Comment: You said that martial arts compensate for the lack of egoism.

My Response: No, I was talking about something else, about the generosity of strength. A strong person who does not have to defend himself all the time can be generous.

Next to a very strong person, I can even be bullying him, I know that he will not break me. After all, we both understand how weak I am relative to him, and therefore I can sort of be on an equal footing with him, or even, maybe, bully him a little, like a child with an adult.

If there really is a clear difference between us, then it is understandable that we both recognize how much stronger he is than me. Therefore, strength, not necessarily physical, but the strength of any kind, the superiority of one over the other, allows a person to be magnanimous.

True, today this is no longer the case. But, in principle, strong, healthy, powerful people by nature, in general, are generous. It is natural. However, if they just pumped up their muscles, then their evil essence remains in them.

This is a big difference between a naturally strong person like Ivan Poddubny (a famous Russian wrestler) and a modern athlete who has no generosity inside. It is like giving an evil man a gun, give him power, pump him up, and now he uses it.

In all kinds of competitions, battles, or duels, there have always been certain codes on how to behave with the enemy. They emphasized the special character of a person, namely his generosity next to strength.
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From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. Fortitude” 11/9/13

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Question: Do you have self-identification?

Answer: No, I am trying to be a machine, a robot, that is, to direct all my desires, thoughts, and goals as much as possible in such a way as to function for the sake of the desires of others for correction.

Comment: But at the same time for a long time you were a fairly big egoist who developed throughout life.

My Response: I am now an even bigger egoist, frankly speaking.

Question: But all the same, all your life you were in some way identifying yourself as Michael Laitman. You could not become like that right away, could you?

Answer: No, of course not! Such a thing happens after twenty years.

I got acquainted with Kabbalah in 1976, and since then I have practically not torn myself away from it. I did everything that was necessary to support myself, but in general, I acted in everything only in order to find a teacher, learn, and develop further. This is movement from within.

Question: At what point did you begin to identify yourself with the entire world?

Answer: Back in the early 80s I spoke with Rabash about the fact that, as Baal HaSulam wrote, the world from 1995 will be completely different. Before that, I talked to him about Baal HaSulam’s dream to create a commune, something where people would work together, provide for themselves, and engage in Kabbalah, and most importantly, in internal work among themselves. We talked a little about these topics, but it was all fantasy, utopian.

Then the world really began to change very dramatically, especially after Rabash passed away. He left this world, and the world became completely different. Not for me; I still had the same spiritual contact with him, an even stronger one.

Question: How is it possible that say, a Kabbalist dies and the world changes dramatically?

Answer: The presence of a Kabbalist on the corporeal level means a lot. Although spiritual energy has nothing to do with all kinds of objects in our world, it is still of great importance.
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From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. How Does a Kabbalist Die?” 11/16/13

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Why is there violence in Israel right now?“

One of my students recently asked me about the rise in violence among Jews in Israel after the tragic murder of 18-year-old Yoel Lhanghal by a group of young adults at a birthday party in the northern-Israeli city of Kiryat Shmona.

Indeed, we are headed in a negative direction, toward a state called “the recognition of evil,” i.e. recognition that our ego is behind the various tragedies and misfortunes that we experience.

The ego burns within each of us and it is growing. It is making us intolerant of anyone who is a bit different from us. That is how it is supposed to be, because it is a law of nature that we become increasingly opposite from nature’s altruistic quality until we gain awareness of what we actually are—egoists—become sick of how we host this negative egoistic quality within us (the “recognition of evil”), and develop a sincere desire to change ourselves. However, in the meantime, we are not doing anything toward a positive transition, and so from one day to the next, we become ever more evil.

In relation to Yoel’s murder, his father said “How could a Jew murder another Jew?” We have reached such a state because we do not want to educate ourselves about our egoistic nature and how to transform it into its positive opposite. In short, we do not want to become good people toward each other.

Why? It is because we reject anything that goes against our egoistic nature. Our nature is a great big ego, which wishes to enjoy at the expense of others, and it is written about our nature that it is an “evil inclination.” It was given to us on purpose so that we could rise above it.

