Kabbalah

» pink101 - Is That The Right Word?

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How many different denominations--is that the right word--of Kabbalah are there?
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Why is one more an accurate portrayal of Kabbalah than another?
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-- posted by pink101

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» Markos Zografos - Is That The Right Word?

In response to Is That The Right Word? posted by pink101:

If you search around, you will find a Kabbalah for almost anything. As long as we have an imagination, we can come up with an infinite number of things, and call them all "Kabbalah."

Ultimately, your own desire will tell you which Kabbalah is more accurate than another, according to what your desire is telling you that you want.

If you truly desire the attainment of something beyond this world, then it's likely that you'll find this Kabbalah to be more accurate - because that's all that the Kabbalah on this site deals with.

To simplify: The sole purpose of Kabbalah study is the same as the purpose of Creation - to equalize in form with nature, the Creator.

To achieve this, it embodies a time-tested method of self-transformation; one researches how to change one's inborn egoistic property into its altruistic opposite, and reach the sensation of nature unrestricted by the five senses - eternal, whole, perfect.

The Kabbalah presented on this site has absolutely no connection with any other purpose.

A way of testing which is the most "accurate portrayal" for you is by relating it to this goal: Does it relate to a spiritual goal or to a corporeal one?

If you find yourself relating Kabbalah to concepts of this world, then it has nothing to do with the Kabbalah presented here.

If you find that Kabbalah is being aimed to improve your sex life, health, wealth, or to offer you protection, miracles, magic, a foreseen future etc. -- then it has no connection with the Kabbalah presented here.

The Kabbalah presented here is only to introduce the ancient method passed down from Abraham's time, with the sole purpose of attaining equivalence of form with nature.

It is an introduction to the practical method of Kabbalah taught today by Kabbalist Rav Michael Laitman at the Bnei Baruch World Center of Kabbalah Studies - http://www.kabbalah.info.

There is a saying in Kabbalah that "one's soul shall teach one," meaning your desire will guide you to where it will find its peace. If you find yourself here, where all your other searches have left you still wanting, and this place spawns more questions inside you, pulling you to want to get them answered - then it's a sign that this teaching might have what you're looking for.

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» pink101 - What I've Learned

In response to Is That The Right Word? posted by kabbalah:
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From what I have learned so far in my short time of searching, it appears that some groups are more or less extensions of Judaism; while, others are more liberal and seem to reach out in a universalist approach toward all people.
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Is that correct?
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-- posted by pink101

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» Markos Zografos - What I've Learned

In response to What I've Learned posted by pink101:

There are views that hold Kabbalah's emergence as being from Judaism. The view of Kabbalists themselves is otherwise; that Kabbalah appeared earlier than Judaism, and that Kabbalists created Judaism as a system to frame the behavior of the masses while they had no sensation of spirituality.

Throughout its history, Kabbalah passed through people who lived in this world according to the Judaic framework, and also through non-Jews. Ultimately, since Kabbalah only deals with the study of the upper worlds, it has no relation to religion nor to Judaism since the science itself relates only to attaining layers of perception beyond our five senses.

The science of Kabbalah holds no behavioral obligations as religions do. It has nothing against them, and many Kabbalists throughout history held onto religious behavioral systems while living in this world. But Kabbalists explain simply that performing behavioral actions have no relation to the inner process of spiritual attainment. They also warn that one who positions one's life according to a behavioral scheme can be fooled into thinking that they are involved in spiritual work, when they are only involved in abiding to philosophical "spiritual concepts."

Kabbalah explains the laws of nature: how humans and everything has been created, and how to change one's current level of perception to perceive these laws while living in our body in this world. It is a process of attaining these laws. These laws operate at the level of our thoughts and desires. They literally control us, and have made us create religions and all kinds systems to find comfort in the world.

As such, Kabbalah, in its essence, holds onto your second view: it "reaches out in a universalist approach toward all people." The reason that there are Kabbalah groups extending from religions (and many other things) is because of Kabbalah's concealment throughout history. Kabbalistic books are written in a concealed language, that only through proper guidance from an attained Kabbalist can one attain what is behind its language. People without spiritual attainment throughout history have created systems out of whatever they could understand, and mixed this understanding with whatever else they were involved in - physical concepts of the body, religion, tarot, meditation, mysticism, magic, miracles, spiritual protection, and so on.

The science of Kabbalah was passed through closed teacher-to-student relationships, and was purposely hidden from the public because Kabbalists knew the public did not need it in the past. All the systems of the past were enough for the public to find peace, and to find somewhere else to progress if they couldn't find peace.

Kabbalists stated (the Gaon of Vilna, Baal HaSulam and in The Zohar) that from the end of the 20th century, Kabbalah would begin to be revealed, because the need for it would emerge in humanity at this time. In other words, human desires would evolve to a new level where existing systems and frameworks could no longer satisfy them.

When humanity can no longer find peace and comfort anywhere, it would begin to start questioning the purpose of its existence. This is the sign that the next level of desire - the desire for spirituality - has evolved. The time when humanity starts feeling the question about the purpose of its existence is the time when Kabbalah would emerge to provide a place for further progression, toward the very answer to this question.

There is more about the connection between Kabbalah and Judaism in this lecture and Q&A discussion with Rav Michael Laitman at the Odessa State University: http://www.kabbalah.info/engkab/science_...

