The Times of Israel published my new article “Why the World Never Gets Tired of Hating Jews“

As he did every morning, Leopold Schwartz (62) walked to the Borough Park synagogue in Brooklyn. At 7:30am, as documented by security cameras at the neighborhood junction, one of the drivers got out of his car and brutally attacked Schwartz, who was stunned and couldn’t do much to defend himself.

“I tried to protect myself, I tried to run away” says Schwartz. “I screamed: ‘What do you want from me?!’ And as Schwartz fell down, the attacker continued to beat him with all his might until a man who passed through the area came and tried to help Schwartz. Later it turned out that he, too, was attacked and wounded.

This outrageous incident is not even the first case of violence since the beginning of the week. In a shocking video, another Jew appears to run for his life in the streets of New York as he is chased by a bully who is beating him vigorously with a cane. In London, an elderly Jewish woman who protested anti-Semitism got kicked in the face. And these are just a few of the reported incidents.

Surely, these violent acts are a direct extension of ongoing anti-Semitic propaganda. Not a day passes without defamation and hatred expressed towards the Jewish people in one way or another. This flier, for example, was posted on four US college campuses just last week.

A glance at Jewish history reveals that a blaming finger was always pointed at them. It’s as though there is an unspoken consensus, transcending time and culture, that “Jews are guilty until proven otherwise.”

Numerous times the Jewish people were facing annihilation, beginning with the mass slaughter of Jews during the great revolts against the Romans and the Greeks, through the pogroms and persecutions carried out under the guidance of the Church, the blood libels throughout the Middle Ages and the modern era, and of course, the Holocaust in Nazi Germany. No other nation was threatened to be erased from reality so many times.

What we’re witnessing today is merely another expression of the recurring pattern of inherent, natural hatred that has always haunted the Jews. At every stage in history, hatred of Jews takes on a different form and has a different justification, be it economic, religious, political or what have you. Anyone can find the reason that works for them.

The authentic wisdom of Kabbalah has an unorthodox explanation to this phenomenon. Firstly, Kabbalah views all of humanity as a single organism, or a single network. Within that network, the Jewish people is designed as a mini-model that reflects the whole of humanity, and acts as a central “hub,” responsible for the connection throughout the network.

The Book of Zohar portrays the connection between the Jewish people and the world to that of the organs within the human body: “Israel is like a heart among the organs, and as the organs of the body could not exist in the world even one moment without the heart, so all the nations cannot exist in the world without Israel.” (Pinhas, 152).

Hence the instinctive, deep-seated demand from the Jews, which can easily manifest as hatred in our world. With every accusation, persecution, rejection, or threat – the world calls upon the people of Israel to fulfill their natural duty and enable a new level of connection across the whole of humanity.

Subconsciously, the world feels that Jews carry a certain responsibility for all of the world’s problems and hold the key to its better future. Thus, the world’s pressure on the Jews is embedded in the evolution of human society. As written, “there is no calamity that comes into the world but for Israel” (Tractate Yevamot, 63).

Sooner or later, the people of Israel will have to accept their responsibility towards humanity, and usher in the next level of human development. Jews of all walks of life have to set the example of unity and connection above all differences for the sake of the entire world. Until we do that, the world will not get tired of hating Jews.

Filed under: New Publications - No Comments →

I published my new article “The Secret to Freeing Yourself from the Shackles of Time” on Medium.

Why do the minutes drag when you’re in a rush, running late for an appointment, and waiting for what feels like forever for the traffic lights to turn green? How can it be that the young driver in the car ahead, who gets distracted while waiting for the same green light, is astounded that the light has turned green so fast when your impatient honks interrupt him? One minute went by, but each feels it differently according to each one’s personal perspective and circumstance.

This illustrates just how subjective time is. If our experience of time is subjective, could there be a way to become masters of time instead of feeling that time controls our existence? How could we relate differently to our past, present and future and take control over time?

The Science of Time Perception

Scientists have discovered that the perception of time involves processes linked to memory, attention and emotional states. Time flies when we are busy or doing something we consider exciting. In contrast, minutes drag when we are bored and unimpressed.

Our experience of time depends on the amount of pleasure we receive. Changes in our desire for gratification create a sensation of time passing. This is how every moment of our lives is grasped and measured. Every sensation is divided into three states: what we did, what we are doing, and what we foresee doing in the future. How we relate to this partitioning influences our entire life. It defines the way we think, our ability to sense our present, and the framework we develop for facing daily tasks and strategizing for future events.

“There is no single, uniform time, but rather multiple times which we experience. Our temporal distortions are a direct translation of the way in which our brain and body adapt to these multiple times, the times of life,” concluded French scientist Sylvie Droit-Volet, after multiple studies on the subject.

Human beings constantly dwell on the past, thinking if only they could have done things differently the outcome could have been better. How often do we drag these examinations into the present at the expense of living life to the fullest? Wouldn’t it be better to learn how to seize the moment, live here and now, enjoying life like there is no tomorrow? Also, what about that unknown territory called “the future”? Is it better to take each day as it comes or to worry about what will happen tomorrow or in the next moment?

What Exactly Should You Examine in Your Past?

When you look into the past you should have no regrets or self-blame. The way you are is how nature created you, with a desire to enjoy that controls you at every moment. If you, for instance, harmed someone in the past, it was because you were unaware that harming them meant harming yourself, since you did not feel your oneness with them.

However, the world is one complete whole. All of nature is connected and interdependent. Therefore, if we hurt someone on the way to our personal enjoyment, it will boomerang on us. Conversely, if we create connections of friendship and mutual love with everyone, we assure ourselves a good life from now until the end of our days.

Therefore, our only purpose when we evaluate the past is to recognize the evil in us, but never to regret and blame. We should then look into the future and set an intention to correct our attitude from that moment onward, to do only good to others just like we would do for ourselves.

Our Existence Above Time

We can live above time’s calculations because there actually is no time. The wisdom of Kabbalah states that time does not exist. Time is only a series of actions taking place in our desire to enjoy, the internal changes we undergo during the day and throughout life. Those different states give us the sensation of time, and we measure them according to our corporeal existence.