We can rise above our ego by working with each other on developing relations of love, giving and positive connection. Developing relations of love, giving and positive connection means that we first need to understand that we are interdependent and that we cannot exist without each other, even though we currently hate each other. And the transition point is the recognition of evil: that we acknowledge that we are the evildoers in the world, and that the world’s well-being—humanity’s shift to a positive direction—depends on us.

While the egoistic and altruistic forces are opposites, we can make the shift from hatred to love if we develop a desire for it to happen. As such, there is a good reason for antisemitism’s rise worldwide. More and more people feel that the Jews are responsible for various forms of suffering proliferating throughout humanity.

What we lack is a desire and a method for how to improve the situation. No one wants things to be bad, but we have to know that it depends on us. Also, we should know the method for shifting from an increasingly negative direction to a positive one.

Through education about our nature and what is required to change it, we need to first reach an agreement that the evil resides within us, in the way we treat each other, our fellow Jews. If we change our attitude toward each other from negative to positive, then we will see how the increasingly negative attitude from humanity toward us will also change. In its place, we will see that everyone will treat us favorably and respectfully. We will then also find that we will not need to discuss how to make peace with our neighbors, because all the pieces will fall into place: more and more people will feel a positive force illuminating from the people of Israel, and will wish to support the positive connection that we develop with each other above the growing ego.

Based on the video “How Could a Jew Murder Another Jew?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Question: Victoria writes: “I am so often ashamed of myself today! Such things are happening around, so many tragedies, troubles, so many lives are ruined, and for me it’s all someone else’s pain, not mine. Everyone I know feels the same. I understand that this is the cause of all the troubles. How can you make someone else’s misfortune become your own? I’m sure it would change the world. What are we all missing?”

Answer: To feel the neighbor as yourself.

Question: How do we do it?

Answer: There is a method for this—the science of Kabbalah. Otherwise, a stranger will always remain a stranger, and people will not understand each other, and the world will be separated. As a result, such a global, calm, quiet, prolonged chaos, if not some kind of world, global war, nevertheless will drive humanity into its corners. I think we will see in our time how much people will become isolated.

Question: Tell me, why are people really looking for different ways, but not uniting toward a common pain?

Answer: It is against our nature.

Question: Will we be running into different corners all the time?

Answer: Yes, and how!

Question: We will not converge to the center?

Answer: No. Now the period will come when people will separate from each other as much as possible! Egoism will force us to do this. Quietly, calmly, it will disperse us in corners so that we realize it. The realization of the results of this egoism will lead us to its denial.

Question: Which means, in principle, it becomes its own gravedigger as a result. What interest does it have in ruining itself?

Answer: The fulfillment of the secret meaning of development in order for us to realize that we need to be above our nature after all.

Question: When you say “Secret meaning” are you saying this because no one really understands it?

Answer: Nobody knows, sees, or feels it. Of course.

Question: Now it looks like a fantasy for humanity to become one. Internally, maybe everyone wants it. Now it is clear what the cause of all the troubles is. It is clear that there is no coalition, there are no connections, everything is solved with the help of force, wars, weapons, and money.

And it is clear that if all this were suddenly canceled and we moved toward some kind of connection, it would be good for us. It’s obvious, right?

Answer: This has been talked about for millions of years.

Question: Yes, scientists, writers, and philosophers, all the more so, claim it—all these utopian cities, utopian systems. The only question is: why is it getting worse and worse, with a greater awareness that we need to unite?

Answer: The Soviet government set a very bad example for us. How false it is—communism, the commune—it actually led to enormous problems, suffering.

Question: But it wasn’t just done from above, was it? The upper force made it so that we saw that it was impossible to build communism in a single country.

Answer: Impossible, according to our understanding! And if we take the plan of nature and the right correction of egoism— whatever is written in the science of Kabbalah—then you will have to turn to the ancient science and implement it. Otherwise, nothing else will work! Here you will have to solve many problems at the same time.

Question: So our mind absolutely does not play any role here, but on the contrary only ruins everything?

Answer: In general, yes.

Question: In what sense must the mind be involved, since it is given to us after all? It is given to us for something.

