Entries in the 'Unity' Category

We Are Like A Wooden Chip In A Stormy Sea


Today’s crisis is the revelation of the Creator to the creatures, but it is happening from the opposite side. Globalization is the Creator’s force of unity and connection. Today, this force is being revealed to everyone, and this is why every person is starting to feel more and more dependent on everyone, that he belongs to everyone and shares the same pain.

So, the Creator is already being revealed to the creatures, but from His opposite side. I see this like a doctor who looks at a patient and sees that the patient is beginning to feel all the symptoms of his illness. Humanity’s illness is becoming revealed, and we have to turn it around – meaning, accept it in the right way.

We are the generation that is experiencing the revelation of the Creator, and it is already happening! Today, the views of an ordinary person and a Kabbalist are not so different. It’s as if a person is floating in a stormy sea, thrown around by the waves like a small chip of wood, up and down and from side to side. Everything depends on his agreement to cling to and unite with this stormy sea.

As soon as he agrees, he will immediately cease feeling any agitation and changes in the sea. A perfect peace will immediately overtake the sea of the Upper Light. It only storms because we resist every action the Creator makes, and therefore we can’t relax and yield to Him, and thus rise above our egoism, which wants to struggle.

If we do this,  we will feel that there are no changes taking place. All the changes are the results of one’s struggle against the Creator, and it is this struggle that makes the sea storm. The moment one will cease resiting, he will stop feeling the storm, and will instead feel absolute peace.

(From the lesson on Rabash’s article, “The Activity of the Greatest of the Nation,” on 03.17.09)

The Time Has Come To Perform An “Upgrade” On Ourselves

Sometimes my computer breaks down and I call in specialists to fix it. They come over and begin explaining that I need to replace my hard drive, add some program, that the computer has been infected by a virus, and so on. I don’t understand any of this. I just see the external picture, while they are talking about the inner picture.

Yesterday there was a notice in the news about how many people have been laid off from their jobs here in Israel and in the rest of the world, what the world is facing, what problems lie ahead, and that no one sees the end to these problems. This process isn’t clear to anyone, and it is impossible to calculate because there’s no “formula” for it.

This is the external side of things. Meanwhile, on the inside, if you were to see them on a computer, you would call a technician and tell him, “Make everything okay.” And so it is here: you are looking at the crisis from the point of view of a regular person, who looks at the computer screen and says, “Here we are downsizing, there we have other problems, and we have to do something about it.” However, when the specialists come in, they explain that we have to perform an upgrade by renewing the parts and the software. Then the picture will improve. You are saying, “I don’t know about this. I just want this problem to go away from the screen.”

Well, this is impossible. We have to learn the changes that must take place inside the system, and then the outside will be corrected as well. Our world is changing. Until now we lived, earned money, and gathered crops in particular conditions in our society. Now however, in order to earn a living, we have to modernize, improve, and take the current natural conditions into account, which are more complex.

You are being promised a better salary, and you are not permitted to keep the old, lower salary. What’s happening is modernization, and nature is forcing it on us.

In order to grow plants, we consider all the parameters that exist in Nature, but in order to grow a human being, there is just one condition: to be connected with others. We have to learn how to do this, and then we will be corrected. We will become better and the world will also change. The conditions are simple: Nature is revealing the lack of the proper connection between people. Everyone affects each other, but we affect each other negatively. And this has to be corrected. There is nothing difficult about this.
(From the lesson on Baal HaSulam’s article, “One Precept,” on 03.05.2009)

We Have To Reveal The Magnificence Of The System We’re In


Four and a half thousand years ago, there was already a situation similar to the one we have today, and there were researchers who understood this strange phenomenon. They understood what goes on in an isolated society where everyone’s interdependence becomes revealed and where people begin to understand that Nature does not allow them to relate properly to each other, as the situation demands of them.

