Question: An important part of the course on integral upbringing pertains to reasonable economics, or economics of rational consumption. What is that, and what is it based on?

Answer: We already spoke about the fact that in an integral society there is no coercion or limitations. That is, there exist certain social boundaries, and from within them you select what you like and what you want. This pertains to food, home, clothes, safety, medical services, education, and so on. The only exception is upbringing, which is required for everyone.

In this regard there is a very clear pressure on everyone, I might even say coercion, though not from the side of human society, but from the side of nature. We simply take these parameters and implement them for our comfortable existence.

When it comes to all the minor needs, then in accordance with our collective development, we will need to arrange debates among ourselves regarding what we consider as necessary and not. By the way, here we have something to learn from the kibbutzim: They had a very interesting way of doing that. Does a person really not need anything of his own, or conversely, does he require his own personal wardrobe?

Naturally, each selects a specific assortment of products that are most suitable and healthiest for him and correspond to his or her tastes. Nobody is going to force anyone to eat the same food, although in principle, all of these things: clothes, objects, apartments, and so on are pretty standardized.

If a person is engaged in intensive inner development, his interest in all the necessary bodily, physical needs is essentially reduced, and he doesn’t seek in that an additional fulfillment, satiation, and some particular flavors or shades. All that becomes absolutely uninteresting and unimportant to him just like for a scientist who is deeply absorbed in his research and can just walk around in a tattered suit because to him it doesn’t hold any significance. He grabs a bite to eat somewhere and that’s good enough—the important thing is that now he can go back to work.

In other words, society will constantly conduct research to determine an optimal level of income, which would be neither excessive nor deficient for any person. In an integral society each person will take all that is necessary for himself either from warehouses, or perhaps a large delivery, distribution, and supply system will be put in place for that purpose.
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From a “Talk on Integral Education,” 12/12/11

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Question: What is the reason for taking the integral family course for the women who don’t have a family and possibly never will?

Answer: I doubt that in the integral society we would fail to reach such a state when everyone would have a family. On the contrary, a person will feel that a family is that primary instrument through which he or she influences the world. That’s one.

Second, we need to understand and realize that nature is designed in such a way that the number of men and women in the general population is going to depend on how we will conduct ourselves with each other. Through our relationships we will, so to speak, introduce our desired quantitative and qualitative inputs into nature, and we will receive precisely the kind of progeny that would create correct connections and units. It depends only on our harmony.

Since today we do not exist in a state of harmony with our own self, between us, and with nature, we give birth to children who struggle to find anything suitable for themselves. We do not imbue them with integrality, and that is why our world is falling apart today.

If we approach this question globally, through that we will instill into our children completely different informational records, new “genes.” They will be born in such a form that their common field of nature, one that drives all of us towards correct development and a particular goal, will gather them in mutual likeness. Each of them will quickly find their second half.
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From a “Talk on Integral Education,” 12/12/11

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Lesson Preparation
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Shamati #36 “What Are the Three Bodies in a Man”
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The Book of Zohar – Selected Chapter “Beresheet (Genesis),” “The Two Great Lights,” Item 119, Lesson 30
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“Introduction to the Study of the Ten Sefirot,” Item 23, Lesson 16
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Writings of Baal HaSulam “The Freedom,” “In Spiritual Life, ‘Take After the Individual,’” Lesson 19
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Listen to an Audio Version of the Blog
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Opinion (Avery B. Goodman, a licensed attorney, a member of the roster of neutral arbitrators of the National Futures Association and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority): “Bloomberg reports that Bank of America has shifted about $22 trillion worth of derivative obligations from Merrill Lynch and the BAC holding company to the FDIC insured retail deposit division. Along with this information came the revelation that the FDIC insured unit was already stuffed with $53 trillion worth of these potentially toxic obligations, making a total of $75 trillion.

“Even if we net out the notional value of the derivatives involved, down to the net potential obligation, the amount is so large that the United States could not hope to pay it off without a major dollar devaluation… But, if such an event ever occurs, Bank of America’s derivatives counter-parties will, as usual, be made whole, while the American people suffer. This all has the blessing of the Federal Reserve, which approved the transfer of derivatives from Merrill Lynch to the insured retail unit of BAC before it was done.”

My Comment: Naturally, whoever has the money and power uses the power to save money. It’s not only the American people that will pay for the devaluation of the dollar, but the whole world. Obviously, this is the plan: All shall not perish, but generally lose. No wonder, the FDIC is busy….
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In the News (from Finmarket.ru): “The 1 % of the richest in the West dominates political decisions. Income inequality has become increasingly important in political and economic life in the U.S. and Europe.

“The main question is how to tax the 1 % of the richest (​​those whose annual income exceeds half a million dollars). A tax on super profits has become one the reasons for discord between Democrats and Republicans. The ratio between the income of the richest and the poor is 14:1 in the U.S., and 6:1 in the EU.”

My Comment: Everything is measured relative to the rich and the poor, and that is why the question arises: What should the ratio between them be to produce protest actions like “the Arab spring” in the U.S. and Europe?
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In the News: “China and Japan have unveiled plans to promote direct exchange of their currencies in a bid to cut costs for companies and boost bilateral trade. The deal will allow firms to convert the Chinese and Japanese currencies directly into each other. Currently businesses in both countries need to buy US dollars before converting them into the desired currency adding extra costs.

