Today it is becoming clear that on the level of our world. we don’t have anything more to do, and that we are meant to climb upward. And from the state of emptiness on this level, the next possible state for spiritual development is appearing at the same time.

And we, all of humanity, are found on this historical border. Certainly the group of Abraham must burst forth to show itself correctly before the whole world and begin the collective ascent to elevate all of the human Babylon to the level of the higher power to which all of humanity, all of creation must reach.

In other words, it is necessary to constantly search for and work on the balance between the positive and negative forces, altruism and egoism, in order to unite them together into the middle line and with it attain the higher power until really becoming adhered with it. This is the next level.

In his time, Abraham took the people out and showed them how to balance the two forces. In the same way now, a group of Abraham must show how to add the positive to the negative progress of the egoistic, physical development of humanity, in general.

Question: So there won’t be a return to the same Babylon?

Answer: No. Babylon is reaching correction, so all of humanity is rising to the next level. Our world is disappearing and we are beginning to feel the next state, the next level with our new senses, which we call spirituality or the Creator.
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From KabTV’s “Babylon Yesterday and Today” 8/28/14, Part 7

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We remember that this last summer was hot in every sense. Most of the whole year that passed gave our nation the longest military operation in many years. Its uniqueness is in the fact that it ultimately marked and emphasized the dead end we have reached. The battle is over, but there is still a threat and there is nowhere to which we can escape.

The moment another round is over, the shadow of the next round is hanging over our heads. Each time we stall for different reasons and postpone any decision making hoping that things will somehow work out on their own.

But things haven’t changed for decades. On the contrary, the connection between the contradictions around and inside our country is growing increasingly tighter. It is a clear sign that we have to do some self-clarifications before we can clarify and face our problems.

The prophet Jonah found himself in a similar situation thousands of years ago and is the hero of the book that we are used to reading on Yom Kippur. Strangely, this story keeps repeating regularly and although the atmosphere or the environment may change, it is always relevant. Our times are no exception.

The plot seems like an adventure novel, as Jonah receives a mission from God to help the people of Nineveh overcome the mutual hatred they feel and to fulfill the principle of love thy neighbor as thyself.

It was Abraham who first fulfilled this idea and founded the Jewish nation on this basis. It makes no difference today how he attained it, but the important thing is that the Jewish nation succeeded in doing what is basically impossible.

“What would have happened to mankind if Abraham hadn’t been a man of sharp perception and if he had stayed in Ur and kept his ideas to himself and not founded any unique Jewish nation? The world without Jews would undoubtedly be very different than it is today.” (Paul Johnson, British scientist and historian).

Today more than ever before, the entire world—not just the Jews, Arabs, Russians, and Ukrainians—is in need of love, or at least elementary, mutual understanding.

At the same time, just as in the past, similar ideas are perceived as totally unrealistic. No wonder Jonah decided to escape overseas, thinking he could escape the mission he had been given.

Just like Jonah, we too are trying to hide from the great, “impregnable” problems in our daily routine, and let others deal with them while we deal with our personal problems. Although our personal problems are not on a global scale, at least they can be resolved. Our whole life is a cycle of daily problems that we sometimes manage to float above.

It isn’t by chance that Jonah’s story is read on Yom Kippur. From ancient times comes the reminder that it is impossible to escape the mission we have been given.
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From the Russian Brochure: “The Main Secret of the Jewish New Year”

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From the book The Essential Secret of the Jews, M. Brushtein

The Afterword to the Chapter

Once we have reviewed the process of unification, which covers the whole of nature at all its levels, we would like to ask, “And what about the Jews, and what does this have to do with anti-Semitism?”

Let’s refer to the sources:

Israel occupies a central place in all Creation, and other creatures depend on it. (Ramchal, Da’at Tevunot)

That’s it. Nothing more, nothing less. And besides, the author says the following:

The Almighty connected the correction of the entire Creation and its ascent with the actions of Israel. (Ramchal, Da’at Tevunot)

Yes, the comment is superfluous.
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Question: What do the “parting” with Babylon and construction of the Second Temple mean?

