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The Power of Kabbalah By Rabbi Yehuda Berg
Suppose there was a hidden wisdom that revealed and unified the spiritual and physical laws of life... Suppose this wisdom was the true source of all spiritual teachings on this planet, predating religion, Adam and Eve, and even Creation of the world itself… Suppose its insights had a profound influence on the foremost thinkers throughout history . . . Suppose a small circle of eminent sages had long ago grasped this wisdom and recorded it in books that were concealed for two millennia… Finally, suppose this hidden wisdom revealed all the secrets of the universe, all the answers to your questions, all the solutions to your problems… This wisdom exists, although it's been kept under wraps throughout much of human history. The wisdom is called Kabbalah, and the visionaries who dared to contemplate and expound upon its mysteries were known as Kabbalists. The major text of Kabbalah is called the Zohar, and its mystical teachings have influenced the world's most brilliant spiritual, philosophical, religious, and scientific minds-something unknown to humanity at large. The Secret's Out The process of bringing this wisdom into the hands of people just like you began some 2,000 years ago, with the books of the Zohar, the authoritative body of knowledge on Kabbalah, and their author, a giant among Kabbalists, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. During the centuries that followed, a long line of courageous Kabbalists were scorned by the religious establishment for their efforts to make Kabbalah and the teachings of the Zohar available to people from all walks of life. Blood was spilled, people were tortured, and lives were tragically ruined. Ironically, after their passing, these same Kabbalists were suddenly held in the highest esteem by those who had spurned them. This has been the pattern for over 20 centuries. You are now able to read this book of a long-lost wisdom-thanks, primarily, to three men. They are the true Kabbalists of our era: Kabbalist Rav Ashlag I'm proud to say that Rav Berg happens to be my father, my teacher, my mentor, and my friend. Rav Brandwein was my father's master, and Rav Ashlag was Rav Brandwein's beloved teacher. The true distinction of these men is their uncommon ability to make esoteric and complex teachings intelligible to the layperson. Throughout history, scientists, philosophers, and physicians secretly probed Kabbalah for ideas and notions that eventually helped shape the leading philosophical and scientific doctrines. Scholars explored Kabbalah for intellectual and academic purposes. But while one may be a brilliant scholar of classical music, only a Mozart can compose a symphonic masterpiece. Rav Berg, Rav Brandwein, and Rav Ashlag are the true virtuosos of Kabbalah, the authentic custodians of this wisdom. Their lineage dates back to the time of Abraham, in a time-honored tradition that preserved the wisdom in its original, uncorrupted form. Their intent was not a Nobel Prize, academic acclaim, or endless philosophical discourse; the goal of these Kabbalists was to bring simple happiness, peace, and fulfillment to all humanity. Please Be Warned There remains in effect a single warning, a strict prohibition concerning the wisdom and the lessons of Kabbalah. This warning dates from the second century, and it is the first of 13 Spiritual Principles that will be presented in this book: Don't Believe a Word of What You Read! It has been said that Kabbalah can address all the age-old questions, including these:
Some say that Kabbalah is not just the light at the end of the tunnel, but the Light that burns away and removes the tunnel itself, opening up whole new dimensions of meaning and awareness. Kabbalah can tell us many things: How and why the world began; why we keep reverting back to our old negative habits; why we keep avoiding activities we know are good and beneficial to our lives; how to instill meaning and spiritual power into every waking moment. These are impressive statements-but don't believe them. Not one word. Not for one second. The very idea of belief implies a residue of doubt, but knowing leaves no trace of skepticism. It means certainty. Complete conviction. In your gut. In your heart. In your soul. So please test each lesson of this book. Apply these principles to your life. Live the lessons, and see if your life gets better. Breathe the lessons, and see if the "air" gets cleaner. Much sacrifice and suffering has taken place so that in our day a book like this can reach you and the rest of humanity. It is therefore important for all of us to heed the Kabbalistic precept that states, "No coercion in spirituality." In other words, the intent of this book is not to preach, but rather to humbly teach! For that reason, do not accept these lessons blindly. There