A Piece of Bread in Store for the Future

It is impossible to rise to a higher degree without the help of the Upper One, in the same manner that in our world a child can develop only with the upbringing that he receives from grown-ups, who understand what needs to be given to him year after year.  However, how much he absorbs from them depends on how much he nullifies himself before them. In our world nature takes care of this.

Meanwhile, using one's brain, a person will always judge others on his level and will never leave the boundaries of his comprehension.  

Therefore, the group gives us an opportunity to come to similarity to "faith above knowledge" (which is really revealed in the spiritual).  The group gives me its opinion, and it begins to govern in me - for the time being this is called "faith above knowledge."

Besides this, there is a concept of "a piece of bread in store for the future" (Pat be Salo - bread in the knapsack.) If a person knows that he has bread in his knapsack, he does not suffer from hunger compared to a person who has no bread at all.

It would seem that this is purely a physiological process. What difference does it make whether I saved myself a sandwich or not? But there is a difference! I do not feel the hunger if I have this sandwich stored.

A wealthy person that has all types of food has little appetite for it, while a person who doesn't have anything has a huge appetite. This is called a "piece of bread in store for the future," with which I do not feel the desire.

Therefore, we need to use all the possible tricks to rouse a sense of alarm and fear in us, to expose the places where the breaking occurred, so that it would become clear to us that we are not in a state where we can be satisfied.   

I come to learn and to perform some work in dissemination, but this is not enough to calm me down. We need to make sure that we feel more and more alarmed in regard to correction with every passing moment.   

We need to ensure that we acquire a new desire, build an image of the Upper One for ourselves and adhere to it, so that this aspiration to a new, hypothetical degree will pull us higher.

Where Does My New Upper Form Come From?

Question by a Student: Where is my new upper form coming from?

Answer by Dr. Michael Laitman: From my relationship with the group. When I describe the relationship that should be between me and the group, according to what I read in the books and hear from the teacher. The group and I are the system that I need to picture for myself, I must dream about it - "how good it would be if I were connected to them as described in the books and as I hear from the teacher. I do not agree to it, I do not want it, but this is spirituality." Even the realization that I do not want it is already a discernment on the path - why do I not want it, and what will I be able to do in order to want it anyway?

This is similar to their desire to convince me that things will be good if I want to drink Coca Cola. And then I start wanting it as well - not because of them, but because their opinion enters into me and becomes my opinion. Thus, the person begins to be one's own psychologist and convinces himself to advance. This is the work.

Staying On The Path Of Three To Five Years

We come into this world and into the perception of this reality in order to rise from here to the true reality of the Upper World. Our whole mission in life is to come to consciousness from our unconscious state in order to experience this true reality.

We must first go through a long path of development through the degrees of the inanimate, vegetative, and animate levels, until the point in the heart emerges in us - a desire to enter the true reality. When we finally clarify what our true state means (bestowal, the root of our soul, and the Creator), we understand that we need to tune into some system that will help us achieve this.

Until now, we have had no prerequisites for this, meaning the required and correct strength, desires, thoughts, and understanding. Where is that adapter, the intermediate step between us and bestowal? Through what means should we advance?

It is said that there are three means by which we can advance: the teacher, the group, and the books. However, we need to lose hope to the point that we understand that these are the only means, and thus we to begin to use them.

This is when the count of the preparation period of "three to five years" begins (see the "Introduction to Talmud Eser Sefirot," p. 23.) We need to check ourselves every moment to see if we are truly in this period of "three to five years" and if not, we need to look for changes that will lead us to bestowal.

After all, if we receive an awakening and the Creator gave us this desire, we need to make sure to carry out our spiritual mission. If, on the contrary, we receive such an awakening from above and neglect it, rejecting the Creator's invitation to come to Him, this will be the greatest shame we can possibly imagine.

Therefore, we need to put in as much effort as possible into building boundaries for ourselves and placing guards everywhere who will not allow us to run away during a minute of difficulty. We must be watched when we are in a state during which we have no control over ourselves and experience heavy thoughts and various calculations which force us to forget about the spiritual path and the goal.

We need to determine all the concepts correctly for ourselves and in all their depth: What is bestowal, what are the conditions and the means to reach it, and in response to what desire does the Light of correction come?  We need to clearly imagine each passing state in order to understand whether we are on the path of "three to five years" or we've shifted from it.

-from the Preparation to the daily Kabbalah lesson