Kabbalah Revealed #6

The Screen
Lecture presented for the American television channel, Shalom TV
Anthony Kosinec
July 9, 2006
Bold and indented: Original text of Rav Michael Laitman, Ph
lowercase italics: emphasized words
Capitalized Italics: transliteration from Hebrew
ello and !elcome a"ain to Kabbalah Revealed# $%m Tony Kosinec#
$n this lesson !e !ill learn a&out the principle tool of attainment in the methodolo"y
of Ka&&alah# 'e !ill learn a&out the &uildin" of an additional sense, a si(th sense that
ena&les a person to sense and enter an )pper *eality that !e call +spirituality#, $t%s the
method of how to enter the Spiritual 'orlds#
-irst let%s .uic/ly loo/ at !hat !e learned in the last lesson#
$n the last lesson !e loo/ed at the creation of the creature in four phases and !e sa!
that creation starts !ith a Thou"ht0the Thou"ht of the 1reator, the Thou"ht of
1reation !hich is to create a creature and fill that creature !ith deli"ht# And
immediately, !e see a response in the creation, !hich is a !ill to receive, !hich is the
creature#
The !ill to receive feels the Li"ht and feels a sensation, not only of the direct
pleasure, &ut of the .uality of the Li"ht, and &ecause it%s a !ill to receive, it !ants to
receive this pleasure# And as a result of that, a ne! perception, or a phase, or a
discernment happens in !hich it reali2es that !hat the pleasure comes from is "ivin"#
So &ecause it%s a !ill to receive and it cannot "ive, the only thin" it can do is either to
accept or not accept the Li"ht#
To "et closer to "ivin", it decides that it !ill re3ect the Li"ht# $n this emptiness a ne!
discernment happens and it discovers that its e(istence depends on the reception of
the Li"ht, that it cannot e(ist &y this harsh situation, and it must accept a portion of
the Li"ht# 4ut it decides it !ill only accept a small portion of the Li"ht &ecause here it
had a perception that the 1reator, the 1reative -orce wants it to receive# So, it accepts
a small portion &ased only on the idea that it !ill accept it &ecause it is the 1reator%s
desire that that happened# And here, in this perception, in this dual phase, it reali2es
that an even hi"her aspect of the -orce that created it is that it !ants to fill it !ith
complete deli"ht#
And this ne(t phase here, this fourth phase, is unli/e the other phases up to that point
0not an action done &y the 1reator, &ut an independent desire# 4ut this desire is not a
desire for the direct pleasure of the Li"ht# $t reali2es here the stature of the 1reator,
and it !ants that# $t reali2es that it is a receiver, and ho! different it is from the
1reator# And instead of !antin" the doin" part of creation, it no! desires e.uivalence
of form, the attainment of the 1reator%s .ualities itself, the thin/in" part of creation#
So here is !here !e find the creature at this point# $t has made a restriction on the
manner in !hich it !ill receive# $t !ill no lon"er receive for itself# $t has determined
that it !ill attain .ualities completely opposite to its nature#
$t !as created as a !ill to receive, and yet it determines that it !ill find a !ay to
&ecome li/e the opposite .uality, the .uality of "ivin"#
5Tony dra!in"6
As it does this, if it can find a !ay to do this, then it &e"ins to enter and sort of &uild
the system for itself, a system of interaction !ith varyin" de"rees of proportion
&et!een the !ill to receive and the !ill to &esto!# And it rises as a result of "ainin"
"reater and "reater e.uivalence of form, &ecomin" more and more li/e the thin" that
it !ants to &ecome# $t rises throu"h a system called !orlds, and these !orlds are a
/ind of interaction &uilt for the correction of the creature and for the correction of the
!orld as a !hole#
As it rises is attains the inner .ualities of these !orlds, !hich are called levels of
+soul, or +Li"hts#, They are Nefesh, Ruach, Neshama, Haya, and Yechida, until the
creature attains "reater and "reater e.uivalence, !isdom, capa&ility, and achieves a
cleavin" and complete e.uivalence of form !ith the 1reator itself# 4ut it has a
