A question I received: I am one of your students from India. My parents want me to get a PhD, but I’m not sure what to do. When I am not working, I spend my free time studying Kabbalah. If I were to start working on this degree, then I would have to devote my time to something that completely doesn’t interest me.

I thought that perhaps I could compromise with my parents and get a PhD, but on a topic of my choice: “The Application of Kabbalah in Parenting and Education” or something along these lines.

The problem is that our universities in India don’t have a Kabbalah department. They only have philosophy and religion departments. So where can I defend this dissertation?

My Answer: Personally, I defended my dissertation on the topic, “Kabbalah as a Form of Irrational Knowledge,” in IPRAS – the Institute of Philosophy at the Russian Academy of Sciences. You can defend a dissertation on Kabbalah in any philosophy department at any university. Dissertations on Kabbalah are being defended in all Israeli universities at the philosophy departments. We have several Kabbalah doctoral candidates, including my youngest daughter.

In addition, you can find out about defending it in America as well. However, I think that you should be able to come to an agreement on this topic in your university as well. I’m prepared to help you select the topic, choose materials, explain the thesis, and so on. As of today we’ve already published all the principal materials in English.

Related Material:
Laitman. com Post: The Irrationality of Kabbalah
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News Report (translated from news.ru): Between the years 2000 and 2007, 3,500 people per year returned to Israel. In 2008, however, the number of people who have returned jumped to 7,000, and another 15,000 have submitted their applications to the ministry of absorption. In the last two months alone, as many as 2000 people returned to Israel.

My Comment: The return of the “lost children” marks the end of their wanderings in search of a heaven on earth, and the beginning of their search for the real heaven – the revelation of the Upper World. The Book of Zohar says that this precedes the return of the truly lost sons – the return of the ten tribes that were lost 3000 years ago. Today there are hundreds of millions of them in the world…

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Part 5 from the book Interview With the Future: Spiritual Exile

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A question I received: I have a question regarding the society of the future. I came from a state that was a part of former Yugoslavia, which was an artificially established “communist” state. I can still remember the good feelings that everybody had in that society. However, it fell apart and all sorts of nationalistic, ethnic and religious hatred emerged, escalating in a terrible war.

Now, after reading a portion of the material on your website, I find it difficult to understand one of the principles stated in the text of “Building the Future Society,” which contradicts some things from other texts. In “Building the Future Society” it is clearly stated that it is the Jews who should be members of the future altruistic-communistic government, because they suffered most in history and thus are the most experienced and knowledgeable about the best ways of ruling.

In other texts it is also clearly stated that the Creator invites all nations to unite, that the word Israel means “directly to God” rather than current Israeli citizens or Jews. I wonder if there is a sound explanation to this. Can you please clarify this for me as well as for others who are firm believers in the so called “Jewish conspiracy”?

My Answer: Historically it happened that a part of the people from Ancient Babylon have already gone through correction, reached the level of the Temple, and then fell from the spiritual level of “Love thy neighbor as thyself” into our world of “Unfounded hatred.” These people are the carriers of the inner spiritual potential – and you are admitting this very fact with your prejudice to them! They are heading the dissemination of the method of correcting all humanity. This is why they have already gone through this path.

Everyone who joins them are also Israel (Isra–El – those who aspire toward the Creator), and later everyone else will also gradually join the process of correction. This is how the full correction of the common soul of Adam is attained. For more on this, see items 61-71 of the “Introduction to the Book of Zohar.”

Related Material:
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USA. The largest publishing company in the country, Penguin Publishing, reports that the first edition of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah in English is completely sold out, and they are urgently printing the second edition.

The Spanish speaking world is interested in Kabbalah. In response to increasing demand, Random House – the second largest publisher in Latin America, bought the rights to The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah in Spanish. The title of the book speaks for itself: it explains simply and accessibly what is Kabbalah and why it is necessary to the modern person.

