A Tale About a Little Stream

In a far-away, mountainous country, a lake and a stream lived side by side. The lake was situated at the foot of the mountain, and a little higher up the mountain, the stream flowed.

The lake that was very proud of itself called to the little stream, "Look how beautiful, large, and clean I am!"

"Yes," the stream replied, "you are very beautiful. You must have lots of friends, after all you are so large that you can give your waters to anyone who wishes to drink. I am small, and no one notices me."

"Ha!" the lake scoffed. "Why would I give my waters to others? If I did that, I would become small too."



Some days later, a mountain goat approached the lake. "Oh beautiful lake, I've lost my way, and I have had nothing to drink for a very long time. Your waters look so clear and cool. May I drink from them?"

"Look for water elsewhere," the lake replied sharply. "And do not touch me with your dirty hooves."

The goat was saddened, but what could he do? As he was leaving, he heard a quiet voice beckoning him, "Go-o-a-at, come here. I am a little stream that nobody notices, but I have enough water for you. Drink as much as you want."

"Oh, thank you for coming to my rescue, little stream!" the goat replied as he eagerly slurped the stream's fresh, running water.

Another time swallows flying overhead landed on the shore and called to the lake, "Oh lake, we are very tired and we still have a long journey ahead. Please allow us to drink from your cool, clean waters."

"Absolutely not!" the lake retorted angrily. "There is dust on your feathers, and I cannot stand dust. Fly away from here before you dirty my clean waters!"




Just as the swallows rose into the air they heard:"Swallows, lovely swallows, fly over to me. I am a little stream that nobody notices, but I have enough water for all of you. Drink as much as you want!"

"Thank you little stream," the swallows said as they quenched their thirst. "You are a true friend!"

Many animals and birds approached asking the lake for help, and were always refused by the lake, but the little stream helped them all.

But then, something unexpectedly happened, one hot summer day.

"He-e-elp, help!" a little mouse cried. He scampered to the lake.Gasping for breath, he pleaded: "Lake, please help the rabbit. He broke his paw and cannot walk. It's been a long time since he drank, and he really needs water."

"What is it to me?" the lake asked indifferently.

"If you splash out a bit of water, it will reach the rabbit and allow him to drink," the little mouse replied.




"That's silly," the lake said, and waved the little mouse away.

"Little mouse," the stream called out, "maybe I can help?"

"You are very kind, but you are too small. You don't have enough water to reach the rabbit," the little mouse replied sadly.


"Wait, I just thought of something!" the stream exclaimed. "Mother Mountain! Mother Mountain!" it cried. But the mountain was deep asleep in the warm sun. "Help me, little mouse," the little stream asked, and together they called out to the mountain: "Mother Mountain!"

"Why all the noise, little ones?" The mountain woke up. "What happened?"

"The rabbit broke his paw," the little stream explained. "He needs water, and I must help him!"

"But how?" the mountain wondered. "You are so small!"

"There is snow at your peak. It is melting under the sun's rays and turning into water. Give me some of that water, and I will be able to help the rabbit."

"Although you are small, you have a very big desire to help others. I will do as you ask," the mountain replied.




At once, all the water that before poured from the peak of the mountain into the lake, began to flow in the direction of the little stream. And before the lake could utter a single sound in protest, it dried up. Meanwhile, water rushed into the little stream transforming it into a large, strong current. It quickly reached the rabbit, quenched his thirst, washed over his wound, and ran along further into the sea, presenting everyone with clean cool water.

"Do you see that body of water?" the animals would say to each other. "Once it was a little stream, but the desire to help others turned it into a wide, strong-flowing river."

What does the Story of Adam and Eve Mean in Our Times?

The meaning behind the story of Adam, Eve and the snake is actually very simple. The snake represents the ego that became revealed between Adam and Eve, the man and the woman. And that's really all there is to the story.

For example, suppose that a happy, young couple falls in love. They hug, kiss and laugh together, go to the movies and the beach. Then they get married and begin living together, and everything is wonderful. They're in the Garden of Eden.

And suddenly - the snake (the ego) arrives. They suddenly begin arguing. Then they begin taking advantage of each other and making private calculations, such as "How can I get him/her to be the way I want them to be?" This happens to us because the snake (the ego that's inside us) prevents us from being able to love someone else, and makes sure that our love is egoistic from the start.

Under these circumstances, the closest we can come to love is to surrender our egos in day to day life as much as we can. However, this still doesn't solve the problem at the root, and does not enable us to experience real, unconditional love. This is where Kabbalah offers another solution: to correct our soul at the root, or to correct the snake that separates us from our partners.

To do this, both partners must realize that there is a goal to their lives that's above this world. Then they will also realize that they can only attain it by having a partner in life, someone who will go through the spiritual path together with them. This is the meaning of the verse, "Man, woman, and the Divine Presence between them." It means that in order for us to attain the Divine presence, spirituality, we must connect with each other correctly.

