Thursday, July 28, 2005

Bahir Verse 64

How can you tell what is right and what is wrong? Where is the dividing line between these two apparently opposite poles? The next two verses in the Bahir point us in that direction.


Bahir 64. Furthermore, if there is no wisdom, then there is no justice. It is thus written (1 Kings 5:26), "And God gave wisdom to Solomon." He then judged the case [of the two mothers and the infant] correctly, and it is then written (1 Kings 3:28), "And all Israel of the judgement that the Kind had judged, and they feared the king, for they say that the wisdom of God was in him to do judgement."

Commentary: Justice is the right thing to do. It isn't necessarily righting a wrong but doing the right thing in the first place. In Mind this refers to making the right choice(s). You have for example two thoughts which are seeking dominance. One of them is negative. The other is positive. Perhaps the negative one holds the promise of all sorts of explanations why things should be a certain way. The positive may only open us up to another way of looking at things. How may we choose rightly.
Weigh the scales here. Which feels lighter? Which thought feels like it has the capacity to rise up and produce others of similar direction? Which brings health and peace? Which only brings turmoil?
Solomon tries the mothers in the mantle of their love. The true mother loved her baby so much that she would rather give him up rather than have Solomon part it in two. What is your true mother? Not your physical mother but Kabbalisticly speaking. Binah is the 'great mother' from whence everything else proceeds. It is then from Wisdom into Binah and then into Justice. Therefore there is no Justice without Wisdom. The last line from verse 64 refers to 'Israel feared the kind of justice that the king was able to impart." Feared in this sense refers to looking up as in awe and also in terms of the tree where Israel is Zeir Anpin which by the nature of the structure of the tree, the lower Sephirot look up at the higher Sephirot. So too is it with your thoughts. Israel represents your everyday mind and even mass mind which must give up its allegiance to higher mind in order to grow in its understanding.

Tuesday, July 26, 2005

What's happening?

You can make this happen in this now just by being determined that it happen in this now. There is sufficient precedent for this to ring true. Obviously it is state of mind which determines the success of every adventure. It is one thing to experiment with something. It is another to know you can and then do what you know you can to see it happen. You see when you have the right attitude everything changes. You go from waiting for something to happen to expecting something to happen. When it happens it should come as no surprise but just be seen as a natural result of the expansion of consciousness. Did you ever watch your favorite team play and you just knew they were going win. The odds may have been against them but still they manage to win. Sure you are excited that you have watched them win but deep down a part of yourself is saying, 'you see I knew it, I knew this was going to happen.' It is to that part of yourself now that I would like you to turn your full attention to. It is the part which knows and then acts as though it knows in everything. Consider this acting to be exactly the same as follow through except in this case it really is a flowing through because that is what happens when your attitude filters the consciousness of who and what you are from moment to moment. There is this higher voice within you that moves through everything. At times if you listen closely you will feel it move in response to your getting it; getting what it is trying to tell you.

One of the things which will set your mind at ease is that you do not have to maintain this high state of mind. It is there regardless of where you are. All you need employ is your awareness of its presence and then take it from there.

You are not alone. You do not have to do this by yourself. The more you reach up the lower the ladder drops to the ground. Once your hands touch the first rung of the ladder you are home free. Then you are connected. Those quiet moments, those times in between. They are simply opportunities for connection.

The first step is to listen. Then gradually the quality of information becomes more clear. Your ability to assimilate this information too becomes greater in degree as does your ability to disseminate this information in a cogent rational form.

You have no idea of how others see you. All illusion comes from a negative self projection.

Place your attention where you most need it to be, upon your connection. How will you know when you are connected? There will be no opposing forces. Your thoughts will flow in one direction ever expanding and increasing the depth and breadth of your understanding.

Monday, July 25, 2005

In this moment, this hour

Pray with the confidence of the maker. It is your highest thought. It deserves your just due.

Move with the grace of the atoms in the sky careening here and there as the energy of life continues to amaze you. Watch your thoughts and then let them watch you.

There is a switch, a subtle crossing over, a turning point in your mind where the maker says unto itself, I accept thy work, the work of thy hands.

Be aware that if you point towards the mystery you will always be off course but if you act as though the mystery were pointing through you then you will be exactly at the place you want to be all the time.

Life is energy in motion with a purpose. It is time without a deadline.

Saturday, July 23, 2005

Bahir Verse 63

Continuing with the Bahir verse 63 the Mystery is alluded to. There is a lot to think about here but we will cut to the heart of the matter which you will see is exactly the point of this verse.

