Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What will bring peace to Israel and the Middle East?“

Peace will come when we realize the method for correcting the human ego, which is running rampant in our day and age.

What does “correcting the ego” mean? It is the shift of our inborn egoistic attitude toward each other and nature, to an opposite altruistic attitude, where we wish to benefit others. Also, our ego’s correction involves feeling how our happiness and fulfillment in life stems from our love, care and contribution to others.

Israel holds the method for correcting the ego. It first realized the method around 4,000 years ago when Abraham led a group of Babylonians, who had a desire to discover the meaning of life and reach peace among the divisions of that time, to a state of the ego’s correction called “love your neighbor as yourself.” It is a state where everyone meshes together in a single connection, through which the positive force dwelling in nature emerges.

Since Abraham’s time, Israel lost contact with the positively-connected state it once had, and largely lost awareness of the method of correction that it once learned and implemented. In place of the connection Israel was supposed to attain at various times, antisemitism emerged as a negative goading force. As a natural phenomenon, the purpose of antisemitism is in order to pressure Israel to wake up to realizing the method of correction that it possesses. When it does so, peace will ensue not only in the Middle East, but in the world at large.

The method of correction has only recently started becoming disclosed in our current era. That is why people the world over have started taking interest in the wisdom of Kabbalah. Several kabbalists have pointed to our era as the one when there would emerge a growing need in humanity for this method, which has the power to reconcile differences, unite us above divisions, and shift the world’s course to a positive direction. A positive direction is one where we prioritize benefiting others over self-benefit, and as a result, discover a state of perfection and peace both in the Middle East and throughout humanity. On the contrary, if Israel fail to wake up to the method of correction that they possess, then antisemitism will continue rising to overblown proportions, and they can expect terrible outcomes. Moreover, the threat of destruction would sweep over the world, as a third or even a fourth world war could become an unfortunate reality.

In essence, what is now happening in the Middle East is the hotbed of a global-scale problem. If we resolve this problem, if Israel wakes up to realize the method of the world’s correction, then it will solve the world’s problems, and peace will also come about in the Middle East.

Based on a Q&A with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on September 9, 2006. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Why is an Iranian nuclear bomb supposed to be more dangerous than an American, Israeli, or French?“

Of course, all governments are egoistic and pursue their own profit. However, the difference is that unlike Iran, none of the other countries make a political and governmental issue out of teaching their people to kill others.

If we look at the education taking place in this country, what are the people there being taught? They are being taught to kill others and to rule over others. This is why the weaponry they produce is a threat to the world. We need to reason according to how the young generation is being raised, what it hears, what it needs to make itself similar to, and how it should appear. We will then see that in America, they nevertheless talk about peace, in Israel they talk about peace, and generally speaking in the world, universal peace is more or less a guiding principle, whereas a fundamentalist regime such as the Iranian one discusses how to conquer and gain possession of the world. This is why weapons in their hands are very dangerous for the world’s well-being.

I hope that Iran will understand that world peace and development, including its own, depends on others, and I hope that they will change their path, and that the world will also reach the understanding that it needs to achieve positive connections of mutual consideration among all of its people and nations.

I also wish that we will all heighten in our development to live in a single embrace, like one big global family, because whether we want it or not, especially in our current era, from one day to the next nature is revealing to us that we are increasingly globally interdependent—like one big family.

Let us hope that someday we will rise in our consciousness to experience our growing connectedness in a loving and considerate manner, where we will take each other by the hands and start living together for the good of humanity and its future generations.

Based on a Q&A with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on September 9, 2006. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Why is there so much drug abuse?“

The human ego, which has been growing for almost 6,000 years, constantly urges us to aim at bigger and bigger fulfillment. The more we develop, the more we want, and this desire urges us to develop human society, bringing about what we consider as progress in all fields of human activity.

However, as an outcome of such development, we become desperate in the hope of ever truly becoming satisfied. Even many youth growing up in today’s world look around and, in contrast to us, no longer feel the desire to live in this world. Despair, drug abuse, depression and suicide become more characteristic of today’s youth than those in any other era, because due to their past incarnations, i.e. our past life, they feel that this world will fail to supply them with any meaningful fulfillment. This is why they turn to drugs—simply in order to forget about life, to detach from this miserable life and leave behind the empty and even helpless feelings that they have.

