On March 27th – tonight – at 2am Israel time
Israel will be shifting to Daylight Savings Time
And the clocks will be turned back one hour
So, On March 27th (tonight), the morning lesson
will begin one hour earlier
Please inform your friends of this change
Two questions I received about studying in groups:
Question: A few months ago we formed a virtual group, consisting of various territories, including Germany, Estonia, Israel, Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine. Tell us, is it necessary to separate the virtual group into male and female parts when reading Baal HaSulam’s and Rabash’s articles?
My Answer: No, it’s not necessary. It should happen only by consent.
Question: Our group has a great desire to reveal the inner connection between us. Some people aim to strengthen our connection with each other, while others aim to demonstrate the nuances of the correct inner examination in order for the group to advance. Others still just try to feel the desire for a positive attitude and the right focus. However, we were told that these tactics impede the progress. If this is the case, why then do we feel a need to do this, which we shouldn’t? Is this a normal phase in our development?
My Answer: I don’t understand exactly what you mean. No one is against connections within or between groups. Could it be that you are doing something that isolates you from others? If so, you will be violating the principle of equality and the general connection. Please describe the problem to me in more detail.
We strive to achieve unity, which Nature (the Creator) demands from us and from all of humanity. The unity must happen among the entire mass of people studying in the framework of the worldwide Bnei Baruch group. This is no one’s whim or invention; everything that’s studied is a law of Nature, and the students apply it to whatever extent they can. Therefore, there are no leaders, but only people who explain.
Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: In the Spiritual World, Women Don’t Get Carried Around by Men
Laitman.com Post: Men, Women, and Love… for One’s Neighbor
The North American Kabbalah Congress “The Next Step”: “Rav Laitman’s Talk with Women”
Article: “One Law”
Shamati #145: “What Is Will Give Wisdom Specifically to the Wise”
In the News (from The Jerusalem Post): Israel has overtaken Russia as the main defense supplier to India after breaking the $1 billion mark in new contracts signed annually over the past two years. According to news reports, Russia had averaged sales of $875 million annually to India for the past 40 years.
My Comment: A few days ago Russia was bragging about its record-breaking arms sales in 2008. Now Israel is joining the chorus of those with the record for being barbaric. I’m definitely not proud. Actually, I’m very ashamed!
Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Record Arms Sales Are Nothing to Be Proud Of
A question I received: In the article, “The Revelation of Godliness (Matan Torah)” Baal HaSulam quotes the sages, “The Creator offered the Torah to all the nations and in all the languages, but they didn’t accept it.” What does this verse mean?
My Answer: Usually a person only feels and is controlled by his natural egoism. In this case he is called “the nations of the world.”
If the point in the heart surfaces in him (the embryo of his soul, the future quality of bestowal and love for the neighbor), then because of his goal, he is called, “Straight to the Creator” (IsraEl, in Hebrew).
So what the sages meant is that if a person does not feel the point in the heart (if he still belongs to the nations of the world), then he does not need the Torah, the Light of Correction, since he does not feel a need for correction.
Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Israel Are Those Who Aspire Straight to the Creator
Laitman.com Post: Only People With the Point In the Heart Can Feel that Kabbalah Is the Salvation
Interview with the Future: “Two Parts to the Soul – Israel and the Nations of the World”
Talk: “The Birth of the Soul”
In the News: (from BBC): According to a new BBC World Service poll across 21 countries, Iran had the poorest average ratings of the countries people were asked to rate… The largest number of countries – 19 out of 21 – give negative ratings to Israel. The two exceptions are Americans (where slightly more are positive) and Russians (who are divided). On average, 51% in countries polled say it is having a negative influence…
In the News (from The Jewish Week): “Worldwide Anti-Semitism At Alarming High, Post-Gaza” The resumption of Israeli-Hamas fighting this week comes at a time of increasing Antisemitism around the world… “It has been the worst we’ve ever seen,” said Abraham Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League … there are calls for the a boycott of Jewish-owned businesses in Italy, Turkey, South Africa and Venezuela. This is reminiscent of the Nazi days.
My Comment: People’s negative attitudes to Jews and Israel will keep getting worse as the crisis becomes more severe. The only way to put an end to Anti-Semitism is to reveal to the world the means to come out of the crisis – the means to correct man’s nature and unify humanity through the study of Kabbalah.
What provokes people to attack the Jews is the fact that the Jews have this teaching. And even though none of the Jews or anyone from the nations of the world understand the true reason for Anti-Semitism, thinking that the reason is the Jews’ non-acceptance of Christianity (meaning, they think it’s on the level of religion), Kabbalah explains that the reason for Anti-Semitism is human nature, which is egoistic and hates correction.
Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Financial Crisis Causes Spike In Anti-Semitism
Laitman.com Post: Why Does Everyone Hate Israel?
Kabbalah Today Article: Mission Possible (and Mandatory)
A question I received: Where can I see a list of the countries from which the participants of the 2009 Congress came? Was there anyone there from my country, Bulgaria?
The list of congress participants (by country, listed alphabetically): Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Benin, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cameroon, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Congo, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Hungary, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Yugoslavia, Mexico, Moldova, Montenegro, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Minor Outlying Islands, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Zaire.
Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Worldwide Map of Bnei Baruch
A question I received: What should my attitude be towards the Holocaust? Also, being that the “Introduction to the Book of Zohar” says that all of the nations could become Nazi regimes if Israel doesn’t fulfill its duty, and also given that everything in this world is pre-determined, how am I to feel anything but fear and hatred towards the Creator?
My Answer: See Baal HaSulam’s article “Matan Torah (The Revelation of Godliness)”: Kabbalah (the authentic Torah, Torah Emet,) was given to us in order to correct the egoistic desire “to fulfill only yourself” into the altruistic desire “to fulfill others.” Since the entire system of souls is built as a pyramid, similar to our physical body, the correction isn’t done by all the souls at the same time, but happens in a specific order. This order depends on the souls’ desire to break free from “pursuing things in order to receive.”
This concealed desire to reveal the Creator is called “the point in the heart.” The heart is all of a person’s desires, and the point in the heart is the desire for the Creator. This is how parts of the souls unite together and – within their unity – reveal the Creator. This is referred to as the “Reception of the Torah” (revelation of the Light, the Creator).
Also, see Baal HaSulam’s article “The Arvut (Mutual Guarantee)”: Receiving the method of correction (Torah or Kabbalah) is only the initial stage in the general correction of all the souls. Hence, the corrected part must fall into the common egoism, intermix with the uncorrected part – the rest of humanity, so together they can become corrected.
In addition, see Baal HaSulam’s article “Introduction to the Book of Zohar (item70)“: When egoism becomes revealed as evil in the world as a whole, this is the beginning of the period of the revelation of Kabbalah, the method of the entire world’s correction. But because this method is still in the possession of the group of people who have used it – the people of Israel, they must master it and pass it on to all the nations of the world. The destiny of the people of Israel and of the entire world depends only on this. When the method is not passed on in time, then all kinds of problems appear in the world – aggression, wars, extermination, and so on, including the Holocaust.
You cannot justify the Creator because the degree of the righteous (one who justifies the Creator) is still far above you. Therefore, I can understand what you are feeling, though I do not feel the same way.
Related News Story (from Associated Press): Israel’s chief rabbinate severed ties yesterday with the Vatican to protest a papal decision to reinstate a bishop who publicly denied that six million Jews were killed in the Holocaust.
Related Material:
Laitman.com: What Is the Spiritual Root of the Holocaust?
Laitman.com: On Good and Evil
Laitman.com: Why Does Everyone Hate Israel?
Shamati #66 “The Giving of the Torah”
The Introduction to the Book “From the Mouth of a Wise Man” – Lesson of June 16, 2004
In the News: The Institute of Policy and Strategy at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya will be hosting the 9th annual Herzliya Conference, on “The Balance of Israel’s National Strength and Security” on February 2-4, 2009. The program includes:
My Comment: For the time being, not one of the problems is nearing a solution, and the problems are only becoming worse. The Israeli people’s lack of understanding of their role in the world is bringing about further deterioration of the state and its people.
The nation of Israel can only exist by the principle of, “Love thy neighbor as thyself.” It was created under this condition by Abraham, 4,500 years ago, and was comprised of his students. But as soon as they fell from that level into “unfounded hatred,” they ceased being a nation and were exiled from their territory.
They returned here in the 20th century, but – as explained in Kabbalah – they can stay here only under the condition that they will restore themselves through the rule, “Love your neighbor.” This is how we will become a nation once again. However, if we won’t carry out this condition, then we will once again be expelled from the land of Israel, since we will not be suitable for it.
This should be the topic of the Herzliya Conference. By the way, at the same time, on February 2-4, we will also be hosting our Congress, where we will actually unite into a single mini-humanity. This will create enormous changes in the world, because qualitatively speaking, this will be the most powerful and influential unity in the world.
Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: Preparations for the 2009 International Kabbalah Congress
In the News (from The Wall Street Journal): “Ending the West’s Proxy War Against Israel” The reason for Gaza’s endless youth bulge is that a large majority of its population does not have to provide for its offspring. Most babies are fed, clothed, vaccinated and educated by UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East. …Many of Gaza’s young – like in much of the Muslim world – dream of leaving anyway. Who would not want to get out of that strip of land but the international NGOs and social workers whose careers depend on perpetuating Gaza’s misery?
