Baal HaSulam, Introduction to The Book of Zohar: We must not ponder the state of rest of the beings in the world besides man, since man is the center of creation, as will be written below in Item 39. All other creatures do not have any value in themselves, but to the extent that they help man achieve his wholeness. Hence, they rise and fall with him without any consideration of themselves.

Question: If the fall and crisis occur at the level of inanimate, vegetative, and animate nature, then this nature falls together with man? Where is the role of man in this? Or is he just in this environment and reaping the benefits?

Answer: Man is in this environment as the organizer of this fall. Nature itself is integral. Its inanimate, vegetative, and animate levels are interconnected and are in perfect harmony.

And man violates this harmony with his egoism. It is him who we must correct and then connect with all of nature in the same general integral picture, to complement each other in peace, in harmony with each other, and with all levels of nature. Nature’s forces push us to this.

If we quickly understand this and do everything we need, then there will be no viruses and no problems. And if we push, inflate, and only indulge our egoism, then nature will inevitably cause all kinds of problems with its sharp reactions.

These problems will show us that we must annul ourselves, unite between us, not abuse nature, which will still lead us to equilibrium but by pressure, crises, and blows.

But I hope that people will nevertheless learn and hear what the wisdom of Kabbalah says about this. And then we really straighten up.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah,” 5/10/20

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Medium published my new article “Learning Nature’s Teaching Method”

In the early 1930s, my teacher’s father, the great Kabbalist and illustrious thinker, Baal HaSulam, wrote a groundbreaking essay titled “The Peace,” where he outlined how humanity can achieve peace and what will happen if it doesn’t. Among other things, he articulated nature’s way of tending to its creations, how it rears them until they become independent. In his words: “Let us take the making of a human being as an example: The love and pleasure of the progenitors are its first reason, guaranteed to perform their duty. When the essential drop is extracted from the father … nature has very wisely secured a safe place for it, which qualifies it to receive life. Nature also gives it its daily bread in the exact amount. Nature has also prepared a wonderful foundation for it in the mother’s womb so that no stranger might harm it.

The coronavirus has given us the chance to practice mutual responsibility. All we have to do is obey two laws: wear masks and keep our distance. If we did that for just a few weeks, we would be rid of the plague.

“It tends to its every need like a trained nanny who will not forget it for a moment until it has acquired the strength to emerge into our world. …Then, too, nature does not abandon it. Like a loving mother, it brings it to such loving, loyal people it can trust, called ‘Mother’ and ‘Father,’ to assist it through its days of weakness until it grows and can sustain itself. As man, so are all the animals, plants, and inanimate; all are wisely and mercifully cared for to ensure their own existence and the continuation of their species.”

However, cautions Baal HaSulam, when we grow, we must assume responsibility and start behaving more and more considerately toward each other, care for one another and for all of nature. The more we resist nature’s lessons, the more insistently and painfully it teaches us. And the lesson that nature teaches us, wrote Baal HaSulam almost a century ago, is to build a society based on giving rather than receiving. Because we are reluctant, he added, “humanity is being fried in a heinous turmoil, and strife and famine and their consequences have not ceased thus far.”

However, nature’s lessons do not have to be harsh. Baal HaSulam writes that “The wonder about it is that nature, like a skillful judge, punishes us according to our development. For we can see that to the extent that humankind develops, the pains and torments obtaining our sustenance and existence also multiply.”

In conclusion, writes Baal HaSulam, “You have a scientific, empirical basis that nature has commanded us to obey with all our might the rule of bestowal upon others in utter precision, in such a way that no person among us would work any less than the measure required to secure the happiness of society and its success. As long as we are idle performing it to the fullest, nature will not stop punishing us and taking its revenge.”

Finally, Baal HaSulam warns, just a few years before World War II broke out, that “besides the blows we suffer today, we must also consider the drawn sword for the future.” Therefore, he adds, “The right conclusion must be drawn — that nature will ultimately defeat us and we will all be compelled to join hands in following its dictates with all the measure required of us,” namely “to obey … the rule of bestowal upon others.”

Nature’s gradual teaching method ended in Europe’s destruction and the death of tens of millions of people, since they would not listen. Now we are seeing the escalating cycle of hate becoming an ominous whirlpool that’s threatening to drown the entire world once more, and the cost will be much heavier than even the previous world war.

In The Writings of the Last Generation, Baal HaSulam writes that a third, nuclear world war will happen if we do not take upon ourselves the commandment of building a society of giving and mutual responsibility. Judging by the escalation in hate crimes and international tensions, it is easy to see his prediction materializing. But nature is a skillful judge; it will treat us according to our actions. If we choose mutual responsibility now, we will avert nature’s harsh lessons.

