Famine Among Plenty

The Jews would have remained the slaves of egoism forever because they lived very well in Egypt, were satiated and enjoyed life. But then the Creator changes their desire and they start to ask: “Why do we live? What is this life about? What is its purpose?”

People changed, just as it is happening now. In fact, it would seem what more could we want? The world is capable of providing every person with plenty, but we spoil everything. As if we are doing this ourselves, but in reality it is the upper governance working on us, corrupting us, not allowing us to enjoy life. We could have children and enjoy our families. A hundred years ago, if people had the opportunities they do today, they would have considered it a paradise. Why are we not satisfied with it? This is what is meant by “The king of Egypt died.”

The former egoistic desire, in which we enjoyed life, family, kids, vacation, and health—died. Life stopped bringing us satisfaction.

The desire for pleasure grew, not in quantity, but in quality, and it is demanding new, higher fulfillment. You offer it buckets of meat, fish, cakes, candy, travel, but it doesn’t want anything. Many people are depressed, use drugs, and even want to end their lives, the number of suicides is growing, or a person suddenly buys weapons and begins to shoot everyone indiscriminately.

Where does it come from? It comes from the Creator. He spoils our desire for pleasure and poisons our existence. We are unable to fulfill our desire and feel that death is better than such a life.

First of all, we need to understand that it comes from Above, in accordance with the program of the development of nature. We cannot resist it, nor compensate in any way to fix the situation. No tranquilizers can help soften the blow of “the king of Egypt died.”

Jews worked remarkably well during the “seven years of satiation,” and they felt satiated. You think that during the “seven years of famine” there was less food? There was the same amount of everything, but they felt as if they had nothing, and there was a famine. There was nothing they could satisfy their desire to receive with—just like in today’s world.*

The desire to receive is a machine. You bring a deficiency into it, and it does everything to fulfill it. From the side of creation, the desire to receive, there is no freedom of will. It works like an automaton according to the data entered into it.

But the Creator wants to bring us to the point of acting on our own, independently. This is only possible if the creation has two forces: the forces of reception and bestowal. Then, between these two forces, it can build an intention toward bestowal and work above its nature.

Only then will the created being exist; before this it simply does not exist because it is a part of nature: the inanimate, vegetative, and animate levels. The instinctual reaction of the desire to receive is not considered an independent life.** 

If fifty years ago our ancestors got what we have today, they would have been thrilled beyond belief. However, today we are not satisfied with our lives because our desire to receive has changed; it is no longer content with its previous fulfillment. And this is progress; we seemingly have everything, yet it is not enough.

That is why the oligarchs are so eager to earn more than profits, because stealing a billion only gives them the fulfillment worth a hundred dollars. There is no feeling of contentment. ***

It is a blessing that a person does not anticipate death, but only thinks of food, sex, family, money, power, and knowledge. Is it worth worrying about these things, if sooner or later you die? But the person does not think about death, and this means that “the king of Egypt died” hasn’t happened yet. Even being in despair from his work, he still wants to return to his previous state, like the Jews in the desert dreamed of returning to Egypt.**** 

Egyptian slavery is a feeling that egoistic unity no longer works.*****
From the 3^rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 3/12/18, Shamati #159 “And It Came to Pass in the Course of Those Many Days”