Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Is it necessary for a good leader to be charismatic?“

We do not need charismatic leaders today. We need leaders who can understand and empathize with people, and who can resonate with people emotionally to guide them to a common goal.

However, I see no examples of such leaders in our world today. The human ego blocks us from feeling others. To become such a leader requires rising above the ego’s influence, and discovering what it means to become a human being in the fullest sense of the term: as one who positively connects to others, who feels that they are a part of a single system with others and thus who needs to devote themselves to the benefit of others.

Today’s leaders are the opposite. They are unscrupulous and egocentric, willing to tear down anything and everyone in their way. It is due to the fact that our economy runs on egoistic principles—“what’s mine is mine, what’s yours is yours”—and so whoever can work out how to trample on others more effectively becomes more powerful in such a system.

We thus need a new economy if we are to find leaders who can understand and empathize with people. What is this new economy? It is an economy of the heart, an economy that speaks to life itself. People sustaining and living according to such an economy would feel that they can earn and build the world from a different kind of material, one that stems from positive human connections.

That is the kind of economy and leader of the future. Although it is very far from where we are now, we are nonetheless destined to reach such a state.

Based on the video “Is it Necessary for a Good Leader to be Charismatic?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Semion Vinokur. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
Photo by Hudson Hintze on Unsplash

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Why is desire so destructive yet natural at the same time?“

Specifically the desire of the human is destructive both to itself and to its environment. We do not see the same kind of destructive desire in nature’s other levels, i.e. the still, vegetative and animate.

We humans have destructive desires because we are made of a desire to enjoy at the expense of others and nature, and this desire is in constant growth. In our era particularly, we experience life through an overblown desire to enjoy, and we thus bear witness to much more destructive phenomena than in any other era. Nature’s other levels do not have the same amount of desire to enjoy that we have as humans, which makes us the sole destructive element in nature.

However, there is a purpose to our destructive desires. They develop us to a state where we realize the need for serious introspection, to see that our desire to enjoy is pushing us to destroy ourselves and our planet. Such a realization should urge us to reach a decision for change: that we have to build a different life, one based on positively connecting to each other with ties of mutual love, support and consideration. When we undergo a significant attitude shift from an desire for self-benefit to one aimed at benefiting others and nature, then we will see a whole new, harmonious and peaceful life of happiness, safety and confidence open up to us.

Based on the video “Why Are Our Desires So Destructive?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Nitzah Mazoz. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
Photo by Ethan Sykes on Unsplash.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What is the single best way to fix the climate crisis?“

We can bring the world to balance only if we ourselves achieve balance in our relations. We will then find ourselves in a world that provides for everybody’s needs and satisfies everyone.

This is no pipe dream or utopia. It is a state that we will reach voluntarily or involuntarily. If we create balance in the world at the human level, then nature’s lower levels—the animate, vegetative and inanimate—will also enter into balance.

Today, there are people who expose all kinds of governments and organizations for climate inaction, but they provide no solutions. It is because the solutions that will ultimately bring the world to a state of balance are in changing ourselves to cultivate positive human connections.

I also support the creation of a serious organization of scientists, politicians and economists who collaborate on conducting in-depth research and reports on the world’s state, and who discuss what could be done. However, the solution will remain the same: to create balance in our relations in order to enable balance throughout the world.

Instead of making all kinds of governments and organizations the enemies and pointing the finger of blame on them, we should each view our inner selves as our sole enemy: the egoistic self within that prioritizes self-benefit over benefiting others.

Either we start changing our egoistic nature—upgrading our attitudes to each other from negative to positive, which would start bringing nature into balance—or we experience increasing suffering from climate crises together with a wide range of other crises that stem from the same root. In short, bringing ourselves into balance is possible only if we gradually create an atmosphere of “Love your neighbor as yourself” throughout society.

Based on the video “What Is the Single Best Way to Fix the Climate Crisis?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Semion Vinokur. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Do we have to be afraid of terrorist attacks?“

We should completely erase any fear of terrorist attacks. It does not mean that we should not pay attention to the phenomenon and do nothing about it. We need to respond to terrorism by making decisions and implementing plans that would completely uproot the phenomenon. After we do so, we need to be certain that we did all that we could to stop terrorism, and from that point on, we need to attribute everything that unfolds in relation to the upper force and “whatever will be, will be.” If a certain act is supposed to happen, then even if we place several thousands of soldiers to guard ourselves, the act will happen. Therefore, after we do all that we could, we need to let go of our fears and anxieties and move on with our lives.

