Through television, motion picture and still photography, this film provides an "eye-witness" perspective of the Apollo 11 mission that put a human on the moon. On the eve of the 40th anniversary, the National Archives celebrates this giant leap for mankind.
Read about the moon landing and all the activity surrounding Apollo's mission with an article from Prologue's archives: http://www.archives.gov
CREATED BY National Aeronautics and Space Administration. (10/01/1958 - )
SUMMARY This film tells the story of the historic first landing of men on the Moon in July, 1969. It depicts the principal highlight events of the mission from launching through post-recovery activities of Astronauts Neil Armstrong, Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, and Michael Collins. Through television, motion picture and still photography, the film provides an "eye-witness" perspective of the Apollo 11 mission.
This film has received the following awards: the Certificate of Exhibition; Edinburgh Film Festival, 1969; Certificate of Merit, American Science Film Association, 1969; Gold Camera, U.S. Industrial Film Festival, 1970; and Ionosphere Aware, Atlanta International Film Festival, 1970.
REPOSITORY: Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Records Section, Special Media Archives Services Division (NWCS-M), National Archives at College Park, 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD, 20740-6001.
For information about ordering reproductions of moving images held by the Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Records Section, visit: http://www.archives.gov
MORE INFORMATION: More information is available in the National Archives online catalog: http://arcweb.archives.gov
Listening to The Richest Man Who Ever Lived: King Solomon's Secrets to Success, Wealth, and Happiness I decided I just had to tell you about it. This is one of those audio programs that actually sounds like Steven K Scott is talking to you in his conversational, clear manner rather than reading a script. The whole audio is easy to listen to and engaging.Steven's program is taken from lessons enthusiastically dug from Solomon, the richest man who ever lived. If you have a hang-up over religion, don’t panic. This whole program is an intelligent analysis of some key principles from the world’s first millionaire written in the book of Proverbs.Even actor Chuck Norris liked the book:
““Phenomenal! Steve Scott has ‘cracked’ the Solomon Code. He takes the inspired wisdom of Solomon and transforms it into simple yet powerful steps we can take to solve any problem and achieve true fulfillment and extraordinary success, at home and at work. Most important, he shows how anyone can partner with the ultimate mentor. This book will turn a purpose-driven life into a purpose-accomplished life!”
These principles radically changed Steven’s life. He tells us in the "Lessons from the Richest Man Who Ever Lived" that after he had failed in 9 consecutive jobs after college, his life transformed in job number 10. He went from earning less than $20,000 a year to amassing more than $30 million in personal income. So what changed? Steven credits his success to studying the words of Solomon.
The Lessons from Solomon discussed include the whole gamut of human life, from vision and communication through to partnership and family relationships.Steve mentors the skills and techniques that enabled him to harness the power of Solomon's teachings and avoid devastating traps that can rob us of our success, families and financial security.
“Truly amazing! Solomon gives us the master keys to success, wealth, and happiness. In this book, Steve Scott puts those keys in our hands, and shows us how to use them. Whether you’re just getting started in business, or the CEO of a Fortune 500 company, I believe these breakthrough strategies could propel you to levels of success and happiness you haven’t yet imagined. No wonder the wisest man who ever lived, also became the richest!”
—David Neelman, Founder and CEO, Jet Blue
Consider this profound statement from Solomon:
"Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but desire fulfilled is a tree of life" (Proverbs 13:12) Steven contrasts the shattering disappointment of having our hopes raised by promises and then feeling dashed by disappointment with the power of fulfillment. According to Steven fulfilled hope is like a "tree of life" because you get excited, motivated, and passionate. You see that your dreams are possible, that there is hope. Small successes build more hope, we achieve even more and we are again filled with life.
Just think about the times false promises left you sad, angry, hurt, abandoned or betrayed. Now think about how you felt when something you hoped for became a glorious reality. Now Steven is not talking about wishful thinking. Steven gives clear advice on how to have a very clear, very specific vision of what you are hoping for. You will really enjoy Steven’s strategies and techniques to build a strong and clear vision.
What about the times in life I have disappointed others? The power of Steven interpretation is that we can progress in ourselves by a process of self evaluation. As a result, I have the potential to transform a situation from being "sick of heart" to the "tree of life" - and that's really exciting. Stevens work is a refreshing re-expression of timeless principles in the modern world. Reading the original text of Proverbs – one proverb after another - can be a hard read written for a different culture in a different time. However brings them to life in ways we can easily understand.
This is not just another business manual. Although Stevens’s book shares many wonderful lessons to achieve wealth and financial abundance, many of Solomon’s wonderful lessons are about how to live an honest, loving and visionary life.
