Entries in the 'Mutual Guarantee' Category

The Right To Choose, Part 4

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: In every person such an immense ego has grown that he feels that he is a king. How will this look if he corrects his ego and hatred towards others into love?

Answer: First of all, we clarify that all of us depend upon each other, like organs of a single body. Therefore we have no choice; we must connect with each other mutually and correctly so that everyone will work for the good of everyone. The system that is built by us must be integral, closed, and whole.

To the same degree to which we approach relationships like these, by mutually completing each other, to this degree we begin to feel the power that is working within us. Between us, and within our connection, the integral force that we call “higher” is revealed.

We begin to discover this a bit even in a regular workshops and during discussions in circles that we arrange in different places including on the streets. That is how we demonstrate to people how, with the right connection, even a spontaneous connection like this that lasts only an hour, it is possible to feel a kind of force, a unique mood, a feeling that is unusual. Something is changed, and even the world seems different.

Question: What is this unique thing that the integral force brings into our lives?

Answer: This integral force obligates us to change our lives to be similar to it. Everyone becomes consolidated, connected, and each one feels everyone else.

Question: Where will that powerful ego that obligates each one to feel that he is like a king disappear to?

Answer: The ego will remain, since we connect above this ego! As it is said in Proverbs 10:12: Love covereth all transgressions. Each one will feel that he is a king, and specifically with his royal power, he will want to make everyone happy. He will want to be a good king. Why do you think he will be an evil despot?

Question: But if each one feels that he is a king, how will all of these kings get along together?

Answer: In an integral system, each individual is as important as everyone else. This is because if he doesn’t perform his role, the entire system will break down.

Question: And who obliges each individual to perform his role?

Answer: The system maintains and supports a person and obliges him to act, and so he gives everything to do so. This mutual support is called a covenant, the power of Arvut (mutual guarantee), which must exist between everyone.

Question: Is there a chance that Israel will become stable?

Answer: We will be ready to do this since no other choice will remain. But the question is, will we reach this through the way of suffering or thanks to an understanding and awareness by which it is possible to advance by a short and pleasant way?
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From KabTV’s “A New Life” 12/9/14

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The Maccabees And The Greek Ideology, Part 1

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: While we are celebrating  Chanukah, the festival of the victory of the Maccabees, let’s talk about the Hellenization, which prompted them to go to war with the Greeks.

After the conquests of Alexander of Macedonia, the Greeks imposed their culture, which in those days seemed quite enlightened, rational, and intellectual.

The rational approach, consciousness and understanding was at the forefront, on the one hand, and on the other hand, beauty and aesthetics. Competition also played an important role. Essentially, ancient Greek culture was portrayed as very progressive and dynamic.

Initially, in the first two centuries, the new government was sympathetic to all the peoples, including the Jews, allowing them to keep their customs and religious rituals. Together with this, they were required to be a part of the universal  “supermodel” empire with cultured moral principles.

At first glance, everything was okay. The Jewish elite joined the process and saw the developmental trends in it. But among the Jewish people appeared a group that opposed assimilation and wanted to keep its uniqueness instead of disappearing into the “collective” culture. Why was that? What was bad about it?

Answer: First of all, these events look very different to my eyes. That part of the people who remained faithful to Jewish culture represented not a quantitative, but a qualitative minority—the weakness of man’s internal forces.

Greek culture could not seriously penetrate Jewish culture, for it was in absolute opposition to what the Jewish people lived and breathed and what absorbed their entire approach to life. First of all, in those times, the Jews passed through a powerful comprehensive education system. It was said that there was no child from the age of six from Dan to Beersheba who didn’t know the laws of impurity and purity.

Moreover, this is talking about the inner purity of a person. Today Rabbis pass examinations on Kashrut, but the people knew then that “purity” was essentially the intention to bestow, and “love your friend as yourself.” Impurity was its opposite, the use of the ego for personal benefit. The Jews lived according to the law of love until the days of Rabbi Akiva, when the second Beit HaMikdash (temple) was destroyed and the principle of love your friend as yourself collapsed, something which later led to the exile of the Jewish people.

