Entries in the 'Society' Category

Building A Model Nation

Dr. Michael LaitmanWe can only solve our problems on the social level through the relationships between us. Humanity is a general system, a general body, which should be managed properly so that it will feel good at any moment of its existence.

What form should humanity take on as it develops? It is clearly advancing towards a certain state, a certain form, towards some goal. We are changing and the world around us is also changing, and we develop for better or for worse.

The question is what does nature demand of us? Studying the laws of nature in the last decades, we begin to realize that nature is a whole integral system in which every component is connected to all the other parts, just like in the human body.

Therefore, all the parts should match each other and not oppose one another. Even if it seems that way, it is only because we don’t know how they integrate.

Nature has provided humanity with optimal conditions, except for the connection between people. These should be connections of a new quality so that we do not advance by blows, by the ego, hate, deceit, wars, and dominating others.

Now we are all cooking in one pot. If something bad happens to someone, it will eventually be bad for everyone. In this global world we have to build a homogeneous society in which all the people are equal, are properly connected to one another and mutually complementing one another. Such a society is based on the principles of equality, the right connection in which there is room for everyone, the right education for children and adults, and mutual concessions, until together, we reach connections of love. After all, there cannot be certain parts that wish to devour the others in one body, unless it is cancer.

Question: What is the complementary work needed between all the parts in regard to Israel?

Answer: Israel needs this much more than anyone else. It is because the Israeli nation must be the first to realize this process and to fulfill it in order to set an example to others, to be light unto the nations. The role of our nation in the world is to be a model nation. This is the reason that we are hated because we show everyone the opposite and set a negative example.

Question: How is the development of the Israeli society expressed in the plan of nature?

Answer: It should be a commune, a connection, according to the principle of “all of Israel are friends,” and “love thy friend as thyself,” so that no one would fail, there would be no great or small, and everyone should be equally connected. Everyone should only worry about the maximum connection between people in mutual complementation.

This is exactly how the human body, how every organ, complements all the others, and as a result, the body functions properly.

Question: Would a certain leader who could understand the plan of our evolution and could see at least one or two steps ahead win the trust of the public?

Answer: No. He would first have to explain his approach to the public and prove it by bringing evidence from science and from the wisdom of Kabbalah, and thus gradually get the public accustomed to the new model. It is because people only want to solve their daily problems and that’s all.

Therefore, they should first be prepared to understand the current situation and what is going on, why we are called the nation of Israel, why the whole world relates to us in a special manner, and what we should be. It is because according to nature’s plan we are the most special of all the nations and we cannot escape our role.

Question: And what if the people didn’t believe this, would we develop differently?

Answer: No. In that case, nature will oblige us to fulfill our role, but only under the receiving of hard blows. If we don’t want to understand and accept this role, we will accept it under the pressure of problems and troubles, including wars and even nuclear wars.

Question: If a certain leader could perceive nature’s plan and advance along the right track, what specific steps should he take?

Answer: First he should bring the educational plan to the whole nation by using media, schools, kindergartens, and workplaces. Education refers to knowing nature. In Gematria (numerology) nature (Teva) and God (Elokim) have the same value. Let’s recognize who governs us and what He wants of us. This is the only way to improve our life and prosper.

This is what happens to a child who doesn’t listen to his parents, but later eventually understands and does what his parents require. Then of course their attitude towards him changes for the better. Thus, this means that we reach the solution for all our problems, including health problems, wars, the high cost of living, etc. Everything will work out and advance smoothly, and thus we will receive everything, even before we ask for it.
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From KabTV’s “A New Life” 12/9/14

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In Righteousness Shalt Thou Judge Thy Neighbor

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: On what level must a judge be to sentence another person?

Answer: This is a very complex question. After all, everything that a person carries out is done when the Creator turns a blind eye. The Creator allows him to commit a particular transgression against society and even against the Creator Himself.

The question arises as to how one can recognize that what happened is the revelation of evil for the sake of future correction. This question is not very simple. Why does the Creator arrange for everyone that disclosure will happen specifically in a bad way like this and not in a good way?

It follows that the situations were incorrect from the start and work on them is unfinished, both by the person and by society. In order to discover the incorrect situation that there is between them, they must first undergo some kind of transgression and then a correction.

Suppose that someone committed a murder and was caught. This is a problem of society as a whole, since particular conditions exist in it for carrying out a deed like this. How is it that from today’s circumstances, we reach their full correction tomorrow?

All of us are connected into one system. This system breaks down like it does in mechanics: There is some kind of a problem in an engine and one of the parts is broken (analogous to murder). It follows that it is not one part that is to blame; rather, it is in its coordination with the other parts.

So it is necessary to take a new look at the entire engine and find out why this part broke down. Maybe this didn’t happen at all because of the engine? That is to say, the Creator arranged all of this for us.

