Essence and Purpose, with a Few Warnings

In this restriction lies happiness for creatures because if they knew a little more than appropriate for their level, they would realize their ignorance and be distressed about things they have not reached. However, if something is necessary for the governance of the world, it is revealed from the heavens even to a goy, as Joseph said: "What Hashem has done, He has told Pharaoh." Indeed, to the nation of Israel, who were chosen from among all nations, He gave us Torah and commandments so that we may know and influence the upper worlds, to correct ourselves and also the deficiencies created in creation, and by beneficial intents to draw down abundance to this world as needed..

The hidden things belong to Hashem our God and He has not revealed the essence of all governance in the reality of its clarification processes, connections, and consequences, either because they are not necessary for us or because we have no control over them to correct anything. Especially those who do not feel a high aspiration to elevate themselves from their current spiritual state of whom it is said "The fool walks in darkness and does not see light" - because no true perception is revealed to them since they wouldn’t correct anything anyway..

The test to know if we are among those who are not privileged is simple: "If you assume you are properly corrected and need no learning or instruction from others - it is a sign you belong to the happy group in their current state who will not merit to rise from it." If, on the other hand, you hunger for something hidden and elusive, for the secret beyond the veils of physical nature, and are willing to strive and humble yourself before someone greater than you in knowledge and experience, and the artificial temptations of money and status are rejected within your soul in favor of the desire for knowledge of the secrets of the universe and existence - it is likely you are among those whose fountains of knowledge are destined to open to you if you continue with diligence and humility. This aspiration is the source of a Jew’s faith..

Thus writes one of the geniuses of Judaism in recent generations: "The measure of faith is a delicate inclining of a refined soul. If a person is soulful, and his time is one of tranquility, free from lustful hunger, and his eye is inspired by heavenly vision - looking to the heavens above and the earth below, he is moved and overwhelmed, for the world appears to him as an obscure, hidden, and wondrous riddle, and this riddle envelops his heart and mind, and he is like one fainted, with no life-spirit remaining within him, except that all his contemplation and intention is towards this riddle. His soul yearns for its resolution, and he would choose to enter fire and water for it, for what life can offer him, if these pleasant live remains wholly hidden from him, and his soul is dizzy and mourning, longing to understand its secret and know its root, and the gates are locked.''.

The more righteous ones capable of greater correction are revealed more truth, according to their level. Sometimes a specific thing is revealed to the righteous, or only one side of higher light, according to the need of the hour, because secrets have no value on their own except to serve the purpose of creation and the will of the Creator. And who is this righteous one? There are several definitions, but clearly, it is one who nullifies his will in order to do the will of his Creator, and the basis for this is the observance of commandments in their straightforward manner, because they are called "commandments" - for we were commanded them by the mouth of the power..

But the aspiration of the righteous elevates him beyond the main law, and he does more; this is called - "beyond the letter of the law.” Those called "Kabbalists" are obligated by law to do more, or be more meticulous than the regular obligation for a Jew in the details of the mitzvot, as explained in the writings of the Ari. We will elaborate on this in the chapter dealing with the conditions for studying Kabbalah. It is necessary to add and emphasize again that from this additional meticulousness also derives the definition of the purpose of the wisdom of Kabbalah according to the Ari; that is - the Kabbalist does not perform work different from any Jew, but everything he does that is unique to Kabbalists - is an addition to what he is obliged to do by being a Jew..

Now let us see how the greatest of the Kabbalists defined the purpose of this wondrous wisdom. And these are the words of the genius Rabbi Chaim Vital, may his memory be blessed, the great disciple of the holy Ari, from whom we drink - for he is the one who wrote down and edited the words of his teacher; these are his words in his small introduction to the book Etz Chaim, and this is his language: "… And the main purpose of this knowledge should be to uproot weeds from the vineyard …" thus far his words. Let us scrutinize his words: he did not speak of knowledge but of action. And the action is destruction, meaning elimination or erasure. The main purpose of someone engaging in Kabbalah should be destruction! Destruction of what? He concealed his words in the term - "weeds from the vineyard.".

One who is accustomed to studying Jewish ethical books will say: "To eliminate the bad traits within himself" and to some extent it would be correct, but as a means, not as an ultimate goal. This is explicitly evident from the words of the Rashash (later we will understand that the Rashash does not explain like the other commentators of the Ari in difficult places, rather he is the explicator, the absolute "speaker." Our regard for him is as if the Ari himself has returned to clarify his words). The Rashash wrote in his book "Nahar Shalom" and this is his language: "And behold, the beginning of all, one must be very careful to humble, remove, and separate the evil side etc. Of the bad traits as mentioned above" etc. thus far his words and see there further elaboration..

And someone who is accustomed to study "simple" only will remember the words of the Gemara in the seventh chapter of the Tractate Bava Metzia and will explain thus: "To eliminate the wicked ones among the people of Israel"; this is certainly wrong because the Ari himself writes that someone engaging in Kabbalah is forbidden to take life, forbidden to kill! Perhaps it would be more correct to say "to eliminate the wickedness among the people of Israel" by transforming the wicked into righteous; pleasant, certainly correct in principle, but not related at all to the words of Maharchu (our teacher Rabbi Chaim Vital) of blessed memory. The truth will illuminate its way, and Maharchu tells us that the purpose of the study is to use what is learned for the elimination of the root of evil, in all of the Creator's worlds..

When the root of spiritual evil is eliminated, the shells will automatically remain dead, and creatures and creation as a whole will be filled with divine vitality. This implies - not study for knowledge alone; not study for pure learning, but - study in order to do! And the Ari - in his other books (more so: in the wondrous intention orders of the Rashash) instructs us what and how to do. Thus, in theory, this chapter should have ended..

However, this definition from Maharchu himself is quite different from what will appear later from other Kabbalistic sources and it is necessary to understand well, for no words of any Kabbalist carry weight against these clear words of the Ari, words of the living God. All the rest are at most words of commentators, the most respected among them - in their broad comprehension, and our generation in our neediness - in our narrow understanding, but only as expositors - or, surprisingly, as holders of different approaches that challenge the Ari in various matters (see below in the chapter on the different approaches and it will be clarified there). In other words: Above we heard the true opinion of the Ari himself, upon whose teachings all Kabbalists from his time to today, including those who dared to disagree with him - fundamentally rely..