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» pink101 - What I've Learned

In response to What I've Learned posted by kabbalah:
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It seems there may be some connections with Free Masonry.
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-- posted by pink101

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» pink101 - I'm Reading it.

In response to What I've Learned posted by kabbalah:
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There are nine pages printed out.
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I've read seven so far. It's quite interesting to me.
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I am noticing that there are certain comments by Kabbalists that I have already believed for some time now.
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We must have concepts to observe/sense the existence of something.
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Maybe I'm hooked?
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ha ha.
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Lurianic Kabbalah? The Shakinah is a concept of the Lurianic, is it not?
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-- posted by pink101

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» Markos Zografos - Shechina

In response to I'm Reading it. posted by pink101:

To explain Shechina somewhat, I'm copying/pasting a section from Baal HaSulam's 2nd "Shamati" article "Shechinta be Galuta" ("Divinity in Exile"), followed by commentary by Rav Michael Laitman, in a lesson given on June 21, 2006.

Baal HaSulam - Divinity in Exile:

The Holy Zohar says: "He is Shochen (lit. Dweller), and She is Shechina (lit. Divinity)." We should interpret its words: It is known with regard to the Upper Light, that they say that there is no change, as it is written, "I the Lord change not." All the names and appellations are only with respect to the Kelim, which is the will to receive contained in Malchut, being the root of creation, and from there it hangs down to this world, to the creatures.

All these discernments, beginning with Malchut, being the root of the creation of the worlds through the creatures, is called Shechina. The general correction is that the Upper Light will shine in them in utter perfection, and the Light that shines in the Kelim (lit. Vessels) is called Shochen, as it dwells inside the Kelim. In other words, the entirety of the Kelim is called Shechina.

Commentary by Rav Michael Laitman:

The wisdom of Kabbalah explains to us the whole of reality including that one force which controls, begets and arranges everything. What does it mean that it begets and arranges everything? That this one force created the will to receive, existence from absence, and develops it up to a state where this will to receive is called "creature."

This creature goes through all kinds of states until it becomes sensitive, understanding, responding. This means that it acquires some attributes from the Creator, from that one governing force, and begins to know It through its evolution in acquiring the attributes of the Creator within itself.

By acquiring the attributes of the Creator, the creature can feel Him, understand Him and react to Him. The creature can also determine its attitude toward the Creator by comparing the two forms of nature, that of the creature and that of the Creator.

The desire of the Upper Force, of the Creator, is for the creature to develop itself through the discernment between these two forms of nature in such a way that it won't belong to the Creator's force as some inseparable part of It that's completely controlled by the Creator, and also that it won't be detached from the Creator's force and not feel and understand Him. But from these two forms of nature that the creature will have within, it will develop its 'self,' something by which it will be called an independent creature. That within the creature a third attribute will be built, what we call a third line, a soul.

On the one hand, it's the part of God Above; it comes out of it being basically the attribute of the Creator. However, the creature builds and increases this point (which is a part of God, an Upper point) through everything else that's outside of it. The creature builds and increases it out of its own nature.

This point of Bina that the Creator implants in the creature is just a point. With respect to the creature this point of bestowal is existence from absence, the spark of the Creator. To this spark of the Creator, the creature adds all of its big will to receive which is inside of the creature as a system of Klipa. In this way it develops itself as an independent being who's standing in front of the Creator and gives the Kelim (vessels, tools) to bestow. By that, the creature expresses its own bestowal.

According to the Kelim which it prepares for the Creator and presents to Him, when it gives its own vessels of reception so that the Creator will bestow in them and because it wants the Creator to enjoy its work, the creature is called "Shechina" (Divinity) and the Creator, according to His act, is called "Shochen" (Dweller).

Sources:
1. Baal HaSulam, "Divinity in Exile" article #2 from "Shamati": http://www.kabbalah.info/engkab/shamati_...

2. Rav Michael Laitman, PhD, "Divinity in Exile," lesson given at the Bnei Baruch Education Center, Israel, on June 21, 2006.

WMV VIDEO: http://files.kabbalahmedia.info/VIDEO/en...

MP3 AUDIO:
http://files.kabbalahmedia.info/files/en...

MS WORD TRANSCRIPT:
http://files.kabbalahmedia.info/files/en...

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» pink101 - Shechina

In response to Shechina posted by kabbalah:
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I have read some details regarding the celebrations surrounding Shekina--the feminine part of the Creator.
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They seem exotic.
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-- posted by pink101

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» pink101 - Isaac Luria

In response to Shechina posted by pink101:
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Isaac Luria
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From Wikipedia:
Rabbi Isaac Luria (1534-July 25, 1572) was a Jewish rabbinical scholar and mystic. He is the founder of one of the most important branches of Kabbalah, often referred to as Lurianic Kabbalah.

In Hebrew he is called Yitzhak Lurya ??????? ????????, Yitzhak Ben Shlomo Ashkenazi, and Yitzhak Ashkenazi. He is also known as Ari ????? and He-Ari ("The Lion") from the acronym for Adoneinu Rabbeinu Itzhak ("Our Master Our Rabbi Yitzhak"), thus Arizal with "ZaL" being the acronym for Zikhrono Livrakha ("of blessed memory" or literally "let the memory of him be for a blessing"), a common Jewish honorific for the deceased, and known as Ari Ha-Kadosh ("Ari the Holy").

-- posted by pink101

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