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Looking At The World From The 2nd Floor

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe desires of the public are as if on the 1st floor, where there is a simple relationship between desire and fulfillment. And we need to be on the 2nd floor, where there is a relationship between the recipient and the giver; that is the intention.

I can go to a restaurant, pay money, and get pleasure in exchange. And I can visit a friend and pay no money. After all, I pay him by my attitude and he also brings me pleasure by his attitude. That is, we are already on the 2nd floor.

The restaurant had only one floor; I got pleasure, and compensated for it with money, gave pleasure at the same level, on the same floor. But it is not so with a friend: I received a treat from him, but did not pay for it with money, and I enjoyed his relationship to me more than the treat itself.

On the 2nd floor, fulfillment is our relationships with each other. No matter what treat I received from you, just a cup of coffee, your attitude towards me can be a billion times more valuable.

We bring pleasure to the Creator by what we do on the 2nd floor. I do not feel fulfillment on the 1st floor; it is just filling the stomach, and I do not care from whom I got it. The tools of the 2nd floor are personal relationships.

I feel the pain of others on the 1st floor; it is called to “empathize with the suffering of society.” But then I am rewarded with the “pleasure for the whole society.” And why am I doing this? To delight the Creator.

I go out to them as a restaurant owner to hungry visitors and say that I have the food they will receive. But I immediately begin to teach them and invite them to the 2nd floor. I am saying that if we unite, we create connection between us that will give us a special strength with which we shall depend on no one, neither on any government nor on officials. We ourselves will put our world in order.

You cannot just say this to people at once; they will not believe it. First, you have to make them feel that this is indeed possible in some workshop. And then we can say: ” Please note: Due to this force, which we now reveal between us, we can fix all of our lives.”

We can get this force only by connecting with the group, the teacher, and the books. Even on the 1st floor we cannot be successful without their help. We see that the world cannot cope without this. The world is abundant, but people cannot live a good life because they have no power of unity.

The force of their connection is negative because everyone wants to use everyone else. Therefore, half of the world throws away surplus food and half of the world is starving. This gap will grow day by day. After all, we need to understand that the reason is the bad connection between us that we cannot correct, but everything depends on it. And in the meantime, the split between us grows more and more.

The world has changed completely in 30 to 40 years—everyone is in conflict with each other. Arab countries, first united by one idea but now divided, are in strife and war with one another. After all, the higher management seeks to reveal clearly that we do not have the right connections between people and that this is the cause of all the evil in the world.

People already understand this. When you talk about this, they quickly agree. That is, perhaps a few sentences are enough to lead anyone to the conclusion that our good life depends on good relationship between us. But he immediately says that it is impossible to correct.

You should not argue here; you just have to invite him to a workshop so he will experience this himself and check whether it is possible or not. It is not for nothing that it is said: “There is none wiser than the experienced.”
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From the Preparation for the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/26/13

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Two People Is Also A “Group Of Ten”

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Why doesn’t the Creator hear us if we are less than ten?

Answer: This actually is not true. It isn’t about a group of ten that you can actually count, but about a finite fixed desire, which as a result of our connection actually becomes strong and real.

It makes no difference if 50 or 80 people participate in it. In spirituality the quantity is not taken into account, but only the quality. When I say that the lower level is ten times further away from the upper level, I refer to a qualitative measure and not a quantitative one.

On the whole, it says that the minimum of many is two, when each one can exit himself and rise above his ego and connect to another, so even two can be called “a group of ten.”

This is a conditional term. In our world we measure the quantity while in spirituality we measure the quality. But although we use the words of this world, we have to understand that here it refers to real changes.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/25/13, Question and Answers with Dr. Laitman

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An Opportunity Is From Above, Realization Is Up To Us

Dr. Michael LaitmanBaal HaSulam, “Messiah’s Horn”: Know that this is what it means that the children of Israel are redeemed only after the wisdom of the hidden is revealed to a great extent, as it is written in The Zohar, “With this composition, the children of Israel are redeemed from exile.”

In my assessment, we are in a generation that is standing at the very threshold of redemption if we only know how to spread the wisdom of the hidden to the masses. We are required to disclose the secret wisdom to the public. But what will be left of the mystery if we reveal it? The fact is that at this stage, we are talking to people about good interconnection based on the principle of love of the other as yourself, about unity for the sake of correction of humanity.

Through numerous incremental phenomena that add up to historical evolutionary development, our vessels, desires, are prepared for the time when there is the generation that is capable of bringing intention into its life and existing on Earth not because it was placed in this “cell,” in this “barn,” in this “kennel,” but because people want to know why and for what purpose this situation occurred and what state they are destined to achieve. We live in this generation. The crisis, despair, and other negative things of the day are the signs of the changes about which Baal HaSulam writes. The necessary conditions are already established from above, but we must finish our work from below. Only the opportunity for redemption comes from above, and the rest is up to us.

