Australian BB Kabbalah Group

Youmankind

2009-01-03T13:41:00.001+11:00

Free Kabbalah Course - Bnei Baruch Learning Centre

2008-11-05T00:10:00.001+11:00

GENERAL STRUCTURE OF THE FACTORY

2008-06-16T21:12:00.003+10:00

GENERAL STRUCTURE OF THE FACTORY

*Content - the creation of all possible kinds of Kabbalah material in all possible media forms.

*Transcription
*Translation
*Editing
*Writing
*Second Life
*Laitman.com
*Kabbalah.info
*Kabbalah Newsletter –
*Kab.tv Newsletter
*Kab.tv
*Kabbalahblog.info
*Kabtoday.com
*Kabbalah Today Newspaper
*Books
*Video
*Sound
*Music
*Radio
*Women
*Children

*Education – the production of lessons and courses for regular students.

*ARI Online Curriculum
*Arionline.info
*ARI Broadcasting Infrastructure

*Internet Dissemination – promoting our content through all possible Internet channels.

*Video Submission
*Article Submission
*Social Bookmarking
*StumbleUpon
*Facebook
*MySpace
*Squidoo
*Yahoo! Answers
*Video Promotion
*Blogging
*Commenting
*Forums
*Web Directories
*AdWords
*Bit Torrent

*Physical Dissemination – the management of all types of physical dissemination (circulation of books, newspapers, local events etc.)

*Kabbalah Today Subscriptions
*Books Distribution
*Events

*HR – the management of all human resources that serve our dissemination to the English

*Finance – the management of our monetary resources and fundraising activities.

*Miscellaneous

*Representation
*PR
*Copyrights and Legal Issues
*Administration
*IT
*Web Design / Dev.

Kabbalistic depiction of a Kli(Vessel)

2008-06-16T20:46:00.001+10:00

file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Administrator/My%20Documents/BB/Images/2007-10-06_125944.pdf

Kabbalistic depiction of a Kli(Vessel)

Discussion on Dissemination Ideas May 2008

2008-06-10T00:29:00.003+10:00

Discussion on Dissemination Ideas:
1. Radio program:
• Music, skits, Q&A;
• Kevin to obtain air-time, perhaps a 3 hour session;
• Kevin to line up interviews with other radio stations.
2. Television:
• Debates on topical issues;
• Morning shows during breaks;
• Q&A
3. Community involvement:
• The Magician to be read at libraries;
• Create packs for new mothers;
• Art class- mums and bubs, art in general eg theme on unity.
4. Leverage off celebrity culture.
5. Commentaries:
• Short commentaries on topical issues from the Kabbalah’s perspective;
• Movie review from a Kabbalah perspective eg The Matrix.
6. Internet:
• link to sites where help is required, eg beyond blue, cases of domestic violence, etc. Eg refer to neutral article on ritilin on www.laitman.com;
• back-linking.
7. Kabbalah paraphernalia with website address: bumper stickers; car stickers; t-shirts; caps/ hats; pens; stickers.
8. Purchase machine that prints Kabbalah paraphernalia.
9. Introduce books to libraries.
10. Approach new-age bookshops, hospitals, prisons.
11. Bookcrossing.com- free book giveaway.
12. Hot air balloon.
13. Video games: Flashgame- need a concept, needs to be exciting. Note BB is currently working on this project.
14. Attend huge media event holding the plaque with our website address.
15. Advertising on yachting sails.
16. Kabbalah van: houses books, brochures, music.
Paint an old van and park this at Bondi Beach- parking permit required;
Create a banner and place on van (instead of painting the van).
17. Design a competition for schools/ students eg how does your study contribute to the meaning of life.
31 May 2008

The Bible - Explained by Kabbalah

2008-03-04T12:06:00.000+11:00

Kabbalah Explains the Bible
Article in Kabbalah Today Issue 12

What does it take to author the greatest bestseller of all time? Apparently, it takes as much as discovering a world where there are no words at all, and finding words from our world to describe it. more…

The Creator and The Creation - a Collection of Authentic Kabbalah Inspirations

2008-02-25T23:51:00.000+11:00

The inspirations contained in this book are derived from the works of authentic Kabbalists. Meaning, only Kabbalists who actually attained the spiritual levels of which they speak. The truth in these inspirations is clearly evident to those seeking the answer to the question, “What is my purpose?”

The Creator and The Creation: A Collection of Authentic Kabbalah Inspirations - compiled by Rob Taylor

Together Forever - a Story for Children and Parents by Michael Laitman

2008-02-24T01:36:00.000+11:00

February 22, 2008 at 9:03 am · Filed under Books, Kabbalistic Stories
Together Forever
A Story for Children & Parents by Michael Laitman

In Together Forever, the author tells us that if we are patient and endure the trials we encounter along our life’s path, we will become stronger, braver, and wiser. Instead of growing weaker, we will learn to create our own magic and our own wonders as only a magician can.

