Outline for July 1st

Bilvavi Mishkan Evneh: Book two, chapter 20

Loving Hashem:

This is a mitzvah in the Torah: "love Hashem your G-d, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your resources", (Devarim 6:5). 

Two types: Conditional  or Unconditional; Begin with conditional and work your way toward unconditional.

Conditional: requires awareness that Hashem is giving us gifts every minute.

1. realize that someone other that self is giving to you= get rid of the idea that we achieve anything on our own
2. know the identity of benefactor- Hashem= realize everything comes from Hashem

Anything we have, Hashem has lent us for our use to use to serve Him.

"the earth and all in contains is Hashem's" (tehillim 24:1) NO guarantee that anything you have right now, He will still give to you in a minute from now.

Value what you have as a means to serve Hashem, but if something is taken away chas veshalom, you won't feel that it has been taken from you, as it was never really yours.  "Everything belongs to the Creator"

Three stages to attain conditional love:
1. recognize everything is from Him
2. talk to Hashem about this (we are doing this in our grateful minutes out loud)
3. ask to be able to really feel this

Just as we feel Hashem's guidance during special events, so too, we should feel His guidance each day and hour.

In Forest Fields (163-169 first half of chapter five)

Self Composure:
1. attained through hisbodedus
2. "essential for every prayer...in particular those incorporating self-evaluation."

First we must believe in ourselves so that when we find the truth, nothing will sway us= true self composure.

(Amalek= doubt/safek= prevents our consistency in growth)

lack of self composure= lack of faith in oneself (eg of chava- wasn't sure she heard the absolute truth, example of Shaul Hamelech, and of Yosef Hatzadik/ pgs 164-165)

During hisbodedus, deal with a specific issue, when you see clearly the truth of the matter, ask Hashem to help you live up to the truth that you see, to remove all doubt from our heart that.

1.Believe in yourself that you know the absolute truth.
2.Daven that Hashem should help you believe it.
3.Fight for it.

Jewish Meditation:
chapter 4: 

States of Consciousness 

(familiar ones are waking and sleeping)

This chapter deals with states of consciousness that can be "self induced".

The mind has a filter that "prevents unwanted information from being stored in the memory...with training, however, one can learn to remove this filter at will."27

1. locked on state (hot mode of thought): increased physical energy, pulse is quicker and may perspire more, some tremble with creativity. "The energy one is utilizing is much greater than normal, not only is the mind completely involved in the creative effort, but the body as well."29

2. relaxation response:relaxed (cool mode of thought): relaxed mind wanders and solution pops up in the mind to a problem you have been worrying about.(mantra meditation is known to bring this calm, relaxed state see eg of how to do this on page32) With this meditation you learn how to control the mind and reduce static. 

this leads to 
3. advanced visualization- able to see things in the mind's eye that you can't see with your real eyes
Kabbalists -lamp of darkness and black fire eg pg 34
Intensify perception of beauty (tiferes) ("the sefirot can be looked upon as "dials" in the mind to amplify the expereinces associated with them"34)

4. panascopic vision- look at an object in the mind's eye from all sides at once. eg of Yechezkel vision 35 and Sefer Yetzira seeing five dimensions at once

5. Synesthesia- barriers between senses are lowered and eg:- luchos at Har Sinai can use hearing to perceive sight 

6. Nothingness: absence of everything even of blackness and empty space- focus on what you see behind your head. This is effective way of clearing your mind of all perception, the spiritual can appear spectacular, can enhance the part of the mind that experiences spiritual more deeply BUT DANGER= possible to get totally lost and swallowed up in this mystical state. 38

Next week avodah:
Chapter 21 in Bilvavi Book two
Next five Pages In forest fields
Chapter 5 Jewish meditation

Continue with the 6 minute verbal meditation (hisbodedus) we have been trying to implement.

Please contact me if you have questions or need chizuk.  If you do not feel belief in yourself, ask Hashem to help you see the truth and fight for it, and email me immediately, very important in order to move forward.

Love, aviva rus.