Indeed in the period of the Maccabees, they were all still at a great spiritual height; people knew how to keep the Torah and the Mitzvot (precepts) in the spiritual sense by correcting their desires for the good of others and for the good of the Creator. All of them then were truly as one person with one heart. They certainly were compelled at every moment to overcome the evil inclination that was continuously growing, and in this way, they rose higher and higher in the love of others, in unity. Their unity caused growth of the ego at all times and they again united again above it in order to discover all of the ego within the people, connect above it, and attain the completion of correction.

They yearned for this, and on this condition the first Beit HaMikdash was built. Then a retreat from this began, which was completely natural, until everything was destroyed and the people of Israel went into exile and then later left it, as it is said, Genesis 15:14: with great substance, as in the time of the exodus from Egypt. However, this time it would draw all of humanity after it, which in fact is something that we need to do today.

First of all it is necessary to understand the process, which is completely opposite of what happens with all other people. The people of Israel live according to the law, Leviticus 19:18: And you shall love your friend as yourself, in Arvut (mutual guarantee), each one supporting the others and creating unity through the power of bestowal. And then the Creator was revealed among them.

The prophets also appeared from here. Everything that they did and wrote was derived from living within the Light, through discovering the higher power, the true higher reality.
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From the program “A New Life” 12/14/14

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Unity Is The Guarantee Of Victory, Part 4

Dr. Michael LaitmanToday’s modern world has become a small village in which everyone depends on everyone else. However, it is steadily degrading because it lacks the power of connection that would consolidate and weld us all together. The world needs to get this power from the people of Israel.

But the people of Israel don’t want to carry out their role or fulfill their mission and serve as an example for connection and unity for the rest of the world. Each one aspires to hide in his niche, imitating the European lifestyle under the conditions of Western democracy that make it possible for a person to live in isolation independently.

But this aspiration is absolutely opposed to the spirit of the people of Israel, for it doesn’t allow us to attain Arvut (mutual guarantee). And Arvut is the foundation and basis for the existence of our people.

Question: It has seemed to us that the problem is in the forces of darkness that are arising in the world in the terrorist organizations of extremist Islam. So now it is becoming clear that the world lacks the power of connection and unity?

Answer: The point is not the terrorists and not the anti-Semites. This is only the result of the lack of Light, due to which dark desires appear in humanity, in an individual or in a group of people.

In the hands of the people of Israel is a faucet of Light, and whether this faucet is opened so that the Light will stream to the world or whether it is closed depends upon them. This is the reason that all the nations of the world blame Israel; they blame us that they aren’t getting the Light. They don’t understand that they lack the Light, but intuitively they feel that we are to blame for all of their problems.

Everything that happens among the people of Israel influences the whole world. Whereas, our people don’t understand and don’t want to listen to the fact that without inner unity, we are not at all the people of Israel and we are not positioning ourselves against the power of nature.

Question: The mood today in Israeli society is very bleak. People feel disappointment from what is happening in the nation. Today we very much require such a miracle as occurred on Chanukah. What must be done so that the miracle will happen?

Answer: The miracle will happen only thanks to integral education. The war of the Maccabees was an ideological war. The Greeks didn’t come with the goal of physically annihilating the Jewish people, they wanted to annihilate them ideologically. If we were to place them in an endless soccer game, then it would be possible to assume that the Jewish people would be wiped out. Annihilation of the people of Israel means playing instead of engaging in connection and unity.

Question: Soccer is a good example because this year there were unprecedented events of cruelty and violence at soccer games, the like of which has never been seen in Israel. Warm feelings of fans for their team suddenly became so fanatically violent that it was really frightening to enter the stadium. This is an example of an anti-Israeli spirit. What is the Israeli spirit that we need to attain instead of this?

Answer: It is said: (Proverbs 10:12): Love covereth all transgressions. Above every force of separation we need to establish the force of unity. This is even though this force of separation remains and we cannot do anything about it because this force comes to us from nature. We don’t need to struggle against this force, our impatience, or the hatred and jealousy. In spite of their existence, we must cover them with love, our good attitude towards others, bestowal and trust.
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From the program “A New Life” 12/11/14

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The Mystery of Israel

Dr. Michael LaitmanIn recent years,  politicians have started talking about legislative consolidation of the Jewish character of the state of Israel. The reason for this is the broad wave of  anti-Semitic attacks. The whole world has a problem with the Jewish people,  asking: “Why did they take the possession of land that does not belong to them?”

Many do not even agree with the original division of the territory in accordance with the UN resolution. Today, a secondary vote, of course, would deprive us of the right to our own state.

