Entries in the 'Q&A' Category

“Why can we not access all of our memories?” (Quora)

Dr. Michael LaitmanMichael Laitman, On Quora: Why can we not access all of our memories?

Everything we go through in life will have to surface from our memory storage at some point. Whether consciously or unconsciously, we will use our every life experience. We will then also understand that everything happened to us for a specific reason.

According to the wisdom of Kabbalah, we will need every moment we went through at—and for—the end of our correction: the final state of our existence where we completely invert our egoism into altruism, and exist as one interconnected whole existing in balance with nature—enjoying a common sensation of eternity and perfection. Everything in our memories and in general comes from the incarnations that our soul undergoes.

Therefore, in relation to the ability to access all of our memories, the main takeaway is that our memories are active either consciously or subconsciously, and moreover, we do not have to work with our memories. On the contrary, we should aspire to be new people every day. Whatever happened in the past, happened, and today we try to reach a more complete and higher correction.

Based on the video “How Should We Work With Memories?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

Why Do We Betray Each Other

294.4Question: There was a story on a Russian website that listed who betrayed whom and how, and how it ended up. There were literally two thousand comments in an hour, which shows that there is a feeling in humanity that betrayal is terrible.

An example was given of Jack London; he was macho, washed gold on rivers and so on. And he died of depression at the age of 39 after his friends betrayed him. Other examples are Edith Piaf and Russian singer Vladimir Vysotsky. Charles VII betrayed Joan of Arc. There were a lot of betrayals listed.

According to psychologists, by the age of 40, a person may have only one friend, and not always even that.

Victor Hugo wrote, “I am indifferent to the stabbing of the enemy, but I agonize by the pinprick of a friend.”

When teachers asked an audience: “Has anyone suffered betrayal?”—the whole audience raised their hands. They were students, practically children; what have they been through at all? But they already know what betrayal is.

Is there any way to protect yourself? Is it possible to distance yourself? Is it possible not to bear the terrible blow of betrayal at all?

Answer: The Creator presents us with such cases—novels, stories, and detective stories—that no one would ever come up with.

Comment: Now you have quietly transferred everything to the one who organizes it all.

My Response: This is because we need to get close to the source, after all. And the source of betrayal is not a person. It’s just a game played by the Creator. The Creator arranges all these experiences for us. And the coldest ones, which are called betrayal, are also Him.

Question: How do we protect ourselves?

Answer: There is no way! Only when you are sure that you are completely in His power can you attune yourself to the Creator. If you approach the Creator, study Him, want to be like Him, and want to be close to Him, then you cannot just protect yourself, but you begin to acquire the same qualities He has, and you are no longer afraid of such tests.

Question: Let’s say I experienced a terrible betrayal. I can barely stand it all; I’m just burning all over, and you say, at this moment or a little later when my anger diminishes a bit, I need to direct everything to the thought of where it came from, and not to the one who betrayed me?

Answer: To the Creator! What does the little man have to do with it?! He’s a doll. And the puppeteer is the Creator.

Question: So I have to start a conversation and work with the Creator? And let go of this man who allegedly betrayed me? Are you saying he didn’t betray me?

Answer: You can’t demand anything from him! He’s a doll! That’s all. And so you feel calm. You don’t see any traitors or devotees around you, nothing and no one. You see dolls. And the Creator from above plays with all of them on a thread and that’s it.

Question: You say that when we hate someone, we should instead start to change ourselves and change our attitude toward the Creator. And that’s it?! Is this all our work?!

Answer: That is all. But this is the hardest part.

Question: Meaning, if I can control myself in such a way that I direct all my efforts to work with the Creator and only with Him, then everything will begin?

Answer: Then you need to rebuild in general what is truth, lies, loyalty, and betrayal.

Question: All concepts! All concepts disappear. Now you have taken and practically removed the concept of “betrayal.” It turns out that, from the other side, it is not there. Do you mean that I can’t blame anyone?

Answer: No. Not love, nor hate, nor devotion, nor loyalty; there is none of this.

Question: Should I direct the vector at myself and that’s it?

Answer: Yes. But it is beautiful and true, it is pure!

Question: Then will it be a pure experiment?

Answer: Yes.