According to the wisdom of Kabbalah, if we wish to rid ourselves of such fears, then we need to connect to a certain source that neutralizes any fear and doubt that comes from another place.

This source is the source of our lives, called “the Creator,” “nature,” “the upper force,” and several other names in the wisdom of Kabbalah. It is the quality of love, bestowal and connection behind our existence and everything happening to us in our lives.

If we wish to attain contact with this quality, then we will focus ourselves in that direction, and eventually we will start feeling this force enter our lives. Then, the entrance of the upper force into our lives will eliminate any fear or anxiety we have. It will give us a sense of total safety and confidence, and elevate us to a new sensation and perception of the world.

Based on the video “How to Deal With Fear of Terrorist Attacks” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What is the significance of the recently-found oldest inscription in Hebrew, which is full of curses?“

Researchers recently discovered what several experts claim to be the oldest-ever found Hebrew inscription from at least 3,200 years ago. Interestingly, it is full of curses, which shows that the nation back then was developed and powerful, capable of evil, and which also had faith in an upper force.

Even if the faith is expressed in a way where we can turn to the upper force and ask it to help us do something bad to our neighbor, there is significance in the consideration of the upper force. Today, we also curse each other. Back then, we turned to an upper force, and today we turn to lawyers and courts. So which era is the most developed?

We can thus see the underlying hatred in human beings, in one era pointed at the upper force, and in another era pointed at ourselves. Of utmost significance here is acknowledging that our progress into a bright future depends on turning our hatred into love.

Hatred is an asset. We can invert hatred into love, darkness into light, and turn our negative connections into positive ones. Moreover, we need the revelation of the negative force in order to invert it into its positive.

That is why I point out the Hebrew curse inscription showing that we were a great and powerful nation. By overcoming the evil in us, we had tremendous potential to do good in the world. That is relevant for us today: let us awaken that inclination today, and continue solely in the good direction.

“Love covers all crimes” is the formula for letting the upper force fill our lives with an abundance of fulfillment. We first reveal hatred, as the upper force reveals our true nature to us. We then try to come closer to each other, and convince each other that besides turning to the upper force—for it to correct us from hatred to love—we need nothing else. And the upper force is capable of inverting hatred to love because love is its quality.

Based on the video “Kabbalist Responds to Recently-Discovered 3,200 Year-Old Hebrew Inscription” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Why is gold so valuable besides humans liking it aesthetically?“

Why is gold so valuable? It is because we want to apply our efforts into various immutable material objects, i.e. objects that will not decay or rust.

In relation to spirituality, gold represents the full correction of egoism, i.e. when our inborn desire to enjoy acquires a full intention of bestowal and love for the other. In the language of Kabbalah, gold represents our connection to the Sefira of Keter, and silver represents the ego’s partial correction, our connection to the Sefira of Bina.

As long as egoism rules in the world, we will value gold as the universal and global equivalent of the egoistic forces, i.e. the forces of the desire to enjoy for self-benefit. But when people trade their egos for positive connection, i.e. when our desire to enjoy acquires an intention to bestow upon others that lets us positively connect to each other, then we will value gold as an ordinary metal, and will no longer use it for trade. At that point, we will only use the value of bestowal to one another as a measure for trading.

Based on the video “Why Is Gold So Valuable?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Semion Vinokur. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
Photo by Jingming Pan on Unsplash.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “How could anyone abuse a child?“

In recent weeks in Israel, there have been several cases of children and babies being abused by their kindergarten teachers and caretakers. It is a phenomenon that has been shaking up many people.

Indeed, how is it possible to abuse defenseless children and babies?

The Torah speaks of even worse states that humanity could reach, where merciful mothers would eat their own children.

Our development is marked by our constantly-growing egoism, which has become overblown in our era. The ego, i.e. the desire to enjoy at the expense of others, has reached such major proportions that horrible cases of child abuse increasingly appear the more that we become more egoistic and detached from one another.

There is a method, however, called “the wisdom of Kabbalah,” which can teach us how to build a correctly-functioning society, where we learn how our egoism operates, and how to rise above it in order to develop positive connections to one another.

With the learning and implementation of such a method, we could reach a state where we feel other people’s children not only as our own, but even more closely than we feel our own children.