After the disaster, the world was uncomfortable in front of us, and if we indeed were to get the country, this will continue, according to the laws of common development.

However, we have to make it really ours, take the holy land (Eretz) as a desire (Ratzon) to purify and form not as a collection of exiles, but as the people of Israel, in the full sense of the word, fully united and aspiring straight to the Creator (Yashar El).

We have to take a course on cohesion, love, and unity, to become as one man with one heart.

If we had arranged our nation in this way, we would not have had to carry the endless war for the past 66 years without a single second of rest and relaxation. And the situation would not have been like it is today such that when all of Israel is forced to plan an emergency evacuation, an escape plan in case of a disaster.

Question: Again and again, life confronts us with basic issues that affect our very existence in the land of Israel. And always this topic covers the fog of uncertainty, vagueness. Why is there this agonizing incompleteness in our self-determination? Why haven’t all “I’s” been dotted?

Answer: It is because we want to be like all the other nations and define our country like everyone else, according to the traditional representations of territory, borders and public entities. However, for us it does not work and does not apply to us. This usual format does not cause a faithful response in us, where we do not feel for ourselves, and do not find any correlation as to how our country should be identified and appear as our people, and every person in it.

It turns out that we are not the people of Israel, as it should be, and we do not live in the land of Israel nor in the country of Israel, as it should be according to the original sources, according to our basis. We have tried to adopt the concept of external concepts, simply taking them in, but they have not come to fruition. The international standard label comes unglued again and again.

As a result, we feel that it is not suitable, but continue to burden ourselves with it, without making the definition clear. And the world, for its part, does not understand our actions and sees the state of Israel as some artificial entity.

We can eloquently argue that this is our land. We can even sacrifice for the sake of life. However, we still do not understand what “the people” and “the country” mean for the Jewish people.

Baal Sulam wrote a great piece about it in the newspaper “The Nation” (HaUma), which, incidentally, was closed following its initial release. In this paper, the nature of these concepts and the need to return to their roots after two thousand years of exile was described in detail.

Why should we turn to ancient history and to the primitive life now that once was lived by our ancestors? On the contrary, in the previous centuries advanced nations planted their cultures everywhere. A foreign culture with a particular success was transferred to the indigenous peoples of Africa and America. Languages would die out as well as the traditions and beliefs, giving way to the English, Spanish, and French influence.

But we still have not been able to keep within the margins of the present. There is nothing we can borrow from the people of the world. On the contrary, we are organized in such a way that the people of the world adapt the correct things from us.

It is not up to us and it is not pride or arrogance. We are hard-wired this way. It is no coincidence that the world sees us as an intelligent, developed people, nurturing a purpose of life. The world feels that the Jewish people have a secret they do not want to open to others, so this means they must force us to give it up.

This feeling is indestructible, and we must finally understand what they want from us. Indeed, what kind of a mystery lies within us? If we only knew, then we could sell it for triple the price. But no, it does not work this way.

After all, what we hold inside and that lies within the people of Israel without their knowledge is this great, beautiful, alluring, shining goal, the future of the world.

Our world is bound to the brotherhood in which we once lived. We need to regain it, in other words, to live together as a law-abiding people, love our neighbors as ourselves, according to the principles that we received on Mount Sinai, and to be as one man with one heart.

Today our global, integrated world feels the unbreakable relationship of all its parts, literally requires it, and requires compliance with this law. If we reveal an umbrella of guarantee over all of us, we will find ourselves in a world that is for us, is as the Garden of Eden.

That is why in this modern era, the world pays attention to us without knowing how or why and begins to demand the law from us by which it will live tomorrow. After all, today’s life seems more and more intolerable to the world, pitch black, and hopeless. It no longer presents a picture of tomorrow. And subconsciously, people feel that the Jewish people have the answer.

Anti-Semitism flourishes around the world as a consequence, affecting millions of people. Thus, it simply obliges us to wonder about the law and about the way of life that should form the basis of our existence here.

If we really did go back to the roots, if we would put into practice the concept of “the people of Israel” aspiring “straight to the Creator” (Yashar-El), i.e., to unity, solidarity, and love, if this were so, we would educate the people based upon the law combined with each other, as one man with one heart, helping neighbors and binding people together by this partnership. This would serve as an example to the world. Moreover, we would teach people how to build unity.