Bahir Verse 63. What is his heart? He said: If so, Ben Zoma is out side, and you are with him. The heart (Lev) [in numerical value] is thirty-two. These are concealed, and with them the world was created. What these 32? He said: These are the 32 Paths. This is like a king who was in the innermost of many chambers. The number of such chambers was 32, and to each one there was a path. Should the king the bring everyone to his chamber through these paths? You will agree that he should not. Should he reveal his jewels, his tapestries, his hidden and concealed secrets? You will again agree that he should not. What then does he do? He touches the Daughter, and includes all the paths in her and in her garments. One who wants to go inside should gaze there. He married her to a king, and also gave her to him as a gift. Because of his love for he, he sometimes calls her "my sister," since they are both from one place. Sometimes he calls her his daughter, since she is actually his daughter. And sometimes he calls her "my mother."

Commentary: The first part has to do with how we may understand a particular meaning that is coming through for us. All of our meanings are concealed until they are revealed by the Mystery itself to us. Then we find the thirty two paths which come fromthe value of the word heart which is 32. These 32 paths, defined as "ten Sefirot beli mah" and the "22 elemental letters" of the Hebrew alphabet, are represented as the foundations of all of creation.



As you can see from this diagram Keter of the top of the tree is only connected via Chochmah, Binah and Tiphereth. The king is Keter and the daughter or sister is the heart or Tiphareth, There is the connection of reflection occuring in both places. The mysteries that are revealed to us only are revealed when we recognize in the heart of our being our connection to the King. In our own hearts the passion of our awakening soul is enough to communicate the spark necessary to initiate this connection. When we direct our attention a key is that we are looking now with love at this which always is. This is akin to the feeling of a husband for a bride. It is complete adoration as well as complete acceptance. Both are neccessary to move the heart into its proper role as initiator of the connection.

Thursday, July 21, 2005

Breathe in your good

Breathe in your good, every bit of it, not just a little but all of it. Breathe in your good until it begins to overflow within you. Where is the place where you live and move and have your being? It is the breath that moves where you move and stays where you stay. It flows through you from one end to the other.

Wednesday, July 20, 2005

A Higher Calling

Rise up into the highest path. From there express your will.

Imagine the pouring forth of will as in the torrent of rain that fills a valley below in minutes with its abundance. Then shine the sunlight of will all through everything which is seen and unseen.

Fill the obvious and the hidden with your light.

Once you have acted in this manner rise up again some distance from your starting point and see the results. Declare them good.

Life and death are about the transformation of consciousness. Consciousness expands by the nature of our thoughts.

If we choose to think on high then that is where we will live.

There is the nothing, the mystery, the unknown, the undifferentiated substance, the mind stuff, or whatever and out of that nothing we by our actions above and below make something out of nothing.

How do we make anything? By transforming that which is not into that which is. Here is a card trick for the mind.

Pick a moment any moment. What do you choose to do with this moment? Okay you've made up your mind. Now place that moment back into the deck of moments. Shuffle once or twice. Quickly now shut your eyes and reach in for that moment of choice. It's the same moment however, now it is surrounded by all those other moments of choice. This is how the warp and woof of our lives proceeds.

Monday, July 18, 2005

Clear the way

Before you build a house you have to clear the land. You clear the land of weeds, rocks and of any obstructions that there may be to establishing a solid level foundation. Then you build your foundation put up your walls and you are ready to inhabit your house.

Clearing the land: Let go of all grievances like A Course in Miracles says. Let go of past hurts and let go of your own attacks towards others. Suppose someone has injured you and you harbor resentment. It is like a weed in your mind. Let both of these hurts and attacks go and clear the places within. Let go of your mistakes, resentments and fears. They impede your way and are especially hard to trace once they've become established. You can let them go by recognition and focusing on a clearing all purpose energy cleansing breath.

Establish a level foundation: Maintain your positive attitude by thinking positive thoughts. These are thoughts which create something out of nothing. What they create is filled with your hopes and dreams. They are the outworkings of your the energy of your inner being.

Put up your walls: Accept your good. Accept that which is coming to you. Relax and be ready to receive. The walls that are formed by these kinds of actions are walls of good. They are walls of attraction. In this case the walls are painted with your thoughts of good. They are painted until they are overflowing. These walls are not static but flowing in and out producing the good that you experience. They overflow until they become the floors and ceiling of your dwelling place.

