Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What is the root of depression?“

Depression is rooted in our nature, which is a desire to enjoy.

If we fulfill the desire to enjoy with a suitable fulfillment, then we feel good. But if we do not give the desire to enjoy what it wants, then it starts eating us alive, and we call that feeling “depression.”

Ultimately, the solution to depression is in finding a way to bring our desire to enjoy fulfillment that is constant and increasing.

This is what the wisdom of Kabbalah teaches: how we can receive that which will make us feel good and better all the time. It is a sensation like nothing we have experienced in our world. Think about being hungry, and then you get to eat as much of your favorite food as you want, and in addition, the pleasure from the food together with your hunger just keeps increasing the more that you eat.

In order to fulfill ourselves completely, we need a new fulfillment that extends from the same root as our depression, our empty desire, and which can thus become fully compatible with that desire.

Based on the video “Depression’s Causes and Solution [in 2 Minutes]” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
Photo by Damir Samatkulov on Unsplash.

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Question: What can you learn from Pharaoh?

Answer: Everything except direct work for the Creator.

In general, Pharaoh is everything! He even teaches us how to work for the Creator. Only we do not understand how he teaches us.

However, everything that exists within us, everything that leads us forward, twists us, trains us, builds us, and directs us—all of it is Pharaoh.
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From KabTV’s “Spiritual States” 4/14/22

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Preparation to the Lesson

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

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

Selected Highlights

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My new article on Linkedin “Is Hunger Possible in Today’s World?”

When we hear about hunger crises, they usually refer to poorer and war-torn countries in Africa or Asia. We rarely think of hunger crises when we think of Europe or the United States. But recently, more and more voices are warning that there could be hunger, and even starvation in the West, as well.

These are not merely fears; they are based on steps that countries are already taking to protect their population, often at the expense of other countries. The war-related devastation of the wheat crop and vegetable oil in Ukraine was only the beginning. Now, India has also banned exports of wheat due to the heat wave that devastated much of its crops, and countries around the world are suffering food shortages and a price spike.

Growing up in Russia in the 1950s, I lived in a neighborhood where everyone kept a few chickens and grew vegetables and fruit trees in their backyards. In today’s backyards, if one is lucky enough to have one, you can hardly find any open ground to plant anything.

Also, back then, there were far fewer people than there are today. In 1950, there were only 2.5 billion people. Today, there are nearly eight. Without sufficient food, billions will not only starve, but wars will break out and destroy everything. Hungry people have no restraints.

To prevent such a cataclysm, we need to stop the endless drive for hegemony and begin to relate to all of humanity as one, interdependent society. To relate to society in this way, we need to understand why we, humanity, are here in the first place. Without understanding what we are living for, we will not be able to plan our future or how to relate to one another. In such a scenario, we will undoubtedly end up in terrible states.

If we think about why we are here, we will realize that we are not here to oppress other people or take pride in our power. On the contrary, we are here to establish a harmonious society of our own making. Just as nature has built the universe as a harmonious system where all the parts complement each other, we should build a human society in which all people complement each other. The difference between nature and humankind is that nature does this through instincts, through a built-in program, while we have to do it through consciousness and of our own volition.

That is, we work the opposite of nature. When animals are well fed, they rest and do not bother anyone. We, however, are never satiated. We want more of everything we have, more than everyone else has, and in the end, we want everything for ourselves and nothing for others. On top of this voracious nature, we must develop a human society based on reciprocity and balance as does all of nature. Since we are completely opposite to it, we can achieve this only through a conscious and collective effort.

In doing so, we will discover a far deeper and broader reality than we could ever imagine with our current, egocentric perception. We will discover that the purpose of our lives is not to wallow in selfishness, but to leap into the perception of the whole of reality, where everything is interconnected and interdependent, and where life is an endless stream.

The wars and disasters that pummel our world are the “whip” that nature uses to make us grow out of our innate self-centeredness and into the expansive perception of reality. The sooner we begin to follow this path of our own accord, the sooner nature’s whip will vanish, and problems such as hunger, war, and disease will be a thing of the past.
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From My Facebook Page Michael Laitman 5/16/22

This Saturday, a man went into a Tops Friendly supermarket in Buffalo, NY, and shot ten people dead in what appears to be a racially motivated crime. This massacre, the latest in an endless stream of violence, is a reflection of our world. Brutality is engulfing not only the United States, but the entire world. There is senseless killing in Europe, senseless killing all over the Middle East, and in Africa. Even where there isn’t senseless killing, there is abundant, systemic abuse of people, from modern slavery through human trafficking to abuse of power. At the end of the day, it is only people who make other people miserable. If we could only change our ill-will toward each other, we would change the world.