The world would then understand that we are a special part of it and that we really need to learn. And there is much to learn, since it’s the future and the salvation of all mankind. It is not just for a few decades comprising the lifespan of every generation, but rather a new basis for a new foundation being laid here in which our world will be perfected and ascend to a new level, into the eternal, perfect condition.

Today our egoism devours itself and as a result, we live an average of 70-80 years. If we move from the egoistic receiving desire to an altruistic one, to bestowal, and if everyone would live with their heart wide open among one’s nation, taking care of all, we would find other natural laws, the laws of love and bestowal. At that point we would enter into the eternal, perfect life and our world would open the opportunity to live beyond the limitations of time, space, and motion. We would begin to perceive the world in which there are no limits.

In the meantime, the problems towards the Jewish people, which we call anti-Semitism, will grow more and more. We cannot get rid of this. On the contrary, we will have to give an answer, as it is necessary to stand face to face with this situation.

At the same time, we will need to solve the problem of the Jewish character of the country, recently exposed for public discussion. But, it must not be by artificial language and not on the basis of the laws that we have inherited from the British mandate or Turkish rule. No, we need to take up the Torah and draw out all the necessary definitions.

For millennia, since the days of Abraham, Kabbalists have explained the meaning of “the people of Israel” and “country of Israel,” and who is a “Jewish person.” We need to open ourselves to the world, abandon the boundaries and take into our surroundings, everyone who wants to live by the law of love and unity under the umbrella of bestowal. That’s right, rather than geographic, the boundaries of the land of Israel, that is, universal mutual guarantee, will extend to the whole world.

In principle, the land of Israel is not the territory on the surface of the globe, but a place where people live according to the law of love. So now it does not exist. After all, the earth (Eretz) means the desire (Ratzon). If there is the law of love between people living in any place and they follow such law, their relationship, their common desire is called the land of Israel, the desire aspiring straight to the Creator (Yashar-El), and thus they want to be like the upper force.

That is what we have to explain, demonstrate, and offer to all peoples. And then, instead of hatred, we will feel empathy, respect and affection, which is what we feel right now from many thousands of our students around the world. We see how committed they are to us when we teach them how to unite with each other to cooperatively achieve a higher power.
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From the program “A New Life” 11/30/14

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Know The God Of Your Fathers And Serve Him

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe Torah, “Leviticus,” Kedoshim, 19:4: Do not turn to idols and do not make molten gods for yourselves: I am the Lord, your God. An idol is something we obtain a priori,  obtained without any proof and must be taken on faith without trying to comprehend it. This is not done at the level of the human being.

A person must attain the levels of bestowal and mutual love between us, reveal, study, and work with them. He should fully comprehend, understand, and feel the system with one’s heart and mind. Only then can he say that doesn’t worship idols nor accept anything randomly.

Despite the fact that this is a very difficult life, the Creator poses such problems before us so that we reach the level of Adam (human) and don’t remain on the animal level.

So we can’t afford to take anything for granted. The Creator wants us to study Him, “Know the God of your fathers, and serve Him.” That is, the greatest point of our ascent is the perception and the attainment of the Creator.

Comment: Sometimes one wants to disconnect from everything just so one would simply be carried forward.

Answer: This is how our egoism works within us. On one hand, the ego always accompanies us during the correct development. On the other hand, there’s a need for a distinct spiritual attainment, development, and absorption, otherwise one doesn’t quench their thirst or feel oneself.

Bestowal is the source for clean water that quenches the thirst.
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From KabTV’s “Secrets of the Eternal Book” 3/26/14

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Rid The World Of The Virus Of Anti-Semitism

Dr. Michael LaitmanToday we feel ourselves completely alone in the stormy sea of hatred towards us. During the last half-century we could not even imagine a situation like this. We supposed that anti-Semitism had been a passing phase in the history of humanity.

And suddenly it flares up with a new fury, engulfing scientists, men of culture, science, and psychology, which is to say the most developed and educated part of humanity, not to mention everyone else.

Such an attitude towards us is absolutely irrational; it is within humanity. The outbursts of hatred, like a mental illness, have no connection to the level of cultural, scientific, social, and economic development. They come by themselves and spill out during certain periods of human history.

In our day this comes to be expressed even among those people who never had any connection with us. This hatred towards us is completely not understandable, because they don’t really know who the Jews are.