They revealed the method of working with the nature of a human being in order to help people interact with each other properly so as to survive. However, this shouldn’t be done just for the sake of survival, but also to attain prosperity, development, and well being. They discovered how it is possible to influence a person, explaining that in order for this to happen, we have to attain the structure of the system.

It’s logical that we have to discover the system in which we exist. This is necessary in order to understand what binds us together, in what way are we interdependent and what kind of union we must achieve. We have to discover what our present nature is like, what we are capable of changing and what we aren’t, where our freedom of choice lies, and how we can change what must be changed.

We cannot change the program or the matter we are made of, and we cannot change the principle by which this system functions. The only thing we can and must change is our attitude, perfecting it to make it similar to the integral and harmonious system we are in. This is the only freedom of choice we have. It’s truly a wonder how everything in Nature is arranged in such a way that even if we wish to intervene in other aspects, we cannot change anything. We received a system where everything is predetermined except for this one thing. The connection between its parts is an egoistic connection, but it can be transformed, and this is precisely what we have to do.

There is a science that explains how to perform this action. If you use this science, you’ll be able to perform this action. It does not talk about anything except the connection between people, summed up by the rule, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” And this is now being revealed through various problems.

This science tells us what constitutes our only freedom of will: the unification of people with one another, and nothing else. Today this is being revealed to us by Nature itself, which is making us see the problem that needs correction – the broken connection between us. It also tells us how this system works, how we can achieve this connection step by step, and how this entire enormous, universal, amazing system will look in all of its splendor once each and every one of us, and all of us together, will implement the proper connection.
(From the lesson on Baal HaSulam’s article, “One Precept,” on 03.05.2009)

We Have A Perfect Life In Store For Us


A question I received: Can we really expect humanity to strive for unity if people don’t have a desire for this?

My Answer: For people who are currently advancing through suffering, unity is a chance for salvation. Humanity now faces great calamities, and people will be willing to unite in order to rescue the situation.

People want to feel good, but right now they are advancing by being made to feel a bad sensation. They will not attain well-being until they unite and reach mutual bestowal. Only then will they receive fulfillment and feel good.

Everything in Nature strives toward unification. The human body, for example, is formed by the unification of its parts, where all the parts exist in harmony, are interconnected, and bound by a mutual guarantee. The body exists and attains a high level of existence because each of its parts is responsible for a particular function, providing the others with everything they need. Each cell takes care of the whole organism and all of its parts.

This is how people have to unite as well, since Nature’s laws are identical on all levels, whether inanimate, vegetative, animate, or human. However, on the human level, people have to do this consciously, on their own, by building their society in accordance with Nature as a whole. This is why the current crisis is global and encompasses all of humanity.

By unifying with others, a person attains real life. Compared to this, in his present state he is considered dead, like a body whose parts are separated and have no connection. We have a perfect life in store for us, but in our current state we are in danger of extinction.

It is now clear that the alternative to unity is world war, famine, epidemics, and climactic anomalies. All of this could happen because humanity cannot correct itself. However, as soon as people begin to unify, the situation will change immediately. Many are saying that our suffering comes from our lack of connection, and we can see that this is so.

(From the lesson on Baal HaSulam’s article, “One Precept,” on 03.08.2009)

We Have To Reveal The Map Of Our Connections


We should know what kind of Reshimot are now surfacing in us, which Reshimot we now have to realize. Reshimot are present inside every person, and they are continuously revealed until a person reaches the World of Infinity. We have to know which of them should be realized now, what nature demands of us, in what way, at what rate, and in which order. In other words, we should know about the cause and effect connection by which these Reshimot emerge and are realized. Without knowing these things, we won’t be able to feel or understand what is happening.

In addition, today we have to know what constitutes the connection between people. Without this “map,” reflecting the connection between everyone, we won’t be able to act correctly. The connection is no longer the former, egoistic one, where sociologists, psychologists, politicians, and everyone else were able to categorize people according to their own calculations and play with them accordingly the way their individual egos wanted to. Nowadays, we have to learn about the inner essence of the connection and become familiar with the force that acts within the connection between people.

