Audio Version Of The Blog – 09.08.14

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Anticipate The Created Being

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe wisdom of Kabbalah says that the Creator is good that does good. In order to realize Himself, He created the desire to receive, which is called the “created being.” This desire should be developed according to the Creator’s plan, according to His program until the created being understands and feels Him as good that does good, as great.

This is the desire of the Creator. Kabbalists explain to us that it’s not because He wants us to recognize His greatness, His omnipotence, and our dependence on Him. We are talking about the highest so therefore it is clear that this is so. No, the Creator wishes to raise us to His level.

So, we have to go through a certain awareness of the higher force in our nature and to reveal how we can ascend to its height. The Creator enjoys that we experience Him, meaning reach His level. According to the law of equivalence of form, to achieve adhesion with Him means to acquire the same properties as His.

The period of our self-correction is the path, the ladder, the rungs of which lead us upward through the five worlds. The created being can realize this ascent only if it is sure and knows for sure it he must do this. Then it has the force to realize it.

From where does the created being get the power to take the actions leading upward from reception to bestowal contrary to its nature? The created being has to have an understanding, awareness, and sense that he is in the bad egoistic state of reception and has to come to a good state of bestowal that is completely opposite to his current one.

We are told that we can do this if we get help from the Creator. The Upper Light is shed on us, and then we begin to talk in a different way and understand that to receive is bad for us and to bestow is good.

Well then, simply let the Creator do this! He has created the desire to receive within us and now can “shine” on us to turn that desire into bestowal. But no, this cannot occur because we would then lose independence and become like “angels,” that is, forces that just perform certain actions. Instead, we must admit and accept for ourselves that to receive is bad and to bestow is good.

This internal statement is called the “recognition of evil,” and nothing else is required. We only need to recognize the evil of the desire to receive and the good that is inherent in the desire to bestow. Once this happens within us, we will definitely stop using the evil of the egoistic desire that is manifested at this moment, and begin to use the desire to bestow, manifested as good.

It would seem that this is not child’s play: If a doctor explained to me what is good and what is bad, what is harmful and what is healthy, I would appreciate and follow his advice. However, I have to recognize evil myself. Advisors who tell me what is good and what is bad will not help me. I have to very precisely figure out on my own that the desire to receive is evil and that the desire to bestow is good.

Here, such a thin “string” is stretched that it cannot be expressed in words. I need to remain neutral internally, rising above the created being, since the desire to receive is defined as evil and the desire to bestow as good, with the first quality belonging to the created being, and the second, to the Creator. However, I need to anticipate preceding the created being, to stand in front of it, and look at these two desires. Then, based on this completely independent point, I need to define the desire to receive as evil.

This will be the true realization of evil. It is not done “all to order” for me, not on the basis of pleasure and suffering that lead to my decision when time after time I play a “negotiation game,” choosing according to the criteria of my egoism. No, the “expert,” “judge,” and “tester” in me has to stand apart, neither on the side of the Creator nor on the side of the created being, but seemingly a step in front of it.

This is a prerequisite. It is impossible that the Creator is good in my eyes. Why is He good? Is it because He created my desire and is enjoying His presents? No, it is just a given, the creation in which we find ourselves. The Creator desires us to “anticipate” the created being, so that we agree with Him, that He made it in that way.

The benefit of this is great: We are no longer dependent on what and how He created us. We have to rise above good and evil, regardless of the intentions connected to them. We must reach another degree, rising above them to the beginning of the plan of creation that existed even before He created us, before He decided to be revealed to the created being as the giver and made the created being as receiving. We seem to find ourselves before that moment and even before its cause. And this is where we actually find ourselves.