If you enjoy a great mix of inspirational stories, practical advice, tools and a relaxing read you’ll have a lot of fun listening to this.
The 'What You Get' Summary:
You"ll learn Solomon's simple "how-to's" for:
* Achieving maximum success in minimum time * Mastering life's most important skill * Taking the two most critical steps to extraordinary success * Avoiding the greatest cause of financial loss and ruin * Turning your impossible dreams into reality * Winning and resolving any conflict * Avoiding the single trap that will always bring you down * Maximising relationships * Defeating the number one destructive force in relationships * And much, much more!
The program includes 9CD's and a bonus disc.
“The insights, advice, solutions, and specific steps provided in this book are truly life changing. Whether they are applied to your job, career, marriage, or parenting, it’s quickly obvious that they have the power to change everything!”
—Joan Lunden (former host, Good Morning America)
“This book is the result of an astonishing idea developed by Steven Scott from interpreting the book Book of Proverbs, in which he says (and demonstrates) that there are solutions to every problem in life…. “The Richest Man Who Ever Lived” bears out his contention.”
—Hugh Downs, ABC News
Steven K. Scott co-founded the American Telecast Corporation, one of more than a dozen multimillion-dollar companies he and his partners have built from the ground up. Steven is also the author of two other best-selling Nightingale-Conant programs, Mentored by a Millionaire and Simple Steps to Impossible Dreams. He has also produced more than 20 best-selling videos and written and directed more than 800 national television productions.
Meditation can wipe away the day's stress, bringing with it inner peace. See how you can easily learn to practice meditation whenever you need it most. Mayo Clinic staff writer If stress has you anxious, tense and worried, consider trying meditation. Spending even just a few minutes in meditation can restore calm and inner peace. Meditation has been practiced for thousands of years. Meditation originally was meant to help deepen understanding of the sacred and mystical forces of life. These days, meditation is commonly used for relaxation and stress reduction. Anyone can practice meditation. It's simple and inexpensive, and it doesn't require any special equipment. And you can practice meditation wherever you are — whether you're out for a walk, riding the bus, waiting at the doctor's office or even in the middle of a difficult business meeting. Understanding meditation Meditation, considered a type of mind-body complementary medicine, produces a deep state of relaxation and a tranquil mind. During meditation, you focus your attention and eliminate the stream of jumbled thoughts that may be crowding your mind and causing stress. This process results in enhanced physical and emotional well-being. Benefits of meditation Meditation can give you a sense of calm, peace and balance that benefits both your emotional well-being and your overall health. And these benefits don't end when your meditation session ends. Meditation can help carry you more calmly through your day and improve certain medical conditions. Meditation and emotional well-being When you meditate, you clear away the information overload that builds up every day and contributes to your stress. The emotional benefits of meditation include: • Gaining a new perspective on stressful situations • Building skills to manage your stress • Increased self-awareness • Focusing on the present • Reducing negative emotions Meditation and illness Many healthy people use meditation as a way to relax the body and reduce stress. But meditation also might be useful if you have a medical condition, especially one that may be worsened by stress. A growing body of scientific research is supporting the health benefits of meditation. But many of the studies aren't of high quality, and some researchers believe it's not yet possible to draw conclusions about the possible benefits of meditation. With that in mind, some research suggests that meditation may help such conditions as: • Allergies • Anxiety disorders • Asthma • Binge eating • Cancer • Depression • Fatigue • Heart disease • High blood pressure • Pain • Sleep problems • Substance abuse Be sure to talk to your health care provider about the pros and cons of using meditation if you have any of these or other medical conditions. Meditation isn't a replacement for traditional medical treatment. But it can be useful in addition to your other treatment. Types of meditation There are many types of meditation and relaxation techniques with meditation components. But all share the same goal of inner peace. Ways to meditate can include: • Guided meditation. Sometimes called guided imagery or visualization, with this method of meditation you form mental images of places or situations you find relaxing. You try to use as many senses as possible, such as smells, sights, sounds and textures. You may be led through this process by a guide or teacher. • Mantra meditation. In this type of meditation, you silently repeat a calming word, thought or phrase to prevent distracting thoughts. Transcendental meditation is a type of mantra meditation in which you achieve a deep state of relaxation to achieve pure awareness. • Mindfulness meditation. This type of meditation is based on being mindful, or having an increased awareness and acceptance of living in the present moment. You focus on what you experience during meditation, such as the flow of your breath. You can observe your thoughts and emotions but let them pass without judgment. • Qi gong. This practice generally combines meditation, relaxation, physical movement and breathing exercises to restore and maintain balance. Qi gong (chee-kung) is part of traditional Chinese medicine. • Tai chi. This is a form of gentle Chinese martial arts. In tai chi (TIE-chee), you