Entries in the 'Israel Today' Category

Turning Away From The Path Of Suffering

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe Torah, “Leviticus” 26:36 – 26:37: And as for them that are left of you, I will send a faintness into their heart in the lands of their enemies; and the sound of a driven leaf shall chase them; and they shall flee, as one fleeth from the sword; and they shall fall when none pursueth. And they shall stumble one upon another, as it were before the sword, when none pursueth; and ye shall have no power to stand before your enemies.

If the Israeli nation doesn’t choose to correct itself voluntarily, there is a need for a very tough external force that will suppress the ego and force it to behave properly. This is called the path of suffering. Along this path people realize what they have been through, how far they have diverted from their goal, and that they need to fully understand this in order to return to fulfilling their duty. But in order to do so, their eyes have to be opened so that they become aware of the two forces in nature and how they operate.

You can only demand something from a person according to his level of development. When does a child begin to understand that he is in a certain framework? First he goes to kindergarten where he is taught what is allowed and what is forbidden. This continues in school. It is only at the age of 14-15 that he becomes responsible for his actions and understands that there are certain laws of behavior that if he breaks, he can be arrested by the police. After the age of 18 he is an adult, although he is not yet fully mature.

In any case, we have to bring a person to the recognition of what he is required to do and so he must fulfill that requirement. Only then will it be possible to hold him responsible. This is the reason that we undergo such a long preparation period of thousands of years. The problem today is that even the sufferings we have undergone don’t help us.

The question is if they were enough. At the end of the 19th century for example, the first settlers arrived in Israel. They were ready to live under difficult conditions such as a hot dry climate, swamps that needed to be drained, and the suffering of malaria in order to build the Kibbutzim. In 10 to 20 years, people began to forget all that. The second Aliya (wave of immigration) began and then the third, but they were different people because the ego kept renewing itself. A person doesn’t believe that what happened to him yesterday can be repeated today. It is not even his fault that it is all erased from his memory since he is a new person each day. Therefore, the main thing is education and the teaching of the principles of national and global unity.
[158205]
From KabTV’s “Secrets of the Eternal Book” 12/10/14

Related Material:
The Laws Of The Surveillance System
It’s Time To Grow Up!
A Spiritual Stigma That Cannot Be Erased Or Concealed

The People Of Israel – The Connection Point Between The Worlds

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe Torah, “Leviticus,” 26:44: But despite all this, while they are in the land of their enemies, I will not despise them nor will I reject them to annihilate them, thereby breaking My covenant that is with them, for I am the Lord their God.

The spiritual task placed on the part of humanity called the “people of Israel” is not transmitted to other peoples and cannot be transferred to them.

It depends on the inner foundation of the soul in all peoples. If he is created from that part of the illumination of the collective soul (Galgalta ve Eynaim) that once answered to call of Abraham, it cannot be changed or destroyed. This part is in every generation and creates a physical body around it. In this manner, all advance forward. Even if the people of Israel wanted to, they couldn’t give it up or deny it. This is impossible. It is a constant part of the general desire created by the Creator called Galgalta ve Eynaim, which is the smallest part, the most clear and closest to the characteristic of bestowal.

It must carry out its destiny. There is no escape; this is a physical law. The people of Israel are the point of connection between our world and the upper world.
[158246]
From KabTV’s “Secrets of the Eternal Book” 12/10/14

Related Material:
Israel Is Not A Nationality But An Aspiration
When Compensation Is Overdue
The Spiritual Division Of Labor

Fearing The Sound Of A Rustling Leaf

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe Torah, “Leviticus”, 26:36 – 26:37: And those of you who survive I will bring fear in their hearts in the lands of their enemies, and the sound of a rustling leaf will pursue them; they will flee as one flees the sword, and they will fall, but there will be no pursuer. Each man will stumble over his brother, [fleeing] as if from the sword, but without a pursuer. You will not be able to stand up against your enemies.   

We have to fulfill our role. This is our only salvation! What is more, it makes no difference where we live; we have a mission that we have to carry out with regard to the nations of the world, and therefore not everyone has to live in Israel. But we have to engage in fulfilling our mission! If it requires the physical return to Israel, then we will also have to do that. The main thing is to fulfill our mission.

However, I don’t believe that we can completely fulfill our mission somewhere abroad. But in Israel, we have to do everything in our power so that the people will know of our mission and will understand the reason for it. Even if they are seemingly in their right place, the situation isn’t right; we are surrounded by both external and internal enemies.

