Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What do you think is the true goal of education?“

The true goal of education is to build an inner model that is nonexistent in us to being with, where the substance of this model is our desire. In this desire, we want to shape the image of what we consider a “good person,” that there will be an image of a good person within us, of what a good person is, so that we can compare anything external that we encounter with that image and check whether what we encounter is correct, good and worthwhile for us, or the contrary.

For instance, when I talk to my child or to my little grandchild, I want to give him a good and correct form of life, but one that is real and not imaginary. I want to create in him a small image of what a fully-realized human being is, so that he can always see life in relation to that small image, and discern whether what he encounters is correct, good and worthwhile, or not, and whether he has to correct things or to run away from them. This image should be like a compass that guides his life. That is the purpose of education in general. Within this process, we develop by going through various milestones, where through examples and various games and exercises, we build this image and shape of a fully-realized human being.

Based on the video “What Is the True Goal of Education?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman, Yael Leshed-Harel and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “To what do you attribute the recent upswing in violent attacks against Jewish people?“

The core reason for hatred and attacks against Jews is that there is no mutual responsibility among the Jewish people.

The foundation of the Jewish people is ideological, not biological: that we once united according to the tenet “love your friend as yourself” during the increasingly divisive times of ancient Babylon, and by doing so, became a conduit for the force of love and bestowal to enter among us and spread to others.

Since those times, human egoism grew and we lost our sense of such connection. However, whether we know it or not (and the vast majority of us today are unaware of it), we hold potential and the method to achieve a state that can elevate humanity to a state of common love.

Why does achieving such a state of connection hold immense importance today? It is because reaching a state of love among humanity holds the key to solving every problem humanity faces today on all scales: personal, social, economic, ecological and global.

The fact that hatred and attacks against Jews have been on the rise in recent times is due to the need for love and connection to enter the world—and the Jews hold the key to unite. In the mid-2000s, I warned American Jews about a forthcoming rise in antisemitic crimes and threats through various lectures across the country, and the idea was publicly dismissed as nonsense by various American Jews in attendance. Today, however, we are in the midst of exponentially increasing antisemitic crimes and threats, and the solution to the problem—the unity of the Jewish people, forming ties of mutual responsibility—remains elusive.

By failing to acknowledge our need to come together, we invite hatred and attacks upon ourselves. On the contrary, if we develop the power of unification among us, then we will see an inversion of that very hatred into its opposites of love and respect for a nation that brings goodness to the world. It is my hope that we will take heed to our need to unite above all of our differences, and by doing so spread the unifying force to humanity at large.

Based on the video “Why Is There a Recent Israel-Arab Uprising Against Israeli Jews?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Comment: They write to you: “How can we change our attitude toward each other if the whole world is squeezing one another for money? Perhaps money, the cause of all selfishness, should be eliminated?”

My Response: No! in no way! Money is the universal equivalence for our efforts. Not just our efforts but our personal exertions that show how much we have succeeded in using the special talents given to us from above.

Suppose you are smarter than me, you are more successful and I succeed less, or you are even stronger and luckier in something. Something happened to someone by chance. It can also be measured by money. Therefore, having a universal equivalent is essential. It is necessary to measure our efforts.

Question: As it is written in this letter usually those who have a lot of money earned their wealth dishonestly. Is it still possible to derive this equivalent?

Answer: Impossible! Money is Kesef in Hebrew, from the word “Kisuf—covering.” When you cover your efforts correctly, the measure of covering your efforts is called Kesef. Here we imply spiritual efforts and spiritual results.

Question: So, money cannot be withdrawn from the world because then there would be no equivalent?

Answer: Only if we want to replace it with the next equivalent, what can money be exchanged for, for relationships.

It is when we understand our relationships between one another and share them among each other and the Creator. When the Creator becomes our common equivalent, then all other dimensions will disappear except for real, internal relationships between us. This is called Masach (screen) and Ohr Hozer (reflected light).

This is what we call a coin, “ringing coin,” as they say.

Question: And what will it mean when we say: “I am rich” or “he is rich”?

Answer: It will mean that I have the power to resist my egoism and place others above myself. That is all. This is the measure of our rapprochement, unification, and the measure of our bestowal.

Question: Is this what we call wealth?

Answer: Yes. Wealth is about how much of myself I can give to others.

Comment: And that is the root, right? That is where it all started and degraded to simple cash?

Answer: Actually, we must go down to the very bottom and clearly see the entire truth of our relationships, only then will they change.

