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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What do Israelis think of Israeli reporters being boycotted and ignored by Arab fans in the Qatar World Cup?“

Recently at the Qatar World Cup, Israeli reporters experienced strong hostility due to their connection to Israel, which surprised them.

For instance, there was a situation where a Qatari approached an Israeli reporter and told them, “I’d want to tell you welcome, but you’re really not welcome. Get out of here as soon as you can.”

People from all over the world came to Qatar and were greeted with smiles and hugs; and the Israelis were treated terribly. Israelis thought that the recently-signed Abraham Accords with some of the Gulf countries would bring some moderation, but instead the same hatred revealed itself.

Indeed, we will be hated until we become more like Abraham, or in other words, until we show the world that we truly want peace, that we have a tendency toward peace, and that our goal is to bring peace, wholeness and tranquility to the world.

Today, Israel is viewed as a threat to world peace. It is because we indeed have the ability to turn the world to war or peace, and peace depends on us uniting above our differences. Until there will be peace among Jews, there will be no peace in the world, and people will increasingly point the finger of blame on the Jewish people, that we are the ones causing various wars and conflicts.

It has nothing to do with Israel’s foreign relations, i.e. how Israel treats other nations like the Palestinians, but it solely depends on our inner relations. If we treat each other favorably, like good neighbors, within Israel, then our positive relations will extend a heatwave of connection throughout the world. If we currently held such an attitude toward each other, then our reporters would have instead enjoyed a warm and friendly welcome at the Qatar World Cup.

Based on the video “Israeli Reporters Shunned at the Qatar World Cup – A Kabbalist’s Response” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Comment: William Shatner, now 91, played Captain Kirk in the hit series Star Trek. Shatner really flew into space a year ago as a tourist, he was 90 years old then. He hoped that this would be an ultimate catharsis, that he would understand the harmony of the universe. Instead he said that he discovered that the beauty isn’t out there, but is down here, with all of us. He said it changed his view of life’s values and that we shouldn’t dream of any flights to Mars, but should dream of uniting people. He discovered that to him to live means to love others, which is the whole harmony of the universe.

Is it necessary to gradually launch all of humanity out there so that they can take a look?

My Response: I do not know. It is he whose eyes opened.

Question: How can a person nowadays, in this difficult time of war, hatred, and so on, get to the opposite?

Answer: Disappointment brings the opposite. We need to reach disappointment with the notion that we can do something with force and hatred. We must get to this.

Question: But the world has always been ruled by money and power. How will we get there if power and money rule this world?

Answer: When we see that we can achieve nothing good, eternal, and kind either with money or by force, then we will begin to search and reveal that everything is attained only through attraction and love.

Question: And this will be the conclusion?

Answer: Yes.

Question: And if there are a huge number of weapons in the world, and a huge amount of money is printed, if this all is here, will we follow this terrible path?

Answer: I think it is already over. I would like to believe.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 10/27/22

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Question: In light of recent events, Vera writes this short letter: “I would like very much to talk about the Creator, the cosmos, the world, and the inner state of a person, but there is war outside the window.”

How can a person in this situation think about the Creator, about connection, and about peace, when there is war around him?

Answer: It is said very simply: “Do not judge another until you find yourself in his place.” Therefore, I cannot talk about such conditions. Although I was in the army, it was not the same.

Question: When a person is in a state of grief, when a person is in trouble, perhaps not even because of war, how can he cope with it? Give us at least a few steps.

Answer: Just open our books and, in the state he is in, simply read and grasp what is said in Kabbalah.

This will bring a person closer to the truth, correct him, fill him with upper energy, give him greater confidence, disconnect him from corporeal problems that he wants to solve by corporeal methods, and give him the opportunity to think about the way to solve them in real way.

Question: If there is war outside the window or somewhere around there is war, can our books still help a person?

Answer: Naturally. They are the only ones that can help because when a person reads them, he invites, invokes, and attracts upon himself the upper energy, the light of the Creator, and it lifts him up, saves him, shelters him, and protects him.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 9/22/22

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Kabbalah & Relationships

Tips on how to build successful relationships based on the spiritual principles and understanding of our nature

Our ego is the snake that prevents us from being able to love someone else.

The meaning behind the story of Adam, Eve and the snake is actually very simple. The snake represents the ego that became revealed between Adam and Eve, the man and the woman. And that’s really all there is to the story.

For example, suppose that a happy, young couple falls in love. They hug, kiss and laugh together, go to the movies and the beach. Then they get married and begin living together, and everything is wonderful. They’re in the Garden of Eden.

And suddenly—the snake (the ego) arrives. They suddenly begin arguing. Then they begin taking advantage of each other and making private calculations, such as “How can I get him or her to be the way I want them to be?” This happens to us because the snake (the ego that’s inside us) prevents us from being able to love someone else, and makes sure that our love is egoistic from the start.

