Entries in the 'Conventions' Category

Rising Above The Problem In Order To Solve It

Dr. Michael LaitmanAt the human level of this world we can study, know, and somewhat control the still, vegetative, and animate levels of nature. Albeit not in the best possible way, we nevertheless are able to understand and change nature to a certain degree.

However, we cannot control humanity, the human society, and today it manifests increasingly clearly in everything we do. We are unable to raise a new generation, our own children, correctly. Previously, we didn’t think of it, but today we are facing a problem: The young generation is completely detached from us, and we are unable to do anything with the young.

If we could turn them into reasonable, good people (though we ourselves don’t know what it means), then at least our children would have a good life. All generations hoped that their hard life will pay-off with the success of their children. But today we are in a transition period: We as if rolled over the peak of expectations and started to descend, having lost any hope that the life of the next generation will be better than ours. This is why people no longer want to start a family and have children.

Essentially, we face the following problem: If we want to build a normal life for seven billion people on a simple, corporeal level, we need to exist at the spiritual level. By being at the human degree (4), I can rule over the lower levels: the still (1), vegetative (2), and animate (3). But in order to keep my own degree under control, I must rise above it, to the spiritual level (5). Then from it, I will be able to govern my own human degree (4).

So the state of affairs is very simple: To repair education, family, interpersonal relations, business, ecology, economy, to deal with new diseases and viruses, I must know where all of it stems from, for what reason, where the forces that govern the human level are. These forces do not exist here, and it means that I must rise to a higher degree.

This is why Baal HaSulam rejoiced in the opportunity to reveal the wisdom of Kabbalah to the entire world, and not just to himself, to a handful of disciples. And although this “handful” grew to a few million people who follow our lessons and materials, we nevertheless talk about everybody in the world.

Soon we will reach a state which we can’t even describe. Without an elementary knowledge about how to govern this world from the fifth degree, man won’t be able to succeed in any area of social life. Even today the programs humanity initiates to benefit family, country, and the world get stuck and fail.

Hence, Kabbalah is needed not just to help you and me enter the spiritual reality. Massive crises accumulate into one multi-system crisis that pushes the entire world toward the ascent to a new degree.

We stand out from the rest of humanity by the fact that, being at the fourth level, we received the “point in the heart,” the desire to enter the fifth level. We are motivated to move forward by a good impulse, while the rest of the world is being pushed toward it by enormous suffering that hits it from behind. We are being lured with a “candy,” the aspiration toward something good, while the rest of the world moves out of hopelessness, being pushed with a “stick.” They are like animals that do not know where to go, how to cope with disasters that occur everywhere. And it is only the beginning.

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From Lesson 1, WE! Convention 4/1/2011

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The Moment Of Truth

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Why was the wisdom of Kabbalah concealed throughout the millennia?

Answer: The wisdom of Kabbalah was concealed for thousands of years because our egoistic development in this world had to reach its ultimate limit. We have reached a state when everyone of us, being an isolated egoist, has gone through the egoistic aspirations for food, sex, family, wealth, fame, power, and knowledge and now feels that no earthly pleasures can fill us any longer.

This is the problem of egoistic development: No matter how much we advance in our egoism, we nevertheless feel unfulfilled. After all, I’m unable to fulfill myself in my ego since pleasure with which I’m trying to fill my desire immediately quenches the desire due to their opposition, like in a short circuit.

Desire is a lack of fulfillment, a “minus,” while pleasure is fulfillment, a “plus.” By coming in contact, they neutralize each other. For this reason we feel that the instant we reach any satisfaction from food, sex, or other earthly pleasures, it starts to diminish.

But in any case, all our attempts to derive pleasure from food, sex, family, wealth, honor, power, or knowledge were necessary. And now we must rise from this egoistic state to the degree of unity between us. That is, to a smaller or lesser degree, we are already willing to admit that this life does not bring us pleasure and ultimately, we feel emptiness, a “minus.”

Then we approach a new stage. We reveal that any cell of the general organism is able to exist only in connection with the others. This is why the wisdom of Kabbalah was concealed until the emergence of a pressing need to unite.

Today in all areas of our life we discover that we are all tied together and can’t escape our global interdependence. Never throughout history has humanity felt so dependent on each other. Hence, the wisdom of Kabbalah is being divulged now in particular so as to present the method of the correct unification.
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From Lesson 1, WE! Convention 4/1/2011

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The Representatives Of The Upper World

Dr. Michael LaitmanToday we have all the possibilities to advance spiritually and circulate the wisdom of Kabbalah throughout the world. By unifying together in our world-wide group, by connecting with our spiritual sparks, “the points in the hearts,” we act as representatives of the upper, spiritual system in our world. Besides, we circulate the wisdom of Kabbalah together. We do not need anything else.

We are situated at the apex of the pyramid of humanity’s development. In the extent that we unite together, it will influence the entire world. And we also have to bring the entire world closer to us.