Answer: It was given for us to understand that with our head, with our concepts, we will not be able to achieve anything.

Question: In order not to create progress and so on?

Answer: No. To go, on the contrary, against it, in search of a reverse solution.

Question: And as a result, you say, we will come to the conclusion that it will be reasonable if we understand that…?

Answer: Nature will teach us with brutal blows. We won’t be able to do it otherwise. Either we will take these blows internally and correct them within ourselves, or nature will correct us with external blows—wars, exterminations, famine, and so on.

Question: So the whole path now is to experience all this within?

Answer: Yes. Instead of freezing and starving.

Question: Are you now saying that everything we see externally—wars, possible freezing, starvation—is it because we have not experienced it internally?

Answer: Yes, we don’t want that.

Question: So, in order to stop all these external threats that threaten us in the future, we have to experience internally?

Answer: To realize that we have to change ourselves, our nature. It is possible if people want it. Meaning, if they realize it. Awareness can be either through great suffering, or through enlightenment. I can’t say anything else here.

Question: As you say, our nature is egoistic, and it needs to be turned into altruistic? That’s it?

Answer: That’s it. And again we reach the finale. This connection is a voluntary, conscious, correct connection of everyone for everyone’s sake. Not according to the patterns of egoism!

Question: Is this whenever we unite against someone?

Answer: Even if not. It’s just when egoism invents all sorts of methods for us. When we, supposedly smart, get together, and start deciding what to do. That is not how it is done.

Question: But how?

Answer: By making people aware that there is a technique, and it is here, in the depths of the ancient wisdom, Kabbalah. Otherwise, it will be the end of us!

In principle, this is natural wisdom, which is located within nature and goes against the egoistic nature of man, and this anti-egoistic nature a person will have to discover, study, apply, and implement for himself.

Nothing more is needed! This is the only wisdom that humanity must master.

Question: And everything will change?

Answer: Precisely then it will.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 10/13/22

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Question: Let’s say you are explaining The Study of the Ten Sefirot, how is it that you constantly remember what to talk about?

Answer: It lives in me! It is my nature. I am not inventing anything or remembering something artificial. It is me! It is like you are asking me about myself or my family.

I just have to wake up, cheer up, and have some coffee. Then my systems wake up, like when you turn on the computer, for example. First of all the lamps warm up, etc. After that it does not matter what question you ask, I have an answer.

Why am I not preparing for lessons? Because I do not care what the topic is. You are asking me about the way I am arranged inside. You say: “What is Aba ve Ima, how does ZON rise or fall, or something happens to these worlds or those worlds?” But this is all the inner feelings of a person. After all, this does not exist outside of a person, but rather within him. This is why you are actually asking me how I feel, it is that kind of a question.

Comment: This is so incomprehensible! Let’s say when people study to be teachers, they first study the system and how it all works.

My Response: It is because they just learn it mechanically—there is such a system and such worlds. Ask them where these worlds exist—somewhere out there, in another dimension, in another area.

But they exist in me! These worlds do not exist anywhere at all, only inside a person. In the “Introduction to the Preface to the Wisdom of Kabbalah,” Baal HaSulam writes that all the worlds are inside a person.

Question: So many books have been written about this! How do you manage to give different comments for different states?

Answer: I have all this stored inside. When you ask me something, I dig inside myself and spread out the information to you, as if from some warehouse.

Kabbalah is not just a science that I have studied. All these definitions, sensations, levels, states, and phenomena exist in me, and I am just telling you about them. Therefore it is not difficult for me at all.
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From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. How Do You Know Kabbalah?” 11/12/13

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Question: Do I understand correctly that one of the basic principles of Kabbalah is to make commitments to others, fail, and because of lack of strength to turn to the Creator for help?

Answer: If you advance correctly, it will always be like that for you. You will try to do something good for others, and then it will begin to be revealed that you do not really want it.

You will try to do even better and more, but you will never succeed; and then, from disappointment, you will understand that you must turn to the Creator. It is on this that your synapses and all sorts of connections in your brain will be shorted. You will already have a predisposition for it, and such a state will start being created.

Question: What connections are important to build at this moment? Is that supposed to be a prayer?