Question: But then I hate Him! At the moment of my hatred for the traitor, you say: “The Creator does it; He exposes it.” That is my first feeling: “I hate the Creator!” Is that true?

Answer: Certainly! Naturally! There is no question about it! If you hate anyone at all, it is the Creator. You always really have a relationship with Him!

Question: And how does my hatred of the Creator change?

Answer: We do everything only with the Creator. We are attuned only to Him. And everything that seems to us that we are in some kind of good or evil relationship with each other is all pure lies!

Question: Why does the Creator do this to us?

Answer: So that we can put this whole world aside and deal with Him alone. But in order to do this, we must be pure, either absolute egoists or absolute altruists. He doesn’t tolerate anything else. Another thing is that all this is already called slag, or dirt. Therefore we need to tune in only to the Creator and deal only with Him.

Question: How does this state of my complaints, hatred, and prayers to the Creator such as, for example, “Leave me alone!”—how does this go into another state, a state of love?

Answer: It turns into prayer; that I want to see His actions behind everything that surrounds me, both within myself and all around me, that there is none else but Him!

Question: Is this the main prayer?

Answer: Yes. For Him to reveal this to me.

Question: Is this the main change in a person? And does it change everything, the whole world, everything?

Answer: It changes everything. It turns everything upside down! It turns my head! Because I always thought somehow that you were connected to something else, dependent on someone, and doing something else. In fact, no one does anything!
[302349]
From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 8/11/22

Related Material:
Can Betrayal Be Justified?
What Is Betrayal?
What To Do When Resentment Suffocates?

Secrets of Kabbalistic Text

216.02Question: You said that Rabash taught you the principle of opening a book to any place and to start reading the source. Why is it often used?

Answer: When I have a few minutes of free time or I want to renew my thoughts, I take some source, open it randomly, and start reading from any paragraph. Then I begin to think along with what I read.

Question: It is interesting that in those moments when there is some kind of disturbance and people try to concentrate on some passage, suddenly everything lines up and falls into its grooves. Is that how texts work? At what level does this work take place?

Answer: It takes place on the spiritual, on the deepest level, which is in us and has nothing to do with the body. That is, you gradually establish contact with your true body, which is not connected with our flesh.

The text connects us with spirituality, not the letters themselves, but rather what they create in you. This should play within you. It acts inside you.

Question: But does it have limits so that it does not turn into a routine? As in, I took out a book, prayed, and went on.

Answer: No, we are not talking about ordinary prayer here. It is about being included in the internal state that depicts the text.

All Kabbalistic texts speak of some connection between creation and the Creator. That is, I connect with everyone or maybe I do not even connect, or this is already going on subconsciously and is connected with the Creator.

Question: How can we read and enter this piece of text correctly?

Answer: Keep any book next to you, even a book of Psalms (Tehilim). Open it on any page, read a couple of sentences, and that’s it. Then get included in them. Or open Shamati (I Heard), or statements of the Kabbalists about anything. But Shamati is the best.
[302735]
From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. Secrets of the Kabbalistic Text“ 4/30/13

Related Material:
Not to Read, But to Attain!
Not Fantasies But Reality
There’s No Such Thing As A Corporeal Problem

What Did the Prophets Predict?

963.6Question: You say that everyone has their own purpose. How can Jews see Arabs as an important element; they are not just brothers for them, but enemies as well?

Answer: I do not think this is a serious feud. There can be no great enmity between these religions. I know from the sources that there should be a confrontation. It is said that at the end of the days of the world, at the moment when it begins to improve, the Arabs will be at enmity with the Jews, hate them, hate the entire world, and want to subjugate it.

There is a book in our archive in which the sayings of all the prophets are collected.

The prophets are people who lived mainly at the time of the First Temple, even before the exile to Babylon 2,800 years ago. They wrote the book Prophets (Nevi’im), which together with the Torah and Holy Scriptures (Ktuvim) make up the Tanakh.

The prophets that lived in the period 600-800 years BC, closer to our era, wrote about events that will happen in the future, because, based on the upper structure everything was clear to them. This has been known to all Kabbalists since the time of Abraham, but only the prophets have stated it.

They predicted that there will be a long period of confrontation between Islam and Christianity, they would fight cruelly, but in the end, they would turn against Israel together. Then, oddly enough, they will start wars.

