Focusing All The Work On The Group

Question by a Student: How do I identify the AHP de Elyon (Upper AHP) in order to adhere to it?

Answer by Dr. Michael Laitman: Other than your "I," everything is AHP de Elyon.  Everything - the whole world, and all the friends.

Now, one needs to know how to adhere to it, to accept its appearance in order to adhere to it, to the Elyon (Upper One). There are many things in this world, part of which you need to move away from, and part which you need to become close to. You need to process and sort through what to approach, and what to move away from. This is called learning how to "adhere" to the Elyon.

How do we do that? They say, the most important thing, the shortest, most successful, and the closest, is the "group." Instead of the whole world, in place of everything, you have the friends. So in the meantime focus all the work on them, and later, on work with the entire world. When the whole world enters as well, then you will see how much more "reduced" it becomes, more "tightly closed." But for the moment focus all of your work on the group and you will see it as AHP de Elyon - and this is certainly close to success.

- From the 1st Part of the Lesson

Our Only Chance To Ascend

The only way our generation can achieve the goal of creation is by using the method created for us by Baal HaSulam. We have to study and absorb what he said without clinging to the content of his books, but instead striving to attain his "spirit" and sticking to it like a child wishes to stick to an adult.

The child does not understand the adult and does not know why the adult acts in a certain way. The child just "clings" to the adult and belongs to him, and that is how he succeeds. This is also how the Upper Level is connected to the lower level. You have to become one with everything the Upper Level gives you by raising its greatness in spite of your egoism.

You have to bring all your qualities into harmony with the Upper Level. This is called "serving the Upper One." By so doing, you rise to and reveal His level. There is no way to rise from a lower degree to a higher one other than by merging with the AHP of the Upper One.

"Merging with the Upper One" means desiring to reveal His spirit, preferences and thoughts, as well as what is important to Him, how He perceives spirituality, how He thinks and what His attitude is. We can discern all of this through all the external signs which we reveal from the Upper Degree's manifestation.

Laziness Is A Very Useful Quality

 Question from a Student: What should I do if my laziness keeps me from advancing, not letting me enter the group and make efforts there?

Answer by Dr. Laitman: Laziness can be very useful if you use it together with the importance of the spiritual goal. I am lazy to make any movement until I discover the harm that can come to me. Then I have no choice but to overcome my laziness. In this case I don't do anything unneeded, but only what is necessary in order to achieve the goal I have chosen for myself.

 Laziness is not necessarily when you lay there and do nothing. You may be making tons of efforts, doing lots of unrelated things, but you are lazy to force yourself to do something that is useful for your spiritual progress. For example, say you are sitting at home and not going to sleep on time in order to wake up early for the lesson. This is also a form of laziness.

 The root of laziness is that you don't see a reward that would inspire you to change your present state. That is why you have to increase the value of the reward in your perception. Then you will be able to overcome your laziness. Otherwise, you feel good anyway. You don't feel a sufficiently great punishment or reward, and that's why you opt to remain as you are, without changing.

 A person who works hard at some simple job and earns pennies, feels laziness about making efforts to find a different job. He works hard, but he is lazy to make a change. If we use laziness correctly, then it will help us to do only the things we need to do. But if we don't use it right, then it stops us and does not let us create the right conditions for reaching the goal.

 Therefore, laziness is a very important quality. By directing it correctly and taking control over it, we can make great progress, as if pressing on the gas or the brakes in a car. This is another example that nothing was created in vain!

Drawing The Light That Reforms

Question by a Student: Does one need to understand the writings in order to draw the Light that Reforms?

Answer by Dr. Laitman: "To understand" means "to connect." Do you connect to the text? Can you attain the following two things: A) By studying, can you "draw" the deficit for correction, can you feel that from there you want it to open up for you, to give you closeness to the Bestower? B) Are you yearning to be in what is written there? As Baal HaSulam says on page 155 in "Introduction to TES," that out of the urge and the strong desire to understand what is being studied, they awaken upon themselves the Lights that surround their soul. "Understanding" means being in the same actions.

- From the 3rd Part of the Lesson