Yet we shouldn’t think that the entire world has to study Kabbalah or that all people are destined to understand what it is. Not at all! This is akin to a human body, 99% of which is composed of matter governed by the brain. Meanwhile, the brain is the people who strive for spirituality.

The rest will accept this structure of the world; this awareness will get over to them, and they will draw closer to us. But, similarly to how in today’s world the majority of people live an ordinary life and don’t feel the need for great achievements, so in the future the rest of the people will participate in the spiritual process passively.
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From Lesson 1, WE! Convention 4/1/2011

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Bnei Baruch USA: Join Us At The WE! Convention!


Bnei Baruch Kabbalah USA is pleased to invite you to the World Kabbalah Convention from April 1-3, 2011 in East Brunswick, New Jersey at the Hilton East Brunswick hotel.

Bnei Baruch students from around the world will congregate during these three days for Kabbalah lessons with Dr. Michael Laitman, lectures, workshops, and seminars.

Hotel Details

Hilton East Brunswick, New Jersey USA

3 Tower Center Boulevard,
East Brunswick, New Jersey,
United States 08816
Tel: +1-732-333-3610

Transportation

Transportation will be provided from Newark Airport.

For more details

Check for convention details through www.kabbalah.info
Contact Bnei Baruch USA at [email protected]
Call 216 337 2129 or 609 532 4184

We look forward to seeing you at the convention!
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The Whole World Depends On These Three Days


Question: What inner work do we have to perform during this Convention, considering the entire weight of the responsibility for the whole world that is incumbent upon us?

Answer: We really do bear enormous responsibility for the whole world. But there are two components to this.

The most important thing is the connection between us. We have to understand that since the whole world is interconnected, then it doesn’t even matter how successful or not our address to the world is. First of all, the unity among us is definitely transferred to everyone.

That’s because all of humanity is connected as one. Baal HaSulam writes in the article “600,000 souls” that there is just one soul in the world. That means all humanity, all seven billion people, are connected together into one whole, into a single organism, the body of the common soul.

This organism grew to the extent that all of its parts, the particular souls, developed. Each of them developed until its ten material Sefirot. But now we have discovered that the entire organism is connected into one, as if the connection among everyone has closed up.

That is why people in whom the point in the heart has been revealed serve as the brain of this whole system. This is written at the end of the “Introduction to the Book of Zohar”: The whole world divides into the inner and outer parts. The inner part is we, people with the point in the heart.

If we connect with each other through a good, proper connection, this will expand to the whole world. Then, as Baal HaSulam writes at the end of the “Introduction to the Book of Zohar,” this will splash out into the whole world, like when the right command comes from the brain to the whole body. Then everyone will take this command and start changing. This is called internal dissemination.

Whether we want it or not, our unity is transferred to the whole world and the world changes for the better. All other people also advance toward unity. After all, they simply live their earthly lives, not knowing where their thoughts and desires come from.

That is our inner dissemination, which happens without any words and without coming out to the world externally. However, in order to prepare people to be receptive to this so they will react to us faster, and besides, to give them the opportunity to work and act together with us, which will unite us even more, we also work on external dissemination for everyone.

It turns out that through our inner dissemination we intend for our unity to also be transferred to everyone else. This is enough. In the external dissemination we organize among ourselves and this gives us a field of activity, as well as unites us by giving us an additional, external reason to unite. That is how we act in the world.

However, without any doubt, the unity among us determines everything and in this regard it cannot be compared to anything else. Let us hope that over the course of these three days we will attain a new degree of unity. I don’t have any doubts about this because even now we are in this state and will be able to feel spirituality at least for a short time, to feel what it means to be connected in our hearts and thoughts.

All of this depends on every person’s inner efforts. Try to think that we all already desire to feel the unity between us, not to be in the bodies, but to immerse deeper inside, into the realm of our desires so they will all unite together into one whole desire. If we attain this, then we will feel the Upper Light that reigns inside of this desire and will experience the eternal flow of life. This is up to us.

Perhaps we will attain this only temporarily because the first time it happens, it really is difficult to hold on to this sensation constantly. But at least we will receive the first impression of spirituality, will “taste” it, and then we will already know what to aspire to.

I very much hope that we will attain this and that the taste of spirituality will remain with us forever.
From the 1st lesson of the WE! Convention on 4/1/11

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Standing At The Beginning Of Glorious Deeds

Dr. Michael Laitman The tendency manifesting today was clear for the Kabbalists tens, hundreds, thousands years ago. They talked about our epoch having calculated its time frame precisely based on the general laws of nature.

Throughout the course of history we were developing under the influence of the force that was pushing us forward. As our ego increased incessantly, we transitioned from process to process, from formation to formation in society, family life, education, culture, and so on.

We were advancing by means of the negative force alone and hence Kabbalists were able to calculate how much it would take for humanity “to hit rock bottom,” meaning to reach the need to rise to a new level and, instead of being developed by egoism, advance by means of another force: the force of universal unity.