Inhabit your house: Relax and allow the full energy of receiving to enter into the core of your being. This is where you live. It cannot be activated except by your acceptance.

"Yes I am here.
Yes I am now.
This is the place I want to be.
Here I am myself and no other.
Here thy will is done and all is complete."

Thursday, July 14, 2005

Bahir verse 62

The way shifts slightly and leads us in yet another unexpected direction. I believe this to be true of most mystical writings which are based upon our understanding in the moment. It is to one of those moments that we'll speak of in the commentary to Verse 62

Bahir Verse 62. They asked him: What is the meaning of the verse [with regard to Balak and Balaam] (Numbers 23:14), "And he took him to the field of the seers."? What is the "field of the seers"? As it is written (Song of Songs 7:12), "Come my beloved, let us go out to the field." Do not read Sadeh (the field), but Sidah (carriage). What is this carriage? He said, "The Heart of the Blessed Holy One." His heart said to the Blesssed Holy One, "Come my beloved, let us go out to the carriage to stroll. It will not constantly sit in one place."

Commentary: In Numbers 22: begins a story about how Balak the ruler of the region calls upon Balaam a seer to curse Israel who is on his doorstep so that Balak and his people will win over them.
Balaam cannot say anything but the word of God and cannot curse Israel. In fact Balaam ends up cursing Balak and blessing Israel. That is the context here. The field is canvas upon which our thoughts play their way into form. Carriage refer to the the body of form. The rabbi's are describing a transformation of the soul through the body and its connection thereof. The heart of our soul is our body which does not sit in one place but moves constantly. Our heart beats even when we are sitting still. What is being called for here is a harmony between body and mind, or between heart and soul. The carriage is the carrier of the soul. As such it relaxes itself as in strolling to accomodate the higher thoughts of the soul. The hidden kernel throughout this verse is the connection between body and soul. It will be interesting to see if this connection is further elucidated in the next verse.

Until next time

Mark

Tuesday, July 12, 2005

Bahir Verse 57-61

This could be a difficult passage except that it is following the rule of mind via thought all along. This rule says that the meanings referred to are pointing to operations of thought. They are spoken of in allegory and transmitted to us in a time honored way. Since the universe is expanding, growing in understanding it follows that today we are able to have a more clear interpretation of these verses than even when they were first spoken or written down for a select few. Here is the verse, the commentary as usual follows.

Bahir Verse 57. What is the meaning of the verse (Isaiah 30:26) , "The light of the moon shall be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, like the light of the seven days." The verse does not say "seven days," but " the seven days." These are the days regarding which it is written (Exodus 31:17), "For six days God made [the heaven and the earth]." As you said, God made six beautiful vessels. What are they? "The heaven and the earth." Are they not seven? Yes, as it is written (ibid.) "And on the seventh day, He rested and souled." What is the meaning of "souled?" This teaches us that the Sabbath sustains all souls. It is therefore written that it souled.

Commentary: The light of the moon is the reflected light. We are in truth that reflected light. We are the reflected light of soul. When 'he rested and souled,' we came to be. So it is when our thoughts are at peace and the results of our thinking appear before us souled by the thoughts we have meditated upon. The recognition of this soul completes the cycle and makes the light of our understanding the equivalent of seven times brighter.

We continue this concept in the next verse 58

Verse 58. Another explanation: This teaches us that it is from there that souls fly forth. It is thus written, "and He souled." This continues for a thousand generations. It is thus written (Psalm 105:8), "The word that He commanded until a thousand generations." Immediately after this it says, "[the covenant] that He cut with Abraham." What is the meaning of "cut"? He cut a covenant between the ten fingers of his hands and the ten toes of his feet. Abraham was ashamed. God then said to him (Genesis 17:4), "And I, behold My covenant is with you," and with it, "you will be the father of many nations."

Commentary: Let stay with our explanation in Mind. When understanding occurs it reaches out into every part of our being. Since we are beings of the universe this understanding permeates the universe of ideas in our view. 'A thousand generations,' the single understanding begets multiple insights and these do indeed go on. 'Generation' is another word taking form from one thing into another. It is an evolving sequence of events just like our thoughts evolve in the experiences we are becoming. That which is cut between the ten fingers alludes to the blessing that the kohain gives with both hands in Spock's live long and prosper configuration. We bring forth blessings by our connection with unity. This covenant simply means as a man thinks so shall he experience. It is the fundamental law around which all of our lives revolve. The nations of which you are the father of are the experiences you have as a result of your intentional thinking. You see yourself in the experiences that you understand. You are truly their father. Abraham was ashamed refers perhaps to the circumcision which the covenant was sealed with but more likely in higher thought we always shy away from negative energy. Being ashamed means that now Abraham has the capacity to know that what he thinks is what he experiences and therefore may regret certain actions. All in all the ashamed part can be taken out of this context here or only be used to show that our actions results from our thoughts. There isn't any shame in making a mistake. Once you realize your direction you may work increasingly for correction which means thinking positive thoughts for your life's plan.