The correction comes only by covering the broken part. Since it was revealed this way in society and helped it determine its general integral breakdown, all members of society must carry out the appropriate corrections in working with it, taking its breakdown upon themselves and connecting with it as if it were a corrected part.

It follows that society must give a guarantee to a thief or murderer and correct itself so that under the pressure from society that together with it, they will rise to another level. This is where the general recognition of evil happens: the discovery of the overall error, the overall defect. Why didn’t they see this? Why didn’t they discover this in time?

There is collective work here. Nothing is private or individual! You don’t catch the murderer and haul him off to court where the judge immediately passes sentence on him according to the laws regarding punishment: There is no death sentence or ten years in prison. Of what exactly is he guilty?

Only an integral system is prepared to give the right answer to an error like this. Moreover, when we find the right solution, the right completion, we discover adhesion with the Creator within this picture.

The egoistic system of our world is based on the transgressor being guilty and so must be disposed of. It is up to him to express remorse and to sit and suffer. And what is the end of the matter? He takes upon himself the general defect of society and absorbs the entire breakdown of society into himself, and so it follows that he apparently is guilty.

Together with this, society accumulates uncorrected parts like these within itself and attracts all the social evil upon itself from generation to generation. Society forces the transgressors to suffer in its place, when it is cleansed of this egoistically: “Go and suffer instead of us.”

Question: Under our physical conditions is it possible for us to realize a different legal system?

Answer: Can we morally and spiritually establish a balanced system? Can we say how it should look in the perfected state and how imbalance, the loss of proportion and inner tension, is created in it? For this it is up to us to see this system.

Question: Does this mean that only a person who is found on a spiritual level can be a judge?

Answer: A judge is the Light of AB SAG, Ohr Hochma and Bina. Together they work on the desire and reveal it on two sides: Din (judgment) and Rachamim (mercy). Only the right integration between them can reveal the Kav Smol (left line) that makes it possible for a person to be a judge.

Even the ancient Greeks depicted the goddess of justice holding scales in her hand, trying to balance between good and evil. This is a natural human impulse. However, it is not possible to find the Kav Emtzai (middle line) in our world, since it is higher than human characteristics.

The judge must be impartial, so to ensure this, they give him a good salary for then he supposedly wouldn’t require additional money. But the truth is that a judge must be a person who is necessarily even more self-sufficient and simply doesn’t require anything else. Rather, you obstruct him with money. This is an entirely different approach.

We are not concerned about his inner state and suppose that it is up to us to fill his pockets with money so that he will not be tempted to take a bribe. On the contrary! This is how we destroy judges.

Moreover, the judges cannot be completely detached because they live within society and depend upon it. But in truth, the judge must be completely detached from society. This is what we are cultivating within us: the quality of judgment, the judge.

The judge is the highest person in a society! This is a person who is ready to be connected with the Creator; and from this high level, when he understands what the Creator is doing with the society, he can bring correction to a society because judgment is only a system of correction.
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From KabTV’s “Secrets of the Eternal Book” 4/02/14

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Love That Is Stronger Than Death

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: In the Song of Songs, King Solomon’s every sentence literally is filled with allegorical meaning. For example, the expression “Closed garden, my sister, my bride, secluded fountain, a sealed spring.” What does it mean?

Answer: It is an attempt to open the concealment, not allowing the bond to be reached. Otherwise, love will not reach its full height. Without it, the seed will not be blessed and there will be no emanation without this bond.

Question: “I sleep, but my heart is awake.”

Answer: This is the reason they do not immediately reach the bond: there is absolutely no need for it. My heart is awake, but my desires and all the vessels are not awake.

Question: How can love awaken?

Answer: Through various activities, he knocks on the door, she opens the door late, he is gone, and she runs after him, etc. “The song” ends with the lover allegedly filling the whole world. And where is their real embrace, connection, and bond?  Allegedly it is not there. The Song of Songs tells about everything, but this is only the opening. Discovery of the nature that exists in perfection is ready for an embrace and bond, and we are in front of this nature.

Question: What is the “kiss”?

Answer: There are different types of connections between those who love and their beloved ones. This includes the embrace, which is divided into a hug from the left and a hug from the right. Together they form the perfect embrace. Then there is a kiss, the connection at the mouth. This connection is still not complete, since a full bond is a fusion of bodies.There should be embracing, kissing, and bonding.

Question: There is a special viewpoint regarding the “Song of Songs” as a description of love between the people of Israel and the Creator. How should we look at this story: both the man’s love for his neighbor and a man’s love for the Creator?

Answer: Actually this is the answer, “from the love of creatures to love for the Creator.” What does this mean? If I set my disposition of love towards everything that surrounds me, then eventually I reach the same disposition to the whole of nature, which is the Creator, the higher force. All of nature is above me; I’m in it, and we are all in it.

