WEDNESDAY PRAYER: BINAH-TIKKUN CHATZOT תקון חצות – LESSON WITH RAV MICHAEL LAITMAN
READING: BETWEEN AFTER MIDNIGHT AND DAWN WEDNESDAY
Zohar for All. Introduction of The Book of Zohar. The Donkey Driver, item 83
Morning Lesson January 09, 2023 Transcription
Transcription is made from simultaneous translation which leaves a possibility for differences in the audio
Part 1:
Zohar for All. “Introduction of The Book of Zohar”. The Donkey Driver. #83
Reading Item 83. (00:42) “And because those circle and square are..”
1. S. (13:54)There are these two kinds of Malchut described here two Shabbats and square and circle and it says here that the Rosh has the shape of a circle as opposed to the Guf which is a square. Why does the Rosh have the shape of a circle? Is it like there are no limitations there even though they should be, is there calculation and screen?
R. These are not limitations of the Rosh itself, they’re limitations that rise up to it from the Guf. The Rosh does not have calculations; it does not change during all the years of their development.
S. Could you say that the screen rises from the Guf? How is the screen built? Is it born from the Rosh, how does it rise from the Guf?
R. There are often limitations that exist in the Guf that have to be connected together. They need to be brought to the Creator and ascribe them to the Creator and we should try to be above them because they are formed in the person only in order for him to rise above the limitations of the Guf and be only in the intention of the Rosh.
2. S. (15:34) He talks about the upper Sabbath and the lower Sabbath. He says that the upper Sabbath is included in the lower Sabbath and it’s not what is in the upper Sabbath with respect to itself. What does it mean that both subjects are included in the lower one?
R. It is possible with a single Sabbath to reach the corrections. The last Sabbath, the upper Sabbath, was written in advance; it was arranged in advance, it exists in advance because that is the end of correction.
S. What does it mean that it is included in the upper and the lower one in the Sabbath?
R. It is in order for it to have that future form that exists already. The first Sabbath means that Sabbath that we reach a shattering, a recognition of the shattering and so we have to connect the state that is broken and there is nothing in our life except for shattering and the last Sabbath which is all corrected, connected, united. These two Sabbaths, we need to ascribe them to the Creator and to make such movements from one to the other so that it doesn’t matter to us what state we are in, if we are in adhesion with the Creator. Then the ‘sin of the tree of knowledge’ that He made and also the ‘end of correction’ that He makes is all in order for us to become incorporated with these two states and in such a way we will acquire the essence of creation.
S. The Sabbath means crossing the barrier? Someone asked me what is Sabbath, is it the crossing of the barrier?
R. The barrier is unrelated to the Sabbath.
S. When do you reach this Sabbath?
R. The person reaches the Sabbath when he can unite with the Creator, within whatever awakens within him, truly within his heart and soul.
S. What does it mean? How do we reach the Sabbath?
R. When we reach there, I will tell you then you will know.
S. Is it the final correction?
R. No, Sabbath is also the final correction but in the middle we also have such milestones.
3. S. (18:45) Could you please explain what is the meaning of ‘remember and keep’ mentioned in the text?
R. No, it’s not simple, it will take a lot of explanation. We will study, we will study everything. Remember and keep, these are the main two states that we need to be incorporated in and we have to unite them and specifically by them we reach the corrections.
4. S. (19:35) I have a question about’ remember and keep? Why in the upper Sabbath it’s included in ‘remember’, but in’ keeping’ it’s not included in the upper Sabbath only when it is working together with the lowest Sabbath. Why wouldn’t the upper degree contain both the remember and the keep?
R.Remember and keep together will only be at the end of correction.
5. S. (20:34) We read that there is no keep but only in the Nukva. The question is, what is the keeping that is required in the Nukva?
R. The keeping that needs to be there is that we will not fall from the connection between us. This is what it is all about, all in all, all of these words that we read about the Sabbath and around the Sabbath, around the corrections, these are all in order for us to reach the correction and not to become separated and not to fall from it.
