Entries in the 'Q&A' Category

The Features Of Future Employment

Dr. Michael LaitmanBaal HaSulam, “The Last Generation”: The unemployed will receive their needs equally with the employed.

In principle, this is how it should be today. After all, those who live in cities, having lost a source of income, are unable to feed themselves. They do not have livestock and land, and they do not know how to cultivate the land. However, a person, in any case, should have something to eat: It is his natural urgent need.

Question: If we are talking about a single system of humanity, each must perform some task, like a cell in the body. Then, where will the unemployed come from?

Answer: So, we have to organize society in such a way that everyone has something to do. But in reality, we are speaking about spiritual “employment.” As for its material counterpart, it can be minimal.

In the past generations people lived very simply. For example, a seller at the market could sell one pot during the whole day and that was enough for him. There were no cars, automation, productivity was low, and yet people worked a few hours a day and did not need more. Today, there is no need for so many workers. Instead, people will study, and in everything else assist and support each other.

Our task is to fill people’s free time productively. Today, about 90% of working activities of various kinds are redundant. If you burst this bubble and reduce everything to the level of healthy, good, rational life, there won’t be work for everyone. After all, we will produce reliable products with much greater durability, instead of short-lived products that need to be repaired or replaced. It turns out that a maximum of 10% of the working population will need to work.

Today, the overproduction of extra things, which are imposed on consumers by advertising, is well established, so these things are dumped and make way for new ones. This applies to manufacturing industries and medicine, and everything else. Whatever a person does, he does it to his own detriment. The pharmaceutical industry produces extra drugs; the defense industry produces military weapons; in short, everything is reverse compared to how it should be.

So, in the end, half a billion people will work, or we will divide work among everyone so each can work, say, two hours a day. And the rest of the time will be dedicated to spiritual work: People will study and learn to help each other, etc. It is necessary to guarantee the same level of living to everyone regardless of whether a person works or not because the point is not whether he works, but whether you can provide him with work. If you are to blame someone, don’t blame him but yourself.

So, you have to create the same standard of living for everyone. You can add to it respect from others, competition in giving to the benefit of the community. One can and should compete for the contribution to the common cause, for meritorious service to society:

– Look, how happy people are at my concerts!

– Look, how perfectly I manage the company!

Moreover, it is not just a director but the owner of a company. We don’t need to expropriate anything as it was done in Soviet Russia. If a man owns a factory, he takes care of uninterrupted production and of decent working conditions for his employees, and at the same time, requires that they perform their duties diligently. He is proud of what he does and receives the same salary as his subordinates or the unemployed. The remaining part of the scale of pleasure is filled by respect from others and nothing more.

Indeed, does the director’s body need more than the bodies of others? No. He has a company car and a chauffeur, but this is for work. And in everything else, he is like the rest.

Thus, we use the potential of everyone to the greatest extent possible. In this case, at the “animal” level, everyone receives equally with everyone else, but earns honor and respect at the human level. All this will work only if people become involved in the system of integral education.

Thus, we will take the correct course and strive for the general correction because our goal is not an “animal” existence, but the peak of human development.
[86623]
From the 4th part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/27/12, Writings of Baal HaSulam, “Last Generation”

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Fear Of Appealing To The Creator

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: If I don’t know who to appeal to before a prayer, then why do I experience a sense of trepidation before the Creator, a fear of appealing to the Creator?

Answer: I envy you. This means that you know Who you’re addressing.

It is a very exalted state when a person addresses the quality of bestowal, the Light, or something higher and feels a sense of trepidation. This means that he feels the extent to which his state, his life, each cell and each moment, all of his relationships and encounters, all depend only on the Light. That is, he feels that he is not the one in control of himself, that he isn’t in charge of the next moment, and that everything exist outside of him. He doesn’t yet sense whose hands he is in and because of that he feels a sense of trepidation. For the time being this is an animal trepidation, but it propels us forward.

Then at some point, an opposite sensation of confidence will come, making me feel good, as if I don’t depend on myself. Nothing could be worse than actually being in charge of myself and my destiny!

I’m glad that there is Light that determines everything, forms everything, and guides me. The only thing that remains for me to do is to feel and work in unison with the Light, which is the only way for me to realize all of this.
[86430]
From the Kharkov Convention “Uniting to Ascend” 8/18/12, Lesson 5

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The Connector Between Man And Woman

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: There is a spiritual committee in our group. Three men are elected to raise the importance of the goal in the group throughout the week. You say that the presence of women is always additional help. Can the spiritual committee also have three women participating on this committee from the women’s part?

Answer: No, you cannot. When men are talking about their spiritual problems, they must clarify them separately. You must find another place to solve some problems together, but not during the time the men designate as their strictly male meeting time. You can’t do that! This will not work!

We, meaning humanity, are purposely separated into two very sharp parts: male and female. This dissection and separation comes from above to below, as the Creator to creation. These are two worlds. It’s impossible to connect and compare them in any way.

