ב"ה
THEMES of Featured Ari Articles
Kabbalah teaches that even a lust for the Divine must be implemented appropriately.
The Ari teaches that Adam's fall in the sin of idolatry was primarily in the form of sexual perversion. Nadab and Abihu were attempting to rectify Adam's sin. Had they been married at the time, properly channeling the power of their sexuality, they would have been more able to fix the sin of Adam, their soul root.
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Advanced
Kabbalah explains how Shabbat is the secret of the rectification of all Creation.
The commandment to keep Shabbat - or as it says in the verse, "the Shabbats" - is used to illustrate the process of the rectification of Creation. The Ari describes the concept of the Shattering of the Vessels and how it brought about the created world, relating it to the weekly cycle. In short, the seven lower sefirot which "crashed",
unable to receive the lofty spiritual influx from the higher three "balanced" sefirot due to their own immature self-absorption, correspond to the weekdays, while the Shabbat following those " weekdays" relates to the light of rectification and the world in its state of perfection.
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Spiritual and Monetary Rewards
If one does not prepare his meals and other needs before Shabbat, he will not be able to enjoy them on Shabbat, since those preparations are forbidden to do then. Likewise, the extent of one's spiritual experience or level of consciousness on Shabbat is proportional to the amount of spiritual preparation for Shabbat one engages in during the preceding week.
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Advanced
Evil may act as a husk which protects a fruit until it is ripe.
Part of the
Yom Kippur sacrificial ritual in the
Tabernacle and Holy Temple was sending a
goat chosen by lot to be thrown off Azazel, a desert cliff, to its death.
'Satan' rejoices over the additional power granted him through this goat. But in truth, Sam-kel has been tricked by virtue of our repentance and has lost that portion of divine beneficence that was granted to him. |
Advanced
The spiritual roots of the offerings of Cain and Abel illustrate mystical truths of forbidden mixtures.
The prohibition against shaatnez is explained in the context of the mystical dimension of the sin of Cain and Abel. Cain sought to elevate the flaxseed, the inner vitality of malchut, to Zeir Anpin, instead of keeping it in malchut so it could inspire Zeir Anpin to couple with it on its own level. Abel then attempted to rectify Cain's error, and brought an offering of wool.
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Intermediate
It is praiseworthy to look at positive things.
Sight is an outward projection of the soul to "grasp" the image of the object being looked at. If you look at a pure thing, its goodness will cling to the soul and it will have a good effect on the one who sees it. If, on the other hand, you look at impure things, you will be adversely affected and become like what you look at.
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The larger, bold text is the direct translation of the classic text source.
The smaller, plain text is the explanation of the translator/editor.
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