In this warm, tender tale, Michael Laitman shares with children and parents alike some of the gems and charms of the spiritual world. The wisdom of Kabbalah is filled with spellbinding stories. Together Forever is yet another gift from this ageless source of wisdom, whose lessons make our lives richer, easier, and far more fulfilling.

Together Forever by Michael Laitman
* Free PDF eBook Download
* Purchase Hard-Cover Book at the Kabbalah Bookstore

Love, Deciphered

2008-02-24T01:32:00.001+11:00

Love - the Unifying Factor Between All Elements in Reality
February 20, 2008 at 5:39 am · Filed under Kabbalah Today, Love
Article in Kabbalah Today Issue 12

Kabbalists explain that there’s a reason why we feel best precisely when we experience “this thing called love”: because what we feel towards another person somewhat corresponds to the innate quality of Nature.

By feeling love, we gain contact with the positive quality that invigorates and binds all parts of reality. Kabbalah calls this quality “love” or “bestowal,” and explains that it is the unifying factor between all the elements in reality: minerals, plants, and animals, as well as all the experiences in man’s inner world. more…

The Hidden Laws Between Us

2008-02-20T13:41:00.001+11:00

Everyone knows that we are affected by the laws of nature. For example, take the law of gravity. It is invisible and imperceptible, but it is always affecting us. It’s simply a part of our lives, whether we notice it or not. And the same can be said about all other physical laws.

Moreover, there’s been a lot of talk about other kinds of forces acting in the world, such as the power of thought and intention. Many scientists and philosophers are noticing that these non-physical forces also follow specific laws, and that thinking in a certain way has specific effects on one’s life and well-being.

But what many people don’t realize is that our relationships in the social realm are also affected by permanent and absolute natural laws. Just like the invisible laws of gravity and electromagnetism are always affecting our bodies, there are invisible laws of Nature that constantly affect our human interactions.

What would happen if you tried to ignore the law of gravity and jumped off a cliff? Something not very pretty. Kabbalah explains that in the same way, all our problems in life are caused by the fact that we unknowingly transgress natural laws of a higher order. Hence, we could avoid most problems if we learned about the higher laws of Nature, the invisible forces that regulate our human relationships.

Since we do not know the laws of Nature that regulate human relationships, we think that we can do as we please in this realm. We invent our own rules of relating to each other and establish arbitrary education systems, social institutions and systems of government. But in fact, for all these systems to function flawlessly and to our benefit, we have to study the natural laws of the social realm and build our systems accordingly.

The wisdom of Kabbalah studies the social laws, and other laws that are concealed from our five senses. When one begins studying this wisdom and learns about the laws of Nature, one discovers that they operate only to benefit him and then, naturally desires to comply with them.

What makes one want to act in harmony with the hidden laws of Nature? Kabbalah explains that they influence us with just one purpose: to elevate us to the state of eternity and perfection. In that state, all people act as parts of one integral body, in which they feel the innate quality of Nature itself - complete, unconditional bestowal.

Presently we don’t feel these laws, and therefore we think that our lives are progressing from one coincidence to another. But if we felt the forces of Nature that constantly drive us toward a single, exalted goal, we would know that nothing is coincidental and that our lives are systematically moving toward Nature’s goal. This goal is described by the great Kabbalist of the 20th century, Baal HaSulam, as "The revelation of His Godliness to His creatures in this world."

Bnei Baruch, http://www.kabbalah.info/ is the largest group of Kabbalists in Israel, sharing the wisdom of Kabbalah with the entire world. Study materials in over 25 languages are based on authentic Kabbalah texts that were passed down from generation to generation.

Kabbalah Says: There Is No Coercion in Spirituality

2008-02-20T13:35:00.000+11:00

This What’s it like to be a Kabbalist? Can you see through walls? Do you live in seclusion, meditating all day and using just the barest necessities? Can you manipulate other people’s thoughts and feelings? Can you stop a train with just your thoughts?

The fact is that a Kabbalist’s only concern is to be in harmony with the force that enlivens the whole of reality, called “Upper Light.” When one gains contact with this Upper Light, one changes from within and begins to feel new sensations. Actually, what one feels are the qualities that are present in the Upper Light – qualities of love, bestowal, perfection, and eternity. The Kabbalist’s relationship with the Upper Light is called the “Upper World,” a realm beyond time and space.

As a result of the Kabbalist’s internal changes, his relation toward others also changes. He naturally begins to feel love toward other people, as if they were his kin. This is because he is occupied with his relationship with the Upper Light, and since the Upper Light is all love and bestowal, the Kabbalist naturally adopts these qualities as well.