Noticias, a Mexican newspaper, has printed the article “The Butterfly Effect and Kabbalah,” which explains the solution to the economic problems.

My blog in Spanish is now on the web. It is called “Kabbalah, Science and the Meaning of Life.” Previously my blog was translated into four languages; Spanish is the fifth.

The Spanish composer Nino Diaz (author of over fifty musical compositions, winner of the prize of the Canadian Academy of Arts and the competition of creative radio compositions Classic Radio 2008) has written a new composition called “El Muro” (“The Wall”) that includes a poem by the great 16th century Kabbalist, the Ari. The premier of this unique composition took place on September 9th at a festival in Alicante, Spain, and was very successful.

Norway. Visjon, a popular magazine, has requested an analytical article from the Kabbalah Academy, which will present Kabbalah’s views on the ecological problems. The article will be published in the next issue of the magazine, and it will be called “Ecology and Us.”

Israel. A holiday issue of the publication Kabbalah Today in Hebrew and Russian was issued on the eve of Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year). It is a compilation of materials about the holiday, as well as articles on current events. The number of copies printed is about one million.

Brazil. Imago, one of the most popular publishers in Brazil, has published the book Kabbalah Revealed in Portuguese. The book is on sale in all book stores in the country.

Internet. The BOBs (Best of the Blogs) is holding an international blog competition, and reports that tens of thousands of people have submitted my blog as the best and most original blog.

The Ari Online Learning Center has announced the beginning of a new virtual Kabbalah class in English. All the information about the opportunity to study Kabbalah in English on the internet is available at this website.

Over the past month, websites of the Kabbalah Academy have been visited by over 2,000,000 people.

The Arabic world. The first Kabbalah book in Arabic has been published, called From Chaos to Harmony. The book explains the fundamental principles of the wisdom of Kabbalah as well as its attitude toward modern scientific research.

Iran. It’s been less than a month since we have aired our website in Farsi, and it has already been visited by 1,300 people who reside in Iran. In addition, the Kabbalah Today publication is now being published in Persian. Presently 2,000 Iranians residing in the US receive this newspaper.

The Black Sea – 2008. Final Summary. The three month long dissemination event on the Black Sea coast of Russia and Ukraine, spanning from Sochi to Crimea, has come to en end. Over a million vacationers and local residents received the publications Kabbalah Segodnya (Kabbalah Today) and Moi Mir (My World).

Over time, other countries joined in on the dissemination event: newspapers were also disseminated in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea beaches, in Israel on the Red Sea, in Poland, the Czech Republic, France, and other European countries, as well as the Eastern and Western coasts of America.

In December a newspaper dissemination event is being planned in Mexico and Chile.

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A question I received: What Is your opinion on the negotiations to divide Jerusalem? Are you for or against its division?

My Answer: I don’t have an opinion of my own; I accept the opinion of the great Kabbalists. Baal HaSulam writes: “If the people of Israel will accept the laws of Kabbalah, then it will be possible to build the Temple and bring back all the past glory. And of course this would prove to all the nations of the world – even the Arabs – that the people of Israel have the right to return to their land. This will be very different from the present secular repatriation, which does not impress the nations of the world. We need to act quickly, or else they might sell Israel’s independence for their own needs, not to mention giving away Jerusalem.”

He wrote this 93 years ago, when there was no talk of  repatriation yet, or the state of Israel, or our Jerusalem, and moreover – its current division. I am neither “for” nor “against” it, because I know that the only thing that will help us is our correction. Hence correction is the only thing I am “for.”

It is also written: “If you follow the path of the wisdom of Kabbalah and accept the Creator’s teaching – things will be good. And if you don’t accept it, then you will still advance toward the goal He has set, but your path will be one of suffering. In other words, wars will break out in the world, fought with atomic and hydrogen bombs, and all the nations of the world will search for counsel on how to avoid the wars. And they will come to the Messiah in Jerusalem, and he will teach them this wisdom.”