We have a sensation of time passing rapidly or slowly when we ponder about things that happen to us and when we reflect on consequences and emotions. However, time is not experienced according to the number of seconds that have elapsed, but instead by the changes from one state to the next. Therefore, a unit of time can last a minute, an hour, or a year, but the unit remains the same: the change from descent to ascent or vice versa. The actual calculation is over a feeling of more or less satisfaction in our desire. It turns out that everything depends on us, on our subjective perception.

Until not long ago, people thought it impossible that time is relative to subjective perception. Then Einstein’s scientific breakthrough of his Theory of General Relativity backed up this notion of time. Our sensation of time depends solely on whether we get more or less pleasure. Changes in our desire for pleasure create our sensation of time passing. Without these changing states, we would lose not only the feeling of time, but the sensation of life in general.

For instance, if we were to feel “only this moment” it would be the equivalent of dying. Why? It is because the dead are free from the perception of time’s movement and don’t feel its changes. However, this is not the kind of freedom a person looks for since it doesn’t fulfill the purpose of our lives.

Looking into the Future

If being above the sensation of time is not our goal, then what is? What should the purpose of our lives be? We need to discover the development of our personal timeline of development, and how to control the full spectrum of our lives. This means that we need to understand and learn how to manage the internal states we undergo. We need to clarify how we can manage and control the past, the present, and the future via what influences us from an external source.

What is this “external source”? It is the source that controls the whole of creation, the force of nature, which is a force of love and bestowal. If we learn about its fundamental attributes — love and bestowal — and equalize with them by changing our connections from egoistic to altruistic, we can then create a positive environment similar to the primary force of nature, one that is good and eternal, truly above time.

It turns out that all we must do is change our senses, our tools of perception. We need to replace our egoistic program, our current operating system that feels the changes of time, and begin to function differently, to run on an upgraded altruistic program. If we rise above our need to fulfill our desire for pleasure and live in the desire to fulfill others, we become masters of time, masters of our lives.

In order to make this change, we must know the entire timeline of the development of our desire: how it is created, how it changes, and what form it needs to become. We can discover all of this if we rise above our selfish desire, stop depending on it, and become completely free from it. When we do that, we stop feeling the past, present and future as a corporeal, limited life.

Every object in the world has its past, present, and future, i.e. its cause and effect. We need to learn how to always refer to the root cause in order to be able to easily investigate and see all the consequences. If we recognize the cause, then we will already know what will happen next, even though we don’t see the result as yet. The future forms of all results are already latent in their cause. As explained by my teacher, Kabbalist Baruch Ashlag (Rabash), in his article, “The Purpose of Society”: “and although we have not yet achieved this goal, we have the desire to achieve it. And this, too, should be appreciated by us, for even though we are at the beginning of the way, we do hope to achieve the exalted goal.”

In this manner, if we research the most important questions about life — “Where is life’s origin?” “Where do we come from?” “What is a person?” “Who or what created us?” “What kind of force controls us and what goal is it leading us to?” — then we could realistically hope to answer these questions. Then, knowing the entire timeline of our desires’ development, we could manage and control our lives, liberated from the shackles of time.
[234928]

Filed under: New Publications - No Comments →

Wall Street International Magazine published an article by my student Manuel Marín Oconitrillo: “The Melodies of Infinity“

Conversations with the Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman about music and Kabbalah
15 OCTOBER 2018, MANUEL MARÍN OCONITRILLO

This conversation with Dr. Laitman is a continuation of others that I have had with him, through which I have immersed myself in Kabbalá. I have taken license to spell Kabbalá with the accent at the end in deference to Hebrew pronunciation and thereby leaving intact the bridge to “Rav” Laitman. As a gesture of affection and respect, Dr. Laitman’s students have given him this title, although he is not a rabbi, but a scientist and philosopher.

In the past I heard Dr. Laitman say:

“Music has the great quality of being able to express the connections between opposites. It is able to show emotions in the most abstract way. That is why it is a fundamental part of our life.”

It amazed me that he understands music so well. I learned that, as a child, he played the piano. When I heard him singing a melody, it was clear that although he does not have a trained voice, his pitch was in tune, which denotes a musical ear.

On another occasion he said:

“The composers have an inner ear. They feel their inner world through sounds. There are different styles of music and composers. Sometimes composers are secluded in order to listen to themselves, yet a composer is actually the result of society as a whole. Thus, the difference between a mediocre composer and a brilliant one is the degree to which he is able to feel the pain and hope of society as a whole. This has nothing to do with your spiritual level. A great New Life 532 – Kabbalah Convention, Jump to the Purpose of Creation can also be a savage. A composer has to try to learn the secret of life in order to reach the highest level of composition.”

A student asked him, “What is music?,” to which he replied:

“Music is a language that can express the deepest feelings of a person. It can excite and elevate a person, change a state of mind and the direction of thought. According to his style, music can transport us from one place to another. The music immediately awakens memories in the person and produces special feelings. Words penetrate us through the mind and we are forced to activate a mechanism of comparison, memory.

Music, on the other hand, immediately takes the emotion of memory and awakens it within us, whether we like it or not. Penetrate the person without asking permission. Music connects us with the conditions of the environment in which it is heard: with time, space, movement and events; all this is immediately awakened in our memory along with the sound we hear. Music is the world and everything that fills it.

There is something in musical harmony that is similar to the superior whole in nature. This is the reason why music exalts us. There is nothing threatening in the music and it brings calm joy, tears, and something that is very internal, personal and profound.

All nature plays music and music can heal.”

Over the years, I felt that all those questions of his students were also mine, and yet there were more doubts within me, more than I wanted to ask him. Being so immersed in the world of opera, which is what gives me food, every time I listen to kabbalistic music, I realize how far it is from the physical world, from the world of bodily desires, from the ego world, for its essence is perceived only from our aspirations to a higher world, a world corrected from the defects of the ego. Many times I have listened to the recordings of Rav Laitman’s teacher, Rabash, singing the melodies of his famous father and teacher, Baal Hasulam, but now I was ready to talk with the favorite student of Rabash about the threads that connect to infinity with music. Or is music rather a door?

So it was that the day came when I had the opportunity to talk to him about music during a recorded interview for Israel’s channel 66. The moderator was Norma Livne, born in Latin America, so she and I would speak in Spanish, Rav Laitman would translate to Hebrew and translate what I said into Spanish. I will not make a transcript of the whole program, but I will take the points that seem most relevant to me.

