Why Kabbalists Conceal Their Intentions

The concealment of one’s spiritual level is one of the imperative conditions of a successful spiritual ascent.

Concealment of this type implies the performance of actions so that they are not noticeable to others.

Most important, however, is the concealment of a person’s thoughts and aspirations. If a situation arises in which a Kabbalist must express a point of view, it must be blurred and expressed in very general terms, so that the Kabbalist’s true intentions do not become clear.

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A Home for Oneself, or the Creator?

In Kabbalah, the masses are known as the “homeowners” (ba’al bait), because they aspire to build their own house (an egoistic vessel, kli) and fill it with pleasure. The desires of one who is ascending spiritually stem from the Light of the Creator, and focus on the task of building a home for the Creator in one’s heart, in order for it to be filled with the Light of the Creator.

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Growing a Person’s Capacity for Altruism

How can a human being—who was created with the qualities of absolute egoism; who feels no desires save those dictated by the body; who cannot even imagine anything outside of one’s own perceptions—how can a human being proceed beyond the desires of the body and grasp something that exists outside the realm of one’s natural sensory organs?

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Starting with Proper “Fear of the Creator”

Spiritual, altruistic fear, like all other anti-egoistic qualities of spiritual objects, is completely unlike any of our qualities or perceptions. “Fear of the Creator” is the fear of being pushed away from the Creator. This arises not from calculations of selfish benefit, nor from fear of being left with egoism, nor from fear of becoming similar to the Creator. All of these are based on notions of personal benefit and take into consideration only one’s own state.

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Swimming in an Ocean of Light

The Light of the Creator fills all of creation. Although we swim inside this Light, we cannot perceive it. The pleasures that we feel are but tiny rays, which, with the Creator’s mercy, reach us; since without any pleasure we would end our existence.

We feel these rays as forces that attract us to certain objects, into which the rays enter. The objects themselves are of no consequence, which becomes evident to us when, at some point, we stop being interested in things that once posed a great attraction to us.

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