Each man will stumble over his brother, [fleeing] as if from the sword, but without a pursuer. You will not be able to stand up against your enemies. These words refer to our internal state. Although we will be affected by external problems, it will not be to such an extent, but we will begin to feel that our situation is scary, flawed, shaking, and dependent without any real basis, because we have actually brought it upon ourselves.

This is actually what a person has to understand. The most interesting point is that we can offer ourselves, our nation, the whole world, and the Creator, who is waiting for it, a bright future. But we don’t want to do anything and are ready to sit and shake with fear like scared rabbits. It is because the sound of a rustling leaf can hardly be heard, while we hear it and shake.
[158031]
From KabTV’s “Secrets of the Eternal Book” 10/12/14

Related Material:
It’s Time To Grow Up!
It Isn’t The Place That Sanctifies A Person, But A Person That Sanctifies The Place
Israel By Letter And In Spirit

Anti-Semitism And The Struggles Of Modern Man

Dr. Michael LaitmanIn the News (Radio Echo from Moscow): “One of Hollywood’s most famous producers, Harvey Weinstein, called to all of the Jews in the world to gather together to resist the anti-Semites. He said that faced by these terrorist groups like the Islamic State (ISIS) and Hamas, the time has come for the Jews to become as organized as the Mafia.

“To paraphrase him, ‘Good will defeat the evil, if the angels are organized like a Mafia.’ Until now, contrary to all the speculations of the proponents of conspiracy theories, the Jews have not only been unsuccessful in becoming consolidated like the Mafia, but not even like a symphony orchestra. No wonder they say that when there are two Jews, there are three opinions.

“Each one of the old Jewish organizations has its own policies, its own ‘fiddle’ and its own ‘party.’ Not even the blatant acts of anti-Semitism which are regularly happening in Europe today get a unified response. There may be a furious defense and severe imploring, but the attacks on the Jewish synagogues keep on becoming more frequent.

“This Hollywood producer says: I think that the struggle against anti-Semitism is a vital interest not only of our people, who lost millions of its sons and daughters in pogroms and the Holocaust, but it is the spearhead of the struggle of modern man with the barbaric ideologies of human hatred which threaten life itself on the face of the Earth. And so at least for the sake of this we need to be ‘organized like a Mafia.’”

My Comment: I think that his conclusion is correct. We must show an example of connection and unity, because we are the only ones who can do this correctly. Subconsciously,  the world is waiting for such an example from us, because all the suffering in the world is revealed only so we will unite and only then will all the suffering in the world cease. The The heads of countless Jewish organizations need to stop denying anti-Semitism, must stop being divided from each other, and come together in spite of their apparent differences. To the anti-Semites, we all look the same, and more precisely, we all have the same nose. As it is written: “Introduction to The Book of Zohar:”

67) When a person from Israel enhances and dignifies one’s internality, which is the Israel in that person, over the externality, which are the nations of the world in him, that is, when one dedicates the majority of one’s efforts to enhance and exalt one’s internality, to benefit one’s soul, and gives minor efforts, the mere necessity, to sustain the nations of the world in him, meaning the bodily needs, as it is written (Avot, 1), “Make your Torah permanent and your labor temporary,” by so doing, one makes the children of Israel soar upwards in the internality and externality of the world as well, and the nations of the world, which are the externality, to recognize and acknowledge the value of the children of Israel.

We see that redemption from the suffering of Israel and the entire world depends only on the unity of the people of Israel. All of the suffering of Israel and the world is only because of the absence of the requirement, “And you shall love your friend as yourself.”

70) Woe unto them that make the spirit of Messiah leave and depart from the world, and cannot return to the world. They are the ones that make the Torah dry, without any moisture of comprehension and reason. They confine themselves to the practical part of the Torah, and do not wish to try to understand the wisdom of Kabbalah, to know and to understand the secrets of the Torah and the flavors of Mitzva. Woe unto them, for with these actions they bring about the existence of poverty, ruin, and robbery, looting, killing, and destructions in the world.

71) In such a generation, all the destructors among the nations of the world raise their heads and wish primarily to destroy and to kill the children of Israel, as it is written (Yevamot 63), “No calamity comes to the world but for Israel.” This means, as it is written in the above corrections, that they cause poverty, ruin, robbery, killing, and destruction in the whole world.

