Good Environment – 07.20.11

My Good Environment – Dr. Laitman’s Advice and Principles for the Week

The UN On The Global Crisis

Dr. Michael LaitmanUnited Nations “World Economic and Social Survey 2011”:
While humankind has made enormous progress in improving material welfare over the past two centuries, this progress has come at the lasting cost of degradation of our natural environment. About half of the forests that covered the earth are gone, groundwater resources are being depleted and contaminated, enormous reductions in biodiversity have already taken place and, through increased burning of fossil fuels, the stability of the planet’s climate is being threatened by global warming. … The incidence of natural disasters has increased fivefold since the 1970s. … In order for populations in developing countries to achieve a decent living standard, especially the billions who currently still live in conditions of abject poverty, and the additional 2 billion people who will have been added to the world’s population by mid-century—much greater economic progress will be needed.

Continuation along previously trodden economic growth pathways will further exacerbate the pressures exerted on the world’s resources and natural environment, which would approach limits where livelihoods were no longer sustainable. … It is rapidly expanding energy use, mainly driven by fossil fuels, that explains why humanity is on the verge of breaching planetary sustainability boundaries through global warming, biodiversity loss, and disturbance of the nitrogen-cycle balance and other measures of the sustainability of the Earth’s ecosystem. A comprehensive global energy transition is urgently needed in order to avert a major planetary catastrophe. …

Reducing the energy use and greenhouse gas emissions associated with growing and increasingly urban populations will require drastic changes in consumption patterns, transportation systems, residential and building infrastructure, and water and sanitation systems.

My Comment: It is impossible to make the transition to any prudent economy of sensible consumption without correcting man’s nature. But the correction of man’s nature from egoistic to altruistic is opposed by the authorities and the system because then they will lose their power over the world.

Therefore, as long as it is possible, the main task of the authorities and the banks is to prevent people from thinking about the crisis by any means – even at the expense of increasing the national debt, the way the US is doing. And all the governments agree with this.

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The Wind Of Change

Dr. Michael LaitmanI have a positive view of the globalization and integration that are being revealed in our times. Previously the world was driven by an egoistical impetus, which grew inside of us from one generation to the next, from one year to the next. Man developed egoistically, changing society, technologies, his life, and nature. But today this “trend” is coming to an end and now, with the emergence of the new tendency, everything will be different.

Nature has suddenly become closed and has expressed itself as “round,” integral. We won’t change nature any longer, but on the contrary, it is telling us: “Now you have to start changing.” Nature will not change anymore. It has reached the global, integral state. This has become a given, a new, indestructible format, and from now on we have to make ourselves match it.

This process is happening under pressure. Nature is constantly expressing itself as more and more integral, and we must also become more integral in the relationships between us. Otherwise we will have to suffer due to our lack of similarity to it.

For example, nature is showing us warming, and in response, we have to express more warmth. The winds on earth are blowing stronger, and we have to become imbued by “new currents.” It is necessary to have an equivalence of form, an equality of characteristics.

Therefore, shocks will pass over all of human society because whether we want it or not, a global format is “dressing” upon us. And what’s the first thing we are discovering? That our egoism is no longer working. Dictators and stand-alones are losing their power, isolated governments are ineffective, and separated organizations do not achieve results. The only ones making real actions are the people capable of unification.

As a result, power is shifting from separated, single governments to the people, who know how to unite. After all, they are “round” and integral, while the government is not.

A movement is starting all over the world now: the people will pressure the government more and more. Their actions might be disorganized and spontaneous, but they are interconnected. And the government will suddenly discover that it is standing before these people in fear and does now know what to do.

It would seem: Why not drive the people away? However, the balance of inner forces has changed and you cannot do anything about it anymore. In the past everything was simple: Let them shout on the streets to their heart’s content, let them tear apart a few shops, and a week later, when the food runs out, they will be on their way. But today this approach is not working. In some places the rulers and governments are already being forced to resign and even to escape.

