The Genius' Guide to Kabbalah

The Genius’ Guide to Kabbalah
July 29, 2007 at 5:07 am · Filed under Disclosure of Kabbalah, Books, Altruism, Quotes

Kabbalah for idiots, genius’s, the poor, the tired…
A person can be old or young, have all sorts of qualities, be smart or foolish - this is not important. His soul operates beyond all these properties and its functioning does not depend on them. A person may not have a sharp mind, and still be a great Kabbalist, yet he also can be very successful, clever, but at the same time be an angry and rude person. more…

Happiness
Happiness does not always mean some event that puts a big smile on our faces. It means moving toward goals that help us live the kind of life we think is in our best interest at the time. So that is the sense in which our actions are always aimed at making ourselves “happy.” (p. 35, “The Pleasure and Pain Principle” from The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah)

Do You Really Want Spirituality?
A famous story about the Ari’s students demonstrates just how ripe the Ari believed the time was. One day he said to his students, “If we all go to Jerusalem [they were in a different city then], we will bring the end of correction, and reach the highest degree. We need only do it together.” Alas, most people couldn’t come: one had a sick child, another couldn’t come to terms with his wife and she wouldn’t let him go, and another just didn’t have the energy for such a long walk. They stayed in their town, and the end of correction stayed away from us. But the Ari believed that it was possible. (p. 55, “Debunking the Myths” from The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah)

Self-Examination
Kabbalists explain that all creations are sensing beings. In other words, all we have are our feelings and emotions. This is because the purpose of creation is for us to feel pleasure. Even our rationale exists only to justify, to rationalize our feelings. Therefore, if you want to study yourself, examine your emotions. See what gives you pleasure - you’ll be surprised, and not always pleasantly. (p. 160, “Kabbalah and Your Life” from The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah)

Body and Soul
It’s not the body that needs correction. It’s the soul. (p. 181, “Praying with Results” from The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah)

Altruism - Rising to the Challenge
In all this havoc of egoism, we are forgetting the roots of creation. We are one soul. It doesn’t matter how many innocent people die; we will still be one soul.
In writings that were given the name “The Last Generation,” Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag wrote that if we don’t change the course of events, we will experience a third and a fourth world war. The relics, he wrote, will still have to do the job and correct our egos. We must realize that there is a crisis, and we must deal with it in the only way possible: through rising to the level of nature’s altruism. (p. 245, “The Malady: Trapped in the Ego Cage” from The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah)
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MUSIC: Tzadik ke Tamar Ifrach

MUSIC: Tzadik ke Tamar Ifrach
July 27, 2007 at 7:00 am · Filed under Music Feature of the Week, Music
Listen to the file by clicking on the Flash player’s button below:
Tzadik ke Tamar Ifracha song by Baal HaSulam

1. Download Instrumental Version
2. Download Electronic Version performed by the band “Bnei Baruch”
3. Download Instrumental Version performed by the band “Bnei Baruch”
4. Download Vocal Version performed by Rabbi Baruch Shalom HaLevi Ashlag (Rabash)

Basically, there are two states in every song. One is the state of the Kli, the soul on which man has worked, corrected, and then attained delight and excitement; and he now sings from this delight.

This is why in Tzadik ke Tamar Ifrach there is a sensation of the previous state when one lacked fulfillment, suffered, and searched, and that he reached the state in which he knows that this is how it was supposed to be, because a righteous man eventually comes to justify the entire process through which he passed.

Thus, the rapture that comes from before being in the outermost oppositeness of sensing himself very distant from the Creator, and now entering the palace of the King, the Upper World, bursts out in his present state in the form of a melody—from within the sensation that fills him.

This sensation encompasses two opposite states: his previous, most distanced state that seems hopelessly far from the Upper, and the present state when he has reached adhesion with Him.
In essence, this song is special because what one is grateful for is not his state. Rather, one is grateful for being able to be righteous, meaning for being able to justify the Creator in all that happened to him on his path. Now he sees the causality and the pressing necessity of all the states that he passed. He understands that all of them were arranged for him from above so that he can attain this elevated state.

—Rav Michael Laitman, PhD in the film “Melodies of the Upper Worlds - Part 1.” See it at Kabbalah TV in the “Films” category. You may also download the film’s transcript here.
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Powerful Kabbalistic Quotes

Powerful Kabbalistic Quotes

July 26, 2007 at 7:00 am · Filed under Books, Thought of the Week, Quotes

Following are some quotes of prominent Kabbalists to help inspire you during your day or before you go to sleep. Read them one at a time, then contemplate. There is no rush; these quotes work best when you think about them for a while.

