Question: Why were Adam’s sin and his breaking necessary? What was so special about it that the Light couldn’t have created in the creature directly?

Answer: The Light couldn’t supply the creature with the Creator’s status or the awareness of “who I am” as it is impossible to pass this on from one to the other. The sin with the Tree of Knowledge is a unique condition where pleasure overpowers shame. At every spiritual degree, state, and decision, bestowal is placed before reception. This is why all these worlds are called holy. But not so in this case; here reception comes first!

“I ate [from the Tree of Knowledge] and will eat more” implies that I am not able to resist this pleasure. I am going to receive pleasure for myself; I don’t care what happens next. Moreover, I don’t care one bit what happens to the Giver.

I can’t resist. The Serpent rising within man unfolds an abyss of unfulfilled desire that constitutes the difference between an animal and a human. Before the sin, Adam and Eve existed at the animate degree. Afterward, they became “savage humans.” Even if sinful, they nevertheless are humans.

Without this, the entire creation makes no sense since the initial plan was conceived as making man equivalent to the Creator. The force that advances creation lies in the revelation of this shame, the gap between the Creator and the creature.

At the still, vegetative, and animate degrees, the creature isn’t separated from the Creator; it follows all His orders and doesn’t oppose Him with any desire. However, in this new desire that unfolds today, in this new emptiness, the creature feels that it opposes the Creator, and that the former is the guest and the latter is the Host.
[22946]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/29/10, “Introduction to the Book, Panim Meirot uMasbirot”

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