pro&lem &ecause it !as created in e(act opposite phase7 it is only a !ill to receive#
That%s !hat the creature is7 that%s !hat !e are# So, ho! can it possi&ly &ecome
somethin" totally opposite to its nature8 9ven if it /no!s no! !hat the purpose of
creation is and its role in it, it seems to &e loc/ed, stuc/# There%s nothin" that it can do
&ecause it !as created in a perfect !ay and it can only use that tool of reception, and
yet it must use the e(pansion of its e"oistic .ualities and reception, and find a !ay to
turn that into "ivin"#
:reviously !e learned also that our five senses are pro"rammed in such a !ay that
they prevent us from perceivin" anythin" a&out the )pper 'orld and achievin" the
"oal that the creature no! has# 'hat !e need to reali2e is that the pro"rammin" that
e(ists !ithin the five senses, !hich !e called +e"oism,, is really an intention, it%s a
thou"ht, it is a pro"ram that says +!hat is in this for me8, So, no matter !hat the
input is from any of these five senses, it can only perceive thin"s only in relation to
the !ill to receive, and yet the .uality a&ove it is altruism, it%s "ivin"#
So "ivin" also is not an action7 it is an intention# $n order to &e a&le to feel this0
!hich none of these senses can0!e have to &uild a different pro"ram, a sense &uilt
on a similar pro"ram to !hat is outside of it# This si(th sense has to &e a sense &uilt
out of an intention that is li/e this# And that%s !hat the screen is# The screen is an
additional sense that allo!s us to feel on the terms of the Spiritual 'orld#
The !ord +Ka&&alah, means reception# Actually, more precisely, it means +ho! to
receive,, the proper !ay of reception#
The method of Ka&&alah is completely practical# $t sho!s us precisely ho! !e can
ta/e our created nature, !hich is the !ill to receive, and turn it into a proper mode of
reception, a transformed, corrected mode of reception that &ecomes "ivin"#
*i"ht no! !hen !e receive into the !ill to receive, !e find that our e(perience is
e(tremely limited# The !ill to receive can never &e filled#
Let%s say there is a desire, a desire for a piece of ca/e, a &eautiful, !onderful
stra!&erry short ca/e, !ith !hipped cream and sauce, and there is a need, an idea, a
lac/ of this# As soon as !e "et this ca/e and it touches this desire, the desire is put
out7 !e can no lon"er feel it# $t%s impermanent# $t lives and then it dies#
The reason that that happens is &ecause pleasure is only felt at the 3unction point
&et!een a need and its fillin"# The moment that the fillin" passes &eyond the need, it
can no lon"er &e felt# So the desire dies# 4ut !hat Ka&&alah !ants to teach us to do is
to find a correct !ay of receivin", and that !ay is that even if there is somethin" that
is desired and it is filled, that that fillin" !ill never "o out7 that the desire !ill e(pand
and the fillin" !ill e(pand# And the more that the desire enters the Kli, the "reater the
fulfillment !ill &e# And that can only happen if !e do somethin" li/e !hat !e sa! in
the dual phase called +Behina imel,, in !hich this reception is done not for me &ut
it%s done only in order to fulfill the Thou"ht of 1reation# $t%s done for the 1reator, so
that this reception &ecomes a form of "ivin"#
o! do !e do this8 o! can !e achieve this8
4aal aSulam "ives us an analo"y, a very &eautiful and profound story a&out our
situation and ho! to overcome it# Actually, it%s profound &ecause it sho!s us the real
nature of !here !e are, somethin" that !e don%t notice#
There are t!o friends, and one friend decides to ma/e a dinner for his dear friend, and
he thin/s a&out everythin" that his friend li/es# e thin/s a&out the food that he li/es,
the !ine that he !ould li/e, the amount of the food, the !ay the food should loo/, the
!ay the room should feel# e thin/s all the time of his friend, and creates a perfect
meal for him#
is friend arrives, comes in, and sees &efore him an a&solute feast# And his first
response is to !ant to eat everythin" ri"ht a!ay &ecause, of course, it%s e(actly !hat
