Questions I received on music, false spiritual teachings, and euthanasia:

Question: What’s more important in a musical composition, wisdom or spirituality?

My Answer: Spirituality.

Question: Is listening to music a waste of time?

My Answer: Not if it helps you keep an intention aimed at the goal.

Question: I once heard the following expression: The rhythm of music makes the Earth go round!

My Answer: That’s poetic and romantic…

Question: According to nature, what percentage of humanity will consciously feel the question about the meaning of life so strong that they will be able to study Kabbalah?

My Answer: There’s no specific percentage – it will be anyone with a point in the heart.

Question: What do you think of false teachings that unconsciously use elements of teachings that were effective in the past?

My Answer: Nothing.

Question: I’m asking because it is these kind of teachings that are leading in the “spiritual market.” What’s their purpose?

My Answer: For us to learn from our mistakes.

Question: How do you view euthanasia?

My Answer: Problematically.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Music to Perceive with the Soul
Laitman.com Post: What Is Death? How Can We Not Fear Death?
Kabbalah Today Article: Singing the Worlds Beyond
Talk: About Kabbalistic Music
Talk: The Birth of the Soul
Chapter from Book A Guide To The Hidden Wisdom of Kabbalah: “Kabbalistic Music”
Free online Kabbalah course
Kabbalah Music

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A question I received: According to Rabash, the chosen people are those who can shift from the externality to the internality, and one’s heart will change with the help of one’s actions. At the same time, you always remind us that the external commandments are no more than external signs, which have no connection with the soul’s correction.

My Answer: When Rabash speaks of “external observance,” he does not mean the physical observance, but the intention “for one’s own sake.” And “inner observance” signifies the intention “for the Creator’s sake.”

As for the physical actions, the Creator said: “I don’t care how you slaughter cattle; the commandments were given for man’s correction.” In other words, the entire connection between actions and commandments lies in one’s intentions, and not in the actions themselves. If a person knew that his actions have no results, he would be extremely grateful to Kabbalah for giving him the correct guidance in life!

The entire opposition between religion and Kabbalah comes down to their assessment of the importance of actions and intentions: What is more important, the actions or the intentions? Indeed, Kabbalah does not deny the importance of the actions (traditions) in forming and managing social boundaries. But religion also has to accept what is written, that actions without intentions are dead and don’t correct a person. The intentions can only be changed through the correct study of Kabbalah.

One has to start by admitting that he is not perfect – therein lies the stumbling block! It’s because religion’s primary goal is to grant man a sense of pride and perfection for observing the prescriptions. He thinks that by doing this, he serves the Creator and the whole world, and everyone is indebted to him.

Kabbalah, on the other hand, shows a person just how phony and imperfect he really is. He sees this in the Creator’s Light, which descends upon him during the study. A person then feels unhappy with the results of his study, but if he is able to rise above this sensation and elevate the truth above the anguish, he progresses. And if he is unable to do this, he veers off the path.

Item 66 of the “Preface to the Book of Zohar” discusses the necessity to make the intention more important than the physical observance. The entire contradiction between religion and Kabbalah lies in their claim as to what is more important.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The Creator Does Not Have Arms or Legs
Laitman.com Post: You Have to Know How to Ask
Shamati #116: “Why Did He Say that Mitzvot Do Not Require Intention”
Baal HaSulam Article: “The Essence of Religion and Its Purpose”

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Preface to the Science of Kabbalah (Pticha).
Items 10 – 12, summary:

10. Thus, the Light of Life emanates from the Creator and, passing through the Worlds of AK and ABYA, it separates from the Creator until reaching the smallest desire, where its source – the Creator – is no longer felt. This state is called “our world.” However, by studying Kabbalah in a group with the intention to attain the Creator, one evokes the Light of the Upper Degree, which pulls the desire upwards, giving it the opportunity to ascend the degrees of the worlds all the way up to the World of Infinity. There, one can receive all the Light prepared for him by the Creator back in the Thought of Creation. It is hence written: “The Creator wishes to purify (from egoism) those who aspire to Him; to this end He has given them the Torah (the Correcting Light) and Commandments (the correction of one’s intentions from “for my own sake” to “for the Creator’s sake”).

11. The difference between spirituality and corporeality is this: The intention “for my own sake” is corporeal and its state is called “our world” (Olam Hazeh). The intention “for the Creator’s sake” (or “for one’s friend’s sake,” which is the same thing) is spiritual and its state is called “the Upper World” (or the Worlds of ABYA). The Upper World exists above the lowest of all degrees – our world.

All the ascents, descents, changes and movements that transpire in the Upper Worlds don’t take place in some imaginary space. They are changes in the size of one’s intention “for the Creator’s sake” and the accompanying desire. The greater the desire, the closer it is to phase 4 and the lower it is.