6. S.(21:25) Regarding the Sabbath, it is written, fear my temple.
R. Please repeat the question.
S. It is said on the Sabbath, fear my temple. What exercise can we do in the Ten to fulfill this Mitzvah?
R. Only connection. We have nothing else to do here except for the connection. To build a temple from our connection.
7. S. (22:34) I don’t understand the difference between upper and lower Sabbath?
R. You will understand it. We will study it. We have just started to read about it. You will see how much material will be about that.
8. S. (23:05) I would like to clarify the order of the work. On Sabbath how can we work correctly with the new desire so that we have what to work with in the 6 days or do we first work with the first 6 days that we haven’t been able to correct, we then correct on Sabbath, so what is the right order?
R. Yes, it’s a very correct question and we will need to scrutinize it but you asked very nicely.
Reading Item 84: (23:59) “There are two kinds of peace below..”
9. R. (28:05) We reached 85 well for the time being. He’s just giving us some information but there is no explanation yet that would connect all of these things together so please.
Reading Item 85: (28:09) “From afar, is the highest point..”
10. S. (48:57) When reading the Zohar sometimes a person comes to a state where we feel a certain type of pleasure from reading it but there’s still no real understanding of the text?
R. Of course, certainly it’s a great pleasure to read the Zohar. You are actually reading about what you deserve. You didn’t get it yet but this is what you will have, and therefore it’s some kind of nice promise which is awaiting you and this is why it greatly attracts you and it’s very interesting and very pleasant.
S. There’s no flaw in not understanding? Is it just a simple promise?
R. No, it’s not a flaw or a blemish. First of all if you don’t understand it’s not a blemish because you don’t understand. This is standing there before you, it’s guaranteed and everyone will get what they should get in its time and the Creator will keep that.
S. When we feel pleasure do we ride it like a wave?
R. Yes, yes become incorporated in that feeling become incorporated in it, nevertheless that ties us to the Zohar to holiness. The fact that we want to know it. and see it. and feel it. and to be filled and to taste, it’s all good. Like little children, there is something in that that belongs to us.
11. S. (51:15) Who is the righteous who is described here? What does it mean that he is given a soul? I thought that the soul that if you are righteous you already have a soul but here he distinguishes between the two how can that be?
R. A person who justifies the Creator is called righteous in Hebrew, Tsadik, he justifies the Creator so he is Tsadik righteous and he gets a special illumination from above the advances him to the Creator to greater and greater degrees of justification and this is how he has to overcome and go forward and justified the Creator on all the degrees that open up before him.
S. About the donkey driver I’d like to ask as well, what is this form of connection between the upper one and the righteous?
R. He explains to you that there is a connection between the upper degree and the lower degree which is the middle degree, which performs the function of linking and elevating the lower degree to the upper degree. We cannot jump but we need assistance from above here, which gives the lower degree confidence and strength that recognition and providence. This is how it is like a little one who grabs the hand of the upper one and then he can also rise to the higher degree.
12. S. (53:30) About the donkey driver, is this some sort of higher soul or angel?
R. Yes.
13. S. (54:00) We’ve been studying the Zohar and reading it for the past few weeks and days and we gathered today physically, here in Los Angeles and we’ve been feeling the Zohar a little bit different. In one way it’s very heavy where it’s kind of bringing us some sleepiness and some sort of heaviness between us at the same time there is an upliftment like the friend was saying this joy and gratitude at the same time. If you can elaborate on this, is it the physical connection, is it that we’re all in the same intention? To make sense of the feeling if that can be done?
R. It’s both, I think you both somewhat remember your childhood, you’re not that old yet. I actually remember my own childhood and I had some legends or tales, I even remember some of the drawings of those books, in those children’s books, so we should try to accept the Zohar as teaching us in such a way. It gives us depictions and tales and stories and we go with it just like in those big old books which used to be kind of big and squarish and we used to look into them and read and not necessarily understand what was written, our parents or someone else would read to us, so that’s how we grew up and today we have Gilad the captain, who is our teacher, not our teacher but he points to us and shows us the story of the Zohar and I think that it’s worthwhile for us during the day also after the lesson to go back to what the Zohar writes because these words, these sentences, they are very very important, we don’t recognize the extent to which it works on the soul.