Answer: Yes. It is a prayer, weeping, and the gate of tears; only they help a person. When he sees that everything is closed before him (and it should be so), and only the gates of tears are open, that is, only the Creator can help him, then it happens.

Question: Why does it take such a long time to build connections?

Answer: Our egoism does not allow us to do it faster. It keeps saying, “Dear, wait, you do not need others. Try it yourself.” It does not direct you to the Creator. The appeal to the Creator is the last thing; just as there are ten Sefirot, and only the last one works.

Question: In principle, it is the eternal question of students: “When will it happen already?” How long do they have to wait? Or does everyone come to this not at the same time?

Answer: It will happen when you want it to happen.

Comment: But it takes longer to get there for some and it is faster for others.

My Response: Of course. Some come to that point quicker, some slower, and not all together. A single person can be the one in the group to reach this. But a certain number come to this almost simultaneously.
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From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. The Basic Principle of Kabbalah” 11/9/13

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Do Jews feel different from other people?“

First of all, we feel ourselves in relation to something, because we cannot discuss a feeling in and of itself. Were there only me, I would not feel myself. I feel myself in relation to the environment, the air, the soil, the sun, the flowers—it does not matter what the object is, but feeling oneself means feeling oneself in relation to one’s surroundings. This is how we find ourselves in the world. We grow up from babies into grown adults through a process of discovering ourselves in relation to what surrounds us—the still, vegetative, animate and people.

Finding ourselves in relation to other people is of utmost significance in this process. From the moment we are born, we are surrounded by a family, whether big or small, i.e. people with whom we feel comfortable and safe, and who treat us favorably regardless of how we behave. In relation to our families, we do not have to examine, shrink and restrict ourselves, but we can be as we are, behaving like a baby in its mother’s arms, feeling like the world loves us. Everything is comfortable and positive in such a state.

However, when we grow up, we exit the framework of our families, and enter into other kinds of relations. We then need to discern why other people, whether they are closer or more distant from us, treat us one way or another. We learn from such relations that not all people are equal in their attitude toward us, and so we also have to treat them differently. We then have to restrict ourselves, to not be as open with them as to our families, and to not fully trust them.

Among the people who relate to us in various ways, there are those who are simply strangers, like anyone in the world, but there are also people who treat us in a specific special way, not because of our behavior, but because we belong to a special nation, the Jewish people. That attitude toward us can be positive, but it is mostly negative, i.e. if we are discussing humanity’s attitude to the Jewish people. I have discussed the reasons for the generally-negative attitude toward Jews at length in other places.

Based on the video “Do Jews Feel Different from Other People?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What makes a Jew a Jew?“

Jews came about by detaching from the ego, i.e. the egoistic desire to enjoy for self-benefit alone, and discovering the upper world of bestowal and love above the ego. Accordingly, in essence, Jews are supposed to detach from the ego and think in terms of the upper world, which in practice means constantly thinking about how to benefit others.

Today’s Jews, however, do not think in such a way. Nevertheless, the Jews originated from attaining the upper world back in Abraham’s time, when he guided a group of ancient Babylonians through a process of uniting above the growing egoistic divisiveness of that time. This group became known as “the people of Israel” and later as “the Jews.” Essentially, the attainment of the upper world gives a more global perspective to a person, since it stems from the connection of different forms and opposite poles of reality.

However, after their origin, the entire Jewish nation fell from their spiritual degree, where they related to reality out of a pure intention to love, bestow and positively connect, to our egoistic world and seemingly exist like everyone else. Jews thus have an inner split: On one hand, their ego is like anyone else’s in the world and even much bigger, but on the other hand, according to their internality, they are organized more toward the upper world’s qualities. Records from that initial connection to the upper world is the reason for Jews’ disproportionate success in the world, even though their success is nothing compared to what it could be. That is, they could be millions of times more successful than they are today because their preparations from nature are boundless, since they became Jews from initially breaking out of the boundaries of the egoistic desire and entering the boundless world of bestowal and love. They thus have the preparations to attain the upper integral world, because inside Jews is a feeling of an ability to arrange the world in a way that is boundless.