This is the reason for so much drug abuse, as well as several other problems like depression, loneliness, anxiety and suicide, specifically in our era. The human ego is reaching the end of its development, to a point where we will have to pass over into a new altruistic world, where we exist in a harmonious and positive connection with each other, and where we will no longer try to fulfill ourselves with constant attempts to absorb egoistically into ourselves from our surroundings. On the contrary, our future fulfillment will come from contributing. There is no limit to giving, and through building a new paradigm that values people’s contribution to society over their individualistic-materialistic achievements, we will pave the beginnings of a new positive direction for the world.

I hope that this will actualize in practice. If it does, then we will see a dramatic reversal in the amounts of drug abuse and other problems on personal, social, economic and even ecological scales.

Based on a Q&A with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on September 9, 2006. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “When is it okay to break the law?“

There is nothing more important than a person’s life.

Through the life we are given, nature gives us an opportunity to be an active and beneficial part of society, to achieve self-correction and self-realization. This is why we can break the law only on condition that the law obliges us to kill other people. It is a foundation upon which we can openly and immediately break the law.

On the other hand, in all other cases, if we see a need to fight against the law, then we can do so by lawful means. In other words, we need to abide by the law while simultaneously fighting to change it. But we can break on the law on only one condition: if by observing the law, we bring about death to another person. The reason for this is because there is no higher value in nature than human life.

If we will break the law under any other circumstance, then anarchy will ensue in the world. This is why we need to reach a state where we will observe laws except for the irreversible case that involves killing another person.

Based on a Q&A with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on September 9, 2006. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Why is human life considered the most important than the rest of the life forms?“

We need to first realize that the collective system of nature is constructed as a pyramid. The lowest layer of the pyramid is the still level. It is at the pyramid’s basis, and it includes the universe with its stars and planets.

The next higher layer of the pyramid is the vegetative level, which is all vegetation and plant life on Earth.

Then comes the animate level, which consists of all animal life on our planet, and at the top of the pyramid is the speaking level—the human being—which does not relate to the human body, as that belongs to the animate level, but to the inner qualitative aspect that makes us human.

Therefore, human life is naturally more important than other life forms and levels of nature.

This is not due to an egoistic desire for superiority. It is because we include the other life forms contained in the pyramid within ourselves. By developing a balanced and harmonious attitude toward each other and to nature in general, we will then correct ourselves and nature as a whole. For instance, ecological problems and disasters that unfold in our world are no more than phenomena that we ourselves project upon nature. This is why human life and the role of the human being in nature is of utmost importance.

We have yet to discover that our egoistic attitude toward ourselves and nature brings about disasters on the ecological level, as well as crises we experience in human society. If we undergo a specific kind of self-transformation—developing altruistic attitudes and positive connections to each other above our inborn egoism—then by doing so, we will also see how nature transforms positively. This is why we need to understand that the ecological disasters of our times depend exclusively on our attitudes toward each other and nature.

We experience such crises not due to nature shifting out of balance. Instead, we ourselves bring about the imbalance in nature at the level of our attitudes to each other and nature.

Based on a Q&A with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on September 9, 2006. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What is the best kind of equality?“

People are different by nature. As such, we should not demand the same effort from naturally lazy people than from hard-workers, nor the same results from highly intelligent people than from people with lower levels of intelligence, nor from people drawn to technology and from those drawn to education, culture and/or other fields.

People differ, and thus it is impossible to demand equality from everyone.

We are also unable to recognize and measure each person’s natural qualities by direction and size. By demanding the same results from everyone, we try to squeeze everyone into a Procrustean bed. In other words, we want to “shorten” or “stretch” every person, so that everyone will fit exactly one size. That is simply wrong.

Additionally, nations differ in culture, education, religion and development. Each nation has its own place, and should be respected in its place. After all, every individual is unique in their own way.

This is why we should take into consideration the limitations and the distinctive characteristics of each person. If we preserve such equality, i.e. the equality of every individual’s opportunity to express themselves in the most effective way relative to humanity, we will then abolish egoistic interrelationships and bring about altruistic and equal ones. By doing so, we will all discover our maximal individuality and uniqueness as beneficial members of humanity, and we will then reach a state where we will all live and develop in the most favorable manner.

Based on a Q&A with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on September 9, 2006. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What is the best way of evaluating a person?“

We should appreciate only the aspirations and efforts that are directed toward the good of humanity; not toward our own good, the good of our nation or our family—but only toward the good of humanity. If we respect this direction of aspiration and effort, we will then see the degree to which we overcome our egoistic nature for the sake of belonging and contributing to the world.

