From My Facebook Page Michael Laitman 1/15/22

Not long ago, there was a story in the press about a disabled twelve-year-old boy whose class went on a hiking trip. The boy thought he’d have to miss the excursion and was very sad about it, but his classmates decided they were not going to let it happen. They arranged for a special wheelchair and took him along. Throughout the hike, they pushed him along the trail, and the boy felt like one of them, an equal among equals.

There is a profound lesson in this story. On the surface, it seems like the classmates were wonderful kids who helped their disabled classmate, and he was the handicapped whom they helped. This is true, but it is only part of the truth, and not the deeper part. The deeper part is that through his disability, the boy helped his classmates rise above themselves, above their egos, and connect with another human being. That gift he has given them is the greatest gift that anyone can give.

By allowing others to help, a disabled person gives the helpers an opportunity to connect, to work together. When we emerge from the sense of self, from the obsessive preoccupation with what we want, how to get what we want, how not to get hurt, and all the other “Me! Me! Me!” thoughts, we enter a new world, carefree and happy. Disabled people, who desperately need our help to do what we take for granted, make it possible for us to venture into that new world precisely through their vulnerability.

Our duty to them, therefore, is to do what we can to make them feel that they are not limited by their situation, that they are equal to us in every way. It is as if nature is sending us a message calling us to rise to a new world of freedom from ourselves, and the bearers of the message are the disabled people in our midst. This is why it is our duty to help them, and our gain if we do.

Photo Caption:
Disabled veteran and first responder cyclists are seen as they participate in Project Hero’s California Challenge — a week-long bicycle ride from Santa Cruz to Los Angeles, California increasing awareness to combat the national mental health emergency posed by PTSD and TBI. Friday, October 22, 2021, in Santa Barbara, California, United States. (Photo by Jason Whitman/NurPhoto)

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Question: How can self-nullification be renewed when a new stage in egoism is revealed?

Answer: You must strive to nullify yourself in front of your friends all the time. Constantly check whether you cancel yourself before them, how much you cancel, where and in what else you can cancel. And then we will have mutual inclusion into each other and thus the revelation of the Creator.

But the principle of cancellation before friends must be fundamental. There are people who very quickly begin to understand and accept it, and there are people who have such great egoism that they do not hear it.

I also went through a very difficult path until I began to feel that I was in the power of egoism so much that I did not hear words about canceling myself in front of my friends. This is a problem for many. But in fact this is not a problem; it is simply the first step that we need to overcome, and we cannot get away from this.

Therefore we need to help each other, set an example, and read relevant articles. In particular, Rabash writes about how honor, power, and glory help a person overcome himself in order to cancel himself in front of a group.
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From the International Convention “Rising Above Ourselves” 1/7/22, “Annulling before the Friends” Lesson 2

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To conclude an alliance with God means to reach such a state that we unite with the Creator through the power of bestowal and love in similarity to Him at a certain level.

Since our basis is egoism, the desire to receive, once we correct egoism to altruism, correct the desire to receive for oneself to the desire to bestow for the sake of others, we become like the Creator.

That is, the conclusion of a union means similarity to the Creator at a certain level. There is a gradation of 125 levels of our egoism. But if we consider this from the point of view of the Creator’s influence on us, then He influences the four levels of our egoism, and He Himself is at the highest, fifth level. Thus it is easier for us to divide our path into four parts.

Therefore there is a four-letter name of the Creator, that is, a four-stage manifestation of Him in relation to a person who ascends to the Creator and attains Him. And so we are talking about the conclusion of contact with the Creator or union—brit.
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From KabTV’s “ Spiritual States” 12/28/21

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In the News (CNN): “A small group of ultra-wealthy individuals could help solve world hunger with just a fraction of their net worth, says the director of the United Nations’ World Food Programme.

“Billionaires need to “step up now, on a one-time basis”, said David Beasley in an interview on CNN’s Connect the World with Becky Anderson that aired Tuesday — citing specifically the world’s two richest men, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk.

“‘$6 billion to help 42 million people that are literally going to die if we don’t reach them. It’s not complicated,’ he added.”

My Response: No amount of money can feed people. Everything will be stolen along the way. The number of people that should die, will die.

Comment: We are talking only about 2022, and then we will need more, more and more.

My Response: Every time more and more.

Question: Will people starve more and more every year?

Answer: Of course. There will be great abundance and at the same time great shortage in everything, in basic products, such as bread, water, and rice, the things that people need.

Question: So you do not think there will be a general lack of everything. Will there be reserves somewhere and everything will be in plenitude?

Answer: And huge armies will guard these reserves, and next to them the hungry people will be dying of hunger. It will be very open. All this will be in the news. People will see all this and say, “How sorry we are for these starving people.” And do nothing.

Comment: Please reveal the plans of egoism to us. It is so insidious.

My Response: Egoism in no way aims to satisfy us, but only to teach us how to act. It is in order for us to realize that our dependence on each other is our problem, but this is also our salvation.

That is, if we can rise above this problem, come to connection and use it correctly for our unification, then we will understand why this is given to us, and we will be grateful that this is happening.

Question: What is the conclusion? What should happen in order for humanity not to starve more and more? And an understanding of what?

Answer: Understanding that this is not happening so that we do not starve, but because we have to unite. We must unite.

Question: Will humanity understand this?

Answer: With a stick to happiness.

Question: Are you saying that it can only be understood through many famines?