“All of man’s engagements are guided by a single, intrinsic premise, and the internality dresses within all people. It is what they referred to as “Nature,” whose numeric count is the same as Elokim (God). And this is the truth that the Creator concealed from the philosophers.”—Rabbi Moshe Chaim Lutzato (The Ramchal) (1707—1747), The Book of the War of Moses

“Man’s future will indeed come, in which he will evolve to such a sound spiritual state, that not only will every profession not hide another, but every science and every sentiment will reflect the entire scientific sea and the entire emotional depth, as this matter really is in the actual reality.”
—Rabbi Abraham Yitzhak HaCohen Kook (1865—1935), Orot Kodesh, A (Holy Lights, A)

“One who feels within, after several attempts, that one’s soul within is in peace only when engaging in the secrets of Torah, should know for certain that this is what one has been made for. Let no preventions—corporeal or spiritual—stop one from running to the source of one’s life and true wholeness.”
—Rabbi Abraham Yitzhak HaCohen Kook (1865—1935), Orot Kodesh, A (Holy Lights, A)

“The Torah was given to learn and to teach so that all will know the Lord, from least to greatest. We also find many books of Kabbalists alerting of the importance of the study of the wisdom that everyone must learn.”
—Rabbi Yitzhak Ben Tzvi Ashkenazi (???—1807), The Purity of Sanctity

“Indeed, if we set our hearts to answer but one very famous question, I am certain that all these questions and doubts will vanish from the horizon, and you will look unto their place to find them gone. This indignant question is a question that the whole world asks, namely, ‘What is the meaning of my life?’”
—Rabbi Yehuda Leib HaLevi Ashlag (Baal HaSulam) (1884—1954), The Study of the Ten Sefirot

“Even when one does not have the vessels, when one engages in this wisdom, mentioning the names of the Lights and the vessels related to one’s soul, they immediately shine upon us to a certain measure. However, they shine for him without clothing the interior of his soul for lack of the able vessels to receive them. Despite that, the illumination one receives time after time during the engagement draws upon one grace from above, imparting one with abundance of sanctity and purity, which bring one much closer to reaching perfection.”
—Rabbi Yehuda Leib HaLevi Ashlag (Baal HaSulam) (1884—1954), The Study of the Ten Sefirot
pp. 193-4, part “Kabbalah and Your Life,” chapter “Correction Is a Matter of Intention” in
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD with Collin Canright.

Share This July 26, 2007 at 7:00 am · Filed under Books, Thought of the Week, Quotes

Dope 'em or Answer Them

Dope ‘em or Answer Them

by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD

Is your child easily distracted, restless, eruptive, or even violent? Before you try chemicals to treat the symptoms, try answering the question that causes it -- what is the purpose of this life? The results can be truly astonishing.