perform a self-paced series of postures or movements in a slow, graceful manner while practicing deep breathing. • Yoga. You perform a series of postures and controlled breathing exercises to promote a more flexible body and a calm mind. As you move through poses that require balance and concentration, you're encouraged to focus less on your busy day and more on the moment. Elements of meditation Different types of meditation may include different features to help you meditate. These may vary depending on whose guidance you follow or who's teaching a class. Some of the most common features in meditation include: • Focusing your attention. Focusing your attention is generally one of the most important elements of meditation. Focusing your attention is what helps free your mind from the many distractions that cause stress and worry. You can focus your attention on such things as a specific object, an image, a mantra, or even your breathing. Don't fret when your mind wanders. Just return to your focus of attention. • Relaxed breathing. This technique involves deep, even-paced breathing using the diaphragm muscle to expand your lungs. The purpose is to slow your breathing, take in more oxygen, and reduce the use of shoulder, neck and upper chest muscles while breathing so that you breathe more efficiently. • A quiet location. If you're a beginner, practicing meditation may be easier if you're in a quiet spot with few distractions — no television, radios or cell phones. As you get more skilled at meditation, you may be able to do it anywhere, especially in high-stress situations where you benefit the most from meditation, such as a traffic jam, a stressful work meeting or a long line at the grocery store. • A comfortable position. You can practice meditation whether you're sitting, lying down, walking or in other positions or activities. Just try to be comfortable so that you can get the most out of your meditation. Everyday ways to practice meditation Don't let the thought of meditating the "right" way add to your stress. Sure, you can attend special meditation centers or group classes led by trained instructors. But you also can practice meditation easily on your own. And you can make meditation as formal or informal as you like — whatever suits your lifestyle and situation. Some people build meditation into their daily routine. For example, they may start and end each day with an hour of meditation. But all you really need is a few minutes of quality time for meditation. Tips to practice meditation on your own Here are some ways you can practice meditation on your own, whenever you choose. Take a few minutes or as much time as you like to practice one or more of these meditation methods: • Breathe deeply. This technique is good for beginners because breathing is a natural function. Focus all attention on your breathing. Concentrate on feeling and listening as you inhale and exhale through your nostrils. Breathe deeply and slowly. When your attention wanders, gently return your focus to your breathing. • Scan your body. When using this technique, focus attention on different parts of your body. Become aware of your body's various sensations, whether that's pain, tension, warmth or relaxation. Combine body scanning with breathing exercises and imagine breathing heat or relaxation into and out of different parts of your body. • Repeat a mantra. You can create your own mantra, whether it's religious or secular. Examples of religious mantras include the Jesus Prayer in the Christian tradition, the holy name of God in Judaism, or the om mantra of Hinduism, Buddhism and other Eastern religions. • Walking meditation. Combining a walk with meditation is an efficient and healthy way to relax. You can use this technique anywhere you're walking — in a tranquil forest, on a city sidewalk or at the mall. When you use this method, slow down the pace of walking so that you can focus on each movement of your legs or feet. Don't focus on a particular destination. Concentrate on your legs and feet, repeating action words in your mind such as lifting, moving and placing as you lift each foot, move your leg forward and place your foot on the ground. • Engage in prayer. Prayer is the best known and most widely practiced example of meditation. Spoken and written prayers are found in most faith traditions. You can pray using your own words or read prayers written by others. Check the self-help or 12-step-recovery section of your local bookstore for examples. Talk with your rabbi, priest, pastor or other spiritual leader about resources. • Read or listen and take time to reflect. Many people report that they benefit from reading poems or sacred texts silently or aloud, and taking a few moments to quietly reflect on the meaning that the words bring to mind. You can listen to sacred music, spoken words or any music you find relaxing or inspiring. You may want to write your reflections in a journal or discuss them with a friend or spiritual leader. • Focus your love and gratitude. In this type of meditation, you focus your attention on a sacred object or being, weaving feelings of love and gratitude into your thoughts. You can also close your eyes and use your imagination or gaze at representations of the object. Building your meditation skills Don't judge your meditation skills, which may only increase your stress. Meditation takes practice. Keep in mind, for instance, that it's common for your mind to wander during meditation, no matter how long you've been practicing meditation. If you're meditating to calm your mind and your attention wanders, slowly return to the object, sensation or movement you're focusing on. Experiment, and you'll likely find out what types of meditation work best for you and what you enjoy doing. Adapt meditation to your needs at the moment. Remember, there's no right way or wrong way to meditate. What matters is that meditation helps you with stress reduction and feeling better overall.
