Entries in the 'Egoism' Category

“An Elevator to the World of Tomorrow” (Medium)


Medium published my new article “An Elevator to the World of Tomorrow

Whenever the world experiences a great upheaval, a desire arises to forge good bonds between all people. Whenever a country goes through an internal crisis, the desire arises to unite all parts of the nation. And yet, despite all this, life continues to lead us from disappointment to disappointment. So, what is it that we are missing on the path to tranquility and fulfillment?

The problem is that human beings are selfish by nature. We think only of ourselves, look out for our own good, and use others for our own pleasure. So even if we think of things like building a mutual bond between people and trying to establish organizations and processes to promote that goal, our results lack the power to overcome human nature, that is, to put love of others ahead of love only of ourselves within our hearts. Because of this, our efforts at bond building never last long.

What we need in order to succeed is a special power, something otherworldly, a kind of miracle mechanism that can elevate us from our selfish nature to a more advanced and sublime nature of love for others, something completely new.

We are in the midst of an evolutionary process. In recent decades, the world has become a holistic system in which all its details are interconnected, interdependent and interrelated. But we human beings, with our inward self-focus, are not yet integrated into the emerging world. As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, everyone’s ego is simultaneously growing alongside and pushing us apart. Thus, the incompatibility between humanity and the system of nature is also growing. If human nature does not change, it is only a matter of time until we come to a destructive explosion.

There is a unique mechanism that can spare us this dire fate and elevate us to a new level of interaction, one that is safer and more pleasant. This life saving mechanism is described in the wisdom of Kabbalah, and it is a method for correcting human nature. By and large, the method is based on learning and practicing connection and communication techniques in small groups. One also learns in depth about the integral system of nature and the force that connects all the parts of reality into an integral, perfectly shaped mechanism.

There is a comprehensive system underlying all of nature wherein everything proceeds in connection, perfection, and harmony. This supreme law of nature which demands love absolutely cannot be violated. To the extent that we transcend our egoistic nature towards love of others, the distance between ourselves and others shortens until we literally are able to feel everyone within ourselves. Our mental and emotional calculations become harmoniously connected; the mind and heart unite in a centered line where everything becomes integral and linked.

Such a process of development can lead each of us to acquire true love of others and we are then able to begin to help shape our surrounding environment to also support that goal. This transformative switch from independence to interdependence will elevate our world of woes to the world of tomorrow, a closer and more cooperative world in which all humanity ascends to a prosperous future.
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“Polarization and Anti-Social Networks” (Medium)


Medium published my new article “Polarization and Anti-Social Networks

Day by day there is more division and polarization, more anger and hatred, which is weaponized by an increased flood of information on social media. That is the conclusion of a recent study revealed by Yale University. But is anyone really surprised by the discovery?

According to the research co-authored by Yale, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Southern California, more information does not mean more pluralism, it only intensifies already polarized views. Individuals tend to read and absorb only the material that confirms their existing beliefs in a sort of “confirmation bias.”

To me there is nothing new. After all, it is written and known, “The inclination of a man’s heart is evil from his youth” (Genesis 8:21).” That is, we are all under the control of an egoistic desire, in a constant desire for self-fulfillment. Not only in every human being does this tendency exist, but society as a whole is founded on it. Family, national and international relations — all of humanity is built on selfish systems. This is natural and logical, since everything in nature, including the inanimate, vegetative, and animate levels, works to get maximum pleasure with the minimum investment.

What started as a desire of social networks algorithm developers to fight for our attention, to bombard us to live on their platforms, and to profit financially by influencing marketing content, has led to intensive efforts to crack those algorithms and understand how they work on us, but what really needs to be explored through a deeper layer is our human nature.

It is far better to research and find out who we really are. Our evil instinct is a ticking bomb with tremendous negative potential; we will witness this more and more day by day. There is great advantage in internalizing that under certain environmental conditions we will not hesitate to benefit ourselves even if that comes at the expense of others, we seek our own momentary pleasure without any remorse for anyone we might harm to get it.

The light at the end of the tunnel is that at some point we will no longer be able to tolerate the monster we created with our own hands, and we will unanimously decide to destroy it or at least direct it to the right place for re-education.

We have no idea how much our brain is destroyed when it is infected with this polarizing disease. According to our evolution we must eventually become a more balanced humanity, but until that happens, instead of assembling and connecting ourselves to one global system, we let our egoistic desire control and separate us, and the mind, which responds to our will, cooperates. As a result, we divorce, separate, quarrel, and divide, and cause ourselves more trouble that we pay for dearly.

When we cannot settle things with rational common sense, then we are filled with anger and rage, and erupt under pressure. Social networks reflect our nature and ignite the antagonistic passions. An extreme opinion voiced from the other side of the barricade is enough to raise our threshold of agitation and throw us out of emotional balance.

It will not help to clean up the toxic content and censor the inciting videos and tweets. In the end we will only reduce the noxious evil for a short time and soon will continue our destructive habits until the next eruption.

