My new article on Linkedin “In the Land of Pharaoh King of Egypt”

There are many ways to think of the drama that took place between Pharaoh and Moses in Biblical Egypt. Some think of it as history; others see it as folklore, and still others see it as an allegory to teach us morals. The wisdom of Kabbalah has a completely different take on the story of the exodus of the people of Israel from Egypt. It views it as a process that leads to one’s defining moment in life: the liberation from the ego and the entry into a new reality, where the ego is the servant and care for others is the king. This is why today, when egoism is our sole ruler, it is so important to introduce the concepts of the wisdom of Kabbalah, since only caring for others will prevent the world from exploding into pieces.

In Kabbalistic texts, Pharaoh represents the ego, our inclination to focus on ourselves and strive for superiority over others. The period that humanity is in today is indeed a “Pharaoh” period. These days, Pharaoh, people’s untainted and unhinged egoism, is coming to the fore. It controls our lives, organizes them, and we have nowhere to run from its control.

In Kabbalistic texts, Pharaoh represents the ego, our inclination to focus on ourselves and strive for superiority over others. The period that humanity is in today is indeed a “Pharaoh” period. These days, Pharaoh, people’s untainted and unhinged egoism, is coming to the fore. It controls our lives, organizes them, and we have nowhere to run from its control. Even when we realize that it is not good for us to let Pharaoh govern and enslave us, we opt for “bread and circuses” since we feel helpless against it.

Nevertheless, bit by bit, the realization that our situation is not as it should be is forming within us. Gradually, we are realizing that the endless pleasure hunt leaves us empty in the end. We are born, mature, get a job, perhaps a career, have children, grow old, get sick, and die. Why do we go through these cycles? If in the end we die and stop existing, then why be born in the first place? The little pleasures we have in life, if we have them at all, alleviate some of the pain we experience the rest of the time, but if there is nothing left of our lives when they end, then what is the purpose of living, and what is the purpose of the suffering?

When we begin to ask these questions, and today more and more people are asking them, it is a sign that we are beginning to disagree with Pharaoh’s governance over us. This is the beginning of the emerging of the Moses within us—a new perspective on life that wishes to pull us out of the shackles of egoism and deliver us from the metaphoric land of selfishness: Egypt.

The wisdom of Kabbalah does not relate to physical locations or to flesh and blood people. Every persona in the drama is a force within us, and every land, a type of desire. Egypt represents the desire for self-indulgence, concentration on oneself, while Israel stands for the desire to give, to care about others, to connect with their hearts. Both “lands” exist in every person in the world; therefore, every person can choose with whom to sympathize: the inner land of Egypt, egoism, or the inner land of Israel, giving.

When Moses begins to grow within us, we begin to feel our stay in Egypt as pressing and oppressive. When the Passover story tells us that the people of Israel were in exile in Egypt, it means that they began to want to free themselves from the shackles of egoism, but Pharaoh, the kernel of egoism, would not let them go out free. After some time in that state, the Moses force within us begins to gain strength and makes all the pleasures that the ego offers seem pointless and tasteless. It isn’t that we suddenly fall from riches to rags, but that the same riches that felt so good before, feel pointless and meaningless, and we lose all joy from having them. But in the absence of having any other pleasures, we feel it all as emptiness and hunger. Worse yet, since we are not yet free from egoism and must still serve it, though we no longer want to, we feel that we are slaves, enslaved to Pharaoh.

Today, many thousands of people already feel like that. They are especially common among younger people, who grew up seeing their parents’ lifestyles and simply do not want them. They find no pleasure in them, but they also find no pleasure in anything else. This is why so many of them turn to substance abuse to forget about life, or to extreme sports or violence, frantically searching for something that will excite them and give them a reason to keep living. These youngsters are not failures and they are not fools. They are actually very bright and very honest with themselves, and cannot pursue a goal that doesn’t seem worthwhile.

