My new article on Linkedin “Don’t Laugh about Humor”

How does humor affect our mood? Why do people laugh at other people? How can humor improve relationships?

When someone talks about something with humor, we can empathize with the situation. They can talk about very serious situations, but when told with humor, we can look at them from a lighter or surprising perspective. This takes a lot of the gravity out of the situations, and not only makes us feel better, but helps us cope with them, which might have been very difficult, if not impossible without humor.

Good humor is based on wit, on making surprising links between elements and looking at them from a new and curious point of view.

It is well known that laughter has many physical benefits. Here are some of them, courtesy of Mayo Clinic: Laughter stimulates the heart, lungs, and muscles, and increases the release of endorphins (natural painkillers). It creates a good, relaxed feeling and reduces some of the physical symptoms of stress. Laughter even strengthens the immune system.

Laughter also has many emotional benefits: It increases our overall satisfaction with life, makes it easier to cope with difficult situations, and, most importantly, improves our connections with other people. When you have a good, hearty laugh with a person, you cannot fight with him (or her).

There is another benefit of humor: If used correctly, it can prepare us to learn new things easily. This is especially true for things that are emotionally difficult to accept or deal with.

There are other kinds of humor, too. Some people laugh at the faults they find in others. In this case, it has no benefits. It demeans others and makes the mockers feel superior to their victims. Such humor does nothing but bloat the bully’s ego.

It is very painful when other people make fun of our faults. It is not the joke that hurts, nor the flaw itself, but the ridicule of others. Conversely, when someone shows us that they like us just as we are, then laughing at ourselves together with them can bring us closer and deepen our connection.

At the top of the list is self-humor. Confident people can joke about themselves, talk about their weaknesses, urges they cannot control, and so on. This makes them more approachable and brings them closer to other people. It also allows other people to share their own feelings with them.

At a time when the world is becoming increasingly connected and we are more dependent on each other than ever, good humor is a must. We need to be confident enough to laugh not only at our weaknesses, but also at our very nature – our selfishness.

If we can make fun of everything that prevents us from working with others, building trust, and understanding others, it will help us recognize our true nature. If we can laugh about it with other people, it will bring us closer and foster a shared desire for change so that we can connect.

Indeed, we should take humor very seriously; it can be a vital tool in moving us out of narcissism and isolation into connection and friendship.
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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What do you think of Israel announcing that the Iron Beam laser defense system was tested successfully shooting down drones and rockets?“

Against any good thing, there is always a bad thing. So you will not find me jumping with joy that we have rid ourselves of our problems and threats.

I do not think that this laser defense system can give us a real sense of security in Israel. Things will get worse. Our problems will rise to an even higher level.

In order for us to truly have a sense of quiet, there is a simple idea that we must adhere to—that of connection, or to reach “Love your neighbor as yourself” among the Israeli nation.

This is no innovation of the defense industry. It is up to us people to implement. If we fail to upgrade our attitudes to each other, then no sophisticated technological, scientific or military equipment would help us.

Developing ties of love between us would protect us from all harm. If we had a very strong sense of connection, then this force of connection would reject all evil forces.

This is because thought and desire are forces much more powerful than laser beams. They are similar to laser waves, only sharper, operating beyond time, space and motion.

We need to establish a network of love between us, love that comes from the heart, and then we would see those same inclinations starting to surface in our enemies’ thoughts and desires. We can make this much-needed innovation in human connection, and sooner or later, we will have to.

Based on the video “Kabbalist Responds to Israel’s Iron Beam Laser Defense System” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
Photo by Umberto on Unsplash.

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Moses (the point in the heart of a person) was brought up by Pharaoh for forty years, then he ran away to Yitro, and only then, for forty years he was pulling the entire nation out of the slavery of egoism. It is the same in our state, when we begin to study Kabbalah, many years pass until we begin to understand what is happening to us.

Question: Did Moses live most of his life in egoism?

Answer: Yes, yet this is not just egoism but a preparation to get out of it. Moses symbolizes the force of faith, which pulls a person out of the ego.

Question: You always say that faith is bestowal. What does bestowal mean?

Answer: Bestowal is when a person feels that everything that is outside of his egoistic qualities are the correct qualities, and he must reach them.

