Michael Laitman, On Quora: “How do you explain emptiness?“

Emptiness is a unique category of desires that are unable to be fulfilled. They thus feel empty of the content that they would like to have.

People who delve into questioning the emptiness that they feel are those who begin to feel the desire to discover the meaning of life. In other words, the feeling of emptiness in our desires coincides with asking questions about the meaning and purpose of life, why our lives end, what happens when we die, why we feel our lives as being so absurd and random, and so on.

Emptiness is thus a desire to attain what is unattainable in the meantime, because our matter is a desire to be filled with enjoyment and delight.

Based on a Kabbalah lesson with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on January 31, 2016. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What instigates hatred among humans?“

It is written, “the inclination of man’s heart is evil from his youth” (Genesis 8:21). Envy, lust, honor and hatred are egoistic emotions unique to humans. Moreover, human egoism constantly grows, and due to its constant growth, our egos are much worse today than they were in the past.

While the human ego is behind the hatred, rejection, alienation and suffering we feel in our world, we also need to understand that the reason we have been given such a nature and such broken relationships is so that we will correct them. Correcting our egoism means rising above it, and acquiring a new sense that feels the positive force of nature opposite our ego—the force of love, bestowal and connection. Likewise, only we humans can bring about such correction. Moreover, egoism constantly grows in order for us to see that unless we correct it, then we will plunge into such crises that we will have no choice but to correct it.

Based on the video “The Root Cause of People’s Hatred for Other People” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Chaim Ratz. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What is your viewpoint on the Russian-Ukrainian conflict?“

The current Russo-Ukrainian war awakens the awareness that as human beings, we desperately lack correction and positive connection. It shows how hatred can brew between two nations that have lived side-by-side for a long time, which share similarities in religion, language and history, and which play host to millions of families that were built with no regard as to whether the spouses’ respective families were Russian or Ukrainian. Despite their similarities, they instead emphasize their differences, differentiating and distancing themselves from each other up to a point of hatred. And the hatred boiled over into war, as if they share nothing at all in common.

Why does such a dire state come about? It is because human nature—the egoistic desire to enjoy at the expense of others and nature—is uncorrected at its basis. Moreover, this ego is already overblown, and still constantly inflating. Without correction—without mutually redirecting our intentions to benefit one another and nature—then it is bound to explode, to burst into flames, and bring about conflict and much suffering.

We then have no choice but to extinguish the flames of war by correcting ourselves, our egoistic nature, which presents itself today as the ego of one nation attacking to overpower another. We need to see that the ego’s correction is the only solution to this problem, as it is the only solution that treats the problem at its core.

We also need to understand that we cannot repair the war at its root cause—the growing uncorrected human ego—with the same egoistic powers at our disposal. Instead, through connecting to each other above our egoistic drives, which requires a guided method, we can invite the positive force dwelling in nature into our connections, and by doing so, be granted peace. Let us pray that the good inclination (intentions to positively connect to each other) will overcome the evil inclination (our innate egoistic drives) from person to person, nation to nation, and among all nations.

Based on the Writers Meeting with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on February 24, 2022, and the Daily Kabbalah Lesson on February 25, 2022. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
Photo by Artur Voznenko on Unsplash.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “How do you deal with negativity coming your way and your own feelings of negativity?“

Every one of our negative feelings is the outcome of torn positive connections that we once had. That is why we can fix anything negative in our life by correcting our connections to each other.

If we take steps toward positively connecting with each other instead of letting our divisive drives take hold of us, then our every negative feeling will flip to become positive. We will then find ourselves in a world of love, kindness and care instead of a world of increasing pain, suffering and emptiness.

Since we are different, we are stronger united and weaker divided. When we apply unity above our differences, then our differences complement each other and we function as a single whole. When we are divided, then our differences weaken us. We should thus focus not on making everyone the same, but on placing an umbrella of unity over all of our differences. By doing so, we would discover a new world filled with blossoming positive attitudes of connection and love above our divisive drives. That is the key to successfully dealing with negativity, and it ultimately leads to a harmonious and peaceful society.

Based on the Writers Meeting with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on February 20, 2022.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What are the lessons learned from Squid Game?“

The screenwriter and director of Squid Game have been noted as saying that “such is our world” in relation to the setup where people become willing to kill other people if placed under conditions where it is either their life or another’s life.

I would take it a step further: that our world is worse than what is presented in Squid Game. In our world, we wish to kill others without playing a game in order to do so, knowing in advance that we will kill them, and not as it is in Squid Game, where players agree to play a game according to certain rules.

If we were to remove the filters that cloud human relations, we would see that we are killing each other. Imagine, for instance, the horrible phenomena we would see if everyone’s thoughts became revealed. Thankfully, however, we have been given a gift of being able to each keep our thoughts to ourselves, so that we would be spared from such a terrible vision.

The main lesson that Squid Game might open up is a view of how human nature works: that we each prioritize self-benefit over anything else, up to a point of killing other people if we are placed in a situation where it is either us or them. However, such a lesson is only a small part of what we truly need lessons in today: the need to transform our nature so that we prioritize positive connection to each other and to nature. The more we develop without undergoing such a fateful transformation, the more we will suffer; and the sooner we take steps to transform our nature in order to positively connect with each other above our self-centeredness, then the sooner we will experience a new harmonious and peaceful world.

Therefore, the main takeaway from Squid Game, which shows the evilness of our egoistic nature, should be paralleled with a serious endeavor that aims at clarifying what human nature is, how it works, why we create such shows, and whether they correctly portray our condition. We will be able to understand that we watch Squid Game and similar forms of art and entertainment because they portray the egoistic qualities that make up our current nature.