Question: “For as strong as death, love as the grave is a cruel jealousy; its arrows are the arrows of fire! Many waters cannot extinguish love and floods cannot drown love, and if a man would give all his household goods for love, then he would be branded in contempt.” What kind of love is it that is stronger than death?

Answer: All of our good and bad properties, everything that exists in the nature of good and bad forces, the plus and the minus, the heat and the cold, pressure and vacuum; it all gets replenishment. Achievement of the very end, a complete fulfillment of the opposing forces of nature, the fact that in nature there is always one against the other, is the purpose of the whole creation.

This is called the “Song of Songs.” The Song is a non-egoistic love of creations in mutual bestowal, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” The Song of Songs is the achievement of love towards the Creator or love towards all of creation, when a person exits oneself and is literally located everywhere!
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From KabTV’s “A New Life” 5/28/14

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The First Generation Of A Mature Humanity

Dr. Michael LaitmanKabbalah books are written in the language of branches, which means in terms of this world and how it relates to its spiritual roots. Therefore they are full of words and stories that may bring a layman to imagine different fairy tales. Many nations have used certain information from the wisdom of Kabbalah and based whole philosophies and sciences on it.

Even today, there are people who believe that they know what the wisdom of Kabbalah is about based solely on movies they have seen or books they have read about it. But, in fact, this confuses a person even more.

Not long ago for example, there was a documentary series about Kabbalah on TV [in Israel]. The only thing that was clear after watching this series is that people have no idea what Kabbalah actually is. Apparently it has nothing to do with women’s dancing, dieting, ritual clothing, cards etc. as was presented in that series. People use the name “Kabbalah” to refer to things that have nothing to do with Kabbalah at all.

Thus there is much confusion today as to what the wisdom of Kabbalah is. Our generation is the first generation that has been allowed to be exposed to the books of Kabbalah so that everyone can be taught from them.

No longer does a Kabbalist have to look for a student in order to convey all the information to him so that he will pass it on to others. Today you can go out to the streets, invite everyone to study the wisdom of Kabbalah in order to pass on this information to anyone who wishes to learn it and also pass it on. Our whole generation has grown to a state in which it can use the wisdom of Kabbalah correctly in order to ascend to the next level, to the upper world.
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From the program “A New Life” 12/18/14

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A World Without Borders

Dr. Michael LaitmanThe Torah, “Leviticus,” Parshat Kedoshim, 19:23-25: And when ye shall come into the land, and shall have planted all manner of trees for food, then ye shall count the fruit thereof as forbidden; three years shall it be as forbidden unto you; it shall not be eaten. And in the fourth year all the fruit thereof shall be holy, for giving praise unto the LORD. But in the fifth year may ye eat of the fruit thereof, that it may yield unto you more richly the increase thereof: I am the LORD your God.

Question: What is the intention of division into three, four, and five? What is this gradation within a person?

Answer: A person who is involved in correcting himself has five levels of ego within himself. In the first three levels (0, 1, 2) he can’t feel his egoistic desires yet, just as a little child who is also unconscious of himself. After he goes through these three years, he attains the fourth level, the level of the sacred.

In the fourth level, the level of Bina, he must give all the fruits that he grows in the present level. This is called bestowal in order to bestow. And on the fifth level, his reception will be intended in order to bestow and so on this level, he can consume the fruits of his effort.

In the physical world, when talking about fulfilling a Mitzvah (precept) of consuming fruit, we take into account only what grows within the boundaries of the land of Israel, and not what is outside of the land. So from generation to generation, there have been constant debates about where the true borders of Israel stop. According to the Biblical borders, all of the holdings of King David, which existed even before the first Beit HaMikdash (temple), belong to Israel.

This included quite a wide area that included Transjordan, Syria, and Lebanon. And so when we bring fruit that grows from there, a problem is created. On the one hand, the Israelites didn’t grow the fruit, but on the other hand, it is not clear in whose territory they were working. There are a great many questions here, but they don’t affect us since we are involved with spiritual correction not physical correction.

It is said: “And when ye shall come into the land, and shall have planted all manner of trees for food.” In spiritual work, when you come to a desire and begin to work with it, it transforms from the level of the still to the vegetative. You can use it in order to bestow, only after you pass it through the first four phases: 0, 1, 2, 3 without using it, for in the fourth phase of Bina, everything is transmitted to the Beit HaMikdash. Only in the last phase is it possible to use it for yourself, because now your reception will be in order to bestow.

Question: Do you suppose that the physical borders of Israel must be like those in the days of King David?

Answer: According to the Talmud, there was a time that the borders of Israel stretched from the Nile on one side, including the Sinai, and on the other side, to Babylon.

I suppose that we don’t need to argue about this at all because the correction that is forcefully approaching us now will, in any case, destroy all the borders and blur them between the different people, their cultures, and all the different forms of life. The correction will unite everything and the mixture of the people will itself become the same Babylon, except corrected.

Question: Why doesn’t this directly affect Israel? Why is the mixture of different people taking place everywhere, whereas Israel is apparently left on the side?