The moderator asked Rav Laitman:

What are the different spiritual states a person goes through when listening to Kabbalistic music?
I do not know. That’s not music, it’s opera. It’s something much more than music, because it includes everything that man produces and creates in our world. It is really the greatest creation we have in our cultural life. Kabbalah gives us all that from within, it can even thrill with simple notes (Kabbalist music), but if the man is directed towards that, he enters the same wave of melody, even if it is the smallest or simplest of wisdom of Kabbalah, the important thing is that this melody brings vibrations to his soul, and then he gets very excited with that, and wakes up inside even though they are simple sounds, but he is awakened by a sea inside, much more than a symphony or an opera. But equally, when I listen to opera, I find myself in a very special impression. Humanity has no greater works, it includes everything that humanity does culturally.

Although I do not come from that world, that’s what I think, that opera is the genre that more and better expresses creation, human nature, the relationship between people; it is the closest thing to what Kabbalah wants to express.

Why does it cause so much emotion?
The opera produces such a great emotion because it really includes everything. First of all, the process itself is slow, very wellcalculated, and very psychological.

Although the story is simple … Cio Cio San, Madama Buterfly, Puccini … Verdi …; History is history but equally, I do not know how to say it, but I think we should teach how opera connects people. I remember when I went to the Moscow or London opera, and I saw those rows of hundreds of people, who are finally just hundreds among millions who do not understand it so much. That is why education is needed, equally for the wisdom of Kabbalah.

Then it was my turn to ask him my question. I felt a storm in my head, so I tried to be as concise as I could.

In a webinar you said that in the spiritual world actions determine what spiritual time would be. Music has structures in which silences are interspersed, that is, moments where nothing happens but is part of the melodic structure, such as pauses or breaths. What is silence in the spiritual world?
Without pauses we could not hear anything. The pause is like the preparation of the Kli, (vessel) and the pauses have to sound inside us no less than the sounds we hear because when I hear a sound and then I hear a silence it is not silence, it is the same sound that begins to work in an inverse way in me, because it produced silence; without the sound there would be no silence. Then silence is that note that I now hear … Now, the silence that comes after belongs to that previous sound and connects it to the one that follows. Because we, in all things, in our words, not only in musical works, we can not without pause, without differentiating the transmissions that we find between one and the other, because in the wisdom of Kabbalah that is the creation of the Kli, of the vessel, of the lack, because I can not correctly hear a silence if there is not a special pause before, and that pause has to arise from the special sound that came before, and then, in this way we feel the message that’s in the melody.

Many of the melodies of the Kabbalists are precisely constructed from the psalms of King David. Now, if the psalms are already a spiritual description, what does the music contribute, or in the psalms text and music are integrated?
Well, we hear that musical works do exist since we do not know when, because people wrote about everything they had before them. For example the harp of King David, we do not really know how he sang his psalms, as he was known as an instrumentalist and as a composer. There is a great difference, according to the wisdom of Kabbalah, in how we listen to the melodies, for example those of Baal Hasulam, who composed many … We use them because in them there is a spirit (Ruach) and that is why we respect them so much, It is part of our study.

Are there melodies for the various spiritual worlds: Adam Kadmon, Azilut, Beriah Yetzirah, Asiah, or is it general and everyone perceives it from its reach?
All the melodies (Kabbalists) are in Atzilut, that is the place where you can really express the whole message, not less than that, that is, also the music and the human voice, which includes all the instruments, have to be already in the degree of Azilut.

Why did Baal Hasulam compose several melodies for the same text? For example on the text of Bnei eijalá composes several melodies. I he expressing things from different (spiritual) reaches?
I do not know, it may be that they are different versions of different states, because the very state of Bnei eijalá (The children of the palace) can come from the side of the major or minor and depends on that, after all it is a state of a special elevation called Shabbat and that comes there in various ways. I think the closest thing to Baal Hasulam is the slow version of that melody, it’s the closest to him, it’s what I feel.

The whole interview went by in a flash and I could have kept asking and asking: What is music really? How does the universe sound? What is the universe? This has been just one small glimpse into this world and perhaps this is all we can digest for the moment.

When I reflect back upon these conversations, I discover now that I have even more questions than before. Perhaps, after pausing, a new desire will awaken and when it comes perhaps we will become closer to the corrected world, the world of the infinite, which the Kabbalists call Einsof (“without end”). We have at least the music of the Kabbalists. Let’s listen to it, and keep asking.

Filed under: New Publications - No Comments →

Medium published my new article “A Virtual Jewish Nation May Teach the World How to Live on the Cloud”

We’re all familiar with “the cloud.” But have heard about “cloud nations”?

If you ask futurists and visionaries, such as Dr. Roey Tzezana, they will tell you that in the coming decades we will no longer need the territorial institutions of the world. Instead, most of the government and civil services will be provided automatically and from anywhere in the world through newly developing technologies such as Blockchain.

Essentially, “cloud nations” are a virtual way for a large number of people to unite under a common identity, and easily program their own “smart contracts” that will transparently oversee the conduct of a large number of individuals. And at the same time, enjoy all the rights and services that currently only exist in the physical world.

Cloud nations are not bounded by territory, they have no borders, and citizens can leave and enter these “states” freely. Cloud nations can replace a large number of institutions and governmental bodies, and even transfer the power of decision-making to citizens, gradually rendering governmental functions obsolete.

Cloud nations will provide immediate and decentralized systems of justice, so most of the functions of courts won’t be necessary. Citizens will receive prompt justice anywhere and at any time, and have an effective government that will act for them on their own behalf.

In addition, cloud nations will allow for a cooperative economy that doesn’t concentrate power in the hands of greedy economic tyrants. And obviously, the artificial intelligence of the cloud nation will know how to answer any question, as it will analyze all the information that exists from the dawn of humanity, and also calculate the basic needs of every human being to provide him with what he wants with a push of a button and 3D printing.

As mind bending as this future scenario sounds, Dr. Roey Tzezana doesn’t stop there. In his recent book, “Rulers of the Future,” he takes the idea of cloud nations another step further.