must be tangible results in your direct experience. When that happens, you will feel the truth of Kabbalah in your body and soul, and you will come to know the wisdom of the sages in your heart. The Language of Analogy The Power of Kabbalah is a book that's both lighthearted and profoundly serious. When you read these chapters in the same spirit, you'll find fun and insight at the same time. Wisdom doesn't have to be complex, humdrum, and heavy. In Kabbalah, after all, wisdom is called the Light! Misconceptions about Kabbalah Those who danced were thought to be quite insane by In ancient times, the word Kabbalah struck fear into the hearts of most religious leaders. Shrouded in secrecy and centuries ahead of its time in its speculations, Kabbalah became subject to false rumors and suspicions: Imagine yourself trying to explain the concept of a telephone or the Internet to people of the 15th or 16th centuries. You'd be branded as a mystic, and Kabbalah was called mysticism for that very reason. But what was once considered mysticism is now called science-as the writer Arthur C. Clarke put it, "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." Kabbalah was and continues to be the original technology of life. It's the science of the soul and the physics (and metaphysics) of fulfillment. And because it was an innovative philosophy that appeared on the scene thousands of years before its time, it was engulfed in misunderstanding-including the warning that Kabbalah can make you crazy. That's right! Long ago it was thought that the study of Kabbalah could drive one to madness, to which this book responds . . . Let's Get Crazy! If our society defines sanity as: heart attacks, panic attacks, ozone cracks, homicide, genocide, suicide, airline crashes, stock market crashes, ethnic clashes, high school shootings, religious feuding, recession, depression, therapy sessions, family welfare, chemical warfare, claustrophobia, xenophobia, unemployment, missile deployments, persecution, executions, political payoffs, massive layoffs, tabloids, steroids, illness, loneliness, earthquakes, poisoned lakes, disease, drug addiction, and death-then yes, Kabbalah can make you crazy! So are you ready to get a little bit loony? Wonderful! Part One The Makeup of Humanity Who are we? What is our basic makeup? What is our substance, our essence, our core being? What's the essential element that we are made of? Did you ever stop and truly contemplate that question? Kabbalah defines us in one simple word: Desire! Desire in Motion When Kabbalah uses the word desire to define us, it is not a metaphor. Desire is truly our essential quality. Desire is the stuff that we are made of. It is our essence. Desire is what drives us. It's what makes us tick. We are all desires on foot, constantly seeking to fulfill our own cravings. Your heart beats, your blood flows, your body moves solely because there is a desire seeking to be fulfilled. Kabbalist Rav Ashlag once wrote that humans would not twitch a single finger if not for some inner desire. Desire and Diversity At heart, our individual human desires give us our separate identities. Some people desire sexual fulfillment. Some desire intellectual fulfillment. Some want religious fulfillment. Others seek the material kind. Some of us desire fame. Some seek enlightenment. Some of us seek travel and adventure. Others seek solitude. According to Kabbalah, human desires operate on three levels: Level One These desires are rooted in animal lust. A person's needs, wants, and learned behaviors exist only to gratify these primal urges. People at Level One may make use of rational thought, as all human beings do, but it is for the purpose of serving their animal desire. "A slave is never more than its master," states Kabbalist Rav Ashlag. Level Two These desires are directed toward fulfilling drives not found in the animal kingdom, such as honor, power, prestige, and dominion over others. The needs, and consequently, the thoughts, conscious choices, decisions, and actions of these people are directed only to gratifying these desires to the fullest extent. Level Three Still other desires are directed mainly toward rational matters. They are oriented toward gratifying an intellectually driven desire to its fullest. "These three types of desire," Rav Ashlag states, "are found in all members of the human race; however, they are blended in each individual in different proportions, and it is this that makes for the differences that exist between one man and another." A Vessel In the language of Kabbalah, desire is referred to as a Vessel. A Vessel is like an empty cup that seeks to be filled. Unlike an empty physical cup, however, the Vessel of our desires is not founded upon anything material. For instance, remember the time you consumed a sizzling steak to the point of nearly bursting the buttons on your