Answer: It is because Israel must be the teacher, the leader of the overall correction, and must provide the demonstration of the correction.
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From KabTV’s “Secrets of the Eternal Book” 4/09/14

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Hanukkah – The Miracle Of Unity

Dr. Michael LaitmanIn 170 BCE, the Greeks, led by Antiochus IV Epiphanes, captured the Temple. There was a division between the adherents of Greek philosophy and religion and those who remained loyal to the concept of a single Creator.

Some priests, including the high priest (Cohen Rishon), supported the Greeks. The Jerusalem Temple was desecrated and turned into a sanctuary of Zeus. Severe persecution and forced Hellenization of the population led to the Maccabean revolt, led by Matityahu Hashmonay who issued the call, “He who is for God, follow me!”

The uprising ended with the victory of the Maccabees. Having entered the Temple, they found that the pure oil to light the Menorah candles would last for only one day. But a miracle occurred. The candles burned for eight days and so is called the miracle of Hanukkah.

Question: What does Hanukkah represent from the spiritual point of view?

Answer: The history leading to this holiday begins with Abraham as the founder of the Jewish people. Long before the Maccabees, It was he who first issued the call,  “Whoever is moving towards the Creator – follow me!” Under this motto, he gathered a large group of Babylonians, to whom he taught his approach to the universe, the purpose of life and creation, the higher human destiny, etc.

But most importantly, under the slogan of “unity in the name of unity,” Abraham began to unite those who sided with him because it is in the pursuit of unity that we reveal the upper force of nature, the Creator, which unites us. It forms us into one whole and we become invincible to either external or internal egoism. What Abraham began, the Maccabees, united with each other, continued.

In principle, it is the same action of a rebellion against egoism, only at different levels, and that is why it occurred at different points in history.

Having united people, the Maccabees came to the same state as Abraham and won. To the extent of unity with greater groups of people who joined them, they revealed a greater spiritual force, which was the force of unity, the upper force of bestowal and love. Therefore, they were invincible to egoism, which was personified by the Greeks in this case, in Babylon by the Babylonians, in Egypt by Pharaoh, and later, by the Romans.

Through unity with large groups of people joining them, they recognized more and more spiritual power: the power of unity and the supreme power of love and bestowal. Therefore, they were invincible against the selfishness personified in this case by the Greeks, the Babylonians, Pharaoh and the Egyptians, and later, the Romans.

In general, it is the only fight, a war throughout all generations. And even when we do not have an apparent enemy, our inner enemy always rebels within us, again and again pulling us towards worshiping various idols in our life. We must fight it.

It is easy to draw a parallel between these two wars and today since modern idols are fully exposed as complete nonentities, leading us to some end and we have nothing else to do with them. On the one hand, we are still drawn to them, and on the other hand, we understand that this is temporary, harmful and brings no good results.

Therefore, our behavior is reminiscent of a man who gets drunk, does not know or hear anything, forgets himself,and is disconnected from what is happening. We become immersed in business or other things just to stay occupied, thus imitating a movie hero, a literary character, or just acquaintances who have supposedly succeeded in life. This is the idol  that is so attractive to us.

Question: Do you think that these desires have exhausted themselves?

Answer: No, but I know that all this is temporary and limited. Life itself shows us that. The world is like a theater and we always play a role in it.

There are people who seek nothing. The main thing for them is to live quietly and peacefully, so no one bothers them. But, there are few of them. The majority are pulled by competition, the struggle for a place under the sun, and we begin to pretend that we are business people, running with a briefcase and changing from one plane to another, and in this way, we run to the grave.

Question: Can the miracle of Hanukkah take place nowadays?

Answer: In life there is always a place for a miracle. Every time we connect with each other, the force, which is higher than all the other forces, obstacles, conditions, is manifested, and then there is a miracle before us. We can evoke it, even today.

A miracle is a supernatural phenomenon, but we are able to cause it ourselves, when we wish. Today, if we want to rise above egoism in our unity, then a completely new upper force will be manifested within us, and with its help, we will be able to calm the whole world, arrange everything, and everyone will be fine and easygoing.

Question: What kind of a miracle happened when the candles of the Maccabees were lit?

Answer: Through their unity, the Maccabees attracted the Light that gave them the opportunity to stay in the state of bestowal, love and connection until they began to pull new masses of people towards themselves.

The desires of people who connect with each other in one whole symbolizes the oil, and their gathering in spite of their egoism symbolizes the wick. They burn in their desire to get closer, and when they unite somehow, a light appears within them that support the fire of their desires.

If they begin to be engaged in even greater dissemination and draw towards themselves greater masses of people, then the lamp will burn continuously.