That is, bestowal does not mean our usual understanding that a person should give something, but a special perception of the world.
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From KabTV’s “Spiritual States” 4/19/22

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Question: Why do the Jews not have such servility and deep reverence for each other like other peoples?

Answer: Yes, we really see it today. And if you looked into the depths of the centuries, you would see that even 100 years ago there was no such thing and could not have been. Absolutely in no way!

In the army, in enterprises, anywhere, fraternity is characteristic of Jews—everyone is the same. This is so deeply embedded within the people that even when we began to take an example from the West in the organization of the country and everything else, even then the relationship remained the same.

From time immemorial, everyone has been absolutely equal. A person has never been respected for wealth, only for knowledge. There has never been any subservience to anyone. This inner brotherhood still does not go away, since then it has been in everyone.

And although there is no strong connection anymore, equality that I am no worse than another, reigns everywhere.

There is no slave in a Jew—something that practically exists in every nation. As all other nations have passed the slave-owning period, when some were masters, others were slaves. There was no such period for the Jewish people. There was a so-called slave to his master. But it has always been said: whoever buys a slave, buys himself a master.

These are the spiritual laws. There are whole volumes in the Talmud telling how to treat a slave. The slave lived as if under communism. You were obliged to take care of him, you could not force him morally or spiritually.

He worked as if for hire, and was only considered a slave, since the owner made a contract with him that he would buy him for a certain time. For six years he worked and in the seventh year he could leave the owner. This law is called “Shemitah” when everyone returns to freedom.

According to this law, in the 50th year of the use of land, it is returned to free use and does not remain assigned to anyone forever.

We do not understand how these laws provide a completely different basis for people to connect with each other. What does it mean that you are given land for only 50 years?! This is practically a small human century.

There is the same thing in slavery: a contract for 6 years. You were obliged to give a slave the opportunity to marry, a bondwomen, to get married. And if you used her as a concubine, you had to take her as a wife, buy her clothes and jewelry, which means, give her a completely different status.

This is completely different from the system that other nations had. Therefore, today it still exists in the blood.

And now we are already at a stage where we have to understand that there is nothing valuable, nothing to save, nothing to store, nothing to buy, nothing to stock up on. The world will turn over anyway, and the earth will swallow everything up.
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From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. Who Has Longer” 11/3/09

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Question: Why does Kabbalah say that every person should change himself? If we are all one common system, let Kabbalists change everything.

Answer: How can I change you? You have your own egoism, your own qualities; I have my own, and I have no power over you. Every person must reach this state, and everyone can and must ultimately control their own fate. That’s when he will reach an understanding of a common idea, a common thought.

Question: So Kabbalah gives a person the opportunity to become the master of his own destiny and not just predict some events?

Answer: Kabbalah does not make predictions at all. This is exactly what is forbidden in Kabbalah, because you go deeper into predicting the future, instead of changing yourself so that this future will be good.

Question: So, in principle, predictions change nothing?

Answer: Of course. This is just a game, and therefore Kabbalah forbids it.

But there is immortality! And it is very easy to reach this degree. I invite everyone.
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From KabTV’s “Close-Up. Secrets of Immortality” 1/7/11

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Question: Can a Kabbalist reveal any state?

Answer: A Kabbalist can not only reveal states, but also change them, unlike such people as Wolf Messing.

A Kabbalist can change the future because he has the ability to change his properties, and he thereby gains the ability to transfer the perception of future states from undesirable to desirable ones.

He is able to change future events because they depend on his properties as a receiver of a common thought, and in this thought, everything exists in an amorphous, free form, not dressed in anything. What shape it will take—will it dress in good or bad actions—depends on the matter itself.

Therefore, if we can change this matter, our desires, then the thought that should be modularly clothed in it, in what form we will feel it, depends on our properties. Thus, the Kabbalist does not change the very thought that comes to him.

In other words, the future must definitely be fulfilled, but how it will be expressed in relation to me, good or evil, depends on my properties, and I can change them. That is, I can change myself as a receiver.
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From KabTV’s “Close-Up. Secrets of Immortality” 1/7/11

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Question: Why does Pharaoh order all the firstborn boys to be killed by throwing them into the Nile and to leave the girls alive?