This transition period we are in can be long and painful. The struggle between Pharaoh and Moses happens within each of us, but it also has social, national, and international ramifications. The Bible describes the time of hesitation whether to go Pharaoh’s way or Moses’ way as the ten plagues of Egypt. But in the end, the ego, namely Pharaoh, surrenders. Now we are approaching that point of choice on the global level. We can choose to experience the plagues, as well, or we can choose Moses’ way before the plagues land on us.

We know that in the end, Moses will win and we will build a united society, where people care for one another. Therefore, the sooner we head in this direction, the faster we will achieve this blissful state. In the process, we will avoid Egypt’s afflictions. Now is our time to make a choice which way to go, toward the land of Egypt, and suffer, or toward the land of Israel, the land of unity and love.
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My new article on Linkedin “Is Humanity Prepared for the Next Nuclear Disaster?”

A decade ago, the strongest earthquake ever recorded in Japan triggered a tsunami which struck off Fukushima’s nuclear plant, killing more than 18,000 people and devastating entire towns due to the radiation leak. Today, the world questions what lessons were learned from it in order to avoid future catastrophes. Unfortunately, none. Instead of diminishing the potential risks, the world is increasing its warfare in a shortsighted and dangerous vision. Instead of global confrontation, we urgently need to build human connection as the most powerful weaponry for peace and security.

If we fail to implement a change in our self-centered focus, we will continue heading down a path of prolonged suffering. Therefore, we need to realize the corrupt way we relate to each other, and construct new, positive relations of peaceful coexistence within society. The current global scenario is urging us to choose a more civilized, enjoyable, and wise path, a path of mutual support and care that will radiate the entire world as the most powerful force on Earth.

Fukushima was the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl, but it seems this catastrophe has not left a special mark in the world’s consciousness. Because one may ask, what can be done against the forces of nature? And at the end, the Japanese are a special people who have laboriously built a prosperous country despite suffering severe beatings and overcoming them successfully. There was no doubt they would recuperate from this blow, too.

On the other hand, we do not see what unfolds in certain parts of the world as something that may also impact us. But eventually it will, since planet Earth is round and operates as a complex system of dependencies, relationships, and interactions. In fact, if we were aware of our interconnectedness, we would learn from the difficult events that humanity has suffered and would be ready to change our selfish attitude and actions for mutual benefit.

However, humanity in general does not see past disasters or conflicts as teaching experiences. The world has been beaten by multiple nuclear accidents and two world wars, but nothing has changed. Ten years have passed since the Fukushima nuclear disaster and there are still over 414 nuclear power reactors operating in 32 countries. They supply a tenth of the world’s electricity but if there was a true intention from the countries to get rid of nuclear reactors to avoid and mitigate dangers and threats, they would have already looked for alternatives.

Nuclear technology is controversial but cannot be categorized as evil or praised as good, because the main question is about how it is used, the dosage and the intention behind it. A global estimation would reveal that we do not need the current reckless exploitation of natural resources for the sake of immediate profit which affects us in the long term. If we were aware of it we would limit our production systems solely to what is essential to our existence.

Without making up our minds, without a broad vision for the future and the implementation of an international education program that will raise awareness of our deceitful behavior, we will not succeed. And as the world continues its business as usual, the next blow inevitably will come, forcing humanity toward introspection.

The “Green New Deals” proposed by multiple countries promote social justice and environmental equity. But even though there are some positive measures behind those proposals they are only shifting the focus from the main problem. The human being is the most harmful force in nature, even more so than a nuclear bomb, so what we need to fix is precisely human nature.

Mutual hatred overflows at all levels, between people and countries, within societies. Humanity is acting in the opposite direction of nature, which is balanced and harmonious. Instead, we are moving away from each other, developing sophisticated means for mutual destruction. The exponential effect of this division within humanity is what causes wars and global crises.