But if we begin to unite and show an example to the whole world in this way, then all the nations of the world will recognize and acknowledge the merits of Israel. And they will fulfill the text: Isaiah 14:2: And the peoples shall take them, and bring them to their place. And as it is written: Isaiah 49:22: …and they shall bring thy sons in their bosom, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.
[158093]

Related Material:
Anti-Semitism Becomes Legitimate
Anti-Semitism In US Colleges
Antisemitism – History Repeats Itself

How To Achieve True Democracy

Dr. Michael LaitmanSingapore Experiment: The Right Dictatorship

Question: In March this year, Lee Kuan Yew, one of the founders of the “Singapore economic miracle,” died. On an empty spot on the edge of a swampy Malaysia, with nothing around but an English military base, within a short period of 50 years, the most prosperous nation in the world was established. But in this nation, there is not a speck of democracy in the sense that we understand it in the developed nations. How did this nation succeed in doing what large nations like America and England have done, while maintaining the strictest leadership and dictatorship of law?

Answer: I don’t perceive democracy in the same way as it exists everywhere, or that that deserves to be called a democracy. This is not the rule of the people, but its imitation: A handful of people take control over all the economic, political, social, and military resources; they say there is a democracy, and that they operate in the name of the people.

As long as we are under the influence of internal egoism without the altruistic force of nature to balance it, there cannot be a democracy. A democracy is built on contrast, a counterweight and a balance between two forces, which are positive and negative: our ego and the force of bestowal and love. There is a force of hatred and rejection and a power of attraction and connection, which must be balanced with each other. If the ego is balanced by a positive force, then it cannot be evil. And conversely, love and bestowal without the ego can lead to even worse extremism than the ego.

In other words, we were created in a system that is in a balance of plus and minus, between which what remains is only to ignite some kind of tension that gives the right orientation for all the work of the system. And if the positive force doesn’t exist or it is minimal and exists only in fear of annihilation, then we don’t have the conditions for a democracy. We “fall out” of the system in which the two forces are revealed. And therefore when we exist only in an egoistic system, what is most suitable for us is the correct dictatorship.

If a king rules a nation, then he takes care of his nation, his subjects, he doesn’t annihilate them, and they consider him to be great! He is the master! But in a democratic nation, there is no master. We let an election decide who operates the steering wheel for two, three, or four years, and then what? What do the elite care about what will be after that?! They will not be elected again, so they need to grab everything they can while they are in control.

So the dictatorship in Singapore is a wonderful system of government. Democracy in the form of a Sanhedrin.

Question: I have heard that the correct head of the state should be Kabbalists, who knowing the laws of nature,  will manage it in the interests of the entire society. What will be the basis of the moral drive of their behavior? Wouldn’t they be infected with greed; won’t they want to get rich after they attain control?

Answer: There is a concept such as the Sanhedrin (great assembly), where 120 Kabbalist sages gather, connect in a circle, and discuss all the issues on the agenda. The discussion is not based on differences of opinion, which is typical of our world, where it is believed that truth is born through debate. There is no truth in debate, because from the start it keeps us on a beastly level and we cannot rise above that. And we must rise above ourselves, because our stage can only lead to a higher level. We seem to rise to our next level, from which it is possible to see how to reach it.

This happens when people unite into a single, complete unit in spite of all the differences of opinion, and by annihilating their ego, they reach a common heart and mind together. This is a unique inner tension and practical work. From a state of unity, and only with this, they complement each other; they begin to come to a common opinion. But it is not connected to personal opinions; rather, is felt through a common unity. It is in this form that the system of governance for the nation and the people should be manifested.

How can strife and discord be avoided?

Question: Today many nations are trying to recreate this model to one degree or another. Take for example Turkey, in which the government has gradually become concentrated in the hands of one person, or Russia, that doesn’t even hide that it lives and thrives thanks to one person. There are also a multitude of other examples in less developed nations. Does it follow that the formation of governmental pyramids like this is the only way it is possible for humanity to go? So, where is it possible to take people like these who are satisfied with such a method of management?  And eventually in Singapore, which was not originally corrupt, all the key places became occupied by relatives of Lee Kuan Yew. Ultimately, some kind of caste was created.

Answer: Certainly this model cannot exist forever in an ideal state once bribery, power struggles, and the like begin. For some time it can hold its position on some ideal, but after that, everything deteriorates along the usual egoistic tracks.

Question: How would the Kabbalists avoid reaching this situation in the management of the nation?