Together with Jewish thinkers and researchers, the futurist is working on the “Jewish Cloud Nation” project — a virtual state that will finally unite all Jews around the world, regardless of their ethnic or religious affiliation, and provide services to all of them “in a fully decentralized way with no geographical limitations.”

The core values of the Jewish Cloud Nation will be determined by a committee of Jewish sages that will include the great thinkers and social scientists who will meet physically and virtually to decipher and define common values for all Jews around the world.

According to the “Jewish Cloud nation” website, the aim is to realize the momentous Jewish value of “Tikkun Olam” — an old-new principle according to which Jews carry a responsibility for the entire world. “The code of the Jewish Cloud Nation will be open and transparent, and will be shared with everyone to allow for further creation of other cloud nations, to serve the needs of citizens of the entire world without the involvement of dysfunctional governments or corrupted regimes.”

It is nice to see that experts who recognize the imminent technological future, also envision the emergence of a cooperative society and even take steps to realize the vision. Such a vision corresponds directly with the social teachings that appear in the authentic writings of Kabbalah. About a century ago, Kabbalist Yehuda Ashlag wrote: “Do not be surprised if I mix together the well-being of a particular collective with the well-being of the whole world, because indeed, we have already come to such a degree that the whole world is considered one collective and one society.”

The process that we’re about to enter is no less than the birth of a new humanity. From day to day, we are witnessing the culmination of a multi-faceted global crisis that will necessitate us to reorganize human society. We will have to adapt to our interdependence, as well as our interconnection with the natural system. And technology experts are certainly among the pioneers to identify this trend. What’s more, they recognize the practical tools to create an infrastructure that will enable a new social order at every level: economic, social, political, educational etc.

And yet, smart contracts are not enough to bring people together. Technology does indeed upgrade our abilities, but it doesn’t upgrade our inner qualities and the way we relate to each other.

If the “Jewish Cloud Nation” aspires to be an exemplary society based on mutual concern, it must begin from an educational process that is welcomed by its initial citizens. They will have to encourage mutual consideration and build new norms and values for positive social engagement. Ultimately, they need to develop a new way to sense each other, as pieces of a single whole. This is a conscious development that requires people’s willingness to change themselves and upgrade their perception of life.

A prime example of such a change is the issue of privacy. To futurists such as Tzezana, It’s clear that no matter how much we discuss the right for privacy in our time, in the technological future, the struggle for privacy is a lost battle. Also, the renunciation of privacy will help the system benefit the individual.

Privacy in cloud nations will have to be reduced to a minimum, but the willingness to give up one’s privacy is a matter that requires great preparation and adoption of new values that will exchange the need for privacy with real benefit. This is just one example of the need to change human consciousness and nurture human connection.

As we move towards the structure of the future society that our technology is weaving before our eyes, we will have to adapt to values and concepts that today seem utopian or simply delusional. Therefore, rather than expecting our technology to direct us, we should educate ourselves towards the change we have to go through — becoming interconnected human beings in a society that promotes unity and rewards mutual concern and consideration.

If the pioneers of the Jewish Cloud Nation train themselves for this, rains of blessings will come down from the Jewish Cloud Nation to the entire world.
[235132]

Filed under: New Publications - No Comments →

Medium published my new article “World Mental Health Day Oct. 10th”

This World Mental Health Day, it’s worthwhile to emphasize positive human relationships as the overarching means for good mental health. Mental illness stems from imbalance in the mind and body, which is caused by imbalance in society, which is further caused by imbalance with nature. By repairing our social connections, we bring ourselves into balance with nature, and such balance will positively affect not only our mental health, but also our general health and wellbeing.

Good human relationships are the treasure that makes life worthwhile and gratifying. That is an unquestionable truth considering that we are social animals. But around half of all Americans feel they lack meaningful relationships, that they are either alone, left out or isolated. Why is it so hard to achieve solid and fulfilling relations? It is absolutely doable; we just need to learn how.

Our Whole Life Is Based on Relationships

If we think about it, our whole life is based on relationships, at home, at work, with friends, acquaintances, at every level, in every field. We all want to succeed in life, get up in the morning happy and satisfied, but we live in a world with inequality and conflicts in basically every area where humans are involved.

From a very early age, we learn that we cannot say what we want, behave as we please, because it may provoke a negative and unpleasant reaction from others, so we adopt certain rules and codes of conduct set up by society to fit in. They might contribute to advance our personal life to a certain extent or make progress in our careers, but this framework is not enough to build significant relationships, a key factor linked to emotional stability and happiness by scientific studies. Quite the opposite, we live under constant stress which has massive implications for our well-being.

Social Isolation and Loneliness Is Unhealthy

Research finds that social isolation and loneliness are directly associated with health problems and increase the risk of early death up to 29% compared with those who have a supportive and friendly environment.

The lack of knowledge on how to relate to each other is a problem we face in today’s modern age. In the past, people were pigeonholed in classes and hierarchies. Rooted in those boundaries, relations were clear and simple. Today, those differences between people have disappeared. In a global reality, we are breaking the boundaries on religions, beliefs, socioeconomic status and professions.

This new, open perspective, on one hand, gives us a sense of equality, but on the other hand, it is merely superficial equality and people become confused. The world has become a global village, with everyone depending on each other, but while interdependent, great hatred is revealed.

We continue exploiting others for personal gain and try to impose our own views and egoistic decisions. Such a self-centered approach contradicts the principle of an egalitarian society, where every person is equally important even though everyone is different.

What Is the Basis for Positive Relationships?

The attitude of equality and mutual acceptance is the basis of all positive relations. A social educational system should be established to open up our eyes to the deep level of interdependence in all areas of our lives, which should amplify the indispensable need for positive social connections. We can begin with concrete steps to acquire strong and solid relations.

First, it is important to realize that in this tightly interdependent world, every piece is indispensable to complete the full picture of reality, like in a puzzle. By affecting one another, we affect the whole system, for better or for worse. It is a system that each person is part of and that influences each person directly. Do we want to benefit from the fact that we have good relations and a warm environment? Certainly, every person desires that reality for themselves. It is then in our own interest to transform our actions and intentions from harmful egoism to mutual understanding and care.