A slight departure occurs in the next verse but we will catch up with it and unify it with the whole.

Bahir Verse 59. Why is heaven called Shamayim? This teaches that God kneaded fire and water, and combined them together. From this He made the "beginning of His word." It is thus written (Psalm 119:160), "The beginning of your word is truth." It is therefore called Shamayim ­ Sham Mayim (there is water) ­ Esh Mayim (fire water). He said to them: This is the meaning of the verse (Job 25:2), "He makes peace in His heights." He placed peace and love between them. May He also place peace and love among us.

Commentary: The key to progressing along this path of positive thought is given. Emotion-water, and Fire-thought. The word starts out in truth and with emotion rides the crest of manifestation according to our steadfast intention. 'Peace in the heights' refers to our High Watch, our ability to continually choose the higher thought. Out of our choices then we experience the peace and not fighting with our ego constantly. 'Peace and love between them' is the bonding between emotion and thought which sees on high. The emotion is the inspirational source of power to promote your utmost good throughout every circumstance that you experience. What the rabbis are saying here is to work with this process and experience all of the benefits from on high through the process of unfoldment that takes place when your emotions and thoughts work together for your good.

Details are forthcoming in verse 60

Verse 60. We also say (Psalm 119:164), "seven times each day I praised You for Your righteous judgement." They asked him, "What are they?" He replied, "You do not look at it carefully. Be precise and you will find them."

Commentary: Once again the seven times we see in relationship to the light of the sun in verse 57. The theme is being continued. The righteous judgement is our choices that we make to choose our higher thoughts and not descend to our lower nature. The students question is answered above by the rabbi telling the student to look carefully at those times when they are in the middle of making their choices. This may be as simple as changing your mind in the middle of an angry moment realizing that all anger is self anger. When you make the choice to not hurt yourself by becoming angry then you are choosing the right thoughts, referred to as 'them' in Verse 60.

There is one more verse in this series of expositions relating to mind and our chosen thoughts. Verse 61 continues the idea and adds another dimension to it.

Bahir verse 61. They asked him, "What is the letter Tzaddi ?"" He said: Tzaddi is a Nun and a Yod . Its mate is also a Nun and a Yod . It is thus written (Proverbs 10:25), "The righteous (Tzadik) is the foundation of the world."
The letter yod is associated with the hermit in tarot.
The Nun is associated with the Death card.

On the one hand we have the hermit on the mountain keeping the High Watch and on the other hand is the passing away of old habit patterns. This is the entire point of these past five verses.




Bahir Verse 57-61

This could be a difficult passage except that it is following the rule of mind via thought all along. This rule says that the meanings referred to are pointing to operations of thought. They are spoken of in allegory and transmitted to us in a time honored way. Since the universe is expanding, growing in understanding it follows that today we are able to have a more clear interpretation of these verses than even when they were first spoken or written down for a select few. Here is the verse, the commentary as usual follows.

Bahir Verse 57. What is the meaning of the verse (Isaiah 30:26) , "The light of the moon shall be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, like the light of the seven days." The verse does not say "seven days," but " the seven days." These are the days regarding which it is written (Exodus 31:17), "For six days God made [the heaven and the earth]." As you said, God made six beautiful vessels. What are they? "The heaven and the earth." Are they not seven? Yes, as it is written (ibid.) "And on the seventh day, He rested and souled." What is the meaning of "souled?" This teaches us that the Sabbath sustains all souls. It is therefore written that it souled.

Commentary: The light of the moon is the reflected light. We are in truth that reflected light. We are the reflected light of soul. When 'he rested and souled,' we came to be. So it is when our thoughts are at peace and the results of our thinking appear before us souled by the thoughts we have meditated upon. The recognition of this soul completes the cycle and makes the light of our understanding the equivalent of seven times brighter.