Under these circumstances, the closest we can come to love is to surrender our egos in day to day life as much as we can. However, this still doesn’t solve the problem at the root, and does not enable us to experience real, unconditional love. This is where Kabbalah offers another solution: to correct our soul at the root, or to correct the snake that separates us from our partners.

To do this, both partners must realize that there is a goal to their lives that’s above this world. Then they will also realize that they can only attain it by having a partner in life, someone who will go through the spiritual path together with them. This is the meaning of the verse, “Man, woman, and the Divine Presence between them.” It means that in order for us to attain the Divine presence, spirituality, we must connect with each other correctly.

Then, instead of taking advantage of each other, Adam and Eve will complete each other. And the snake, instead of driving them apart, will become the driving force that pushes them to reveal the Upper Force – the Divine Presence, or the Creator.

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Kabbalah on Education

Kabbalah comes to the rescue to today’s education and parenting crisis

Sibling jealousy is a natural reaction of egoism.

This is a natural reaction of egoism. Parents may try to explain to a younger child how they would like him to behave, but it’s impossible to demand a correct reaction from him. It’s written, “Educate a lad according to his path.” This means that parents have to compensate their elder child for his new position in the family, so that he feels that a good attitude towards the newborn is advantageous for him.

When a younger child is born, a mother feels excited that the family has become larger. An elder child should feel the same. How? For instance, he can receive a present “from” a younger sibling. That is, a child should see that a new baby allows him to derive something positive for his egoism. Otherwise the elder sibling will hate the younger one, as he senses that his mother’s attention is switched to the baby, everyone takes care of it, and not him. 

In previous generations, sibling jealousy probably wasn’t so acute, because people lived in more modest conditions, or elder children had more friends with whom they could play and thus paid less attention to their younger siblings. But today, parents need to fulfill the desires of the elder children, showing them that they receive something good thanks to a newborn baby in the family.

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Comment: The workshop has an interesting feature. At the moment of its implementation, a person seems to come to some kind of understanding, feels inspired, feels encouraged, and the next day it all disappears.

My Response: It does not matter. Even if it has disappeared from a person, it is still his. Nothing disappears in spiritual development. It is just that something has disappeared at the moment because new egoism has been added.

Nothing ever goes backward, only forward. If something is washed out of your memory, it is because a new, still uncorrected, egoistic mass comes that obscures your previous spiritual attainments.
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From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. Why Workshops Are Needed” 4/5/14

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Question: How does a person relate to the personal opinions of everyone in the group? How important is it to express your opinion?

Answer: What personal opinion can there be? No one has any opinion of their own. My only opinion is that I support the group in its advancement toward the Creator, and by this I support all my friends. My opinion is my contribution to the common yearning to come closer to the Creator. That is it. What else can there be?

There is one single force of bestowal and love in the world, and I need to strive for it. If I am against this, things will get worse. Moreover, the opposition is completely unwise. Neither my freewill nor my special criticality or individuality are manifested by it.

“No, I want to be against the Creator!”

“What do you mean ‘against’? What is the rationality of your action? Why are you against Him?”

“Because I want to be an evil force!”

The evil force is also Him, just like the good force. The adhesion with the Creator is simply an understanding that there is nothing else. Whether you are for Him or against Him, you will still be with Him. Therefore, we do not have any options.
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From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. Personal Opinions” 12/28/13

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Preparation to the Lesson

Zohar for All “Introduction to The Book of Zohar,” “The Vision of Rabbi Hiya” 

Selected Highlights

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “How do you tame people?“

Animals can be tamed through positive and negative stimuli. People can be tamed similarly if they are lowered to the degree of animals. If we constantly hold such an influence over people, without letting them develop beyond such stimuli, always holding them under positive or negative influences, then they feel nothing more than those influences. We then provide people with no means of self-criticism but only to run away from the bad and move toward the good. People then become lowered to the degree of animals and behave accordingly.

If, however, we give people freedom from positive and negative pressures, then we provide the possibility of further mental and emotional development.

We can see throughout history that there were periods of slavery, and periods where people fought just to meet their basic needs. Their only problem was how to get food and a roof over their head. However, human progress led to them becoming more capable, providing themselves with food, heat, shelter, family and even a society where they looked out for each other. Then emerged the opportunity to care for their inner fulfillment, and to feel the need to fulfill an additional “something.” They developed arts, music and literature, and this emergence of a new spiritual yearning marked the beginnings of the human being.

Human beings are much more than creatures that simply respond to positive or negative stimuli. We also grow from within, and there is a certain level that our inner growth can reach.

Likewise, it is incorrect to give children incentives for positive behavior and to punish them for negative behavior. We see that even with various prizes and punishments, we cannot prevent children from developing in their own individual ways. One child wants something, and another child wants something else, and they do not really care about how we guide or direct them—through prizes or pressure toward something else. We all have a need to express ourselves.

Based on the video “Can You Tell the Human from the Animal?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Tal Mandelbaum. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
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