Related Material:
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Baal HaSulam Article: The Last Generation
Chapter from the Book The Kabbalah Experience: The Messiah and the End of Days
Chapter from the Book Interview with the Future: A Spiritual Task

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The Book of Zohar. Chapter “Raising a Prayer” – 2 (abridged)

The first Commandment finds its place in the blessings that King David sang during his offerings in the Torah, where man must fear his Master, for these songs stand in a place called “fear” or Malchut. And all of these written blessings constitute the essence of fear of the Creator, Malchut. And man must sing these songs with his desires in fear.

Man must achieve a level of spiritual development where his desires will coincide with what is said in the texts of these blessings. It is impossible to force someone to wish something; all our feelings are the product, the result of our spiritual level. The Light of that degree influences one’s egoism and corrects it with the power of that degree.  Therefore, man can only ask for correction, but it will come from Above, from the Light, from the Creator.

Here we have a list of degrees that man must gradually go through in his correction. These degrees are usually called Commandments, and in all there are 620 of them between us and the Creator: 613 Commandments of the Torah for Israel (altruism) and seven Commandments of the Torah for all the nations (egoism). Here they are expounded in a different way: since the most important thing is to ask for correction (and if the request is genuine, it immediately receives an answer in the form of Light that descends to it), all of man’s work on himself, all of his efforts in the study, all his work and actions are intended only for creating a true request, MAN.

Hence, the stages of man’s spiritual development are described as his path in prayer; as if he stands and prays, although this process continues within him throughout his life on earth.

The second Commandment is to love the Creator. (As it was repeatedly stated, this feeling is the result of correction; see the “Introduction to Talmud Eser Sefirot,” item 45, which describes the four stages of one’s sensation of the governance, from darkness to love). It is when through one’s prayer, one reaches Ahavat Olam (great love) and Le El (for the Creator). These two blessings precede the appeal, Shema Israel (Hear, O Israel) and Ve Ahavta Et (and love the Creator), the blessing of the Creator for one’s love for Him that follows the appeal Shema Israel. And this is the secret of love for the Creator.

The third Commandment takes place when one reaches a place in the prayer that is called Lehishtabe’ach (blessed is the Creator). He must then attain praises and blessings of the Creator in his desire, as in parts of the prayer Yotzer Ohr (He who creates Light) and Yotzer HaMeohrot (maker of the stars).

The fourth Commandment is to proclaim the Creator’s unity, i.e., Shema Israel (Hear, O Israel, our Creator is one!). From this point (degree) on, one must express the secret of the Creator’s unity (in all His manifestations to man) in his heart’s desire (one’s heart must be filled only with the sensation of the One, Upper Force). Afterward, the Commandment to remember and remind others of the exodus from Egypt (egoism) is observed, as it is written: “Remember how you were a slave in Egypt.”

The fifth Commandment is for a Cohen to bless the people (the Light’s descent to the Partzuf), so that Israel will be included when the prayer (the Cohanim’s blessing) ascends, for at this time (state), Knesset Israel (all those who correct themselves by aspiring to the Creator and constitute a part of Malchut de Atzilut), i.e., Malchut, receives a blessing (Light).

The sixth Commandment and the desired time (spiritual state or level when man wishes only to give all of his desires, i.e., his soul, to the Creator, meaning that he can act for the Creator’s sake in all of his desires) is to entrust one’s soul with the Creator with complete desire in one’s heart. When one falls (willingly accepts the small state) on his face (Hochma) and proclaims (raises MAN): “I entrust my soul with You, O Creator.” The intentions and desires of his heart are to give his soul completely to the Creator (this desire is the consequence of this spiritual degree and comes naturally to those who attain it).

These six Commandments of the prayer correspond to the 600 Commandments of the Torah. And the remaining thirteen Commandments are required in order to attract the thirteen properties of mercy (thirteen Midot HaRachamim), which include all the rest. The prayer is adorned with 600 Commandments, which corresponds to HGT NHY, to what the prayer, Malchut, receives from ZA.

