Building A Bridge Above Hatred

Question: Is there a difference between personal internal work andwork in the group?

Answer: In spirituality, there is no separate personal and group work—it is all a single work. If I exist only under one authority, under the complete rule of my egoism, nothing can be done. Such a reality is called “this world,” and in such a state, I have no chance in changing my ego.

To change my state means to change “a place.” That is, I have to build a new place, new spiritual feelings and mind. And that is possible only by means of connection.

My personal work is to exert effort to connect with others. And for that reason, I select people who can help me—they are called “the group.” Thus, both my personal and group work take place, but essentially, this is one general work. It’s because I can’t be without them, and they can’t exist without me: This is the way we are arranged from the beginning.

There is no other work besides connecting and feeling new spiritual phenomena inside of that connection. To the extent that I want to attach their internal desire to me, I correct my desire. In fact, my spiritual vessel exists beyond my “I,” in all the others.

I have to connect what seems separate and remote from me in my consciousness, obscured by a wall of my egoism, envy, hatred, and ambition, meaning my desire to dominate the others, to disregard everyone, to rule and to use.

Thus my ego purposefully shows me different forms of my remoteness and neglect of a fellow human being so that I build the bridge of love towards him. And the further I advance, the stronger I will feel that I despise others, repel them, and want to use them for my own good.

I do that with pleasure or see that it is simply necessary, and I will suffer if I don’t use the other. We are being put through such states and placed before the need of using the other and neglecting him or her to save us from problems. Meanwhile, I have to realize that all of that is just an exercise or a joke that I have to rise above in order to overcome it and to connect to others, namely above it.

The egoistic force brings me to a state of total despair: “Look, if you don’t cause damage to others, you won’t be able to exist!” All our work is in rising above it. That’s why this principle is expressed in such general words: “Love the other as thyself”—above envy and hatred, above the desire to use others.
[54212]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/29/2011, Shamati #121