Answer: These notions stand for building positive bridges between the two remaining tribes in accordance with the principle “Don’t do to others what you don’t wish for yourself.” It is a spiritual level that existed for several hundreds of years until it collapsed.

Question: In other words, Abraham’s message guides us upwards, but the path we pursue is full of “bumps” that often lead us downward, is that true?

Answer: The path is not easy. After the initial spiritual ascent, they fell to Egypt. From there, they rose to the level of the First Temple, and then they fell to Babylon. Afterward, they rose slightly to the level of the Second Temple, and later they descended to internal destruction. In other words, they even lost the level of “not doing to others what they didn’t wish for themselves.” They just were not able to continue implementing this principle any longer since their growing egoism broke the remnants of their prior love.

So, by the beginning of the first century of our era, love completely disappeared.

Comment: They even started fighting and killing each other.

Answer: These things were happening at the time of the First Temple. After it collapsed, diverse segments, such as captains, merchants, dignitaries, administrators, etc., appeared among the people. They exhibited enormous egoism, even though they were at high levels.

It’s quite different from building relationships at lower levels, such as in little villages or among those who own one cow or a sheep or a horse. To survive, they had to lend their cattle to each other.

However, when you and I have billions, and others also have as much as we do, wars and battles are inevitable. Each one possesses their own army and holds on to their interests. This is why problems arise.

Question: So, falling from the spiritual level leads us deep down to the manifestation of the evil. Is that right?

Answer: Yes, it’s true. On the other hand, it is a natural phenomenon. These issues happen in all countries that are going through the phase of decline. The modern world faces the same threat: Russians, Europeans, and wealthy Americans will soon create their own armies and fight each other.

For the Jews, these periods usually end up very sadly, since at the time of spiritual collapse, conquerors show up and destroy the temples.
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From KabTV’s “Babylon Yesterday and Today” 9/3/14

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From the book The Essential Secret of the Jews, M. Brushtein

The Postulates Of The Theory of Integrality

We complicate our life ourselves, deprive it from confidence, bring fear and limitations into it.

For life to emerge, there must be an incredible coincidence of the unique circumstances.

The internal program pushes us to develop and forces us to learn about the surrounding world.

The human being will face the stage of denial of his nature.

“What is the meaning of life?” – is the question that concerns people today.
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Question: Why is an offense against a person worse than an offense against the Creator? Does it mean that a person cannot manage with the Creator unless he manages with those around him?

Answer: You cannot turn to the Creator if there are people in the world whom you have harmed. We can influence the Creator only through people according to the law of “from the love of the created beings to the love of the Creator.”

After all, the Creator is concealed and we can only reveal Him by giving to people. This is the reason that the wisdom of Kabbalah is called the concealed wisdom. It teaches us how to truly give to people in order to discover the Creator behind them. If we don’t know that, we will never be able to do people good by our giving, then we will not be able to bestow upon the Creator either. It turns out that we will end our life without any positive outcome.

Question: Suppose I have hurt a friend and want to make up with him. Is it enough to ask for his forgiveness as is customary before Yom Kippur?

Answer: Of course it isn’t enough if you only ask  for the friend’s forgiveness just to cleanse yourself before the Creator on Yom Kippur. In order to do that you are ready to give the friend anything as a gift as long as you can be sure that he will forgive you and you will be able to justify yourself before the Creator.

But this is better than nothing since we come to Lishma (for Her sake) from Lo Lishma (not for Her sake). Truly making peace with a friend means to start loving him, which means to restrict your personal desires and be truly ready to do everything for him. This is the correction of the intention in the heart when there is no self-calculation left, which means that whatever happens to me doesn’t matter. Such a correction called true bestowal is required of us and only the wisdom of Kabbalah can teach us it.