12. The essence of all creation is the desire (to receive pleasure, fulfillment). This desire requires correction. We are commanded to “purify” it with the help of:

• The Torah (the Upper Light), and
• The Commandments (changes of the intention from using the desire “for my own sake” to using it for “for the Creator’s sake”).

Otherwise we will not be able to attain the Upper Goal – the Thought of Creation.

Related Material:
Download PDF version of Pticha

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Two questions I received on the arts and spirituality:

Question: In a previous blog entry, in response to the question of whether works of art are spiritual, you said: “All art was brought about by man’s desire to express himself, or in other words, by the desire for glory, to stand out, to prove something (even if it’s to himself), to express his way of seeing things.”

But you have also said that “A desire cannot be bad if it is accompanied by the intention to bestow.”

My Answer: In order to acquire an intention of bestowal, a person has to study Kabbalah for at least three years. Then, as a result of the Upper Light’s influence, the quality of bestowal will appear within him. There is no other means to correct your original egoistic intention and transform it into a spiritual one.

Question: An actor is connected with the audience and they understand each other. He gives fully of himself to them, and in return receives applause (fulfillment). The audience applauds with great emotion, giving all of their feelings to the actor, and in return they receive fulfillment from his performance. It is a mutual, yet egoistic connection. Should our adhesion with the Creator be something like this?

My Answer: In the example above you’re exchanging different types of pleasure. However, when it comes to the Creator, you must become similar to Him through the quality of bestowal, and this will determine the degree of your connection with Him.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Kabbalah Compared to the Arts
Lesson on the Shamati Article: “What Does It Mean That the Creator Hate Bodies In the Work?”
Article: “One Law” – Lesson 1

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A question I received: What happens to a person who converts to Judaism? Does a Jewish soul really incarnate into a gentile if his intentions are sincere and he is fully aware of what he is doing?

My Answer:
1. You must differentiate between our earthly traditions and the spiritual actions. A person can do the physical actions on his own, but not the spiritual actions. No physical actions can correct the soul, or even any earthly, physical qualities of a person. The only thing that can correct a person is the Light that descends during the study of Kabbalah, when one learns about the corrected states and how to come closer to them. It is called “the Light of the Torah,” about which the Creator said: “I created egoism and the Torah for its correction, because the Light in the Torah returns egoism to the corrected state.”

2. The soul is a “part of the Creator in man” (Helek Eloka Mi Maal), or in other words, it is the quality of bestowal (love for one’s neighbor) that a person acquires, because this is the only quality that the Creator has (“Good and Does Good”). When one acquires this quality, one become Isra-El, which translates as “Directed toward the Creator.” Everyone else are gentiles (nations), meaning egoists, regardless of their physical origins and whether they were born Jewish or not.

We all came from Ancient Babylon and we must all attain correction. In the past this was achieved by a small part of the Babylonians, the group headed by Abraham, and they were called Isra-El – those who are directed toward the Creator. Today, everyone must do this.

Related Material:
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Laitman.com Post: Israel Is All the People Who Aspire Toward the Creator
Kabbalah Today Article: Kabbalah Explains the Bible
Baal HaSulam “Igrot (Letters)” P. 63
Baal HaSulam Article: “The Revelation of Godliness (Matan Torah)”

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A question I received: When does the Surrounding Light influence me – only during the lesson or also during dissemination? (Considering that while I’m doing it I aspire to attain the Upper One through the unification with the group.)

My Answer: It influences you during the study, dissemination, and other group actions, depending on your intention to connect with everyone in order to reveal the Creator – the quality of bestowal and love. The Surrounding Light is the Light that will fill you on a higher level.

The fact is that you already exist in all of your future states. However, you don’t perceive it. You must attain these states yourself. By aspiring to them, you draw the influence of your future state upon you and it changes you, making you similar to it. Everything depends only on your desire, your aspiration to that future state.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Intention and Action
Laitman.com Post: How Do We Connect Our Points in the Heart?
Lesson: Attaining the Unity of the Universe
Lesson on Preface to the Wisdom of Kabbalah
Baal HaSulam Article: “A Speech in Celebration of the conclusion of The Zohar”
Audio Book: Intentions from the Heart [27:42]

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Two questions I received on the present state of the world:

Question: Shlama Ilelochum, Rabu Michael. Do you believe in the revival of the Assyrian State? Are you FOR or AGAINST?

My Answer: I am for only one state in the world – the State of Kabbalah, whose law will be “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Then all the nations will be as one family. This is what we are obligated to do by the Creator or Nature. We must live in accordance with the global connection in which we exist. The emergence of separate states contradicts world unity. See Baal HaSulam’s articles “The Peace” and “Peace in the World.”