However, such viewing should be accompanied with an explanation of the need to change this nature if we are to shift our lives to a positive course, a world of happiness, balance and peace. Then, instead of identifying with our egos, we would start seeing our egoistic attitudes to each other as masks that hide a much better life from us, and we will then start feeling a desire to exit our egoistic state, and develop a completely different attitude to each other, to nature and to life in general.

Based on the video “How Squid Game Portrays Human Nature” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Semion Vinokur.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “How important to development is a father figure?“

In the words of Sigmund Freud, “I could not point to any need in childhood as strong as that for a father’s protection.”

The importance of the father figure is embedded in nature and our biology. A child who grows up with a distorted fatherly presence, whether the child experiences abuse or neglect from the father, leads to certain distortions that become part of them for the rest of their lives. On the contrary, a child who grows up with a positive father figure accordingly absorbs a positive influence. In our times, since the human ego has reached overblown proportions, in order to be a positive father figure to a child, men need to undergo an educational process that gives them the ability to rise above their egoistic drives and consistently exercise an altruistic attitude to other people, including their family.

If speaking in broader terms, then we can also say that humanity’s lack of feeling for its “Father,” i.e., the Creator, the upper force, is the cause of every problem that we experience in our lives. If we felt the caring attitude of our “Father”—the Creator, the upper force—which begets and cares for us at every moment, then we would bear witness to a completely different, positive, harmonious and peaceful world. However, it is impossible to feel such a presence with our inborn properties, because we would then possess no free will. We would feel the full love of the Creator, but we would also be subordinated by it. We thus have no such feeling, and it is in order to be able to act freely, i.e. to develop a similar attitude among each other in society as that of the upper force toward us. Until we do so, we will keep finding ourselves in a world that is full of increasing problems and crises.

Based on the video “The Importance of a Father Figure” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Semion Vinokur. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Why do some like to spy on other people?“

The initial impulse of people who spy on others is to evaluate themselves as being above those on whom they spy. In short, it is an attitude of “they don’t see me, but I see them.” Secondly, it might give the ones spying an opportunity to gain an advantage over the ones they spy on, to command them in some way, or to defend themselves against them, depending on the situation.

In general, however, spying helps the human ego, i.e. our innate desire to enjoy at the expense of others. It expands the ego and makes us feel more in control, like rulers or masters.

Such a feeling is neither good nor bad. Rather, it should lead us to reassess our values so that we understand that the human ego—our desires to be better, stronger and smarter than others—is flawed.

Nature views us as a single whole, as one humanity. To position ourselves correctly, we need to aim at viewing ourselves in the same way, and positively connect to each other. We will then be able to accurately take control of our fate, ourselves and the world. Through positive connection to each other, we increase and expand altruism and lessen egoism. We can then rise above our egoistic nature, and we will then not abuse such actions as spying.

Based on “Kabbalah Express” with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman and Israel Shimshon on February 16, 2021. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
Photo by Glen Carrie on Unsplash.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What is pain?“

Pain is an organism’s reaction to a problem it experiences. It is the organism’s way of communicating that something is wrong; it sends a warning signal of danger, and it protects us from harm or injury. For instance, if our hand touches a fire, pain makes us pull our hand away from the fire immediately, and so it protects our hand.

Pain compels our movements: to move away from something painful and move toward something enjoyable. It thus compels us to change our qualities, accept new opinions, realize the pain’s purpose, make conclusions and advance to new states of being.

Pain is a force capable of affecting the human ego. It pushes us from behind, making us develop and evolve. One form of pain are feelings of emptiness within us. They push us toward fulfillment. Our feelings come from clashes, contact and pressure, or in other words, from pain. We enjoy when the enjoyment is preceded by the painful sensation of an unfulfilled desire, suffering or expectation.

However, when we exit the human ego in order to positively connect with others and nature, we start realizing that instead of living our lives based on empty feelings, we can live on the basis of complete fulfillment. In other words, instead of pain at the basis of our drives, we can begin our motivations from love.

It is a completely different kind of existence, an alternative attitude to ourselves, our society, our world and to nature. When we achieve such an attitude, we discover a full picture of nature that is unblocked by the human ego, because we then become perfect like nature itself.

Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
Photo by Jonathan Rados on Unsplash.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “In 1-2 sentences, what is Kabbalah?“

Kabbalah is a methodology for the expansion of human awareness through the connection of desires. In such expanded awareness, we start perceiving the force that created and sustains our reality, which lets us know more about the world we live in, its cause and effect relationships, and which makes us kinder, more approachable and more contributive members of society.

Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What is the most important thing as a teacher to teach your students?“

The correct worldview: a view of the world, life, a person and an epoch.

That is most important for me—to position a person toward the correct view of his life. To do so, I need to more or less explain the picture of the world we live in, where it is headed, how to change it in the best possible direction, and provide the means to do so.

The world derives from our perception. We do not actually live in the world; the world lives in us. I thus need to teach that we create our world, painting it inside ourselves. It is quite difficult to reach that point. Starting to relate to the world in such a way is a very serious and internal spiritual revolution.

Moreover, our attention needs to be drawn to the fact that the world is not what we feel. The world is a derivative of our attitude to it, i.e.. we can recreate and readjust ourselves to the perception of another world. The world has no shape or form of its own. It is a picture that we can program. Therefore, we can create the world we live in, and it will change according to the change in our wishes, qualities and efforts.

Based on KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” on December 9, 2021. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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