We may say that the essence of Yom Kippur is the summing up, the clarification, of how many restrictions I can perform on myself so that I can act in love of and bestowal to others after that day. Through the love of people I will attain the love of the Creator. The “day of judgment” is the day of my self-judgment.
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From KabTV’s “A New Life” 9/30/14

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Question: If it is important to correct the intentions and not the actions, I don’t understand how this is possible. We can do everything with some effort, but we have no control over our intentions.

Answer: But this is the whole idea of the correction. This is actually what the Torah demands of us: the correction of the heart. All the commandments were given only so we could purify our intentions by them.

Our actions are worthless without the right intentions. The whole general system of nature called the Creator, the whole huge mechanism of the creation, takes only our intentions into account and not our desires.

Question: How is the fasting on Yom Kippur related to this?

Answer: The fasting on Yom Kippur reminds us that we should stop receiving egoistically and start bestowing unto others above our self-benefit. A person’s desire is made of five layers: Keter, Hochma, Bina, Zeir Anpin, and Malchut and so there are five prohibitions on Yom Kippur as a sign of the restriction of these egoistic desires: the prohibition of eating and drinking, the prohibition of washing, the prohibition of anointing, the prohibition of wearing leather shoes, and the prohibition of sexual intercourse.

Thus, we cease to receive and then we have to change to bestowal. But in order to start bestowing unto others, we first have to totally restrict our egoistic desires and intentions of self-love and stop worrying about ourselves completely. This means that I should stop using all the black areas that appear on the X-rays of my heart during the ten days of repentance that precede Yom Kippur.

This is the essence of Yom Kippur. I cannot perform actions in order to bestow yet. On that day I only restrict my ego so as not to receive anything for myself. Even if I am allowed to receive, it is only in order to pass it through me and give it to others.

But this will happen later, while on Yom Kippur there is a total restriction, five prohibitions. This symbolizes the fact that a person doesn’t even use his most essential desires. Eventually we reach the same revelations as the prophet Jonah, by clarifying what is the most important thing in person’s life.

Although Jonah wasn’t an ordinary person but a prophet, we have to see the difficult missions that the Creator gives us. First Jonah wanted to escape his mission to bestow unto others, but eventually he was forced to carry it out, by passing on the wisdom of connection and unity, love, and bestowal to the whole world, which the people of Nineveh embody.

On Yom Kippur I must forget myself and totally focus on the benefit of others: first our people and then the rest of the world. This is the mission of the Israeli nation, as Kabbalists tell us. By accepting this work, we begin to correct our actions of bestowal when Yom Kippur is over, and the holidays that follow Yom Kippur symbolize that.
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From KabTV’s “A New Life” 9/30/14

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From the book The Essential Secret of the Jews, M. Brushtein

The Animal Is Not The Human Being

The animal, unlike the human, lives according to the laws of nature, but in nature it is not accepted to kill anyone for profit and for the sake of profit. Animals in general are much more peaceful than most people think. By the way, animals prefer not to deal with the “king of nature.”

Scary stories that are told about the wolf (just as the tiger) are embellished by the fantasy of idle people and nearly all of them contain little truth.

A pack of wolves, maddened by hunger, on occasion can attack people, even adults that are armed; it may happen that wolves kill and eat a human, but in any case, the threats of wolves in the countries where the wolf populations are large is not as great as it is often imagined.

A lone wolf rarely attacks an adult, even one armed only with a club; this behavior can be caused only by special circumstances, such as a rabid wolf or female wolf fearing for her cubs. (Alfred E. Brehm, Brehm’s Life of Animals)

An animal is certainly not a human. Animals are not capable of the following:

“With adequate profit, capital is very bold. A certain 10 per cent. will ensure its employment anywhere; 20 per cent. certain will produce eagerness; 50 per cent., positive audacity; 100 per cent. will make it ready to trample on all human laws; 300 per cent., and there is not a crime at which it will scruple, nor a risk it will not run, even to the chance of its owner being hanged.” (Thomas Joseph Dunning)

A surreal picture is in front of us. The human being, the highest degree of nature, behaves much worse than animals. Why does intellect, which a man is so proud of, bring much more harm than good? Why is the human able to do such unspeakable things to his own kind?