shirt? You couldn't eat another morsel. But then the dessert cart was wheeled over to your table and you were staring at a tray of seductive sweets. Although your stomach was full, your new desire for something sweet managed to make a little room, and the next thing you knew, you were gobbling up Black Forest cake. Although there may eventually be a limit to our appetite, there is no limit to our desire. There is not one activity in this world that is not founded upon some inner urge, large or small, yearning to be fulfilled. It's as though we have no free will in the matter. We live life on autopilot, driven by the constant need to nourish all the longings that linger in our hearts. The Object of Our Desire The primary objective of our desire is uninterrupted happiness. In fact, desiring continual happiness is the one unifying link of all humanity. You don't have to convince a criminal, a lawyer, a construction worker, a CEO, a wicked person, a kind person, an atheist, a pious person, a mogul, or a pauper to want happiness. It is our very essence, although it may mean something different to each person. A scientist might desire truth and understanding. Perhaps a politician desires influence and standing in the community. A child generally desires play and pleasure. A comic might desire laughter, love, and acceptance. A CEO usually desires financial achievement and power. A factory worker probably desires a vacation, food on the table, and peace of mind. Maybe a scholar desires knowledge and acclaim from his peers. In truth, all the objects of our desires are really just different packages of fulfillment. These various containers of contentment are what set us in motion and shape our lives. Kabbalah sums up all these different packages of fulfillment into one word . . . Light! The term Light is merely a code word, a metaphor offered by the ancient Kabbalists to convey the broad spectrum of fulfillment for which human beings long. Did you ever gaze at a beam of sunlight after a cool rain on a hot summer day? When the shaft of sunlight strikes a droplet of water in the air, the light refracts into the seven colors of the rainbow. Just as this single ray of sunlight includes all the colors of the spectrum, the word Light suggests all the "colors" of joy that people seek in their lives. But Light is not defined solely as happiness and joy. Kabbalistically, Light denotes unending happiness, constant joy. It's the difference between pleasure and fulfillment. We don't really want a momentary pleasurable high. Our deepest desires are not limited to 15 minutes of fame. Or a temporary rush from closing a business deal. Or a short-term high from drugs. Or temporary relief from a painkiller. We don't want to be liked by our peers for just a limited period of time. We don't want to be healthy for just half of our lives. We don't want passionate sexual relations with our spouses for just the first two months of a relationship. We want our desires to be constantly filled. This constant fulfillment is defined as Light. Light also includes the force that we call intuition. The bond that holds a relationship together and keeps it strong. The magic that attracts the right people and right opportunities to our lives. The energy that heals a cut on an arm. The force that activates our immune systems. The inner spirit that arouses hope within us. The fuel that generates our self-motivation. The enduring happiness and constant flow of enthusiasm for living. All of this, and a whole lot more, is what Kabbalah defines as Light. The Root of Our Happiness The fact that our desires are not constantly infused with Light is the foundation of our unhappiness and anxiety. If there is joy in an area of our lives for five years, it means there was only enough Light in the "tank" to last for those five years. Running out of Light-or rather, disconnecting from Light-is what made us unhappy. The more Light we have in our lives, the longer our desires remain fulfilled and the happier we are. We also have a lingering deep-seated fear that our happiness will eventually end. When we find ourselves in a rare state of contentment and serenity, we have a negative tendency to believe it's too good to be true. We worry about tomorrow. And the moment these doubts creep in, the instant we begin to worry about how long it will last, we run out of Light. We lose the connection. Light is therefore also defined as the comfort, security, and peace of mind of knowing that happiness will still be with us tomorrow. When we are connected to the Light, there is no fear, anxiety, or insecurity about the future. Ultimate Desire In light of the above (pun intended!), the Kabbalists tell us that a human being's ultimate desire is desire for Light. Moreover, the Kabbalists tell us that this Light is everywhere. It is the most common substance in our universe. It fills