A Descent is a Trampoline for Ascent

Our entire work lies in finding the right attitude to the states we receive. While doing this work, we gradually begin to break ourselves up into two components:

1. My desire, in which I perceive various phenomena, such as good and evil,

2. The mind, in which I discern Who sends me my sensations and with what purpose.

To the degree I am able to analyze my states independently of the sensation "good or bad," I am able to understand these states and justify them in spite of my sensation. I can desire them for the sake of revealing the quality of bestowal, the Creator, even though the revelation of every new state means that I will first feel suffering due to the revelation of a new, empty desire.

My attitude to this empty desire can change my sensation of its emptiness. The sensation of the goal, a connection with the Creator, can put me in high spirits that will greatly exceed my sensation of suffering.

That is why we have the opportunity to ascend above the unpleasant sensations in our intentions, in our sensation of the connection with the Creator. We can justify all of creation so greatly that precisely this gap will help us ascend above the unpleasant sensations and even elicit their revelation in order to ascend even higher above them.

We cannot change any state in our development, but we can ask for the understanding of how goal-oriented and good they are, above our will to enjoy.

That is how we can accelerate our development and go through the states of descent in such a way that we won't feel they are descents, but a reason to ascend. Everything depends on our attitude to what happens to us.

From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/16/2010,  "What is the Matter of Sufferings in the Work"

A Marvelous Bridge Into The Zohar

We have a problem with perceiving The Book of Zohar because even though Rashbi wrote it for our times, he did so from the height of his soul and used an ancient style from 2000 years ago. Obviously, this book does not suit us in this form because we are at the end of the final exile, absolutely detached from the spiritual world. Therefore, we don't know how to open up this book and how to use it to work on ourselves.

That is why Baal HaSulam created a "ladder" (Sulam) for us, so we can rise along it to the height of The Book of Zohar. This ladder is built so that there is commentary for every excerpt of The Book of Zohar. And it doesn't matter how much of this book we understand! The truth is that we don't understand the commentary or the book itself. Nevertheless, the commentary creates a connection between us and the original text of The Zohar.

The same happens on every degree. As we ascend along the degrees, we enter The Book of Zohar through the Sulam Commentary. Without this commentary it would be impossible to connect to The Book of Zohar.

The Sulam is not necessary in order to understand, but for us to attain inner unity. Even if I don't understand the Sulam Commentary or The Book of Zohar, but I use them and connect to the source, The Zohar starts to influence me.

At first the Sulam is necessary in order to connect us to the Light that Reforms. Without this we would have no possibility of using this marvelous means.

As I read, I am influenced by the Light through the reading, the study, and the group, and the Light awakens new qualities in me. These new qualities enable me to really establish contact with The Book of Zohar and to start to feel what happens there, what is written there. Only then can we speak about understanding The Zohar.

From the 4^th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/16/10, Yahrtzeit Baal HaSulam