In the News (NPR):

“On March 27, 2013, John Sweeney, a plumber from Ireland, started a Facebook page called Suspended Coffees. His message was simple: Buy a cup of coffee for a stranger, because an act of kindness can change a life. Eight hours later, the page had attracted more than 20,000 likes.

“Suspended coffee, or caffe sospeso, is a tradition that comes from Naples, Italy, and dates to at least the turn of the 20th century. When customers buy coffee, they also pay in advance for a cup to be given to somebody else — usually someone who otherwise couldn’t afford it. …

“One challenge to making kindness through coffee a staple of American culture is that ‘we’re a society that isn’t very comfortable, culturally, with asking for help,’

Question: Is it possible to come up with such harmony for humanity so that those who have money and opportunity would present something without their names and others would use it without humiliating themselves at the request? Would it bring us closer to harmony or not?

Answer: Partially, yes.

Question: What is the most important element here? That it is offered up and is anonymous?

Answer: That is natural, no last names, nothing. Neither who gives nor who receives. That is how everything exists incognito.

Question: Is there harmony in this?

Answer: Sure.

Question: Does the fact that I give something of mine away without demanding anything in return make the world warmer, better?

Answer: Partially. Our egoism will not allow us to do this every day. You can do this for a week or so but not all the time.

Question: So it cannot be a process of upbringing that leads to this and we would live like this all the time?

Answer: No.

Question: There must be ups and downs?

Answer: Otherwise it will be like some kind of tax and so on.

Question: It would no longer be an effort?

Answer: Yes, and there must be an effort.

Question: It is clear that this is a process of education more for someone who suspends, that is, for a rich person. And for the one who accepts, what is here? Is there any kind of upbringing for him?

Answer: He must understand that someone has thought of him. And therefore, when he gets the same opportunity, he will have to do it too.

Question: It is beautiful! Is a mutual upbringing process taking place?

Answer: Yes.

Question: Is it possible to do this?

Answer: This is a mutual agreement. This can, of course, be done.

It is possible to come to this through education. A person becomes educated and then it becomes a habit. And he thinks about it, does not forget, and does it. Or it could be under pressure, like some kind of tax.

But there is no other way because egoism in us is constantly growing and requires that we feed it.

Question: So a person will somehow adapt to these efforts?

Answer: Yes.

Question: Can we say what the final way to harmony is?

Answer: The final approach to harmony is when we do not feel our egoism would force us to do something. It is when we rise above it and are truly free. This is, of course, aerobatics! But it will happen.

Question: You slowly lead into a mini-dead-end, and then suddenly you say: “But it will be.” Do you want to calm us down or will it happen?

Answer: I am sure this will happen, and humanity must come to this. It is written in our genes.
[330496]
From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 5/13/24

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We told each other even before getting married that we did not want to bring children into this world. We are two lonely souls who found each other and who understand that the world is terrible. We decided that we would live for each other. But now I am writing to you being five months pregnant. It is too late for abortion. We agonized over the decision, whether to go through with it or not, and now I will be giving birth. Yet, we both do not understand how we got here. (From a letter to Dr Laitman)

Answer: You were brought to this.

My first question is: how could this happen to us? We clearly did not want this.

Answer: Many people would not want children, but life itself pushes them to conceive a child.

Question: When you say “life itself,” are you hinting at someone or something?

Answer: I am hinting at the fact that nature made us this way, and that is why we end up here.

Question: So resistance is futile?

Answer: There are people who consciously, even excessively, build such boundaries around themselves saying “We do not want this and that is final.” There are societies like that too.

Question: Who forces a person to cross this boundary? Is this, in principle, also something that happens from above?

Answer: Yes.

Question: So you do not understand how it happened, but that means you were closed off in that moment?

Answer: Yes.

How can we protect our future child from this world? What can we do, how can we raise him so that he is not touched by this dirt?

Answer: I don’t know. Raise him well and give him a good education, a reliable profession. That is all.

Question: When you say “raise him well,” what do you mean by that?

Answer: Raise him well means knowing how to relate to people in a way that elicits positive reactions from them. That is it.

Question: Is that what you mean, not education, but upbringing specifically?

Answer: Yes, upbringing.

Question: What advice can you give to a couple who finds themselves in a situation where their decisions and plans have changed and they are expecting a child?

Answer: Solve all these problems together.

Question: And go for it?

Answer: Go for it. How else? Work through it together and support each other. And they will see that this shared child actually connects them and gives them a new chapter in life, in existence.

Question: So this becomes their new life, right?

Answer: Yes.

Question: What is the best way to deal with anxiety about a future child? This is more of a general advice for others. There is anxiety about a future child, not wanting to give birth. How do you deal with this anxiety?