If we fail to implement a change in our self-centered focus, we will continue heading down a path of prolonged suffering. Therefore, we need to realize the corrupt way we relate to each other, and construct new, positive relations of peaceful coexistence within society. The current global scenario is urging us to choose a more civilized, enjoyable, and wise path, a path of mutual support and care that will radiate the entire world as the most powerful force on Earth.
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My new article on Linkedin “The World Will Never Be Right If Our Thoughts Are All Wrong”

Even if we make all energy production renewable, obliterate plastics, stop weapon production and destroy all existing guns, our world will not be healthier, cleaner, safer, or better in any other way. We will find other ways to mess up our lives, inflict suffering on all living beings, and especially on ourselves. Even if we correct everything that’s wrong with the world, we will still create new, worse wrongs until we shut down the factory that produces all our miseries: our bad thoughts about each other.

If we feel close to one another, we will not exploit, patronize, demean, or otherwise mistreat other people. This alone will radicalize our lives and make us feel comfortable with others, confident, and happy.

What haven’t we tried? Renewable energy? Check! Electric cars? Check! Vegan meet? Check (even though vegan meet is an oxymoron. Ban on nuclear weapons? Check! But none of these has even begun to change the world’s negative trajectory. We’re creating more pollution, killing more animals and cutting down more forests for cattle, manufacturing more weapons, and the nuclear threat is still hovering over our heads. In short, we haven’t even begun to solve anything through all our agreements and developments. It will also never happen as long as we don’t do them for the right reason: to make everyone’s lives better, and not for selfish profits.

When we do everything in order to achieve dominance and control, we can’t expect any good results. Our negative thoughts about each other turn every good thing we do, every noble idea we have, and every positive word we say into deleterious activities that the world would be better off without them. To right the wrongs in the world, we first have to make our thoughts right, and then everything will be alright.

In fact, even if we can’t control our thoughts, and certainly not our ill-will toward each other, merely knowing that they are the root of what’s bad in this world is enough to start improving things. We will learn how to change our negative thoughts and ill-will toward each along the way, but we first have to start practicing it. We know that practice makes perfect, so we needn’t worry about the results, right now, but about practicing good will, wanting to create closeness in our hearts, a familial feeling toward strangers, or at least toward people in our environment for whom we don’t wish well.

We needn’t worry about anything else. There is a saying in Kabbalah that everything is scrutinized in the thought. It means that if you have good thoughts, everything you do will turn out to be good. If we feel close to one another, we will not exploit, patronize, demean, or otherwise mistreat other people. This alone will radicalize our lives and make us feel comfortable with others, confident, and happy.

As a result, we will not need to consume needless stuff just to feel good about ourselves or to feel superior to others, and we will not need to arm or protect ourselves since we will feel close to one another. The whole of society will change as a result of our new relationships, and we will stop overconsuming, pollution will drop, arms races will cease, and the countless unsolvable problems we have today will disappear by themselves once we needn’t raise walls from the hostile world around us. Therefore, if we want to live in a good world, where life is easy and enjoyable, we need only practice changing the way we think about each other from negative to positive.
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My new article on Linkedin “Erasing the (Inner) Distance”

As Jews around the world are preparing for Passover, which celebrates the exodus of the ancient Israelites from enslavement in Egypt, it seems as though the entire world is experiencing somewhat of a “global Egypt.” While Covid didn’t exactly enslave us, it certainly did restrain us. But more importantly, the way to escape Covid is the same way by which the Hebrews escaped Egypt.

Today, humanity is in a similar situation. The story of Egypt should serve as an allegory for us. If humanity chooses the same instrument that the ancient Hebrews did, namely unity, we, too, will be redeemed from the shackles of Covid, and indeed from all the adversities that have landed on us in the past century or so, and that are destined to land on us if we do not choose unity.

After Joseph, who was both the leader of the Hebrews and Pharaoh’s viceroy, died in Egypt, the state of the Jews continually deteriorated. They became dispersed and disintegrated, and wanted to mingle among the Egyptians. “Let us be as the Egyptians,” they said (Midrash Rabbah, Shemot). The Egyptians, in turn, who until then were very fond of the Hebrews, became increasingly hostile toward them. The Midrash continues to tell us about it: “Because of [their dispersion], the Lord turned the love that the Egyptians loved them into hatred.”

