The third commandment, “You shall not take the name of the Lord, your God, in vain,” means that we can act with the force of the Creator, i.e., the force of love and bestowal, only as much as we resemble that force. In other words, to the extent that we become as loving, caring and giving as the force of the Creator, which has no intention for self-benefit whatsoever, and to the extent that we unite with that force, then only on that condition can we use it.
The prohibition to use the force of the Creator for self-aimed purposes equates to the impossibility to do so. That is, it is impossible to draw the Creator’s influence in order to make ourselves rich, famous and/or powerful at the expense of others.
The Creator guides our development in order for us to reach a proper request or prayer, which means that instead of asking the Creator to change something in Himself or in the world to benefit us, we instead ask to change our egoistic nature in order to become as altruistic, loving and caring as the Creator. We can and do ask for all kinds of self-aimed purposes on the way to the correct request, and it is also desirable that we do so, but it is the request to become as loving and giving as the Creator that we are being developed toward—the true prayer that the Creator will ultimately grant.
Based on the talk “Spiritual States: The Ten Commandments” on December 26, 2019. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
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