This is the global, integral format that is more suitable for the people who unite than for egoistic governments, which are disunited and conflicting between each other and inside of themselves. The previous system is so opposite to the new model that not a single government will stay in power while playing by the old rules. It will be finished off by that same, highly praised “democracy.” A dictator would last longer by correctly choosing whom to attract to his side, whereas a clutter of parliamentary democracy is the opposite – it will rebuke its demise everywhere.

That is how every completed level nullifies itself: It expresses the inability to hold us back and becomes replaced by the next. All the best things we achieved at the previous phase not only become useless, but harmful, and thus, the old order gets buried beneath. This is what we will see.

Thus, bringing the people to unity and mutual guarantee means bringing them to similarity with the new natural format which is being revealed in our days. By attaining this similarity, we will succeed, flourish, and rise – even in the material sense, and especially in the spiritual development.

As for Israel, here too the commotion won’t settle and the protests will only keep mounting. The people will unite on every issue and will come forth against the government. This comes from the inside. People feel that those who are in power are worthless. The time of acclaimed leaders is gone. The politicians have become so mired by the “market relations” that you can’t reverse this anymore. The people are feeling a surge of energy because all of the global nature is standing behind them.

What will this global process finally lead to? To a world government. The regional differences will remain, being defined by the population’s personality and religion, but the boundaries will be erased completely. They are already blurred. The common government will be a government of sages, and it will be united, without any division into small or big. Everyone will enter the common union and will only care about unity.

After all, nothing more is necessary: If we are united, then we correspond to the upper Force. Unity is equality and mutuality, mutual guarantee. This way, the recent developments in the world are the beginning of a new phase of development, a new reality, a new social formation.
From the 5th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/20/11, “Arvut

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The Light Of Wisdom And Eternal Doubts

Dr. Michael LaitmanA person who keeps going forward without ever stopping, and who is not afraid to constantly be in the state of the minimal Light of Nefesh – in eternal clarifications, confusion, and fog, becomes continually smarter and attains his previous states. He becomes wise, but in relation to every current state he still won’t know anything. And that’s because we advance by faith above reason.

If he has just advanced by faith above reason, then he will receive a mind within which he will understand his previous states. That is how his mind will keep growing – only on this condition.

A person who advances above knowledge feels the Light of wisdom (Hochma) on all of his previous levels besides the last, current one.
[48705]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/13/11, Preface to the Wisdom of Kabbalah

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What Would I Say To The Tel Aviv Tent Protestors?

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: I visited a tent city that young families started up in the center of Tel Aviv as a sign of protest against the high prices of housing. In the evening people there get in a big circle and take turns speaking everything that’s on their mind into a microphone. Any person is allowed to speak. If I sign up for the list of speakers, what would you advise me to say?

Answer: “The end of the action is contained in the initial plan.” First of all, what do we want to achieve? We want to achieve a solution to the housing problem for students and young couples – people who aren’t well-off yet and who are just starting out in life. We can do this only if we become a factor of influence and pressure on the government.

We think that the government has enough money for different needs. So let them express a sensitivity to our demands. A member of parliament receives tens of thousands of shekels a month, but a student does not receive anything and in addition, pays for his studies. It’s impossible to live that way. The government has to decrease its expenditures on its own self. I am not talking about the realms of safety, education, or healthcare. We do not intervene in these matters. Let’s suppose that everything is fine there.

We are talking about the government: The students should receive whatever amount they require. Young couples want to create a family and to live, so let them have a home. Let them be able to rent a simple family home at the initial phase of their life together, until they can buy an apartment of their own. Or give them an offer to buy a home right away at a normal price.

The government has land. A square meter of living space costs 500 dollars at most, even it’s not a mass construction area. Imagine: for $50,000 you could buy an apartment that’s sized 100 square meters. But today you have to invest say, $300,000 in it, which is sixth times more than it can really cost, all-inclusive.

Why does it have to be that way? How much can you make off of people who have no money?