In the end, the Israelites found themselves separated, hated, and abused by their previously friendly hosts. They remained that way until Moses, who was both a Hebrew and the prince of Egypt, and grew up as Pharaoh’s adopted grandson, returned to his Hebrew roots and began to fight for his people. His struggle was tough. He had to fight not only against Pharaoh, but also against his own people, who did not want to unite under his leadership.

But once they agreed to start working on their unity, they were liberated from Egypt, fled to the desert, and eventually solidified their bond to such an extent that they achieved an unprecedented level of unity, which made them “as one man with one heart,” as the great 11th century commentary RASHI put it.

Today, humanity is in a similar situation. The story of Egypt should serve as an allegory for us. If humanity chooses the same instrument that the ancient Hebrews did, namely unity, we, too, will be redeemed from the shackles of Covid, and indeed from all the adversities that have landed on us in the past century or so, and that are destined to land on us if we do not choose unity.

While our world has become increasingly interconnected, our hearts have become increasingly disconnected from each other. Alienation and narcissism are pushing us apart and pollute our relationships much more than fossil fuels are polluting the planet. Our self-absorption has become so noxious and so antisocial that it became necessary to separate us from one another altogether. This is when Covid entered our world, forcing a global closure on all of humanity, but mainly on the developed, most self-centered parts of the world, namely the US, Western Europe, and China.

We should have used the timeout from excessive consumerism, exploitation, and mutual abuse to bring our hearts closer, similar to what the Israelites did in Egypt, once they were afflicted as a result of their own social disintegration. We didn’t do it. Instead, we waited for vaccines to be developed and yearned for the moment when we could resume our toxic living. Now we have vaccines, but we will not be able to resume our pre-Covid days. Since we did not work on bringing our hearts closer, our hearts only grew further apart. When we try to resume our former way of life, we will discover that we simply do not enjoy it anymore.

In the absence of pleasures in life, people’s depression will intensify and extremism will flourish in myriad ways. Humanity is going to reveal the worst of human nature, until it says “Enough!” and resolves to erase the inner distance among everyone, and build a united humanity.

Just as the consent of the ancient Israelites to work on their unity was enough to deliver them from Egypt, humanity’s consent to work on unity among all people is enough to deliver us from Covid, and from any adversity that is currently afflicting us. As long as we remain on the path of unity and keep improving it, we will go from strength to strength. If we revert to alienation, the plagues will return.

For the first time in history, we have a clear work plan, a path out of misery for all of humanity: Try to connect and you will succeed. Abandon connection, and you will suffer. This is what we will discover if we only begin to work on erasing the distance in our hearts.

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My new article on Linkedin “When the Ego Rots”

For as long as we can remember, the ego has been our ally. It has earned us great achievements: We came out of the caves, developed agriculture and learned to produce our own food, became lords of the earth and of the sky, defeated plagues and enabled every person on earth to potentially have a life that only two centuries ago, were fit for kings.

In the past several decades, the ego has taken over everything we do, and our relationships with others are now based not only on the desire to build ourselves, but to a great extent, if not mostly, on the aspiration to hurt, humiliate, and even destroy others. Once the ego begins to focus on destruction, it ruins everything. When this happens, it is time to bid it farewell before it drags us into another world war.

But we have not come to this. While some of us enjoy unimaginable affluence, others are worse off than their ancestors had ever been; they die like flies without food, water, or dignity. We could have defeated the plagues, but it seems as though we ourselves have become a plague that is infesting the world with bile and abhorrence for our fellow humans, for all of life, and for our planet. The ego, which has gotten us all that we have, appears to have rotted and is now destroying everything that we’ve achieved through it.

As long as we used the ego to grow and develop, it worked in our favor. We’ve always used the ego not only for development, but also to defeat enemies and rivals, but we did not let it take over. In the past several decades, the ego has taken over everything we do, and our relationships with others are now based not only on the desire to build ourselves, but to a great extent, if not mostly, on the aspiration to hurt, humiliate, and even destroy others. Once the ego begins to focus on destruction, it ruins everything. When this happens, it is time to bid it farewell before it drags us into another world war.