We continue this concept in the next verse 58

Verse 58. Another explanation: This teaches us that it is from there that souls fly forth. It is thus written, "and He souled." This continues for a thousand generations. It is thus written (Psalm 105:8), "The word that He commanded until a thousand generations." Immediately after this it says, "[the covenant] that He cut with Abraham." What is the meaning of "cut"? He cut a covenant between the ten fingers of his hands and the ten toes of his feet. Abraham was ashamed. God then said to him (Genesis 17:4), "And I, behold My covenant is with you," and with it, "you will be the father of many nations."

Commentary: Let stay with our explanation in Mind. When understanding occurs it reaches out into every part of our being. Since we are beings of the universe this understanding permeates the universe of ideas in our view. 'A thousand generations,' the single understanding begets multiple insights and these do indeed go on. 'Generation' is another word taking form from one thing into another. It is an evolving sequence of events just like our thoughts evolve in the experiences we are becoming. That which is cut between the ten fingers alludes to the blessing that the kohain gives with both hands in Spock's live long and prosper configuration. We bring forth blessings by our connection with unity. This covenant simply means as a man thinks so shall he experience. It is the fundamental law around which all of our lives revolve. The nations of which you are the father of are the experiences you have as a result of your intentional thinking. You see yourself in the experiences that you understand. You are truly their father. Abraham was ashamed refers perhaps to the circumcision which the covenant was sealed with but more likely in higher thought we always shy away from negative energy. Being ashamed means that now Abraham has the capacity to know that what he thinks is what he experiences and therefore may regret certain actions. All in all the ashamed part can be taken out of this context here or only be used to show that our actions results from our thoughts. There isn't any shame in making a mistake. Once you realize your direction you may work increasingly for correction which means thinking positive thoughts for your life's plan.

A slight departure occurs in the next verse but we will catch up with it and unify it with the whole.

Bahir Verse 59. Why is heaven called Shamayim? This teaches that God kneaded fire and water, and combined them together. From this He made the "beginning of His word." It is thus written (Psalm 119:160), "The beginning of your word is truth." It is therefore called Shamayim ­ Sham Mayim (there is water) ­ Esh Mayim (fire water). He said to them: This is the meaning of the verse (Job 25:2), "He makes peace in His heights." He placed peace and love between them. May He also place peace and love among us.

Commentary: The key to progressing along this path of positive thought is given. Emotion-water, and Fire-thought. The word starts out in truth and with emotion rides the crest of manifestation according to our steadfast intention. 'Peace in the heights' refers to our High Watch, our ability to continually choose the higher thought. Out of our choices then we experience the peace and not fighting with our ego constantly. 'Peace and love between them' is the bonding between emotion and thought which sees on high. The emotion is the inspirational source of power to promote your utmost good throughout every circumstance that you experience. What the rabbis are saying here is to work with this process and experience all of the benefits from on high through the process of unfoldment that takes place when your emotions and thoughts work together for your good.

Details are forthcoming in verse 60

Verse 60. We also say (Psalm 119:164), "seven times each day I praised You for Your righteous judgement." They asked him, "What are they?" He replied, "You do not look at it carefully. Be precise and you will find them."

Commentary: Once again the seven times we see in relationship to the light of the sun in verse 57. The theme is being continued. The righteous judgement is our choices that we make to choose our higher thoughts and not descend to our lower nature. The students question is answered above by the rabbi telling the student to look carefully at those times when they are in the middle of making their choices. This may be as simple as changing your mind in the middle of an angry moment realizing that all anger is self anger. When you make the choice to not hurt yourself by becoming angry then you are choosing the right thoughts, referred to as 'them' in Verse 60.

There is one more verse in this series of expositions relating to mind and our chosen thoughts. Verse 61 continues the idea and adds another dimension to it.

Bahir verse 61. They asked him, "What is the letter Tzaddi ?"" He said: Tzaddi is a Nun and a Yod . Its mate is also a Nun and a Yod . It is thus written (Proverbs 10:25), "The righteous (Tzadik) is the foundation of the world."
The letter yod is associated with the hermit in tarot.
The Nun is associated with the Death card.

On the one hand we have the hermit on the mountain keeping the High Watch and on the other hand is the passing away of old habit patterns. This is the entire point of these past five verses.




Monday, July 11, 2005

Directed Attention - Bahir 56

Direct your attention back to your Self. In a world full of enticements our attention in any given moment is usually out there. The consideration then becomes the other and not the self. This is a constant returning to that which is. What is that? You are that.

The last verse we studied verse 55 inadvertently contained verse 56. Let's consider verse 56 in the context mentioned above and in it Kabbalistic sense.