Research Published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology demonstrated that anger can cause arrhythmias, a malfunction in the impulse that sends an electronic signal for your heart to beat. Arrhythmia can cause congestive heart problems or increase the risk of stroke. Researchers from Yale University School of Medicine examined 62 patients, all with implanted cardioverter-defibrillators that monitor the hearts rhythm. When the heart gets out of a regular beat, the device will shock the patient back into a regular rhythm.
The research team asked participants to describe a recent event when they felt angry or disturbed nad observed the heart beat patterns through a T-wave alternan (TWA) to see whether anger-induced TWA predicted future arrhythmia.
They found that anger recall led to electrical instability in the heart beat.
Those with the highest instability were 10 times more likely to have an arrhythmia over the next three years, researchers say. Researchers concluded that anger-induced TWA predicts future ventricle arrhythmias in patients with implantable devices. The test included a 1 year follow up. The study concluded "Anger-induced TWA predicts future ventricular arrhythmias in patients with ICDs, suggesting that emotion-induced repolarization instability may be 1 mechanism linking stress and sudden death. Whether there is a clinical role for anger-induced TWA testing requires further study."
In the future, a mental stress test could be added to an exercise text to predict the heart’s electrical stability.
As has been reported by the Mayo Clinic, meditation and other relaxation techniques may have profound effects on overall health.
The clinical results of the Yale study were as follows:
Patients with ICD-terminated arrhythmias during follow-up (n = 10) had higher TWA induced by anger, 13.2 µV (interquartile range [IQR] 9.3 to 16 µV), compared with those patients without future ventricular arrhythmias, 9.3 µV (IQR 7.5 to 11.5 µV, p < 0.01). Patients in the highest quartile of anger-induced TWA (>11.9 µV, n = 15) were more likely to experience arrhythmias by 1 year than those in the lower quartiles (33% vs. 4%) and during extended follow-up (40% vs. 9%, p < 0.01 for both). In multivariable regression controlling for ejection fraction, prior clinical arrhythmia, and wide QRS, anger-induced TWA remained a significant predictor of arrhythmia, with likelihood in the top quartile 10.8 times that of other patients (95% confidence interval: 1.6 to 113, p < 0.05).
Devi Asmarani thejakartapost.com The yoga we practice today can focus too much on the physical side, and there is nothing wrong with that. After all, yoga gives you so many physical benefits.
In its authentic teaching, however, the yoga asana (physical poses) is only a step to prepare you for a deeper spiritual practice that requires stillness in the body as well as the mind: The meditation.
The Yoga Sutra of Patanjali, a foundational text dating back to 500 BCE that has influenced the philosophy and practice of today's yoga, expounds this clearly in its 196 aphorisms.
In the second verse of the book's first of four chapters, Patanjali sums up yoga succinctly as the ability to still the mind, or direct its focus toward an object and sustain that direction without any distraction (yogasgcittavrittinirodhah).
We will someday discuss this inspiring text at greater length, but for now let us focus on the idea of meditating.
We live in a hectic world where every second seems to count and where things change or unfold in the blink of an eye. What benefits would we get from stopping and being still even for a moment?
If nothing else, it is your health that benefits the most from meditation.
Scientific studies have indicated that meditation and its behavioral components, which include relaxation, concentration, an altered state of awareness and self-observance, lead to a host of biochemical and physical changes in the body.
These changes alter metabolism, heart rate, respiration, blood pressure and brain chemistry. That is why more and more doctors use meditation as a method of stress and pain reduction using secular meditation techniques.
Of course we like to think of ourselves as being free from those "problems", but even the most physically and emotionally healthy of us can use meditation as a tool to navigate our life and cope with daily stresses.
Yoga's practice of meditation is nondenominational, although you can use your own religious symbolism and expression to achieve focus and attain a state of enlightenment.
There are many different techniques for meditation, but mostly they agree that the spine should be kept straight for better breathing and to encourage the circulation of the spiritual energy or life force (the Sanskrit prana, Chinese qi, Latin spiritus).
The meditators may either sit still or walk in mindfulness. They can also deploy hand gestures or mudras, which may or may not carry theological meaning, and they can either close their eyes or keep them half or fully opened.
The most common misunderstanding, however, is that we are supposed to stop our mind from thinking during meditation.