Now Dadon has reached the tent…

Staggers backward: sight appalling,

Hard before his eyes lie fallen,

Stripped of helm and armour chain,

Both his noble princes, slain,

Pierced each by the other’s charge;

And their wandering mounts at large

On the mead all stamped and scored,

On the bloodied meadow-sward . . .

‘Boys . . .my boys . . ‘ the father groaned,

‘Strangled both my hawks,’ he moaned,

‘Life is forfeit – woe is me . . .

Here were killed not two but three.’

Wail of men and master merges

Soon resound with heavy dirges

Gorge and cliff, the mountain’s heart

Shakes. Behold, the curtains part

On the tent. . .The prize of maidens,

Queen of Shamakhan, in radiance

Lambent like the morning star,

Quietly salutes the Tsar.

Silenced by her brilliant gaze

Like a nightbird by the days,

Numb he stands – her sight outstuns

Aye! the death of both his sons.

(Aleksander S. Pushkin, “The Tale of the Golden Cockerel”)

Source: The Tale of the Golden Cockerel http://www.artrusse.ca/pushkin/tale_cockerel.htm

And does this creature stand on the top of the development of nature? It looks at least illogical. How could he, who is capable of destroying millions of his own kind, be above everyone else? How did it happen that the “king of nature” is able for some illusory ideas to destroy not only others, but even himself?

And at the same time.

How can all this be combined with high ideals, culture, art, moral principles and powerful intellect?
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Question: How should we relate to the expressions of anti-Semitism more correctly? Should we continue to ignore its growth in the US and hope that it will go away by itself, or will it grow to such an extent that later it will be too late?

Answer: Nothing will go away by itself because the anti-Semites are right. Listen to what they say: The Jews are responsible for all the problems in the world. They feel that they depend on us. How would you relate to people who cause you harm and that you depend on?

They have been claiming this for centuries. We have to listen to what they say and to understand from where it stems. We have to bring the idea of unity and connection to the world: the theory, the practical experience and the example for it; as it is written, “become a Light unto the nations.”

We, on the other hand, don’t do that but show the world the opposite, how it is possible to get along better in life egoistically. Unless we connect and become a good example for the nations of the world, the world’s attitude towards us will not change for the better. It will constantly get worse to the extent that the world becomes increasingly more global and mutually connected on the one hand, and torn internally by the ego, on the other.

Thus the tension is constantly growing as nature closes in on us by connecting us from the outside while on the inside we are torn apart, repulsed by each other. In this state, the wisdom of Kabbalah, which means not only the idea but also the practical experience of our right connection and unity, is the medicine for the whole world without which the world will not survive.

If we don’t start to connect and unite properly, we will reach a third world war and great sufferings, which are mentioned in the writings of Kabbalists. They also tell us how we can unite in a quick and proper way. It is very easy to practice and this will immediately be reflected in the nations of the world. If we want the nations of the world to change their attitude towards us, and as it says in Isaiah “to admire us,” it is possible only if we give them the right example of mutual cooperation among all of humanity, an example of the order in the world, so that there will be total mutual dependence.
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From A Talk in USA, 8/6/14

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Question: The annual cycle of the Jewish holidays symbolizes the series of states through which a person passes on his way toward connection and unification, and this is the goal of the evolution of the entire human species. Every holiday represents a particular stage on the way toward unification.

Why does this entire cycle finish in the month of Elul where we summarize the results of what we went through and attained, and judge ourselves?

Answer: Israel means Yashar-El (Straight to God), meaning a desire directed straight toward the higher force of nature. The Creator is nature, and, so, what is being spoken about here is our balance with nature. There was a time when Abraham discovered that this is precisely the goal of human evolution that we must reach. That group of students that he gathered around him in ancient Babylon and brought to the land of Canaan eventually became the people of Israel.