Unity between man and woman happens only through the Creator; otherwise, this unity doesn’t exist. Therefore, we see where this is leading in our world. With everything that is happening around us, we can only balance it through the Creator. In the same manner we can also balance our families, but only if we accept the necessary condition that the Creator has to be between us, as between me and my friend, also between me and my spouse. If He’s not there, then there won’t be any connection between us. In the end, this is what we are coming to.

However, joint meetings of men and women must really be held and also men’s and women’s meetings separately. And women need to be thinking about how they can unite among themselves and how to help the men.
[86362]
From the Kharkov Convention “Uniting to Ascend” 8/18/12, Lesson 4

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We Can Do Anything If We Connect

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: In the Ukraine, there is a high rate of unemployment. Employment centers were set up where conversations with psychologists take place. Would it be possible to give integral education classes in these centers?

Answer: That would be very good. Those kinds of listeners would better grasp the information. You only need the correct preparation and to express the information correctly, saying only what is essential. If the opportunity exists, then you need to prepare for it. In my blog, I write a lot about the unemployed needing not only retraining courses, but also entire universities.

We need to keep these people busy with something. If they sit at home, then violence and other undesirable things will begin to flourish. I am not even talking about divorces and other things. You cannot have both a husband and wife together at home. We must do something. A man shouldn’t sit at home; it ruins him. A woman can, but a man cannot.

Thus, it is essential to organize entire universities for the people so that they will study all the subjects that we learn: free choice, psychology, the ego as the source of evil, and the development of the ego. We have books about these subjects; there are all kinds of games, connection games. And suddenly we will feel that it’s possible.

Besides that, now we are trying, with the cooperation of various organizations that work with this population, to open a connection program, a project for recovery in areas where there are lots of unemployed people who are in a very difficult economic situation. This is to reach this kind of area and propose: “Come, let’s get organized.” We can create together warehouses for excess clothing, household tools, toys, bicycles, and bulk purchased food warehouses, etc. We will be able to buy at wholesale price, which will be much cheaper.

We can come together as consumers of electricity to sign a separate agreement with the company that supplies electricity. We can do everything, if we connect.

We can unite in this area and act. We can dictate our conditions to all of those who gain from us, and in this way everyone can benefit from it.

We can organize extracurricular activities for our children since among us will be volunteers who presently don’t work. They can work as organizers of these activities for the children, etc.

If we connect, then we can find virtually unlimited resources in order to make life easier for ourselves. No one will take care of us; we need to go out to the people with this.

Of course, we need to think about this since in the future it will be necessary. The Creator will put us in such a state that everyone will begin to understand that there is no way out, only through connection will we reach success.
[86266]
From the Kharkov Convention “Uniting to Ascend” 8/18/12, Lesson 4

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How Difficult It Is To Begin To Speak Through The Heart

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: The last workshop was more difficult than the previous one since instead of a short question you read an entire paragraph from an article and then asked us to discuss it. But it wasn’t at all clear what exactly should be discussed.

Answer: I did that on purpose in order to force you to talk from the heart, from within feelings. If, during the reading, you follow me through your feelings, then you don’t need to remember the question and to think. You simply feel and say only a few words about it. That’s enough!

This is exactly what I wanted to achieve: to direct you to emotionally penetrate into the text so that together we would feel what is hidden there behind the words. If we try to follow the feelings that come after my words and not to look for the answer through the mind, then it works.

I don’t want you to discuss through the mind, but to begin to connect between you through the impressions you received from what you heard. In each paragraph there was some emotional development. And together you had to find your overall impression from it. Building a mutual Kli (desire, vessel), means to come to a shared impression.

A group, in general, is a shared impression in separate Kelim, desires, that connect in order to operate together. When they are ready for this one, shared impression, then this is revealed in them.
[84432]
From the 3rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 7/30/12, The Study of the Ten Sefirot

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Bestowal Upon A Friend

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: What is bestowal upon a friend?

Answer: Bestowal to a friend is to do what he wants. If we are friends and get together in a group in order to achieve the goal, I have to help him in everything possible so that he can achieve it.

He may lack some essential material things, and then I must first of all take care of this. But once he receives the basic necessities, I should help him reach the goal, to achieve it.

He needs me to give him strength, a push forward, inspiration, to go together with him. This is called to help a friend, as it is said: “Each one shall help his neighbor.” So, I tell him what a great goal is ahead of us, that we are together, and together we will reach the goal. I show him how I love him, believe in him, and need him on this path. I awaken him, and through him, I also obtain strength.

Otherwise, we will not reach the goal; one cannot do this. A minimum of ten people is needed.

This is called bestowal to the friends. What else can you give them? If a friend doesn’t have bread, then you will give him half of yours. But everything else, except the basic necessities that you can give, it is only strength along the path, inspiration, and the greatness of the goal. You need to be a real psychologist next to him; thus we work with each other.
[86528]
From the 3rd part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/26/12, The Study of the Ten Sefirot 

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Contact Points

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: We have women’s meetings in the group but sometimes it seems that the women are dealing more with questions of their own. The men say openly that they don’t feel a necessity and a need from us. We tried to have meetings together, but they weren’t really successful. On what basis should we gather with the men’s group? How should it be carried out?