To change the direction of thinking we need to recognize, face, and acknowledge our harmful nature and talk about the human egoism that rules us. Heightened awareness can persuade the public to agree to eliminate this evil ruling nature. Proper and serious recognition will make everyone realize on their own that thinking and acting badly toward others causes a split that gradually leads to self-destruction.

This process needs to happen in all of our social systems, and from there it will also spread to social networks, which mirror ourselves. So naturally we will enact laws that will be agreed upon by social media users and will forbid us to be careless toward others out of a simple understanding that this evil will eventually backfire on us.

If we are already reaching out to the networks and intervening in them, then it would be good to develop a positive algorithm that encourages unity and closeness, that evokes a feeling of connection to benefit and sweeten our lives. Just as social networks have entered our lives with great impetus and changed them fundamentally, so can this positive algorithm be implemented with great success. Only then we will start building real social networks.
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Examining Desires

549.01Comment: When a force that reveals a point in the heart appears in a person, he begins to look for something. This point then pulls all his other desires out of egoism.

In principle a division and interconnection takes place here between different desires such as Egyptians, Israelis, and Pharaoh.

My Response: It all exists within one person. He must examine himself, which of his desires are at the level of our world and will not lead him anywhere, he will stay with them like an animal, and will die like that. Or his desires are able to pull him to the next level, and there he will exist in the feeling of the upper world.

Question: When a person leaves Egypt, does he consciously work with his desires, or does it happen automatically, like in a child who develops and only then understands what it all is about?

Answer: Gradually, a person begins to understand more and more consciously that there are such desires in him that can raise him above the nature of our world.
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From KabTV’s “Spiritual States” 4/19/22

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“Why Can’t I Feel God?” (Quora)

Dr. Michael LaitmanMichael Laitman, On Quora: Why can’t I feel God?

We do not feel God because our quality is different to His. However, we can feel God by equalizing with His quality.

What is God’s quality? It is a quality of love, bestowal and connection. Our qualities are reception, hatred and rejection. That is why we do not feel Him.

We live within bubbles of egoism, which is the desire to enjoy at the expense of others and everything outside of us. We see everything through egoistic lenses. That is, our senses are self-aimed and we perceive reality through these senses.

We cannot see reality beyond these senses, and likewise, we cannot see the reality of love, bestowal and connection. We also have a quality of love and bestowal, but it is egoistic, i.e. aimed at benefiting ourselves alone.

Does God—Who is also called “the Creator” and “the upper force” in the wisdom of Kabbalah—want to be in contact with us?

God only wants to be in contact with us, to reveal Himself to us and His quality of love and bestowal. Gradually, He brings us to a state where we first and foremost see ourselves according to our true self-receptive nature, and that existing in the force of reception is a very low, transient and futile form of existence. We then become ready to see that the way to come out into truth, eternity and perfection is through attaining the quality of love, bestowal and connection. We will then feel God.

Based on the video “Why Don’t We Feel the Creator?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman, Oren Levi and Tal Mandelbaum. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

When Egoism Outgrows Boundaries

096Question: Today, outrageous cases where a father abuses a child and the mother helps him in this have become more frequent. Why is this happening?

Answer: This is a result of the growing egoism that outgrows all boundaries, which we do not know how to use.

Throughout the history of humanity, there were even entire cultures whose development resulted in not entirely natural processes. While our egoism was developing in moderation, there were of course all kinds of abnormalities in it, but not as much as now.

Today our egoism has outgrown the border of ordinary earthly society and is beginning to develop upward until we must necessarily correct it spiritually. We have outgrown earthly development.

The current eruptions of egoism already need spiritual correction and this is why we are at such a transitional stage. In the near future, we will have to understand that we need to do something with ourselves, society, family, science, culture, technology, and ecology. But we do not yet know what to do.

We are gradually coming to the conclusion that we have exhausted all our reasonable resources to compensate for our egoism and we cannot work with it as before. We cannot find any compensating forces, intimidation, persuasion, or education for our egoism that will continue to work.

Here, the wisdom of Kabbalah comes to our aid. It reveals to us new forces that can actually be a means of correcting our current egoism and not only correcting it, but bringing it to perfection.

I am sure that in the near future we will reveal this system. People will come to the wisdom of Kabbalah and see that everything is ready within it. Kabbalists have prepared everything for their use and for their benefit: “Please, you can make yourself, your family, and your children happy, make the world ecologically clean and see much more than you see today.”

Question: Were Kabbalists waiting for this moment to reveal their methodology to everyone? Do people now have to realize themselves at this level through all kinds of connections?

Answer: There is no escape because our egoism will force us. It will cause us such suffering with its lack of compensation that we will be forced to find this remedy, and then we will come to Kabbalah.
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From KabTV’s “Close-Up, Siamese Twins” 11/7/10

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Can We Change Ourselves?

294.3Question: Kabbalists talk about this concept of building a society where everyone is united. How do they envision it?

Answer: First of all, we must fully recognize the evil of egoism. But once we realize this, what then?