However, this isn’t something that you will necessarily be able to discern on the outside. A Kabbalist doesn’t change because someone teaches him how to behave and preaches moral principles to him, or because he reads about “proper behavior.” Any changes in his attitude occur naturally, without any coercion or external instruction.

Kabbalah maintains that any teaching or activity that restrains a person is faulty. We cannot enforce any kind of behavior on people, since this is simply ineffective. Therefore, Kabbalistic education does not try to suppress any of our habits or preferences. Rather, Kabbalah guides a person on how to achieve balance and harmony with Nature from within, and only if the person desires this. Through Kabbalah, one learns about the qualities of the Upper Light, how to gain contact with it, and how to become similar to it.

Therefore, there is no coercion in teaching people the wisdom of Kabbalah. When Rav Kook, the great 20th century Kabbalist, was asked who could study Kabbalah, his answer was: “Anyone who wants to.” And in fact, it also works the other way around: You can’t really study Kabbalah if you don’t desire it; because what you study - the connection with the Upper Light - is felt specifically through your desire. So it would be incorrect to urge anyone to study, since it can’t bear any fruit.

Today, Kabbalah is available to all, and anyone who wishes is able to learn about the Upper Light, its qualities, and how to achieve harmony with it.

Kabbalah Has Come out of Hiding

2008-02-20T13:32:00.000+11:00

Kabbalists explain that the wisdom of Kabbalah has been waiting in concealment for millennia until the present time, when it would be revealed. This is because in previous generations the bulk of humanity was not interested in finding out, “What is the purpose of life?” Whereas now, many people are asking this question and are ready to study the wisdom of Kabbalah, which answers it.

But if Kabbalah wasn’t really necessary until the present day, then why did it emerge thousands of years ago? Why wasn’t it discovered in the modern age, the way quantum physics is being discovered only now?

In fact, the first Kabbalistic knowledge was received about 5700 years ago by a man named Adam. He was one of many people who lived on earth at that time, and he differed from other people in that he felt a desire for spirituality. Twenty generations after him, about 3800 years ago, an inhabitant of ancient Mesopotamia named Abraham became the next person to search for answers and to attain the spiritual world.

Why was the presence of such special individuals in history necessary? After all, the rest of humanity didn’t really ask about the purpose of its existence. It’s only recently that many people have begun looking to the wisdom that those special individuals have developed – the wisdom of Kabbalah. So why did Kabbalists appear so long ago? Why couldn’t they simply emerge today, when others are more receptive to their knowledge?

Kabbalah explains that these special, spiritually developed individuals were necessary in each generation because the wisdom of Kabbalah had to be revealed in different forms over time. It had to be adapted to humanity’s development in each period of time. While most people were not aware of it, those individual Kabbalists were accomplishing tremendous work, researching the universe and their own attitude to reality. In doing so, they perfected the Kabbalistic method from one generation to the next, so that it could reach the modern era as a modern, scientific method of studying the spiritual world.

This is why Kabbalah had to originate in the ancient world, in a simple, archaic form, the way it is revealed in the book Raziel HaMalach (The Angel Raziel), by the first Kabbalist, Adam. Other Kabbalists in subsequent generations adapted it to the changing times, and eventually the descendants of the ancient group of Kabbalists formed by Abraham, dispersed bits of this wisdom throughout the whole world. As a result, Kabbalah was developed in the midst of mankind, albeit in concealment, incorporating the atmosphere of its surroundings in order to become suitable for all of humanity.

Interestingly, the gradual development of Kabbalah throughout history indirectly spurred the development of all humanity in other realms, such as the technological, social and scientific progress. How so? Without our awareness, Kabbalistic knowledge spread throughout the world, permeating all of mankind, and increased our latent desire to connect to the source of our existence, the Creator. This innermost desire we have pushes us forward in everything we do. So for instance, the love songs we write, the works of art we create, and even our scientific research, are all ways for us to express our latent desire toward the Creator.

But the actual wisdom of Kabbalah is intended only for spiritual development, and this is what is now starting to happen for the first time in history. Kabbalists have finally come out of hiding and are openly teaching this wisdom to all. This marks the final point of Kabbalah’s development, and the beginning point of its practical application. Using Kabbalah, any person, regardless of age, gender, religion, or nationality can reveal the spiritual world – a world of perfection, eternity, infinity, and boundless joy.