The way to achieve this goal is not rocket science and yet, it is also not obvious to us because we have not been taught how to do it. We only need to use the right communication tools. The best means to acquire the wisdom to develop and nurture meaningful relations is through discussions in connection workshops, also called “roundtable discussions” or “circles discussions.”

By sitting in circles as equals, communicating with each other with a positive approach and relatively equal time for each speaker, not debating or suppressing other views, only sharing our thoughts and genuinely listening to others without interrupting, we gradually become closer to each other, finding a common and fertile ground to harvest good relations. This method opens a wellspring of solutions to problems we might consider unsolvable.

The sense of mutual respect and consideration create an atmosphere of unity above deep divisions, so much needed in today’s interconnected but imbalanced world. It is in our hands to change this reality, build fulfilling relations based on unity and mutual understanding, and by doing so, enjoy good health as a byproduct of our positive connections.
[234588]

Filed under: New Publications - No Comments →

The Times of Israel published my article “The UN 73rd General Assembly, Simchat Torah and How to Repair the World“

During this year’s 73rd General Assembly, each member of the UN state had an opportunity to address the international community. Coincidentally, this year, the UN gathering took place during Sukkot, and the last day will align with Simchat Torah (Rejoicing of the Torah). Instead of a warm environment under one Sukkah, sealed with a joyful atmosphere, it has been a gathering to air grievances and present a gloomy state of the world.

UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, opened his speech by warning that the world is suffering from “trust deficit disorder,” referring to divisive global relations. France’s president, Emmanuel Macron discussed “seeing a crisis of the very foundations of today’s world.”

The issue of living under global governance versus respecting the independent, sovereign rites of nations surfaced as President Trump openly disagreed with the idea of globalism and promoted national independence, using America’s achievements during his presidency as an example of the latter’s success.

Why Unity of Nations Can’t Work Just Yet

Any form of unity that doesn’t focus on correcting egoistic relations is bound to explode. The classic example can be seen in what happened to the Soviet Union. Today’s so-called “European Union” is repeating the same mistake as the Soviet Union, which is, in the name of “unity among nations,” to exploit the nationalistic force of each nation until it is completely sucked dry. EU leaders think that this setup is possible, but it will eventually collapse.

For many years, the United States was treated as a cash cow in this game, and Trump clearly shows that he wants the US out. He sees that there is no future in artificial unity among nations, and he rattles the political atmosphere with a cold, pragmatic and business-like approach to this issue at every opportunity he gets.

Yet, the ideological tug-of-war between economic nationalism and global governance, which has become ever more prominent during Trump’s presidency, has definitely further sparked the questions about what it would take to effectively unite peoples and nations, and reach a feasible integrated global system of trade, financial, economic or social issues. Any shift to a better world would need to successfully address these questions.

Addressing the Questions

On one hand, we are globally interdependent. A basic tenet of interdependence is that if any piece fails, the entire mechanism either stops working or works poorly. Along with the evolution of human society, we have come to realize an interdependent connection is indispensable in order to enable individuals and nations to thrive.

On the other hand, the interfering element in today’s interdependent world is our egoistic attitude: where we each aim to self-benefit at the expense of others. Therefore, in order to impact a transition to happier, safer and more comfortable lives in our interdependent reality, we would need to solve how to mend our egoistic relations.

Moreover, as our further development entails increasingly tightening interdependent conditions, if we fail to realize a shift to positive mutual relationships, then we can expect increasing pressures and crises. Simply put, we need to feel that our life depends on others.

How Does This Relate to Simchat Torah?

The wisdom of Kabbalah explains that we are born with an evil inclination, as it is written, “I have created the evil inclination, I have created for it the Torah as a spice, for the light in it reforms it,” Babylonian Talmud, Kidushin, 30b.

However, we do not know what the evil inclination means or moreover, how to correct it. We need a special method through which we can determine what is evil within me and then transform it into good.

We reach the state of Simcha or joy, an exalted spiritual state, from having received the possibility of revealing the Torah, i.e. the wisdom of Kabbalah, the mechanism that gives us the tools for correction. It is also called “the hidden Torah” because it makes visible what is hidden in the person.

Throughout the years, the wisdom of Kabbalah was concealed, waiting for the time of humanity’s ripening to receive it. It is in our generation, when the world needs to be corrected the most, that it is accessible to be studied. And this is what we need to fix our problems, on a personal or global scale.

We cannot expect magical solutions from world leaders. We can only correct the world by correcting ourselves. What we call “evil” is indeed our egoistic attributes which are the opposite to those of bestowal and love that prevail in nature. Our goal should be to attain those characteristics for a joyful life and prosperous future for all.
[234261]

Filed under: New Publications - No Comments →

Medium published my new article “Why Do We Not Care About A Thousand Dead Indonesians?”

Days after the deadly earthquake measuring 7.5 on the Richter scale struck the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia, and the huge tsunami destroyed large parts of it, the dimensions of the disaster are becoming increasingly clear. Roughly 1,300 people have been killed so far from this disaster, and the death toll could reach thousands.

It seems that the higher the death toll, the greater the indifference in the world. Just to refresh our memory, the earthquake that struck Indonesia in 2004 and the subsequent tsunamis took 230,000 victims. The entire world was mobilized for help, but the current disaster is hardly arousing much sympathy in the world beyond the typical headlines. Hurricane Florence, which hit the South Carolina coast two weeks ago and took a total of six victims, received ongoing media coverage on an international scale.

Alongside the destroyed roads in Indonesia are signs reading “we need food” and “we need help.” International rescue teams find it difficult to operate without proper equipment, tens of thousands of injured residents are in need of treatment. Hundreds of thousands have lost their homes, and in whole areas, hundreds of people are still trapped under collapsed structures. Their voices have gone silent and the rescue forces may never reach them.

The world, which only a month ago was nervously following a nerve-racking rescue of a group of boys outside a cave in northern Thailand, prefers to be occupied with Trump’s and Percy’s speeches.

It’ll be a mistake to think that Indonesia’s influence somewhere in Southeast Asia is remote. We live in an integrated global world, and the various disasters that have plagued us in recent decades illustrate the interdependence that characterizes the global system we live in.