Then, instead of taking advantage of each other, Adam and Eve will complete each other. And the snake, instead of driving them apart, will become the driving force that pushes them to reveal the Upper Force - the Divine Presence, or the Creator.

Why Are We So Preoccupied with Sex?

In the spiritual world, the soul is united with the Light, and this union is called Zivug - coupling. It constitutes the unification of two parts of creation - male and female, and is the greatest pleasure that can ever be - the soul being filled by the Light of the Creator.

This spiritual coupling also has a branch or copy in the physical world, the world of matter. This is why we are so preoccupied with sex - it is the ultimate pleasure in this world, and the root of all of our desires in this world.

Sex is the basis of all our thoughts, because its root is the soul's union with the Creator. This union is the final goal of Nature, and everything that happens in the world is determined by the final goal. This is why we just can't avoid thinking about sex. Our attraction to the opposite sex and to pleasure also come from this final state - the adhesion with the Creator, called "Zivug" (never-ending sexual union).

The pleasure we feel from sex is a perfect example of the difference between physical and spiritual pleasure. We spend so much time and effort thinking about sex, and we imagine that it will give us enormous pleasure, but in fact our pleasure vanishes into thin air the minute we reach the peak of sexual satisfaction. Before we really had time to enjoy this feeling, it is over and we find ourselves once again striving for another moment of pleasure.

This is what happens in our world, because the pleasure that fills the desire immediately neutralizes it. No longer having the desire, we stop feeling pleasure. It leaves us feeling empty, and as life goes on, this emptiness only grows bigger. This is why it is written, "One leaves the world with half his cravings unfulfilled."

Spiritual pleasure works very differently because being in spirituality means having the ability to receive the Light with the intention of giving pleasure to the Creator, to the One who gives you the Light. Hence, in spirituality, coupling or sex is continuous and eternal, and it only grows stronger all the time. As a result, one feels eternal life and perfect fulfillment that constantly gets bigger. Obviously, this is very different from the pleasure we feel in our world, where we can only feel momentary pleasure followed by emptiness.

This is why it is written that ever since people fell from the spiritual world into our world, only those who attain the spiritual world still feel the real taste of copulation. The true, spiritual pleasure is attained when two opposite parts of creation - male and female - merge together and are filled by the common Light.

Subconsciously, in our souls, we all desire this coupling because we were created for it. On some level, we all aspire to feel the spiritual world because it is the only place where we will find true, lasting pleasure.

Equality Between Men and Women: Good or Bad?

Men's and women's roles have become so blurred that people are confused about what the ideal roles of men and women are supposed to be. This has affected the relationships between men and women, and has even caused people to become confused about their own identities.

As much as we desire to create simple, plain equality - according to our understanding of it, in the end it does not benefit men or women. It does not make our lives more balanced, harmonious, fair or happy - and that's because the way we seek to create "equality" goes against the laws of nature.

Instead of learning how to arrange our lives from nature, we have been thinking that we are above nature and inventing our own rules. Yet our lives prove that we are, in fact, part of nature. Hence, we have to let nature teach us how to create perfect relationships between us and live in harmony with one another.

This is exactly what the wisdom of Kabbalah enables us to do - it reveals nature's laws, enabling one to see the best way to act toward others, whether toward men, women, children, or the whole world. Without this knowledge, it is impossible for us to arrange our lives in a sensible way. Rather, with every passing day, we will only experience more problems and suffering.

But how did the confusion around our sex roles begin in the first place? After all, the relationship between men and women is only unbalanced among humans. In the animal world, for instance, the male always supplies the female with everything she needs. The problem with humans is that everything operates according to the ego, and not according to the duties one sex has toward the other. Precisely the ego has made our relationships and gender roles unbalanced.

So what is the balanced way for us to build our lives? It is written that a woman was created to be help against a man. That is to say, a woman fulfills her role and provides the help needed of her precisely by being opposite (not equal!) to a man. To be opposite to him means to help him attain the spiritual goal, and this is how they both attain it.

The Truth about Virtual Relationships

Many people today create "virtual romantic connections" on social sites such as Facebook. They meet other people, share pictures, and even fall in love with their virtual partners!

The reason we are so drawn to our virtual partners is because the connection we make with them is non-material, detached from physical contact, and even "spiritual" in a way. Since we're not tied down by any physical limitations, we're let free to fantasize as much as we want to, to attribute all the best qualities to our virtual significant other, and to raise our connection with them "into the clouds," so to speak. We convince ourselves of how special this connection is, and that it's an opportunity to reach beautiful, perfect love.