History of Kabbalah: The Story of The Book of Zohar

2008-02-20T13:29:00.000+11:00

History of Kabbalah: The Story of The Book of Zohar by Bnei Baruch

Zohar means Radiance, and The Book of Zohar is the fundamental book in the wisdom of Kabbalah. It is the key enabling one to reveal the spiritual part of the universe, hidden to our five senses, and the Upper Force that governs everything and brings everything into being.
It was written by Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, or Rashbi, a great Kabbalist who lived in the 2nd century CE. Rashbi attained all the wisdom that was to be recorded in The Book of Zohar while hiding from the hostile Roman authorities in a cave in Northern Israel. Together with his son Rabbi Elazar, Rashbi spent 13 years living in this cave, eating fruits of a carob tree and drinking water from a nearby source. In that time, the father and son had attained all the degrees of the spiritual world, and were able to feel the Upper Force or the Creator with utter clarity.

13 years later, Rabbi Shimon and his son reemerged from the cave, assembled a group of disciples, and wrote The Book of Zohar along with them. Kabbalah explains that ten men were necessary to write this unique book, because their souls corresponded to ten spiritual forces called "Sefirot." Only together were they able to create the common spiritual vessel able to perceive the highest degrees of the spiritual world.

Therefore, when The Book of Zohar describes Rabbi Shimon and his students, it actually refers to the qualities that exist in the spiritual world. The ten sages had attained these spiritual qualities through their souls and were able to record them in a book.

The book was written in a special way. Rashbi knew that the text had to conceal its spiritual content, because this information was intended for those who would live two millennia later--us. This is why he had one of his students, Rabbi Aba, write it. Rabbi Aba was able to put the spiritual information in a concealed manner. He wrote The Book of Zohar by listening to Rashbi and recording what he said in a way that an uninformed reader could comprehend only the shallowest, most external layer of the text. For instance, here is how the book starts: Rabbi Chizkiyah opened, "It is written, as the rose amongst the thorns." The text is beautiful and poetic, yet requires a spiritual attainment in order to decipher its true meaning.

Hence, when we read The Book of Zohar without the needed preparation, it appears as a series of fantastical tales and legends. And to learn how to read it properly, we should start with the writings of Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag, also called Baal HaSulam, after his Sulam (Ladder) commentary on The Book of Zohar. Baal HaSulam composed a comprehensive, accurate, and systematic interpretation of The Book of Zohar. His goal was to unveil the book to the public and make it suitable for the souls of our time.

The Book of Zohar was to be concealed for two thousand years, waiting for humanity to desire spirituality. And this is happening in our time, when more and more people are asking about the purpose of their very existence. That is why The Zohar is now becoming revealed to all by the great Kabbalists who have concealed it until now.

Kabbalah on Love, Marriage and Family

2008-02-17T03:12:00.001+11:00

Kabbalah on Love, Marriage and Family
February 15, 2008 at 5:51 am · Filed under Family, Love, Marriage

Rav Michael Laitman, PhD discusses love, marriage and family in a talk with the principle instructors of the Russian Kabbalah Academy, Michael Sanilevich and Yevgeniy Litvar.

Topics covered in this talk:
* What is love?
* About jealousy
* Love means giving yourself to others
* How can one learn to love?
* Condition of love
* Who invented marriage?
* What is the purpose of a family?
* Who dominates in a family?
* About biblical commandments

Read the Full Talk “On Love and Marriage”

Kabbalah Explains The Spiritual DNA

2008-01-01T02:00:00.000+11:00

All of us know about the DNA inside our bodies, containing genetic instructions for our biological development. Basically, it is a set of informational data that gives orders to our bodies about how to develop and when. But how is that connected to Kabbalah, you might ask?

Kabbalah says we have more than just physical DNA inside us. We also have a spiritual one, called Reshimo. And just like the physical DNA, the Reshimo is a set of information inside of us. The Reshimo can be described as a spiral of information that gradually unravels, causing us to change and develop at every single moment.

This is how it works: every new moment for us is, in fact, a new Reshimo that surfaces within us. As soon as it does, we suddenly feel different from the previous moment, see different things around us, and experience the phenomenon of time going by. As soon as we’ve gone through the experience that the present Reshimo directs us to go through, a following, completely new Reshimo comes to the surface and we suddenly feel that time moves forward another instant, along with all the inner and outer changes we experience.

But there's more. Kabbalah explains that the spiritual gene, the Reshimo, has a purpose. It directs our spiritual development toward a single goal: to connect to the force that binds all parts of Creation, the Creator. This means that eventually, we will reach a state where we will feel and understand the very force that sustains our existence and created us to begin with. This goal is described in Kabbalah as adhesion with the Creator.

Hence, throughout the generations, and from one year to the next, it's not only our technology, culture and science that develop. We also develop internally or spiritually, coming closer to adhesion with the Creator. In fact, it's our spiritual development that induces all our corporeal innovations and achievements. How?