Therefore, they are right. The only question is: How will they be able to organize together? They have to become a powerful lobby, a group that successively exerts powerful pressure until the goal is attained. Besides, they have to keep going beyond this as well. In this country, there are many other things other than housing that could be improved. But the government won’t improve them unless you obligate it to do it.

The government is constantly under pressure from coalitions and lobbyists. Therefore, unless you implant yourself in this system as a group of pressure, from the inside or outside, you will get no result.

That means the question now is: How can we organize ourselves so our protest won’t turn into a festival? I wouldn’t even be surprised if there are people there who are trying to do that on the sly. After all, the issue at stake is important and not simple because any government in the world takes great care of itself and takes the most diverse measures in this respect. This is natural because every authority has to stand its own ground. How else can it stay in power?

Therefore, the protestors need real, powerful, reliable, and serious organization, rather than just slogans said into a microphone. Of course, this is good and necessary as well, but if that’s where everything will end, then they will be even more looked down upon, and next time they or their followers will have a very difficult time. They have to understand what kind of responsibility they have. If people rise up for new protests in the future, their success will depend on today’s struggle and its outcome.

It’s necessary to use the services of good, real consultants in order to achieve unity and mutual guarantee among one another, in order to get organized correctly, in order to understand how to exert pressure, how to work with the public, how to attract new people to their side, and how to communicate with the mass media representatives and with the government. They need a very powerful internal organization and experienced advisers. Otherwise they won’t succeed.

I saw the same thing happen in Spain: Everything began very seriously. The protest action was joined by couples aged 30 – 40 who were left without work. These were well-bred people with higher education, who completed European universities. They included engineers, sociologists, programmists, and many others who were left jobless. It might be possible to find some kind of common labor job, but these kinds of people had no chances – they are simply helpless.

And so, at first they occupied the city square in Madrid. However, they were unable to get organized properly and gradually they dispersed. As a result, the protest disintegrated and their places in the tents were occupied by other people, who got used to living on the street anyway. The mass media stopped broadcasting the event, the government happily waved its hand, organizing free food, showers, and toilets. As a result, the government is demonstrating the presence of a “democracy,” while the homeless have a place to live until the winter comes. When it does, the tents will be abandoned and will unnoticeably disappear.

This is a very vivid example of a lack of organization. Here in Israel the protestors who have gathered are also well-bred, and that is their weakness. After all, in this kind of situation it is necessary to get organized and start exerting pressure. This is not the Egyptian revolution, it’s not a spontaneous uprising, and therefore it is necessary to have clear order. In this case it is more difficult to aim the protestors in a common direction, to organize them because they are more reasonable and individualistic. The shouldn’t take an example from Egypt and other countries because the people going out on the streets there are a different type. In this case we are talking about Israelis who are difficult to budge, separated, and egoistic. Here every person makes his own calculation. Taking all of this into consideration, it is difficult for me to say whether or not they will achieve success.

Perhaps they will nevertheless understand that they need a strong organization and a clear action plan: pressure on the government, publication of declarations, addresses to certain people or organizations. They have to stay on top of the headlines, and not just while the news is fresh. Otherwise they will be forgotten in a few days. At some point the tents on the public square will stop being news. A person will read the newspaper headline, “The 40th day of the tent protest” and will go on to the next article.
From the 5th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/20/11, “Arvut

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One Principle From Abraham Until Today

Dr. Michael LaitmanPeople come to Kabbalah with many illusions and incorrect ideas about this science, imagining it in whatever way their egoistic desire depicts it to them based on all kinds of rumors. People present it as mysticism and think that it is related to astrology, healing, blessings, miracles, holy water and red strings, and that it can be used to reveal the past and the future. After all, our ego is looking for some special kind of fulfillment for itself.

Therefore, at first everyone has a difficult time grasping the Kabbalistic principle, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Even if they agree with it, they approach it egoistically. This is the basis of all kinds of “spiritual” methods.