The coronavirus has given us the chance to practice mutual responsibility. All we have to do is obey two laws: wear masks and keep our distance. If we did that for just a few weeks, we would be rid of the plague. But can we? Do we care enough about others to help the world get rid of the bug? The coronavirus is a test of our commitment to each other. If we fail, nature will provide a far more stringent, and far less sympathetic, teacher. And if we keep failing, Baal HaSulam’s prediction will come true.
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Medium published my new article “COVID-19 and the Anxiety Epidemic”

Of all the scares that COVID-19 has wrought, probably the most fearful one of all is uncertainty about the future. During the lockdown, the country experienced a staggering rise in anxiety. On May 4, William Wan of The Washington Post reported that “The country is on the verge of another health crisis, with daily doses of death, isolation, and fear generating widespread psychological trauma.” The anxiety eased by about 40% a month later, as the country began to roll back lockdowns, reported the Medical Express, but now that the number of cases is rising once again and states are reissuing stay at home orders, anxiety is bound to rise again.

American authorities at all levels must draw a clear plan that will secure basic livelihood for every person, and enhance the social ties of individuals into communities.

With all that has been going on in America over the past few months, uncertainty about the future is the last thing the country needs. Since this anxiety stems from a real fear that people will have no job and no way to make a living, there is only one way to deal with it: American authorities at all levels must draw a clear plan that will secure basic livelihood for every person, and enhance the social ties of individuals into communities.

People must know what is going to happen to them, to their children, and to society as a whole. Therefore, as soon as possible, authorities must initiate open virtual sessions that explain how all the systems work. People have to know that contagion is not limited to viruses; we are an integrated society and affect one another on every level. The closing of one small business has a negative impact on many people who are seemingly unrelated to it: suppliers, delivery personnel, accountants, manufacturers, property owners, etc.

The same chain of infection that applies to COVID-19 applies to everything we do, say, or even think. If it is positive, we are transmitting positivity. If it is negative, we are transmitting negativity.

Likewise, one person’s depression affects not only that person’s kin and friends, but the friends of the friends, friends of the kin, healthcare workers, coworkers and the people they know, and so forth. The same chain of infection that applies to COVID-19 applies to everything we do, say, or even think.

If it is positive, we are transmitting positivity. If it is negative, we are transmitting negativity. Only once people internalize this, they will begin to feel responsible for one another, and that responsibility will pull them out of their down and mobilize them into constructive action.

In the near future, travel and tourism will drop sharply, as will sports and entertainment, trade in accessories, and countless other industries that thrived until a few months ago, leaving tens of millions out of work. These people will need help fast, and the only things that will help them are 1) basic sustenance, 2) grasping our mutual connectedness, and 3) enhancing their social ties and connection to the community.

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Medium published my new article “Why All the Hate?”

Wherever we look these days, it seems like hate is engulfing the world. It’s not as though there was no hate before, but in recent months, it seems like there is no escape from it.

On the one hand, hate has been recognized as man’s most basic feature, if you will. Even the Bible writes, “The inclination of a man’s heart is evil from his youth” (Gen 8:21), so we can’t really expect much else from people. On the other hand, judging by the recent escalation in racism-driven violence (and the protests against it), it looks as though hatred is pushing America over the edge.

Developing love is not some relic notion from the 1960s; it is the only way we can truly understand the world we live in, since it is the only thing that is out of balance in nature’s equilibrium, and the only thing that nature will not balance by itself, but has left for us to do.

Hatred is a uniquely human trait. No animal hates another animal, even when it feeds on it or when it is food for another animal. There is certainly fear, but there is no hatred. People are different: Their hate manifests in their delight at someone else’s pain or humiliation.

But there is a good reason why humans possess such a vile element in their nature: They are the only species intended to grasp the making and purpose of creation. In creation, everything exists through a dynamic equilibrium, a.k.a. homeostasis, between opposites. Opposites are required for our perception. We cannot detect light without darkness, heat without cold, satiation without hunger, happiness without sadness, and good without bad.

On all levels of nature, the equilibrium happens naturally. In humans, the equilibrium is maintained naturally only on the biological level. On the human, social level, nothing is maintained naturally. If you look at the social life of animals, you will find that they are perfect for their species: stable, and almost completely unchanging. There is no fundamental difference, for example, between the way dogs behaved two centuries ago and how they behave today. But compare people two centuries ago to people today, and you will hardly find anything that has remained the same.

The difference between animals and people is that nature governs the social life of animals, dictates how they should behave. They obey their natural instincts and everything runs smoothly. People, on the other hand, have no internal compass. We must be taught everything, especially when it comes to society. At birth, nature endows us with only an animalistic desire to survive, which, as we grow, evolves into a desire to take pleasure in other people’s pain and humiliation.

But there is a reason for it: If we develop the positive feature within us, the positive opposite from the inherent negative, we will discover how all of nature works, since all of nature also works by balancing opposites. This is the great gift that nature has given only to humans: the ability to develop the balance that sustains all of reality by themselves. This is why nature has given us one half — the negative — and left for us to build the positive. Had it given us both, we would be living by instincts like all other animals.

Therefore, developing love is not some relic notion from the 1960s; it is the only way we can truly understand the world we live in, since it is the only thing that is out of balance in nature’s equilibrium, and the only thing that nature will not balance by itself, but has left for us to do. When we do, we will understand nature and we will know how to navigate our lives smoothly and peacefully.