In reality, when we sit still and close our eyes, it is almost as if we have just switched on a radio in our head, which would be buzzing with different thoughts. Trying to rein in those thoughts is like telling someone not to think of an elephant (which of course is the first thing they will then think of).
That is why many traditions direct the meditators' focus onto an object such as the breath, a concept, a chant or a deity.
Depending on what style of yoga you practice, meditation can be done before or after the asana part.
If you practice gentle Hatha yoga mostly to awaken your body and gently stretch your joints, you can do the meditation after the asana.
On the other hand, if your yoga style is dynamic and will leave you drenched in sweat, I suggest you meditate before the asana. You may start with some pranayama or breathing practice first before you begin to meditate.
Below is one of the most commonly practiced meditating techniques of mindfulness. Try this in the morning or at night, or at any time convenient for you when you are not in a rush.
Mindful meditation
Find a quiet place where you are not likely to have too much distraction either by noise or extreme temperatures.
Get into a comfortable sitting position. Depending on your ability, this can be sitting cross-legged, kneeling, or on a chair. If you sit cross-legged or kneel, try to sit on a cushion so your hips are higher than your knees to slow down any cramping in your legs (although this is normal).
If you do this the first thing in the morning, do a gentle warm-up by circling your ankles, your knees, your hips and your neck. Also warm up the spine by arching and rounding it as you breathe in and out a few times.
Once you are seated, use your hands to roll your buttocks out from underneath so that you sit a little more forward than your tailbone and your spine is tall.
Rest both of your hands on the knees gently and either touch the tips of the thumbs and the index fingers together (jnana mudra) or place your hands on your lap with the right hand resting on top of the left, the thumbs touching and the palms facing up (dhyana mudra).
Take a deep breath and close your eyes. For a while just breathe in and out, and practice the diaphragmatic breathing (see this column in the March 4, 2009, edition).
Then start to let go of any control of the breath, breathe naturally and become a passive observer of yourself. As you inhale notice that you are inhaling, feel the sensation in your nostrils, your breathing passage and your body. As you exhale do the same thing.
After a while you will lose awareness and your mind will start to wander. Let it, but be aware of its dynamics. Once you become aware of your thoughts, do not try to stop them but also do not react to the thoughts. Just sit back and watch them.
The nature of thinking is that once you are aware of your thoughts but keep yourself from taking ownership of them, they will go away. Then go back to your breath.
This will be a recurring thing throughout your whole meditation practice, and you may even become sleepy after a while, but let it be. Whenever you go back to the breath, it is like the beginning of a new cycle.
Refrain from any great effort and end the meditation when you feel you are too overwhelmed by efforts to "achieve" the state of meditation.
Meditation is an inward journey toward self-discovery. Through consistent practice it can take us to higher states of awareness, peace and clarity. Namaste.
The writer is a yoga practitioner and teacher. Yoga Connection is a regular column on all things yoga, appearing every second week in the Body & Soul section. For questions and comments, please email her at dasmaran@indo.net.id
Focus on Abundance by Sandy Forster Australia's Leading Prosperity Mentor
Abundance, Wealth, Prosperity, Financial Freedom – we all crave it, not just for what the money will do, but for the choices it will give us, for the fun we can create with it, for the life we can live with it. Why is it that some people seem to attract money and riches so easily, and others live their entire lives struggling to make ends meet?
Why does it often seem that the rich just get richer and the poor just get poorer? Well guess what – it’s not about how MUCH money you make, but how you THINK about money and what you DO with that money that will make all the difference between whether you will live a life of Prosperity or one of continual money challenges. But no matter what your situation – it CAN be changed. If you desire MORE Abundance in your life – then read on!
Living the life of your dreams instead of just dreaming about it is all about creating a Millionaire Mindset. And that’s my specialty! I have been a Prosperity Mentor for over 4 years with clients from all over the world. I love to share different strategies, skills, exercises and ideas on how to keep your mind focused on raising the levels of Wealth in your life. Because the more you focus on something, the FASTER you will attract it into your life.
Take a moment to think about where your focus or predominant mental attitude is. And if it’s more on your bills, debts and lack of money, then you MUST begin to focus on wealth, riches and prosperity – or you will never be able to attract it into your life. A surprisingly simple but amazingly powerful exercise to attract prosperity to you takes less than a minute a day, and if you do this daily, you’ll be amazed at what you begin to attract into your life. This exercise is called Abundance Breaths and basically all you need to do is breathe. Well, actually, it’s a little more than that…
As already stated, you become what you focus on. Too often, it can be challenging to know exactly what you do want. You get caught up in trying to make up your mind - “Do I want this or that? What if I get that and I really would have preferred this?” “I thought I wanted this, but now I think I want that”.