We still don’t see it yet; we still think that the ego is our friend, but as all parents tell their children, “Stay away from bad company!” The ego is now bad company because it looks for nothing but troubles, to fight with everyone and destroy everyone, so we must turn away from it or it will drag us down along with it.

There is an alternative: The way forward is by joining hands and joining forces. The ego may not be satisfied in this way because we will not destroy anyone, but we, as opposed to our egos, will gain security, joy, and confidence in our future. Today, only a united society can thrive. Only when people of different backgrounds, faiths, and ideologies join hands, they can create a vital and pliable society that can adjust to the changing circumstances in the world. When only one ideology reigns, it quickly becomes rigid and fragile, and will collapse before long. Just look at what happened in Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and the Communist Soviet Union to realize that to succeed, diversity is a requirement, and diversity cannot thrive where the ego reigns. It’s time to dethrone the ego.

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My new article on Linkedin “The Case for Paradoxical Thinking”

Paradoxical thinking is something that various systems, such as educational systems or various advanced organizations, are trying to promote. We feel comfortable when matters are unambiguous, but it turns out that the ability to keep in mind conflicting ideas develops people’s minds very effectively. Paradoxical thinking contributes to people’s mental health, mental development, and builds a better society overall. But what is the highest level of paradoxical thinking that we can achieve? Let’s examine some insights.

Another paradox that can develop the world is our relation to our raging egos. On the one hand, the egoistic desire to subdue everyone is destroying our lives. On the other hand, if we learn how to use our egos correctly, we will be able to turn them into what is called “help made against him.” In other words, we will be able to turn them into levers for development that will raise us from one level to the next on the spiritual ladder.

When we are confined to one system of thinking, contradictions confuse us and create internal collisions. Alternatively, when we develop a dual system of thinking, we can maintain one thought in one system, and a completely opposite thought in the other. This allows for complete opposites to exist within us simultaneously, since each thought is in a different system. Therefore, our challenge is to know how to build an additional system of thinking. This is what the wisdom of Kabbalah is all about.

Imagine that there are tiny insects that do not grasp the dimension of height, and live only according to their perception of the surface. They can move from side to side in their space, but not up or down. In relation to them, we have another level of perception. Similarly, a person who lives in one system of thinking feels the world very differently from one who lives in two systems of thinking.

It is one thing to understand this notion, but it is a different matter altogether to achieve it. To do that, we must awaken evolutionary forces that will develop that system within us. We cannot really know what these forces are, but we don’t really need to. It is enough to want to develop them to make them act on us more forcefully. The trick, if you will, is to know how to approach that evolutionary force and make it build in us that advanced system.

One good example of an exercise in building such a dual system is the Biblical story of the tying of Isaac. God said to Abraham about Isaac, “Through Isaac your descendants shall be named” (Gen. 21:12), meaning that Isaac was to have children of his own and continue Abraham’s dynasty. But on the other hand, God instructed Abraham to “offer him … as a burnt offering” (Gen. 22:2), which would prevent the continuation of Abraham’s dynasty. How can one reconcile such contradicting instructions? This is when the third party must intervene. In such a case, we cannot use reason since it will direct us one way or the other. Instead, we must “summon,” meaning want a higher intellect—from which the contradiction came, the root of the paradox—to come and reconcile the conflict.

In the wisdom of Kabbalah, the root, where all the conflicts are reconciled, is called “the Creator.” The Creator is the general force in nature; it is the force that sustains all of reality, the root of the universe and everything that evolves in it, the origin of our lives. In the end, each and every contradiction points precisely to it, to the source from which everything comes and in which everything unites.

Since we cannot connect the opposites with our current mind, we must replace our minds with an “upgraded” mind that we receive from that higher source. This is how paradoxes elevate us to a spiritual level.

Another paradox that can develop the world is our relation to our raging egos. On the one hand, the egoistic desire to subdue everyone is destroying our lives. On the other hand, if we learn how to use our egos correctly, we will be able to turn them into what is called “help made against him.” In other words, we will be able to turn them into levers for development that will raise us from one level to the next on the spiritual ladder.