When a person uses his desires with an egoistic intention, this is considered a crime in Kabbalah. And if he uses them with an intention for bestowal, this is considered a commandment. The correction of one’s intention (which is always present along with every desire) transforms it from egoistic to altruistic. This is called “carrying out a commandment.” This is what each person must now do. This is the correct way to exist according to nature.

The only thing in nature that is present are the 613 desires in every person. And the moment a person begins to use them to benefit his neighbor (which constitutes the correct attitude towards all of the desires), he thereby carries out his predestination in life. Therefore, we have to understand that this is precisely how every person in society should treat others. And until a person corrects himself in this way, he is harming everyone else.

A person should envision how this “machine” or system is connected in a proper and beautiful form – a form that’s consistent with Infinity, where all the souls are united with one another into a single soul. We should urge ourselves and others to achieve this system or form. This is called “following the majority,” which is the law of Nature and of the Upper Governance.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: We Are at the Critical Point of Our Development
Interview with the Future: “The Acceleration of the Reshimot”
Article: “Selected Topics in Kabbalah”
Baal HaSulam Article: “Peace in the World”

The Creator Is Attained Through Unity With Others


Two questions I received on group unity:

Question: For the first time, completely unexpected, there was a broadcast of the Congress in German. I felt an enormous force of love and unity with everyone who studies Kabbalah, but when I wanted to ask a question, I realized I was facing a lifeless screen that said, “You are watching a live broadcast.” So, my question is: Is it possible to advance spiritually by uniting with the group?

My Answer: Yes, and in fact, this is the only way to advance – by uniting. Then, through the unification, you will attain the Creator.

Question: I have been studying Kabbalah for about two years. I help out with dissemination at the center a few times a week, I study at the campus and visit the forum of the virtual group. And although I have a good connection with all of these people, I feel that it is superficial. I am unable to really unite with the people who are on the same path as me. Maybe I am doing something wrong? Or perhaps the need for this kind of a connection exists only in the material world?

My Answer: If others are studying the same way as you are, that means it’s up to you to unite with them and to receive help, regardless of the group’s size or level.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: We Are Playing Against Our Egoism
Laitman.com Post: A Game Is a Serious Affair
Laitman.com Post: The Condition of Entering the Upper World Is Mutual Guarantee
Article: “The Need for Love of Friends” 1984 – 3rd essay

The Meaning Of Learning The Global System


A question I received: What does it mean to learn the global system?

My Answer: Speak with system specialists and they will tell you about the laws that govern a closed system. Speak about multifunctional systems with biologists, physiologists, computer specialists and people who work in cybernetics. I think I still have formulas from college, showing what a multifunctional system is.

There are many elements that people study in order to understand how to interconnect these elements in order to bring the entire system to operation through the mutual interaction between the elements at any given moment and in the various states that these elements strive to. Based on this, you can derive a formula, and without the formula, you won’t be able to construct anything.

Let’s say you have a submarine that has to rise from the depth of four hundred meters to two hundred meters. This isn’t easy to do. In order to do it, you must we aware of every possible factor, such as the depth and equilibrium – there are thousands of parameters you must keep in mind. And every parameter changes in a specific way depending on the depth. It’s a very difficult task.

So what do we have to do? In the same way, we have to learn what an integrated system is and why the condition of “love thy neighbor as thyself” is the law of Nature. This notion must be explained in a way that’s easy to understand, in a way that’s simple and close to ordinary people and organizations. This is what we have to understand, learn and teach.
(Excerpt from the lesson on Baal HaSulam’s article “One Precept,” on 03.05.2009)

Unity Must Happen Through Our Souls, Not Bodies


A question I received: I believe in one heart and one world. I believe that God is nature, the energy all around us. The energy governs us and gives us information, and we have very little free choice. And I love it that way, I accept it with all my heart.