We have accepted that there is a precondition for the redemption—that all the nations of the world will acknowledge Israel’s law.

As a result, our entire receiving desire, revealed by this moment, will reach the point where we understand that it needs to be changed. And even if we are incapable of this, even though the egoistic power of “Pharaoh” dominates over us, at the same time it is clear: We have to rise above it. We understand that one day we will achieve universal correction and in advance agree with this future state and wish that it will come, although we have not yet come out from under the power of egoism.

This knowledge, this awareness, this requirement, means that Pharaoh also knows, understands, and agrees that his parts went into the altruistic intention. He is willing to sacrifice himself to let go of a part of himself so that it would be corrected and come into bestowal, having disconnected from egoistic intentions. This is deliverance.
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From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/23/13, Writings of Baal HaSulam

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“Forced Mass Drugging of US Troops an Underreported Scandal”

Dr. Michael LaitmanIn the News ( from the Alex’s Jones InforWars.com): “The mass drugging of US troops is one of the most underreported scandals of the modern era, with soldiers not only being used as guinea pigs in a brave new world of pharmacological experimentation, but also having their rights stripped as a result. …

“As Mike Adams documents, the Defense Department notes that ‘20 percent of U.S. troops are on psychiatric drugs, and that they are often handed as much as a 180-day supply of those pills before being deployed.’

“‘U.S. troops are being forced to take drugs like Prozac and Seroquel for anxiety and depression. Troops cannot refuse to take the drugs without consequences from their superiors. …

“The mass drugging of US troops is another aspect of government social engineering. It is about creating yet another huge sector of society – just like children in school or foster care – whose dependence on the state is secured via the method of artificially creating a dangerous dependence on drugs.”

My Comment: That’s how, from different sides, drugs are gradually introduced into our life; their consumption becomes habitual. After all, it helps calm and even reduce the population …
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Creating A Model Of The Upper World In Me

Dr. Michael LaitmanOne of the sections of the Torah read on Sabbath is called “Truma” which means “donations” in Hebrew. This term has a completely different meaning in the spiritual work and it means the raising of the Creator.

This section describes how the Temple is built in great detail. It is because everything is built according to the form of the Sefirot that are the connections in the upper world, in the system that manages us and which is beyond the limits of our sensations.

The upper world penetrates through all of creation and so the Torah describes all the connections, the mutual relations, and its formulas. It isn’t just formulas but a network of formulas. It is very hard to convey this since there is no similar mathematical system in our world and we don’t deal with such problems. Only some of them are solved individually.

But when we deal with analog systems in which there are endless options of different connections that are closed to all, where everything is connected, then we are not able to do it. We cannot perceive such a network either in our mind or in our feelings and keep everything simultaneously. We have to be created that way internally in order to feel that there is the same system on the outside.

If there is no such model inside us, then we can only “cut” it to pieces and perceive them as an integral, to take the pieces and to put them together. But it is merely a sum and not a whole. We cannot contain everything. Only to the extent that we are corrected, to the extent of similarity to this system, can we begin to reveal it. Otherwise it isn’t on the same level, and it goes through us, and we don’t even feel it.

So in building beams, a roof, and partitions that are described in the Torah, we refer to the building of the integral system inside a person.

It isn’t about building objects in our world but about creating new attributes inside us. What does it mean when it says “And they shall make an ark of acacia-wood” or “And thou shalt put into the ark the testimony which I shall give thee”? You will discover these attributes inside you (the levels of the still, vegetative, and animate nature), choose them in the most concrete manner and create an inner system out of them according to certain measures and drawings of what seems to be the external upper world, which you have to attain. If you create these conditions inside, you will attain this system, and it will be called a “Temple.”

A Temple resembles a big tent in which many people gather in order to unite and to discover the upper force, the upper system, in the full absolute connection between them.
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From KabTV’s “Secrets of the Eternal Book” 7/29/13

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Love For A Teacher

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: What is the right way to develop love for a teacher and what are the correct ways to demonstrate it?

Answer: The word Rav (teacher) is derived from the word “big.” Loving the Rav means to respect him. To love and respect the Rav means that you should follow his advice. There is nothing else that you need besides this.

Loving signifies that you hear your teacher or, at least, you are trying to listen to what I say to you (my students) and that you read what our teachers have written. In fact, this is enough. I assure you that if you act like that, your love will be mutual.
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From the Preparatory Lesson for the St. Petersburg Convention 7/11/13

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A Servant In The Temple

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe Torah, “Exodus,” 25:1-25:4: “And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: ‘Speak unto the children of Israel, that they take for Me an offering; of every man whose heart maketh him willing ye shall take My offering. And this is the offering which ye shall take of them: gold and silver and brass, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats’ hair.”

Question: Until now, the commandments in the Torah were strict. Suddenly it says now “of every man whose heart maketh him willing.”

Answer: It is about freewill.