Bahir verse 56. They said to him: Up until now there are five. What comes next? He replied: First I will explain gold. What is gold? We learn that it is where justice emanates. If you bend your words to the right or left, you will be punished.


The five results from the fifth Sephiroth in the series, Gevurah or Justice. From Justice then does gold emanate. Gold is our inspiration and by our directed attention which means taking away our attention from distractions, we are able to be in the state of mind where inspirations enter freely. It is the energy of flowing that is being promoted here and the results of that flowing. When you do no flow with this energy then there is the concept of punishment which really should be seen as correction. Keep the energy in its path. When you veer to the right or left you dissipate the flow and grow weaker in both your ability to focus and your innate experience of bringing in the gold of inspiration. It is indeed this inspiration which keeps you on your chosen path.

Saturday, July 09, 2005

Experiencing the Infinite

What is it that is all around you? Yes the Infinite. Lets speak of dimensions. The very word conjures up numerous possibilites all pregnant with the hopes and dreams that we all cherish and wish to explore in greater detail. Tradtional mind set asks you to choose this or choose that according to one set of rules or another. What if you could choose whatever you like whenever you like? What if the choices you make everyday are all okay because in the next moment everything will change and will change for the best? I ask you to consider not only what you do to get you where you want to go but also the range of Infinite possibities that await your slightest change of direction. Imagine for a moment that the world has just been painted before in a single glance right when you are thinking about something. This something then gets added to your world and has its effect on everything in it. Imagine that not only is this something added to your world but that it causes changes in the plants, birds,flowers and trees that surround you. It causes the rocks on the mountains to somehow be affected in their consciousness. In truth when you imagine any of this, all of the above circumstances do happen. Take a moment in your studies to think about the fact that you are not only what the world has produced in terms of a being in form but also that you are the creator of the forms which are filled by your being. Read that one a few times. There is an incredible secret contained in this. Kabbalistic writings postulate that there are 18,000 worlds which are composed of spirits and entities and planets and stars. I believe this number is very far from what the reality of being is all about. I would postulate that there are an infinite number of worlds, or creations that all of us take part in not only as actor but as director-producer as well. We hear terms such as spirit ,soul and God. We attempt to define the indefinable. Why? Because we seek to know. We are still eating of the Tree of Knowledge. What the experience of the Infinite is trying to show us is however how to eatfrom the Tree of Life. This Life is the embodiment of spirit. Your spirit then is placed into the things you want but not just the finite desire you have is filled. The entire world is filled is your spirit whenever you ask for a blessing, or pray for something that you want. When you ponder the wisdom of the ages you are telling your spirit to leave its earth bound ways of thinking and rise up into the highest levels that it can comfortably contemplate. You must think of yourself as an artist with Infinity of as your palette. Ironically this entire concept of inifinity may be summed up in a single word. One. See the world through your own eyes and take responsibility for what you see. In my book Thought Into Form I have story about world builders. They are arace of being who learn from birth how to build their own worlds,galaxies and universes. They are nonchalant about this because it has become second nature to them. It is not a short term goal we seek but the totality of forever which beckons our every thought filled action. When the pressures of everyday seem overwhelming remember that everything emanates from you. Your sense of being,your sense of nature, of time, and yes of God all emanate from the conception you have of all of these ideas. The only way you can know God is the accept God within yourself. How could you know something which isn't a part of your experience. That is why your experience of the Infinite is not far off and theoretical but is intimate and designed especially for your understanding exactly where you sit today. We talked before about accepting the Infinite and now it is experiencing the Infinite. It is consciousness raised to the level of yourself and the intimate nature that implies. When we are studying sacred works such as the Bahir or the Zohar keep this sense of the Infinite in mind because this is where all of these writing stem from and where they are pointing for us to go to in our own special way.

Friday, July 08, 2005

Understanding the Infinite

There are two kinds of driving experiences. One is full of tension. Another is where you arrive and don't remember driving there. The first is a Finite experience. The second is an Infinite experience.

The Finite Mind when going for a drive opens the car door, sits down, adjusts the seat and mirror, puts on the seat belt, starts the car, backs out of the driveway, pulls into the street, looks both ways, etc.

The Infinite Mind simply goes. All of the above still happens but it happens without thinking about it as a natural course of taking a drive. Experiencing the Infinite is about letting go and knowing that the Infinite is there taking care of everything for you. For most it is a scary thing letting go but with practice you will find it gets easier.

When short on time take the long view. You will no longer be in a rush and will nonetheless arrive on time.