Sometimes it’s easier if you can just focus on the feeling of abundance, rather than the specifics of what that abundance will be. It is the feeling that has the attraction power anyway. You can get specific when all the money comes in!
What you should do before this exercise to create avalanches of abundance and prosperity is find a comfy chair and sit down with your feet flat on the floor, back straight and hands resting in your lap with palms facing up. Gently close your eyes and keep them closed. Before you get started just imagine that you are now surrounded by tiny, minute particles of abundance; that you are immersed in a sea of prosperity and you can reach out and touch it and bring it into your life whenever you desire (which you can!).
When you’re ready, take a long, slow, deep Abundance Breath in to the count of three, totally expanding and filling your lungs. Imagine all the while that you are breathing in those particles of prosperity and they are filling every fibre of your being. Feel that feeling of being flooded with abundance. Hold your breath for the count of nine and feel every atom, every cell in your entire body being plumped up with prosperity, filled with abundance, vibrating with riches. And then slowly, to the count of six, breathe out that Abundance to circulate throughout the Universe – really force all that air out.
Once again, take another long, slow, deep Abundance Breath in, and this time, see your body light up from the inside out, glowing with prosperity, sparkling with riches, dazzling with wealth. I like to imagine that my body is glowing from the inside out with that same golden glow that radiates from Scrooge McDuck’s millions, or the gold in Aladdin’s cave! Once again, hold for the count of nine, seeing that glow, feeling that glow, then on the out breath, once again breathe out the abundance to circulate throughout the Universe.
One last time, slowly breathe in a huge big Abundance Breath for the count of three, and while you hold that breath for the count of nine, imagine and feel what it’s like to be totally abundant, amazingly wealthy, to have achieved financial freedom and be rich beyond your wildest dreams. Feel how that feels; feel how light and free and good that feels. Expand that feeling; feel it flood through your body. Embrace that amazing feeling throughout your body, mind and spirit. And for the last time, slowly breathe that abundance and prosperity out to circulate throughout the Universe.
And when you’re ready, slowly open your eyes, feeling prosperous, feeling wealthy, feeling rich, rich, rich! As I said, this is a very easy, very powerful little trick you can do daily or many times, if you want to attract MORE into your life. It only takes a couple of minutes, but has amazing money-magnetizing powers. Once you get really good at your Abundance Breaths, you won’t even need to close your eyes – you will be able to feel those feelings, see your body glowing with prosperity and really feel you are beginning to attract money anytime, anywhere – what fun! Remember, the idea is to focus on what you DO want – and that’s a life filled with prosperity, abundance, riches, wealth and happiness!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Sandy Forster, Author of the International Bestseller How to Be Wildly Wealthy FAST, offers more exciting free resources, articles, tele-conferences, books and live events in the areas of prosperity, success and personal empowerment at Living Beyond Limits
Hello again and welcome to Kabbalah Revealed. I’m Tony Kosinec.
Let’s begin by reading a quote from Baal HaSulam, from the Introduction to the Talmud Eser Sefirot (The Study of the Ten Sefirot). He says:
Therefore we must ask: why then, did the Kabbalists obligate each person to study the wisdom of Kabbalah? Indeed there is a great thing in it, worthy of being publicized: There is a wonderful, invaluable remedy to those who engage in the wisdom of Kabbalah. Although they do not understand what they are learning, through the yearning and the great desire to understand what they are learning, they awaken upon themselves the Lights that surround their souls. While one has not attained perfection, these Lights that are destined to reach him are considered Surrounding Lights. That means that they stand ready, and wait for one to purify one’s vessels of reception. At that time these Lights will cloth the able vessels. Hence, even when one does not have the vessels, when one engages in this wisdom, mentioning the names of the Lights and the vessels related to one’s soul, they immediately shine upon us to a certain measure. However, they shine for him without clothing the interior of his soul for lack of the able vessels to receive them. Despite that, the illumination one receives time after time during the engagement draws upon one grace from Above, imparting one with abundance of sanctity and purity, which bring one much closer to reaching perfection. In this lesson we will look at the four phases of the creation of a creature. This is the macro-template for everything that exists in creation: the way in which the creation came into being; the way in which a creature is created; and the way in which everything that stems from that is created in every aspect of the creation. Here’s what the Kabbalists tell us. [Tony drawing] First of all we need to know that there are secrets of Torah, but we are not going to speak of these secrets and they are above our ability to convey them. No Kabbalistic book talks about the secrets of Torah, only about the tastes of Torah. These secrets are called His Essence, or Atzmuto. It’s forbidden to speak about this. What forbidden means is that it is impossible. There are no words for this. We have no Kelim (vessels) for it. This can only be known by attainment. We start here [Tony draws the symbol for infinity]. We start with the