The manifestation of the Light, the upper force, the Creator in the people’s unity is the miracle. Besides that, there are no other miracles because the essence of all miracles is that our unity brings about the manifestation of the inner force, called the property of love, the Creator. It works wonders. The crossing of the Red Sea, the miracle of Hanukkah and the miracle of Purim are always the revelation of the Creator in our unity. Therefore, there is just one technique and it contains nothing complicated. It came to us from Abraham, who first showed how it is realized.

The fact is that we can unite in any manner, but the essence of the miracle is that we unite so that a new upper property appears within us, which is not manifested in any other actions, that raises us to the next level of consciousness, sensation, vision, and existence.

Question: How could people believe that one candle would burn for eight days when they knew that it would be sufficient only for a day?

Answer: If we aspire to unity, we are not interested in anything except to come to this state, within which the Creator is revealed. Then we reach the conditions of infinity and go to the next level of existence, where there is neither time nor space. And eight days is just an allegory, since there are eight Sefirot from the level of Bina to the level of Malchut.

Question: How can a person not think about what will happen tomorrow?

Answer: If you work for bestowal, tomorrow does not exist for you! There is no next moment! The most important is to give.

Tomorrow will disappear from your field of vision, mind, and calculations! It does not exist! You are included in the action of bestowal and are seemingly extended to everyone else. Nothing will remain in you. Your “I” simply disappears.

Then, in the next step, a new egoistic state appears. The same thing is repeated, like the wheel that moves forward, but at the same time revolves around itself.

Question: Under what circumstances is this possible?

Answer: It comes gradually, after many years and only from Above. But it will come. I can promise to all of my students that it will come true, and they will reach this state.

I think that together with them, I will still be able to go through their first steps in this ascent. This is the desire of every spiritual teacher who cannot abandon his child halfway. The teacher wants to guide his students across the desert so that they reach full bestowal, and they would not have any possibility of turning back, since the property of bestowal would reign in all their desires.

Then, they will develop their spiritual path on their own, with the next leader, like Moses and Joshua. But it is desirable for us to cross the desert together.

Question: How do you view the miracles from the material point of view? Let’s say, for many years, archaeologists seek confirmation of the exodus of the Jews from Egypt, but find no traces. Indeed, something should have been left. In addition, there no evidence has been found of the 40 years of wandering of the nation of Israel in the desert.

Answer: Archaeologists find confirmation of these or other historical events when the time comes. Therefore in its time, they will suddenly find artifacts of history in the same place where they previously could find nothing. These discoveries are still ahead.
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From KabTV’s “Secretes of the Eternal Book” 12/17/14

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The Mystery of Israel

Dr. Michael LaitmanIn recent years,  politicians have started talking about legislative consolidation of the Jewish character of the state of Israel. The reason for this is the broad wave of  anti-Semitic attacks. The whole world has a problem with the Jewish people,  asking: “Why did they take the possession of land that does not belong to them?”

Many do not even agree with the original division of the territory in accordance with the UN resolution. Today, a secondary vote, of course, would deprive us of the right to our own state.

After the disaster, the world was uncomfortable in front of us, and if we indeed were to get the country, this will continue, according to the laws of common development.

However, we have to make it really ours, take the holy land (Eretz) as a desire (Ratzon) to purify and form not as a collection of exiles, but as the people of Israel, in the full sense of the word, fully united and aspiring straight to the Creator (Yashar El).

We have to take a course on cohesion, love, and unity, to become as one man with one heart.

If we had arranged our nation in this way, we would not have had to carry the endless war for the past 66 years without a single second of rest and relaxation. And the situation would not have been like it is today such that when all of Israel is forced to plan an emergency evacuation, an escape plan in case of a disaster.

Question: Again and again, life confronts us with basic issues that affect our very existence in the land of Israel. And always this topic covers the fog of uncertainty, vagueness. Why is there this agonizing incompleteness in our self-determination? Why haven’t all “I’s” been dotted?

Answer: It is because we want to be like all the other nations and define our country like everyone else, according to the traditional representations of territory, borders and public entities. However, for us it does not work and does not apply to us. This usual format does not cause a faithful response in us, where we do not feel for ourselves, and do not find any correlation as to how our country should be identified and appear as our people, and every person in it.

It turns out that we are not the people of Israel, as it should be, and we do not live in the land of Israel nor in the country of Israel, as it should be according to the original sources, according to our basis. We have tried to adopt the concept of external concepts, simply taking them in, but they have not come to fruition. The international standard label comes unglued again and again.

As a result, we feel that it is not suitable, but continue to burden ourselves with it, without making the definition clear. And the world, for its part, does not understand our actions and sees the state of Israel as some artificial entity.

We can eloquently argue that this is our land. We can even sacrifice for the sake of life. However, we still do not understand what “the people” and “the country” mean for the Jewish people.

Baal Sulam wrote a great piece about it in the newspaper “The Nation” (HaUma), which, incidentally, was closed following its initial release. In this paper, the nature of these concepts and the need to return to their roots after two thousand years of exile was described in detail.