To prepare this week’s column, I interviewed quite a few teachers, child-psychologists and parents. It seems that attention-deficit and hyperactivity-disorder are becoming increasingly abundant.One of the teachers told me that about a quarter of the students in his class (in what is considered a good school) take Ritalin on a regular basis. Moreover, even a superficial examination of today’s state of the youth will reveal a much deeper problem than a short attention span. It concerns the whole of the education system, that’s been going downhill for decades now.The summer holiday is a good opportunity to take a moment to reflect on the education system and the values we are passing on to our children.A Pleasure HuntDesire has always been the driving force that promoted humanity. Our desires make us move, search for improvements, and for new ways to satisfy our hunger for delights. For years we have been trying to satisfy our desires, but the more we eat, the hungrier we seem to get, and our desires intensify. Each generation comes into this world with a more evolved desire for pleasure than its forerunner, demanding new means for satisfaction.Yet, in our generation, something seems to have gone terribly wrong, as though a hidden string has snapped. Every area of life in today’s world is changing at meteoric speed, and our environment offers unprecedented wealth of opportunities. Yet, we find ourselves in the midst of a rat race chasing phantom goals that seem to grow farther the more we strain to achieve them.So what are youth really looking for? Today, after centuries of trial-and-error attempts, youth are seeking something deeper, truer than this world presently offers, something that can fill the chasm building up within them.The greatest Kabbalist of our time, Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag (Baal HaSulam), points out this phenomenon in his writings. He explains that it will only expand, since this chasm is a product of our need to know not how to have a better life, but to answer one simple question: What is life for?The Wisdom of the New GenerationAccording to the wisdom of Kabbalah, each generation is born with every desire, achievement, and disillusionment its preceding generations have experienced, already assimilated within it. In consequence, each generation is in a sense, an upgrade of the previous generation. In his article “The Peace” Baal HaSulam writes, “with regards to the souls, all generations since the beginning of creation… are as one generation that has extended its life over several thousand years.”Our youth, therefore, possess much greater drives and desires than do we. And assimilation of past knowledge doesn’t only mean that they master cell-phones and computers faster than we learned to play Marbles or Tag. It concerns much more substantial issues: they have a built-in desire to discover what they are living for. And when they can’t answer this question, they become restless, alienated, and depressed, and then we “diagnose” them as suffering from this or that disorder and prescribe them Ritalin.It is not that such phenomena exist within each youth. But a growing share of them find it increasingly difficult to find pleasure and challenges worth pursuing in the goals we, their parents, pursued. These youths become frustrated, depressed, and some take out their frustration in alcohol or drugs. But they are only trying to avoid the pain caused by the emptiness within them.The SolutionSo far, we have been treating youth in distress with the means we’ve always used -- primarily medications. Instead of treating the problem at its root, we are trying to suppress the symptoms, “fighting” the messenger, instead of trying to read the message. There is only so long we can sedate our children with superficial means. We need a substantial change in our education system and the values it promotes. Our children want to know what we are living for, and it’s on us to provide the answer. Because if not us, who?The key concept that should guide us in this process is “teach the youth according to the youth’s way.” Instead of trying to adapt the child into the patterns we have created or grew up with, we should try to adapt our education methods and curriculum to the changing needs of our children. We must try to find how best to turn our children into mature human beings -- human, in the full sense of the word.It is not the quantity of knowledge that a child absorbs that matters, it is the quality. It is imperative that when a child leaves the education system, he or she will be able to answer the essential question about life, which all youths ask. For this to happen, we must gradually incorporate content that explains human nature, the origin of our emotions and experiences, our role as individuals and as a society, and, first and foremost, the purpose that life is leading us to achieve.Reconnecting to Life’s SourceThe wisdom of Kabbalah states that only by knowing the hidden laws of nature will we discover the full picture of reality. One who discovers the force that operates behind the scenes, understands where life is headed and sees the consequences of each act that he or she decides to take (or to avoid). Kabbalah explains that our world seems narrow and unappealing because the spiritual part that has ripened within us, our soul, is still detached from life’s source. It states that reconnecting and removing this detachment will heal all sufferings.The growing disorientation, alienation, and detachment of youth are not a coincidence. They are here to induce a positive change in reality. If we connect our current reality with the solution offered by Kabbalah, we will discover the hidden piece that our children so desperately seek. And when this happens, they will not need any medications, since they will stop trying to escape reality. And lastly, they will feel that their parents and teachers are providing them with the tools to cope with life successfully.
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Baal HaSulam on Globalization

Baal HaSulam on Globalization
July 23, 2007 at 7:00 am · Filed under Globalization, World Peace, Articles
Baal HaSulam
Baal HaSulam:“Do not be surprised if I mix together the well-being of a particular collective with the well-being of the whole world, because indeed we have already come to such a degree that the whole world is considered one collective and one society. Meaning, because each person in the world sucks his life’s marrow and his livelihood from all the people in the world, he is coerced to serve and care for the well-being of the whole world.” (from the article “Peace in the World“)
Commentary by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD:That was written seventy years ago. Do you understand what Baal HaSulam felt back then, about the world he was living in? We didn’t have the Internet, and the kinds of media and transportation that we have today; who knew about all of that?
No one dreamt about it back then. We don’t have a single book from that time that speaks in those terms. But he wrote that we can already see the whole world is one small village, with globalization and everything. For him, it was a fact; not something that was yet to come, but that definitely had come.
All the Kabbalists earlier knew it had to come, but for him it was being realized. Because of this, he became coerced to care for the whole world, because the whole world appears to us as one system.
Rav Michael Laitman, PhD, from the December 2005 World Peace Lectures, lesson #6, 22-12-07. wmv video mp3 audio ms word transcript about the December 2005 World Peace lectures

Baal HaSulam on

Baal HaSulam on Globalization
July 23, 2007 at 7:00 am · Filed under Globalization, World Peace, Articles
Baal HaSulam
Baal HaSulam:“Do not be surprised if I mix together the well-being of a particular collective with the well-being of the whole world, because indeed we have already come to such a degree that the whole world is considered one collective and one society. Meaning, because each person in the world sucks his life’s marrow and his livelihood from all the people in the world, he is coerced to serve and care for the well-being of the whole world.” (from the article “Peace in the World“)
Commentary by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD:That was written seventy years ago. Do you understand what Baal HaSulam felt back then, about the world he was living in? We didn’t have the Internet, and the kinds of media and transportation that we have today; who knew about all of that?
No one dreamt about it back then. We don’t have a single book from that time that speaks in those terms. But he wrote that we can already see the whole world is one small village, with globalization and everything. For him, it was a fact; not something that was yet to come, but that definitely had come.
All the Kabbalists earlier knew it had to come, but for him it was being realized. Because of this, he became coerced to care for the whole world, because the whole world appears to us as one system.
Rav Michael Laitman, PhD, from the December 2005 World Peace Lectures, lesson #6, 22-12-07. wmv video mp3 audio ms word transcript about the December 2005 World Peace lectures