My Comment: On the one hand, there is all of the above mentioned, and on the other hand, they instigate Hamas and Iran. And this is how they create the problem of the Palestinian nation. But there is hope:
In the News (from Asia Times): “The failed Muslim states to come” The present [financial] crisis is leaving the economies of the largest Muslim countries in ruins. …Iran’s President Mahmud Ahmadinejad controls Iran through a kleptocracy … What will Ahmadinejad do now that the oil price has collapsed? Despite the oil-price collapse, the government has not reduced energy subsidies [worth] more than a fifth of gross domestic product (GDP). Iran is eating through its $60 billion of foreign exchange reserves, unable to adjust to a collapse of its only significant revenue source.
My Comment: The crisis will force us to stop sustaining the UN, and then the UN’s “charity” will come to an end. The emissaries who line their own pockets will disappear, and so will the Palestinian problem, which they created for their own enrichment.
Additional Comment: There are many similar examples of how people “intelligently” destroy other people in order to make money. For example, up to 40% of the medications being distributed are inactive or even harmful. This fraud, perpetuated by those who sell us medicine that either doesn’t work or harms us, will only stop once they are reeducated. Basically, the crisis is our only hope!
Latest News: (from MyFreeze): British government ministers on Saturday criticized the BBC for refusing to show a charity fundraising appeal for Palestinians in the war-hit Gaza strip. The national broadcaster said BBC had rejected the ad because showing it might harm the BBC‘s reputation for impartiality and because it could not be sure humanitarian aid would reach the needy in the chaotic territory.
Britain’s main private broadcasters also turned down the ad.
Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: The UN – a Stronghold of Anti-Semitism
Laitman.com Post: Charity, Nobility and Other Superficial Measures Won’t Help Us Cope With the Crisis
Laitman.com Post: Money Is at the Core of the Israeli Palestinian Conflict
Laitman.com Post: The Gaza Conflict Is One More Step Toward Revealing Man’s Evil Nature
Questions I received on the Israeli Palestinian conflict:
Question: Why did Israel choose this time of all others to start a war?
My Answer: The war in Gaza started because of the falling oil prices. Hamas would be nonexistent without help from Iran, and Iran’s plan is to become an Arabic superpower, which is only possible if oil is expensive. Therefore, in order to raise the oil prices, Iran ordered Hamas to start the war.
Question: How is it possible to manage without the tunnels used for delivering goods?
My Answer: There are over 1500 tunnels between Egypt and Gaza, and these tunnels are the basis of Hamas’s socio-economic power. Hamas builds the tunnels and sells each one for $170,000. Hamas also receives $16,000 for giving permission for a tunnel to be dug. Moreover, the goods delivered through these tunnels are taxed by Hamas, resulting in millions of dollars in profit.
This is why Hamas reacted the way it did when its “economy” was shut down. And there is no other opportunity for them to make a profit in Gaza. The solution lies in replacing the terrorist government with a peaceful one, which will start building the economy and making its own living.
Question: If the quality of life improves for the residents of Gaza, will terrorism vanish?
My Answer: Any normal government takes care of its citizens and tries to provide them with jobs, safety, and national security. A terrorist government, on the other hand, tries to deprive its citizens of all these, in order to receive humanitarian aid and then distribute it by reselling it. Therefore, the more impoverished the nation is, the better it is for the terrorist government, because people think less and will agree to anything. This is why the Hamas government didn’t build bomb shelters in Gaza, and why the Palestinian terrorists always shoot from behind the backs of the civilians.
Question: But can’t the international community restore order?
My Answer: No one is interested in this; everyone profits off of it. Hence, when the terrorists are retaliated against, they appeal to the international community, shouting, “Look! They attacked us.”
Question: But isn’t it the UN’s mission to bring peace to the world?
My Answer: The United Nations profits from the world’s tragedies. The workers of the UN line their pockets with the money that “sticks to their hands” during the distribution of resources. This is why they’re interested in having the conflict continue and having Gaza remain impoverished, in order to steal from the resources released by their organizations.
As we can see, money is at the core of the whole conflict, and this is also why the current global crisis is economic in nature. This is exactly the kind of crisis that is capable of changing the entire world.
Related Material:
Laitman.com Post: How Do You Get the Wolf, Goat and Cabbage Across the River? (How Do You Solve the Global Crisis?)
Laitman.com Post: We Are Standing at the Threshold of an Extraordinary Discovery
Kabbalah Today Article: The Financial Crisis: Diagnosis and Cure
Fighting Terror the Right Way
From Chaos to Harmony: “The Crisis as an Opportunity to Restore Balance”
Daily Audio Version-MP3
Get the Weekly eNewsletter
Follow on Twitter