the cosmos and saturates our reality. This Light is infinite. Boundless. And always ready to fulfill more than we can imagine. Which leads us to a compelling question: If people are the essence of desire, ANSWER: A curtain. Two Sides of the Curtain: According to Kabbalah, there is a curtain that divides our reality into two realms, which Kabbalah identifies as the 1 percent and the 99 percent. The 1 percent realm encompasses our physical world. But this is only a tiny fraction of all creation. It is only what we perceive with our five senses-what we can smell, taste, touch, see, and hear. On the other side of the curtain lies the 99 percent, which encompasses the vast majority of reality. In the 1 percent realm, life has an annoying habit of catching us off guard. We are afflicted with something called the Suddenly Syndrome: He had a sudden heart attack! But is there really such a thing as "suddenly"? Kabbalah says no. Absolutely not. There is always a concealed, unseen cause that precedes any "sudden" event. Did you ever wake up one morning to suddenly find a full-grown oak tree standing tall on your front lawn? Of course not. Somewhere in the past a seed was planted. When a nasty problem suddenly pops up and cuts off the flow of happiness that was fulfilling a particular desire of yours, according to Kabbalah, this is not just some random, chaotic event. There exists a deeper cause. Somewhere in the past, a seed was planted. Chaos Theory The Suddenly Syndrome originates in our inability to see through the illusions of our lives in the 1 percent realm. We cannot see beyond the immediate turmoil in order to grasp the big picture. We cannot see the other side of the curtain where the larger reality resides. Meteorologists faced this same problem when trying to predict weather. Storms and other fluctuations in the atmospheric conditions occurred without warning. They concluded that weather was a chaotic, nonlinear, and random sequence of events. Further scientific study, however, revealed a mysterious order concealed within the chaos. Science calls this phenomenon The Butterfly Effect. The Butterfly Effect Incredible as it seems, the tiny turbulence created by a butterfly flapping its wings in Tokyo can eventually amplify into a tornado in Kansas. And a person slamming a car door in Iowa can therefore influence the weather in Brazil. Everything is connected on a deeper level of reality. Weather only appears random to meteorologists because they are unable to perceive and measure all the millions of influences that contribute to a stormy day-such as flapping butterflies and slamming doors. Kabbalah revealed this concept centuries ago. Our lives, no matter how chaotic they may appear, contain order hiding within. The problem is that a curtain limits our ability to spot all those tiny butterflies blowing the winds of chaos into our personal lives. Nevertheless, all the storms and tornadoes whipping through our lives have their own unseen causes hiding behind the curtain. We observe effects but not the cause level of reality. We are blind to the remaining 99 percent. And so here we are, in touch with a microscopic portion of reality as we desperately search it for fulfillment of our deepest desires. Some of us turn to science, some to traditional religion, some to drugs. Some pursue wealth and power. But the inner void remains. We feel insignificant, helpless, and out of control, starving for spiritual sustenance, meaning and positive change. Will we remain prisoners of this 1 percent realm and miss out on 99 percent of reality? Will we be doomed to chaos and darkness? Must the curtain remain up forever? Not by a long shot. The 99 Percent World A physicist had a horseshoe hanging on the door of his laboratory. His colleagues were surprised and asked whether he believed that it would bring luck to his experiments. He answered, "No, I don't believe in superstitions. But I have been told that it works even if you don't believe in it." - From A Random Walk in Science, by R. L. Weber The familiar reality is the 1 percent world in which we live, yet there is another side to this curtain-the 99 percent-and it is ultimately far more important. According to Kabbalah, the 99 percent realm is the source of all lasting fulfillment. All knowledge, wisdom, and joy dwell in this realm. This is the domain the Kabbalists call Light. Whenever we experience joy, we've made contact with this realm through some action that has taken place in the 1 percent realm. It might be from the hug of your child. Or, perhaps you just closed a significant business deal. But the joy you feel flows from the 99 percent. Nothing New Under the Sun Before Thomas Edison, civilization lived pretty much in the dark compared to the 24-hour, neon-lit, fluorescent-glowing, halogen-burning world of today. But did Edison really invent something new when he