Creator. The Kabbalists tell us that the initial Thought of the Creator, those who have attained this level, tell us that everything began with an intention, and this intention is to create a creature and to bring pleasure to the creature. This is what’s called Behina Shoresh. This is the root of all reality. Now since this will to create a creature and to give that creature pleasure is the initial thrust of the creation, immediately what occurred is that there was a will to receive this pleasure. So this thought is now what we call “Light,” and this is a will to receive. This is our vessel. This is the initial creature. This phase is one in which the total Light of creation fills a vessel capable of holding the entire Light, but this vessel is almost nullified against that, it’s so incorporated with it that really these things came into existence at the same time and they depend on each other completely. You have here a giving force, a desire to give, that presses into a reception and creates this opposite desire, the desire to receive. These things are locked together. They are sort of part and parcel of the same idea, but opposite. This is called the second discernment, which is Behina Aleph. Aleph is the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet and it has the value 1, and this is the first discernment. What happens when the Light enters this first Kli, the will to receive, is that the will to receive feels the pleasure, but the Light also imparts something about its own nature into the Kli, and something happens as a result of feeling this. When this Light goes all the way down and reaches the total filling within this will to receive, the vessel begins to sense something about the nature of the Light itself.
Since this is only a will to receive, it makes a movement based on its programming, and it notices that there is a Giver, so that the first discernment is “there is a Giver”; in other words, this is the first thing that is not the Creator. It has the sensation that there is a giving mode and there is a receiving mode. It’s in existence, in relation to something. Let’s look at this first and second part here in terms of Sefirot. The first discernment is called “Keter” or “crown.” The second discernment is called “Hochma.” Hochma means wisdom. So this Light that is felt by the first creature here, this first phase of the creature, is a delight that is a response to the qualities of the Creator, and this Light that it feels, that enters it, is called “the Light of Wisdom” (in Hebrew, “Ohr Hochma”). So anytime you hear the word “wisdom” in Kabbalistic texts, it’s talking about this quality of this Phase. Now something happens here, and as a result of feeling that there is a Giver, it also feels the pleasure of the desire to give, and it wants this pleasure because it is a will to receive. So in this desire, a new discernment appears. In order to reach this—because it felt this lack within it (first it was filled completely, then it felt a lack for what it sensed in the quality of the Light)—in order to reach this, to try to attain this for itself, it realizes that it doesn’t want to receive. What it wants is the pleasure of giving, so it makes that move to be able to experience that pleasure of giving, but since it’s only built to receive, the only thing that it can do is to not receive. In other words, it rejects the Light. This phase is called “Behina Bet.” Bet is the second letter of the Hebrew alphabet too, and the perception that it has is that to give is better than to receive. It is a desire to give. Now here we have a very interesting thing occurring. We have two phases that have moved (Phase 1 moving to Phase 2), has moved to its complete opposite. Phase 1 is a desire to receive and Phase 2 is a desire to give. This Sefira (Phase 2) is called “Bina.” Bina comes from the word Hitbonenut which means “to observe.” And what it really observes and what it discerns is a quality of the Creator, that the quality of the Creator is to give. So this is the quality of giving, this Sefira Bina, this Behina Bet, this Phase 2. In this state of emptiness there is another discernment that comes to the vessel. Now I want you to notice that what is being spoken about in each one of these Behinot, in each one of these discernments, is not about the action of the Light. The action of the Light is always the same. It always only uses this primary law—the will to create a creature and to fulfill that creature. That’s the only thing the Light does. What we are speaking about are discernment changes within the Kli, within the desire, within the creature. So here inside the Behina Bet, in the lack of Light, there is a discernment that happens, that its nature is actually to receive, and that it can’t exist without the Light of Wisdom. This rejection of the Light, this passing back of the Light, is called “the Light of Mercy” (in Hebrew, “Ohr Hassadim”), so it knows that it can’t exist like this, it must receive. But it doesn’t want to be a receiver, so it has to find a way in which its reception is actually a form of bestowal. And this brings about the next discernment. This is Behina Gimel—the third letter of the Hebrew alphabet. This discernment here brings about a dual phase. That is, this phase incorporates these two opposites, both the reception of Ohr Hochma, and it also includes—Ohr Hochma and Ohr Hassadim. So these two opposite desires are included here in this mixed phase. Why? What’s going on here? In this mode of reception, Behina Gimel has found a way to turn its reception into a way of giving. The only thing that exists in creation is the creature and the Creator—the Light and the vessel—that’s it. And even if the creature feels that it is doing an act of giving just within itself, really, the only one that there is to give to from the point of view of the creature is the Creator.
