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Hello! Here we are again for a new portion of the Torah.
Now a new character comes along.
This is Joseph, or Yosef in Hebrew.
He's one of Jacob's 12 sons.
His story is interesting.
It's both profound and beautiful,
because it seems like he was born illuminated,
as if he inherited it from his father.
Unlike Jacob, who had to struggle with it,
Joseph was a master at a very young age.
He could interpret dreams, but was very naive.
He told his brothers that they bowed to him in a dream.
You can imagine how the brothers liked that...
He then goes to the desert one day and his brothers decide to kill him.
I won't go into the details of which brother said what,
it's not important to us here, anyway.
So they decide not to kill him and throw him into a well,
and then sell him into slavery in Egypt.
What a sad life this man had!
Away from his family, sold into slavery,
he that was the son of a wealthy man.
In Egypt he becomes friends with Potiphar, an officer.
He becomes the head of the household.
Joseph was just like that.
What happens next? Potiphar's wife, who is gorgeous,
sees Joseph, who was 17 at the time, and also very handsome,
and tries to seduce him. She presses him,
but he was a determined and righteous man.
He wouldn't betray his master and his friend in his own home.
Imagine that! Well, she becomes so enraged
that she tells Potiphar Joseph tried to seduce her
and Potiphar threw Joseph in prison.
There he languishes for years.
He interprets the dreams of a baker and a cupbearer.
Now I ask you:
who is this man that is sold into slavery by his brothers,
is wrongfully arrested again,
becomes a friend of the turnkey,
reads other people's dreams...
A good fate awaited him, of course. But what was his secret?
How could he go through all of that and stay determined still?
How did he keep his focus instead of giving up?
It's a good question for this week, don't you think?
It's a great question.
This portion is very helpful, because determination is crucial.
I can tell you that I had over 3000 students in all these years.
I can't tell how many followed us online.
Over twenty thousand, for sure.
But those who stayed with us were few!
Of the presential students, only 30 or 40 remained.
I'm sure these came to stay!
Those who came online for the first class,
who loved the class, and was motivated,
how many are still here? It's not the same number.
Who's going to stay? This is the 9th portion,
and there are 53!
So, it's determination that makes a difference.
I'll tell you something important: everyone goes through tests.
Me, you, our companions on the way...
One thing is certain:
It's not worth it if we're on our own.
Life beats us hard sometimes.
Imagine being sold into slavery by your own brothers.
Then, there's the woman... Life can be very hard.
But when we aspire to something bigger,
when we have a greater mission,
everything changes.
It's another story.
I don't do things just for myself, or my happiness.
It's not because I fell better.
It's for a bigger cause.
It's to help other people awaken
and find meaning in their lives.
And so Joseph did. He was in jail,
but he helped people awaken wherever he went.
This is beautiful.
Now, I want to talk about determination.
Almost all of you get the link to these short classes by e-mail.
So, please reply to this week's e-mail
and say "I follow the short classes" if you are determined, too.
If you follow them in YouTube, or Facebook or somesuch,
please send an e-mail to portaldacabala@portaldacabala.com.br
saying "I follow the short classes". Determined!
Then we can know who's part of the group.
It's very important to me.
You can see in my eyes that this is my goal:
That we may walk the path together with great determination,
imbued with Joseph's spirit.
There are other thing, too. Joseph never got confused.
Every detail is important.
Reading, for instance, is important.
I recommend plenty of books, mine or not.
We should always read good things.
If you only watch the news on TV, enlightenment will be hard!
You'll loose determination.
Choose your readings wisely.
Sharing is also very important. Companionship is everything in life.
Choose well your friends.
We have live rituals every tuesday, friday and saturday on our website.
I invite you all to follow them! It helps with meditation.
There are many things, as you can see.
Most important of all is the inner commitment.
Like I always say in my first class of the year,
even if you are in a group and have books and other things,
you've got to have a commitment to yourself.
Watch the short classes one at a time
and get into each week's energy.
That's the difference. It's the most important thing.
Just like in a school classroom, where you have 50 students,
those that make the difference are those who study in earnest.
This week's exercise is very good.
We'll do it so that hard times don't defeat us.
Life can beat us down, but, like Joseph, we'll stand up.
The exercise comes from a book of Psalms.
This one is still packaged, so I won't open.
They are easy to get, so look up Psalm 121.
I'll read it in Portuguese and I'll send it by e-mail.
Sometimes I forget to send things, but this one will come!
I'll read it in Portuguese, but in sounds marvellous in Hebrew.
I'll read it to you. I read it every day, in fact.
It helps us to remain determined.
It shows who is protecting us,
so that there's nothing to fear.
We'll always be protected.
The psalm goes like this...
Let's concentrate. Don't just read the psalm.
Relax your body...
Empty your mind...
Be thankful for everything.
Connect to He who will never let us down,
the force that created the universe.
It protects us and those we love.
Let's go.
A Song of Ascents.
I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?
My help comes from the Eternal, who made heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot be moved,
he who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, he who is our keeper will neither slumber nor sleep.
God is your keeper, your shade on your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.
The Eternal will keep you from all evil,
he will keep your soul.
He will watch over you,
your going out and your coming in,
from this time forth and forevermore. Amen.
We have a phrase this week to repeat several times,
so that we may follow in Joseph's footsteps.
"I'm determined to see."
Got it? "I'm determined to see."
Cover your eyes when saying it.
You're determined to see a new sight,
where everything will be as new.
Difficulties will be seen as opportunities of growth.
Thank you for being here. See you in a week.
Have a great week. Shavua tov!
HOMEWORK: REPEAT THE PHRASE "I'M DETERMINED TO SEE."
MAKE DAILY READINGS OF THE PSALM 121.
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