On face value, nations associate themselves with international organizations whose declared goal is the general good, but in practice, they merely advance their own private interests. The World Trade Organization, NATO, the Organization of the Islamic Conference (G8), the OECD, the UN, the EU and even the Internet — are just a few examples of the networks we have created, and yet, it’s all mostly for show.

We lack the awareness that we’re all sailing stormy seas together on a single boat — that the storm is coming and may drown us together. The exploitive competition between us driven by unfettered egoism that characterizes the human race, prevents us from feeling that we are one big family.

However, nature does not recognize international boundaries, does not distinguish between rich and poor, and does not skip anyone. Nature shows us how vulnerable we all are. Ultimately, nature’s system will force us to recognize our interdependence and achieve balance in human society.

Whether we learn it the hard way or the easy way, we will come to see that we’re all one and there’s no difference between Indonesian and American, between European and African, between developed and third world countries. We live together on a single planet, and in the eyes of nature, we are all equal. No one is more important than the other.

Rather than ignoring this reality until it hits us in our face, we can consciously raise ourselves to a higher level of human connection through education and practice. When we begin to do so, our concern for all of humanity will grow and expand, we will naturally find the ways to build a safe, beautiful and good life for everyone on the planet.
[234525]

Filed under: New Publications - No Comments →

The Times of Israel published my new article “Sukkot: How Humanity Can Live in Harmony Under One Roof“

Home is now a relative concept for masses of people across the globe. Every day, the pursuit of better opportunities and jobs prompts many to migrate to new locations. Record numbers simply have no option and are forcibly displaced as a result of war, persecution, crime or natural disasters. Let’s see what the Sukkot holiday can teach us about creating a real sense of belonging and peaceful coexistence…

First, let’s get a perspective on the demographics. According to the United Nations, an estimated 258 million people worldwide are living in a country other than their birthplace, an increase of 49% in the last two decades. One third of these had to flee life-threatening conditions to look for a safe haven, with their eyes mainly set on wealthy countries.

EU leaders are unsuccessfully trying to solve what is considered the biggest refugee and displacement crisis of our time. Anti-migrant sentiments have rapidly escalated into deep social tensions in some European cities. Meanwhile, in the United States, there is an estimated over 11 million undocumented immigrants trying to enter, resulting in a humanitarian crisis along the US border.

In today’s world, it is hard to find examples of stability, constancy and empowerment. The dynamics of our global and interconnected world, where the movement of each individual affects others, constantly pressures us with instability and unpredictability. In a system of mutual interconnection, we all depend on one another. It cannot be good for one, if it is not good for everyone.

Natural Course of Development

The migration of millions from one country to another is part of nature’s evolutionary program. The same holds true for the changing global climate, another powerful cause of relocation and uncertainty. The most recent examples are the devastation caused by Typhoon Mangkhut in the Philippines, and Hurricane Florence in the US. The latter has left a trail of destruction estimated at $22 billion in damages and thousands of people displaced due to mandatory evacuations.

However, the fact is that we can prevent these blows. If, prior to nature’s blow, we understood nature’s defined plan of development, we could lead the entire human race to a bright, new horizon.

What, then, stands in the way of us creating a good life for all people?

It is none other than the human ego—the desire to enjoy at the expense of others. As part of humanity’s natural evolution, the ego has grown to grotesque proportions like a cancer within the system, while nature expects us to keep its basic law of balance between all its elements: still, vegetative, animate and human.

The sooner we comprehend the lesson nature is teaching us, the sooner we can transform our fleeting and fragile life into one that is positive, stable and peaceful.

Creatures of Habit

A person, like any other animal, aspires for comfort and security. Interestingly, the Sukkot holiday (The Feast of Tabernacles) is a call to come out from our comfortable egoistic “home” and build a new structure, a sukkah, the symbol of the new world that we can build for ourselves and transform our egoistic nature into the quality of bestowal.

Why is this reconstruction and relocation important? Also, what does it have to do with us?

As humanity has developed, it has striven to ensure a solid future, but the sad reality is that life has only become more complex over time. In the past, everything seemed simpler. Life seemed to have continuity, comfort and stability. Parents inherited homes and left them to their children. People felt secure in their professions and had few worries about a future source of income. But everything seems to have rapidly lost value in recent years.

Families are increasingly in shambles. Everything feels subject to change. One could generally say that yesterday’s comfortable home has become today’s temporary shelter from the storm closing in on us.

What is one of the most distressing ironies of our era? It is that, in a technological era when we have an abundance of resources to guarantee a good and safe life for everybody, we use our advancements to harm each other, engaging in wars, conflicts and constant struggles, and creating an atmosphere of increasing anxiety rather than one of increasing confidence. Our evil nature is overpowering our aspirations for a pleasant life.

Our safest bet today is to explore nature in depth and identify its ironclad rules. By understanding the trend of nature’s development can we ensure painless and rapid progress.

Knowledge about the inner workings of the system of nature is our only anchor in the changing world. We need to gain universal knowledge that includes recognition of the natural system, understanding how it works and where it directs our development as human beings. When we will understand this system, we will align ourselves with nature’s general law, the force that operates and controls everything in reality.

From Self-Love to Love of Others

The formula by which we can begin to hold on to this higher power is to “love your neighbor as yourself.” The observance of this rule requires exiting the ego with which we were created—exiting our permanent home of self-love and entering into a new dwelling of love of others. This is what the wisdom of Kabbalah teaches and this is the inner message of Sukkot.

Loving your neighbor as yourself is the means to discover a new home. On the way from love of oneself to love of others, our image of reality is replaced. Our senses are reversed, the mind and the heart change direction from inside out, and an opposite world is revealed to us. We suddenly see a higher, wider world in which the program of development and management of our lives is located.

Also, when our eyes open up to see that we are all one, we stop making mistakes and ensure a happy coexistence under one common, global roof. Happy Sukkot!
[234042]

Filed under: Holidays, New Publications - No Comments →

The Times of Israel published my new article “Why Is There Anti-Semitism?“

Overlooking the controversy of what is anti-Jewish discourse

Anti-Semitism has been at the center of a recent semantic dilemma, with opposite perspectives in Europe and the US in terms of what is considered anti-Semitic and a legitimate criticism of Israel. It deviates our focus from the real matter at hand: Why does the phenomenon of anti-Semitism receive dramatic global attention, comparable to the time of the Second World War, according to recent studies.

