Audio Version Of The Blog – 8/17/18

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My Thoughts On Twitter 8/17/18

Dr Michael Laitman Twitter

Spiritual ascent and finding the Creator occurs through the upper light. It acts according to our efforts to gain its property of bestowal and connection/love. If despite one’s desire to receive he strives to bestow and connect to the group, his efforts over the ego are faith above reason

We feel this world that exists in the property of reception. The upper world exists in the property of bestowal, which can be felt if we obtain its properties. By building relationships of the upper world in the group, we draw its effect on us, get transformed and begin feeling it.
From Twitter, 8/17/18

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Rise From Your Keter Into The Malchut Of The Upper

laitman_238.01The state of Malchut is whenI have nothing and Keter is when there is everything. To have everything in spirituality means to attain the ability to bestow to the Creator.

But suddenly from my Keter in which I had everything, from the attained level of bestowal, I fall into darkness; in other words, I think about myself, about the fact that I have nothing. I do not understand anything; I do not feel anything; I envy others and begin to despise them.

I feel completely worthless, a complete zero.

This is called the Malchut of the upper. I received an addition of uncorrected desire in which I sense the truth: who I really am. How can I get out of this state and go further, to the Keter of the upper?

First of all, I need to stop thinking about myself; this is called restriction. I do not care about everything that is in my own feelings; what matters is what happens to the group. It is like a mother for whom it is more important what happens to her infant than her own condition. That is, I must transfer the emphasis from myself to the group, and from the group to the Creator.

If I can rejoice that I can think about the group and the Creator from total darkness, it means that I have entered the spiritual space and am in faith above reason, in bestowal above my own desire to receive.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/6/18, Lesson on the Topic “From Helplessness to Crying Out to the Creator”

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Newsmax: “Global Interdependence Means No One Wins a Trade War”

The largest portal Newsmax published my new article “Global Interdependence Means No One Wins a Trade War

The storm around the rapid deterioration of Turkey’s economy sent shock waves in financial markets — globally.

In light of the worsening relations between Turkey and the U.S., and as a result of President Trump’s declaration of double caps on steel and aluminum, the European banking and financial system could be dragged into an old/new debt crisis.

We are witnessing a world war, albeit different from what we have known in the past.

It’s the modern technological and financial version of warfare.

Numerous fronts indicate a dramatic and global collapse of the free international trade market. The U.S., Europe, China, India, Russia, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Turkey, Iran, Brazil, and other countries are all in the midst of economic battles.

Mutual sanctions, currency attacks, and unprecedented threats are flying acorss international time zones. Leaders are fighting for their dignity — and thrones.

Today we don’t need atomic bombs to cause mass destruction.

Cutting off international ties could cause entire populations to starve for food. From day to day, we find it hard to envision a peaceful future in a single country, without taking all others into account. In today’s world, the links and dependencies between countries and economies cannot be untangled without a great deal of conflict.

The international trade market, which has been a free market for decades, is now practically being shut down. Here is the forecast: China will not be able to continue using its large cash reserves to buy real estate or giant companies around the world, while the technological revolution devalues China’s cheap production lines, which for decades have always been its main economic advantage.

As the Chinese expansion in world trade meets a roadblock, the potential benefits will be distributed among other powers such as the U.S., Europe, Brazil, and others.

Russia, however, finds itself in a pickle, facing stronger and healthier trade partners with a weakened currency that stifles its economy. And the U.S., in complete contrast to the passive policy that characterized it in recent years, is now determined to take the lead.

Regarding global forecasts, the two countries that appear to have the ability to lead in the global trade war are the U.S. and Israel. Both countries have the distinct technological advantage, entrepreneurship, ingenuity, and innovation necessary to generate solid economic results.

The battle no longer plays out on mechanical production lines.

Today, minds own the battlefield.

The first act of this war should reach its peak in October of this year.

Turkey’s huge loan repayments are nearing insolvency. Then, the Turkish Republic will be forced to either take dramatic measures such as debt relief or take very expensive loans from countries and financial institutions.

Could Trump announce victory? Will Israel prosper as a result?

Will world markets spiral into another economic crisis?