But unfortunately, it's all an illusion. Over the Internet, a person's physical features are hidden and his inner aspects emphasized. One can express himself in any way he wants to, but the problem is that we lose sight of reality as we become unknowingly immersed in this game. We forget that we aren't dealing with a real person, but with our own imagination.

When we see someone in real life, in person, then we can tell whether they really have certain traits or not, and we can see whether those traits are real. On the Internet, however, we only see a (carefully selected) picture and read a few lines that are more likely than not to be lies - and we go off imagining things that are completely unrealistic. However, the moment we meet our virtual partners in person, this sweet fantasy bubble bursts.

The Woman’s Role in Maintaining a Good Relationship

Today the divorce rate is astounding and most relationships are short-lived. Because of this, it is very important for people to find out how they can maintain a successful marriage.

In order for a woman to understand how to best fulfill her part of the relationship, she must understand the nature of a man. Then she will be wise and able to create a lasting and loving relationship.

But how can a woman come to understand a man's nature? After all, men and women are so different. In fact, the right understanding can come from the right actions. A woman should express her appreciation of her man, letting him know that he is special to her, that he is great - and doing this often! Then she will realize what he needs from her, and what kind of a connection there should be between them.

She will see that a man needs motherly care, praise, and admiration. Despite being masculine, big, and "macho," a man actually has a great need for sympathy. And if a woman gives this to him, he won't be able to leave her.

In fact, it's similar to how a woman acts with a child. She tells him, "You're wonderful, you did such a great job, you're big, you can do it, you're special, you're the most unique person in the entire world - you, you, you..." And this makes the man remain with her.

But most importantly, she should do this with love. A man desires to hear this all the time, because men really are like children, and they often see a woman as a mother. And even though this kind of a relationship may seem "imbalanced," it will become balanced out because it will make the man want to "rise up," to show how great he is. It will awaken his desire to become greater in a positive way, rather than in an overbearing, negative way.

Today, It's Spiritual Relationship or No Relationship

Today it is practically impossible for a man and a woman to maintain a good relationship over time, unless there is a spiritual connection between them. It's because their egos clash one against the other and destroy their connection. Today there are countless divorces, and most relationships fall apart, because our egos are "on fire," and they only grow bigger with time. The beautiful verse, "Man, woman, and the Divine Presence between them" - simply does not exist in such couples.

So what does it take to create that spiritual connection between them, the only thing that can remedy their relationship? Having a spiritual connection means that both partners know the reason for their existence - to embark on the spiritual journey and attain the spiritual goal of life. Then they will have something that truly connects them, they will be in a mutual "cell" together, and the verse "Man, woman, and the Divine Presence between them" will really come true. In other words, they will feel the revelation of the Divine Presence - the Creator.

Fairytale Love is Just That – a Fairytale

If you think that finding the love of fairytales will make you happy, think again. The love of fairytales isn't really love, but the use of others for self satisfaction.

What we normally call love is the egoistic satisfaction of one person by another, whether it's sexual satisfaction or any other kind of fulfillment we receive from another person. And clearly, this isn't love.

Then what is love? Love is when you don't pay any attention to yourself, but you take the desires of another person and try to fulfill them in exactly the way they would like. In other words, you turn yourself into a vessel of fulfillment for the other person. This is real love, and it exists only in the spiritual world. And there is no difference if it is a man or a woman - what's important are the desires, the soul.

In contrast, when we talk about love in this world, we are really talking about attraction and pleasure that are brought about by hormones. If we were to disconnect a person from his hormonal system, he wouldn't be able to feel "love." This again shows that what we usually think of as love is just an egoistic desire to enjoy. Sometimes this desire can even be cruel, desiring to receive fulfillment at the expense of another person.

Hence, the love we read about in fairytales is really an illusion, and does not exist in reality. It's because all of our desires are based only on the desire to fulfill ourselves. Even when we give something to others, we do so only because it gives us pleasure. Our action of giving is meaningless because what really matters to us while performing that action is what we feel.

Speedy

Life in the big city was in full swing. The sidewalks were bustling with people and streams of cars flowed through the streets. Taxicabs, buses, and trains ran from early morning until late at night delivering passengers to their destinations. They tried very hard to make sure everyone was on time.

The seats of all the buses were filled with people except for one little bus named Speedy. He always ran empty. Speedy was a very restless and self-centered bus. In the mornings, when people rushed to work, he carelessly sped through the streets, splashing through puddles, blowing hats off the heads of pedestrians, honking noisily at intersections, and never, ever stopping to pick up passengers.

"Where are you going?" people would shout after him, "Take us, we are in a hurry!"

"There is no time!" Speedy would answer. "I have an urgent matter to take care of."

However, there was nothing that Speedy needed to do. He was simply busy enjoying himself, looking in all directions, trying to see everything around him.

Large buses gave Speedy, the troublemaker, reproachful stares, and taxicabs often tried to find something useful for him to do.