Happy is he who heeded and focused his desire on this (who was able to raise a proper request for his correction), who completed all that was required each day (in the Creator’s daylight), and directed his heart’s intentions and desires to fulfill this Commandment, which depends on the word.

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The last issue of “The Economist” features the headline: “World on the Edge”:

The purpose of our world is “To bring the creature to equivalence with the Creator,” and it is attained by observing the rule – “Love thy neighbor as thyself.” Nature (or the Creator – whatever you prefer) will force us to do this one way or another.

People who do not know about this see the world’s present condition as catastrophic. However, it’s in our power to quickly change the direction of the process. For more on this, see Part 2 of the book From Chaos to Harmony.

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Questions I received on the economic crisis:

Question: Many of your students live in Russia. What do you think of how the economic crisis is progressing there?

My Answer: Russia will experience the economic crisis harder than Europe, America, or China. Russia will also experience its own crisis of self-love, ambition, separatism, and power. It will recognize that it is a part of the rest of the world, and that it needs to stop being hostile and aggressive. It will realize that it can’t survive any other way. Blaming America for the economic crisis will not solve the problem.

However, Russia can truly have its own “special path” if the people of Russia, with their inherent sensitivity and willingness to sacrifice material things for the sake of spirituality, will recognize the cause of suffering and the opportunity to rise above it. Then the Russian nation will really become special in the world.

By demonstrating to the entire world new social relations – the future of the world, not by order from “above” (from the authorities) but truly by order from above (from the Creator or Nature), by observing the law of love and bestowal, Russia will quickly become the leader in every regard. The choice is in its hands.

Question: Who will suffer most from the economic crisis?

My Answer: America will suffer least – not in terms of numbers, but percentage wise. Then Europe, and finally – Russia and China will suffer the most. There aren’t many consumers of Chinese products and Russian oil and gas.

Question: What will happen if Russia will close itself off from the rest of the world? After all, it has everything in order to be self-sufficient.

My Answer: The fact is that the current crisis is global, and no one can hide from it because everyone is fully integrated in the international economics. This is why political decisions cannot go against the economic decisions, and since there is only one economy, this also forces politics to become one! This has never happened before in the world. There were crises of a purely economic nature, or purely political, or social crises, but the present crisis is universal! This means that no one can separate from the rest of the world.

Question: Does the economic crisis affect only the finances in a direct manner?

My Answer: No, it also affects politics directly. I think that America is leaving the position of a “police officer” in the world. Now everyone will have to engage in this: Iran and Pakistan will advance toward the Caspian Sea, while China – toward Siberia. Islam will simply fill Russia – which is weakly Christian and halfway Islamic. To counterbalance this, Fascism may arise on the wave of patriotism.

Question: What is your organization doing during the period of economic crisis?

My Answer: We want to send our message out to the world – the method of correcting the economic crisis. We must therefore unite with the suffering of the world and share it. Only then will we will be able to correctly speak to the world and it will hear us.

What does it mean to suffer the suffering of others? Even though you personally don’t experience it, you are united with others, fully sharing their misfortune and helping them. This must happen according to the rule, “He who empathizes with the suffering of the masses merits mercy with them.”

Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The Financial Crisis – An Analysis
Laitman.com Post: The Remedy for the Global Crisis
Laitman.com Post: Russia and Israel Have the Opposite Problem
Laitman.com Post: The World Will Never Be the Same

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Questions I received on the global financial crisis:

Question: Everyone is saying that the financial crisis was caused by the United States, but you say that it’s systematic and is happening because we are in a system of global interconnection. Who’s right?

My Answer: Both opinions are correct, because America – the most developed country in the world – was first to discover this financial crisis, which is global and not just local to the U.S. If it hasn’t reached some countries yet – such as Israel, for example – then it will reach them later on.