But we are talking about spiritual wars. To what extent they will manifest in the matter of our world is unknown. It depends on us, whether we will need such blows to begin to change ourselves and show the world the way it should be. It also depends on freewill and on the way the Jews will react.

I hope that we are preparing the ground so that this does not happen. Already today we can change the entire world for the better.

Yet, in general, the prophets describe very bad problems that must necessarily happen in the spiritual world. Whether they will happen in corporeality depends on us, to the extent that we will be running ahead of our internal change it will not be needed externally.

According to the thought of creation, to its structure, there should be a confrontation between three lines: the right (Islam), the left (Christianity), and the middle line (Judaism). All of them must change, rise to their spiritual source, and unite there in their one single source. This is Abraham.

Abraham is the upper Partzuf Hesed, that is, the highest detail in the upper scheme, which should correct the entire world, which is the entire former Babylon.

In his time, Abraham was able to correct only one node of the general system of the universe, that is, only a part of Babylon, which left together with him.

After all this perturbation for 4,000 years, Abraham’s group underwent tremendous preparation. The entire world, that is, the entire former Babylon, which has dispersed all over the world, has also undergone very big changes. Now the same force called Abraham, with his disciples, meaning us, can correct and show the world its correct state.

Today it is quite possible to explain and express this since there already is a basis. I believe that over the years of the existence of Bnei Baruch, we have already created it. There may be a few finishing touches missing, but they will always seem to be missing. It is always possible to improve and adapt the methodology for the masses more and more. This is what we are doing.
[302641]
From KabTV’s “I Got a Call, Arabs and Jews“ 4/28/13

Related Material:
The Truth About The Three Religions, Part 1
All The Different Religions Are A Reflection Of Our Disunity
“Why Islam Is Dying Too”

Study: Elixir of Life or Potion of Death

522.01Question: Is being present at the lesson bestowing to the Creator? By the fact that a person comes to a lesson, is he bestowing to the Creator and bringing Him contentment?

Answer: Not necessarily. Absolutely not. It is said that study can be either the elixir of life or the potion of death. The study does not happen by itself but by the way a person perceives it. It depends on why he is studying.

Let’s say I am going to study now in order to be a great expert and show everyone that they don’t know anything. Do I bring contentment to the Creator with this? Am I doing good in the world through this? This does not mean anything yet.

The intention is the most important thing and not the fact that I perform any action of study, work, etc.

Question: And if a person dragged himself “by the ear” to the lesson?

Answer: What is the difference? Dragged himself, so what? A good student dragged himself by the ear because tomorrow is the exam. Would that make him a saint?

The question is why do people come to the lesson, what is their intention? We do not need the ones that come just like that. Kabbalists consider such people to be the most harmful. Please, let them go to others, but not to us. If a person is not purposeful, it is a burden, ballast.

Question: You also said that it is better not to wake up, lie in bed, and gnaw at yourself that you did not come than to come and sit with pride that you are now present at the lesson, right?

Answer: Yes, of course. Everything comes from the recognition of evil. According to how a person analyzes himself, he moves forward. If I am sitting at home and I feel how insignificant I am and I cannot even get out of bed, then I am much closer to the Creator than when I am sitting in class and trying to understand the material to show everyone how smart I am.
[302541]
From KabTV’s “I Got a Call, Contact with the Creator” 4/19/13

Related Material:
Kabbalah Lessons, Part 4
Study The Descent In The State Of Ascent
Preparation Is The Key To Success In The Study

Will There Be Peace and Love on Our Planet?

715Question from Facebook: Is a state where all people gradually come to the one Creator and peace and love prevail on our planet, a kind of utopian, idyllic world possible in our world? Or is it impossible?

Answer: Of course it is possible. I am sure it can even happen in our time. Everything depends on us because the situation is ripe.

Our generation is called the last generation in Kabbalistic sources because it has already matured enough to realize its correct state and understand that we will never be able to achieve anything good with our egoism; we see that our children will be even more unhappy than we are. We see this in what is happening in the world.