Answer: You should gather mainly in order to discuss general matters, like in a family: What should we do with our center, with our lessons, with the kids, etc. We have to discuss that. There have to be joint meetings.

Everything else is internal work. It should be separate for men and for women. Women need to create within themselves a vector, a direction for their aspiration through the men to the Creator. That’s the best way.

Then women will begin to see how the men are changing and are becoming more serious. You have to treat them both as those who are leading and as those who are being led. Just like our kids: On the one hand, they are younger than us, but they draw us forward. It is the same here. The women’s group grows to the extent of its assistance to the men, and through the men, they receive the Light, or to be more accurate, they receive the Light in the connection between the two groups. All the work is generally done internally.
[86360]
From the Kharkov Convention “Uniting to Ascend” 8/18/12, Lesson 4

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Discover Tremendous Opportunities To Receive Pleasure

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Actions that are intended to unite us are dictated by the fact that we enjoy them. This kind of delight is bigger than the one we get from any other activity. Does it mean that we are like robots that have only a plus or a minus?

Answer: It doesn’t matter. By no means should we refuse pleasures! Kabbalah prohibits it. A person who deliberately refuses pleasure is called “Nazir,” meaning someone who engages in self-restriction. Someone who chooses this goes against the plan of nature since the goal of nature is to bring us to absolute delight.

By transcending the framework of our egoism, by desiring to rise above it, against it, we open tremendous opportunities to receive pleasure. Our egoism restricts the ability to receive delight. How much can you eat or drink? How long can you dance? Everything has its limitations.

By ascending above the egoistic field into the external one, we reveal the world of Infinity. What does the world of Infinity mean? It’s a desire that is not limited by anything at all. It’s exactly what we should discover.

Why is the science that we study called Kabbalah? It teaches us how to reach maximum unlimited eternal delight and how to attain a sensation of everlasting existence within all coordinates and directions. So, when we study and stay with the group, we by no means should pursue self-restriction. Not at all!

One should only think of how to connect with others. At the same time, if you want to eat ten dinners or thrill yourself any other way, please do so. Nobody prohibits you from indulging into pleasures. What really matters is where your head is. That’s the most important thing.

There are ascetics who limit themselves as dieting women, sometimes even worse than that. So what? They don’t “kill” themselves by acting so, but rather feel even bigger pride and self-importance: “See, how good I am!”
[85840]
From the Kharkov Convention “Uniting to Ascend” 8/16/12, Preliminary Lesson

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The Prayer Of Many – A Single Demand

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: What is the prayer of many? Is it when we have one need or when I don’t have a single thought about myself, but only the desire of the group, of the world?

Answer: The prayer of many is when you can unite all the desires of all creatures in your request to raise them to the Creator, to give Him an opportunity to be revealed because this is His joy.

Question: How can I achieve this?

Answer: You are trying to sense them, to get out of yourself, and to begin to feel them, thus you inject their desires into yourself. In fact, you don’t need to cover the whole world and feel absolutely everyone. That will come later because you will perceive this single desire in this way. The Light will affect you and show you all this, evoking your feelings. But until then, you make such attempts as much as you can.

This is a time-consuming work because the process of preparation is the longest, most difficult period since we are operating in the dark. But then, each degree will have its own specific entrances and exits, internal process, analysis and synthesis of all that I do, manifest, and feel from others.

This inclusion of all desires into myself is what is called bestowal: when I start to feel the desires of others as my own. The desires mean aspirations for the Creator. And if there are none, it does not matter. When I start to connect with other people, first in the group, I begin to feel within the group that they strive for the Creator, even if they do not understand and do not know. I start to see and feel this desire everywhere: in people, animals, and plants. After all, the desire for life is also the yearning for the Creator, for the Light.
[86437]
From the Kharkov Convention “Uniting to Ascend” 8/18/12, Lesson 5

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Difficulties At The Beginning Of The Path

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Is my work only to ask the Creator to change my attitude when I feel bad? What if I don’t feel that everything comes from the Creator?

Answer: Indeed while a person is only starting and does not perceive, see, or any inner feeling, then it is difficult. He has just started on the path and is far from his goal, from the city, and he does not see it.

But in order to take the right direction towards this city, he must imagine that he goes in the direction of the city. In any condition, from the start, he should try to imagine the city lights ahead. We are given a group, books, and all kinds of tools for that until the work becomes clearer, and he will see more and more signs of his progress.

He will begin to distinguish between them because his desire will become more clarified, precise. He will accumulate experience: various impressions, signs from which the picture will begin to emerge.

But while he does not have that, he needs to work with what he has, and most importantly the work in the group. If I don’t see the Creator, the city, or the light in front of me, and I am in total darkness, in the middle of a dark field, not knowing where to go, then I imagine the group, its center. This center becomes the Creator for me, the goal on which I focus.

If I give myself to the group, this means that I give myself to the Creator, from the center of the group directly to him. I use all the forces available in the group to be together with them in adhesion, in unity, in bestowal to the group, and thus direct myself at the Creator. He has not been revealed yet, and I have to work with the group in this form.
[86450]
From the 1st part of the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 8/24/12, Writings of Rabash 

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