They hate us because some kind of virus breaks out from within them. For them it is new. It simply breaks out inside them and spreads in all directions.

Throughout the generations, the Jewish people have suffered from a virus with the resounding name “anti-Semitism.” But in our hands there is the method of Abraham, based on the laws, “And you shall love your friend as yourself,” “Don’t do to your friend what is hateful to you,” on the principles of Arvut (Mutual Guarantee) and unity.

As long as we don’t bring this method to our attention, not as a theory but as something practical in daily life and don’t begin to educate ourselves in this direction, we ourselves nourish and open up this general anti-Semitism.

So the attitude towards us will only grow and become more severe from day to day despite any temporary calm and lull, after which comes a new wave of hatred, even greater than before.

We are found within a natural framework, which has repeatedly demonstrated his trend to us. I hope that we understand what must be done and will succeed in regrouping to provide everyone with security and a good future.

Without a doubt, everything that happens between us respectively influences humanity. If we begin to take steps to connect and unite, as one people with one heart, the rest of the peoples will also turn around towards this under our influence.

They have no freedom of choice, so they simply follow us. In fact, immediately, we will see how qualitative changes in our attitudes will cause changes in their attitude between them and with us.

It is impossible for us to forget this; it is worthwhile to consider seriously that the correction of our attitude according to the general rule “Love thy neighbor” will cover the entire world and bring happiness and wellbeing to humanity.
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From KabTV’s “Short Stories” 10/24/14

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A New Way Of Thinking About Money

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: As Einstein said, we cannot solve our problems on the same plane that we create them. What kind of new thinking must we develop regarding money?

Answer: In the past, people depended on money much more than today. There was no social security, no health or retirement funds, nor any kind of social assistance for single-parent families or those living below the poverty level and so on. In all such cases, people had to have money to cover themselves.

If we were suddenly to refund those sums that were subtracted for the maintenance of schools, kindergartens, and hospitals from a person’s salary, his salary would grow by a third. But he would certainly not keep this money for difficult times. He would waste it, and if something happened to him, he would be the responsibility of society.

We see that our development obliges us to advance in such a direction that money, meaning coverage for all kinds of different expenses, will pass more and more into the hands of society. Clearly, it must be utilized correctly and not for political games.

If we see that people are concerned that their salary is not enough to maintain their home, to pay for services and food, so it could be that we must advance in this direction.

For example, it is necessary to make a general accounting for a city’s inhabitants as to how much is necessary to pay for water, gas, and electricity for everyone. The problem is that we will need to educate people to plan economically for every need, since without education there could be many more expenses than today.

But regarding the basket of commodities, we absolutely can do this. By allocating a particular sum from everyone’s salary, we can supply everyone with coupons with which they will be able to use at a store to get whatever groceries they need for a month. We could even organize a weekly delivery.

In addition, I would also suggest creating storage facilities for various things. Instead of people keeping things in their attic and throwing them away later, it is worthwhile to provide them for general use by others. When you need something, you would come and take, if not yours, then goods that belonged to someone else. This relates to clothing, children’s toys, and other things, even kitchenware.

In this manner, we could utilize not only household items, but also our professional services. For example, we could organize various systems for offering services to each other that we cannot pay for by ourselves. Once a week, every professional would work voluntarily for a number of hours and everyone would be aware of this. We would not need to pay for these services with money even though it is available. It follows that we would receive a meaningful addition to our salary.

Comment: In the meantime we believe that money gives us independence and we don’t want to depend on each other that much.

Answer: Home economics realistically demonstrates how much water, electricity, gas, and fuel I need, how much I can allocate for renovations, how much will be left for food, clothing, etc. If we write down all of these items, then a person will be convinced that he will always remain in a deficit (minus). Is this called living with money? He simply has pictures in his hands with which children play. If we explain all of this logically, basically people will move away from independence like this.
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From the program “A New Life” 9/02/14

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Reaching Heaven

Dr. Michael LaitmanAt the time the people of Israel left Babylon, there were two tendencies. Since then these two tendencies, two worlds, have existed one within the other. The Jewish people were mixed with humanity, and at the same time, they did not dissolve into it. They were scattered, yet they couldn’t disappear; for at their source, they are a completely different society that is connected and linked with each other in another way.