Therefore, the realization of evil must go deeper, to within the qualitative depth. It is not about how terrible my endless egoism is and how beautiful bestowal is. It is about the quality and essence: Why do I define one as evil and one as good? This choice should be performed on my own feelings. It just measures the details of perception for me “for statistics,” and above it I reveal a higher principle, which is above the created being and before it. Thus, the recognition of evil encompasses the whole of reality and raises us above it.
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From the 5th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/3/14, Writings of Baal HaSulam

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Unity Is Not Determined By An Order From Above

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: During the recent missile attack and the military operation “Protective Edge” there was a general feeling of unity among the people in Israel. But how can we keep it? After all, when the military operation was over it began to fade away again. Even the prime minister said it would have been better if we had continued to live in such unity.

Answer: But the government cannot do anything here. Unity isn’t determined by an order from above. The government only determines laws, frameworks, and limits and cannot invoke compassion, love, warmth, unity or connection in the people.

It isn’t the government’s job. The government can provide the means, the resources, and the power, but it cannot engage in it. Caring about mutual guarantee is the obligation of the society, of the citizens.
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From KabTV’s “A New Life” 8/27/14

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The Perfect Society Of Abraham, Part 4

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Let’s go back to the stages of how people get closer to each other internally. How does this happen?

Answer: The first step is when I do not want to use a stranger, another person, any friend of my people, i.e., in the group with which we go to the spiritual ideal, to the principle of “Love thy neighbor as thyself.”

When I ascend to this degree, I feel I do not want to do anything bad to another; I do not have bad thoughts about him. I can overcome my egoism, restrain myself in all its forms, and all my energy is focused on being absolutely neutral to people, desiring to be connected with them, wanting to be with them. That is, I do not think and do not take care of myself in spite of all the rest.

This is called the “restriction” of one’s egoistic desires and is seemingly a neutral state: Do not wish for and do not do to your neighbor what you would not wish for yourself.

And the next stage is “love thy neighbor as thyself.” That is not neutrality but a positive action. Because originally a person discovers that all his actions are directed only at his own benefit, and he cannot do good to others, except for his own profit.

Thus, we are talking about three stages:

  • First, there is recognition of egoism;
  • Then, its neutralization;
  • And then, its correction, implementing it for the benefit of others.

And this final action is the essence of love.

Question: Can we say that Abraham built a perfect society?

Answer: Yes, of course. Abraham built a perfect society of those people from Babylon that he took with him.

But here we consider, in general, not the people but their desires! This also applies to the followers of the work of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Yes, they are his direct descendants, but all in all, his followers are called “sons,” disciples. Hence, there are such concepts as the “house of Abraham,” “house of Isaac,” and “house of Jacob.” The “house” means the community of people who continued to grow and develop.

They grow in a physical sense as well, but the main thing is they grew spiritually until they united fully in their mutual aspirations, in connection with each other on the first spiritual degree, which is called “Jacob.” This first spiritual degree is already considered the degree of “Israel,” with a hint of the future land of Israel, which will be reached. Although there is no land yet!

After all, “Israel” means “directed to the Creator.” That is, when you are in some place and aspire to the goal, then you are called “Israel,” “straight to the goal.” To reach this goal means to enter the land of Israel.

What are you lacking for this? For this you are lacking egoism, which you will correct and turn into the land of Israel. That is why they later had to come down to Egypt.

Question: So the group was already called Israel, and it still had to go through a century of descent before it would acquire the land of Israel, the desire, aimed at the goal?

Answer: Therefore, it is said that Jacob knew about the future and wanted to tell his sons, but he was not given…
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From KabTV’s “Babylon, Yesterday and Today” 8/27/14

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“And Now Do You See?” – “Yes!”

Dr. Michael LaitmanBaal HaSulam, “Introduction to the Study of the Ten Sefirot,” Item 54: When the Creator sees that one has completed one’s measure of exertion and finished everything he had to do in strengthening his choice in faith in the Creator, the Creator helps him. Then, one attains open Providence, meaning the revelation of the face. Then, he is rewarded with complete repentance, meaning he cleaves to the Creator once more with his heart, soul, and might….

There is no patronage here, there is no reason to wait for the Creator to get fed up and take pity on us like a merciful father. We should not expect the Creator to be touched by our tears and have mercy and intervene in our situation and forgive our lack of investing efforts.