Every distinction we make whether it is counting apples or Sephiroth are arbitrary means to present order to Mind. Instead of saying there are ten Sephiroth or X dimensions we can just accept the Infinite in every aspect of our life.

The true purpose of these distinctions such as learning each of the Ten Sephiroth, or 32 paths of wisdom or 50 gates of understanding or that there are four worlds is to take our Mind off of it's reactive nature. When we are thinking abstractly our thoughts achieve order. When this order becomes so intricate that you need a guidebook to separate exactly what is going on then it is time to leave.

When we leave we enter the Infinite our Mind intact and ordered and thus capable of transcending the obvious and experiencing the transcendental.

The only way therefore to understand the Infinite is to accept the Infinite as your own. No other definitions are then necessary from this point of view.

Where then is your attention? It ascends to the Infinite. From there all things are not only possible but have already happened. It is your attention that brings these experiences into view by recognizing them not far off but in the now of your daily life.






Wednesday, July 06, 2005

Things to remember when studying Kabbalah--Expanded

One: Thought is produced because of a particular State of Mind

Your State of Mind is what you reach up into for thought. It is determined by the tendency of habitual thought and the effort of Will guide your thought into the right places in Mind. Do you feel good about yourself? That is State of Mind. Are you anxious? This too is State of Mind. When you are anxious State of Mind produces habitual pattern holding thoughts which do not arise in energy. When you are at peace within your thoughts rise to the level of infinity where all understanding and inspirations come from. Your State of Mind is the Garden into which you sow your seeds of awareness and out of which you bring forth that which you are seeking.

Two: Thoughts arrange themselves according to a Hierarchy of Thought

One thought leads to another. You only need determine in which direction the flow of thought is travelling. If it is travelling downward or into negativity we need to change the focus of our direction and aim higher so that when we are led by thought to the next thought it will be an arisen thought which then maintains our focus

Three: The goal of Mind is to attain a Harmony of Relationship within Thought.

Once you discover you are travelling in the correct or intended direction you establish a pattern of discovery which then leads to a certainty within. This certainty is the knowledge that what you are thinking about is in full harmony with what you would like to experience. This goes across the board so examine well the direction you are taking.

Four: The result of the Harmony of Relationship points to Stillness or the Place of Peace

Once you are satisfied with where you are in Mind you are able to attain a stasis whereby thought enters in now by the attraction of purpose which you yourself are maintaining. This attraction of purpose is like breathing in the good things that you want to experience. You are no longer troubled by doubts. Your world then becomes full of peace and when you listen for thought you are able to hear the stillness of thought.

Five: From this Place of Peace you arrive at a Certainty of Knowing.

Peace, stillness, attraction of purpose all go together with your Certainty of Knowing. What you know is that you understand the process and are in the middle of this process undertaken with full knowledge of the results you may expect to be immersed in. There is agreement. The river of Mind being straightened out of its curves now courses freely and smoothly on its way with you riding on a bed of Certainty.

Six: This opens up your heart leading to a sharing of this Certainty.

The natural result Certainty is the desire to share your good with others. Through your actions and life example you begin to show the truth of that Certainty and are filled with the energy of Certainty which communicates well to those in need of the same.

Seven: Then what is revealed is the Unlimited in all its Splendor. Words do not suffice in description.

What is revealed through this is connection. Our connection to each other and our connection to the infinite that surrounds us.

Eight: This assures your Mastery of Mind

Then the One moves within you with purpose unhindered by duality or doubt. You know what is happening and you allow it to happen realizing that you are both director and actor in this play that is unfolding. It is your conscious knowing that allows you to make the right decision.

Nine: Use this Mastery of Mind as the Foundation of your awareness

You now rely upon your inner strength and wisdom and see how this flows into your life. Every thought now is directed, even those thoughts that spring forth seemingly at random all have their unified purpose.

Ten: Touch that which you have seen in Mind and you complete the cycle of the Kingdom of Heaven.

As you look around you see the results of your meditation. Feel them. Touch them. Know them. Become them.

Tuesday, July 05, 2005

Things to remember when studying Kabbalah.

Things to remember when studying Kabbalah.

  • One: Thought is produced because of a particular State of Mind

  • Two: Thoughts arrange themselves according to a Hierarchy of Thought

  • Three: The goal of Mind is to attain a Harmony of Relationship within Thought.

  • Four: The result of the Harmony of Relationship points to Stillness or the Place of Peace

  • Five: From this Place of Peace you arrive at a Certainty of Knowing.