In a globally interdependent world, a single winner does not exist. Countries and economies are tied together in an integrated system, one they cannot disengage from. This interdependence — which most players still seem to ignore — means that a zero-sum game in which the winner takes all cannot happen.

Ultimately, we will realize that we can all win — or lose — together.

A third option is not on the table.
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Soccer 2018

Laitman_124Remark: Soccer is the religion of humanity. Boys run and chase the ball in Iran, in Israel, in France, in Turkey, and in Germany. There is some kind of unity around the football.

My Comment: People need it. Better soccer than war.

I am in favor of people playing instead of engaging in wars and quarrels. But we will have to add a different relationship to this, to make this game non-egoistic so that people will start to communicate because there is still too much competitive spirit in soccer.

It seems to me that if the players themselves, after mutual defeat or victory, organized a good festive dinner all together, in an embrace, this would be a good example to the world of how it should develop.

As they say, friendship won. I hope that somehow, someday, we will get to it, and then people will see that there is a basis for good in these games.
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From KabTV’s “News with Michael Laitman” 6/26/18

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Breaking Israel News:“Israel’s Existential Threats And The Nation-State Law“

The largest portal Breaking Israel News published my new article “Israel’s Existential Threats And The Nation-State Law

It looked like a scene playing out in Gaza, but its location was the heart of Tel Aviv: Palestinian flags hoisted at Rabin Square protesting the recently passed Nation-State law. Israel’s democracy is being abused not used. When the intrinsic call is to wipe Israel off the map, there should be no room for freedom of expression. Otherwise, we are shooting ourselves in the foot.

There is a systematic campaign from the Palestinians to undermine Israel’s right to exist. Incendiary kites sent from the Gaza Strip to Israeli farms have cost the country to date almost $2 million in damages. Within just the last few days, more than 200 rockets plummeted into densely populated cities in the south. Security and economic pressure, in addition to inflammatory political demonstrations within our cities, all serve the same purpose: to jeopardize Israel.

No country in the world would let its enemies spread their tentacles in such a way. There should be a limit to the fertile ground we provide our enemies to plant their seeds, taking advantage of our being a free and modern country. Our open-arm peace gestures have not been reciprocated to this very day. Consider the disengagement plan from the Gaza Strip, the Oslo Accords, the peace agreement between Israel and Egypt. Do we live any closer to peace with the Palestinians as a result of any of these? Do we wake up every day feeling safer?

The answer is evident. Why then should we let any faction aim at Israel’s destruction? Taking into consideration just the surface façade that only a small number are against the country while the majority of the Arab population aspires for peace, the alarming underlying truth is ignored: demonstrations like these motivate and ignite radical groups around the world to further incite at the grassroots level.

Anti-Israel agitators have admitted that this is only the beginning, a test to enlist support for a continuous public struggle to also take place at an international level. At the end of the day, it won’t be hard for the enemies of Israel to solicit support from the UN, UNESCO, the European Union and other world bodies to advance their interests. They have historically succeeded in obtaining sympathy from those organizations.

Eventually, even Jews in the Diaspora will join the world’s voices against the Jewish state. The success of these internal and external factions points to one factor as its root cause: our inner weakness. We have forgotten the spiritual foundation of our people, the cornerstone of what it means to be Israel. What is the purpose of the people of Israel? What special contribution does this group have to give to the world? By clarifying the answers to these questions we would no longer be blinded by incongruent external influences, leaving us with the necessary strength to defend our land and society from all threats.

The Jewish people is a collection of peoples from among the nations of the world, gathered in ancient Babylon 3,800 years ago with a single purpose: implementing the ideology of “love your friend as yourself,” and passing it to the rest of the world. The essence of the Jewish people is unity, and our role is to be the conduit of the message of connection and love to all the nations. We were founded and united as a people for the first time around this principle taught by Abraham.

The recently-approved Nation-State law does not resonate with this purpose. It lacks a basic spiritual statement: our unity is our main force. The fact that we have had a historical connection to the land of Israel for thousands of years is an insufficient reason to satisfy the world’s questions about our right of self-determination as a Jewish state. Therefore, we can continue tailoring beautifully written laws and organizing impressive protocolary ceremonies to promote them, but they will all reach a dead end.