The calculation pointed to the end of the 20th century, year 1995. From that time on, we will have to reveal for ourselves the method of correction of man who knows how to unite with the others into a single whole—absolutely, globally, and integrally.

Granted, today we are just at the beginning of this path. It is yet to continue. However, we, the people who received a gift from Above, “the point in the heart,” the aspiration upwards, have to turn to the entire world with an explanation about what is happening. By this we realize our predestination, warrant the impulse we received, and lead humanity towards the ascent to a new state, a new degree.

It is a very special degree. The body, the parts of which are disassembled and even opposite to each other, feels sick. But if they begin to unify in harmony and inter-connection, then instead of feeling the illness, the body will sense the life of a higher order. This is how we, with our animate body, feel ourselves at the human degree. The body is an animal, but there is something in a human being that brings him or her back to a higher degree.

And now, by uniting with each other in harmony, we acquire a sensation of a life higher than our present one. It is our spiritual life.

Surely, we have to work on this in the group. This is the primary responsibility that has been placed upon us. In addition, it is our duty to bring the entire world to this, to mitigate the enormous suffering that we may evoke by advancing by means of the negative force, being pushed with a “stick.” Indeed, we already see that humanity’s misfortunes are becoming increasingly unexpected and dangerous.
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From Lesson 1, WE! Convention 4/1/2011

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Address To The Convention Participants

Dr. Michael LaitmanI’m very happy to be here with you today. I’m glad that we have gathered in the most influential country in the world. I hope that from here, we will be able to continue circulating Kabbalah throughout the world. We have enough forces here and we will keep adding new ones so as to reach the goal by uniting together and connecting to ourselves the entire world.

I’m very happy that you came here. During these days we will learn how to unify and to reveal spiritual life in our unity. This life does not depend on the body; it flows above it, and there, we truly feel the eternal force that reigns in nature. We become one with it and, breaking off the animate level, enter the degree of man similar to the Creator.

It is in our power to do it, and we are close to this. During the last year we have learned and attained a lot. I feel the changes that took place between us: They are positive and substantial. I hope that during these days we will try to realize our unity with all our might.

After all, we have gathered in one place, and it is very important. In order to transition from the animate to the human degree, we nevertheless need such closeness as well. We will do it, here and now.

Thank you!
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From Lesson 1, WE! Convention 4/1/2011

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North America “WE” Convention – 04.01.11

New Jersey “WE” Convention, Opening Ceremony
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

New Jersey “WE” Convention, Lesson 1
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

New Jersey “WE” Convention, Lesson 2
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New Jersey “WE” Convention, Lesson 3
Download: WMV Video|MP3 Audio

New Jersey “WE” Convention, Lesson 4
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New Jersey “WE” Convention, Lesson 5
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Eureka! It Does Exist!

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Does the desire to bestow develop with the help of the desire to receive? Will it change and unite us back into the collective soul?

Answer: The wisdom of Kabbalah states that the entire path of our correction amounts to our uniting together and reaching the property of bestowal (the Creator) in our connection because this property brings us together.

Development occurs by virtue of unification. And when the desire to bestow enters the desire to receive, it supplies it with the force of development by facilitating various connections. And since it is the desire to bestow, it fuses various parts.

Contrary to it, the desire to receive remains there in the capacity of the still level and does not bond with anything. Hence, if we want to draw closer to the desire to bestow and develop, we need to facilitate ties between us and our mutual inclusion.

And it does not matter that we are separated by distance, differences in character, opinions, and education. We will later see that our previous development (as various distant nations that hate and disregard one another) is needed so that above it, we could start forming our mutual inter-relations. And between these connections we are destined to reveal the property of bestowal (the Creator).

It exists but is hidden inside. This is precisely what we wish to reveal at our conventions.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 2/18/2011, Writings of Rabash

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Stopping Is Falling

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: What does it mean to constantly accelerate in relation to the spiritual goal, and how can we “push on the gas” as much as possible now, before the convention?

Answer: In the spiritual space, acceleration is movement. That’s because if you don’t make a certain action now, then none of your previous merits will count and you will lose all of the speed you have accumulated until now by all the previous actions. The spiritual space is like an empty cosmos where there is no other system from which to start counting, and if you don’t accelerate then you don’t move at all.

A constant state is equivalent to zero. Even if you are flying at the speed of 10 miles a second, this is not considered motion and it’s the same as if you were just hanging in the air. In the spiritual sense acceleration means speed, and in essence it is the action.

Therefore, there are no “gaps” between spiritual actions. Wherever one action ends, that is where the next action immediately begins, just like during the birth of spiritual Partzufim. This indicates that a person’s attitude to the group and the group’s attitude to him must be such that it will constantly awaken him to act and always renew his desire.
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From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 3/28/11, Preparation to the WE! Convention

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The Paradigm Of Acceleration
Signs Of Imminent Revelation
For Spiritual Progress, You Need Constant Acceleration, Not Constant Speed