Answer: The fact that they are united among themselves, the 120 greatest sages of the people would avoiding conflict and differences of opinion. Specifically in this situation, they would begin to discuss some issue and from their unity, they would receive an answer. After all, the unity between them is their next goal, which they must reach and include all people with them.

Question: Do discussions in circles, which your students organize, constitute a small version of this form of unity?

Answer: Yes. Discussions in the form of roundtables are organized all over the world, not just in Israel. We actively create a gathering, a discussion circle of men and women, who implement the unity by detaching and rising above themselves. Each one invests himself in the others and everyone yearns to be absolutely equal, with none greater or smaller in any way. We aspire to find a precise system of inner balance between us and pursue it so that all will be equal and integrated with each other, will lose himself in our unity, and from “I” will come to a state of “we.” Then, from the state of “we,” come to a state of “one,” as one person with one heart.
[157446]
From KabTV’s “Conversations with Michael Laitman” 4/1/15

Related Material:
Democracy, The Rule Of The Spiritual Nation
Kindergarten Democracy
Spiritual Peak Of The World

There Should Be No Lonely People

laitman_627_1Question: How is it possible that a person does not feel himself individually but perceives himself as an inseparable part of the whole?

Answer: He will not be able to think differently if he feels connected to everyone else, like a mother, depending on her children.

Could a mother think of herself as if she has no children? Whatever opportunities—a new job that she is offered—she immediately thinks about what would happen to her home in her absence.

Question: Will people no longer feel their loneliness, depression, or inner emptiness, which are now so common?

Answer: Depression will disappear immediately, as soon as we begin to awaken the positive force of nature, which will counterbalance the negative effect of our egoism.

Indeed, depression and emptiness are caused by the fact that we are at the mercy of a single, negative egoistic force with which we cannot make our lives better. We have reached a point after which we must bring a positive force to the world.

Question: Today, a person feels lonely even living in a golden palace, but will people be lonely in a corrected, perfect Israel?

Answer: There will be no lonely people because everyone will feel like a mother with many children. People will feel enveloped in love and warmth. This responsibility for everyone as for his children, will be his joy, not a burden.

Two forces will be inside the human being, and outside everything will be balanced. We do not understand what balance is. It is a touch of eternity, a sense of paradise. After all, everything comes into balance and harmony.

On the one hand, this state is composed of two opposing forces, and, on the other hand, these forces complement each other, and thus, it turns out that I am not affected by any force outside. My connection with others is so reciprocal that it is not hard for me to act for the common good, as do all the others.
[158261]
From KabTV’s “A New Life” 4/12/15

Related Material:
The Third Temple For All Of Humanity
Year 2015: An Optimistic View Of The Future
Studying And Teaching Others

The Third Temple For All Of Humanity

laitman_944Question: An independent state of Israel has existed for several decades. What does Israeli society lack in order to achieve security and full independence?

Answer: Universal education is needed to explain to the people of Israel that it is impossible to achieve any success until we learn to awaken the positive force of nature and, through it, to counterbalance the negative force of our egoism. We must show the world how to use these two forces and thereby constantly maintain our independence.

By doing this for ourselves, we also must think about how to teach this to the entire world. After all, humanity must accomplish the same thing, to be all together at the point of equilibrium between the two opposing forces, in other words, to build the third temple.

The third temple is not a building, but the concept of all of humanity achieving complete balance and harmony.
[158183]
From KabTV’s “A New Life” 4/12/15

Related Material:
Independance Day: Where Does Independence Begin?
Independence Day: The Beginning Of The Redemption Of Humanity
Independence Day: Unity Is The Strongest Weapon In The World

Independence Day: The Beginning Of The Redemption Of Humanity

Laitman_045The great Kabbalist, Baal HaSulam, considered the Independence Day of Israel to be a sacred holiday because he saw in it the beginning of the complete redemption of humanity and its ascent to the level of the Creator.

Question: For most people, this holiday embodies the independence of the Jewish nation.

Answer: There is no such thing as a nation that can be absolutely independent. We see that everyone in the entire world depends upon each other and a person depends upon other people because he cannot live by himself. So it is impossible to call our physical existence independent.

Independence can be attained only when you are in complete contact with those forces that determine your existence and you know how to manage them. Then, it is still possible to speak about some kind of independence, even though this concept is too facile. No one can be independent! Even a stone depends upon the environmental conditions that surround it.

A person’s independence can be discovered only when he feels full dependence and finds within it the possibility of being independent. Basically, this is a psychological intention. If a person is in the right, good, and eternal connection with all the parameters that influence and act upon him, then he is considered independent. He depends upon them completely, but because he begins to determine their relationship to him by himself, he is independent.