But I don’t understand the separation of men and women at the Congress? And the Kippah (skullcap)? Are we not supposed to be free of religion and be as one heart? Souls don’t have gender, and Kippahs represent religious separation.

My Answer: The presence of women influences the male hormones and thus distracts the men from the right intention. This is why we prefer to study separately. The unity has to happen through our souls, not bodies. And in addition, the unity has to happen according to the proper scheme, which is clear to those who study the structure of the common soul.

The Kippah and all other external attributes are not required. The Kippah is worn only by Jews, and the only purpose of this is to demonstrate that they received Kabbalah from its source. After all, for 4500 years Kabbalah was passed down within the Jewish nation. Of course, there is absolutely no need for a Kippah or for the observance of any other rituals.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Men, Women, and Love… for One’s Neighbor
Laitman.com Post: Women Should Recognize Opportunities and Stop Blaming Men for Everything
Laitman.com Post: Kabbalah Is Taught By Men Because Zeir Anpin Corrects Malchut
Laitman.com Post: Do Women Need to Attend Congresses?
Laitman.com Post: In the Spiritual World, Men’s and Women’s Souls Connect Like a Husband and Wife In This World
Kabbalah Today Article: Connecting the Dots (the Kabbalistic Version)
Kabbalah Today Article: Floating in a Sea of Information

We Are Like Whirls In A River

How to Keep Effective Virtual ConnectionsA question I received: Even though we feel disconnected, isn’t it rather that the connections are still very much alive, however, we have lost our sense to feel and use them?

My Answer: Yes, we are in fact completely connected with one another as one body. However, this fact is concealed from us, and as a result, we hurt ourselves by hurting others.

Question cont’d: Also, doesn’t humanity have connections to everything in this universe?

My Answer: Yes, it is connected to everything absolutely and harmoniously, just as all levels of nature – still, vegetative, animate, human and spiritual. They are all interconnected, along with the Creator.

Question cont’d: In the end, is the whole universe made out of the same fundamental “stuff”?

My Answer: Yes, the entire universe is just one kind of matter: the will to receive pleasure.

Question cont’d: Aren’t we a little bit like whirls in a river, believing we are separate from the river, but actually being part of this very river?

My Answer: Yes.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The Entire Universe Is One Material (or One Blanket, According to Dustin Hoffman)
Laitman.com Post: We Must Become a Part of Nature’s System
Laitman.com Post: A Game Is a Serious Affair
Baal HaSulam Article: “Peace In the World”

We Must Become A Part Of Nature’s System


The earth is similar to a single cell, and just like everything living on it, our world evolves from competitive individualization toward life-sustaining interaction. Nature illustrates the historic, global interconnection and interdependence of all living things on earth.

The economic system functions in a similar way to the human body. By studying the body as a single, unified organism, we can discover the right principles of governing ourselves and our society. These principles are not instilled in us by nature, but rather given to us to be used freely, for us to master them voluntarily and apply them to ourselves. We will then eliminate the principles that are harmful for the economy and for life in general, and use only those that are beneficial

The human body constantly regenerates its cells, thus preserving its form and getting rid of what it doesn’t need. The body is able to sustain life only under the condition that its biological parts support each other and don’t oppose one another. In the past, the struggle for survival was the developmental principle. However, today’s society is like a single, unified organism, and as such, it is governed by a new principle, that of a single organism. This principle states that life is founded on the interconnection between the living systems.

This is why in our generation, we have to shift from the principle of boundless rivalry to voluntary interaction. Unbridled evolution has ended. Nature’s system has become revealed and we must become a part of it.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: We Can No Longer Compete Against Each Other Because We’re a Single Organism
Laitman.com Post: How Do You Define Globalization?
“Attaining the Unity of the Universe,” 07.07.04 – 07.13.04