Entries in the 'man' Category

Who Is The Human Within Us?

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: If fruit needs time to ripen, then maybe man doesn’t need to do anything at the moment but wait until he matures, just like fruit?

Answer: Humanity has already finished its evolution at the still, vegetative, and animate levels. And in the last 5770 years we have been developing the “human” level in us, starting with Adam, the first “man.”

In these 5770 years, we have also been undergoing the still, vegetative, animate, and human degrees within man. Until then, we had lived as animals, but Adam was the first to start the evolution of the human part within us, in this beast we call a “human being.”

Adam HaRishon (the First Man) was a person who discovered spirituality, that is, the “human” within himself that is similar in properties to the Creator. Since that time, all of us have existed at the human degree of development, and that’s where all the “human” problems began. Therefore, it’s not worth waiting until everything gets worked out because it won’t, and we will only continue to fall lower and lower.

The human within us is everything that goes beyond the animate level of existence. A beast needs only food, sex, family, and shelter, and so does the animate body of man. But when a person starts using his ego, instead of his natural animate instincts, this refers to the human part within us, which we have to harmonize. And this is the only part that has free will.

Where is this human within us? Right now it is only a beast.
[30410]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 12/21/10, "The Freedom"

Related Material:
From Despair To Bestowal
Why Should We All Strain Ourselves?

Changing Our Nature

Dr. Michael LaitmanHuman nature is completely egoistic. That is why a person cannot transform it on his own and needs an outside power to change him. This power can be evoked only by studying the wisdom of Kabbalah in the group.

Indeed, I admit that this is a very difficult thing. One cannot change the nature of one’s own creation, which is only to receive for oneself, much less invert one’s nature from one extreme to the other, meaning to not receive anything for oneself, but rather act only to bestow.

Yet, this is why the Creator gave us Torah [the wisdom of Kabbalah] and Mitzvot [actions in the group], which we were commanded to do only in order to bestow contentment upon the Creator.” (Baal HaSulam, “A Speech for the Completion of The Book of Zohar”)
[25907]

Related Material:
Instructions On Canning Egoism

The Only Desire That Attains The Goal

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe Zohar, “Introduction to The Zohar,” “BeLaila De Kala (The Night of the Bride),” Item 128: …Zeir Anpin unites with Malchut, and she sees her husband…For she will not be able to see her husband until they all gather. And they depend on one another.

Malchut incorporates all the souls. Without them she is merely a point in the World of Atzilut, a point of Keter that has nothing of her own.

The broken souls, in other words, I and the group are found beneath in the Worlds of BYA. I want to unite with my friends, and my desire rises towards Malchut. From there it rises towards Zeir Anpin, and from there even higher toward Infinity (Ein Sof). Then as a response from her, I receive the strength to ascend. This way, the only thing that goes to Malchut is my desire to become part of the group, when I force myself into it.

I want it even stronger, and only this kind of pressure rises above to become incorporated in Malchut de Atzilut. Only it constitutes MAN, the actual appeal for correction.

[26560]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 11/15/10, “Hakdama, Laila de Kale (The Night of the Bride)”

Related Material:
Ask The Creator To Do It!

A Place Deserving Of A Woman

Dr. Michael LaitmanOur world is egoistic. Everything here is based on egoism, authority, status, and power. That’s why a woman plays a secondary role in this world.

A man enjoys more power and independence than a woman. He is not as attached to his house and children. He conquers space, discovers continents; his imagination and enthusiasm are stronger, and he is more passionate in playing games. Men go “wild” in this world.

A woman, by nature, is more moderate and represents a more serious force. She balances out this world, she embodies the power of a household and family. From the point of view of continuation of the human race, she is the most important part of nature.

But since our world is egoistic and aggressive, men who possess strength, freedom, and ability to break through usually hold positions that they don’t deserve. Consequently, they define many things in this world, whereas women treat them with lenience and compliance.

This applies to everything: religion, science, everyday life, career advancement, and salary. Men leave to women only those places that they are not interested in. This is how unfairly our egoistic world is built.