S. Is the physical gathering and the physical connection important, is that something that we can do everyday?
R. The more you gather the greater the effect.
14. S. (57:40) There is something here that we don’t understand. It says here in 85 that we have to be careful. Is this related to us even though we don’t understand anything, do we have to be careful or?
R. No, we just have to know the text. It doesn’t matter to us how we accept it. Is it well or not well, understood or not? What’s important is to keep swallowing and swallowing just like with a little child, he’s given one spoon after the other as long as he just swallows up and grows. That’s how in the meantime we should accept the Zohar. So good luck and get fatter.
15. S. (58:50) The topic of the donkey driver, how can we be donkey drivers in our preparation in this process, how can we turn our experiments and our attempts to bestow, how can we become the donkey drivers?
R. What an appetite you have, that you want to be the donkey driver. We are very little and we expect the donkey driver to appear to us which drives us and we are the donkeys and it drives us from one degree to the next and that’s how we rise. So it’s not our job to be the driver, let’s wish that we will get to know our role, which is to follow after, to be led by this force called the donkey driver.
16. S. (1:00:31) During the reading there was a feeling that this excerpt is telling us don’t worry there is providence in each and every stage and you’re getting precise assistance and that walking is without clear knowledge but we’re being guided by forces that embrace us and guide us very precisely?
R. Yes, correct.
17. S. (1:01:11) When we are under the Zohar lesson even in the meetings between us, friends develop all sorts of sensitivities and in the lesson we feel some kind of weakness, what do you suggest for us to be in the right form in the lesson?
R. I recommend not to forget that the Zohar is a commentary on the Torah, it is intended for us to attain the Creator, it was written 2000 years ago, and it’s exactly intended for our time that’s why it becomes revealed today and we are revealing it, we’ve been privileged to do that and we have to learn it the way it appears and as the Kabbalists who revealed it, Baal HaSulam and Rabash, how they present it to us, let’s take it and engage in it and read it as much as possible and go back to it much as possible until it becomes understood to us and felt by us as the upper light.
18. S. (1:02:57) In item 84 it writes: His sister stood from afar. What is the sister in the article?
R. His sister usually refers to the Schechina. Malchut which is about to become corrected.
19. S. (1:03:40) Is it possible, while reading the Zohar, to feel that we are these characters and to think with the meeting that we have with the friends that we put the text in front of us and we feel this force of pleasure, of unity. Is it possible to imagine that we are feeling these emotions a little bit?
R. Yes, it’s worthwhile for us to do this. Just as you read in your childhood all kinds of stories about people who cross the sea and climbed mountains and all kinds of Adventures, and you would imagine yourself with them, to the point that you would feel fear about it and all kinds of emotions like now, same now, try to get into the Zohar with as much emotion as you can. Go ahead, just not to imagine too much because in short however it goes we will correct it.
20. S. (1:05:30) It says in 85 that Rabbi Aba said let’s open the gates of Torah, now is the time to open it up and correct the ways of the Creator, so there are many questions about this, Opening up the gates of Torah, what is this action in the connection between us in the ten?
R. This means that if you connect between you, if you are connecting between you, by that you let the light flow and shine from above downwards to us. This is what’s called opening the gates of light, it happens by connection.
S. Opening up the gates of the Torah, the gates of the light, should there be some point here where I reach the understanding that only together with my ten I can open the gates of the Torah or is it something more precise?
R. There is no more to say more precisely if you don’t connect, you won’t discover anything.
21. S. (1:07:23) Yesterday we connected a bit more and we went beyond our ordinary connection and we reached a new point of connection and today in the study of the Book of Zohar we truly felt a new key, it’s like when you focus your vision and now you can see forces that are behind these words, the book is working very well, so how does it work when you truly begin to get behind the words that are written and you start to feel it, how does that work?