The British Labour party, facing mounting backlash for their anti-Semitic positions in recent years, adopted in full the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism, which calls for combating hatred and discrimination against Jews and Holocaust denial, but included a caveat alongside on “freedom of speech on Israel,” the right to criticize the Jewish nation and its policies.

On the other hand, the Trump administration reopened a 7-year-old case involving alleged anti-Semitism at Rutgers University, backing the claim of Jewish groups, which have long-campaigned fighting anti-Jewish bias and the hostile environment on college campuses across the US, promoted by the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel. As a vivid example of admitted support of this movement by academics, just a few days ago a professor at the University of Michigan rescinded his offer to write a recommendation letter for one of his students after he learned that she wanted to study in Israel.

The U.S. Department of Education, has now signaled that it is willing to blur the line between criticism of Israel and discrimination against Jewish students, where condemnations of Israel that call into question its legitimacy and the Jewish people’s right of self-determination are defined as anti-Semitic. Such a move is considered by some as a violation of the First Amendment, if implemented.

We could continue with many more examples on this issue. However, maybe the time has come to address this matter from a more in-depth perspective on the root cause of undeniable anti-Semitism and its solution? Four years ago, I published an article in The New York Times print edition entitled, “Who Are You, People of Israel?” Since anti-Semitic crimes and threats have only escalated since then, I would like to re-publish this article, as the solution to this problem is right around the corner. It is up to us to achieve it sooner rather than later.

Who Are You, People of Israel?

Time and again, Jews are persecuted and terrorized. Being Jewish myself, I often ponder the purpose of this relentless agony. Some believe that the atrocities of WWII are unimaginable today. And yet, we see how easily and abruptly the state of mind preceding the Holocaust is re-emerging, and “Hitler was right” shouts are sounded all too often and all too openly.

But there is hope. We can reverse this trend, and all it requires is that we become aware of the bigger picture.

Where We Are and Where We Come From

Humanity is at a crossroads. Globalization has made us interdependent, while people are growing increasingly hateful and alienated. This unsustainable, highly flammable situation requires making a decision about humanity’s future direction. Yet to understand how we, the Jewish people, are involved in this scenario, we need to go back to where it all began.

The people of Israel emerged some 4,000 years ago in ancient Babylon. Babylon was a thriving civilization whose people felt connected and united. In the words of the Torah, “The whole earth was of one language and of one speech” (Genesis, 11:1).

But as their ties grew stronger, so did their egos. They began to exploit, and finally hate one another. So while the Babylonians felt connected, their intensifying egos made them increasingly alienated from each other. Caught between a rock and a hard place, the people of Babylon began to seek out a solution to their plight.

Two Solutions to the Crisis

The search for a solution led to forming two conflicting views. The first, suggested by Nimrod, king of Babylon, was natural and instinctive: Dispersion. The king argued that when people are far from one another, they do not quarrel.

The second solution was suggested by Abraham, then a renowned Babylonian sage. He argued that according to Nature’s law, human society is destined to become united, and therefore strove to unite the Babylonians despite, and atop their growing egos.

Succinctly, Abraham’s method was a way to connect people above their egos. When he began to advocate his method among his countryfolk, “thousands and tens of thousands assembled around him, and … He planted this tenet in their hearts,” writes Maimonides (Mishneh Torah, Part 1). The rest of the people chose Nimrod’s way: dispersion, as do quarrelsome neighbors when they try to stay out of each other’s way. These dispersed people gradually became what we now know as “human society.”

Only today, some 4,000 years down the line, we can begin to assess whose way was right.

The Basis of the People of Israel

Nimrod forced Abraham and his disciples out of Babylon, and they moved to what later became known as “the land of Israel.” They worked on unity and cohesion in accord with the tenet, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” connected above their egos, and thus discovered “the force of unity,” Nature’s hidden power.

Every substance consists of two opposite forces, connection and separation, which balance themselves out. But human society is evolving using only the negative force—the ego. According to Nature’s plan, we are required to consciously balance the negative force with the positive one—unity. Abraham discovered the wisdom that enables balance, and today we refer to his wisdom as, “the wisdom of Kabbalah.”

Israel Means Straight to the Creator

Abraham’s disciples called themselves Ysrael (Israel) after their desire to go Yashar El (straight to G-d, the Creator). That is, they wished to discover Nature’s force of unity so as to balance the ego that stood between them. Through their unity, they found themselves immersed in the force of unity, the upper, root force of reality.

In addition to their discovery, Israel also learned that in the process of human development, the rest of the Babylonians—who followed Nimrod’s advice, dispersed throughout the world, and have become today’s humanity—would also have to achieve unity. That contradiction between the people of Israel, which formed through unity, and the rest of humanity, which formed as a result of separation, is felt even today.

Exile

Abraham’s disciples, the people of Israel, experienced many internal struggles. But for 2,000 years their unity prevailed and was the key element that held them together. Indeed, their conflicts were meant only to intensify the love among them.

However, approximately 2,000 years ago, their egos reached such intensity that they could not maintain their unity. Unfounded hatred and egotism erupted among them and inflicted exile on them. Indeed, Israel’s exile, more than it is exile from the physical land of Israel, it is exile from unity. The alienation within the Israeli nation caused them to disperse among the nations.

Back to the Present

Today humanity is in a similar state to the one the ancient Babylonians experienced: interdependence alongside alienation. Because we are completely interdependent in our global village, Nimrod’s solution of parting ways is no longer practical. Now we are required to use Abraham’s method. This is why the Jewish people, who previously implemented Abraham’s method and connected, must rekindle their unity and teach the method of connection to the whole of humanity. And unless we do it of our own accord, the nations of the world will compel us to do it, by force.

On that note, it is interesting to read the words of Henry Ford, founder of Ford Motor Company, and a notorious anti-Semite, in his book, The International Jew — The World’s Foremost Problem: “Society has a large claim against him [the Jew] that he … begin to fulfill … the ancient prophecy that through him all the nations of the earth should be blessed.”