But the wisdom of Kabbalah speaks about a totally different (reverse) reality where everything is governed by the force of bestowal and love that evens out all dissimilarities and contradictions. We have to give weight to everything which is worthy of it. This is what nature, harmony, and perfection demand from us, not to mention the wisdom of Kabbalah.

If we transition from receiving to bestowal, we will see a reverse world in which a woman (Malchut which translates as “Kingdom”) occupies an essential place. She is the one who rules!

It is derived from the structure of the spiritual worlds. A woman (Malchut) is positioned in the core of all the worlds, and everything there is exists only for her sake since she is the one who gives birth and develops a new world.

That’s why only with the help of the wisdom of Kabbalah a woman can reach her genuine purpose and attain an adequate and fair status that she naturally deserves.
[24571]
From Kabbalah for Beginners, “Men and Women” 10/14/10

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Be More Insolent With The Creator
Laitman.com Post: The Companion Chosen For Me By The Creator

Why Don’t I Sense The Spiritual World?

Dr. Michael LaitmanIt is possible to follow a commandment only if you initially hated someone but then managed to correct this with the help of the Light that Reforms, the Light which can be attracted only through the study of Kabbalah in the group (in the right environment) by attaining a state of “mutual guarantee.” In this case it is considered that one “performed a commandment” and maybe not just one but all of them, and thus reached a personal “final correction.”

However, for that, we have to follow certain conditions: perform actions that lead us toward unity in the correct environment and get impressed by the environment rather than do something that occurs to us. Each time, I strive to choose a better environment that can transfer to me its values and to implement them as if they are my own.

In other words, I cancel myself in relation to the opinion of others and strive to be “included” in them, meaning into the system of spiritual principles that they follow, rather than in them as ordinary people. If I manage to do so, we act as one, follow our common direction, and implement the same principle. This principle will turn into our prayer (MAN, Mayin Nukvin or Female Waters) to which we will receive a response (MAD, Mayin Duchin or Male Waters), the Light of correction, and will establish a contact with the spiritual world.

This contact will be founded on our unity; no one can attain spirituality on his or her own. Spirituality exists only within the connection, in the Creator, the force that connects our souls.

Therefore, I cannot grab “a piece of spirituality” from the group, leave them behind, and go home with it. I remain within this unity and increase my input into it even more. This is where I reveal spirituality. If I think about myself and, therefore, separate myself from others for a fraction of a moment, I return to the sensations of this material world which is what I feel now.

Why don’t I feel anything at the moment? It is because I am not bonded with others. As soon as I connect with others, I begin to sense spirituality, whereas when I disconnect from others, I sense corporeality.
[23946]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 10/17/10, “The Teaching of the Kabbalah and Its Essence”

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The Gene Of Separation And Connection
Laitman.com Post: There Are Candles But No Light To Light Them Up
Laitman.com Post: “Material Commandments” And Correction Of The World

Developing A Human Being Within Ourselves

Dr. Michael Laitman“Love thy neighbor as thyself” is the sentence that determines the whole principle of the connection between desire and the Light, the correction of the common soul. In order for the creature to be able to reach equivalence to the Creator, the Creator is forced to first break the creature and bring it to hatred, to a state that is opposite to Him.

Achieving a state that is opposite to the Creator is only possible by creating a creature that is similar to Him and then changing this state to the opposite so that an imperfect form would arise from a perfect one. Thereby, the creature is presented with an opportunity to reach equivalence to the Creator on its own from an imperfect state by scrutinizing its own qualities and those of the Creator: What does it mean to be perfect and how does one reach this perfection.

The creature is searching for a solution, and in this manner it achieves the Creator’s state. In the process it obtains freedom to decide by choosing equivalence as the only perfect state. It is impossible to understand how one can be free from one’s nature. However, under the influence of the Light, which is opposite to our nature, a neutral space is created in our desire, which is absent even in the Creator. And precisely that which will develop in this neutral space will be called the created being.