R. That’s how it works.
S. How does the light of Hassadim and the Zohar, how are they connected together, where does the light of Hassadim stem from?
R.The light of Hassadim comes from above and it opens the channel or the path through which to shine the light of Hochma, first there has to be light of Hassadim and then inside of the light of Hassadim the light of Hochma can shine, that is how it works.
S. What is our part in that or maybe we don’t have any part?
R. Through the connection between us comes the light of Hassadim and through our efforts to know and to connect comes the light of Hochma.
22. S. (1:09:10) In the article it says a couple of times “fear my temple”, is it talking about the fear of not being able to bestow upon the Creator?
R. “Fear my temple” means that we are afraid if we can say that, if we can use that word, afraid of losing the connection between us and so the light will depart.
23. S. (1:09:52) It says that he’s walking on foot before his donkeys leading them, what does it mean walking on foot?
R. That he is walking before them, meaning not like the donkey driver that sits on the donkey, but goes ahead of the donkey, we will look into that later, for now, let’s go.
Reading number 86 (1:13:28): “They told him who let you…”
24. R. (1:14:30) Yes, well all these things will clarify later on, he writes this in short right now, next.
Reading number 87 (1:14:45) “Yod came to me alone, kissed, embraced me…”
25. S. (1:25:25) The feeling in the 10 that we are donkeys and we want to become this donkey driver, sitting on top of the donkey, and now we see that you can also walk in front of the donkey and you can have passengers on the back so what is changing here, what are these emotions, or these forces working on us? What is the work to become this donkey driver that you’re walking in front of the donkey, so what is changing in the ten, what are these changes?
R. The donkey driver is a role, it’s a role that can simply be responsible for taking all the matter of the group and lead them to a higher degree, that’s not simple. Each and everyone needs to take upon himself this mission and then we will rise up.
S. And you say it’s not simple but we’re reading the Zohar so how can we make it simple, what is your advice to really make it simple and we can work with it in a direct way to become this donkey driver, this yearning to be this donkey driver that we can drive the donkey with all the passengers on top of it?
R. Be responsible for the friends. Whereas we do want to connect and each is willing to be responsible for everyone, that is called to be in a group that has a donkey driver which is their common and the one that leads them towards their path.
26. S. (1:28:00) They’re asking questions here, do we have to ask these questions: who’s leading us and why is he doing it this way?
R. No, if it does not arise and it doesn’t bother you then don’t ask it, a question needs to be a deficiency that truly comes and bothers me along the way.
S. So they’re asking because they’re really close to him and they want to be like him and that’s why they’re asking?
R. Probably they are.
27. S. (1:28:39) About that exalted soul that the Creator is ascending in order to help the righteous, is that something that exists? Does that soul exist in us or is it something that is supposedly outside of us like the friends?
R. We exist in it, we exist in it.
28. S. (1:29:20) It says in the article that a person who enters the area of the square and circle can flaw it, how can it be that you can flaw the light in the temple?
R. What a person takes upon himself actions that he cannot carry out its called that he can harm it and that he can damage it.
29. S. (1:30:06) Why do those three states called Ibur, Yenika and Mochin called the donkey driver?
R. It’s not them that are the donkey driver but rather whoever wants to rise on the degrees go through those three stages.
30. S. (1:30:40) In the second part it is written that we already know that the donkey driver is the impregnation of the soul of the righteous that comes in order to help rise to a higher degree and it’s similar to the donkey helping the people going from one place to the other?
R. What do you mean how to understand this, you don’t understand what is being explained here?
S. I don’t understand how the donkey driver is helping people?
R. A person walks before the donkeys and pulls them, and pulls them in a specific way in a special way and that’s how they rise up and that’s considered that he is the driver of the donkeys, it’s the same thing with the one that drives the soul it comes to a person and draws him and leads him on a special way and then a person advances after it and comes to the right state.