Answer: Because boys represent intention and girls represent desire. A desire without intention can be turned every which way; the main thing is to kill the intention.

Question: Why is everything coded like that? Why couldn’t it be plainly said “intention” without “girls” and “boys”?

Answer: The fact is that the Torah was written for all times for all people without exception and not just for Kabbalists. It should be more or less understandable always and to everyone, to each at his level.

A small child, starting to read, studies what is written in the Torah. The Torah is read by men and women, old and young, who comprehend our world at least in some way and reveal the spiritual world up to its highest state. And for all this—only one text. And it describes in detail, clearly, briefly, all those states that all of humanity must go through over the next 5,000 years.
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From KabTV’s “Spiritual States” 4/14/22

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Nature must maintain a balance. It is very fragile, very thin, and it is above us.

We do not understand its formula, and therefore do not know how it should be reached. We do not know the interaction between all parts of this formula: the number of people on earth with the amount of air, oxygen, nitrogen, ozone, with the amount of flora and fauna, and so on. All this is inherent in nature, somewhere inside it. Academician Vernadsky spoke about this 100 years ago.

Question: Does it mean that we cannot change the usual course of natural events?

Answer: According to scientific data, this is the problem we, in principle, cannot do anything.

Obviously, we can somehow slow down the fatal development of this process for us, but nothing more. This is what science says today. That is, there is no clear solution. Therefore, someone is in favor of limiting emissions, and someone else says: “It will not change anything.”

Someone is in favor of switching from petroleum sources to other types of energy resources. But, on the other hand, they cost us many times more because at the same time we have to fertilize the soil and introduce such bad chemical potential into it that it is unknown what consequences it will have in the end.

That is, from the point of view of science, we do not have a clear justification at hand that this is our mistake, our problem; we are the reason that nature is changing so much in relation to us.

Moreover, it is impossible just to do it. If the industrial revolution has begun in China, and it has turned into a huge industrial power in 20-30 years, then, of course, this affects the environment and possibly causes the very snowfalls in Europe. Who knows? We do not understand the whole picture.

Everyone can speak very beautifully, but there is no clear scientific data. Only if we add the opinion of Kabbalah to this.

The wisdom of Kabbalah speaks about this in a completely different way. It is closer to scientists like Vernadsky who believe that we bring a great discrepancy to the world with our thoughts or rather with our incorrect interaction with each other.
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From KabTV’s “Close-Up. Europe Today” 1/26/11

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Is there free will in this world?“

There is no free will in our world. Free will is possible only if we have an opportunity to rise above the egoistic nature of our world, i.e. the nature where we wish to benefit ourselves at the expense of others and nature, which determines our decisions and behavior.

We consider ourselves free for as long as we do not think about it and identify ourselves with our animate body. But if we rose above our body a little, we would see that it strictly obeys the laws and processes it is subject to.

We think that we determine all kinds of choices in our lives. However, we are placed in certain conditions and given certain inner qualities, while our desire to enjoy runs like an engine according to a simple principle: maximum pleasure and gain for minimum effort and investment.

We calculate according to this principle at every moment, direction, place and in relation to everything. That is how nature works. It takes into consideration various conditions, such as how tired and healthy we are, and how much risk is involved versus the quality and quantity of enjoyment—and accordingly passes out decisions. We can thus see how we remain in the ego, and how there is no free will in its range of functioning.

We have to realize that we can realize our free will by controlling and being above our desire. The more we stay in our egoistic desire, the more we remain as obedient puppets, fully controlled by egoism.

If, however, we wish to take control of the situation, then we have to manage our desire, which is done by rising above it. In other words, we can experience free will, but only above desire.

Then the question becomes: How can we rise above our egoistic nature in order to realize our free will?

That is what the wisdom of Kabbalah engages in.

Based on the Daily Kabbalah Lesson with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on November 26, 2010. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Preparation to the Lesson

Lesson on the Topic “The Approach to Studying the Wisdom of Kabbalah”

Writings of Baal HaSulam, “Study of the Ten Sefirot, Vol. 1, Part 2,” “Inner Observation”

Selected Highlights

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