This was a community of people that defined the attainment of equivalence of form with the higher power as the goal. The higher power of nature is the power of bestowal and love. This is what Abraham taught those Babylonians who followed him: love of one another, bestowal, and benevolence. Benevolence is the original and primordial characteristic of Abraham.

During his investigations, Abraham discovered the goal of the existence of the human species, which is to reveal the love between all people or, at least at first, among some of them. Thanks to relationships like these, they attained similarities between them: equality and conformity to nature, to its inner power called the Creator.

Nature is based upon a single force that connects all parts of creation together, these being the parts of the still, vegetative, animate, and speaking. All of them are included in a single system that connects all of the elements together in general harmony and working together.

Just like a working cell of our body inside which there is a whole world, a countless number of mutually connected elements—like genes, bacteria, and whatever might be there—but everything is found in a general harmony. If there is no harmony, then this is a disease.

All of nature is like a cell; it is a single, closed, integral, global system, and is absolutely connected. There are no parts in it that could operate independently of the others and develop separately from them. All development is mutually connected and precisely defined.

Lately, science is discovering how much we lack free choice and that everything is determined by genes, hormones, and combinations of chemicals and various bacteria. What I will do depends only upon this—which decisions I will accept, to whom I will be attracted, and who I will avoid.

We naively think that we have free choice, yet we don’t. We only obediently carry out the commands of nature. A person is found within nature, and all of his development is determined through a combination of the internal forces within him. He also obeys and blindly follows his instincts like animals.

By what means is a person ready to influence his development? First of all, we must understand that nature has only one law, and it is general unity. This law connects together the parts of nature into a single system, except for one part, which is the human being.

Humanity, ultimately must also reach that same connection and attain balance with all the parts of nature. Yet this is as a result of blows and pressure through suffering and troubles during thousands of years of evolution. This has cost us a multitude of suffering and pain.

After all, we know how nature is ready to push us. For thousands of years, human society has advanced and lived as if in a wild jungle where one devours the other. Yet, at some stage of development, we suddenly say to ourselves, “Enough!”

This means that feelings and intelligence are discovered in us at such a level that we begin to think and wonder about the reason for our endless torment. For what are we compelled to suffer? What useful conclusions can be derived from these sufferings? Who enjoys our life? To whom can we give pleasure?

These questions pop up in our minds and hearts by themselves. From the blows and the pain, we begin to ask, “What does this mean?” We already have gone through the first and second world wars. How much more is it possible to endure? Today, the world is found on the threshold of a third world war. We already have discussed this quite openly.

This is a life under the conditions of terror. There are terrible problems, a feeling of powerlessness. Half of the world throws surplus products in the trash, whereas the other half is dying of starvation. The humanity of today possesses such immense powers and possibilities, but look at what we do with these immense abilities and potential.

We are compelled to stop here and summarize, to judge ourselves. The month of Elul represents this repentance. Following this, we receive a kind of understanding and knowledge. We become a little wiser. The Ohr Hochma (Light of Wisdom) appears in us, saying to us, “You are suffering, but it is possible not to suffer. It is up to you only to understand from where suffering comes to you. Then you will know how to be released from it.”

All of these questions are awakened in us, and call for a search and investigation of the cause for suffering. They are awakened as a result of the unique illumination of the understanding in our heart and mind that is called Elul. The word “Elul “is an acronym for “I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine,” Ani Ledodi Vedodi Li, (Song of Songs 6:3).

“My beloved” is that immense system of nature that develops us. We receive a special sign from it, experience unique feelings and mental insight that makes it possible for us to understand what the system of nature wants from us, what it is thinking about, and what it demands. The entire general system of creation is called the Creator, or nature, which is the same thing.
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From KabTV’s “A New Life” 9/14/14

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