Our spiritual aspiration should not be to erase the ego from the world, but rather to want it to remain and even grow. As we strain to rise above it, to cover it with a good relation toward others, we also rise to higher degrees in spirituality.

The key to dealing with paradoxes is therefore in shifting from a system where we shift from thinking only of ourselves into a system where we think about others, feel their needs and understand them. In this way, we build within us an additional system, which will provide us with contradicting views. Then, when we learn how to connect those views, a higher intellect will appear among us, which will resolve today’s paradoxes at a higher level of connection and complementation.
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My new article on Linkedin “Should We Resist “Election Fatigue”?”

On March 23, Israelis will go to the polls for the fourth time in less than two years. There is a saying in Israel that one who votes influences (one’s future and the future of the country). Voter turnout in Israel is similar to that to other democratic countries, but this time, the fourth election in less than two years, many are saying they will pass on the chance to influence. People are fed up, disillusioned, and don’t believe in the system anymore. I think it’s fair to say that people are experiencing what we might call “election fatigue.”

The unity of the nation is, of course, the only value that I see as important. If we have unity, we will resolve all other problems and carry out our obligation as a Jewish nation. However, you can only unite with the living, not with the dead. Therefore, currently, my one and only question when I cast my vote is who will do the best job of protecting Israel from its enemies.

I understand them. I, too, can feel this apathy creeping in. Nevertheless, I think we should not succumb to it. Israel is unlike any other country. There are many issues to resolve here: poverty, inequality, high cost of living, lack of opportunities to the disadvantaged, social rifts around every corner, and countless other problems. However, we will not be able to resolve any of them if we don’t have a country where we can work on them. And because we are under a constant threat of destruction, to me, the sole criterion for choosing who to vote for is security. Israel’s prime minister must be someone who can secure Israel’s existence, and everything else, completely everything, comes next.

The unity of the nation is, of course, the only value that I see as important. If we have unity, we will resolve all other problems and carry out our obligation as a Jewish nation. However, you can only unite with the living, not with the dead. Therefore, currently, my one and only question when I cast my vote is who will do the best job of protecting Israel from its enemies.

I am not saying this from a political perspective whatsoever, but from a spiritual one. In order to perform its role in the world, in order for Israel to set an example of unity and be a light unto nations, it must first of all exist, and second, it must exist in security so it can focus on building unity above the incalculable rifts in the Israeli society. This is why I attribute such importance to security, and this is why it is a spiritual consideration rather than a political one.

Politics aside, I think it is time for the people of Israel to start being what the people of Israel should be—to fulfill its obligation to the world, unite, and set an example of rising above all differences. The ingathering of the exiles has already happened on the physical level. Jews immigrated to the State of Israel from all over the world. Still, internally, we have remained apart. Now we must perform our spiritual task and turn the exiles into one nation, a symbol of union above division. This will be the realization of our vocation, our gift to the world, the best, and indeed only guarantee to our safety and prosperity.
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My new article on Linkedin “We Can Translate Words Not Race”

Young Black American poet Amanda Gorman burst into the world consciousness when she recited her masterpiece work at the inauguration of US President Joe Biden. Instantly her talent received high acclaim, but then the controversy began. A public counter-movement surrounding the translation of her poem into other languages argued that Gorman’s writings should be translated by a Black artist, not a White poet, which prompted a laureate Dutch writer assigned to the project to withdraw from it. A male Catalan translator was also considered not suitable for the job after finishing the commission. Has socio-political correctness gone one step too far? Not really.

All the richness of expression of human society depends on our success in leaving all the flavors, colors, and shapes with the same sharpness and accuracy in which they were created, and without touching them, to only gently embed them into a mosaic. Therefore, the fight against racism should be on the condition that it does not come to mix everything into one sticky and colorless mash.

Any work of literature, both in writing or translating it, is a great and complex task. It is important to maintain its strength, tone, and style, and is equally important to identify with the person’s vision and know how to express it from its root. The argument that a White person cannot translate a Black person is not necessarily racist. For instance, someone who is not close to the way of thinking of the author, his or her origin, culture, background, and way of life may err in the text’s translation and miss the spirit of the writer.

