From Dr. Laitman's Blog

A Unified Agreement

Posted on November 20th, 2011 at 8:18 pm

To develop our spiritual sensation, we unite and connect. We have to attain the kind of unity that is called, "mutual guarantee." Essentially, this is the vessel for feeling the spiritual, eternal and perfect life that is outside the body.

For that we have to do what Kabbalists, who are people that have already gone through this path, advise us to. They are our teachers and are therefore called "Rabbanim" in Hebrew, which is the plural of Rav, meaning a "great" person before whom I bend down my head like before an experienced instructor that is worthwhile to listen to.

He accomplished the transition from the sensation of just this world to the sensation of the upper world, and moreover, he went through many states and levels there. Therefore he can help me with advice throughout the whole path, until I complete my development in the true world. By virtue of Kabbalists, I reveal the gates to the world, enter it, and advance.

Kabbalits advise us to unite, and in that unity, by making great efforts in spite of our egoism and natural disregard, to look precisely for the feelings we disregard. I reject the neighbor and hate him, I am unable to even think about how we can be truly close to one another. But Kabbalists tell us that we have to be as one man with one heart, uniting in the mind and feeling to such an extent that no boundaries will remain between us in thoughts or desires.

This is all painfully opposite to our nature. We are being offered such conditions that we would be willing to trade them for anything else. We are nauseous from this and are thrown away from it at every moment in different directions-anything but unity. We just want to cover ourselves up with half-hearted advice and actions, lie to ourselves and others that everything is normal...But we can't.

What can help us here are demands imposed by physical unity: We act all together and no one can evade his responsibilities. That is exactly why we are in this world of actions that are not defined by intention. In spirituality, the thought is the action, but in corporeality they are divided: I can think about one thing, desire another, and do a third.

This is the wonderful quality of our world: Here we can start the path to spirituality without even yet thinking about it for real or wishing for it sincerely. We are able to make actions that pride, passion, ambition, envy, and shame incite us to do-everything that is inherent to our egoism.

Therefore, being in the group, at the end of the day, I must carry out what it obligates each of its members to do. After that, by virtue of that, I advance involuntarily. I must only push myself into the group, take on obligations, and sign a "unified agreement" with the friends that under any circumstances, they have obliged me and I have obliged them to need one another. That is how we advance, using our egoism.

Thus, in our world we have the opportunity to start the spiritual path from zero, from pure ambition. We activate its negative qualities, connecting with one another by the unity of mutual help, and use all the negative qualities just to observe this unity. In this case, you obligate the friend and he obligates you, and you both advance, having no other choice.

This is exactly what we saw when we went to the convention in the Arava desert. We found ourselves together without external influences and discovered that the group can obligate every person to rise and come closer to the sensation outside the body, where a person begins to discern details hitherto unknown, a different existence "outside of the skin of his body." It turns out that "outside of us" is really possible. That is how we advance.

Today we can unite with one another in this world by means of the right egoistic actions. However, now every one of us has to "jump out of his skin," rise above his personal egoism, above his entire being, and unite with friends into a single whole. Stated differently, every person must rise above himself and go from the material group to the spiritual one.

Then the common vessel will form, the common soul, the holy Shechina where we will reveal the Creator on the first spiritual level. We made a big step toward this and acquired a common sensation, and now we must strengthen ourselves.

Thus, we build the vessel of mutual guarantee: We pledge not to forget one another and all together we take care of our spiritual life. After all, this is the purpose of our current existence in the material world, the goal of all people and this whole reality. Only by virtue of mutual care will we rise to the level of spiritual unity.

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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson on 11/20/11, "Mutual Guarantee"

Convention At The Arava Desert: “As One Man With One Soul”

Posted on November 22nd, 2011

Here are some pictures from the convention at the Arava Desert, November 18-19, 2011.

[Show as slideshow]

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The Fire Of The Hearts Lights Up The Darkness

Posted on November 22nd, 2011

Many sparks have gathered here, each of us carries a big spark-so let's try to connect them! The Light is waiting to connect us into a single soul, one Kli.

As soon as we attain the first degree of unification between us, the lightest and the weakest one, the very first step on the spiritual ladder between here and the world of Infinity, at that point we'll be able to reveal the Light, the presence of the Creator between us.

We'll hope for it to happen! Everything depends on our efforts. Our goal here is to rise above our physical bodies, above all our personal thoughts and desires, and begin to exist together above them in one desire and one thought. We need to constantly try to let go of the sensation of our body and instead sense only the higher reality where we are all connected.

The spiritual world is connection and unity. The fact that such different people have gathered here can actually make for a faster and more successful connection.

We are extremely happy that our friends came from abroad just for one day. They show just how important and special this event is to them. We must put in the effort. After all, there are millions of people out there who are connected to us and who are looking at us.

We are the central group, and the Light that we attract will spread everywhere and reach everyone. Just feel the importance of this mission, the intensity of this moment. There are no outside disturbances and no outside world; there's only us, united into one heart and one thought for the sake of revealing the upper force between us.