Based on the video “What Is the Origin of a Jew?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Comment: Your student writes: “Good afternoon, dear teacher! I appeal to you with a request: teach me to talk to the Creator. I have been studying Kabbalah for more than 12 years. My husband died two months ago. We lived together for 28 years. He wasn’t involved in our study, but he was such an angel behind me. He helped me study, work, and disseminate. He passed away and it’s very hard for me. My heart is torn! Your articles and videos help. I talk to my husband very often in my heart. I ask for his help in business and for advice. But this is not normal; he doesn’t exist. There is only the Creator. How can I learn to turn from the image of a person directly to the Creator? Please help me! Thank you very much for your reply, although I know that you don’t have time for private messages. Sincerely, Elena.”

My Response: First of all, my condolences of course. Second, the fact that your husband has physically died and is not next to you does not mean anything! Absolutely nothing! On the contrary, his connection with you is even stronger, only you don’t feel it to the extent that it exists.

Therefore please do not imagine him as missing, lost, or gone, but as if he is with you internally, mentally, and spiritually. And that is how you should treat him. Talk to him and talk to the Creator. Talk! Don’t do anything else! In precisely the way you want to talk, that is how you should talk. Both he and the Creator will understand you. And the best thing is that you speak in your simplest language.

Question: And what about the fact that Lena has doubts? “I’m talking to him, to my husband, but I should be talking to the Creator,” she says.

Answer: It doesn’t matter. You are simply talking to an upper force about your problems. Your husband, the Creator, and all of us are included in this upper force.

Question: Is it a correct conclusion that when I talk to someone from the heart, I always talk to the Creator?

Answer: With the Creator. “There is none else but Him.” This is the most terrible problem! When you look at other people, both bad and good, it’s just a representation of the Creator to you.

Question: So if we make an effort and manage to come to the conclusion that it is the law that “I talk to the Creator all the time,” then will the world change?

Answer: Yes, but people don’t want to understand it. It is hard to imagine; you have to force yourself.

Question: So is Lena doing everything right? She talks this way to her husband, whom she does not see but clearly feels. And is this the right way? Is this what prayer is called?

Answer: Yes, of course. What is prayer? The fact that the members of the great assembly (Knesset HaGdola) composed prayers is because people moved a little away from the Creator and could not address Him simply in a human way.

So they composed all sorts of prayers for them and replaced this simple heartfelt appeal to the Creator with words. The words are very correct. The people who composed these prayers were in attainment of the Creator. But this is not something that a person can say himself from the heart.

Question: But it is practically a revolution for a person that he can not read written prayers. There are a lot of written prayers, but how would one read from the heart and speak? And do you say that it will be almost the same with the same effect?

Answer: It will have an even greater effect. If a person speaks from the heart, then the effect is greater.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman 8/25/22

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Comment: You said that it makes no sense to suppress external factors, for example, enemies, but it is important to change them within yourself.

My Response: We have many axes of misperception of reality. First, everything that exists, exists in us. Everything that is perceived by us is perceived in our desire. It is either egoistic or altruistic.

What does it mean that I perceive something outside of me? It is how I am shown that I am made up of these elements, of these desires. Desires are projected outward in the form of inanimate, vegetative, animate nature, man, and then the Creator. All this exists in me and manifests itself to the extent that I can respond to it in the right way and correct it.

If, for example, harmful phenomena appear outside of me and I see them, it means that they exist in me, and I cannot correct them externally. Of course, I can destroy them, hit them, alienate them, and so on, but that is not correction. In principle, it is a sign of my weakness or lack of understanding of what is happening.

If I have a correct attitude toward the universe and what happens in it, then I must act differently. I must understand that all these phenomena exist in me, and I see them in front of me. Therefore, I need to correct them in me, and then they will disappear in such an unpleasant form.

Therefore, if all kinds of enemies rise up against me, I must look for these qualities in myself, correct them, and then they will be corrected outside. It is written: “Who is a hero? He who conquers his inclination.” And who is a hero of heroes? “He who turns his enemy into his friend.”
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From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. Turn an Enemy into a Friend” 11/18/13

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