These two tendencies cannot intermingle. The Jewish people and the other peoples have such different natural, spiritual sources that a very clear and tangible separation has existed and still exists between them. This is impossible to describe and understand.

There was a time that Babylon, the cradle of humanity, was like a family. Then a great eruption of ego occurred and King Nimrod came into power. Babylon, in a fundamental way, became the capital for all the advancement of those times: mysticism, the occult, and so on.

Babylon was really at the center of humanity. And in this center a small point was created. This was a Babylonian priest by the name of Abraham, his father Terah, and his grandfather Nahor. They were great masters of wisdom, were learned men, astrologers, and scientists. They were a very educated family for those times.

And so suddenly in Babylon problems and differences of opinion suddenly broke out. The eruption of ego separated people and caused fights, conflicts, struggles between brothers, and other problems that hadn’t existed in the past. A need was discovered for courts, lawyers, guards, police, etc.. In fact, capitalist principles suddenly began to materialize.

The family of Abraham actively participated in this because it was essentially involved in ideological work with the population.

And so the Babylonians reached a situation where they decided to build the Tower of Babel, meaning that allegorically, it reached the heavens. Their arrogance grew in such dimensions that their power, I would say, their audacity and boldness exploded so much that they wanted to reach the stars.

Abraham began to investigate the subject because this subject touched him directly. I think that he began his investigation for absolutely egoistic reasons. After all, if people wanted to reach the stars, this threatened his profession, wealth, power, and authority.

Question: So in the beginning Abraham decided to go in a simple scientific path?

Answer: He had to solve this problem. People first turned to him for advice regarding simple daily problems: Should they water the fields or not, should they go fishing or wait, whom should they marry? They asked things like that. But people became so egoistic, so immersed in narcissism, and so sure of themselves, that it was as if they stopped feeling a need for him.

Abraham felt that they avoided him, and this situation threatened his future.

Understandably, I am exaggerating a bit, but in principle, it must be noted that in the beginning he was a regular egoist. He made statues of idols and sold them profititably to the community that worshipped them. In the end, everyone profited from this, since the community received a feeling of security and Abraham received his profit.

And suddenly people stopped being satisfied with statues. They felt that they were above them. This was threatening to Abraham himself, his future, his profession, and his status. And so he began to investigate what happened.

It is necessary to say that in his heart, he was a true investigator. In other words, the truth was more important to him than his personal gain.

And so when he explored the nature of the phenomenon that he had encountered in the Babylonian environment, Abraham saw a very interesting tendency in the development of the ego. During this process, people began to neglect his idols, for their ego became like a god for them. And accordingly, the fulfillment, the desire, and the glorification of the ego replaced all the other cults.

In the modern era, we see the same processes throughout the world. Why do people move away from religion? It is because the ego has grown in them. “What do I have with a divinity that is sitting who knows where if I have my own divinity: my ego, my self, that is more important to me than anything else?”

Until now, Jews and Christians have broken away from their religion in droves, and in the Muslim world, a struggle against fundamentalism is happening since they are also going through a process away that takes them from religion. As for the Indians, they also have the same struggle, but quietly and covertly. Their way is slightly different, but it is also leading towards the same goal.

There is nothing to do about it, since this is the universal way of development. Yet since every nation has a different purpose, it comes to be expressed in different ways.

In any case, the ego has become a new religion. This is just as it was in ancient Egypt when Pharaoh said: “Who is the Creator that I should listen to His voice? I myself am supreme.”

That is also what happened in ancient Babylon. When Abraham investigated this phenomenon, he discovered its essence: The ego grew to such dimensions that it became the central active image, the supreme power. Highest in the hierarchy of personal worship—for me there is nothing higher than my ego.

And so Abraham wondered: How in general is it possible to contend with this ego? “Suppose that he truly is the crown of creation, the supreme power of nature. In fact, from what I see, the impression is created that the human ego dominates everything. It destroys and builds; everything good and everything bad is done only by it, with its help, and for its sake. But if we go after it blindly, we will destroy everything and annihilate each other and all of civilization.”

This is what Abraham saw. And he was helped by King Nimrod who offered his own solution: separate and distanced from each other, to calm things down, and  scatter all over the shared space.

Nimrod was very clever. He understood that he could not do anything against what was happening by himself. So he worked for the sake of the separation process.