Let’s look at where we don’t know how to conduct ourselves instinctively: parenthood, relationships, social relations with peers at school, work, or in the company of strangers. In all areas of human engagement, we need these codes in order to compensate for the absence of love between us. And because our hatred for each other keeps on growing, we must constantly “update” our rules and regulations, which still cannot truly make up for the absence of love. If they did, we would not see such a staggering escalation in the rates of depression, substance abuse, suicide, and violence.

If we had love for one another in society, we wouldn’t need moral codes or even rules and police. Better yet, we would create the opposite of hate, the equilibrium that governs all of nature but humanity. We would not only be able to navigate our lives successfully, but we would truly grasp the making and purpose of creation.
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New Life 1241 – Global Community
Dr. Michael Laitman in conversation with Oren Levi

An individual is supposed to receive a sense of security from the community that cannot be bought with money. Money will not help a person protect himself against harmful agents such as the coronavirus, but community life will. The coronavirus is showing us that our egoistic relationships are opposite to the integrality of nature. Unless all of humanity becomes one community, we will not survive the 21st century. From the perspective of our egoistic human nature, each one of us wants to be the king of the world. This is the reason that we need to educate people to live in a community. We are part of a global nature. We will learn to connect to each other and to nature integrally, and then everything will be fine.
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From KabTV’s “New Life 1241 – Global Community,” 5/18/20

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Question: Can I change something in myself, am I my own master? What should I do to achieve lasting changes?

Answer: If you want to, you can do it. For this, there is a method of correcting yourself as an egoist, and this method is described in our courses. Go to the archives on our site and see everything that is said about it. Choose what you want, read, get interested, find friends and a group—go ahead.

Question: I want to be in the integral connections, but I understand that I am an egoist. What can I do alone?

Answer: You are all egoists! When you get together and learn how to help each other in a way that complements one another, then you will instantly see how both you and nature will become balanced, tranquil, and benevolent. This is all very quickly corrected; you just need to start listening and wanting it.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah,” 5/10/20

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New Life 1239 – The Coronavirus And Human Evolution
Dr. Michael Laitman in conversation with Oren Levi

Nature creates humans as good, but our egoistic desire to dominate others makes us bad. People who dominate others are strong and rich and do not have support from the integral power that is found in nature. They will not survive. In the world of tomorrow, people who know how to overcome their egos, think of others, and draw society toward unity will be considered strong. The characteristic of love is the most important for survival because we live in a global and integral world. Connection with the general power of nature depends on the bestowal of goodness to others. A person who has improved in this way, will feel like the king of the world.
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From KabTV’s “New Life 1239 – The Coronavirus And Human Evolution,” 5/14/20

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Question: Is nature something living, rational, with emotions, thoughts, plans, and the possibility of a meaningful reaction to our impact?

Answer: Nature is a rigid system consisting of inanimate, vegetative, animate, and human parts. All of them are in a certain dynamic equilibrium. If we upset this balance with our selfish influence, then nature reacts to this in the opposite direction, deviating like a pendulum to the other side. This is what we experience today with the example of the coronavirus.

Now we will be hit by such blows that will force us to become integrally connected because we exist in a state of “the last generation.” The last generation means the last egoistic generation in which the ego is corrected. We must fix it.

Question: So all our suffering comes from nature?

Answer: Of course. All suffering comes from the fact that you violate the integration of nature, its balance. Only from the loss of balance in nature that occurs through your fault do you get a reaction from it, which you feel as pain, trouble, and problems.

Man himself is very weak. You put a little pressure on him, and he already moans, cries, and is ready to do everything as it should be done. Thus, nature will force us to become good, mature, and most importantly, kind parts of nature toward each other.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah,” 5/10/20

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Question: Is it possible that in the near future, let’s say, perhaps in a year, a country may turn to Kabbalists in order to introduce a new system of education and upbringing? Or is this impossible from the perspective of spiritual laws?

Answer: It does not matter whether they turn to us or not. We need to be ready and spread our knowledge among all. Then in every country there will be smart people, including you who are engaged in Kabbalah, who will be able to participate in the transformation of their country and society.

To do this, it is enough to attract scientists and show them that everything should be in accordance with the integral system of humanity, society, and nature.

Humanity needs to change itself, to recreate from itself an integral part of nature. Today it is opposed to nature and therefore suffers. This suffering must be prevented. If society becomes integral, then everything will be fine. But if not, it will bring itself to a third world war and will practically disappear. This is stated in Kabbalah.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah,” 5/3/20

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Comment: What should I do if I want to explain and show people the lies that surround them, that the lion’s share of the media cannot be trusted? People don’t really care, they are ready to accept the victim’s position. They only feel fear, doom, and helplessness.

My Response: No, this will not happen. Understand that there is a border beyond which we can no longer endure suffering and we must try to find some solution.

After all, if it hurts me, I can say, “Ouch!” And if it is unbearable pain, then I will look for a cure, the opportunity to somehow calm it down. And if, in addition, this applies to my children, my family, relatives, state, and the world, then here we will take it all together.

We will not go anywhere because we can feel pain and joy. Therefore, we are very easy to manage.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah,” 5/10/20

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