  • Six: This opens up your heart leading to a sharing of this Certainty.

  • Seven: Then what is revealed is the Unlimited in all its Splendor. Words do not suffice in description.

  • Eight: This assures your Mastery of Mind

  • Nine: Use this Mastery of Mind as the Foundation of your awareness

  • Ten: Touch that which you have seen in Mind and you complete the cycle of the Kingdom of Heaven.

  • I will comment on each of these references by themselves to further provide material for meditation.
    It is enough now to lay them out there for you to ponder.

    Enjoy:

    Mark Siet



    Sunday, July 03, 2005

    Bahir 55

    Next up the sephiroth are alluded to in verse 55. There is so much here that at this time we will capture what we can knowing that we can always go back for more.


    Bahir Verse 55. What is the Beth at the end? [As it is written] (Proverbs 24:3), "With wisdom will the house (Bayit) be built." The verse does not say "was built", but "will be built". In the future God will build and decorate it, thousands of times more than it was. It is as we have said: Why does the Torah begin with a Beth ? As it is written (Proverbs 8:30) , "I was with Him as a craftsman, I was His delight for a day, a day, [frolicking before Him at every time]." These are the two thousand years, which are the "beginning". Two? But the scripture says seven, as it is written (Isaiah 30:26), "The light of the moon shall be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold [like the light of the seven days." And we said, "Just like the sun was for seven, so the moon was for seven." [He replied,] "I said thousands." 56. They said to him: Up until now there are five. What comes next? He replied: First I will explain gold. What is gold? We learn that it is where justice emanates. If you bend your words to the right or left, you will be punished.

    Commentary: With wisdom will the house be built. Wisdom is Chochmah the second sephiroth. It is the extension of the light which is also a reference to the beginning of the light sent forth from Kether the first sephiroth. The inspiration here continues with the follow through of the light. This light which follows and builds itself in wisdom is the plan of creation. The moon is also related to Beth according to the Sepher Yetzirah, supplement to Chapter IV Verse 1,,
    'He caused and produced Beth, predominant in wisdom, crowned, combined, and formed the Moon in the Universe, the first day of the week, and the right eye, of man.' All of these attributes are linked together. The Second Sephiroth like the moon draws upon the reflected light of the initial inspiration. Listen to the proverb speak of 'I was a craftsman," What voice is speaking here. It is the voice which reflects that of the creator. Take this in slowly. The voice that reflects that of the creator. We are forever sitting at the foot of the creator in our wisdom that is to be learned. This delight that is spoken of is the delight of wisdom. It is how one inspiration leads to another. This 'frolicking before him,' is speaking about the state of mind we need to encourage within ourselves in response to the opening of wisdoms doors. Then next there are the two and the seven being discussed. The two are the sun and the moon. The seven are the seven lower sephiroth. These are energy alignments of the initial inspiration coming from Kether. Your thoughts go forth and are changed their energy directed into various channels of influence. The sun is Tiphareth which is also called Zeir Anpin relating as well to the lower sephiroth wherein the moon appears as Foundation to reflect the energy of Tiphareth the sun which correspondingly reflects the energy of Kether. When you look at the Tree of Life Kether, Tiphareth and Yesod or Foundation all run in a straight line one from the other. We are speaking of an ideal situation where thoughts perfectly reflect one another with the hindrances of doubt in the form of distractions. A key to this is given when they are talking about bending to the right or left and being punished. What is being explained is the necessity of keeping Will focused on the objective of the gold that is mentioned in verse 55 which we have equated with the initial inspiration. It is from this initial inspiration that our results may be found. The justice that is mentioned is the justice of having our thoughts reproduce themselves as events in our lives. We are always directed according to how we are directed along our inner plane. Time is also mentioned in verse 55, two thousand versus seven thousand years. See time here as the outworking of the inspiration. Two thousand is tied to the beginning and leads us to the incredible focus we are called upon to keep going. Seven thousand refers to the outworkings of the intention thus formed. The years are not literal years but stand for levels of thinking that take place in reality outside of space and time. Whenever we are shown something in this Bahir we know it is trying to get us to look at something else. The obvious answers are too easily lost in the references that are given on the surface. It is only when we uncover that we discover and in verse 55 this is what we have done in order to show thoughts of inspiration working through the levels of manifestation in order to reveal themselves one to another like the moon does the sun and like the sun does Kether so that we are always seeing the ageless maxim, 'as above so below.'

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