As described above, the unraveling of the Reshimo makes us constantly find ourselves in new states of development, both personally and globally. We begin wanting higher living standards than before, better technology, a more refined culture, and so on. Kabbalah explains that this is happening because behind the scenes, the Reshimo ceaselessly propels our desires to grow, and that is why we constantly want new things. Hence, precisely our spiritual development has brought about our external progress, that is, everything we have achieved in technology, culture and science.

Kabbalah explains that the Creator created us along with the Reshimo that guides our development, so that we will eventually reach His state. The interesting thing is that the only thing that changes and develops is us, while the force called Creator remains unchanging - it is in a state of complete perfection. Therefore, somewhat ironically, the purpose of all our movement and development is to reach that same perfect state of absolute rest as the Creator is in. This is where our spiritual genes are leading us.

Kabbalah - What is It?

2007-12-23T13:29:00.001+11:00

Is it a science, a religion, a teaching? Is it secret or evident? Is it something we can sense and evaluate? Is it outdated, or is it relevant in our time?

Kabbalah is wisdom about the universe. However, it studies much more than the part of the universe that we perceive through our inborn five senses. Kabbalah explains that the universe is, in fact, much wider than what we perceive through our five senses. It teaches about that part of the universe that we currently don't perceive.

Kabbalah explains how the universe began, how it develops, and how it will end. It studies the universe’s general structure and all of its particular details. This wisdom consists of several sections, all of which talk about the general law of the universe and how we can attain it.

If we break it into sections, then Kabbalah covers:

• The creation of the entire universe and all of its levels: still, vegetative, animate, and human.

• The phases and the final goal of the entire evolutionary process, including man's part in that process.

• The connection between our current state and the states we were in before we appeared on the Earth.

• The purpose of existing in a biological body for several decades and perceiving the surrounding world through the body and its five senses.

• Our state after we leave this world.

• Our reincarnations and the relationships between them.

• The way of evolving to a higher, spiritual form while living on earth.

Where Did the Authentic Kabbalah Come from?

The wisdom of Kabbalah appeared over five thousand years ago. Its roots go back to deep antiquity, the Sumerian-Akkadian period and the time of ancient Babylon. However, Kabbalah remained virtually hidden from humanity for millennia.

Despite the concealment, people have always been interested in it. Renowned scientists and philosophers the world over, including Newton, Leibniz, and Pico Della Mirandola investigated the wisdom of Kabbalah and attempted to understand it. Johannes Reuchlin, a humanist, classics scholar, and expert in ancient languages and traditions, writes in his book, De Arte Cabbalistica: “My teacher, Pythagoras, the father of philosophy, took his teaching from Kabbalists … He was the first to translate the word, Kabbalah, unknown to his contemporaries, to the Greek word philosophy…”

Yet, to this day, authentic Kabbalah is tainted with many misconceptions and misrepresentations, such as red strings, holy water, spells, miracles and whatnot. Evidently, only a few know what authentic Kabbalah is really about.

Therefore, one must first clarify what the wisdom of Kabbalah is. Kabbalist Yehuda Ashlag puts it this way in his article “The Essence of the Wisdom of Kabbalah:"

"...this wisdom is no more and no less, than a sequence of roots, which hang down by way of cause and consequence, in fixed, determined rules, interweaving to a single, exalted goal described as 'the revelation of His Godliness to His creatures in this world."

What does this mean? It’s saying that there is an Upper Force or the Creator, and there are forces that descend from Him to our world. We are here, in our world, and we are governed by these forces. They’re similar to the forces we are aware of, like gravity or electromagnetism. The only difference is that these forces are of a higher order, and they act while remaining hidden to us.

“The Creator” is the ultimate, all-inclusive force. He is the sum of all the forces in the universe and is the highest of all the governing forces. The Upper Forces descend from the Creator, going through phases called “spiritual worlds,” and finally they give rise to our world and man inside it. This constitutes the subject of the wisdom of Kabbalah.

Discovering Our Connection with the Upper Force

2007-12-23T12:06:00.000+11:00

"All kinds of unpleasant situations are sent to us so that we will finally understand that it is not the external things that we should fear, but the lack of contact with the Upper One, the absence of spirituality." Awakening to Kabbalah, Rav Michael Laitman, PhD
If we were aware of the Upper Force that's always influencing us and arranging everything in our lives, then we would know the secret of life. We would know what life's grand purpose is and how everything in our life is led by that purpose.

So how do we reveal this Upper Force? We have to learn from the people who've already revealed it. Such people are called Kabbalists, and they have written books that can help anyone discover what they have discovered. By reading their books, one gradually begins to feel and understand how the Upper Force motivates his life and why it brings about the things that happen to him in life.