Question: So, as you always say, we must go to the very bottom before we can go up?

Answer: The Creator will lift you up! You have to understand and ask.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 4/28/22

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Why do economic crises happen?“

Economic crises happen in order to lead to the truth, that a well-oiled economy with a high standard of living for all is not the reason we are here. What is the reason for our existence if not for us to have it good here on Earth?

We need to ask ourselves precisely this question: Why are we here? We are not here just to live well for a few years and then to die, but our lives have a greater purpose, and we need to clarify what it is, where we are from and where we are headed.

We should each engage in such scrutiny in order to reach its resolution, and then we will find out how we can organize our lives harmoniously and peacefully. Otherwise, we will head to more and more crises, as if stumbling and falling time and again.

If we would better understand the harmonious and peaceful state that we are supposed to reach, then we would have no need for any more economic or other crises, because we would then be able to organize ourselves in adaptation to our perfect future state, at our own pace and in our own way.

Based on the video “Elon Musk’s ‘Super-Bad Feeling’ about the Economy – A Kabbalist’s Response” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash.

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Question: You have repeatedly said that if a person does not listen to at least an hour of a lesson a day, then this, in principle, is a day thrown out of life. If we take our typical day, what things have to go through it in order for it to be effective?

Answer: During the day, a person should listen to my lessons, read the sources of Baal HaSulam and Rabash, get involved in communication with friends all over the world, and understand how his group, the ten, the closest environment to him, is moving. He must see what he is doing in order to somehow elevate himself up, at least in part. He needs to implement all this through dissemination, making contacts, and so on.

That is, his day should include studying and communication with his group, through it, with the Creator, and communication with the broad masses in order to bring them closer to a single system that strives to reveal the Creator.

This is a super-goal that a person should have in life. If he does not do this, then he is spiritually dead.

Comment: In the classical understanding of life, a person spends all day at work…

My Response: What difference does it make what he does physically? Today we have such a life that, in general, does not prevent him from performing his functions. But at the same time, his head, his goal, and life intentions can be completely different—directed toward a spiritual goal.
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From KabTV’s “I Got a Call. Importance of the Lesson” 11/3/09

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Will Jews and Arabs ever live with peace and tranquility in Israel? It is a shame that Jerusalem, which means “city of peace,” has not experienced peace in the last 75 years.“

Indeed, Jerusalem means the “city of peace” (“Ir Shalom”), and it is the center of the world’s spiritual force, but at the same time, Jerusalem is the furthest place from peace that I know. It is because we Jews do not want peace (Heb. Shalom); we do not want to reach a state of perfection (Heb. Shlemut).

Peace means reaching a state of “love your neighbor as yourself.” That is the condition for peace. It is a whole and complete state. Moreover, according to what makes us Jewish to begin with, that we once united (the Hebrew word for “Jew” [Yehudi] comes from the word for “united” [yihudi] [Yaarot Devash, Part 2, Drush no. 2]) to a point of a common love, then we need to first realize our unification among each other, and then humanity will follow suit.

We need to turn to ourselves, to our relatives and friends, to the people around us, and build a state of peace. If we would each do so, among all Jews, then we would be able to also turn to our Arab cousins. At that time, they will understand us and will also want peace, as the upper force would help us reach it and would be felt within the peace that it brings.

Based on the video “Will Jews and Arabs Ever Live Peacefully in Jerusalem?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
Photo by Robert Bye on Unsplash.

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Comment: Alexey asks: “Michael, it is not evident that you love people. But on whom then does the world rest?”

My Response: On whom does the world rest? Does the world rest on people? The world hardly tolerates these people; it suffers from them. They sit on it like flies and gnaw it from all sides. Why should I love such a picture? We just dig our teeth into this Earth, into this world, and we gnaw on it wherever possible and push others away.

And then we also want to fly to Mars to escape from here: “Apple trees will bloom also on Mars.” And we will chop them down in the same way.

Comment: “Then on whom does the world rest,” Alexey asks. After all, it does rest on something.

My Response: The world rests on the word, on the word of God. In the beginning there was the word, and the word was God, and God was eternity, and so on.

The world rests on the quality of good, on the quality of love. It all comes from the upper one, not from us. If it were from us, then this whole world would not exist for a second. We are the negative energy in the world.

The Creator holds us, holds the world. If not for this, nothing would exist. In the meantime, we are parasites on this world.

Question: What does the Creator hope for? What does He even want while holding us?