The Roots of Anti-Semitism

After thousands of years of exerting to build a successful human society using Nimrod’s method, the nations of the world are beginning to understand that the solution to their problems is neither technological, nor economic or military. Subconsciously, they feel that the solution lies in unity, that the method of connection exists in the people of Israel, and therefore recognize that they are dependent on the Jews. This makes them blame the Jews for every problem in the world, believing that the Jews possess the key to the world’s happiness.

Indeed, when the Israeli nation fell from its moral apex of love of others, hatred of Israel among the nations commenced. And thus, through anti-Semitism, the nations of the world prod us to disclose the method of connection. Rav Kook, the first Chief Rabbi of Israel, pointed to that fact with his words, “Amalek, Hitler, and so forth, awaken us toward redemption” (Essays of the Raiah, Vol. 1).

But the people of Israel are unaware that they are holding the key to the world’s happiness, and that the very source of anti-Semitism is that the Jews are carrying within them the method of connection, the key to happiness, the wisdom of Kabbalah, but are not revealing it to all.

Mandatory Disclosure of the Wisdom

As the world groans under the pressure of two conflicting forces—the global force of connection, and the separating power of the ego, we are falling into the state that existed in ancient Babylon prior to its collapse. But today we cannot pull away from one another in order to calm our egos down. Our only option is to work on our connection, on our unity. We are required to add to our world the positive force that balances the negative power of our ego.

The people of Israel, descendants of the ancient Babylonians who followed Abraham, must implement the wisdom of connection, namely the wisdom of Kabbalah. They are required to set an example to the whole of humanity, and thus become a “light for the nations.”

The laws of Nature dictate that we will all achieve a state of unity. But there are two ways to get there: 1) a path of world suffering wars, catastrophes, plagues, and natural disasters, or 2) a path of gradual balancing of the ego, the path that Abraham planted in his disciples. The latter is the one we suggest.

Unity Is the Solution

It is written in The Book of Zohar, “Everything stands on love” (Portion, VaEtchanan). “Love your neighbor as yourself” is the great tenet of the Torah; it is also the essence of the change that the wisdom of Kabbalah is offering humanity. It is the obligation of the Jewish People to unite in order to share the method of Abraham with the entire human race.

According to Rav Yehuda Ashlag, author of the Sulam (Ladder) commentary on The Book of Zohar, “It is upon the Israeli nation to qualify itself and all the people of the world … to develop until they take upon themselves that sublime work of the love of others, which is the ladder to the purpose of Creation.” If we accomplish this, we will find solutions to all the world’s problems including the eradication of anti-Semitism.
[233903]

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, New Publications - No Comments →

Medium published my new article “10 Years To The Financial Crisis: What Now?”

A decade after the global financial crisis, new research exposes how a small elite prevented a worldwide catastrophe. But what is the cost of keeping our increasingly unbalanced, profit-driven systems in place? What are the greater balancing forces from nature we’re up against?

A decade ago, the world was on the verge of collapse. A financial bubble in the U.S. mortgage market almost blew up the global economic system. A financial Armageddon was prevented only by unprecedented measures taken by the U.S. administration, and particularly by the Federal Reserve.

In his new book, “Crashed,” historian prof. Adam Tooze sheds light on the hidden corners of the financial crisis of 2008. Tooze uncovers the intricate financial network that stood at the heart of the storm, and how a small elite decided to inject trillions of dollars into the American banking system and the rest of the world, knowing full well that humanity would otherwise go on a downward spiral into a crisis worse than the Great Depression of 1929.

Since the crisis of 2008, the ties in the financial elite network have only tightened across the world, and today this group continuously employs financial juggling to rule the global economy. Like pawns on a chess board, they deliberately manipulate markets, consumers, interest rates, financial institutions and media, in order to perpetuate the current economic paradigm and prevent a 2008-style crisis from happening again.

So what has changed over the past decade? The economic system feels safer than before. Not because the system has become more stable or equal, but rather because it is more controlled.

The Pyramid That Rules the World

Analyses such as Tooze’s prove how the pyramid that rules the world became pointier than ever before. It is a pyramid based solely on power and money, from top to bottom. If the previous century pyramid still had some reserved seats for intellectuals, philosophers, scientists and ideological pluralism, today they are all enslaved by the power of money and its owners.

Scientists depend on funding that guides the objectives of their research; artists and cultural figures enjoy the spotlights as much as their show serves the interests of tycoons who own the media channels. Simply put, money runs the world and capitalism has become cannibalism, with a limited elite that has fortified its rule at the top of the food chain.

The Mechanics of the Global Crisis

But what’s taking place beneath the surface is the inevitable intensification of human egoism. The human ego is the natural energy that fuels the fusion of wealth and power into an unbridled force. However, this is just one side of the process.

Humanity’s development happens in two parallel and opposite trends. Alongside the constantly growing ego, there is a much less noticeable axis of global interdependence that is gradually binding together all people and manmade systems on earth.

We, human beings, are trapped in the egoistic axis and suffer from global shortsightedness.

The nature of human development requires us to tread with two legs: one leg progresses along the egoistic axis necessary for our growth, and the other leg progresses towards the sense of mutual connection between all of us. Just as we walk on both of our legs, we have to properly combine and balance the ego to channel it towards healthy and positive development for all.

Today we are lagging behind with regards to the sense of connection between us. The world is becoming more and more integral — and the human is not. How do we catch up? By raising awareness to our situation, acknowledging the interdependent global system we live in and the laws of nature that apply to it.

Nature’s Balancing Act

Nature — as an integral system that demands all its parts to be in balance and mutual connection — will require us to change. The global economy is no more than a reflection of the relationships between all people. Therefore, we must first balance our relationships, as parts of a single system who share a common destiny. When we begin to do so, we will rearrange all our manmade systems, including the economic and financial.

If we don’t raise our awareness and do this out of free choice, the balancing forces of nature will force us to do so in different ways. Shocks in the ecosystem, natural disasters or depletion of cheap energy are all examples for scenarios that will necessitate a painful change in the socio-economic order.

Interestingly, an annual Gallup poll that surveyed more than 154,000 people in 146 countries shows that “the global mood is at its gloomiest since the first such survey in 2006.” Ultimately, the 21st century will fill us with frustration and helplessness that will lead us to question the meaning of human existence. Then, from the bottom of our heart, a demand for a new world will arise.
[233735]

Filed under: Crisis, New Publications - No Comments →