The authentic wisdom of Kabbalah deals with this only: revealing the Upper Force to a person in this world. Or as Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag, author of the Sulam commentary on The Book of Zohar, puts it: "This wisdom is no more and no less, than a sequence of roots, which hang down by way of cause and consequence, in fixed, determined rules, interweaving to a single, exalted goal described as--"the revelation of His Godliness to His creatures in this world." (The Essence of the Wisdom of Kabbalah)

Authentic Kabbalah has nothing to do with temporary distractions like lucky charms and magic spells, red strings or holy water. Rather, it is an ancient, time-tested wisdom that helps people open their eyes and discover their interrelation with the Upper Force.

This is not something you will feel in your imagination one moment and forget about it the next instant. It is a discovery of a whole new reality that you did not feel before. Kabbalah explains that there is a vast spiritual world concealed behind the picture of reality surrounding us. And this hidden reality is intended for us. Once we discover it with the help of Kabbalah books, we will feel life's perfect and eternal flow, and experience genuine, lasting joy. Studying Kabbalah, one suddenly realizes where everything comes from and that life has no coincidences. One tangibly feels that everything in our world comes from the Upper Force. As a result, one begins living in harmony with the Upper Force and avoids making mistakes in life.

In practical terms, learning about the Upper Force gives us real knowledge about how to live correctly. We become conscious of what is harmful to us and are able to avoid it. One gains a spiritual vision, where he sees the full scope of existence, the entire system of reality and how to use it to benefit the world. Hence, Kabbalah is a practical and essential wisdom.

Kabbalah: God is Altruistic Nature

2007-12-23T11:58:00.000+11:00

Of all parts of Nature, only man puts his own interest before the needs of the system. Kabbalah shows how we can operate according to the altruistic laws of Nature, which in Kabbalah is the same as God. In a presentation at a Tokyo hall in November 2005, evolutionary biologist Elizabeth Sahtouris stated that "Every molecule, every cell, every organ ... has self-interest. When every level in the body shows its self-interest, it forces negotiations among the levels. This is the secret of Nature. Every moment in your body, these negotiations drive your systems to harmony."

Quite similarly, Kabbalists state that cells in organisms unite by reciprocal giving for the sake of sustaining the whole body. Each cell in the body receives what it needs for its sustenance, and spends the rest of its energy tending to the rest of the body. At every level of Nature, the individual works to benefit the whole of which it is a part, and in that finds its wholeness. Without altruistic activities, a body cannot persist. In fact, life itself cannot persist.

Both science and Kabbalah acknowledge that the biggest, if not the only, problem with our world is us. Below are two examples of such states of mind:

"I think computer viruses should count as life. I think it says something about human nature that the only form of life we have created so far is purely destructive. We've created life in our own image" (Stephen Hawking, British cosmologist and physicist).

"And in simple words we shall say that the nature of each and every individual is to exploit the lives of all other people in the world for his own benefit, and all that he gives to another is only out of necessity. Even in that there is exploitation, but it is done cunningly, so that his friend will not feel it" (Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag (Baal HaSulam), "Peace in the World").

Thousands of scientists, judging by the latest reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, already state that we must stop working against Nature, as we have been doing for centuries, and begin to work in harmony with it. They explain that Nature already knows what to do and when to do it. If we only get out of the way, things will sort themselves out. Just as each body has its immune system, Nature has mechanisms that maintain its balance.

This balance is a dynamic equilibrium controlled by interrelated regulation mechanisms, in which Nature thinks not of particular elements within it, but of the whole system. Just imagine the havoc our body would fall into, if each organ cared only for its own good, instead of caring for the good of the whole body.

In such a state, organs would steal blood vessels from one another, denying neighboring organs nourishment and oxygen. Organs producing antibodies would direct them against other organs because other organs would be considered foreign bodies, and the ones with the strongest antibodies would destroy the other organs. Soon, very soon, the body would die, and its self-centered organs would die with it. When such a process happens in an organism, it is called "cancer."

The fact that Nature does exist and that it isn't destroying itself every single moment is proof that Nature does not work egoistically. It is a proof that Nature works as a system, putting the well-being of the system before the well-being of its parts. In Kabbalah, when the system's needs come before the needs of the part, it is called "altruism." In an altruistic system, the particular elements constantly contribute to the system, whether it is an organism or a human society.

Humans, in almost every aspect, are just another animal species. But there is one aspect in which we are different from Nature: We put our own interest before the interest of the system. This is the essence of egoism. We don't need to teach animals, plants or rocks how to behave. Their behavior is always in harmony with Nature, altruistic, putting the system's needs before their own. This is why when prey animals hunt, they hunt only enough to sustain themselves, and thus maintain the natural balance of their habitat.

But humans don't hunt to eat; they hunt to gain wealth, to exploit. This is why we have penalties for poaching. The only problem with the human race is that, unlike animals, it runs on an egoistic "operating system" instead of an altruistic one. To mend ourselves and to stop disrupting Nature's homeostasis, we need to install an altruistic operating system instead of our current, faulty system.