I think that all people must overcome their egoistic desire. If we each contribute in such a way, then we should merit gratitude and respect from society in response. Everyone should value and be grateful to people according to the degree of their social contribution.

We are created such that we need society’s recognition. This is how, in essence, we express our “self.” If we will arrange a society that respects and appreciates its members for their social contribution, then such a society will protect its members and respond to their contribution to humanity. By doing so, we will enable every person to become an active member of humanity. We will see only positive aspects from every person relative to the whole human society; we will see the kind of contribution every person adds.

This is why we must establish such laws in our society where we will each be evaluated only according to our contribution to humanity. If we evaluate people by these criteria, if we will each know that others evaluate and treat us precisely in this way—then we will have no choice but to become healthy cells in the general body, or in other words, we will each realize our maximal usefulness to humanity.

Based on a Q&A with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on September 9, 2006. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Why do we consider some lives to be worth more than others?“

We consider some lives to be worth more than others because we fail to see the general system of our global interdependence and interconnectedness.

We belong to a single system. In essence, we are all one organism. Each of us is like a cell in a single organism, a cell that needs to take care of the well-being of the whole organism. If we will see that humanity is ultimately one organism with different organs and parts, then we will understand that every person is immensely important.

In a live organism, it takes just one cell to become cancerous in order to set off the organism’s demise. Our egoistic nature works in the same way: by nature, we wish to “consume” others, i.e. use others for the sake of personal benefit. Likewise, today we all behave like cancerous cells. This dire situation is being increasingly shown to us in our era: the more we discover our global interdependence and interconnectedness, the more we also see how our egoistic nature does not let us enjoy our tightening connection, but on the contrary, we feel it in increasingly negative and threatening ways.

If we recognize the conflicting tendency of our current development, i.e. that the more connected we become globally, technologically and economically, then the more we suffer from our egos clashing with each other, then we will start realizing that we need to heal in our attitudes to each other—to reject our egoism, consumption and the exploitation of others, and shift to a state where we positively connect to each other above our egoism, developing new altruistic threads in our connections.

By discovering the crisis of our current development and the direction our development needs to undergo in order to progress to a better world, we will then see that life lies in enabling us all to contribute positively to society. If we encourage everyone in society to contribute to society, we will then discover our equality. Then, the life of one person could not be considered as more or less important than the life of another person.

Based on a Q&A with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on September 9, 2006. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “What is lacking in our education system?“

Education is what we receive from our environment.

We receive our education and culture by the example we get from society and our parents. Schools do not provide education, but only trades. Education, which is our inner culture, is determined not by knowledge, but by our correct inner development, when we reach perfection in our attitude to life and to the world.

This is why truly positive education means teaching knowledge about what the general law of nature demands of us all—to become harmoniously connected, and to take care of each other similar to how cells and organs of a human body each operate for the whole body’s benefit.

In our present times, from one day to the next, we discover how we become increasingly interdependent around the world. Society should thus provide examples of how to realize such interdependence in a balanced and positive manner to the younger generation by showing how caring for humanity as a whole is life’s highest value. By doing so, we will reliably educate our generation for living harmoniously in a growingly interdependent world, and then our future generations will truly be able to enjoy their lives.

If we will bring knowledge into the world about the fact that mutual consideration, responsibility and love will save the world, then we will be happy to open ourselves up in order to become positive parts of a whole system, and enjoy the fruits provided by that system. By doing so, we will discover that we are not like cancerous cells in an organism, but like healthy cells in the body of humanity.

Based on a Q&A with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on September 9, 2006.
Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Who was directly responsible for the AIDS/HIV epidemic facing Africa today?“

The spreading of AIDS in Africa is the culpability of the developed countries, which forcefully introduced their culture and values, and by doing so, corrupted the natural culture and the development by which African countries, as well as other countries, should have developed.

European nations committed a great injustice when they attempted to forcefully bring their values into other countries of the world, and therefore separated them from their own traditions, and from their natural evolution and development.

This is why they elicited such conditions in which AIDS, hunger, inequality and dictatorship develop, characteristic of the third world countries today.

This is why I think that by helping countries return to their nature, to their natural development, we can reach a favorable and harmonious development among all nations, countries and humanity as a whole, in a positive and equal manner. It is not that the countries themselves should be equal, but everyone should have an equal opportunity to develop favorably, each nation according to its own nature. This is how we could reach global harmony, and in the process, we will see such illnesses and epidemics as AIDS decrease.

Based on a Q&A with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on September 9, 2006.
Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.

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