We ourselves build this creature, the human being, “Adam,” which means “similar” to the Creator.
[22137]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/28/10, “The Love for the Creator and Love for the Created Beings”

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Correction Begins With “Babylon”
Laitman.com Post: We Have Assembled Here to Become Human
Laitman.com Post: The Animate world Verses The Human World

The Purpose Of Education

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe purpose of education is to explain that to “love thy neighbor” is a common law of nature. Only this forms a child into a human being. This needs to be reflected in every subject being taught; all of them should incorporate the notion of the unity of nature and governance (“there is none else beside Him”) and the absolute interconnection of all the parts of creation (“love thy neighbor as thyself”).

Then the entire course of study will be based upon and governed by the single law, it will move in one direction, and this is exactly what the child will grasp. If it is written that the law of “loving one’s neighbor” is the “main rule of the Torah” (meaning the common law of the universe), then we must educate children based on this law and show that everything that happens in the world is defined by this condition.

The children will grasp this singular law, and both the upper governance and their proper behavior will become obvious to them. When we show that the best and the most horrible events in the world only happen in order to reveal to us the place where we need to fulfill this law, children will begin to have a different, purposeful attitude towards reality.

Those who want to correct themselves and, through themselves, the world are called human. This is how we raise human beings from animals.
[22190]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/27/10, “The Love for the Creator and Love for the Created Beings”

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post:The New System Of Education
Laitman.com Post: Education Is The Only Thing That Can Change The World
Laitman.com Post: Learn To Be Human

Learn To Be A Human

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: In his article, Rabash refers to a fable about a person who loaned a large sum of money to his friend although he wasn’t too sure he would ever get it back. However, when the friend of his brought a warranty letter from the bank that secured the loan, he got upset because he lost a chance to stay in “faith above reason” and, thus, couldn’t advance spiritually.

Answer: Be apprehensive of the Creator’s revelation. I don’t want Him to disclose Himself because, if He does, I’ll completely obey Him and will turn into an animal; the point of independence (“a human being”) will disappear in me. A human being is emerging in me when I am not yet sensing the Creator, but rather when I am searching for His image to set an example of bestowal and build it within me. In order to do that, I have to get a model and obtain the power to form this property without His pressure.

This is similar to the way that we act with a child where we give him a toy, but don’t help him out, thus allowing him to do his work. Moreover, we deliberately create difficulties so that he tries to cope with them on his own and learn. We enjoy watching his effort and progress because this is how a child advances.

We don’t let the child know that for us, it is easy to do this job. On the contrary, we pretend that we don’t know how to do it and that we are reluctant to perform it. We play and find solutions together with the child. We do it to provide him with a working space, give him a chance to apply effort, and uncover the reality out of the darkness. We don’t find solutions for him; he has to find them on his own.

Even if we are willing to help him and provide the explanations he needs, we shouldn’t do it before he totally explores his own opportunities to find the right answer. If he seeks our help, it means that he has a painful, tangible, and essential question. He already tried everything he could and nothing worked. Only in this case do we help him and replenish what he couldn’t attain because of his nature.

If he applies much effort and understands that he is unable to do it on his own, he eventually prepares his desire and sets up his mind for our clarifications and assistance, that is, input from a level that is higher than his. This “addition” makes him a human being. However, if I reveal everything to him before he applies his own effort, then my explanations won’t create anything worthy or new for him either in his desires or in his mind.

From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/15/10, “What is the Advantage that There is in Work Which is More than the  Reward”

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: How To Measure Faith Above Reason
Laitman.com Post: Between Darkness And Light
Laitman.com Post: Freedom Is The Gift Of The Primordial Snake

How To Measure Faith Above Reason

Dr. Michael LaitmanOur entire path consists of revealing the Creator’s actions toward us and finding the right reaction to them. It is called “work of the Creator,” when I wish to learn two things: Who is doing this to me, and what He is doing. In other words, I wish to reveal the action and the One who acts.

My attitude to the actions and the One who acts is formed through my attempts to reveal them. And in this regard I can already be referred to as a “human being,” the “I” that somehow relates to “what happens to me” and to “the One who controls me.”

The attitude to the action occurs “within reason,” that is, within and according to the mind. If I relate to the One who acts, to the Creator who controls these actions, in opposition to what I feel from His actions, then this is called “above reason” or despite of reason. If I relate to the Creator in direct dependence from His actions, this is called “within reason.”