Answer: This is natural. You need to give birth, you need to raise the child and do everything you can. And gradually, you will see yourself one day as a mature person, a grandparent.

Question: What practical steps can be taken right now during pregnancy to create a safe environment for the child? Because this is something that worries them constantly.

Answer: The most important thing is for the child to understand life. This means understanding why a person exists, how they should behave, which people to avoid, which to get closer to, and so on. In other words, teach them how to interact correctly with this world.

Question: You are giving some very simple, vital, wise advice. Stay away from certain people, get closer to others, try to love others so that they love you. Is that the main thing in upbringing?

Answer: Of course! What else could there be?

Question: How is it that nowadays there are so many people being raised completely differently? That is, people who are filled with hatred…

Answer: You should not raise your children that way because it will only make their lives harder. Hatred eats away at a person.

Question: You do not watch much television, I know. But today, all these channels, YouTube and others are full of fights where people hit each other hard, on the back of the head, wherever. Then, all these movies are packed with strong people who twist others and so on. That is, there is a completely different process of upbringing, more and more, not to love and be loved.

Is this a demand today? Do people want this, do they watch this?

Answer: I think it is not so much a demand as they are being pumped full of it. And of course, this will only make things worse for people.

Question: If we’re talking about raising a child, is it advisable to keep them away from this?

Answer: Yes.

Question: To the point of shielding them from seeing it?

Answer: Of course. What is the point?

Question: There is no point?

Answer: None.
[333226]
From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 7/29/24

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Question: In his notes “The Last Generation,” Baal HaSulam says that nothing can be done by force, it must be through public opinion. He explains why the altruistic system did not work in the Soviet Union. That social system collapsed because it lacked an element of the upper force. How can this be explained to people so everyone has a common understanding?

Answer: Only through gradual learning.

Comment: Baal HaSulam says that education will not help either. We saw what positive education there was in the Soviet Union.

My Response: No, it should be different. Education should be based on what people feel, where it leads, and how all layers of society support it.

In other words, education and public opinion are tools. But there must be a higher value: why we want to build such a society.

We must understand that humanity’s development has a purpose, which, as Baal HaSulam writes, is to achieve adhesion with the Creator. That is our work. If we do not explain this to people, we will not be able to accomplish anything.
[333545]
From KabTV’s “Era of the Last Generation” 8/8/24

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Question: What role do children play in the relationship between spouses?

Answer: Children should see that everything is fine in your family, that you understand each other, and live in harmony.

Question: We often have different views on how to raise children. But you say that our life together serves as an example for the children.

Answer: Of course. For example, if you are at home and your wife is at work, the children should see that you clean the house, wash the dishes, or do something else before she comes home.

In other words, each person should understand that they can do something nice for their spouse without being prompted or reminded.
[333034]
From KabTV’s “Man and Women” 7/30/24

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Question: Baal HaSulam writes that education will not help to teach 90% of the egoists to take care only of the most necessary things for themselves and spend the rest of their time taking care of others, since education does not change the egoistic nature of a person.

What will help to do this if not education, not the opinion of society?

Answer: Disseminating the idea itself will. Show all of humanity its historical path, its foundation, its roots, and the goal that it must achieve.

Thus, it will be clear to everyone in what state they are, in what nature they exist. This will help humanity to begin climbing out of the egoistic pit in which it finds itself.
[332162]
From KabTV’s “Era of the Last Generation” 7/11/24

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Entering any world, the period of adaptation to it, the accumulation of initial knowledge with which we further develop, is the same in our and in the spiritual world. It is the same nature.

There is nothing unnatural about it. On the contrary, it is as natural as the development of infants to the level of little people. We are just the same. We have no other way but to learn from them.

Here he lies, just born: people start cooing to him, and he responds; they try to stir him up somehow, and he gradually responds; the adult smiles, he smiles.

He learns literally everything. And in this way, he programs himself from the adult, because in fact he is an empty desire in which there is nothing yet. He needs to be filled with knowledge, skills, impressions, and to create some connections inside. You can make anything out of him.

Similarly, with our desire for spirituality, we free up a certain area for ourselves and say: “This is the area I want to program now and fill with spiritual impressions, not of our world.” And if you want this, you have to act like a newborn baby who hasn’t become a little human being yet.

This is precisely what Kabbalah offers us. And we can do this because you don’t need to be smart here! You just need to understand that in this way you will enter the upper world.

Therefore, it is necessary to consciously go through the stage again that you went through in this world unconsciously when you were born. Nature pushed you there. And now nature demands that you consciously do so, consciously place yourself as a newborn relative to the upper world, and want to adopt all the impressions and properties from it.
[329944]
From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. We Are Thinking About Our Friend!” 3/11/10

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Question: What are the stages of recognizing the evil of our egoistic nature? Is it a cumulative process and recognition comes suddenly? Or is it happening gradually?