S. We’re not speaking about one person, it’s the ten?
R. Usually it is the ten.
31. S. (1:21:20) The donkey driver, is that something constant?
R. The donkey driver is a very special degree and whoever receives it is truly a special person. Later we will see who this donkey driver is and what kind of soul this needs to be.
Reading item 88 (1:33:05) “Rabbi Elazar and Rabbi Aba rejoiced, wept and said…”
32. S. (1:39:30) In the previous paragraph, at one point it says, before a man can receive a great degree, he has to distance himself from the Mochin. What is the meaning of this?
R. Well, that’s a change in our degrees. So the previous Mochin emerges outwards and the new Mochin enter. It’s already like that; it’s a law, this is considered the refinement of the Partzuf and then the Zivug de Haka’a and the new light comes and fills the Partzuf.
33. S. (01:40:29) What is the meaning of shame from not receiving the Mochin?
R. I can’t explain; it’s a feeling. It’s a very unpleasant feeling.
34. S. (01:40:47) What is the bestowal that is accumulated by justifying the Creator on every degree?
R. That is what is revealed as coarseness on every degree along the way.
35. S. (01:41:15) What should we do in the state that we think that we didn’t get an answer from the Creator. When should we repeat the request to the Creator?
R. We cannot decide that, that is by the Creator awakening questions in us and then we turn to Him.
36. S. (01:41:40) What deeds do we need to do in order to be rewarded with the light of Hassidim?
R. Acts of bestowal. Acts of bestowing in order to bestow.
37. S. (01:41:56) A little while ago, we were saying how the state of a poor man is when he has no forces, why is the Messiah also poor?
R. That’s how it’s written, we will discover it and we will know it.
38. S. (01:42:30) The donkey driver is the one that goes before the donkey but is he also behind him that pokes him?
R. Yes, he nevertheless guides them although he usually walks before them.
S. What is the difference?
R. I don’t know. I don’t want to go into that. He doesn’t explain that exactly so why should we go into that. Questions like that I don’t like.
39. S. (01:43:23) What is the Zohar guiding us to do? To not be donkeys anymore?
R. Yes.
S. What are the conditions to not be a donkey anymore because I am still a donkey?
R. To stop being a donkey is to start being the driver.
S. What are the conditions to not be a donkey anymore?
R. That I will obligate myself.
S. So, who can be the donkey driver, you? We have a Rav, he’s the donkey driver, right?
40. S. (01:44:20) Has the time come for us to be the donkey driver’s on every degree and how to do it?
R. When the time comes I will let you know.
41. S. (01:42:00) What is the relation between the intention and the feeling from reading the texts and how do they influence each other?
R. The intention also awakens in us through the feeling and clarifies; I don’t understand the difference between them.
S. How does the intention deepen from reading the text, from feeling the Zohar or is it the other way around? We are keeping the constant intention and it is influencing the feeling of the reading.
R. Both this and that. For now it is so un-scrutinised that I can’t speak clearly or more precisely.
42. S. (01:46:31) I wrote down that you said before that the donkey driver is a role to be responsible for all the matter in the group and lead it to the Creator. So, when we incorporate with the friends matter, should we justify the states we are going through or ask for correction? What is the right thing to do?
R. First, to justify and after if we are in mutual work, then to do corrections in all of us.
S. If we go through that state can we recognize the donkey driver taking us together with all of our states that are being revealed?
R. Of course, yes.
S. And why do we not recognize the donkey driver in the beginning of his degree? What is the addition that afterwards you do recognize his degree in greatness?
R. This is how it is for us: our relation, our attitude towards the Creator, how do we become closer to Him, how do we hold onto Him?
43. S. (01:48:00) How in the same degree can there be two contradicting qualities; that one pulls and the other is drawn?
R. Yes, this is how it usually is: one cannot be without the other.
S. But isn’t a degree a complete quality?
R. A degree is not a complete quality. A degree can be a complete quality when it is included from two opposites that are balanced and drawn towards one goal and support one another. But every half of the degree can also act on its own.
Excerpt 89 (01:49:18) “But my father’s dwelling place..”