The Task of Disseminating Kabbalah: The Wisdom of Transformation

The Task of Disseminating Kabbalah: The Wisdom of Transformation
July 21, 2007 at 7:00 am · Filed under Humanity, Disclosure of Kabbalah, World Peace, Articles
And this task was said about Elijah the Prophet, because the disclosure of the secrets is always referred to as the disclosure of Elijah, as they have said, “let it rest until Elijah comes,” and also, “the Tishbi will answer the questions and problems.”
For this reason they said that three days (a known intimation) prior to the coming of the Messiah, Elijah would walk upon the hilltops and will blow in a great horn etc. You must understand these intimations, that that the horn is only the issue of the disclosure of the wisdom of the hidden in great masses, which is a necessary precondition that must be met prior to the complete redemption.
And the books that have already been revealed in this wisdom will testify to it, that matters of the greatest importance have been spread out like a gown for all to see, which is a true testimony that we are already at the threshold of redemption, and that the voice of the great horn has already been heard, though not in the distance because it still sounds very softly.
But indeed, any greatness requires prior smallness, and there is no great voice if it is not preceded by a soft sound, for this is the way of the horn, that it progressively grows.
Baal HaSulam, in his article “Messiah’s Horn,” taken from his book Ohr Bahir (Bright Light).
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"What is Kabbalah"

“What is Kabbalah?” Video Transcript:

Kabbalah is a method of attaining the spiritual world.
By engaging in it,
we develop an additional sense.
With the aid of this sense,
we create a connection with the Upper Worlds -
the system of forces guiding the reality we experience.

I study myself,
what my nature is,
what I can change in myself.

Step after step,stage after stage…
there’s nothing closer to me than this.
It’s not a study of something I have to do externally,
under external conditions.

All the experiments are conducted internally,
within me,
inside me.

Therefore,
Kabbalah is called “the hidden wisdom.”
Using it as a means,
I undergo inner transformations that only I know and feel.
They’re hidden from other peoples’ eyes.

Kabbalah speaks of what we still have not succeeded to perceive,
because it’s what we have no control over.
We can perceive what we don’t yet perceive,
only through true attainment in mind and feelings,
in our thoughts and in our desires,
and not out of theories and assumptions.

Kabbalah does not engage in visions and imagination,
nor is it mysticism or a new-age trend,
rather it’s a method by which a person can attain a higher awareness,
and attain spirituality.

This goal is reachable,
possible,
and essential for everyone.

If you have a desire for spirituality,
and you want something more than this life,
then you can,
with the wisdom of Kabbalah,
with this divine wisdom,
develop this desire,
and begin to feel spirituality within it.

Visit Bnei Baruch’s “What is Kabbalah?” page
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Soul Splitting

Soul Splitting
July 12, 2007 at 11:55 pm · Filed under Evolution, Articles, Kabbalah Today
Soul Splittingarticle in Kabbalah Today issue 5
Click here for the full article
Each of us is a piece in a puzzle that was once a single common soul. That soul was shattered into 7 billion pieces and now it is time for correction—to regroup the pieces.
In the Kingdom of DesireKabbalists tell us that we all come from one soul, called “the soul of Adam ha Rishon” (The First Man), which was created by the Creator. They also explain that the Creator’s nature is that of complete love and benevolence, and that He created the soul of Adam ha Rishon with an entirely opposite nature: a desire to receive delight and pleasure.
The task of the soul of Adam ha Rishon is to become similar to the nature of the Creator, becoming as loving and giving as Him. To the extent that the soul succeeds, it will be awarded the greatest pleasure in reality. more…
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Kabbalah and Philosophy

Kabbalah and Philosophy
July 15, 2007 at 8:18 am · Filed under Philosophy, Lectures, Perception of Reality, Daily Lessons, Uncategorized