It is said that the Creator is good and benevolent, and in His system there is nothing that can cause us harm. But a person, himself, invites actions and negative influences within himself because he is not compatible with the system of the Creator. This means that in order to become independent from himself, he needs to correct himself and adapt himself to the level of the Creator; in other words, he must change to become good and benevolent, and then nothing will frighten him. He would be in a field of positive forces. Only in this  form are we independent! We need to reach this state.

It follows that, on the one hand, this is a state of full resemblance to the Creator, full dependence upon Him, but on the other hand, we also utilize His full dependence in us. This means that we are equal with Him, resemble Him and are absolutely connected with Him, and this is a state of full independence.
[157760]
From KabTV’s “A Talk About the Independence Day” 4/2/15

Related Material:
Wanting To Be Independent
Is Independence Possible In The Land Of Israel?
A Bridge Over The Eternal Conflict

Memory Of The Past And The Future

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: On Memorial Day we honor the fallen and say in the memorial prayer, “May they be imprinted in the heart of Israel from generation to generation.” What exactly do we need to remember? What lessons should be learned from these losses?

Answer: Remember—and then make a calculation for the future. And regardless of kinship, because everyone, either close or distant, belongs to the same people.

We need to be aware of why they fell. What caused these troubles? What does the world want from us? Why are we unable to arrange our lives so that peace and tranquility reigns in our relationships between us and other nations?

We come to realize that we lack only one thing: to balance and compensate for the evil inclination that burns between us, constantly causing friction and conflict. If we normalize to appease relations within the country, we will open this umbrella of peace above all the others.

What happens to the people of Israel is definitely going to happen to the world. This is stated in the Torah.

Since everyone hates us, that in itself is proof of our particular role. After all, the world does not harbor such a strong collective hatred toward anyone else. Is it difficult to see this as a sign of a special force, a special attitude?

It is time to think about what happens to these people. Throughout history we run from misery, trying to be like everyone else, and in return, we are told, “No, you are not like us. Stay back and check yourself. We blame you for being special and bringing us all evil and suffering.”

From where would it seem that this slander comes? After all, we want to give the world only good things. They say, “No, we do not need all that seems to be good to you. We want from you what will really make peace in the world.”

The nations demand unity from us, which will be a good example for everyone.
[158055]
From KabTV’s “A New Life” 4/16/15

Related Material:
Fate Has Brought Us Together And It Is Irreversible
How To Transform Enemies Into Beloved Brothers
Independence Day: A Paradox that Leads to Full Independence

Independence Day: Unity Is The Strongest Weapon In The World

laitman_285_03Question: On [Israeli] Independence Day, we conduct military parades and talk about the military “might” that makes it possible for us to be an independent nation. Would you say that this is not the main thing?

Answer: Certainly, we don’t determine anything through military might. These are all children’s games. However, as long as we don’t become stronger on a spiritual level, then we need to be strong on the earthly level.

If we had a strong inner connection between us, no one could ever harm us. Everything depends on the degree of unity between us. Baal HaSulam writes in “Introduction to The Book of Zohar” that only unity between us determines the degree of our security. Our independence depends on that.

Question: Does the nation need to be strong to protect its borders?

Answer: Power of this type indicates the weakness of the nation. If we were strong in our inner unity, then we would have no need for an army at all because we would have no enemies.

So, independence can be through freedom from my “self.” To the degree that I can rise above it through connection with others according to the principle, “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself,” to this degree, I am freed from all kinds of troubles, wars, terror, and everything else.

We need to act through the greatest and strongest weapon in the world, unity, which is what everyone expects from us, and, as long as it doesn’t exist, the entire world is against us, and this will only get worse because everyone is required for unity, and they see their enemy in us.

Subconsciously or consciously, everyone in the world will want the annihilation of our nation and people because our people are not carrying out their task, their mission, and in everyone’s eyes we seem as the bearer of evil, instead of good.

So, Independence Day must be a day of re-examination of the entire concept of our existence. It must be a day for exploration of our task, our mission, our destiny, our purpose, and then we can talk about having found a way to become independent.
[157760]
From KabTV’s “A Talk About the Independence Day” 4/2/15

Related Material:
Independence Day: A Paradox that Leads to Full Independence
Independance Day: Where Does Independence Begin?
Is Independence Possible In The Land Of Israel?