Question: Many people who post comments seem to think that economic prosperity acquired via free markets is egoistic and evil. The only thing that can be evil is the intention. As humans we need access to resources to survive – i.e., food, shelter and education. Surely the problem isn’t in acquiring prosperity and knowledge via the economic market, but in the distribution among those who need it. This distribution is best done in one’s own community. The meek will inherit the world only when those who amassed resources will find a way to distribute it to those in need. Please comment.

My Answer: I would advise you to look at the materials on the crisis and its solution, as well as Baal HaSulam’s articles on it – “The Peace,” “Peace in the World,” and “The Freedom.”

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: How Will We Live In the Last Generation?
Laitman.com Post: A Spiritual Revolution Is Inevitable
Laitman.com Post: What Would It Be Like To Live in a Perfect World?

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Two questions I received on what will happen to the Internet during the crisis:

Question: In this great international crisis, plus everything that is apparently still in store for us, it is reasonable to assume that many different infrastructures will be affected, including the Internet. How do you think this will affect the role of the virtual group and our dissemination in the entire world, which happens primarily through the Internet?

My Answer: If we use the Internet correctly in order to correct the world, then it will remain, or be replaced by something even more suitable for this goal.

Question: Are you still working on materials to submit to the Google 10^100 project? At first everyone was excited about it and there was a lot of talk about it, but now it seems like everyone forgot about it. Will Bnei Baruch participate in it or not?

My Answer: We did what we could, and the rest does not depend on us. In the midst of it, the crisis struck. It looks like Google has forgotten about it, or perhaps something is still happening there, but since no one is contacting us, we are keeping quiet as well.

To be frank, I don’t believe that such undertakings have good intentions or integrity from the start, but I’m obligated to participate if there is an opportunity. In addition, working together on these projects helps us unite!

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The Internet Is a Reflection of the Society
Laitman.com Post: Virtual Lesson on Google’s Project 10^100
Laitman.com Post: The Creator Will Become Revealed Inside the Unity of Our Virtual Meeting Space
Shamati #72: “Confidence Is the Clothing for the Light”
Shamati #131: “Who Comes to Be Purified”
Kabbalah Blog Post: Make a Difference, Cause a Social Change!
Kabbalah Blog Post: Better the World Campaigns Strike a Chord
Kabbalah Blog Post: Will Project 10^100 Change the World?
Kabbalah Blog Post: Project 10 to the 100th by Google

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News Report (from gizmag): Lubrication enables all of the world’s machinery to function, but even then, at least a quarter of all the energy is lost to friction. Despite some ingenious lubrication methods, at least 15% of the power made in a car engine is lost to friction. In most machinery, frictional losses are much higher than 15% and the heat resultant from friction generates trillions of dollars of repair and maintenance every year. Now a breakthrough in lubricant design employing liquid crystals promises a vast reduction in friction and some quite remarkable lubricants are about five years from market – oils that could reduce friction to almost zero.

My Comment: If only they would invent this kind of oil for people! Actually, it already exists: the quality of bestowal creates exactly this kind of interaction between everyone. It not only erases the friction, but also creates additional energy for the engine – the general soul – to function. This energy comes from each person’s intention to bestow to everyone. Then a common intention of bestowal emerges, called the Creator, which creates infinite energy and the sensation of eternal fulfillment.

Related Material:
Laitman.com: Equality and Brotherhood Are the Means of Attaining Spirituality

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Questions I received on how to work with the material and the group:

Question: When does a person who studies the science of Kabbalah go from simply “absorbing” the information (reading, listening and seeing) to actually perceiving the Upper World?

My Answer: When he becomes equivalent – in the minimal degree – to the quality of bestowal described by the text.

Question: When studying the materials by the aforementioned methods, does it make sense to try and unite with the Kabbalist’s way of thinking, rather than finding a connection with the material itself?

My Answer: That’s exactly what you should do – try to unite with the author and his intention.

Question: Can the point of the breaking be revealed only in the group? Or also with other people close to me, such as my husband for instance?

My Answer: It can only be done by trying to unite the aspirations for the Creator by drawing our joint aspirations for Him closer together.

Question: Sometimes I meet people who seem very close to me spiritually, and it’s easier for me to connect to their desires. Is this egoistic equivalence of form? Or the pattern of the reincarnation of souls?

My Answer: These are the same.

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Shamati – The Most Valuable Book In the World
Laitman.com Post: We Must Only Unite Our Points In the Heart
Chapter from the Book Spiritual Search – “Equivalence of Form”
Baal HaSulam Article: “The Acting Mind”

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