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May 18, 2024

Archive for August, 2007

Kabbalah Today Issue 5 Podcast

Listen to the Kabbalah Today Issue 5 podcast by clicking on the Flash player’s button below:
[audio:http://files.kab.co.il/audio/eng_2007-07-06_bb-newspaper_kabbalah-today-05_compilation.mp3]

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A Kabbalah Today Issue 5 podcast compilation has been created containing the following playlist (the links are to the articles in the paper, containing the audio files for the articles alone):

What is (and is not) Kabbalah?
Creation, Evolution and Beyond
Baal HaSulam on Our Perception of Reality
Contradictory Phenomena
Kabbalah Icons: The Rabash

Click here to download the podcast (MP3 | 36.55mb)

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Kabbalistic Terminology: “Spiritual Degree” “Sefirot” “Bad”

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What is a Spiritual Degree?

Two things make up a spiritual degree: a desire for something and the intention to use it for the Creator. (p. 91 “The Reality Cycle” in The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah)

Sefirot
What are the Sefirot?

The whole business with the Sefirot may sound confusing, but it is less so if we remember that they stand for desires. Keter is the Creator’s desire to give Light (pleasure); Hochma is our reception of the pleasure; Bina stands for our desire to give back to the Creator; ZA is our desire to receive in order to give to the Creator; and Malchut is our pure desire to receive, the actual Root of the creatures – us. (p. 89, “Before the Big Bang” in The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah)

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Bad

There is no bad in Kabbalah; it’s all a question of how we relate to the situations we’re in. Pharaoh is considered an evil force. But Kabbalists inverted the Hebrew letters of the name Pharaoh and found that it really means Oref H (the posterior side of the Creator). In other words, Pharaoh is really the Creator goading you harshly to progress to spirituality because you are not pushing yourself fast enough. If you push faster, you will find that Pharaoh is your friend. (p. 141, “Letters, Numbers, Names” in The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah)

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VIDEO: The Ego’s Grip on Our Choices


The Ego’s Grip on Our Choices 02:14
Everything we choose, everything we do is a result of one fundamental calculation.

This clip is taken from Kabbalah Revealed episode 10: “Free Will, Part 1”

Click here to view the video at Kabbalah TV

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Misconceptions of Kabbalah – Numerology

We are continuing the “Misconceptions of Kabbalah” posts with this one on numerology…

PART OF AN ENTRY SENT BY MARY DARE: I thought the Kabbalah had something to do with Numerology. Since I had never been good with numbers, I stayed away from it…

Numerology and Kabbalah

The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah
FROM THE BOOK: The term numerology did not exist in authentic Kabbalah; contemporary scholars linked the two. Although numerology is not an accurate term to describe Kabbalah’s treatment of numbers, there is probably no better word to use if you want to translate the Hebrew term Gimatria into English.

Gimatria, in simple terms, describes a Kabbalist’s experience of the divine. In Kabbalah, the ego performs Yihudim (unifications) with the Creator. The shape of Hebrew letters depicts such unifications through dots and lines over a white background. The dots and the lines symbolize the states of the Kabbalist, who perceives the Creator. The white background symbolizes the divine light, the Creator.

In Hebrew, each letter of the 22-letter alphabet is assigned a specific number… The correlation between letters and numbers created a way for Kabbalists to describe to each other what they experienced in a concise and accurate manner. For example, the word Nega (affliction) and the word Oneg (pleasure) have the exact same letters (in a different order) and, therefore, the same numeric value. The inversion in the order of letters indicates that when affliction is corrected (from egoism to giving), a person experiences pleasure.

p. 11 in The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD and Collin Canright.

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New Rav Laitman Lecture Transcript

Rav Michael Laitman, PhD lecturing in Toronto (07-01-07)
Click here to read lecture transcript

A transcript from a public lecture filled with Q&A given by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD in Toronto (January 7, 2007) is now available. Rav Laitman first gave an overview of humanity’s egoistic development and some of the key stages of egoism’s growth in this development, and then answered the following questions:

? Is there a connection between the Torah and Kabbalah?
? How do Kabbalists feel about all the existing religions?
? Are you aware of the energetic images which constitute the Kabbalistic tree of life, and which were received as a consequence of extrasensory perception?
? From what I heard, famous Kabbalists are of the Jewish faith. Are there any Kabbalists of other faiths?
? Will everything written in the Torah occur in reality, or is it just an object of one’s imagination and unreal?
? What is the Creator? How do you see Him?
? How do you feel about Berg’s Center?
? Can a person join a group the moment he realizes or feels his “point in the heart”?
? Is it possible to change your fate once you grow spiritually?
? How does a person’s diet influence his studies in Kabbalah?
? How does Kabbalah differ from theosophy?
? Has any scientific data been collected affirming Kabbalah?
? Why did the Book of Zohar only become available in 1995?
? Are there Kabbalists-scientists who are not of Jewish descent (except Madonna)?
? Why do you call egoism an integral part of Kabbalah? Why is it egoism specifically, and not another positive word? Doesn’t egoism refer to a situation when something is done for one person, while Kabbalah wants the opposite, for everyone?
? Based on Kabbalah, as a science, can you assert that there is immortality?
? For how long does one need to study Kabbalah, and what will happen once a person learns it?
? Does having a grasp on Kabbalah help to conquer illnesses?
? What awaits North America?
? What can you tell us about the works of the Roerichs and the Blavatskys?
? Are the laws of the Upper Providence known?
? Can one study the original sources in translation?
? What do cybernetics, the theory of informational governance, and Kabbalah have in common?
? Why did Kabbalah become available during World War II?
? Kabbalah rejects religion. What connection does Kabbalah have with following a religion? In particular, what is the meaning of the Kippah (yarmulke)?
? Is there such a thing as reincarnations of souls?
? Is there a separation between the soul and the body after death?
? How can we tear a teenager away from drugs? What does Kabbalah say about this?
? How do the governments of different countries that are in authority today feel about Kabbalah?
? Is asceticism necessary in order to achieve the Upper spiritual world?
? Do you teach about the spiritual world?
? There are lots of different directions in Kabbalah. Which of them is correct?
? Are the Ari and Chefetz Chaim primary sources?
? Does Kabbalah engage in medical treatment, such as acupuncture?
? What happens to the soul after a person dies?
? Do all the feelings remain in the soul after death?
? Can Kabbalah explain the fact of life after death, or rebirth?
? Can you briefly state your opinion about the spiritual act called “the blow of fire,” or Pulsa Denura?
? Does this mean that there exists only one reality? …and we will need to return in order to achieve the proper level, or a transition to another reality?
? Is it possible to study Kabbalah without a teacher?
? Who is a Kabbalah teacher?
? How important is it to undergo the beginner stages of the revelation of egoism in one’s development? Is it possible to reach the Upper level, by-passing the lower stages?
? Are the books that laid the foundation for Kabbalah also written by people?
? Is Kabbalah the only way to attain the Upper level?
? How do I rid my wife and children of super egoism?
? By learning Kabbalah, do you believe in God?
? You mentioned that the world is becoming more dangerous. When will this change, when will it become better?
? Is it possible to receive the information we need without studying from books?
? You said that only by developing the soul and attaining the Upper World is it possible to fix our fate. In our understanding, this means finding a better position in this world, getting married successfully, making more money, or finding a better job. If a person attains the Upper World, doesn’t he become a part of the governing system?

Rav Michael Laitman, PhD, Lecture presented at the Bnei Baruch Kabbalah Education Center, Toronto. wmv video | mp3 audio | ms word transcript

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