Answer: He does not hope. He governs so that a person eventually grows up to the realization of how to govern the world in general and takes the place of the Creator.

Question: Does it mean, according to your words, that people are created to govern this world? These, as you say, low creatures?

Answer: Yes. They were created to be the crown of creation, to govern the world, to convince the Creator to influence our world with the quality of good, which will be supported by all means by man, by people, and humanity.

They must allow the qualities of love and bestowal and kindness and compassion to be revealed in the world.

Therefore, they must go through this “bottom,” recognize their nature, suppress it in themselves, and come to the need for the opposite nature—the nature of the Creator.

Question: How does a person come to the conclusion that this is the path?

Answer: From suffering. There is no other way, but the recognition of the pettiness of one’s own powers, qualities, and capabilities. The Creator expects that we will turn to Him for help, ask Him for the force of the quality of good, bestowal, and love, and thereby rise to His level.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 2/2/20

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Can we live in a disease-free world?“

It is possible to live in a disease-free world on condition that we take care of human connections.

Human connections, i.e. the attitudes we hold toward each other, our relationships, are the higher source of all good and bad that we experience in our lives.

If we elevate human connections to a level of “love others as yourself,” reaching a common understanding of how to organize our lives in a way where we treat each other with love and mutual consideration, and enter into a common embrace, then we will experience no less than perfection in our lives. We would put an end to the hatred and division that stand in the way of such perfection, and diseases would also end in such a state.

Based on the video “Can We Live in a Disease-Free World?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Question: Can we call the current state of the world a reference point when humanity is close to choosing a new path of development?

Answer: Without a doubt. The wisdom of Kabbalah speaks about this. We are currently entering the last state of humanity, the so-called “last generation.”

This state can be lengthy, including wars and all kinds of destruction. But it can also be based on a peaceful development along the path upward. It depends on the people.

The final social formation will consist of recognizing our egoism as evil and the ascent above it to connection, to coming closer together of all the nations around a common core, which is the principle of “love your neighbor as yourself.”
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From KabTV’s “Kabbalah Express” 6/24/22

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Comment: A quote from a letter: “My son died. He was my light, my life, everything. It is me who did not treasure him, I know. I just do not know how to live now. But I do not have the strength to die either.”

My Response: We must rise above life and death. This cruel and brief life that, in general, does not give us anything. We must rise above it and understand that we all go through a certain circle, a cycle.

And therefore, all our lives and deaths are included in one continuous movement. And the faster we go through the series of lives, the closer we are to the fact that we will be freed from this cycle and enter the absolute eternal life.

Question: Do you think that a mother who has lost her son will hear this?

Answer: Yes, she will. Because she is suffering and she will hear, only in this way and not another. We still need to gradually explain to people that there is no death, that these are cycles, transitions from one state to another.

Question: Suppose, her son disappears for her. Does he disappear?

Answer: But she carried him in her and gave birth to him from inside herself. So it is hard for her. But in general, there is really nothing in this. The connection is purely spiritual.

And our goal is only to rise above our animal body. There is nothing to be done anyway, and not only with her, but with everyone. With everyone!

There is no connection between bodies. Bodies belong to the animal level: inanimate, vegetative, animal. And the human level is connected only through awareness.

Question: Is it possible to realize that he exists, as it were, continues to exist? Is it possible to reach such a state?

Answer: Of course. Because everything that exists goes through all these four stages: inanimate, vegetative, animate, and human. And therefore, despite the fact that a person disappears from our perception, from our sensations, because the corporeal world is given only in our sensations, and even this is a pure illusion, everything else is already given in awareness, in understanding, in adhesion, and so on.

Question: So, in principle, only communication has changed? What they had physically is one thing, but now it has turned into something completely different?

Answer: Yes.

Question: If possible, can you sum it all up? What kind of state is it desirable that she enter?

Answer: To enter a state in which she feels a connection with her son through a spiritual state, spiritual adhesion, connection. Her spirit and his spirit. And nothing else. And in general, as if this world does not exist, it is all an illusion. Let this world be gone. You just have to imagine it this way. It is so easy, so good.

Question: So you kind of rise above this life?

Answer: You dismiss it altogether, this illusion does not exist.

Question: What is there then? What is there for her if she rises from this world?

Answer: Feeling, the inner feeling of a person. This is what exists.

Question: That she is connected to him?

Answer: Yes. This is the longing of the human heart. Nothing else.
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From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 4/4/22

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