And to find the missing disk, you need to go to the "program vendor," the Creator. In Kabbalah, the words "God" and "Nature" are synonymous. This is why they have the same numeric value: 86. Kabbalists have discovered and upgraded a method that teaches how we can replace the egoistic disk with an altruistic one, and today, when many already recognize that a real change of heart is necessary, they are stepping to the fore and introducing it to the world.
By Bnei Baruch
Published: 12/17/2007

Developing Our Latent Sense

2007-12-23T11:53:00.000+11:00

We feel that there is a world, an entire universe around us. But what we don't realize is that there is another part of the universe that we don't feel. Let's call it the "upper" part of the universe.

Presently, we perceive what our five senses can absorb, and they only allow us to attain a part of the universe called "our world." However, Kabbalists explain that we have the ability to penetrate much deeper. We can delve through our world into nature and perceive the Upper World. Let's take a closer look at how we can do this.

We perceive our world through our five senses: sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. We also build physical instruments such as microscopes or telescopes that widen the range of our senses' perception. But all the instruments we create can only expand our senses' perception and hence they can't let us perceive something beyond the reality called "our world."

Again, all investigations we conduct in our world are confined to our five senses. And as long as we are confined to them, we cannot begin to see, feel, and understand what lies beyond our senses.

O ur imagination is also a product of our five senses and the experiences which stem from them. We cannot imagine an object or a creature unless it resembles something that our five senses are familiar with.

For example, if you ask someone to draw an alien from another planet, he will draw it according to the elements he is familiar with from our world. And if you ask someone to describe a fantastical scenario, he will no doubt describe something which is fundamentally very similar to this world.

We all live in a small world and are not able to feel or imagine anything beyond it. And since our science and philosophy are also limited to the perception of our five senses, they too cannot help us understand what lies beyond this world. Therefore, to get behind the scenes of our world and recognize the forces that affect it - we need a new sense.

The wisdom of Kabbalah offers a person the method to develop his latent, additional sense, called the "screen." Using the screen, one can penetrate through our world and reveal deeper, inner layers of reality, which influence our level of reality. Hence, the Kabbalists call these layers "Upper Worlds." These worlds are like the layers of an onion, where our world is in the midst of all the worlds.

To summarize, we naturally feel only the innermost sphere in all of existence, but Kabbalists explain that 'this world' is just a small fragment of the true reality. It's the fragment we are able to feel with our inborn five senses. But if we develop the additional sense called "the screen," we will feel the Upper Worlds that Kabbalists feel. This is what Ka bbalah teaches: how to acquire the screen.

www.kabbalah.info

5 Stages of Desires’ Development

2007-12-04T22:09:00.000+11:00

Kabbalists discovered that our desires for pleasure evolve by 5 stages:

1) The first, and most basic desire, is the desire for food, health, sex, and family. These are necessary desires for our survival.

2) The second stage is the aspiration for wealth. Here we think that money guarantees survival and a good quality of life.

3) The third is the craving for honor and power. Here we enjoy controlling others, as well as ourselves.

4) In the fourth stage appears the desire for knowledge. Here we think that having knowledge will make us happy.

5) But only when the fifth, and last stage of desire appears, we become attracted to an unknown “something” that is beyond us. Here we feel that connecting to this unknown “something” can bring us greater and lasting enjoyment, and we search for ways to make this connection. This desire for something higher is called “the desire for spirituality.” more…

Taken from “Kabbalah in Our Times: Spirituality, Kabbalah and the 21st Century” in the “What Is Kabbalah?” environment of Kabbalah.info

VIDEO: Rav Michael Laitman, PhD explains the process of evolving desires:

Watch more videos like this at Kabbalah TV

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Kabbalah and Philosophy
New Rav Laitman Lecture Transcript
What is Spirituality? What is a Soul?
Time to Act
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Kabbalah TV Live Stream - Weekly Schedule of Live Broadcasts

2007-12-04T22:07:00.000+11:00

Including 3 new courses starting in December
www.kab.tv/eng

All times are in Eastern Standard Time (EST) unless otherwise noted

Daily Lessons with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD
Sundays to Fridays - 6 Days a Week
8:20pm - 9:15pm - 1st Lesson
9:15pm - 10:00pm - 2nd Lesson
10:00pm - 11:00pm - 3rd Lesson

Sunday Beginner Virtual Lesson Series with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD
NEW Lesson Series starts December 9, 2007 based on articles of Baal HaSulam
Sundays
9:00am - 10:30am

World Assembly of Friends (Yeshivat Haverim)
Sundays
12:00 noon - 1:00pm

Beginner Lessons for Israelis in the U.S. East Coast
NEW Course Starts December 9, 2007 (no lessons until then)
Sundays
2:00pm - 3:30pm