As long as the nation fails to realize its identity and has no solid spiritual foundation, no new law can become an insurance policy for stability and progress. It is not surprising how similar the current environment of frictions and division in our days is to those that preceded the ruin of the Temple, when hatred outstripped brotherly love.

We must reverse the current state of affairs and adhere to our role of becoming “a light unto the nations” by providing an example of connection to the world, thus transforming an uncertain future into a bright path of unity.

It seems today that the Jewish people are well-established in their homeland, the land of Israel, but this cannot be taken for granted. “Zionism will be cancelled altogether,” as Baal HaSulam wrote in The Writings of The Last Generation, the great Kabbalist of the 20th century. He described a somber scenario if we do not fulfill our destiny and pass our power of connection to the world. “This country is very poor, and its residents are destined to endure much suffering. Undoubtedly, either they or their children will gradually leave the country, and only an insignificant number will remain, which will ultimately be swallowed among the Arabs.” So, there really will be nowhere to run.

Therefore, the first law that should be legislated now is a law of unity: a law that will rekindle the hidden spark in our hearts and restore the sense of unity that we lack. Also, it should not only be a well-drafted law, beautifully designed as a scroll, but one accompanied by an educational explanation of the entire process.

When the State of Israel would be founded on an authentic Israeli spirit of unity, all its laws would work to strengthen the bonds of love among the people living on its soil. Such a state would neither abolish nor erase political party, tribal, gender, age, or skin color differences, but would set the unity of everyone, without exception, into a single society ruled by the principles of solidarity and cooperation as its supreme goal. This is the true nation-state of the Jews, a state that takes care of unification, while preserving the uniqueness of every individual.

When all the sparks within Jewish hearts come together, no one can act against us. Our connection above differences is our destiny as a people, and all the nations of the world expect us to achieve this. This is the law that is the bedrock of our nation and our spiritual foundation, and it should be the basis for any demonstration that takes place.

The System Of Desires And Intentions

laitman_276.04Baal HaSulam, “The Teaching of the Kabbalah and Its Essence“: Thus, it has been made clear that the revelation of the Creator is not a one-time disclosure, but an ongoing matter that is revealed over a period of time, sufficient for the disclosure of all the great degrees that appear from Above downwards and from below Upwards. On top of them, and at the end of them, appears the Creator.

It is like a person proficient in all the countries and people in the world, who cannot say that the whole world has been revealed to him before he has completed his examination of the last person and the last country. Until one has achieved that, one has not attained the whole world.

There is an enormous system, a system of desires, and above them intentions that we need to develop, connect with each other, and form our soul from. The desires remain below and practically do not change. The intentions are most important. Their attitude to each other builds the soul between us, what we refer to as the “spiritual world.” The spiritual world is a world of intentions: my attitude to everyone else.

It is based on desires and, possibly, some actions. But that’s it for our world. When we begin to give preference to the intentions, all the actions of our world lose their vibrancy, might, and importance.

Question: Let’s suppose that I do something now, and I realize that I do it for myself. And Kabbalah tells me that I must overcome my will and do something for the sake of the other. Does that work?

Answer: It works, but only in the group. As a member of the group, I try to do everything I can in order for the group to advance successfully.

Question: But what if I don’t hold onto the right intention?

Answer: That doesn’t matter. By carrying out actions in the group, you rouse the upper Light, which forms your intention.

Question: But you say that we draw the upper Light by reading Kabbalistic books, rather than through our actions?

Answer: No. Everything works only through the friends and only to the extent that you rouse the common desire in the group. There is no other way. The books and the studies are the preliminary means, and they are quite weak; through them you come a little closer to the goal. However, the most effective way to influence yourself and the group is when you push the friends to spiritual attainment. Even if you carry out these actions without the right intention, it is good.
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From the Kabbalah Lesson in Russian 3/25/18

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Daily Kabbalah Lesson – 8/17/18

Lesson Preparation

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Lesson on the Topic “The Work Within Reason And The Work Above Reason”

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Talmud Eser Sefirot,  Vol. 2, Part 7, Item 27

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Writings of Baal HaSulam, “Introduction to The Book of Zohar

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