Q: Is it a good idea to study Kabbalah at work? Sometimes there’s free time and a possibility to escape to the Internet and read the texts instead of programming. In a way, it is cheating, although the boss will get his work done anyhow. I know that it’s important to “come clean” to the study, so what should I do?
A: Let me tell you two stories:
The first: Awhile back, my rabbi - Rabbi Baruch Shalom Ashlag - and Rabbi Brandywine taught Kabbalah at one of the synagogues in Jerusalem during their break from working as construction workers. Once, when they were about to go to class, a box full of nails fell to the ground and scattered. As a result of staying to pick up the nails, they did not make it to the lesson. When my rabbi told me about the incident, although it happened more than sixty years ago, he was still upset that the lesson did not take place.
The second story: I once took the rabbi to a homeopath who happened to be a friend of mine. The practitioner examined the rabbi and gave him a prescription. I insisted that the homeopath take money for his service, but when he begun to write the receipt, I said to him, “I get spiritual benefit for paying for my rabbi, but I don’t need a receipt.”
The homeopath replied: “When I get money, I write a receipt, because it makes my thoughts honest and that way I don’t lie to myself, even unconsciously.” I noticed that my rabbi was very pleased to hear this.
What I want to show through these stories is that you should always try to keep your mind on Kabbalah. If you need to read for five minutes at work, then go ahead and do it, just as others take a few minutes off to smoke. Make a habit of it so that it will always be in you, without it affecting your work.