However, it takes special people to come closer to the true realization of the method of Kabbalah. This requires great endurance, many efforts, and mutual support from a group of people who are ready for this and who understand that otherwise they don’t have any chance of realizing themselves. Only through this mutual desire, the “common vessel,” can they receive the opportunity to become people and do something with themselves in order to rise above the material, animate existence to the “human” level.

The spiritual action that we have to do is expressed in the execution of the “613 commandments,” meaning actions of unity among people who have decided that they have to unite.

This is what happened during the times of Abraham and during the times of Moses as well. And it’s the same in our day. The principle is still the same. If fragments of the broken soul that was created by the Creator are ready to unite together in order to restore the common vessel, then it becomes a great summary of the Torah – the vessel for the Light. The Light becomes revealed inside of that common desire, the common efforts, the mutual support and guarantee.

Therefore, it’s pointless for a person to think about spiritual attainment and his self-realization unless he perceives all of this through unification with others, with “neighbors,” meaning with the same kind of people as himself, who also desire to unite and who understand that only by uniting will they acquire a second nature.
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/20/11, Writings of Rabash

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Sculpt A Human Out Of Yourself

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: We are talking about loving the neighbor as yourself. But how is it possible to see the friends as being above you when you are sure and you clearly see that you are better than them?

Answer: Every person is sure that he is better than others. Even if he does not realize it, this is so in any case. There’s no doubt that every person considers himself better than others, thinking that he understands more and is more corrected.

This is how the force of the breaking is revealed between us, forcing every person to consider himself higher than others. A person forgets that he is in the hands of the Creator as formless, inanimate material, like a piece of clay, and that everything in him, in his desires and thoughts, comes to him from the Creator.

The only thing that can be expressed in this material as its personal action is the aspiration to connect with the “neighbor.” In that case, this formless mass takes on the “Human” form—a form that is similar to the Creator.

Only that kind of aspiration to be similar to the Creator can exist inside of the “clay” as its own aspiration. When does it become personal, on what condition? On the condition that this “clump of clay” acts in order to unite with all the other “clumps” into a special form, called “Human”—into the form of mutual bestowal, where all of them, wishing to sculpt a Human out of themselves, take on its form—a certain part of the common sculpture.

And besides this, everything that awakens in them and between them was given to them from above, according to the conditions and problems that they have to resolve. Therefore, everything that happens in the present and that will happen in the future is given from above. And only one small influence is possible on the part of the material—gradually, by uniting with others like it, to take on the form of the Creator, to become “Human.”
From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/20/11, The Zohar

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The Current Of Bestowal

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: What is the real sensation of the Light?

Answer: I don’t have anything to give to another person, but when I really want to give him something, then inside of me, in my attitude to him, in the aspiration to bestow and love, a special “current” becomes revealed which is called “Light.”

In order to perceive any external phenomenon, it is necessary to reach equivalence with it. Like a radio that is tuned to a specific wave, I generate the wave, the quality that is outside of me. Inside of me I create an example or model of the quality of bestowal that is outside. And then I catch and perceive this quality.

If I truly want to relate to another person by the law of bestowal, then suddenly, in my attitude to him, I develop a certain fulfillment that seems to come from outside, although in reality it floats to the surface from within. This response that I felt in my aspiration to bestowal is the Light.
From the 5th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/20/11, “Arvut

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A Thin Ray Of Love From The World To Come

Dr. Michael LaitmanStarting from the first restriction on, Malchut starts to receive for the sake of bestowal to the extent she is able to return goodness to the Host. Naturally, she is unable to receive everything, all 100%.

But since she made the restriction on her own, by her free choice, she has the force to withstand the entire Light of the world of Infinity and to start gradually accepting it for the sake of bestowal.

But this is not easy at all because I reveal the pleasure of adhesion, the greatness of the Giving One, of my equivalence to him, from the fact that I become the same as Him. This adhesion contains “620 times” more pleasure.

Malchut can tolerate only a small part of this pleasure, and therefore it is called “a very thin line” (Kav Dak Meod), a thin ray from the whole Light. But this little ray is not from the Light that Malchut of Infinity felt before the restriction, because only the Light of Nefesh was present there.