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From Lesson 1, Arvut Convention at the Arava Desert 11/18/2011

New Flavors In The “Creator’s Kitchen”

Posted on November 24th, 2011

Question: How do we need to unite with each other before the December convention? How do we prepare for it to experience everything the right way?

Answer: We do not do anything different: We read the same articles, we hear the same things, but still, it is written: "It has to be like new in your eyes." Why is it said, "like new"? Because you renew it by revealing your Aviut, your new details of perception, more and more.

We know that when we are served a new dish, we have no idea how to approach it. But once we have tasted it plenty of times and become accustomed to it like to "our mother's cooking" which has been familiar to us since childhood, then we can enjoy its taste to the maximum.

The same happens in the spiritual Partzufim. The first time the Light enters, it is nothing else but the Light of Nefesh. The second time it is already the Light of Ruach that enters the same old Reshimot (informational genes), the third time it is the Light of Neshama, and so on.

In other words, every time man advances, he returns to what he has already experienced and discovers a greater depth, feels more flavor in it, as it is written: "You will eat what has long been laid in store for you." It is the same with us. Every time, in the same place, but only deeper and deeper, we have to be more connected with one another, more unified and directed towards a true connection.

Let us hope for this and raise our prayer so it would become a "prayer of many," in mutual guarantee.

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From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/23/2011, The Zohar

What If I Fall Out Of The Loop?

Posted on November 21st, 2011 at 8:18 pm

Question: We have pledged to take care of one another in order to uphold the standard we achieved in the Arava and to keep moving further. But what should a person do if he suddenly discovers that he has "fallen out of the loop"? Should he feel that he is drilling a hole in the common boat?

Answer: Of course. And this should be a source of great distress for him. First of all, it's not simple to reach the sensation of unity, but he should at least regret the fact that he is separated from it. Secondly, let him feel bad from knowing that all the friends are already there. Thirdly, his absence harms others, and this entire harm is recorded in his account.

This way, he misses out on much more than his personal concern because his part is idle in every one of the friends and does not complete each one of them. It turns out that his harm is multiplied by the number of members in the group.

Until now we talked about the egoistic calculation, but now let's look at the problem from the other side. A person does not support his friends with mutual guarantee, does not become similar to the Creator, and does not attain bestowal to Him by working in the group. This spiritual damage is not as obvious, but we have to remember about it as well.

Question: Can we say that by doing so a person shifts not only the whole group, but also the whole world to evil?

Answer: If you have received the opportunity to enter mutual guarantee with your friends, then by participating in the common work, obviously you shift the world to goodness. After all, every person is part of the common network and we are its central part. Therefore, by strengthening the group, I strengthen the whole world in its spiritual ascent. And the opposite is also true.

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From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/21/11, "Mutual Guarantee"

We Have Been Given A Second Chance

Posted on November 25th, 2011

You have probably heard that the Ari once told his students: "If we go up to Jerusalem today, we will be able to reach the end of correction (Gmar Tikkun). Let's get together in an hour and go up there, let's continue this way!"

When the students began to assemble after an hour, one of them said that he couldn't come for one reason, another for another reason, an other's wife wouldn't let him go, and another couldn't go because of the children, or because of some illness or some other problems. And so they didn't ascend to the state of Gmar Tikkun.

We don't understand how such interruptions could have stopped the Ari's students from reaching the exalted state of Gmar Tikkun. But we also don't understand what obstacles are given to a person from Above so that he will draw closer to correction.

We are neither the strongest nor the most special. We are actually the weakest of all the generations that preceded us. But we are living in very special times, and these times require a great correction, which is possible to carry it out! Therefore, even if we are not worthy of it, even if we are not strong enough or don't really understand what we are doing, the upper force still connects us and pushes us forward.

So we mustn't forget what we have to do. We should try as hard as we can! And the Creator will finish this job for us.

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From Lesson 1, Arvut Convention at the Arava Desert 11/18/2011

Achieve More Than Me!

Posted on November 23rd, 2011

Question: How can we help each other at this convention so that everyone will be able to rise above himself?

Answer: First of all, if I am thinking about rising above myself, thus I help others. It is enough that I "plug" my personal "hole at the bottom of the boat." This is one thing.

Second, if I think about others and care about them, I help them. Third, my concern for others is expressed in the fact that I see my friends who have invested so much effort, time, strength, and money against many disturbances, and I want to reach such a state when my effort contributes to their spiritual attainment because they deserve more than I do.

I am concerned that they do not disconnect from the correct intentions, true desires, the connection between us. In my desire, I am so worried that they do not "fall" and think only about that.

This concern is the best protection possible in our state, and it ensures that not a single person falls out of this mutual guarantee between us, and we are always above our ego. Everyone should be on alert, thinking only about his friends, like a mother who cares about all her children.

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From Lesson 1, Arvut Convention at the Arava Desert 11/18/2011

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