produced the first light bulb? Or did the information on how to build a light bulb already exist? In other words, if someone had had the same information and materials for building a light bulb 100 years before Edison, couldn't the light have been switched on much sooner? Did Albert Einstein actually discover something new with his Theory of Relativity, or was it always there? Did Isaac Newton invent gravity when he discovered its properties, or did gravity always exist? Edison, Einstein, and Newton merely revealed something that already existed. So where was all this information hiding before these great minds uncovered it? The answer, according to Kabbalah, is in the 99 percent world. Timeless Symphony Mozart said that he was able to conceive entire symphonies in his mind before he wrote a single note. When he mentally experienced an hour of music in just a split second, Mozart felt that he was tapping into another reality. He was transcending the laws of time and space, and entering a spiritual dimension. Similarly, great scientific minds of the past believed that spiritual insight played a role in their achievements. Today, scientists are beginning to recognize that the spiritual dimension can be a source of great insight and inspiration. Consider the case of Russian chemist Dmitry Mendeleyev, who had an unusual dream in 1869. Said Mendeleyev: I saw in a dream a table where all the elements
fell Mendeleyev's dream resulted in the Periodic Table of the Elements that we all learned about in our high school chemistry classes. Insulin, used to treat diabetics, was discovered by Canadian physician Sir Frederick Banting. Banting had a dream that hinted at a method for extracting the substance from a nonhuman pancreas. Banting won the Nobel Prize and was eventually knighted for his discoveries. American inventor Elias Howe dreamed about being chased by cannibals with spears. While the natives were waving their weapons, he noticed that the shafts all had tiny holes in them. The spears were also bobbing up and down. After this dream, Howe was finally able to complete his invention of the automatic sewing machine. He realized that he had to move the eye of the needle to the bottom of the needle instead of placing it at the top. Renowned scientist Niels Bohr claimed that he dreamed of sitting on the sun with all the planets hissing around on tiny cords. Thereafter, Bohr developed the model of the atom. Robert Louis Stevenson reported that the theme for his classic story, "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde," originated in a dream, as did much of his best work. In his book, Shadows of the Mind, eminent physicist Roger Penrose wrote: According to Plato, mathematical concepts and mathematical truths inhabit an actual world of their own that is timeless and without physical location. Plato's world is an ideal world of perfect forms, distinct from the physical world, but in terms of which the physical world must be understood. The Moment of Connection Plato called a connection to the 99 percent, "divine madness." Famed philosopher Nicholas of Cusa called it "divine revelation" or docta ignorantia. Mozart described it as "a rush." Philosopher E. Husserl called it "pure intuition" and "intuition." Our mthers called it "a mother's intuition." Your Aunt Rose termed it her "sixth sense." Successful businesspeople call it a "gut instinct." A Brief Summary of the 1 Percent The 1 percent reality is the world of our five senses. It is a realm of chaos in which: We react to external events. Fulfillment is temporary and fleeting. Effects, symptoms, and reactions preoccupy us. We are victims who apparently suffer because of other people's actions and external circumstances. There seems to be no hope for bringing about permanent, positive change because any change that occurs is temporary and therefore illusory. The majority of our desires remain unfulfilled. Murphy's Law governs the realm of the 1 percent. Everything that can possibly go wrong will go wrong. Even when things go well, we know they'll change, for we live in an endless cycle of up and down. A Brief Summary of the 99 Percent The 99 percent reality lies beyond human perception. It is: A world of absolute order, perfection, and spiritual Light. A realm of action rather than reaction to external events. The source, the seed, and the hidden origin of the physical world. A world of total fulfillment, infinite knowledge, and endless joy. A dimension in which we can initiate positive, lasting change, permanent change that also manifests in our 1 percent world. There is no trace of Murphy's Law in the realm of the 99 percent! This leads us to our Second Kabbalistic Principle: Two Basic Realities Exist: 20th-Century Science Stumbles Professor Dr. Stuart Hameroff, along with brilliant Oxford physicist Roger Penrose, developed The Penrose- Hameroff 'Orch OR' model