Now in this line she reveals NaRanHY (Nefesh-Ruach-Neshama- Haya-Yehida) – very significant actions. They are “620 times” bigger – meaning all of the “commandments,” all of her corrections. When instead of receiving inside of her, she performs actions of reception for the sake of bestowal in each of her corrected desires, this is called carrying out 620 commandments which are filled by the Light of adhesion.

But where can she get a screen for such a great Light – for pleasure from adhesion? After all, I receive, thinking that I do it for the sake of the Host, but now I reveal what it means to be the same as Him – what an unusual pleasure this is, what height, and how good it is to be in adhesion with Him!

This is what becomes revealed inside of the spiritual Partzuf. And therefore, it’s clear that Malchut is unable to receive the entire Light of Infinity in this form.

If the task were simply to receive without thinking about the Host, then there’d be no problem, or even to receive in order to give pleasure to the Host – this is also possible. But the problem is that by giving pleasure to Him, I myself receive a very enormous, additional pleasure – one that’s “620 times” more than the previous. It’sNaRaNHY instead of the Light of Nefesh! And I don’t have the strength to withstand it.

So where will I get that kind of force? For that I descend lower and lower with all the worlds, increasingly feeling just how unable I am to accept the pleasure from adhesion, from the greatness of the Creator, and to stay in bestowal. Therefore, this leads to the downward descent of the Partzufim and worlds.

This is not because I cannot accept the pleasure that filled Malchut of the world of Infinity. But one more great pleasure was included there, which did not become revealed to her there – pleasure from adhesion, from unity. And if she had also responded, then an enormous force of mutual love would have become revealed between them.

But she is incapable of feeling that kind of pleasure while remaining in bestowal. Therefore, now she descends and continually checks the extent to which she is incapable of that kind of bestowal. Therein lies the essence of the descent of the worlds and Partzufim which were born during the descent of Malchut of the world of Infinity down to this world. That is, this is the realization of how enormous is the greatness of the Creator, the greatness of adhesion with Him – it is “620 times” greater than what I am able to bear.

I am able to perceive for the sake of bestowal my own pleasure from being filled by Light. But I cannot accept for the sake of bestowal the pleasure that becomes revealed as a result of the fact that I returned pleasure to the Host – this is adhesion, love, and Light that is born, that breaks through between us as the heat of love, the result of my response.

For this kind of pleasure, I am unable to create a screen and to reflect the Light in full, but only small parts of it, only as much as I can in order to cling to Him….

This means that the pleasure from bestowal also returns to the Creator.
[48699]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/19/11, Preface to the Wisdom of Kabbalah

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The Medicine For Eternal Life

Dr. Michael LaitmanIt is said that the general and the particular are equal, and that is why each group and each individual should ask themselves: Whether they have the highest goal in life, which is to rise from the level of an animal to the level of a human, Adam, “similar” to the Creator, that is, to acquire the property of bestowal in which they will feel life in bestowal, a higher life?

In the beginning, a person aspires to it because he does not want to die. He imagines a spiritual life as a material one, just a bit better and, most importantly, without death. This is the maximum at which we can imagine a spiritual life.

In other words, I study and think that I am receiving some medicine that will bring me an eternal life, fulfilled and perfect, without any of the problems that I experience now. This is why a person continues. Indeed, this is the only way that we can now imagine a life that is higher than our world.

But even if a person begins to advance in this form, he decides that he has to use the means at his disposal. That is, he turns to the teacher who explains how to implement his recommendations in the group and with the help of books.

The teacher just shows him what to do, and a person should carry it out because he has nothing else to rely on. The entire realization takes place through the group and studying. Thus, a person gradually discovers the aspiration for the property of bestowal, which becomes his goal expressed as unity, connection, and mutual guarantee, as being one man with one heart.

This means to reach faith, as it is written: “The righteous live by faith,” meaning the revelation of the property of bestowal in the human heart, in all his desires.
[48448]
From the 2nd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/18/2011, Shamati #122

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