Contradictions Between Modern Religion And The Wisdom Of Kabbalah

Question: Religious people believe that we should simply keep theMitzvot (commandments) and wait for the Messiah. In contrast, you believe that it is up to us to “awaken” and “invite” him to come to us. What is your opinion based on?

Answer: There is contradiction between the view of modern religion, and I emphasize modern, and  the wisdom of Kabbalah; they are diametrically opposed. The religious rightly claim that the differences between us are ideological and therefore are also practical. It is not just a question of whether a mechanical performance (Maase) or intention (Kavana) are more important.

The world evolves through the continuous development of egoism in every natural object on all of its levels: still, vegetative, animate, and speaking. The ego evolves gradually through steps 1, 2, 3, and 4 in which the minimal egoism on level 1 is the still and the maximal egoism on level 4 is human. Likewise, there are sublevels and sub-sublevels for each one of the levels. In fact, according to the value of egoism, all the characteristics of every natural object are determined.

The general egoism of nature evolves on every level in intensity according to that level. The slowest development is on level 1 and the most rapid on level 4. Development under the influence of the obligatory egoistic force is called the way ofBeito, in its time. Since in religions there is no possibility for influencing the style of development, the believers accept passive development as if it were given to them by the Creator and they consider obedience to Him as righteous, meaning that it is given from above.

The wisdom of Kabbalah discovered the Creator as nature (Elohim [Creator] in Gematria = HaTeva [nature]) and believes that everything is derived from nature and that there is no other force that determines anyhing in our world besides that. But the entire reason for the creation of Adam (Man) and therefore everything that preceded him, is intended for the development of man to the level of the Creator. So the Adam is called “Adam,” which is derived from the word, “Domeh” (similar), “Domeh LeBore” (similar to the Creator). This is to say, the goal of the evolution of the Adam is to attain the level of the Creator, as is written in the Torah, “Shuvu Bnei Yisrael Hashem Eloheinu” (Hosea 14:2), “Return, O children of Israel, to the Lord Your God, to the level of the Creator.”

It turns out that the views of religion and of Kabbalah about the development of the world and the role of humanity are diametrically opposed. Religion ascribes a passive role to humanity; whereas the wisdom of Kabbalah, on the contrary, an active role, “…know the God of your father, and worship Him…” (Chronicles 1, 28:9). First it says “Know,” and after that you will know how to work for His sake and what this work itself signifies.

But the problem is greater. Religion insists that a person must know and comply with mechanical Mitzvot only and in this way it shackles the person and absolutely limits his development. In contrast to this, the wisdom of Kabbalah claims that everything was created for the development of the person so that he will attain the level of the Creator, so he will attain the uniqueness of the Creator in his personal development. Development is determined in the form of the “adhesion” of the person with the Creator when they become equal in their actions. But this is something religions are afraid to admit, so it teaches, calls for, and permits only the mechanical learning and performance of the Mitzvot.
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