he !anted# Then another thou"ht stri/es him, !hich is, his friend the host is the "iver,
and he is only prepared to ta/e, and he has a feelin" of shame, &ecause he reali2es that
the "iver is &efore him#
e doesn%t 3ust see a ta&le filled !ith thin"s and no&ody there7 he sees his friend, and
he reali2es that his friend has done everythin" for him and he is 3ust there to ta/e# And
overcome &y shame, he refuses to ta/e it#
;ou /no! !hat it%s li/e !hen some&ody "ives you some &i" "ift or somethin" that
you hadn%t e(pected# Suddenly you have this /ind of response, you don%t /no! !here
it%s comin" from0+<o, $ can%t ta/e this,0this .uality of shame, of the perception of
&ein" the receiver#
e !on%t eat, and his friend the host says to him= +;ou don%t understand7 $ spent all of
this time 3ust thin/in" a&out you, !hat you !ould en3oy, ho! !e !ould en3oy this
to"ether, and no! if you don%t ta/e !hat $%ve "iven you, this !hole meal !ill &e
ruined for me# $ !ill "et no pleasure from seein" you en3oy this#,
And so, the "uest reali2es that in this situation he really has the control# e reali2es
that he%s not 3ust a receiver# $f he can reali2e !hile he%s eatin" this food that he%s only
doin" it in order to fulfill his friend%s desire, then he doesn%t feel the shame, he can eat
it, he can "o ahead and he can taste it, he can en3oy it# And he must en3oy it# $t%s not
3ust that he eats it7 he has to en3oy it &ecause his friend !ho did this for him, his
en3oyment !ill only come from seein" the satisfaction of the "uest# And so in this
response, the understandin" of the reciprocal nature of this receivin", the "uest not
only feels the deli"ht of the food, he also understands the thou"ht of the host, &ecause
no! he%s thin/in" the same thin" to!ards the host as the host !as thin/in" to!ards
him= +$ do this to fulfill completely my friend# e could not &e more satisfied than
that $ eat this &ecause this !as his entire "oal, so $ !ill fill him completely &y this
eatin"#,
So this miracle, !hich is nature, of &ein" a&le to ta/e the !ill to receive and turn it
into the !ill to &esto!, the thou!ht to &esto!, the action didn%t chan"e, &ut the inner
action chan"ed# The intention &ehind !hy the "uest too/ the food and en3oyed it
ma/es the reception "ivin"# This is ho! that intention to receive the pleasure in order
to &esto! to the host can &e turned into a sensor called +the screen,, and ho! it allo!s
the person, the creature, to attain the levels of &esto!al that are the Spiritual 'orld#
5Tony dra!in"6
ere is our !ill to receive, our vessel, our Kli# <o!, this Kli is filled !ith desires, it%s
filled !ith hun"ers for the meal# 'hat the 1reator, the ost !ants to "ive to the
creature e(ists outside in thou"hts of &esto!al# And al!ays the Li"ht presses on us
and !ants to fill us !ith a hundred percent un&ounded deli"ht, &ut only to the de"ree
to !hich !e can receive the Li"ht on its terms, that is, throu"h "ivin", can !e allo! it
to enter into the Kli, other!ise !e have no sensation of it at all#
<o! here, in order to &e a&le to en3oy the meal in terms of spirituality, a screen,
!hich is an intention, is placed across the entry to our !ill to receive, to the Kli# This
intention is not to receive for myself# >nce that%s there, all of these other thin"s can
&e"in to &e sensed, they can &e"in to &e re"ulated, and !e can determine !hat the
e(perience inside of the !ill to receive, inside the Kli, !ill actually &e#
So, the first thin" that !e feel in the meal, stri/es the screen# <o!, if the creature can
accept that amount into it in order only to please the host0may&e it e(periences it as
the first course of the meal, as the soup0if it can maintain that intention +not for me,,
and to do it only for the host, then a portion of the Li"ht actually enters into the Kli,
and not only the portion of taste and deli"ht !hich must &e fulfilled, &ut also the
sensation, the intention of the host in "ivin" that thin" to the creature#
So t!enty percent of it !ill enter, let%s say, into that first fifth of the stomach, and the