This means that hope is meaningless, that instead of our effort it is possible to wait a bit, cry a bit, and everything will take care of itself. In general, in our world a person expects exactly this kind of attitude towards himself from other people and from the Creator. But this doesn’t happen here.

We are obliged to carry out and complete the amount of effort required from our side. And this should truly be effort, meaning effort in building our spiritual Kli for revelation. As it is said: He hath made a decree which shall not be transgressed (Psalms 148:6). If you have a desire of ten grams, which is, suppose, the first degree of adaptation to the first compulsory level for discovering the Creator, then you will feel His presence, meaning He will be revealed.

And as long as your desire is less than “ten grams,” you are below the threshold and don’t feel the Creator. This means the Creator is concealed. All of the senses work according to this principle, including the spiritual senses.

Perception in the spiritual senses is divided into 125 levels that are divided internally into many other sublevels. And no matter what, we must reach the level of sensitivity matching the first level. And this depends on the measure of effort by which we raise our sensitivity, meaning expanding our Kli.

This is our sensitivity to the degree of bestowal because the Creator is bestowal, love, and connection. He is revealed to us as such. So we must prepare accordingly: bestowal, love, and connection among us. And we don’t even have to attain these characteristics directly but only have a yearning to acquire them. And if we specifically direct our desire and yearning towards this and have enough force, then we begin to discover the Creator. That is everything.

This is like a visual examination with an optometrist: “Do you see these letters?” – “No!” “And do you see them now?” – “Yes!” There is a sensitivity threshold for each and every sense, and when it is attained, suddenly the discovery happens.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/29/14, Writings of Baal HaSulam

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Roundabout Path To The Mystery Of Life

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: I really don’t understand how scientific progress can hurt humanity?

Answer: Science is a search for the Creator through our material minds. Scientists conduct numerous studies and experiments with the help of our five corporeal senses in order to find the upper force. All kinds of scientific research are aimed at discovering the Creator and solving the mystery of life.

We intend to attain the upper force, understand the structure of creation, find out its goal, and unveil the secret of our existence using our physical brain and bodily senses. It is not possible. This road leads to a dead end. After thousands of years of scientific development we have ended up in a crisis that no science is able to fix. Science is not capable of ensuring even our material well being.

Science is a method of disclosing human weaknesses and a means of discovering mistakes in our quest for solving the mystery of life and finding out the goal and essence of our existence through our earthly sensors and brainpower. Science chooses roundabout routes; however, it still leads us to the right conclusions. Our task is to realize the incongruity of our efforts and learn to completely rely on the Reforming Light.

The goal of world development is to make us disappointed in ourselves. It is said: “There is no happier moment in one’s life than when one becomes completely disillusioned in one’s abilities.” In fact, it is really a huge discovery! Imagine that all of humanity undergoes this process.

When it happens, we’ll realize that nothing but a prayer can help us; in other words, nothing but raising MAN and acquiring the upper force’s help will let us act correctly and attain our goal. There is nothing we can do except realize that out of the darkness it is the Light that determines everything. Light is faith.

Today, we can talk about these issues openly. About fifty years ago, nobody would agree with these ideas, including me. I was the most zealous advocate of scientific progress. I thought that science was everything!

Years passed. Humanity became disappointed in science. Nobody expects scientists to make discoveries that humanity can really benefit from. All discoveries are doomed to bring us harm because they contradict the goal of creation and the means of its attainment since they urge us to rely on our brainpower.

This explains why we cannot expect science to help us achieve positive results. Unless we stop relying on scientific progress and discontinue our “enchantment” with the magnitude of our intellect, nothing can really move us forward. We’ll simply continue along the road of scientific advancement.

On the other hand, we cannot neglect science since it is a path that nevertheless leads us to the goal, even though it does so indirectly. Any road to the Creator is sacred. At the end of our path, the angel of death will turn into the holy angel. “The angel of death” will absorb all our mistakes including scientific evolution.

