Do you know why only old folk tell stories and legends? Because legends are the cleverest thing in the world! Everything in the world changes, and only real legends remain. Legends are wisdom and in order to tell them, one needs to have great knowledge, and to see things others do not.
For that, one needs to have lived a lot. That is why only old people know how to tell legends. As is written in the greatest, oldest magical book, "An old person is someone who has acquired wisdom."
Children love to hear legends because they have the imagination and brains to envision everything, not just what others see. If a child grows up and still sees what others do not, he becomes wise and clever, and "acquires wisdom."
Because children see what others do not, they know that imagination is real. They remain as a "wise child," as is written in the greatest, oldest magical book, "The Zohar."
There once was a magician, great and noble and goodhearted, with all the attributes usually given in children’s books. But because he was so goodhearted, he did not know who to share his goodness with. He did not have anyone to pour his affections on, to play with, to spend time with, to think about.
The magician also needed to feel wanted, for it is very sad to be alone.
What should he do? He thought he would make a stone, just a small one, but beautiful, and perhaps that would be the answer.
"I will stroke the stone and feel there is something constantly by my side, and we will both feel good because it is very sad to be alone." He waved his wand and in an instant there was a stone exactly as he wanted.
He began to stroke the stone, to hug it and talk to it, but the stone did not respond. It remained cold and did nothing in return. Whatever he did to the stone, it remained the same unfeeling object.
This did not suit the magician at all. How can the stone not respond? He tried creating some more stones, then rocks, hills, mountains, land, the Earth, the Moon and the Galaxy. But they were all the same... nothing.
He still felt sad and all alone. In his sadness, he thought that instead of stones, he would make a plant that would blossom beautifully. He would water it, give it some air, some sun, play it some music, and the plant would be happy. Then they would both be content, because it was sad to be alone.
He waved his wand and in an instant there was a plant, exactly as he wanted. He was so happy be began to dance around it, but the plant did not move. It did not dance with him or follow his movements. It only responded to what the magician gave it in the simplest terms.
If he gave it water, it grew; if he did not, it died. It was not enough for such a good-hearted magician who wanted to give with all his heart.
He had to do something more, because it is very sad to be alone. He then created all sorts of plants in all sorts of sizes, fields, forests, orchards, plantations and groves. But they all behaved the same way as the first plant, and again he was alone in his sadness.
The magician thought and thought. What should he do? Create an animal! What sort of animal? A dog? Yes, a cute little dog that would be with him constantly. He would take him for walks and the dog would jump and prance and run along.
When he came home to his palace (or rather, being a magician, his castle), the dog would be so pleased to see him he would run to greet him. They would both be happy, because it is very sad to be alone. He waved his wand and there was a dog, just as he wanted. He began to take care of the dog, fed it, gave it to drink, and stroked it. He even ran with it and washed it and took it for walks.
But a dog’s love is summed up in being next to its owner, wherever he is. The magician was sad to see that a dog cannot reciprocate, even if he plays with him so well and goes everywhere with him. A dog cannot be his true friend, cannot appreciate what he does for it, does not comprehend his thoughts and desires, and how much effort he makes for it.
But that was what the magician wanted. So he made other creatures: fish, fowl, mammals, all to no avail – none of them understood him. It was very sad to be so alone.
The magician sat and thought. He then realized that in order to have a true friend, he must be someone who would look for the magician, would want him very much, would be like the magician, able to love like him, understand him, resemble him, be his partner. Partner? True friend?
It would have to be something that was close to him, that understood what he gave him and could reciprocate by giving him everything in return. Magicians also want to love and be loved. Then they would both be content, because it is very sad to be alone.
The magician then thought about creating a man. He could be his true friend! He could be like the magician. He would merely need help to be like his creator. Then the two of them would feel good, because it is very sad to be alone.
But in order for them to feel good, man must first feel lonely, and be sad without the magician. The magician waved his wand again and made a man in the distance. The man did not feel there was a magician who had made all the stones, plants, hills, fields and moon, rain, winds, etc. He did not know that he had made an entire world filled with beautiful things, such as computers and football that made him feel good and lacking nothing.
The magician, on the other hand, continued to feel sad that he was alone. The man did not know there was a magician who had made him, loved him, was waiting for him and said that together they would feel good because it is very sad to be alone.
Yet how would a man who feels content, who has everything, even a computer and football, who does not know the magician, want to find him, get acquainted with him, become close to him, love him, be his friend and say, “Come, we will both feel good, because it is very sad to be alone, without you."
One knows only one’s surroundings, and does what everyone else nearby does, speaks as they speak, wants what they want, tries not to offend, asks nicely for presents, a computer, football. How can the person possibly know there is a magician who is sad to be alone?
But the magician is goodhearted and constantly looks out for man, and when the time is ripe, he waves his wand and calls to the man’s heart very quietly. Man thinks he is looking for something and does not realize it is the magician who is calling him, saying, "Come, we will both feel good, because it is very sad to be alone without you."
Then, the magician waves his wand again and the man feels his presence. He begins to think of the magician, to think that it will be good together, because it is very sad to be alone, without the magician.
Another wave of the wand and the man feels there is a magic tower full of goodness and might in which the magician waits for him and that only there will they feel good, because it is very sad to be alone.
“But where is this tower? How can I reach it? Which is the way?” he asks himself, puzzled and confused. How can he meet the magician? He keeps feeling the wave of the wand in his heart and he cannot sleep. He constantly sees magicians and mighty towers and cannot even eat.