The only thing we need to do is to discover what happiness and the real purpose of development of humanity depends on and go toward it. Kabbalah explains this. Let us start implementing it.
[250176]
From KabTV’s “Answers to Questions from Facebook”

Related Material:
Give Peace to All of Humanity
When Will The War End?
What Would A Cardiogram Of The Heart’s Desires Reveal?

Rise Above Speaking Critically

547.01Question: What is the danger of speaking critically in the Kabbalistic community?

Answer: First, different critical thoughts arise from within each person. This is natural because our egoism is constantly working, constantly growing, and constantly arousing a critical attitude in us toward the world, except for those who are truly close to us.

Relationships in a group require constant spiritual elevation; therefore, our egoism works at full capacity there. It is not surprising that egoism is constantly aroused in each of us. Let it get excited, as it should be. This is a sign of growth, but it is about what we do with it.

I must constantly tune my egoism to the opposite; that is, I must work in such a way so that without destroying it and above it, I can build the property of bestowal and love in relation to my friends in the group. I must show them the same thing and set an example to everyone. And they should act in the same way regarding me and everyone else.

As a matter of fact, it is a game above our egoism and contrary to it. From this game, we gradually arouse the surrounding light, which in this case affects us, raises us, and actually creates a common property of bestowal in us in which we will then feel the Creator—the upper, governing force of the world.

If instead of this, I tell my friends about the critical attitude that I see in others—not about that I should demonstrate love and affection for them, but about my neglect, that is, my reason from my own egoism—then by doing this I simply spread a harmful infection between group members. This is absolutely unacceptable! This is the worst thing that kills our spiritual advancement.

Among men this is not such a terrible thing because they initially do not have such a movement from within as women do. And if they want to be with us in a group, in motion, it must be uprooted, weeded, and nipped in the bud. That is why I am so harsh about gossip and speaking critically. There should be no place for this among us.

You can be critical of someone who did something wrong in dissemination, professionally speaking, but not of the relations between us. In no case can you criticize a friend.

In addition, you do not even understand that you are talking about yourself and not about others; that is, you are reasoning from your ego.

Speaking critically is the most terrible thing that can be in a Kabbalistic group, and we must fight against it with all our might because it is a poison that kills any of our advancement. That is why I am so intolerant of criticism from friends, and if such things happen, we must actively fight against them. And if someone is not able, then these people should simply be removed from the group.

I should not speak out about the fact that I do not like some character traits of a friend. This should never happen. I have to rise above this.

Just like in my beloved child, I practically do not see any negative qualities, and even if I see them, they overlap with love. I still love him and I do not tell anyone what is bad in him. This is a clear example of how we should treat all of our friends like my beloved little child. We should treat them like that.
[302355]
From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. Beware of Gossip!” 3/19/13

Related Material:
The Spiritual Root Of Gossip
A Gossip Or A Friend?
The Remedy For Slander

Who Gave Authority to the Jews

294.2Comment: Ar (this is how he abbreviates his name) writes to you : “I constantly listen to your videos. Tell me please, why do you always say that only Jews will change the world? Why take such a big responsibility on yourself and on the nation? Who gave you such authority at all? Do not tell me it is written in the Bible. Answer my question, teacher.”

It looks like he is a beginner student with us and does not understand why only Jews are entrusted with such responsibility.

My Response: It is because the method of correcting the world, which is called “Kabbalah,” is found precisely among the Jews, and it was given to them thousands of years ago.

Comment: But by singling out our people, we are causing a lot of resistance.

My Response: I understand this, but it is better when you understand that this is the truth and that you are hated for it. According to this truth, you must reveal to the world the method of correction, and that is why humanity hates you.

That is, I accept this challenge and say: “Yes, you are right; the problem is with us; we are to blame. But killing me will not make it any easier for you. It’s better to listen and think how we can really use this eternal truth.”

Comment: But it looks like there is not much proof of this.

My Response: There will be a proof if we fulfill what is indicated.

Comment: So you are saying, so far let’s say, it is just words. For many people it is words.

My Response: Of course. But on the other hand they can say: “So this is why we really hate them! It means that we hate them correctly.”

Question: What if a person doesn’t find hatred in himself? Great numbers of people do not find hatred for Jews in themselves. We are kind of incessantly telling them: “You hate Jews! They hate us!” But they do not find it.