How many times have our parents told us to be nice to others, to play nice, to be kind? And how many times were we actually good because they told us to? Just as children often hold on to their toys and do not share them with anyone, we are becoming increasingly child-like egoists in our behavior.

We were not always that selfish. Previously, people from the same family, and even from the same village, truly felt that they belonged to one another. There may have been struggles over social statuses, but there was no desire to humiliate for the sake of degrading others. Today, even siblings often take pleasure in humiliating one another.

The human race is constantly evolving. The more it develops, the more people are learning that they are governed by egoism, and that it is driving us all into a chasm. On the one hand, everyone wants to live in a nice neighborhood with nice and quiet people around. On the other hand, our own nature is creating an environment where we cannot trust our co-workers, our friends, or even our families.

The good news in all this negativity is that now that it is out in the open, we are realizing who we really are, and this is the first step toward correction. We have come to a state that people cannot stand the existence of people they dislike, for whatever reason, so they pick up arms and shoot them.

And what is true of people, is also true of nations—between nations and within nations. They want to control each other, oppress each other, and dominate each other.

But we are in a different time now. What worked before will not work now on any level—individual, social, national, or international. Today, only those who want to help and support others will succeed. Nations and people who oppress, bully, and violate others will fail and fall.

These days, those who want to succeed must learn that our mutual dependence requires that we become considerate of others. Even if we do not like others, the simple realization that if I am inconsiderate, it will hurt me, should be enough to change our behavior toward others. Following our actions, our hearts will change, as well, but we should not expect this from the very beginning. If not today, then tomorrow we will all learn that we need not be considerate or caring because we actually feel this way, but because we want to survive.

Once we adopt a considerate behavior, we will realize that its benefits far outweigh its flaws. When people are considerate, they create an atmosphere of consideration which reflects back on those who embed it in the society. Just as inconsideration hurts the inconsiderate, consideration rewards the considerate.

Interdependence means that whatever you inject in the system, this is what the system gives you in return, but many times over. If you inject negativity, it will destroy you because the society will “throw” your own negativity back at you, but many times stronger. If you inject positivity in the form of consideration, care, support, and mutual responsibility, these positive impacts will reflect back on you, but again, many times stronger than you injected into the society. This is how every closed system works: the feedback amplifies the input many times over.

Therefore, if we want an end to such hate-filled violence as the Buffalo massacre, if we want to end senseless wars raging around the world, we must learn to act as one, interdependent society. It may not be easy to convince ourselves, but reality has its painful ways of persuasion. I think we would all prefer a more peaceful, mindful way of changing.

Photo Caption:
A man is detained following a mass shooting in the parking lot of TOPS supermarket, in a still image from a social media video in Buffalo, New York, U.S. May 14, 2022. Courtesy of BigDawg/ via REUTERS

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Michael Laitman, On The Times of Israel: “Germany Has Changed, Antisemitism Hasn’t”

A recent survey of Germans and Muslims living in Germany conducted by the American Jewish Committee (AJC) found that 60% of both populations consider antisemitism to be a widespread phenomenon in Germany that has increased over the past 10 years. But the study also brought to light the wide gap between the two populations in terms of the reasons for this hatred and showed how deeply rooted antisemitism is in all sectors of society.

According to the survey, 34% of the general German population and 54% of Muslims living in Germany agree with the statement, “Jews today use their status as victims of genocide during the Second World War in their favor.” The survey also revealed that 18% of Germans and 46% of Muslims agree with the statement, “Jews have too much power in the media,” and similar percentages think, “Jews have too much power in politics.”

This AJC poll has been released at a time when German authorities report record high levels of antisemitism. In 2021, there were 3,028 hate crimes targeting Jews. That is the highest number ever registered since police began tracking reported antisemitic incidents in 2001.

I am not surprised by these statistics that show how bad the situation is for Jews in Germany. I do not relate to them in terms of right or wrong; I evaluate them as a factual reality that does not seem to improve over time. I have not seen any decisive action by Jewish organizations to eliminate this phenomenon because what is done to address antisemitism amounts to merely formal measures: antisemitic incidents are widely reported, funds are received to address the problem, an ineffective campaign is carried out, and then the cycle begins again.

The current situation is just like before the Holocaust when a spike in antisemitism was reported but nothing was really done to eradicate it. On the contrary, the Holocaust unfolded. Just endlessly talking about the constant threat to Jews without thoroughly solving the problem is an empty effort. It prevents nothing now, just as it never prevented anything in the past.