The problem lies not in science per se, but in the fact that we rely on ourselves and count on our pride, on our belief that we can reach a good life without connecting with the Creator. This mistake is common for those who study the wisdom of Kabbalah but turn it into a theory. It is the most serious error that is called Klipa (shell, the evil force).

Our task is to accurately follow all instructions and study the Torah instead of playing tricks with our minds. There is a very thin line between these two processes. Studying the wisdom (Hochma) of the Torah means revealing the Light of Hochma with the help of the Light of correction that is embodied in the Torah. The wisdom of the Torah is the Light of Hochma dressed in the Light of Hassadim.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/27/14, Writing of Baal HaSulam

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Expanding Our Mind And Our Senses

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: How can the melodies of the spiritual (upper) worlds help students who have been engaging in the method of attaining the upper worlds for a long time?

Answer: By listening to these melodies from time to time, they constantly find deeper, newer depths in it.

The point is that people who study Baal HaSulam’s method consider him their Teacher. They enter the world that he discovered and he leads them and reveals it to them. They follow him by studying his articles, letters, and multi-volume works many volumes, like the Talmud Eser Sefirot (TES- The Study of the Ten Sefirot) for example.

Professor Kfitza compared this book to a book of classic physics for the 11th grade by Landau-Lifshitz. He once told me that it is the basis of the spiritual physics.

In addition, Baal HaSulam’s most serious work is the Commentary to The Book of Zohar, which no great spiritual teacher before him could write for 2,000 years.

It is very interesting information that describes in the most accurate and special way the connection between the mind and senses when you have to examine your feelings with the mind and expand the mind with your feelings, which then helps you examine and clarify your sensations.

Thus you work in two lines: with the help of the line of your feelings you expand your mind and with the help of the mind you understand the new feelings that emerge in you. When they merge into one, the two lines help you feel the upper Providence.

Therefore, all of Baal HaSulam’s students feel these melodies differently with the new perception that is created in them, by the vessel of the upper providence, the sixth sense. They already play them on their developed emotions, with the help of the mind, and understand in their mind with the help of the new feelings.

The seemingly simple music of the upper worlds raises the deepest layers of emotions and new upper understanding in a person. It miraculously includes both the mind and the senses.
[142303]
From KabTV’s “Conversations with Michael Laitman” 2/9/14

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The Essential Secret Of The Jews, Part 42

From the book: The Essential Secret of the Jews, M. Brushtein:

The Postulates Of The Theory of Integrality

Connection gives a sense of life.

Nature is a common organism.

The organism of nature passes sequentially through the still, vegetative, animate, and human levels of development.

The human being includes the still, vegetative, and animate levels.

Egoism limits the human being, that is why he cannot evaluate the prospects of development.
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Measuring Thought With The Dimension Of The Screen

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Can thought be measured?

Answer: Our matter is desire. We measure the desire with the four degrees of Aviut. We have a scale to measure the spiritual desire from 100% to 0% from the world of Infinity to our world. Being on a spiritual level, I can measure the desire in accordance with the degree of Aviut. I create the screen over the degree of the Aviut of the desire. The screen together with Aviut gives me the strength of desire: what I want, what I aspire to, what I am planning to do.

Measuring-the-Thought-with-the-Dimension-of-the-Screen

In other words, the Surrounding Light determines my thoughts, the extent of my ability to perform actions of bestowal. Where do I check this? On the degree of Aviut. The power of thought is measured through my ability to connect my intention and my action to the Aviut of my desire.

We cannot measure the thought with the mind, but I check and measure the thought’s influence on the desire, and with this measurement I evaluate the thought.
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Kabbalah for Beginners 10/21/10

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Daily Kabbalah Lesson – 09.08.14

Preparation to Piter Convention

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The Book of Zohar – Selected Excerpts “The Fourth Commandment,” Item 209

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Writings of Baal HaSulam “The Love for the Creator & Love for the Created Beings”

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