From Today’s Daily Lesson
What is Spirituality?
Philosophy has gone through a great deal of trouble to prove that corporeality is the offspring of spirituality and that the soul begets the body. Still, their words are not acceptable to the heart in any manner. Their primary mistake is their erroneous perception of spirituality, that spirituality fathered corporeality, which is certainly a fib.
Opening paragraph from Baal HaSulam’s “The Wisdom of Kabbalah and Philosophy.”
Today’s daily lesson featured Baal HaSulam’s article “The Wisdom of Kabbalah and Philosophy” with commentary by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD, and with an onslaught of questions by the students of Bnei Baruch.
The lessons will be continuing daily at 10pm EST on Kabbalah TV, and will be available in the Kabbalah Media Archive.
Download the full lesson: wmv video mp3 audio
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VIDEO: To Be Happy with Everything (and Not Less)

VIDEO: To Be Happy with Everything (and Not Less)
July 18, 2007 at 10:17 am · Filed under Happiness, Video
To Be Happy with Everything (and Not Less) 02:48
To be happy, do we need to suppress or fulfill our desires? Rav Michael Laitman, PhD, in an interview with European MTV host Eden Harel, talks about increasing our ego so that it expands to contain the entire universe, and not just our small world of desires for money, honor, power, pride and (limited) knowledge.
Click here to view the video at Kabbalah TV
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Blocking the Hole in the Boat

Blocking the Hole in the Boat
July 19, 2007 at 7:40 am · Filed under Altruism, Thought of the Week, Quotes

What you do affects the whole, and vice versa. A Kabbalah story from Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai perfectly brings home the point. One of several people in a boat suddenly began to drill a hole in the bottom. His friend asked, “Why are you drilling?” the person drilling replied, “What business is it of yours? I am drilling under me, not under you.”
Because all humankind is connected into one system, the irresponsible egoists subject themselves and all the others to suffering. It is the transformation activated by Kabbalah that makes us see the irresponsible egoists in ourselves and transform them into responsible adults, altruists in Kabbalistic terms. more…
p. 260, chapter “Cure Me,” part “Kabbalah in Today’s World,” in The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD with Collin Canright.
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Kabbalistic Terminology: "Messiah"

Kabbalistic Terminology: “Messiah”
July 20, 2007 at 5:49 am · Filed under Kabbalistic Terminology, Definitions
Messiah (Moshiach, Heb.) n.
The messiah is a spiritual force. It is the Light that penetrates self-aimed human desires to correct them so that they become altruistic, that is to say, identical to those of the Creator. In our world all spiritual forces are manifested in material garments.
For example Rabbi Shimon, the Ari and Yehuda Ashlag (Baal HaSulam) represent a spiritual force radiating the Light of correction. This force appears in our world as a man, a Kabbalist, a professor, a book author. Therefore, the Messiah is a guide who becomes progressively accepted by humanity. Humanity will follow the path pointed by the Messiah because evil and suffering will be felt by all, and there will be no other way out. People stand on a level where they cannot imagine the coming of the Messiah as a Light but only as a human leader. But for Kabbalists, the Messiah is the spiritual force of correction (in the image of the world of AB SAG).
Rav Michael Laitman, PhD in “Selected Topics in Kabbalah“
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Life - whose it it?