Let’s say I understand that there is nothing in the world but evil. Can I replace it with an opposite quality?! After all, there is either a force of attraction or a force of repulsion. We are either giving or receiving. Can I work in a mode of giving instead of receiving? No this is our nature.

But it turns out that there is a force in nature that can change us into the opposite and simply transform us. Today I work only in the receiving mode: where, what, and how to receive. Not to mention, I want to do it more comfortably, more cheaply, with less effort and while giving less and receiving more because this is the formula for my whole life and my activity at every level: physiological, mental, spiritual, whatever.

Can I really change myself? Yes. There is a force in nature that created egoism. It can have such an effect on us that it will change us toward the opposite direction. And suddenly, instead of always acting according to the formula “give less and take more,” we will begin to live according to another formula: “The connection between us is the most important thing and it determines all my actions.”

That is, my actions will be aimed at being as connected as possible with others, not receiving for myself, and uniting with everyone. At the same time, I will discover myself and the whole of nature as one single entity. And if this single whole is not connected together, then it will become more and more destructive and eventually destroy me just like cancer destroys the body.

If I understand this clearly, I will have no option but to find a way to change myself and connect with others. Now, when we are approaching a global catastrophe and because the whole world is externally connected and everyone depends on each other, we are simply obliged to do this.

And here Kabbalah becomes revealed, saying: “There is such a force in nature. This is the same force that created your egoism and keeps influencing it. It can affect your ego and make such an inversion instantly. If you understand that you have to be interconnected with others through good connections, this force will do all the work for you. How? Here’s a methodology for you.”

Then we will really be able to change the nature of man. Not ourselves or any political dictatorships, but the force that we invoke. We see this in the example of the Kabbalists who have been putting this into practice for many generations.

Today we are approaching a state where it can be done by all of humanity. And In this lies our bright future.
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From KabTV’s “Close-Up. Gene of Altruism” 9/19/10

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Why Does Egoism Value People?

962.2Question: Why do people constantly compare their achievements, for example, who has something that is more beautiful or better?

Answer: Because it is a symbol of power, wealth, or height. After all, this is why egoism values people. How can you know what kind of person I am? I can be a great sage and sit somewhere in a corner in rags. Or I can be a great ideologist and at the same time be very modest and humble.

When people put themselves on display, it is clear why this happens. Everything is moving toward a common recognition of evil. This serpent must come out completely, show itself in all its metamorphoses and guises, and manifest itself so that every person will see how much it is devouring him from the inside.

Only then will it be possible to talk about correction.
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From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. Whose iIs Better?” 4/24/10

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The Path To Complete Transformation

276.05To come to complete transformation and exit to the next level, humanity must reach the state of revealing a terrible evil: when people will literally devour each other, children and parents will hate each other, man will live in a house among his haters, among the most ardent enemies. We will reach such a state so that we force ourselves to look for a way out of it, a real way out, i.e., to rise above our nature and not just embellish it.

Nature will force us to deal not with all sorts of small compensations and small improvements, but to reach a complete crisis where we cannot do anything with it in education, upbringing, social relations, broken families, drugs, depression, technology, or financial affairs.

The crisis will cover everything that man does. And regarding the surrounding nature, there will be an ecological crisis. When all this begins to put pressure on us from the outside and from the inside, from all sides, then we will feel that we are obliged to do something.

Only then will we realize that there is an exit to the outer world: a small hole in the sphere in which we exist. This way out is in changing our egoistic nature.
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From KabTV’s “Close-Up, Unwanted Children” 11/28/10

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At The Stage Of Awareness Of One’s Nature

272Comment: In modern trading, we observe a peculiar chain when someone profits from someone and the other from him, then from someone else, and so on. And in the end, everyone loses, no one gains anything.

My Response: This is how the world operates, so that everything that people do goes away like water into sand. Nothing remains of this, except terrible efforts and crippled lives.

But now we are at a stage when we begin to be aware of our pettiness, the corruptness of our egoism, and we understand that we are unable to do anything.

And so we come to the realization that we need to do something with ourselves, with our nature. This is already a serious affirmation that people will see that in Kabbalah there is the power to get rid of human suffering, the power to transform all of humanity into something great. Not just to arrange life on earth somewhat, but to pull us out of this state to the next level, to the higher universe, to unlimited existence.

I see how many are approaching this. They may not even understand yet or be fully aware of what they are saying. But the process has begun.
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From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. Global Financial Fraud” 5/4/10

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Egoism Is Impossible To Tame

115.06Question: Why is gold so valuable?

Answer: Gold is the universal equivalent. Give another equivalent, and there will be another instead. Gold was detached from the monetary system and look at what happened: They began to speculate and print money.

You cannot print gold, but you can print paper. By doing this, we laid a land mine under ourselves that could explode. Today it is delivering the results.

It is inevitable! Since the ego is impossible to tame, you can only rise above it. And when you exist in it, it still develops to a state where you just kill yourself, and still do it with pleasure.
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From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. Dollars, Gold or Diamonds?” 4/21/14

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