In a literary text it is possible to identify every detail of the writer, where the person was born, his or her upbringing, and the environment where someone grew up. We can also spot who and what the person is, a man or a woman, one’s beliefs or nationality. A literary work, even a musical one, reveals the conscience of the soul, the inwardness of the heart of the creative person. It is therefore not good to obscure this uniqueness, to dilute it from the original. Exchanged cultural background would dull it. Thus, it is important to be careful to maintain the uniqueness of the writer.

All the richness of expression of human society depends on our success in leaving all the flavors, colors, and shapes with the same sharpness and accuracy in which they were created, and without touching them, to only gently embed them into a mosaic. Therefore, the fight against racism should be on the condition that it does not come to mix everything into one sticky and colorless mash.

It is better not to fight racism directly, but to reinforce the value of unity among human beings. In human connection we emphasize the differences and distinctions with all their might, but not against them, not in order to be proud and boastful, but only to open up, add color: the private nuance to the whole. And it is beautiful, like a rich painter’s palette of hues.

When a tendency to connect is ingrained in society, then automatically no superiority and inferiority is felt, neither for men nor women, not for old or young, not for colors or races. The Supreme Power, nature, created us so different—not to use those differences for war, tensions, and separation but to realize wholeness in the integration of all the diverse parts of creation.
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My new article on Linkedin “Is There Real Happiness?”

When Covid-19 broke out early last year, most of us felt as though we’d lost our lives. More accurately, we didn’t actually lose our lives, but we lost our ability to enjoy life. After all, if you can’t vacation twice a year, go shopping whenever you want and wherever you want, go to the movies, restaurants, and amusement parks with the kids (or with a friend, pretending to be kids again), then what’s to enjoy in life? Worse yet, when the virus made many of us unemployed or sent us on a prolonged furlough, we lost our financial security and became reluctant to spend on luxuries even when we could.

Now that the vaccines are here and we can begin to resume these activities, it seems as though we’re not sure how to enjoy them as much as we did. Something has changed in us, we’re not sure what makes us happy anymore, and if there is real happiness altogether.

The new pleasures, which we will soon begin to feel, will stem from the quality of our connections with others. The more we cultivate our ties with others, the more positive relations we build, the more joy will flow back to us through the network that is already being built among us. Accordingly, the pleasure we will experience will be entirely different: It will be enjoyment from giving to others.

But there is real happiness, and it is within anyone’s reach. The past year has “weaned us,” if you will, from our past manners of enjoyment and prepared us for a new, and higher kind. We may still not realize it, but now that we can start enjoying those past pleasures once again, we will see that they simply aren’t as fun or as satisfying as they once were.

Even our jealousy of others seems to have changed. Of course, we’d still like to be rich, famous, and popular, but we are less willing to work hard for it. We haven’t become lazy; we’ve simply grown up, and these goals seem, well, a little immature.

These are all preparations. We may not feel it yet but a new kind of pleasure is emerging in us. It is still beneath the surface, but its impact is already affecting us. It dims the previous pleasures, which is why they don’t shine for us the way they did before. This new pleasure that is budding within us encompasses not only ourselves, but everyone around us. This is why it dims our self-centered pleasures; it is far more encompassing than anything we can currently imagine.

Our society is changing because we are changing; we are feeling increasingly connected to each other and dependent on each other, and our society is likewise becoming more connected. The pleasures that come from such connectedness stem not only from me, but from my connections to others. This is why they are so potent compared to pleasures that stem from my own little minute circle.

The new pleasures, which we will soon begin to feel, will stem from the quality of our connections with others. The more we cultivate our ties with others, the more positive relations we build, the more joy will flow back to us through the network that is already being built among us. Accordingly, the pleasure we will experience will be entirely different: It will be enjoyment from giving to others.