Why should we turn to ancient history and to the primitive life now that once was lived by our ancestors? On the contrary, in the previous centuries advanced nations planted their cultures everywhere. A foreign culture with a particular success was transferred to the indigenous peoples of Africa and America. Languages would die out as well as the traditions and beliefs, giving way to the English, Spanish, and French influence.

But we still have not been able to keep within the margins of the present. There is nothing we can borrow from the people of the world. On the contrary, we are organized in such a way that the people of the world adapt the correct things from us.

It is not up to us and it is not pride or arrogance. We are hard-wired this way. It is no coincidence that the world sees us as an intelligent, developed people, nurturing a purpose of life. The world feels that the Jewish people have a secret they do not want to open to others, so this means they must force us to give it up.

This feeling is indestructible, and we must finally understand what they want from us. Indeed, what kind of a mystery lies within us? If we only knew, then we could sell it for triple the price. But no, it does not work this way.

After all, what we hold inside and that lies within the people of Israel without their knowledge is this great, beautiful, alluring, shining goal, the future of the world.

Our world is bound to the brotherhood in which we once lived. We need to regain it, in other words, to live together as a law-abiding people, love our neighbors as ourselves, according to the principles that we received on Mount Sinai, and to be as one man with one heart.

Today our global, integrated world feels the unbreakable relationship of all its parts, literally requires it, and requires compliance with this law. If we reveal an umbrella of guarantee over all of us, we will find ourselves in a world that is for us, is as the Garden of Eden.

That is why in this modern era, the world pays attention to us without knowing how or why and begins to demand the law from us by which it will live tomorrow. After all, today’s life seems more and more intolerable to the world, pitch black, and hopeless. It no longer presents a picture of tomorrow. And subconsciously, people feel that the Jewish people have the answer.

Anti-Semitism flourishes around the world as a consequence, affecting millions of people. Thus, it simply obliges us to wonder about the law and about the way of life that should form the basis of our existence here.

If we really did go back to the roots, if we would put into practice the concept of “the people of Israel” aspiring “straight to the Creator” (Yashar-El), i.e., to unity, solidarity, and love, if this were so, we would educate the people based upon the law combined with each other, as one man with one heart, helping neighbors and binding people together by this partnership. This would serve as an example to the world. Moreover, we would teach people how to build unity.

The world would then understand that we are a special part of it and that we really need to learn. And there is much to learn, since it’s the future and the salvation of all mankind. It is not just for a few decades comprising the lifespan of every generation, but rather a new basis for a new foundation being laid here in which our world will be perfected and ascend to a new level, into the eternal, perfect condition.

Today our egoism devours itself and as a result, we live an average of 70-80 years. If we move from the egoistic receiving desire to an altruistic one, to bestowal, and if everyone would live with their heart wide open among one’s nation, taking care of all, we would find other natural laws, the laws of love and bestowal. At that point we would enter into the eternal, perfect life and our world would open the opportunity to live beyond the limitations of time, space, and motion. We would begin to perceive the world in which there are no limits.

In the meantime, the problems towards the Jewish people, which we call anti-Semitism, will grow more and more. We cannot get rid of this. On the contrary, we will have to give an answer, as it is necessary to stand face to face with this situation.

At the same time, we will need to solve the problem of the Jewish character of the country, recently exposed for public discussion. But, it must not be by artificial language and not on the basis of the laws that we have inherited from the British mandate or Turkish rule. No, we need to take up the Torah and draw out all the necessary definitions.

For millennia, since the days of Abraham, Kabbalists have explained the meaning of “the people of Israel” and “country of Israel,” and who is a “Jewish person.” We need to open ourselves to the world, abandon the boundaries and take into our surroundings, everyone who wants to live by the law of love and unity under the umbrella of bestowal. That’s right, rather than geographic, the boundaries of the land of Israel, that is, universal mutual guarantee, will extend to the whole world.

In principle, the land of Israel is not the territory on the surface of the globe, but a place where people live according to the law of love. So now it does not exist. After all, the earth (Eretz) means the desire (Ratzon). If there is the law of love between people living in any place and they follow such law, their relationship, their common desire is called the land of Israel, the desire aspiring straight to the Creator (Yashar-El), and thus they want to be like the upper force.

That is what we have to explain, demonstrate, and offer to all peoples. And then, instead of hatred, we will feel empathy, respect and affection, which is what we feel right now from many thousands of our students around the world. We see how committed they are to us when we teach them how to unite with each other to cooperatively achieve a higher power.
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From the program “A New Life” 11/30/14

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A Butterfly On Mt. Sinai

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: The disintegration of society that we are now witnessing in Israel and all over the world reminds us of the birth of a butterfly. First there is the caterpillar, which lives for a while, eats plants, and is happy.

But at a certain point the caterpillar reaches the end and cannot fill itself anymore. Then it turns into a chrysalis and enters a state of darkness closing itself inside a cocoon where its body begins to disintegrate.

