world.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2014/04/in-neutral-gear/
Albert @ KabU
Hi Demilew,
Practically discovering the 125 steps works according to the law of equivalence of form. Meaning that in order to discover those steps, we need to become similar to them, to those greater and greater degrees of love and bestowal that are found there. So to the extent that we correct our egoistic nature towards the direction of love and bestowal, to that extent we discover those 125 steps.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2013/04/everything-is-attained-by-the-equivalence-of-form/
Fully reconnecting to that root is the purpose of our lives. All of life is designed in such a way that will push us in that direction. Our choice is whether we want to reach that goal consciously and willingly, or unconsciously and unwillingly, through blows and suffering. So the benefit of aspiring to that goal consciously, is that we can avoid the path of blows and suffering, and develop in a much more pleasant way.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2011/01/lets-go-with-the-light/
As for balance, a Kabbalist continues to exist on the level of this world throughout the entire spiritual ladder of degrees. As such, we need to continue to take care of all of our necessities in the normal way: to work, take care of the family, health, etc. In addition to that, we also need to set aside some time to regularly return to the Kabbalistic studies. This is the balance we should aspire to reach. We’ll learn how to implement this practically in the more advanced lessons.
Albert @ KabU
Hi Matthew,
Authentic Kabbalah has been around for about 5800 years, but it’s been concealed for the past 2,000 years, so people don’t really know what it’s all about. Just picture a 2,000 year old game of telephone and all the distortions that would spring up as a result.
So I cannot vouch for the information you would find out about it on Google. If you have any questions about the materials that are presented here, feel free to ask and I’ll be happy to clarify them.
Albert @ KabU
Hi Koriander,
Kabbalah and Judaism are two separate things. Let’s put a few things into perspective to understand this:
Kabbalah is the method of correcting our egoistic nature and thereby revealing the Creator, the general force of love and bestowal. The first one to actualize this was Adam. His name gives us a hint at this since Adam comes from the Hebrew word “Dome”, meaning “similar to”. He was not the first one alive, but rather the first one to reveal the Creator by becoming similar to this quality of bestowal.
This wisdom gets passed onward from Adam until Abraham who adapted it to the people of his generation and made the wisdom more practical. Abraham put together a large group of Babylonians who were interested in actualizing this method. These people later on became the Israeli nation. The word Israel comes from the Hebrew words “Yashar” “El” meaning straight to God. These are the people who had an active point in the heart in those days and were interested in revealing the Creator.
These people greatly succeeded in this method. The peak of their success was symbolized in the building of the first and second temple, which reflected the level of unity and bestowal they were able to reach. At a certain point, they lost the spiritual connection between them (the destruction of the 2nd temple) and what remained was just these external symbols of their connection.
At this point the wisdom of Kabbalah became concealed. People still had the holy books, Torah and etc, but they did not know how to use them. Since the Torah is written in the language of roots and branches. Meaning it uses words of our world to describe spiritual phenomena. But if a person does not have this spiritual connection through which he can see this, then he thinks this book is talking about this world, history, morals, commandments, etc. From this emerges the Jewish religion.
From all the above we see that Kabbalah itself is not connected to any religion and that the modern religions came out due to the concealment of Kabbalah. At the same time, Kabbalah is not against religions. In fact we have millions of students worldwide, from many different backgrounds and religions. Many of them do choose to maintain their religion or to perform certain religious customs while studying Kabbalah and there is nothing wrong with that. Just like with any other science, a person can be religious and also be a chemist or physicist. Likewise a person can be religious and also study the science of Kabbalah. Baal HaSulam writes that even after the full spiritual correction people can still keep their religions.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2015/12/the-wisdom-of-kabbalah-and-the-other-religions/
Albert @ KabU
Hi Ben,
Spiritual advancement happens specifically from the ups AND downs. It’s just like the EKG chart that measures the heart. If there are ups and downs, the heart is beating, the body is alive. If it flatlines, the body dies.
Likewise in our spiritual work, our advancement is composed of many ups and downs. But if we’re in the same state for a long period of time, then we stop advancing and are spiritually dead.
So what you are experiencing is normal. We go through many states on the spiritual path. Many ups, downs, and everything in between. The main thing is to just keep going, to keep placing yourself under the influence of the light, especially during the Kabbalistic studies (lessons, videos, Q/A forums, books, etc), and it will balance everything out.
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
Hi Yijun,
Kabbalah has been passed down from teacher to student for almost 6000 years.
Check out this blog post from Rav Laitman for more details: https://laitman.com/2011/06/kabbalah-without-a-trace-of-mysticism/
Kabbalah avoided religious style expansion because the Kabbalists followed the strict rule that “there is no coercion in spirituality”. Meaning that we cannot force someone to study Kabbalah. We just wait until a person develops the point in the heart and then they themselves come searching for it.
Albert @ KabU