"Look, there is an old man with a heavy bag sitting at the bus stop," they would point out. "Why don't you take him home?"

"I'm too busy," Speedy would answer. "I need to get to the city park. There is a holiday show starting soon."

Speedy never even opened his doors. That's how stubborn he was.

In the evenings, he continued making mischief by speeding along the highway weaving in and out of lanes.

And as the city fell asleep, Speedy would head to his garage.

"What did you see today?" the car washing machine asked him every night, as it tickled him with its furry brushes.

"I saw children going on a class trip to the movies," Speedy answered.

"Did you give them a ride?"

"No way! They leave behind so much trash!" Speedy would say, frowning.

One day during rush hour, impatient Speedy tried to sneak around a huge traffic jam by cutting through a narrow alley. All of a sudden, he saw a man rushing toward him. Annoyed, Speedy flashed his lights and blasted his horn, but the man stood firmly in place, blocking Speedy's path.

"Take me to the hospital," the man pleaded. "My son is very ill. Wait here, I'll be right back."

As the man disappeared into the building, it occurred to Speedy that he could leave. No one was there to stop him. But something forced him to stay. Soon, the man returned, carrying a little boy in his arms, and for the first time ever Speedy opened his door to let passengers in.



"It's all up to you now, little bus!" the man said. "Hurry, but please don't hurt anyone."

If there was one thing that Speedy could do well, it was hurry. And, he knew all the ins and outs of the city, so he took the shortest path to the hospital. In no time at all, they were at the emergency room entrance.

The man was amazed. "Thank you, little bus! You were a true help to us," he said as the hospital attendants placed the boy on a stretcher. As they rushed him away, the boy glanced at Speedy and gave him a weak smile.

Long after they vanished behind the hospital doors, Speedy stood there, thinking about what had just happened. He felt his little engine heart skipping beats. The sun set; the street lights came on, but Speedy stood still waiting by the hospital entrance.

Finally he saw the boy's father exiting through the doors.

"Hey, buddy!" the man called to Speedy with a broad smile on his face.

No one had ever called Speedy "buddy" before. It felt really nice.

"Were you worried?" the father asked. "Well, there is no need to be. Everything is fine now. You came just in time. The doctors are taking care of my son and he will be coming home in two days."

Speedy honked loudly with joy. He drove the man home, then headed to the garage, tired but happy.

Early the next morning, as the boy's parents walked out of their door to go to the hospital, Speedy was already waiting to take them. He had a present for the boy on the back seat. It was a new colorful map of the city, with all the different routes, parks, museums, movie theaters, and other attractions.

Speedy spent the whole day by the hospital. He did not leave even for a second because he was afraid to miss the boy's parents. Finally they appeared in the doorway and waved to him.

"Our son sends a big hello!" they yelled.

Speedy's face lit up, and his headlights began to emanate a warm glow.

They agreed to pick up the boy from the hospital, together, at nine in the morning. Speedy headed back to the garage. Filled with a new feeling of warmth, joy, and excitement, he decided to begin a new life.

In the morning, Speedy stood by the hospital doors, trembling with anticipation with his engine heart knocking louder than ever. Suddenly, the boy burst out from the doors and ran over to him, shrieking cheerfully. He treated Speedy like a friend he hadn't seen in ages.

"Hello!" the boy said. "I'm so glad you're here. I have so much to tell you!"

And this is how Speedy became friends with the boy. He became friends not only with the boy and his family, but Speedy also became friends with the whole city because he realized what a great benefit he can be to people and what a great joy that was.

Now Speedy is the first bus on the cool pavement of the early morning streets. He picks up the first passengers at the bus stops. He is always on time, and politely greets everyone who comes through his doors. Taxicabs wink at him playfully as they drive by, and large buses simply adore him.

"Enough work for you today, buddy?" the car washing machine asks him.

"One's strength never ceases when one helps others!" Speedy answers with a happy smile.

The Right Education

The basic principle of the right education is actually very simple: parents should not tell a child what to do, but only how to do it, if the child asks.

And what happens until then? Parents should use their ingenuity to find alternative ways to awaken in a child the desire to do what needs to be done. This way, the desire for it will be child's own. This is the right education.

It is written that we should "educate the youth according to his way." This means that not only parents but a child as well should clearly see where he is going, and he should want it. Then he will accept education, he will demand it.

Parents who pressure their children, who try to forcefully teach them certain information or habits, raise a broken generation.

The wisdom of Kabbalah, on the other hand, is against any kind of violence or pressure. "There is no coercion in spirituality." No coercion means that everything exists and is done only out of one's own will. What parents have to do is to awaken that will.

Our problem is that no one is doing that and the whole education system is wrong. Hence our task is to help parents understand this principle of Kabbalists - everything stems from a person's free will and all we have to do is to help its free development.