Life - whose is it?
Column: Kabbalah.info
Rav Michael Laitman ReligionAndSpirituality.com
July 9, 2007
Millions of people are starving in Third World countries, and billions others don't have enough to eat or even clean drinking water. Their lives are so much harder than Westerners' lives that it's a wonder that they even endure. In the West, people don't suffer from such problems: They are generally healthy, generally wealthy, and their futures are (generally) secured. But Westerners have their own problems, the first of which is depression. Despite the high standard of living, depression is the fastest spreading illness in the West. According to an official brochure by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH): "Depressive disorders make one feel exhausted, worthless, helpless, and hopeless. Such negative thoughts and feelings make some people feel like giving up." Indeed, the startling suicide rates all over the Western world prove that more and more people are giving up, although they seemingly have everything. If we compared the lives of Westerners to the lives of those living in Third World countries, we'd expect the contrary: that those in the West would try to make the most out of the opportunities they have, and that those in poorer countries would be in despair. Isn't it strange that once we have everything, we throw it all away, including our lives? Whose life is my life? To understand this apparent paradox, we need a broader perspective. The fact of the matter is that today, as the seven-continent-wide show Live Earth so beautifully demonstrated, we are all interdependent. To save our own lives, and the lives of our children, we need to cooperate. However, we will not want to cooperate unless we know what for. We need to understand the reason we exist, the meaning of our lives, and from that derive motivation for positive global action. According to the wisdom of Kabbalah, our interdependency stems from the "oneness" concept, from the fact that we are not only interdependent, but are all one entity. Our faces may seem different, but underneath our skins we are quite similar. If we hadn't been similar, modern medicine would not be possible. The deeper you dive into matter, the more similar the elements become. Thus, if you analyze the particles that make up each atom, you'll find only two basic elements — the nucleus and the electrons surrounding it. The most basic building blocks of life, all of life, are the same. And they are not only the same, but materials constantly exchange elements, electrons, which brings contemporary physicists to state that at the most fundamental level of nature, we are all literally one. If we comprehend that, we will see that understanding the meaning of our lives, as well as achieving well-being, is not so much a question of what I do for me, but more of how I interact with the whole world and for all of humanity. The meaning of life The oneness concept was first discovered by ancient Kabbalists some 5,000 years ago, but is today a proven scientific fact. This concept tells us that life's purpose is not a personal thing; it is a comprehensive, "panoramic" perception of all that exists. According to the wisdom of Kabbalah, only when we transcend our selves, our egos, do we achieve life's meaning, since only then do we see the "big picture," that is, our own place in the comprehensive picture of creation. It is only then that we understand why we are born and what we need to do in this life. To understand the meaning of life, we need to achieve such a sensation of the universe that there will be no difference between life and death, and existence as physical entities or spiritual entities. If we could freely live in all dimensions, earthly and spiritual, and not just in our present perception, we would know that we truly are eternal. In such a state of mind, one's own life becomes as meaningful as another's. There can be no animosity among people, because all people are one. Rivalry would be tantamount to a kidney trying to dominate the liver. In such a state of existence, each person becomes God-like, fully responsible for the whole of reality, and fully aware of everything that is happening within it, at any place and at any time. Indeed, Kabbalah states that life's meaning lies in its purpose — to make all creations be like God — eternal, omnipotent and omniscient. Kabbalists call it "equivalence of form." This is the real Live Earth show. — — — Rav Michael Laitman, Ph.D. in philosophy and M.Sc. in biocybernetics, is founder and president of Bnei Baruch — Kabbalah Education and Research Institute in Tel Aviv — and the author of 30 books on the subject. His daily lessons are aired live on global television and the Internet. He has an extensive website on Kabbalah and his email address is laitman@kabbalah.info. © copyright 2007 by Michael Laitman.
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Happiness Pursuit

Happiness Pursuit
July 4, 2007 at 11:41 am · Filed under Articles, Perception of Reality, World Peace, Evolution, Humanity, Happiness
Everyone’s Pursuit of HappinessAn article linking themes from the film The Pursuit of Happyness to everyone’s life.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with inherent and inalienable rights; that among these, are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
Thomas Jefferson, final draft for the United States Declaration of Independence.
“The idea that it’s ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,’ and not ‘life, liberty and happiness’ is that the elusive nature of happiness is such that all someone can ever give to you is the opportunity to pursue.”
Will Smith on Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness (taken from The Pursuit of Happyness official site)
The Pursuit of Happiness
The Pursuit of Happyness is a film about Chris Gardner (played by Will Smith), a man who in unfortunate circumstances (homeless and financially insecure) struggled to earn financial and domestic stability for himself and his son. The Pursuit of Happyness has been received warmly by the American public as an inspirational tale of determination, courage and hard work (i.e. the pursuit of happiness), that by using these qualities one can achieve a better life (i.e. achieve happiness).
“Happiness” is portrayed in this film as a better state than what we already have, and “the pursuit of happiness” is the path we must endure to achieve happiness. In particular, Chris Gardner defines happiness as a state of financial and domestic stability for himself and his son. We can all relate to this goal, especially if we already have these comforts, and look upon being homeless as a lesser standard of life that must be overcome.
The Problem with the Pursuit of Happiness
A major problem with us today is that many of us already have these comforts, but still aren’t happy. We have our security, and simply living securely isn’t good enough and we want more.
Ironically, if Chris Gardner were already living securely, with a comfortable home, good job and family, and strove to make more money for a bigger house and a flashier car, and then if he continued fiercely striving for more power and respect, we would no longer consider this an inspiring story of determination and courage, but one of ambitiousness and greed.
Such a story is more characteristic of The Godfather than The Pursuit of Happyness! However, in both cases and in every area of human life, we can conclude that everyone is involved in this very same aspiration to a better state of life, in the pursuit of happiness.
What is at the Source of the Pursuit of Happiness?
This common pursuit of happiness is that we all view our current situation as lacking something, and need to work (we need to pursue…) in order to fulfill this lack (we need to pursue happiness). Right now, take a moment to think about what you want. Just by thinking about it, you’re already feeling that you are lacking this thing and you need to do something to achieve it.
This brings us to the question: What is at the source of this pursuit of happiness? What makes us happy?
That one person pictures to himself a secure family life as happiness, and another pictures love for another person as happiness, and another pictures a huge amount of wealth and power as happiness, and for another it’s a new dress, CD, car or gadget… to all this we can pose a conclusion: that it is not the money, the respect, the power, the food, or anything that we picture to ourselves that makes us happy… that before all these things, we have desires for them—we want them—and only the moment when we fulfill our desires is when we feel happiness.
Now that we understand that it is not money, food, family, sex, knowledge, honor, power or any physical thing we can picture to ourselves that makes us happy, but the act of fulfilling our desires, we can start learning how to also take part in this pursuit of happiness, directly at its source—desire and its fulfillment.
Where am I and Where are Others in the Pursuit of Happiness?
The thing with all these desires is that none of them leave us with a true feeling of happiness. Why? It is because precisely at the moment when we fulfill them, they disappear. New desires then enter us and force us to pursue their demands. It is as if we are constantly in the pursuit of happiness, and we either never reach happiness, or the moment we do, it immediately slips through our fingers.
The reason for this is because the whole time we are only trying to fulfill one person—me. In other words, our desires are all self-aimed, and can never be lastingly fulfilled. However, we constantly find ourselves yearning toward something better, something lasting and eternal, and feel that somehow, somewhere, it has to exist.
The trick to achieving true happiness is precisely the opposite of what we’re accustomed to thinking: we cannot achieve true happiness by trying to fulfill our own desires, but only through pursuing the fulfillment of others’ desires. In other words, we need to feel that the more others are happy, the more we are happy. We need a desire that grows and expands when it is fulfilled, drawing more and more fulfillment, and through this desire I feel happiness from making others happy. This is a desire for unlimited, endless happiness. We all have this desire, but we just don’t know how to fulfill it yet; we don’t know how to pursue it.
If we return to what Will Smith said at the beginning of the article, that “the elusive nature of happiness is such that all someone can ever give to you is the opportunity to pursue”—the wisdom of Kabbalah is the method which gives us the opportunity to achieve unlimited happiness. It is a time-tested method of discovering happiness fulfilling others, and guides us in learning how precisely to fulfill others so that they will become happier and happier. Our happiness then multiplies by the amount that we are able to fulfill others and make them happier.
To find out more about this desire for unlimited happiness and how to fulfill it, check out the following videos and links:
Why Am I Never Satisfied? 04:37Our inborn egoistic state never allows us to be completely satisfied. Perceiving Reality describes what we should do with our ego in order to experience boundless, complete and ever-expanding satisfaction.Click here to view the video at Kabbalah TV