However, we evaluate our whole work only in relation to the Creator. I may feel His actions as “bitter or sweet,” perceiving them as “good or evil,” according to my sensations. Yet simultaneously, I also have the attitude of “true or false” in regard to the Creator.

Not necessarily is bitter always true and sweet always false. If I rise above my sensation of “bitter or sweet,” and instead of caring about the sensation, I reveal that it comes from the Creator (who is good and does good), then it means that I am in faith above reason.

I am incapable of this on my own since I live by my sensations. However, I can receive help from the Creator, and the difference between “bitter and sweet” will no longer exist. Then this means that I am in bestowal and relate to Him by faith above reason.

I rose above my sensation due to the force that I received from Him, and now I accept pleasant and unpleasant states, “good” and “evil” equally. I don’t just succumb to the circumstances; I truly feel that way, and this determines the height of my relationship with the Creator.

The more opposition there is between good and evil, while perceiving them equally and blessing the Creator for the bad things as well as the good, the higher is my spiritual degree. It is the height to which I rise above my desires and fulfillment, be they pleasant or not. This is called the measure of faith in the Creator.

From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/14/10, “Preparation for the Reception of Torah”

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Standing Between Good And Evil
Laitman.com Post: Be Ready For Changing Perceptions
Laitman.com Post: Do Not Lose The Point Of Adhesion

We All Live For The Sake Of Others

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Is it enough for us to correct ourselves in order to correct the world?

Answer: No, it isn’t. Since all the souls are connected, a single soul (degree) can’t complete its correction without correcting the parts of the next degree. No person lives for his own sake; the whole system is a system of mutual bestowal.

Therefore, it is impossible for someone to correct himself for his own sake. Everyone lives in order to provide correction and fulfillment for others. It is impossible for a soul that corrects itself not to have a part which was corrected for it by the predecessors and a part that it must correct for others.

We know that the upper part of every soul, its GE (Galgalta ve Eynaim), exists in the lower part, the AHP (Awzen, Hotem, Peh), of the preceding, higher soul (Partzuf). The soul’s lower part, its AHP, is situated in the GE of the the lower soul.

Thus, our free choice is in the place where we are not connected to a higher or a lower soul; it is in the middle part of our soul, the middle part of the Sefira Tifferet. A free space from all souls is formed there; it is our freedom of will. In essence, it represents a special unification in our soul of the higher and lower souls. In this unification, they are equal, and, thus, they give us freedom of choice.

Outside of the middle part of Sefira Tifferet, the parts of the soul do not belong to the soul itself. The upper part pertains to the higher soul (the previous Partzuf), and the lower part pertains to the lower soul, its “successor.”

Therefore, a calculation is always performed on bestowal to the upper one and the lower one. The decision about this bestowal is made in the middle; there is no other freedom. This middle point arose artificially through the unification of Bina and Malchut. It is called Klipat Noga, and it constitutes my point of choice. Besides this point, everything else belongs not to me, but to the upper or lower Partzufim (plural of Partzuf) relative to me. I am situated in the middle, and I constantly need to decide how I am connected to them.

However, this point that makes the decision is, in fact, the “I” or “human being,” the one who is “similar” to the Creator. On one side, there is Malchut, and, on the other, there is Bina. Thus, there is a special contact of Bina and Malchut (the qualities of the Creator and the creature) at this point. This contact yields a free decision to make the creature similar to the Creator. It is called “Adam” or “similar.”

Until we reach this decision, we are not “human.” The human begins from 1) realization of the difference between Bina and Malchut, and 2) the connection between them. The human being grows from this point to the extent that he is able to serve others with his 613 desires: the upper ones with his 248 desires and the lower ones with his 365 desires.

If you don’t do this, you remain only a point. Yet, if you do, you develop your Galgalta ve Eynaim, and they spread out onto the common Soul: all the souls that are higher and lower than you.

From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 9/12/10, “The Arvut (Mutual Guarantee)”

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: He Is The Beginning And The End, But I Am In The Middle
Laitman.com Post: Learning From Mouth To Mouth
Laitman.com Post: What Have You Ever Done On Your Own?