Our spiritual lives are divided into four periods. The Creator’s enjoyment, which lies in delighting His creatures, depends on how much we can perceive and discern. It also is affected by how much we can discern Him as the giver of all goodness. Only in this case does He receive pleasure from us. This is much like a parent who plays with his or her beloved child and enjoys the child’s attitude toward him or her. The parent is delighted that the child recognizes the parent as a loving and strong parent who only awaits the child’s requests and is ready to grant them.

Milestone 1: Development of Egoism in the System of the Dark Worlds

We attain the maximum level of egoism during our first leg of the spiritual journey. We receive this from the dark system of the worlds of Atzilut, Beria, Yetzira, Assiya in order to subsequently correct it. The pleasures that we receive in the dark system of Atzilut, Beria, Yetzira, Assiya will not satisfy the will to enjoy, but will merely increase it.

For example, when one wishes to enjoy and receives pleasure, the desire doubles. When the doubled desire is satisfied, it quadruples. If we do not restrict ourselves from needless desires (using the Kabbalistic method) and cleansing them, and then turning to altruism, our desire will keep growing all through life. Finally, at our deathbed, we discover that we failed to achieve even half of what we wanted.

In other words, although the role of the dark forces is to provide us with material to work on, it usually turns out that we ourselves are the material for the dark forces.

Milestone 2: Power and Opportunity from the Worlds of Light

In the second period, the pure point in our hearts (which has existed since we were born spiritually) receives power and an opportunity to ascend by observing the spiritual laws with the help of the Light worlds Atzilut, Beria, Yetzira, Assiya. The main task in this period is to acquire and increase the desire for maximum spiritual pleasures. At the moment of birth, we desire only material things: to dominate the entire world and seize wealth, fame, and power, in spite of their transience and instability.

However, when we develop the spiritual desire, we want to control the spiritual, eternal world as well. This is both the true desire and the ultimate egoism. By working on oneself, on this enormous will to receive pleasure for self-gratification, we can attain spiritual heights in proportion to our corrected egoism.

Egoism creates tremendous difficulties and pushes us away from the spiritual. Unless continuously and fiercely struggling with ourselves, we begin wishing for everything in the world. If we succeed in the struggle, we feel an unusually strong attraction to the Creator, which helps us merge with Him.

This struggle is not against the desires that we are familiar with in this world, by which one limits and disciplines oneself in using his or her desires. Rather, we cultivate a compelling yearning to attain spirituality and eternity after contemplating the greatness of spirituality, eternity, and domination beyond universe and time. This desire to merge with the Creator is the last level of the second period.

Milestone 3: Transformation through Kabbalah and Law

The third period of development, includes the study of Kabbalah and observance of the laws of the Upper World. In this, we are assisted by an anti-egoistic screen whose intention is to bring joy to the Creator, and by no means for us to receive for our own benefit. This work corrects and transforms egoism into the desire to perform good deeds, as does the Creator.

In proportion to the annulled part of the egoism, we receive a soul of a certain level, a certain amount of Light and pleasure consisting of five parts: Nefesh, Ruach, Neshama, Haya, Yechida (NRNHY). As long as we retain the egoistic will to enjoy, egoism, we will remain detached from the Creator, and even the tiniest particle of the soul cannot enter into our bodies.

However, after completely destroying the ego and attaining the will to enjoy only for the sake of the Creator (by becoming similar to Him), our entire soul (a part of the common soul) immediately takes us over.

Milestone 4: In the Likeness of the Perfect Parent

The fourth period, follows the “revival of the dead,” (i.e. the revival of egoism with all its defects) when its complete restoration occurs once the egoism is completely annulled. The work transforming it into altruism resumes, though only a few people in our world can complete this task. The “revival of the dead” occurs after the extermination of egoism, the acquisition of altruism, and the attainment of the soul’s highest spiritual level. In this state, the soul achieves perfection and enables the body to experience a revival and complete correction.

Now try to imagine what an immense delight the Creator derives from those perfect ones who rose so high, they recognize and experience all that He had prepared for them. They established a relationship with the Creator resembling that of the parent and the loving and beloved child. From this, you will realize that it was worthwhile for Him to create all the worlds, and the chosen ones will understand even more what those who approach the Creator reveal.

“What Milestones Have You Met in Your Spiritual Development?” is based on the book, Basic Concepts in Kabbalah: Expanding Your Inner Vision by Dr. Michael Laitman.