of Consciousness. Dr. Hameroff was intrigued by the ancient Kabbalist's description of the 99 percent realm and its similarity to the quantum mechanical view of our universe. Hameroff states: For 100 years it has been known that there exists two worlds, the classical world and the quantum world. We live in the classical world where everything seems "normal" (if unfulfilling). Everything has a definite shape, place and substance. However, at very small scales the quantum world reigns and everything is strange and bizarre, defying common sense. Science knows very little about the quantum world, but there are indications that the quantum world could qualify as the 99% world, and that a curtain does indeed exist between the two worlds. The Problem There is one nagging obstacle - it's our inability to control the moments of connection to the 99 percent realm. Accessing this dimension of Light is accidental and haphazard at best. Kabbalist Rav Berg describes the 99 percent reality as dancing on the edge of consciousness, like an enchanting dream that cannot quite be remembered. Moments before waking, there is a crucial instant when only a loose thread connects the dreamer to the dream. The harder the dreamer pulls on that delicate strand, the more quickly the fabric of the dream unravels and disappears. Try as he or she might to reattach the thread, the dream fades and the dreamer must become resolved to a waking reality immensely inferior to that of the dream. Imagine if we could access this realm at will; we would gain the ability to control all the events in our lives. Instead of dealing with symptoms and effects, we could discover the hidden forces behind chaotic circumstances and maddening events that "suddenly" end our happiness, leaving our deepest desires unfulfilled. Think of it this way: If you alter a branch of a tree, you change the branch. Modify a leaf, and you change the leaf. But if you can manipulate the genetic information inside the seed, you can affect the entire tree - branches, leaves, fruit, the whole shebang. The realm of the 99 percent is the DNA level of reality: The seed. The root. The cause of all causes. Chasing Our Own Shadows Consider the following analogy: Your shadow on a sidewalk presents a severely limited version of your true self. Your shadow does not reflect the skin, hair, blood, bones, emotions, imagination, feelings, or desires that define you as an individual. It is merely a two-dimensional reflection of your three-dimensional reality. In this example, the shadow corresponds to the 1 percent world. Your true self corresponds to the dimension that lies beyond the five senses-that is, to the 99 percent. Could you move someone's arm simply by touching his or her shadow on the wall? It can't be done. You must touch the source, the actual arm, the 99 percent.You must move into a higher dimension to effect change: Move the actual arm, and the shadow responds automatically! But we've been conditioned to focus our awareness on the 1 percent realm of existence, which is akin to chasing our own shadows. Kabbalah says that won't cut it. It's an exercise in futility. Here's a simple experiment you can try at home, right now, that should solidify the point: Get a piece of paper and a pencil, then write down your top five responses to the following question: What does a human being truly desire from life? The Top Ten List When this question was asked to tens of thousands of people learning Kabbalah over the years, the following items turned up most frequently:
Chances are, your list has something in common with this top ten list. Notice that not one of these items can be measured or weighed on a scale or held in our hands. We cannot physically locate any of these items on a map or reach them by geographically defining their coordinates. None of the things that we most want to receive from life is of a physical nature. Nothing on our list is found in the material 1 percent realm-even financial security (which is a feeling). Everything we genuinely desire is of an ethereal nature found only in the 99 percent reality. Thus, our Third Spiritual Principle states: Everything That a Human Being Truly Desires from Life Is Spiritual Light! So what do we do throughout our lives? We chase physical possessions in our pursuit of happiness! To see how this principle operates, let's look at something that would seem to be a very tangible asset: money. Cold, hard cash. Consider an individual with a net worth of $20 million who loses $15 million overnight in a stock market crash. Compare that to a person with a net worth of $20,000 who suddenly earns $80,000 from a stock that just went through the roof. Which one goes to bed with greater financial peace of mind and a stronger sense of security? The one who still has $5 million, or the one with only a small fraction of that amount? According to