But Abraham looked forward: “Okay, we are dispersing. And what will happen then? After all, this is only half of the work. We truly must calm the Babylonians down who formerly lived as one family and became hateful to each other. But this only delays finding the solution, and from this aspect it doesn’t bring us closer to it at all.

“The true egoistic direction demands that, on the contrary, we cooperate and consolidate. It is true that the ego separates and incites us against one another where different interests conflict. But on the other hand, it connects us so that we can enjoy each other.”

So egoistic development is both, and within it exist opposite aspects. So everyone felt this, yet didn’t know how to use it.

“I know that I cannot get along without my neighbor. Yes, I need to stay away somewhat, to be distant from him where we disturb each other. I suppose that there is a river flowing between us now, or there is a staircase found between us. But on the other hand the neighbor produces something and I produce something, so we can help each other and, in spite of it all, we need to be connected for the sake of our egoistic fulfillment.”

Here the problem of how we correctly cooperate with each other is immediately revealed. The clearest example is the Europeans with their common market. When they were separate, they existed in a reasonable manner. Clearly, they were fighting all the time, but they existed. They wanted to connect and didn’t know how to do this. In other words, it was bad on one side and bad on the other and they didn’t know how to work with the ego.

But in fact, it is impossible to work with it. This problem was clear from the start. Both Abraham and Nimrod stood before the problem of how to transform the ego into a vital force.  How do I use my hatred towards others, my dependence on others, my desire to dominate others in a positive way? And accordingly, the same attitude exists from others towards me, which is the desire to dominate, hate, conquer, and so on. How does one bring all of this to common denominator?

After all, if we don’t solve the problem, we will be constantly immersed in disputes, annihilation, wars, etc. This is what we have seen up to today. People are already tired of all this.

Look at the modern world. From the start, there has always been unrest everywhere. Soon there won’t be any place that is calm. Latin America, China, and Japan will rise up again; everywhere there are the first signs of future wars.

How can we package our ego correctly? If this is a natural force, how can we use it correctly?

The correct use of the ego was Abraham’s discovery. Not one-sided, according to the principle of separation, nor according to the military principle of who will defeat whom, which leads to self-destruction, but a clear calculation: We require the ego so that from the hatred that typifies it, we will create the characteristics of love and mutual connection.

In conclusion, Abraham solved the problem of how to transform the ego. Without getting into philosophical, historical, technical, and psychological details that are inherent in the characteristics of nature and its laws, in general, this is Abraham’s legacy.

As a result of many years of investigation, Abraham succeeded in understanding this natural phenomenon, and after penetrating more and more deeply into the ego, there he found the higher power of nature.

He understood why it was necessary for humanity to pass specifically through this development so that a person will truly rise to the level of the Creator. And then it follows that the aspiration of civilization to build the Tower of Babel to the heavens was right, but it is necessary to build it specifically according to a supra-egoistic technology. The human ego, the construction material of the Tower of Babel, will constantly grow, but each one must stand above it. The little man stands above the pile, above the mountain that is constantly growing.

Abraham researched all the components that appeared, against their will, in that small humanity of Babylon. He used them according to their designation, and he discovered that in fact there is only one solution. And he realized this solution.

He realized it by gathering a group of his supporters, his students, that truly rose up to the heavens, meaning that they built a spiritual Tower of Babel above their ego. And as a result of this, they reached the highest point of nature, the characteristic of bestowal and love. They grew to this level.

In other words, Malchut, the egoistic foundation of humanity, reached the level of complete bestowal and love, the level of Bina.

To reach this, Abraham’s group had to leave Babylon and work for many years. Abraham lived around the year 1,700 BC, and built the correct Tower of Babel, in other words the First Temple attributed to the year 900 BC.

Generally, the concept of the Tower of Babel has passed through all of human history and humanity aspires to it subconsciously. Abraham, in the end, built it, and clearly in an absolutely different form than the Babylonians themselves imagined.
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From KabTV’s “Babylon Yesterday and Today” 9/24/14

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The Principle Of Dissemination

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Midrash Gadol tells us that Moses passed on the Godly reproof and instructions to the people. First he taught his brother Aaron privately, taking into account his high level of understanding.

Then he invited the sons of Aaron, and in the presence of their father, began to explain the Torah to them on a level that they could grasp. The elders joined them, followed by the men, and finally the whole nation of Israel, including the women and the children.

How does the descent to the people, when it is already possible to tell all of them about the Kabbalistic method, take place?