Why would we feel that way? It is because through a positive attitude to each other—and to each other’s children—we would become close with the positive force of nature that dwells in our connections. Our positive attitudes would let us connect to the positive force that dwells in nature, and such a connection would fulfill us with a much greater sensation of fulfillment than what we currently sense.

We need to start discovering how the positive force of nature dwells in the connections between all people, and we have the ability to reveal and connect to this force. Doing so can let us feel love toward other people’s children and babies, beyond even feeling them as our own children.

This is precisely why the wisdom of Kabbalah has become revealed on a mass scale in our era: Without the wisdom of how to positively connect to each other above our egoistic drives while our egos constantly grow, we would end up eating each other alive.

Based on the video “How Could Anyone Abuse a Child or Baby?” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What do you think of Israel announcing that the Iron Beam laser defense system was tested successfully shooting down drones and rockets?“

Against any good thing, there is always a bad thing. So you will not find me jumping with joy that we have rid ourselves of our problems and threats.

I do not think that this laser defense system can give us a real sense of security in Israel. Things will get worse. Our problems will rise to an even higher level.

In order for us to truly have a sense of quiet, there is a simple idea that we must adhere to—that of connection, or to reach “Love your neighbor as yourself” among the Israeli nation.

This is no innovation of the defense industry. It is up to us people to implement. If we fail to upgrade our attitudes to each other, then no sophisticated technological, scientific or military equipment would help us.

Developing ties of love between us would protect us from all harm. If we had a very strong sense of connection, then this force of connection would reject all evil forces.

This is because thought and desire are forces much more powerful than laser beams. They are similar to laser waves, only sharper, operating beyond time, space and motion.

We need to establish a network of love between us, love that comes from the heart, and then we would see those same inclinations starting to surface in our enemies’ thoughts and desires. We can make this much-needed innovation in human connection, and sooner or later, we will have to.

Based on the video “Kabbalist Responds to Israel’s Iron Beam Laser Defense System” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
Photo by Umberto on Unsplash.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Is there free will in this world?“

There is no free will in our world. Free will is possible only if we have an opportunity to rise above the egoistic nature of our world, i.e. the nature where we wish to benefit ourselves at the expense of others and nature, which determines our decisions and behavior.

We consider ourselves free for as long as we do not think about it and identify ourselves with our animate body. But if we rose above our body a little, we would see that it strictly obeys the laws and processes it is subject to.

We think that we determine all kinds of choices in our lives. However, we are placed in certain conditions and given certain inner qualities, while our desire to enjoy runs like an engine according to a simple principle: maximum pleasure and gain for minimum effort and investment.

We calculate according to this principle at every moment, direction, place and in relation to everything. That is how nature works. It takes into consideration various conditions, such as how tired and healthy we are, and how much risk is involved versus the quality and quantity of enjoyment—and accordingly passes out decisions. We can thus see how we remain in the ego, and how there is no free will in its range of functioning.

We have to realize that we can realize our free will by controlling and being above our desire. The more we stay in our egoistic desire, the more we remain as obedient puppets, fully controlled by egoism.

If, however, we wish to take control of the situation, then we have to manage our desire, which is done by rising above it. In other words, we can experience free will, but only above desire.

Then the question becomes: How can we rise above our egoistic nature in order to realize our free will?

That is what the wisdom of Kabbalah engages in.

Based on the Daily Kabbalah Lesson with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on November 26, 2010. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What is the importance of humans to the Earth?“

The importance of humans to the Earth is that we truly realize what it means to become human, and fulfill our role here by doing so.

Becoming human means adjusting our attitude toward people and nature on all of its levels—the still, vegetative, animate and speaking—so that our attitude aligns with the altruistic attitude sourced in nature.

In other words, we need love. By increasing love in our relations, we can stop the spread of hatred. By failing to add love in our relations, we let hatred abound and thus find that we become increasingly imbalanced among each other and with nature.

Planet Earth feels human attitudes, whether or not we feel love, hate or anything else. We live on a living organism, which is now suffering.

In order to alleviate the Earth’s suffering and to make the Earth happy, we need only wish to create a positive, mutual and balanced life, that we become the source of this newfound balance, and we will then also bring balance to the planet, to the atmosphere, and to everything else in nature.

When we reach balance among each other and with nature, we will experience a whole new abundant and perfect life.

Based on the video “It’s Time to Reassess Our Relationship With Nature” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Oren Levi. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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