It will not be only we who will change. Our entire society is changing. Others will enjoy giving to us as much as we will enjoy giving to them. It will be a complete inversion of the current mindset, where each person thinks of his or her own pleasure, and nothing else interests us. Instead, nothing will interest us but the pleasures of others, but we will not be deficient in any way since others will be interested in the same toward us, and we will enjoy both giving to others and receiving from them. It will be such a different society from today’s that we cannot even imagine how satisfied and content we will feel when we establish it. Now our work is only to hurry its onset as much as we can.

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My new article on Linkedin “Are the Monarchies Relevant in a Modern World?”

In an era of unlimited media exposure, royal families from Europe and other parts of the world never fail to provide fuel for explosive scandals. And during times of global distress, the dramas of the monarchies provide the perfect escape for many, as the soaring ratings show. The accusation of racism within the British Royal Family in a widely publicized interview with prince Harry and his wife is the most recent controversy to splash onto the scene and blot out the other monarchies around the world. Beyond the salacious details of such media frenzies, it is worthwhile to examine the significant role that royalty should contribute to stabilizing society.

I expect the royal houses to succeed in these challenging times and rise in importance as the rulers of the present world descend. Because unlike the world leaders who rule today—those who are elected for a few years and do not mind leaving ruin at the end of their term—kings know that from the day they are born until the day they die, they are responsible for the state.

Despite the sensational allegations against Buckingham Palace over the years, there is no institution more stable in Great Britain than the Monarchy. Presumably, thanks to the charismatic white-haired woman who has represented the Crown for so many years, the Crown still stands on its own. Every man and woman, boy and girl associated with the British Crown, whether in the UK, Canada, Australia or New Zealand, has a special attitude towards Queen Elizabeth.

The scandals of other royal families have also hit the headlines recently—investigations of corruption in the neighboring palaces in Belgium and Spain, massive street protests against laws prohibiting the insult of the King of Thailand, in the Middle East, a Saudi prince faces serious accusations of ordering the murder of a journalist in Turkey.

Certainly, there are problems in every royal house in the world. Kings are not angels, and they should be accountable for their wrongdoings to the general public. But the yellow journalism of the media will not change the face of history no matter how many sordid details they themselves whip up and empower. Reporters stack scandal upon scandal for the sole purpose of climbing to a height where money and publicity can be gleaned. There is no sincere attempt to correct the distortions, but only a simple intention to profit from the dirty circuses they promote.

Being a king or prince is a true public assignment. They are responsible for going out to greet schools, to attend assemblies and national ceremonies. They act as a state symbol of the people.

Similar to the kingdom of the upper nature, the kingdom of heaven, the dynasties of kings on earth are a permanent, stable, and unchanging factor which runs like a thread connecting periods of time and generations. A kingdom is like a material branch stemming from a spiritual root. In the same way a hierarchy in nature prevails, a royal monarchy can furnish a suitable form of government in human society.

If all European countries today were ruled by kings instead of politicians, Europe would not be at a brink of collapse as it is now. Regardless of political upheavals between states and within the countries, the royal houses themselves remain connected to one another, maintaining relationships above all the other frictions. And here lies their importance also in a modern world.

The royal houses form a kind of symbolic safety net in the connections between them that portrays balance and stability for the European continent that marches on a thin rope. Perceptive statesmen also understand this important function of royalty. Even Francisco Franco, ruler of a military dictatorship in Spain, after all was said and done, declared Juan Carlos as king, because he understood how the monarchy can work as a stabilizing force.

What we see in the scandals before our eyes is not the collapse of the royal houses, not the end of an era as it is presented to be. On the contrary, they have great potential to help Europe to be more stable. It would be a benefit to the world if all the remaining royal houses, even the smallest ones, were preserved. The kings and queens are in a position to provide hope and examples of how to withstand the rising tide of the stormy modern sea.

I expect the royal houses to succeed in these challenging times and rise in importance as the rulers of the present world descend. Because unlike the world leaders who rule today—those who are elected for a few years and do not mind leaving ruin at the end of their term—kings know that from the day they are born until the day they die, they are responsible for the state. Therefore, they should step up efforts to care for and connect to the people. At the end of the day, this is their mission, this is what hierarchy was established for, to be at the service of the masses to help ensure steady and strong societies.

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