Answer: The recognition of our egoism occurs gradually. It is not present in newborn children. As they grow, we gradually teach children in kindergarten, at school, and further in life that egoism harms them both when in contact with other people, in mastering skills for some kind of work, and so on.

It turns out that on the other hand, egoism helps us. It corrects us and forces us to be better than we really are so that we do not show ourselves as complete egoists in relation to other people. After all, in that case they will treat us the same way.

Question: How does the recognition of the harmfulness of our egoism occur? Look how many wars, how much suffering is there. Where is this recognition? Do we see how the ego harms us?

Answer: We see it and slowly abandon it. People have no other choice. I cannot go out on the street and rob others.

Question: In principle, yes. For this reason, society has created such laws.

Answer: Society must continue to create all kinds of restrictions on human behavior. We see that each generation assumes other obligations—new, better ones. In this way, we gradually rise above our egoistic nature.
[331718]
From KabTV’s “Era of the Last Generation” 6/27/24

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Question: Can people realize the evil of their egoistic nature without knowing about the upper force that created this evil?

Answer: Of course. This information is not necessary for some people. They can simply receive a proper upbringing under which influence they will change.

Comment: But it is said that the Creator created evil and the Torah as a means of correction. It turns out that one cannot manage without the Torah.

My Response: The Torah is the upper light, the highest altruistic force, which we must draw to ourselves. Then it will correct us. Without this, it is very difficult.

Comment: So without the Creator, it is impossible to recognize evil.

My Response: Generally, yes.
[331829]
From KabTV’s “Era of the Last Generation” 6/27/24

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Question: If you look at the process that is happening now in the development of humanity with slightly different eyes, is it correct? We see how people’s lives have become easier. Society limits egoism. If earlier you could go out and do whatever you want with impunity, today the individual is very much protected. In principle, this is correct, is this progress?

Answer: This is progress, but of course it is still not enough.

Question: Yes, this still does not lead to the recognition of the evil of human nature. From the point of view of what Baal HaSulam writes and what we study in Kabbalistic sources, recognition can only exist when there is some kind of standard. What could this standard be? What should we look up to?

Answer: Kabbalists describe this as an example of the last generation, as an example of human society reaching some new milestones so that we climb them like degrees of a ladder, and at each degree we master new rules, new obligations, new types of connections between us.

We cannot yet implement the principles set forth in Baal HaSulam’s article “The Last Generation,” but we can compare our current state and relationships in society with the way it should be.

Question: In other works, Baal HaSulam writes that the Creator Himself is the standard. But we cannot take Him as an example since He is concealed and everyone deciphers the Creator as they wish.

Therefore, I ask: How can a person come to the recognition of evil if he has no standard, no society with correct ideas from which to take an example?

Answer: No, we will gradually build such a society, starting with nurseries, kindergartens, schools, and ending with higher educational institutions and society. We are trying to introduce an educational image, an educational force into all these institutions, to give them the right leadership. Still, the world is changing.
[331762]
From KabTV’s “Era of the Last Generation” 6/27/24

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Question: The effective altruists movement has websites that allow a person to build their future life. They advise young people who have graduated from high school what occupation to get, how to build a career, and how to plan their lives on the basis that part of their actions will be aimed at bestowal. Is this the right approach?

Answer: This may be the right approach, but it must be proven in action. Then it will be possible to rely on its requirements and descriptions; otherwise, it will float in the air without any basis.

You still need to prove the value of your approach, which must be accepted by the majority.

Question: It seems to me that the idea of effective altruism will be accepted by a person from an early age. Even when the majority accepts it, should there still be a test of viability? Or are the opinions of people who can serve as an example for others enough to make such a judgment?

Answer: Here we must take into account what the majority means, who creates it, who controls it. After all, we can talk about huge amounts. I think that only a wide circle of completely different people can evaluate and recommend this or that direction in supporting some special actions.

Question: As I understand it, the general public includes people who are outstanding in some areas. Do you think that they can reach a consensus on some issues? We see that this is not happening much in the world.

Answer: This is a problem. The fact is that we do not yet have a firm assessment of what real, good altruism means, how to evaluate it, weigh it, measure it, and what we can do with it in the future.

Altruism and the future, these states develop in a person and in society in such a way that society cannot really judge it.

Therefore, I do not think that we are already approaching a point where it is desirable for us to evaluate our actions based on the principle of altruism.
[331835]
From KabTV’s “Kabbalah Express” 6/30/24

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