The caterpillar ceases to be what it was before. Scientists have discovered that the genes that will later turn it into a totally different creature are already in the caterpillar. After a period of chaos and disintegration, a beautiful butterfly suddenly emerges from the cocoon; a winged creature that is much more developed.

Could it be that we are in the period of the cocoon now and therefore see how everything around us is out of balance and falling apart?

Answer: It is indeed so, but in order to become a beautiful butterfly, we have to change. We can reach these changes either in a pleasant, easy, and short way by the connection between us, or by war and terrible problems that will force us to unite. This means that we can go through this process passively or actively.

Comment: So in the end we will connect with or without war.

Answer: Yes, but there is a huge difference. After all, it will not be just another war, but a nuclear war.

Question: And if we don’t connect?

Answer: It cannot be. It is already in our genes, just like the caterpillar is supposed to become a beautiful butterfly in the end. We also have the genes according to which we have to bring the whole world to correction and are already imprinted in the genes of human society, in our internal program. We only have to carry it out.

We have two options, which are good or bad. The bad option is through wars and sufferings and the good option is by reaching the fulfillment of the wisdom of Kabbalah by ourselves, attaining the force of connection by it to draw the force, the Light that Reforms unto ourselves. It says: “I have created the evil inclination, I have created the Torah as a spice, since the Light in it reforms.”

Question: You speak about the Torah, so is it about religion?

Answer: No. The Torah is light, the force we discover inside the circle, which welds us together. The force that reforms is called the Torah. It is not a religious concept at all. It isn’t a book or a parchment that has words written on it, but an inner force.

The egoistic inclination doesn’t let us connect, while the Torah is the Upper Light, the means to correct the evil inclination, which is felt only by those who sense that they have to connect with others and cannot do so. It is as if our whole nation sat in one big circle of eight million people and everyone thought only about the fact that they cannot unite. It is a fact that if there is no external pressure, the society remains separated and detached.

Our mission is to move from state one to state two. State one is our current state of insecurity and of no future as a result of the lack of connections between us because of our egoistic nature.

There are two ways of achieving state two. The right way is the way that Kabbalists tell us about. They say that if we want to advance, we have to connect. If we sit in circles and begin to discuss the issue of how to be “as one man in one heart,” we will discover how much we are against this idea. This resistance we feel towards connection is called the evil inclination.

The evil inclination is not revealed to a person in his ordinary life, when he disrespects everyone, but only when he wishes to connect to others. Only then does he see that he doesn’t want this connection and is repelled by it, although he understands that he must reach unity despite his natural repulsion.

We felt it during the last military operation “Enduring Rock,” since we could unite only under external pressure. The moment the pressure was gone, we immediately returned to our initial state and began to quarrel and fight. So what can we do? After all we need to connect!

What is actually lacking at the moment is the recognition that we need connection. We need to widely publicize and explain that our good future depends on the unity of the nation and that otherwise we are facing disaster.

If we discover that we cannot unite, although we want to, we need the Torah as a means for attaining unity. This means that we are at the foot of Mt. Sinai which is a mountain of hatred. We want to reach unity, but we cannot do so since a high mountain of mutual hatred separates us.

Then we are worthy of the receiving of the Torah, which is the revelation of the force of connection that should come and connect us. This means that the light of the Torah reforms. It is a force of unity, a force of light and love. When it is revealed, we suddenly begin to feel closeness, dependence, and a mutual connection between us.

Question: Where can we find this force?

Answer: This force is hidden in nature. Now too, it is among us, but we discover it only to the extent that we yearn to connect. This is what the whole Torah is about. Thus every time Kabbalists connect into a group, they discovered the Creator, the upper force of connection.

Question: Is this circle also suitable for people who are not religious?

Answer: The circle is suitable for everyone, not only people who are not religious, but also for women and people from every nation. After all, the Israeli nation has to be a light unto the nations, teach everyone the wisdom of connection, and reveal to everyone that the Creator is the upper nature. During the last war, it was actually the women and the mothers who voiced the call for unity of the nation.
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From the program “A New Life” 9/02/14

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The Force Of Good And The Force Of Evil, Part 2

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Why do I need this game between the force of good and the force of evil? Wouldn’t it be better if there were only one force of good?

Answer: By this egoism, our whole lives are spoiled because it wants only one thing—to feel good. It does not understand that the force of evil should be used in the same way as the force of good, bringing them both into balance. It is uncomfortable for egoism.

Question: What do you mean by the balance between the good and evil forces? I want to be in harmony with the good, but how can one be in harmony with the evil?

Answer: There can be no harmony with either the good or evil. Harmony exists only between the two of them, in their connection and in equilibrium. Therefore, our life has to consist of good and evil; otherwise there is no life.

Comment: But imagine how it wonderful it would be in the world if there were only one force of good!