“‘Given the huge size of the trade volume between Asia’s two biggest economies, this agreement is much more significant than any other pacts China has signed with other nations,’ Ren Xianfang of IHS Global Insight was quoted as saying by the Bloomberg news agency.” (Source: BBC News)

“In contrast, the EU shows helplessness in general politics against speculation, wars in Africa and Asia. It is useless to demand for Germany to create the United States of Europe so that the ECB acts as the Federal Reserve in the U.S. because the Germans and the British do not want to lose their sovereignty unlike the people of southern Europe.” (Source: L’Occidentale)

My Comment: For the time being this also shows the lack of a common firm decision. Due to its absence, the Asian market only tries to isolate itself from the rest of the world in hopes of reducing their losses. But the future will show that without uniting all world economies into one single system, the crisis cannot be overcome.
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In the News (from Panorama.it): “2012 will be very difficult for the global economy.

“BRICS countries will be in the most unfavorable situation mainly because a currency crisis may break out within their borders, which has been underestimated for too long.

“To counter the financial crisis of 2008, central banks in developed economies eased their monetary and fiscal policies, and most of the “hot” Western capital has been directed to countries with emerging economies in order to support their growth. But now there is a danger that that old credit bubble will burst.

“The financial balance of BRICS can fail because the dollar continues to rise and the credit institutions of the Old World are suffering from poor liquidity.

“What’s more, the Chinese real estate bubble may implode, causing the fall of commodity prices, which so far were moving the growth of emerging economies.

“The crisis will break out when they run out of foreign currency reserves. If the global recession brings energy prices down, it will adversely affect the national economy of Russia. For China, the biggest danger lies in the real estate bubble that can burst at any moment. If the U.S. and Europe fail to cope with the situation, the world should prepare for the worst.”

My Comment: The crisis will force us to rethink our attitude towards ourselves and the world.
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Baal HaSulam, “The Freedom:” Now we have come to a clear understanding of the sentence concerning the freedom of the individual. Indeed, there is a question: “Where did the collective take the right to expropriate the freedom of the individual and deny him of the most precious thing in life, freedom?” Seemingly, there is no more than brute force here.

What should we do if collective interests are more important than personal ones? Can a society constantly force me to take care of it? Would enforcing this help us? Therefore, we need education.

Parents also decide for their child to what faith he will belong, what school he will attend, what kind of education he will get, and with what views he will be imbued. Practically, they define his whole life in advance. Are they given such a right?

Meanwhile, the father and mother predetermine their child’s future by their very existence; moreover, they develop certain character traits in him.

The family, kindergarten, school, and environment—all these factors together form a person, and thus, at the age of 15-20, he becomes an individual for whom everything has been decided in advance. What rights does society have to make out of me what they want: a bun, pie, loaf of bread, or bagel? But that is how it happens

This order of things stems from the law of following the majority. The “majority” means a conscious society that feels and understands that wellbeing depends on the fact that every person takes care of the whole, that is, cancels his egoism and unites with the community.

In this case, society or parents can really require everyone to study collective interests. Moreover, society is responsible for educating all its members about this principle. Therefore, it is said that the father should teach his son a “craft.” We are talking about the same system, teaching bestowal. [Read more →]

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Rabash’s Letter #8: Gather in a tight group of people in one place and under one guidance to withstand the attacks of the enemies with the power of overcoming, beyond any human limitations….

The power of overcoming beyond any human limitations—how is this possible? Does anyone really possess such power? Beyond human limitations—this is already the Creator!

This means that only the power of the upper one can help us rise, to withstand this condition and all the inner enemies (obviously, this does not imply external enemies). Every one of us has plenty of thoughts and desires, which confuse us and do not let us be even for a moment. We need to fight against all of them, which is impossible to do on our own—but can only be done by a power beyond human means, the power of the upper.

The power of the upper is the Creator’s power, which is provided to us through the power of the group. We cannot turn directly to the Creator—only to the group. He is in no other place—only inside of it.

This is why we need to try to always be together with our friends, in common thoughts and desires—simultaneously, on the same frequency and in one direction of movement, like singing or dancing together. And there we will find this power that will support us, regardless of all the disturbances that come from the “attacks of the enemies.”

“Of course they are courageous and strong spirited people, their decision is set in stone since they will not take even a single step back. They fight from the very first degree at war with the evil inclination until the last drop of blood. And they only aspire towards victory in this war in the name of the Creator.”

Well, who can say this about himself, which hero will that be? Maybe only a child would from lack of experience. It is impossible with any power except one beyond human means. In other words, it is impossible to achieve success without help from Above—this idea must get imprinted in the group.

A person is not able to hold on to this idea. It is a mistake to think that he can manage to remember it, even by writing it down somewhere…. I see that many people are writing down things during the lesson (I did the same when I was studying). They think that paper is their soul, and they are recording on it. But this will not help at all.

But when I want to record this knowledge in the group through mutual guarantee, I will really be able to make it my memory. Everything that exists in the group is my memory, and I can be sure that nothing will be erased from there and I will be able to use it.

I personally can keep forgetting everything, but my friends will keep reminding me about this knowledge: that I can only succeed through the power of the Creator, and not my own. And the power of the Creator exists inside the group.

And then I will be able to “be courageous,” like I need to be—if I manage to connect all of us together, find the upper force inside of us, and obligate it to help us. As it is written: “My sons have defeated me.” This is the Creator’s condition who is waiting for us to turn to Him, to appeal to Him.

The Creator becomes revealed under the condition that the appeal comes from the group. This is why we call the group a vessel for the revelation of the Creator.
[61607]
From the Arvut Convention Lesson 2, 11/18/11

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