Kabbalah, material objects are not what we're really seeking in life. What we're really searching for is the spiritual energy that pervades the 99 percent world. The Reason for Our Discontent We find ourselves unhappy, unfulfilled, sad, depressed, miserable, or anxious when our desires seem to be ignored by the universe. It's usually some form of chaos that precipitates our unfulfilled longings. Ill health. Financial adversity. Problems in the marriage. Social pressures. All this turmoil occurs when we disconnect ourselves, knowingly or unknowingly, from the 99 percent realm. However, when we learn how to connect to this realm, we can control the events in our lives. We can prevent and eradicate the chaos that causes our unhappiness. We can turn on the Light and vanquish the darkness. Contact with the 99 percent realm is the secret key to fulfillment in life. But it's not easy to do. That's why the ancient spiritual masters of Kabbalah gave us the tools and methods for reaching beyond our everyday lives. In the pages that follow, we'll explore and explain these tools in great detail. It Makes You Wonder . . . Why do chaos, suffering, pain, and disease exist if there is another world of order and happiness? Why are there even such things as 1 percent and 99 percent realms? Who constructed reality in that way? And for what reason? Why is it that other spiritual systems teach us wisdom, but life still never really changes? Why are our desires and the fulfillment we seek separated by some unseen curtain? Who hung up the curtain? How do we inadvertently disconnect ourselves from the 99 percent realm? Where do our desires spring from? The Taste of Time A tribesman of the rain forest will not suddenly wake up tomorrow morning and crave a double cappuccino or a Big Mac. Desires do not spring up on their own volition; the taste must have been tasted before. You cannot have a passion to enjoy another viewing of The Godfather for the umpteenth time if you never knew of or experienced the film before. But a heroin addict will go to almost any lengths to score another hit. An alcoholic will stop at almost nothing when the craving for a drink appears. The basis for these incessant drives is that the experience of drugs or alcohol is already in the blood. Moreover, people with addictions know that this urge can be fulfilled and the "high" can be reexperienced. Given that desire springs from experience and memory, isn't it interesting that since the dawn of humanity, people have been unrelenting in their quest for eternal happiness? No matter how many wars, diseases, famines, depressions, and natural disasters knock us off our feet, we keep picking ourselves back up again, ever determined in our quest for lasting comfort, unending joy, and permanent pleasure. It stands to reason that we must have experienced this 99 percent realm before. Somewhere in the recesses of our souls, we know it's possible to connect ourselves to this reality on a continuing basis. Memories According to Kabbalah, the very stuff of which the human body is composed-the atoms in our blood, the electrons that spur the impulses in our brains, the chemicals that make up our tissues and our bones-have roots that extend far back before the origin of our physical universe. The myriad desires, urges, impulses, and cravings that pervade our minds have existed since before the dawn of time. Whatever longings are stirring in your heart at this very moment are in fact memories lingering in your soul, recollections ingrained into your very being. The pursuit of happiness is not only inscribed into the Constitution as an inalienable right of U.S. citizenship; it is also present in the blueprint of our universe. It is the inherited birthright of humanity. Remember: An old oak tree didn't just spring up accidentally on your front lawn out of nowhere. There was a hidden seed. Similarly, there is a seed of our desires and of the fulfillment we so desperately seek. We will now identify this ancient seed, and discover the ultimate purpose of our "sudden" appearance on the front lawns of this world.
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Berg edited The Kabbalah Centre's editions of The Kabbalistic Daily Prayer book and The Kabbalistic Shabbat prayer Book. He serves as associate director of the Kabbalah media Group, as well as religious director of The Kabbalah children's Acaademy. He Lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two children. |
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Copyright:
New Earth Publications, 1999-2009. PlanetLightworker.com is published
by New Earth Publications, | |||||||||
I
N T R O D U C T I O N
Born
in Israel, and raised there and in the United States, Rabbi Yehuda Berg
is a graduate of Yeshiva in New York City. He is an ordained Rabbi from
Yeshiva Knesset Israel in Jerusalem and is a leading authority on Kabbalah.