Answer: Perhaps through many famines. Baal HaSulam talks about the third and fourth World Wars, which will be atomic ones.

Question: Why is egoism so unbending?!

Answer: This is nature. This is nature that we do not even know, do not attain, and cannot imagine. You can beat it as much as you want, but it remains the same.

Comment: It feels like nothing can conquer it.

My Response: Nothing can conquer it. There is only one upper force. If you can attract it, then it will sweeten this egoism, and you will be able to use it correctly.

Question: Does it mean that you do not believe in any corporeal plans?

Answer: There can be no good corporeal plans!

Question: Then what are we building them for? We are making all these plans, the future of the countries, the future of whatever you want. Is this also egoism pushing us?

Answer: Because we exist in this, we live in this, we do not see anything else, and this is what we do. We believe that we can do something and we do not understand that we are moving from bankruptcy to bankruptcy.

We have nothing else left, not for humanity, nor for you and me. We just understand why there is nothing left. Because we have already reached rock bottom, as they say. This is it! We have come to a clear understanding of the cause, effect, and end of everything. The world, however, does not understand. But it nevertheless has nowhere to go.

Comment: You also have nowhere to go. You have to keep saying this to the world, drop by drop.

My Response: I need people who can put this into the right words so that they shake the world after all. To shake up all of humanity somehow.

When we reach absolute despair, we will finally discover that only rising above our egoism, changing our nature, can save us. Then this action will happen!

Question: No money can save us?

Answer: What money?! It is the last thing.

Question: Why, then, does this illusion exist? Everyone has this small hope that these plans can be implemented, that money will help.

Answer: Because humanity has nothing else! Nothing! Therefore, what can we hope for? We need to ensure that there is a government reserve, a family reserve, or something like that.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 11/18/21

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Will the recent UN resolutions regarding Israel increase antisemitism throughout the world?“

I think that the UN resolutions regarding Israel have no impact on the rise of antisemitism.

Antisemitism is a phenomenon that unfolds according to the law of nature, which is a law of interconnection and interdependence.

The more humanity develops, the more interconnected and interdependent we become. If we fail to mitigate our development by realizing our increasing connections and interdependence positively, above our innate divisive drives, then antisemitism increases.

In other words, antisemitism does not increase because the UN or anyone else decided something, but because it is embedded in the law of nature. The more antisemitism rises, the more it signals nature’s pressure on us to make a serious attitude shift: to stop caving into our instinctive divisive drives, and instead, upon them realize our tightening connections positively.

Based on the “Writers Meeting” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on December 12, 2021. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What is the biggest problem of our current school system?“

The current school system has no objective to develop people into human beings, in the complete sense of the term.

In Hebrew, the word for “human” (“Adam”) comes from the word for “similar” (“Domeh”), and a human is considered one who becomes “similar to the most high” (“Domeh le Elyon”). In other words, becoming a human means attaining a state of similarity to the altruistic force of nature, which is higher and opposite to our egoistic inborn nature.

By learning how to become human in the fullest sense of the term, we then learn how to navigate ourselves in order to first not harm others, and then reach exalted states of positive connection above our divisive drives.

Then, instead of following the dictates of our inborn egoistic nature, which leads to a smorgasbord of negative phenomena throughout society—from increasing depression, anxiety, loneliness and stress through to rises in violence, racism, divorce and suicide, to name a few—we learn how to rise above our egoistic drives, which wish to self-benefit at the expense of others and nature, and discover how to become truly happy. We become truly happy when we know how to positively connect to each other in society, when we live in a thriving atmosphere of increasing consideration, responsibility and solidarity, and when values of giving to others, supporting, encouraging and generally connecting positively to each other fills our lives.

Therefore, the biggest problem of the current school system is that it has no objective to raise children to the fullest realization of their inner potential, which would result in a society that blossoms with happiness, confidence, support and encouragement.

We are thus faced with the fact that we need to restructure our education and upbringing, which includes the schooling system as well as everything that influences us with certain values, behaviors and examples in society. If we succeed in changing the education and upbringing of even one generation to guide people in reaching their fullest potential, then we would bear witness to a monumental transition to a new harmonious and peaceful world.

Based on KabTV’s “Close-Up. Generation” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on August 24, 2009. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
Photo by Ivan Aleksic on Unsplash.

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Question: Why specifically in Jerusalem today do we observe such a big divide between people?

Answer: The fact is that Jerusalem is at the closest point to the spiritual. But since today we are the opposite of the spiritual, this closeness is to our detriment.

Earlier when people who lived in Jerusalem were in the likeness of the Creator, this center flourished. It was close to the spiritual strength that held it and they coexisted together.

And when the earthly Jerusalem (the lower center) and the spiritual Jerusalem are opposite to each other, then this opposition manifests itself in a disgusting, bad form. Therefore Baal HaSulam writes that Jerusalem, which was once the center of holiness, became the center of all impurity. This is what we are currently seeing.

We need to understand that we are in exile from the spiritual and must return to our real state. Physical exile has already ended, but spiritual exile depends only on us.

We ourselves must rise to the spiritual level, and then we will find ourselves perfect, united with each other and with the whole world. Then the higher Jerusalem will merge with the lower Jerusalem, and all the higher powers will manifest themselves at the level of our world, our Earth.
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From KabTV’s “Close-Up. Return” 19/2/10

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Preparation to the Lesson

Lesson on the Topic: “Faith Above Reason” 

Writings of Baal HaSulam “The Peace” 

Selected Highlights 

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