Behina Gimel makes the decision that it will copy the act of the Creator, that it understands that the Creator wants it to be filled with pleasure, that it must receive this pleasure, and that part of the Thought of Creation is to create a creature and to give to the creature. Well the only kind of creature that it can really create is something within itself. So it makes the decision that it will receive a portion of the Light, say 20% of the Light, under the condition that it only does it in order to fulfill the Thought of Creation, this desire of the Creator to create a creature and fill it with delight. So it will receive it with the intention that by its reception it fulfills this Thought. And this is the only mode in which reception can be giving. But giving is an intention. It doesn’t matter what the act is; it’s an intention. So this is really in similarity of form with this Phase 0 (Keter) to a certain degree. This 80% of Ohr Hassadim (Returning Light) it’s still pleasure, it’s still Light coming into it, but she pays no attention to it here. This phase, in Sefirot is called Zeir Anpin, and it really consists of a number of Sefirot: of Hesed, Gevura, Tifferet, Netzach, Hod, and Yesod. It’s a mixed phase that allows for reception in order to bestow. In this simulation of the act of bestowal that Behina Gimel does, a new discernment is born. She feels here another quality of the Light because of her action and that quality is actually the Thought of Creation itself. She comes to the attainment that it’s not just to give, and it’s not just that she receives a certain portion in order to fulfill the desire of the Creator to give to her, but that the Thought of Creation is to fill the creature completely with unbounded delight and she then realizes that she must accept this Light in order to fulfill the Thought of Creation. She must accept the whole Light. So here, the Light enters and fills the entire vessel. This is Behina Dalet, 4, but this is very different than Behina Aleph. Even though it looks the same, something very different has occurred here because here, [Tony points to drawing] in Behina Shoresh, Aleph, Bet, and Gimel, all of these actions were not independent actions. These were all actions done by the Creator. The Force of the Light, the response and the desire created in each one of these were actions done by the Creator. In Behina Dalet something entirely new happens. This is an independent desire to be and do precisely what the Creator had placed there. Here, in the intention to receive all of this Light, there is the possibility of the equivalence of form with the very Thought of Creation itself. At this point, everything changes for the creature. There is a restriction, a change in the nature of desire that happens here. Instead of receiving, as she did, Direct Light, and trying to achieve this for herself, she feels here, because of this last discernment that she had, she feels the stature of the Creator. And now, she no longer wants the doing part of creation, the Direct Light, what she wants is the mind of the Creator, the thinking part of the creation. She wants to reach equivalence of form with the Creator, which is, in fact, the intention of the Creator in the first place. So here we have the beginning of everything else in creation. We have an independent creature. Hence, this fourth phase in Sefirot is called “Malchut.” Malchut comes from the word “king” or “kingdom.” It means that everything is ruled here by desire. Now here, this new intention not to receive for herself alone, because she feels the stature of the Creator, she feels ashamed at the manner of reception, and this is called a restriction—the First Tzimtzum—and from now on she pursues the Thought behind creation, and not the actions of creation. So here we have this Malchut, the beginning of creation. And this vessel, this number four Behina, is called “Olam Ein Sof,” that is, “World Without End,” and all the Worlds and souls extend from here. Every part of creation uses exactly this form. This process, this macro-template, is also the four-letter name of God. You have seen it. There is the tip of the Yod, Yod, Key, the Vav, and the lower Hey—the HaVaYaH. When we see this name, it represents these series of forces. All names and words in Kabbalah are like formulas in physics. They talk about relationships of Light to Kli. So, here you see that the Kabbalists have given us a map from Above downward—how we came into being. But it’s not only that. It also describes the states that a person must attain on their ascent upward. It gives us the purpose, it gives us the root, and it gives us the places along the way. And that’s what the creature does once it makes this restriction. It starts to build a system of worlds so that it can attain the Thought of Creation, but as an independent desire, and become equal to the Creator. This is a quote from Rav Laitman: “Man includes everything inside of him. If man does corrections, it means that accordingly the entire creation approaches the Creator. Therefore, man has to correct only himself. Man who elevates, brings up with him all of the worlds. That is why it is said that all worlds were created for man.” Join us again next time when we will learn about the primary tool of attainment—the building of a screen, the sensor that allows us to feel the Thought of the Creator and to attain equivalence of form with Him. See you then.
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