rest of it !ill &e re3ected0not that the pleasure isn%t felt, it%s 3ust that a "reater
pleasure supersedes a small pleasure7 it%s eclipsed# The Kli does not care a&out it# The
only thin" that it pays attention to is the thin" that it values, !hich is the Thou"ht of
the 1reator# So ei"hty percent of this !ill not &e felt7 only t!enty percent !ill &e
perception# <o! if a further amount can &e accepted in order to fulfill the Thou"ht of
the ost, then forty percent fills and only si(ty percent of it is re3ected#
<o! !hat happens in here is that the Li"ht of the 1reator, that is, the Thou"ht, the
level of attainment of similarity !ithin the Kli itself, !ithin the creature, that part of
the creature !hich &ecomes li/e the 1reator, &e"ins to "ro!# This is the means &y
!hich !e "ro! a soul# And so here, this first Li"ht, !hich !as called the first t!enty
percent, is the Li"ht of Nefesh0the first level of soul#
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ere, if this intention matches the intention of the 1reator on the "ivin" of it, a second
level, Ruach, enters the Kli# This is not 3ust /no!led"e, this is not some /ind of
intellectual thin", this is actual similarity of form !ith the 1reator# That is, !hat is
inside of the Kli is a direct perception of !hat e(ists outside of the Kli# This si(th
sense no! is tellin" a person !hat this spiritual o&3ect actually is7 not that it%s soup or
that it%s salad, &ut that it is a Thou"ht in the 1reator%s intention to!ards all of creation#
5Tony dra!in"6
And !hen this continues to "ro!, !here no! si(ty percent &ecomes filled, and only
forty percent is not felt, a ne! Li"ht enters# This Li"ht is called +Neshama,, that is, a
deeper understandin" of the 1reator%s Thou"ht, a "reater similarity, and in terms of
our hun"er, !e have passed the main course, and accepted for pleasin" the host, until
finally !e "et to the dessert and the li.uor, and !e "et to the level of Haya and
Yechida#
And here, the creature has reached complete similarity of form !ith the 1reator
&ecause it instituted its o!n Thou"ht of 1reation# $t has an independent desire that
does not depend on the e(ternal deli"hts, &ut only on the thou"ht of the creature to do
somethin" e.ual to the Thou"ht of the 1reator# So, &y doin" this, the creature rises
from &elo! up!ard, across all the one hundred and t!enty?five steps that are all, &y
the !ay, made up of "artzufim @facesA, !hich are e(actly this process#
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So here, !hat a person forms is called a +Rosh, @headA, and here, uf @&odyA# And &y
havin" a Rosh, !hat that means is that throu"h an independent desire, the creature can
no! determine !hat the reality inside of the vessel !ill &e, the .uality of their !orld,
the .uality of deli"ht, and all this done for the "ood of life as a !hole, not for me#
This is ho! *av Laitman sums this up=
!e receive "#irit$al de"ire" directl% from &bove' To feel them (e
need a "#ecial "en"e called a )"creen'*
&" "oon a" man ac+$ire" thi" "en"e, he begin" to feel #lea"$re
thro$gh it' The #lea"$re i" called the S$#reme Light' ,t enter" o$r
de"ire to en-o% it thro$gh the "creen'
The de"ire to en-o% S$#reme Light i" called )"o$l'* The Light a" the
"o$rce of #lea"$re i" not felt $nle"" man ac+$ire" an additional "en"e
ca#able of #ic.ing it $#'
&ll com#onent": the Light /#lea"$re0, the "creen /mean" of
rece#tion0, and the "o$l /receiver0 are in no (a% connected to the
#h%"ical bod%' 1ence, it doe"n2t matter if man ha" a bod% or not'
&" "oon a" man e"tabli"hed contact (ith the S$#reme Light, he
begin" to correct him"elf "o a" to be filled (ith it' The grad$al
li.ening of one" #ro#ertie" to the Light and con"ec$tive filling (ith
it i" called "#irit$al a"cent'
The bod% i" onl% a mean" for the "#irit$al advancement in thi"
exciting #roce"", other(i"e it i" of no intere"t'
& "mall #lea"$re cannot be felt at all in com#ari"on (ith a great
delight: the larger delight "$##re""e" it'
Therefore, altho$gh a Kabbali"t live" in the "ame (orld a" (e do, he
i" act$all% alread% in the "#irit$al (orld'
Join us a"ain#