READING: BETWEEN AFTER MIDNINGHT AND DAWN SUNDAY

Preparation to “Life in the Ten” Convention

LESSON MATERIAL

Preparation to “Life in the Ten” Convention – Selected Excerpts from the sources

1. Maor VaShemesh, VaYechi

The essence of the assembly is for everyone to be in one unity and for all to seek but one purpose: to find the Creator. In every ten there is the Shechina [Divinity]. Clearly, if there are more than ten then there is more revelation of the Shechina. Thus, each one should assemble with his friend and come to him to hear from him a word about the work of the Creator, and how to find the Creator. He should annul before his friend, and his friend should do the same toward him, and so should everyone do. Then, when the assembly is with this intention, then “More than the calf wants to suckle, the cow wants to nurse,” and the Creator approaches them and He is with them.

2. RABASH, Article No. 8 (1985), “Make for Yourself a Rav and Buy Yourself a Friend – 2”

Those people agreed to unite into a single group that engages in love of friends is that each of them feels that they have one desire that can unite all their views, so as to receive the strength of love of others. There is a famous maxim by our sages, “As their faces differ, their views differ.” Thus, those who agreed among them to unite into a group understood that there isn’t such a great distance between them in the sense that they recognize the necessity to work in love of others. Therefore, each of them will be able to make concessions in favor of the others, and they can unite around that.

3. Zohar for All, Nasso, “Why Have I Come and There Is No Man,” item 106

There must be ten […] at once, and not come bit by bit so as not to delay the wholeness of the organs. All ten are as organs of one body in which the Shechina is present, for the Creator made man at once, and established all his organs together.

4. Tana de Bei Eliyahu Zuta, Chapter 14

Israel are not redeemed by affliction or by enslavement, or by jolting, nor by madness or pressure or by absence of nourishment, but rather by ten people sitting with each other, and each of them reads and learns with his friend, and their voice is heard.

5. RABASH, Article No. 2, (1984), “Concerning Love of Friends”

One must disclose the love in his heart towards the friends, since by revealing it he evokes his friends’ hearts toward the friends so they, too, would feel that each of them is practicing love of friends. The benefit from that is that in this manner, one gains strength to practice love of friends more forcefully, since every person’s force of love is integrated in each other’s.

It turns out that where a person has one measure of strength to practice love of friends, if the group consists of ten members, then he is integrated with ten forces who understand the need, that it is necessary to engage in love of friends.

6. RABASH, Article No. 2 (1984), “Concerning Love of Friends”

We must remember that the society was established on the basis of love of others, so each member would receive from the group the love of others and hatred of himself. And seeing that his friend is straining to annul his self and to love others would cause everyone to be integrated in their friends’ intentions.

Thus, if the society is made of ten members, for example, each will have ten forces practicing self-annulment, hatred of self, and love of others.

7. Maor VaShemesh, Ekev

The most important is for each and every one to annul himself completely and not think of himself as righteous or that he counts at all among the friends. He should only see that his actions do not blemish the society. Although it seems as though he is a great person, he should nonetheless look into his actions and think, “What makes me great?” and annul himself completely. It is known that in every ten there is Shechina [Divinity], and this is a complete level. In a complete level, there are head, hands, legs, and heels. It follows that when every person regards himself as nothing in society, then he regards himself as a heel compared to the society, while they are the head, the body, and the higher organs. When each one thinks of himself in this way, they make the gates of abundance and every lushness in the world open up to them, and it is drawn the most through the person who is more regarded as “nothing” and as “a heel.”

8. RABASH, Article No. 6 (1984), “Love of Friends – 2”

If several individuals come together with the force that it is worthwhile to abandon self-love, but without the sufficient power and importance of bestowal to become independent, without outside help, if these individuals annul before one another and all have at least potential love of the Creator, though they cannot keep it in practice, then by each joining the society and annulling oneself before it, they become one body.

For example, if there are ten people in that body, it has ten times more power than a single person does. However, there is a condition: When they gather, each of them should think that he has now come for the purpose of annulling self-love. It means that he will not consider how to satisfy his will to receive now, but will think as much as possible only of the love of others. This is the only way to acquire the desire and the need to acquire a new quality, called “the will to bestow.”

And from love of friends one can reach love of the Creator, meaning wanting to give contentment to the Creator.

9. RABASH, Article No. 28 (1986), “A Congregation Is No Less than Ten”

Our sages said (Sanhedrin, 39), “In every ten there is Shechina.”

It is known that Malchut is called “tenth.” It is also known that the receiving Kli is also called “the Sefira Malchut,” who is the tenth Sefira, receiving the upper abundance. She is called “will to receive,” and all the creatures extend only from her. For this reason, a congregation is no less than ten, since all the corporeal branches extend from the upper roots. Therefore, according to the rule, “There is no light that does not have ten Sefirot,” in corporeality, something is not considered a congregation that can be regarded as important unless there are ten men there, such as the upper degrees.

10. RABASH, Article No. 5 (1984), “What Does the Rule, ‘Love Thy Friend as Thyself,’ Give Us?”

“A sacred audience,” we are referring to a number of individuals who have gathered and formed a unit. Afterwards, a head is appointed to the audience, etc., and this is called a Minian [ten/quorum] or a “congregation.” At least ten people must be present, and then it is possible to say Kedusha (a specific part of a Jewish prayer) at the service.

The Zohar says about it: “Wherever there are ten, the Shechina [Divinity] dwells.”

11. Rabbi Shmuel Bornstein, author of Shem MiShmuel

The word “gathering” is more unification of the heart and soul than the word “grouping.” “Grouping” can also pertain only to the body, although the views are not united. But a gathering of people is also with one heart. It is a gathering from the outside in, where they unite the most.