Youth Suicide and Depression is only cured by the Correct Education

Youth Suicide and Depression is only cured by the Correct Education
June 26, 2007 at 11:07 pm · Filed under Articles, Suicide, Depression, Education
Millions of young people suffer from suicidal tendencies, depression and drug addiction because they’re hopeless. A medicine cabinet filled with anti-depressants isn’t going to help; they need real answers.
by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD
According to the World Health Organization, someone around the globe commits suicide every 40 seconds. In the year 2000 (a long time ago, but things have only worsened since), 815,000 people lost their lives to suicide — more than double the number of people who die as a direct result of armed conflict every year (306,600). For people between the ages of 15 and 44, suicide is the fourth leading cause of death and the sixth leading cause of disability and infirmity worldwide. Also, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, “Combined 2004 and 2005 data indicate that 8.88 percent of youths aged 12 to 17 and 7.65 percent of adults aged 18 or older experienced at least one major depressive episode (MDE) in the past year.”
Millions of people the world over, and especially the younger generation, are committing suicide or suffering from suicidal tendencies, depression, drug addiction and violence because they’re hopeless. They have real questions and they need real answers, and there is no one to provide them with answers except us — the parents.
In his book “Man’s Search for Meaning,” Viktor Frankl quotes Friedrich Nietzsche as saying that “He who has a strong enough why can bear almost any how.” more…
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New Kabbalistic Texts for Download