German Jews should also take into account the fact that German demographics and mentality have changed. The current population is no longer a generation highly conscious of the Holocaust and the Third Reich involvement, so what do they care now? While Germans may still express support for the Jews and Israel because it remains a national pressure on them to do so, deep down, the sorrow or sense of guilt has disappeared. They are already fed up with the issue and do not understand what we want from them. Such attitudes are eating away at the status of Jews in Germany who stay there despite antisemitism because they still feel that they are doing well, but one might ask, for how much longer?

The same goes for the status of bilateral relations between Germany and Israel. Germany has been considered by Israel as a strong ally in Europe. Former Chancellor Angela Merkel, for example, said in 2008 that Israel’s security was part of Germany’s national interest. She felt obliged to speak about it and expressed her sympathy for the Jewish people because of Germany’s past. She belonged to the generation when that was common, a kind of polite commitment that is quickly becoming no longer relevant. A new government is in power, and the mentality of the people has also changed regarding Israel.

In other words: In the volatile world we live in today, there are no guarantees of unbreakable partnerships. We Jews need to reach a point where we become partners to one another among ourselves so that our future no longer depends on external support. We can trust no one but ourselves. Our nation was founded in order to realize the principle, “love your friend as yourself,” and by doing so, to become a conduit of such connection toward humanity–the meaning of us becoming “a light unto the nations”. In the final analysis, the more divided we are, the more antisemitism rises; and the closer we are to each other, then likewise, the more the world will relate positively to us.
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The true nature of human being encloses us in our world, and we do not see anything beyond what we sense with our five corporeal senses. Whereas the exit from this into wider, higher, expanded feelings requires us to expand the sensations and consciousness.

For that we are given the manual called “Torah” (from the word “Ohr—light“), which explains how to trigger the upper force upon ourselves, the force of the light, that would lift us to the next level of sensing the universe.

The Torah is written in detail and includes all aspects of our existence, of our life. However, this manual is not simple, and therefore it is not easy to perceive and implement.

But this manual does exist. We have been battling for centuries over it in order to exit from the sensation of our world, expand the borders of attainment, and come into existence in a global universe that is not limited by the perception of our egoism.
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From KabTV’s “Spiritual States” 4/14/22

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Question: The Torah describes three signs that gave Moses the opportunity to manifest the power of the Creator. The first sign is the transformation of the staff into a serpent. The second sign is the covering of Moses’ hand with leprosy as proof of the Creator’s power. And the third sign is the transformation of the waters of the Nile into blood. What is this within a person?

Answer: Within a person, the realization begins that everything harmful can be turned into useful, and all evil, distance, and rejection can be turned into its opposite: rapprochement, a corrected state.

All this is in the power of man, and there is nothing bad that cannot be turned into good. Everything depends only on one’s view of the world, on himself.

There are no opposing forces in nature at all. A person who looks at nature, with his attitude, with his qualities, sees either positive or negative in it.

The first sign is a staff that turns into a serpent, and vice versa, a serpent into a staff. The “staff” in Hebrew is “mate,” that is, “below reason.” If the quality of bestowal, the quality of attaining the Creator, is not important for a person, he is at the bottom. And when he raises the staff, he seems to raise the importance of the quality of bestowal above all. And this is the most important thing.

If he throws the staff on the ground, it turns into a serpent, into our egoistic intention. But by raising it correctly, he turns it into an altruistic intention, and thus corrects the whole nature.

And if he would not raise it, he remains with the serpent, which is within us and eats us from inside.
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From KabTV’s “Spiritual States” 4/19/22

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Question: It is said in the Torah that Moses kills an Egyptian. What does this mean in spiritual work?

Answer: Moses kills the desire in himself that keeps him in a state of complete egoism, called “Egypt.” By getting rid of this desire, Moses becomes free.

Question: Your teacher Rabash writes that “Egyptians” means material pleasures. What are these pleasures?

Answer: Everything you do for yourself and enjoy. This is the basis of your existence. But gradually such an intention is killed in you because you think and strive only to rise above self-gratification in order to remain in a state of bestowal and love for everyone else.

Question: Is self-gratification bad? After all, it is natural, it is our nature.

Answer: This is natural, but wrong because it closes us within ourselves, and we are not able to feel the full universe.

If the pleasures do not close me within my limits so that I think only about them, if my life consists of rising above earthly pleasures into the pleasures of bestowal and love, which are called spiritual pleasures, when I enjoy filling others, then my work, my efforts only bring me closer to the Creator.
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From KabTV’s “Spiritual States” 4/19/22

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