Answer: We must stop calling one force evil and another good. Good and evil are relative concepts. You label them in one way and I label them in the opposite way.

There are two opposing forces given to us by nature. What occurs between these two forces is called life, existence. Rocks, plants, animals, and humans exist because they are created by a combination of these two forces that mutually balance each other. This is nature.

We exist in this world in the animal body and therefore must maintain this balance, which nature makes any animal obey. In addition to the animal level, which we receive due to our human minds and feelings, we also need to bring it into balance in order to use it not on the animate degree, but as human beings.

The human degree implies a completely different balance between good and evil. As a human being, I have to relate to good and evil objectively and recognize their right to exist, deciding what can be between them. Thus, I form my worldview, understanding that I have to use both forces in their interaction, in balance and in correct mutual connection.

For me, there are no good and evil. Both these forces, combining with each other, produce my good state, that is more advanced, higher. Harmony between these two forces is turned into good for me. It is not one or the other but the connection between them.

Question: This is good and evil in their absolute forms, relative to our development. But would I, an ordinary person, perceive this development as good or not?

Answer: It depends on a person, his preparation, education, and perception of the world. A baby, until he grows to a certain age, does not understand anything and follows his desire just like an animal. He naturally chooses what he likes and dislikes.

Thus we have to limit him because from birth he is not an animal, but a little human. An animal has an inner program that allows it to correctly use all of its strength.

The animal would not fall from a height, would not eat something harmful to itself, would not hurt itself. But a baby can hurt himself, and that is why he needs to be supervised. From the very day of his birth, we must begin to educate him.

An animal does not require training. If a young animal is abandoned in the woods but there is food next to it, it will be able to survive. It will know what is good to eat and what is not, what should be avoided, and so it will continue to live. But a baby will not survive alone. At all times, we have to teach him what is good for him and what is bad, and how he should use all the things in order to grow.

He should not grow only physically, although he should be given an understanding of this process. When he grows up a little and learns how to live in this world and take care of his body, then he needs to be taught mentally, internally, psychologically.

An understanding of good and evil means that the child is able to use these two forces that are around him, inside him, and in others, constantly keeping his balance with the environment. In fact, life is a balance within and around us. A little human should be taught how to achieve inner balance and balance with the environment on the animate level, where our body exists, and also on the human level of society, in connection with other people.
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From KabTV’s “A New Life” 6/3/14

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Playing With Community Life To Form Mutual Connections

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: In today’s modern world, the greatest payoff for independence is loneliness. So how can I, on the one hand, keep my independence, and together with this gradually add elements to this life that will connect me with other people?

Answer: A person doesn’t have to give up anything in order to be included in the life of the community. On the one hand, this life is more developed, corrected, and warm, and on the other hand, you are included in it to the degree that you want, to the extent that is beneficial to you. You don’t give up anything in this.

As a general rule, we think that we need to give up our independence, our freedom, and our decisions. Come, let’s try to play with the life of the community, with agreement between us, with such a connection from a distance so that we reach a particular equality in all kinds of forms of connection. We open circles for children; we help each other mutually, and we disseminate new forms of learning in circles.

Come, let’s begin classes in organizations, workplaces, and various places where people meet, organizing meetings that look like a community, but external in the beginning. This could be a roundtable, a picnic, or a festival. Come, let’s begin to talk about the importance of such an approach to life.

With this, we begin to resemble the global nature that compresses and mixes humanity such that people are constantly moving from place to place, from nation to nation. It is no longer possible to say where the place of one group of people or another is to be found because borders have become blurred and cancelled.

Come, let’s start talking about this and clarify together how much a mutual connection of equality can be beneficial to a person as an addition to his life. In fact, we awaken in a person an additional form of thinking that doesn’t obligate anyone. It is just external participation. If we begin to work in this direction, then a person will almost immediately begin to feel additional benefit, so much so that it will be attractive to him, whereas the previous way of life will lose its value.

You want to keep your former life and add to it? Please! There is no compulsion! But gradually, thanks to this social influence, this softening, without pressure and obligation, changes will take place within you. It will also be felt in your children and your partner, and through this means of communication, everyone will begin to feel the benefit of this situation; in the meantime we are only playing, for after all all of us are egoists, and we aren’t even trying to hide this fact.

We only want to examine the validity of good connections and not the influence of the community on the life, wellbeing, the way of life at home, or anything else. Come, let’s try to feel its relevance to our region, city, and neighborhood in the relationships between us. It is not important what level of measurement we choose. With this we build a softer and more secure environment, reducing the tension in the air.

In the end, we see that growth in the general welfare of the population is worthwhile for us. In addition to this, the inner sensation of people becomes more pleasant, freer, and sweeter. Specifically a person wants this pleasantness, and specifically this is what everyone is missing, even the most independent and wealthy person.
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From KabTV’s “A New Life” 10/8/14

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