New Kabbalistic Texts for Download
June 27, 2007 at 10:47 pm · Filed under Articles, Shamati, Altruism, World Peace, Lectures
Altruism is Life’s Principle - The evolution of desires from our egoistic foundation in this world to our altruistic destiny in the Upper World. Rav Michael Laitman, PhD, commentates (with Q&A) on his article “Crisis and Resolution,” prepared for the 4th World Spirit Forum, January 2006. Peace in the World - Correction of the individual and the correction of the whole of humanity are discussed with the aim of actualizing world peace in the soonest time possible. Commentary by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on Baal HaSulam’s article “Peace in the World.” Q&A with BB USA Students - Rav Laitman answers question from BB students digging into how to cross the barrier between this world and the spiritual world, determining truth against falseness, the role of mistakes in the spiritual work, what it means to achieve the level of “love thy neighbor as thyself,” dealing with Klipot (shells) in the correction process, and other inner-work-related questions. What Does It Mean that the Creator Hates the Bodies in the Work? - Fighting the will to receive and the inner war on desire in the spiritual work is discussed by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD in this 3rd commentary on Baal HaSulam’s 19th Shamati article. Lishma - An investigation on what it means to work in Lishma (i.e. for the sake of the Creator), and advice on how to attain this spiritual degree. Rav Michael Laitman, PhD teaches based on Baal HaSulam’s 20th Shamati article. The Profit of a Land - The work of attaining the Creator’s nature - bestowal - through the discovery of the creature’s opposite nature - reception - and the request for its correction. Commentary by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on Baal HaSulam’s 34th Shamati article. The Fear of God is His Treasure - The work of cancelling oneself before the Creator and the obstacle of pride in the spiritual work, with advice for how to correct its use. Commentary by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on Baal HaSulam’s 38th Shamati article. Love for the Creator, Love for the Created Beings - Creation’s final state of the reconnected soul of Adam ha Rishon, bonded in eternal adhesion with the Creator, with the quality of absolute, unconditional love as the quality needed for the attainment of this state. Commentary by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on the article “Love for the Creator, Love for the Created Beings” by Baal HaSulam.
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Between Man and Woman

Between Man and Woman
July 2, 2007 at 9:41 am · Filed under Love, Gender
If you look at the spiritual roots of man and woman, you will find it amazing that we can even see each other, much less communicate. So what can we do? Just that - communicate, but do it right, for a change.
In the film What Women Want, Nick Marshall (Mel Gibson) is a chauvinistic womanizer who suddenly, by an unusual accident, gains a unique ability: to “hear” women’s thoughts. As a result, Nick becomes a man who can fulfill women’s wishes even before they ask him to. In the hands of a womanizer, this “talent” will more than likely be misused; but what man would not like to know women’s thoughts so he could (finally) understand them, and what woman would not like her man to fulfill her wishes before she even asks?
So how come men and women are so different? Biologically, the only difference between the sexes is a single chromosome. Can such a tiny difference explain such a chasm? And even if it can, is there a difference for such a difference in the personalities and modes of thoughts between men and women? Couldn’t the physical difference suffice for the continuation of the species? Why can’t we understand each other if we are meant to raise our offspring together? Wouldn’t it make more sense if nature made us understand each other’s needs? more…
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The Purpose of Egoism

Interview between Rav Michael Laitman, PhD and Vladimir Molchanov
June 30, 2007 at 11:22 pm · Filed under Perception of Reality, Society, What is Kabbalah?, Disclosure of Kabbalah, Anti-Semitism, Interviews

Journalist and anchorman Vladimir Molchanov interviews Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on the purpose of egoism, the situation with Israel in relation to its neighboring Muslim countries, the restoration of Nazi regimes, the behavior and practise of religious leaders, the increase of hatred, Kabbalah as a supranational concept, how Rav Laitman began studying Kabbalah, the laws of nature, the use of science in the world and its relation to Kabbalah, the spiritual root of political unacceptance of drug legalization, Kabbalah’s view on new-age gurus and movements, Zephath as a Kabbalistic center, Kabbalah’s view on amulets and icons as symbols of faith, the upbringing and education of children, the reason for Kabbalah’s widespread dissemination today and the sixth sense.
Click here to read full interview
This is a section of the interview, on the laws of nature:
V. Molchanov: You claim that there exist objective laws of society, and no one, including Bush or Stalin, can do anything. What are these laws? Are the millions of people who were destroyed by Stalin and Hitler a consequence of these objective laws? Do they fall into these laws?
Rav Laitman: Unfortunately, yes. If we talk about laws, we need to part from our feelings. We just need to learn what happens with the forces that influence our world.
The picture is the following: a single, all-encompassing and absolutely altruistic force directing humanity toward equivalence with it. Like any physical force, it performs actions without taking our feelings into account. This is the state we are in.
You are talking about a kind God, feelings, and the fact that He takes care of His creatures. There is no such thing. Objective laws of nature are described in Kabbalistic sources, as well as in my books and our translations, which are all recitations of old books. A scientific description of Kabbalistic knowledge was first done in the times of ancient Babylon, when Sefer Yetzira (The Book of Creation) was written. This whole conception, the whole scheme of Upper governance, is already described there.
If we look at what is happening to us from aside, not like creatures that experience various feelings and suffering, we will see that it is the influence of forces. And they will continue to lead us further ahead in this manner. If we don’t come to understand them, and if we don’t begin to know precisely how to act, like in physics or chemistry, how to implement and realize these laws with a benefit to us, we will continue to suffer further. more…
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