There are clear and accurate commandments of prohibitions, “don’t do,” which everyone must keep in order to be minimally adapted to Divinity since otherwise he cannot be called Adam (similar to the upper).

There is an even upper system that already analyzes the commands and manages us. A person can resemble this system when he first performs the initial corrections. This is a precondition. Then he can continue to adapt himself to the upper system of Divinity, which means to form it inside him.

It actually exists for such people who are called the Levites, Cohens, etc. They are special people who can form the Temple inside them.

A servant in the Temple is a person who has corrected himself and now resembles and is equal to the general nature, to the upper force, to the Creator, and who works internally with these attributes. This means to serve, and there is nothing but that. The Creator doesn’t need our obedience, or that we feel impressed by Him, or serve Him since He is absolute! We need this in order to transcend ourselves.
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From KabTV’s “Secrets of the Eternal Book” 7/29/13

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No More Than Two Mistakes

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe Torah, “Exodus,” Mishpatim (Laws), 21:28 – 21:29): And if a bull gores a man or a woman and (that one) dies, the bull shall surely be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten, and the owner of the bull is clear.

But if it is a (habitually) goring bull since yesterday and the day before yesterday, and its owner had been warned, but he did not guard it, and it puts to death a man or a woman, the bull shall be stoned, and also its owner shall be put to death.

A “goring bull” symbolizes a state when a person “unleashes” his internal animal. If one doesn’t know what kind of animal it is, one is not considered guilty. In this case, it means that this person has received from Above such a powerful impulse of the Light that he simply is not able to resist It and that the Light went through him. When a person is murdered with the other person’s hands, this unintentional killer is still considered guilty of something since it was done through him rather than through somebody else. It means that he can be accused of another crime, but not of an intentional murder.

A lot of laws originate from this. Let’s say, a woman had two husbands and both of them died. So, she is prohibited to marry for the third time.

Question: This triggers lots of suppositions. If people lead an ordinary earthly life and are not aware that they are egoists, what can we expect of them?

Answer: The Torah does not speak of people who know nothing and live a normal life on earthly since they are still at the animate level and nothing can be expected of them. They are governed from above without any questions. They know only what they know and they don’t have any freedom of will, nor do they have any relationships with the governing force. The Torah speaks about the ways of rising to the level of the governing force and being in control of our lives.

However, it’s said that if one knows one’s genuine nature and still intentionally commits egoistic deeds, then one is subject to death. One has to take care of one’s correction; otherwise, one has to die. It means that if one’s action repeats twice, then, on the third time, the same action excludes this person from the level he is currently at and throws him to a lower level, meaning that one will need to self-correct the very basics.
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From Kab TV’s “Mysteries of the Eternal Book,” 5/20/13

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Spiritual Blunder – “The Seduction Of A Virgin”

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe Torah, “Exodus,” Mishpatim (Laws), 22:15 – 22:16: If a man seduces a virgin who is not betrothed and lies with her, he shall provide her with a marriage contract as a wife.

If her father refuses to give her to him [in marriage], he shall weigh out money according to the dowry of the virgins.

“An unengaged girl” stands for an egoistic desire that cannot be used correctly. That’s why, relative to this person, this desire of his is considered “a virgin” who cannot be his, and yet he seduces her and thus receives a certain pleasure through fulfilling the desire.

One is prohibited from doing that since his desire is egoistic and doesn’t lead to bestowal. That’s why one has to pay, meaning “refill” the screen, the part of the action that one has not committed yet.

If he paid for the girl, meaning had a screen to work with her (his desire) seriously, then he would be allowed to marry her, to receive an egoistic pleasure. Otherwise, in the spiritual world it is considered to be a serious crime since it stands for the interaction that takes place in a Kli, a vessel, which is completely unsuitable for this person.

It is said that such a man is overwhelmed by his passion similar to the way it happens in this material world. It seems to him that he is able to treat his spiritual desire correctly and use it for bestowal, although later it turns out that he was not able to do it. Thus, he is obligated to use an additional correction and start working with his quality of bestowal over again.

Question: So, it means that the “seduction of a virgin” can happen subconsciously?

Answer: There are countless situations in life. Spiritual life is much more complicated and complex than ours. It has a huge amount of variations. Only after one starts acting can he acknowledge the quality of his desire and tell if he acts knowingly or subconsciously, whether it is a debauchery and seduction or simply a lack of knowledge and a misunderstanding. Who knows, maybe one had a good intention and all of a sudden it turns out that he cannot implement it into reality and it should be considered a violation. In other words, if one used a vessel that one should not have used because it is beyond one’s capacity, one cannot endure it.

It is only about working with a desire! Whatever we touch in the Torah is about the correction of desires that consist of the inanimate, vegetative, animate, and internal speaking levels of nature. The Torah explains everything in an allegoric way.
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From KabTV’s “Secrets of the Eternal Book” 7/16/13

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