Answer: Considering the organization of our group and our pace of advancement, we see that it has been many years before we began to actually understand and feel the inner material, to speak about the meaning of unity and connection, and how it should be fulfilled among us and how it should be fulfilled among the masses.

Now we begin to gradually organize discussion circles among the people and to explain why connection and unity are the answers to all our problems. This is the idea of our dissemination.

People who have a point in the heart, like Aaron, his sons, and the elders can reveal a relatively deep meaning of the spiritual method.

Men (Gever – from the Hebrew word to overcome), which means those who can overcome their ego, can be taught a bit less.

It is only afterward that the people can be approached: the women, the elderly, and the children (which are all spiritual categories of people on different levels of development), those who cannot seriously work on themselves. But thanks to their mass and by joining all the other levels of society that are already corrected, it can be explained them so that they will also receive the Light of correction and become holy.

This means that the spiritual advancement is from the top down according to a pyramid hierarchy. First Aaron is taught, then his children, the elders, the men, and the rest of the people. Then all the layers of society work together.

It is impossible to develop a broad range of training without an increasingly deeper and tighter connection with the previous inner circles. Therefore, Moses and Aaron need to constantly increase and intensify the connection. not only between themselves, but also with the elders and the men, so that they will have the power to work with the people.
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From KabTV’s “Secrets of the Eternal Book” 3/26/14

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The Secondary Growth Of Terror, Part 3

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Today ISIS is attracting a great number of young people from different nations, including those who are not Muslims, but who have suddenly transformed their entire lives. What compels a young modern European to join such a strange organization having such absolutely different characteristics?

Could it be that its “power of attraction” is linked to the emptiness that encompasses the West? As far as it seems, ISIS is ready to provide a feeling of warmth, unity, brotherhood, family, purpose, and satisfaction.

By what means can we attract a young person to us? How could world unity in his eyes tip the balance towards our side instead of the ideas of these Eastern extremists?

Answer: It is necessary to recruit him to another army, an army in which he will fight for equality, a better life for all, and unity that includes a mutual basis for goodness. It is necessary to create special forces, which will be an organization that will overcome ISIS on an ideological front.

This is because we, in fact, are offering world revolution to a person, which is the transformation of the world into a garden of Eden where everyone is equal, happy, and provided with necessities and security for today and tomorrow. Everyone can be in a good mood and think of how to make things good and pleasant for others. There will be a line of balance among us where no one needs to be concerned about what will happen to himself at the present and in the future. Here, our health, children, and all aspects of our lives are okay.

Question: But for the young, sometimes something is required beyond the pastoral, a possibility of going wild, using force, pouring out their energy.

Answer: Well good, a person must fight, but instead of fighting enemies, he fights the ego itself that is not interested and doesn’t want any of this.

Basically I don’t want to unite and connect with others; I don’t feel a particular drive towards this. Yes, I am ready to receive the benefits that we outlined above, but to give something in return, no. So I must struggle with myself for this unity.

Question: Why does ISIS have such a power of attraction?

Answer: This is the power of security. Standing under a black flag, a person is sure that he has support and purpose. So he goes to conquer the world with his head raised proudly.

Question: How is it possible to create a similar positive pride about unity?

Answer: This is through an educational process that we must implement. It is possible to do this.

There is knowledge and there is education, and these two methods must be used here in parallel.

If terrorists are organizing tens of thousands for their own purposes, then we, with the help of various countries and international institutions, are able to reach billions, to hold `relevant conventions and get down to business everywhere in Europe, Africa, America, etc. After all, if we are open and our intentions are clear, we can mobilize enormous resources and support around the world for implementation.

In principle, we are saying to everyone: “There will be no more wars; there will be no more borders. This is one family, except for the terrorists, all of them. They are the only ones we have to rein in at this stage, until they disappear.”

Question: Is there some kind of significance to the fact that one force, one enemy, is threatening all of us, requiring us to unite against it? Will this be used to change global thinking?

Answer: I don’t think that the purpose of our unification must be a war with this force. Uniting against evil means learning some of its characteristics. Certainly the army must stand against the terrorists, but we don’t have any real possibility of stopping them once and for all through this.

So at the same time we, the citizens, must take care of ourselves and must unite with each other.
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From KabTV’s “A New Life” 9/7/14

 
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