Hence, people shouldn’t scold America. In fact, Europe, China, Japan, the Emirates, and even Russia are all prospering thanks to the American economy, because America buys everything from them.

But now it will stop buying, and everyone will understand how good things used to be! You will be able to answer many questions yourself if you accept the fact that the financial crisis and everything else taking place is actually happening in one, single organism.

Question: Why did the financial crisis start with the banks?

My Answer: It’s because the banks are the foundation of the entire American system; they are an example of a free market. But now the government is buying them. Freedom of the market will become limited like it is in Europe.

However, precisely money or wealth is the equivalent of corporeal fulfillment. It “connects” people, helping us faster realize the common basis of the crisis – people’s egoistic attitudes, as well as the fact that it’s necessary to transform these attitudes, for the sake of survival, into ones of care for one another.

Question: But won’t the care for others be selfish and egoistic, just like today employers “care” about the health of their employees?

My Answer: The system of absolute interconnection between everyone in the world, both people and businesses, is being revealed so fast that soon each one of us will literally feel the vibrations of our attitudes to one another – first the national ones, and then the personal ones as well. This analysis of how our luck and safety depends on our attitudes (inner, not outer ones – what we feel in our hearts), will force us to search for the means to correct hatred and transform it to love.

Question: Who has an easier time living through this time of financial crisis?

My Answer: Those who are least connected with the rest of the world. It works just like an organism: when a leg, stomach, or arm are hurt, the pain is felt in the head. Hence, countries will try to move away from globalization. However, this won’t help them, because then they will stop developing. Without full communication and exchange, they will cease developing and regress to feudalism! Everyone will instinctively try to return to the past, but by doing so they will only slow down the process and receive even greater blows of fate. It’s like trying to sweep an illness under the rug by treating it incorrectly or taking sedatives instead of medication. After all, human society is a live organism!

Question: What kind of currency will remain?

My Answer: The post-crisis world will be radically new. Nevertheless, the United States has accumulated such great scientific and technological potential, and such an exceptional industrial base, that it will remain the world leader – the largest economy in the world. Even though it will fall more than any other country, when it comes to the numbers, people will still have enough to live (compared to others).

Everything will crash, with the exception of the American high-tech industry. The United States will begin real production; it will return to it from abroad, from China. This will cause foreign countries and China to “fall.”

Question: Why is everyone so afraid of the financial crisis? I personally don’t feel afraid.

My Answer: All previous financial crises were different – understandable and not general. However, this one is global; it is happening all over the world and it is unlike any previous financial crisis. There are no known remedies to eliminate it. People are trying to do the same thing they did in previous financial crises – to help the banks, but nothing will help. The situation will force them to reveal the true cause of the financial crisis: that the egoistic attitudes of the parts of a closed system bring about the system’s destruction.

Regardless of how our attempts to explain the true cause of the financial crisis are received, we should not despair and continue fulfilling our duty. We can only accelerate the world’s understanding of the cause of the financial crisis and the method of correction. It takes patience, but the suffering, attempts, and failures will teach people, forcing them to heed what we are saying.

Here’s a concise explanation of the crisis, including its causes and correction:

Part 2 of the book From Chaos to Harmony – Israel’s Role
Brochure: “Lecture in Arosa – The Crisis and Its Solution”

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Two questions I received on the virtual group:

Question: How does mutual guarantee work in a virtual group and what does it mean there?

My Answer: It’s the same as in a physical group, because you are not uniting through the bodies, but through your “points in the heart” – you must feel that they are together. I think that it’s easier to feel this virtually than during physical contact, when the externality overshadows the internality.

Question: On one of the virtual group websites, I proposed to create a Kabbalah Constitution, and to start working on creating it. However, this did not evoke any interest. Should I continue with it?

My Answer: Yes. Get in touch with those who are working on the development of a virtual community at [email protected]

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Baal HaSulam Article: “The Arvut (Mutual Guarantee)”
Israel Congress 2005 Intention Handbook – The Intention of the Group

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