That is what happens when a person wants something very much and cannot find it, and is sad to be alone. But in order to be like the magician – wise, great, noble, good-hearted, loving and a friend – a wave of the wand is not enough. One must learn to make wonders oneself.
So the magician secretly and subtly, gently and innocuously, leads man to the greatest, oldest magical book, the Book of Zohar, and shows him the way to the mighty tower. The man grasps it so he can swiftly meet the magician, meet his friend, and tell him, "Come, we will feel good together, because it is very sad to be alone.”
Yet there is a high wall surrounding the tower, and many guards repel the man, not letting him and the magician be together and feel good. The man despairs, the magician hides away in the tower behind locked gates, the wall is high, the guards vigilantly repel, nothing can pass.
What will happen...? How can they be together, feel good together because it is sad to be alone?
Every time the man weakens and despairs, he suddenly feels a wave of the wand and he rushes to the walls again to try to circumvent the guards, no matter what! He wants to break into the gates, reach the tower, climb the rungs of the ladder and reach the magician.
And every time he surges forward and moves nearer the tower and the magician, the guards become more vigilant, stronger and arduous, mercilessly flaying him. But with each round the man becomes braver, stronger and wiser. He learns to accomplish all sorts of tricks himself, to invent things only a magician can.
Every time he is pushed back, he wants the magician more, feels his love for him more, and wants more than anything else in the world to be with the magician and see his face, because it will be good to be together. Even if he is given everything in the world, without the magician, he will feel alone.
Then, when he can no longer bear to be without him, the gates of the tower open, and the magician, his magician, rushes towards him and says, "Come, we will be good together, because it is very sad to be alone.”
And ever since, they are faithful friends, closely acquainted, and there is no finer pleasure than that which is between them, forever into infinity. They feel so good together that they never remember, even occasionally, how sad it was to be alone.
The End
The sequence of the screens conceals the Creator from us. These screens exist in ourselves and in our souls. However, The Creator is everything outside of ourselves and our souls with their interfering screens,We can only perceive that minute part of the outer surroundings that can permeate our screen.
Everything that is outside of us is completely lost to our perception. In the same manner, in this world we see only those objects that are reflected on the inner surface of the eye, once they fall within the range of our vision.
Our knowledge of the spiritual worlds comes from the perceptions and sensations gained by the souls of the Kabbalists, which are passed on to us.
However, their achievements are restricted by the range of their spiritual vision. Hence, all the spiritual worlds known to us exist only in relation to these souls.
Given the aforesaid, the entire creation can be divided into three parts:
1. The Creator
We cannot discuss Him due to the fact that we can only judge those phenomena that fall within the range of our spiritual perception after passing through the interfering screens.
2. The Purpose of Creation
This is our starting point, from which we can begin to explore the Creator’s intention. While some argue that its essence centers on pleasing His creations, we cannot say anything else about the Creator’s relation to us for lack of information.
The Creator wished that we should feel His influence upon us as Pleasure, and so He created our sensory receptors in such a way as to permit us to sense His influence upon us as Pleasure. But since all perception is accomplished by the soul, it is senseless to talk about the other worlds without connecting this subject to those who perceive these worlds. Without the soul’s ability to perceive, the other worlds do not exist.
The interfering screens that stand between us and the Creator actually present these worlds. Olam derives from the word alama, which means ”concealment.” The worlds exist only for the purpose of transmitting even a small part of the pleasure (light) emanating from the Creator to the soul.
3. Souls
These are entities generated by the Creator that perceive themselves as existing independently. This feeling is highly subjective and essentially translates into the soul, that is our individual self, having been specifically made in this manner by the Creator. However, in reality we are actually an integral part of Him.
A person’s entire path of development, from the initial stage to the final stage at which one completely merges with the Creator in all his qualities, can be divided into five stages. Each of these can in turn be divided into five sub-stages that are, in turn, further comprised of five sub-stages.
In total, there are 125 stages. Every person at a particular stage experiences the same feelings and influences as every other person at the same stage. And every person possesses the same spiritual sensory organs, and hence can feel the same as everyone else at the same stage.
Similarly, every person in our world possesses the same perceptual organs that yield identical perceptions, but do not allow the perception of other worlds.
Therefore, the books on Kabbalah can be understood only by those who reach the stage of the author, since then the author and the reader will have common experiences. This also applies to the readers and authors who describe the events of this world.
From the spiritual worlds, the soul receives the awareness of the Creator’s closeness, as well as spiritual gratification and the enlightenment that accompanies unification with Him. The soul also receives, from the understanding gained of His wishes and the laws of His dominion, the so-called “Light of the Creator,” or the ability to perceive Him.
As we advance on our spiritual path, we gradually perceive that we are being drawn closer to the Creator. That is the reason for gaining a new perspective on the revelation of the Creator at every phase of our journey.
For those who can grasp only our world, the Bible appears as a collection of laws and historical events that describe the behavior of human beings in this world. However, those who are more advanced along their spiritual path begin to perceive the spiritual actions of the Creator behind the names of objects and actions of our world.
From all the above, it becomes clear that in creation there are two participants: the Creator and the human being, who was created by the Almighty. All the other visions that arise before us, whether our perception of our world or even our perception of higher worlds, are only the different phases of revelation and disclosure of the Creator on His way to coming closer to us.