Answer: Then come to all of us; we will do it together! Let’s correct the world together.

Comment: In short, it is a vicious circle. There are a large number of comments on your videos all the time. And they are all exactly in the direction of the chosen people: “What are you saying about yourself? Who gave you the right? Why are you so sure about this?”

My Response: They say it themselves! After all, all of humanity still has some special opinions, attitudes, suspicions, demands, and so on regarding the Jews. I just want to show this matter normally and reveal what the problem is. This problem is thousands of years old. Enough of somehow obscuring it or refusing it!

Question: What should be the actions of a person who is not a Jew? And who wants to hear you?

Answer: A person just needs to hear what I am saying.

Question: Do you assign any specific actions to a Jew?

Answer: Yes. A Jew has to find out why he is special. Then, in accordance with this, to reveal this peculiarity to all the nations of the world. And together with them, with all the nations of the world, to get down to changing humanity, nature, and everything that exists.

Question: From what to what?

Answer: From the absolute egoism of humanity to make the opposite action—a connection. This is exactly the responsibility of the Jews. All the nations of the world need to listen to what the Jews say; maybe they really are saying something sensible. This may be our salvation.

Comment: But only some Jews say this. Most Jews do not say what you say at all.

My Response: They do not know and do not understand, just like the nations of the world, that they have the responsibility to come to connection themselves and bring the world to it.

People will hear it anyway.

Question: What hope do you have? You repeat this all the time.

Answer: My hope is based on the fact that the world will not end just like that and will not enter some other state. In the end, it will force all the nations of the world, including Jews, to think about what the correction of the world is, what we really need to do and what we, and first of all the Jews, need to come to.

This is not easy. But time goes on.
[302606]
From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 8/18/22

Related Material:
Then We Will Become Jews
Everyone Will Become A Jew
To Shake The Jews

What Does a Kabbalist Call For?

254.01Question: If the nations of the world on a subconscious level treat Jews negatively, to as if push the Jews because the Jews are not doing their job, then why is there a less than inadequate reaction on their part to you and strange comments made, although you, on the contrary, are doing this work?

Answer: I know that according to the nature of creation people cannot treat me well because it is against their nature, both on the part of Jews and non-Jews.

I urge everyone to come closer to everyone in one single whole, and in this form to reveal the upper force that will manifest itself between us provided we have at least a partial connection, and so, on an increasing basis, to go to the complete correction of all mankind, to the complete equivalent to nature, to the Creator.

By calling people to this, I cannot hope that they will treat me well. I am only interested in their reaction in general in order to see how successful I am in my activities. As with children, you need their reaction to understand whether you have adjusted to them or not, whether they hear you at least a little. And all this in order to learn some other techniques. And the fact that their reaction will be negative is natural.

I urge people to exclude their egoism, to learn to love their neighbor, to be intolerant of hatred and inertness, and to begin to understand why we exist. I awaken them from their slumber, either ordinary people or believers who are confident in their rightness.
[302709]
From KabTV’s “I Got a Call, World Against the Jews“ 4/22/13

Related Material:
Time Makes Its Adjustments
It Is Time for People to Open Their Eyes
Why Are We Criticized?

“Bread and Circuses”

293Question: Where is the line between destruction and education? Let’s say a person has some qualities that he uses to the detriment of others.

Answer: As long as people have all kinds of egoistic problems, they act in this way. What can we do?! People are like people. Do you think they have been changing for millennia? A person remains the same, only his egoism is slightly modified. Do they not want bread and circuses in our time as in ancient Rome? Nobody changes! Nobody.

Let’s say today we live in peace and friendship with everyone, everything is blooming; tomorrow the whole world will turn into a pack of dogs fighting with each other. In an instant there will be Mussolinis and Hitlers!

It will be natural, they will be supported by millions, if not billions. All this does not disappear anywhere in a person.

Sometimes the waves overlap one another, nothing more.

Now we are approaching the state when for the first time we will begin to seriously change and an inverse change of the world will begin, as it is said: “I saw the opposite world.”
[302603]
From KabTV’s “I Got a Call, Bread and Circuses” 4/27/13

Related Material:
Unnatural Mutation Of The Animate Level
Insidious Human Nature
“Take Off The Rose-Colored Glasses!”