Beginner Lessons for Israelis in the U.S. West Coast*
NEW Course Starts December 10, 2007 (no lessons until then)
Mondays
* 8:30pm - 11:00pm (PST)
11:30pm - 1:00am (EST)

Lectures with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD at the Bnei Baruch Kabbalah Education Center, Israel
Tuesdays
12:30pm - 2:00pm
Fridays
2:00am - 4:00am

‘Ask the Kabbalist’ - Rav Michael Laitman, PhD answers questions from the public
Thursdays
1:30pm - 2:30pm

Related Posts:
I Shall Not Die but Live
What is Ego? What is Shame?
Worldwide Unanimous Agreement
Rav Michael Laitman, PhD encounters the ARI Online Kabbalah Students in Toronto
Physical and Spiritual Connections

How Do We Renew & Improve Education? The Hot Question in Bnei Baruch

2007-11-26T22:39:00.000+11:00

How Do We Renew & Improve Education? The Hot Question in Bnei Baruch
November 21, 2007 at 9:05 pm · Filed under Daily Lessons, Education

From Today’s Daily Lesson:

What began as a daily Kabbalah lesson with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD turned into a 2-and-a-half-hour long question-and-answer super session on the subject of education—its crucial state in our world today, and how to optimize education for our following generations.

Bnei Baruch are now clarifying a new system of education based on revised study methods, new teacher requirements, how to train the world’s next generation of leaders, how to use media and globally-connected technologies in the most beneficial way for humanity’s development, and how to fulfill the educational needs of our future generations.

Download the Full Lesson: wmv video | mp3 audio

Related Posts:
Welcome to the Official Kabbalah Blog of Bnei Baruch
Kabbalah and Philosophy
Rav Michael Laitman, PhD encounters the ARI Online Kabbalah Students in Toronto
Spiritual Search
VIDEO: ARI Online Student Video

www.kabbalahblog.info

TV Interview with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on Bloomberg show “Night Talk” with Mike Schneider

2007-11-26T22:34:00.000+11:00

TV Interview with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on Bloomberg show “Night Talk” with Mike Schneider
November 22, 2007 at 11:13 am · Filed under Interviews, October Tour 2007

Download the Interview: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 (WMV)

BLOOMBERG TV (October 24, 2007): Mike Schneider, on Bloomberg’s “Night Talk,” interviewed Rav Michael Laitman, PhD investigating Kabbalah from a variety of angles. The interview was composed of 3 parts, each detailing a specific angle on Kabbalah:

Part 1: The Mystery Surrounding Kabbalah
• Kabbalah – What Is It?
• An Ancient Wisdom that Predates Judaism
• Kabbalah and Judaism – What Is their Connection (if any)?
• Is there One Individual Figure Who Occupies a Position of Leadership in Kabbalah?
• Prophecy – Is there such a thing in Kabbalah?

Part 2: The Buzz Surrounding Kabbalah
• Madonna in Kabbalah – What’s the Deal?
• Ethics – Why We Don’t Need Them
• Science and Kabbalah – Are they Competitive or Complementary?
• Kabbalah Involves No Rituals of Any Kind
• Kabbalah Is a Method. Is it a Philosophy as Well?
• You Don’t Need to be Trained in Traditional Judaism Before Studying Kabbalah

Part 3: The Modern World Surrounding Kabbalah
• World Problems. Their Causes. Their Solutions.
• Improve Personal Behavior, Relationships and Family Connections
• Terrorism – the Source of the Problem (Is the Same Source as Every Problem)
• Philosophers and Kabbalah
• What Is the Main Change that Happens to You When You Study Kabbalah?

Related Posts:
Radio Interview with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on The Maria Sanchez Morning Show, Los Angeles
Radio Interview with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on Fox News Radio Show “A Few Moments With,” New York
Radio Interview with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on The Brian Sussman Show, San Francisco
Interview with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on his Upcoming USA Tour
Interview between Rav Michael Laitman, PhD and Vladimir Molchanov

www.kabbalahblog.info

5 Things You Should Know About The Zohar

2007-11-08T15:33:00.000+11:00

5 Things You Should Know About The Zohar
November 5, 2007 at 11:41 pm · Filed under Zohar

1) What is The Zohar?
The Zohar is a collection of commentaries on the Torah, intended to guide people who have already achieved high spiritual degrees to the root (origin) of their souls. more…

2) Who is The Zohar For?
The Zohar was written for people who have already achieved spiritual perception. more…

3) Who Wrote The Zohar, and When?
According to all Kabbalists, and as the beginning of the book writes, The Zohar was written by Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai (Rashbi), who lived in the 2nd and 3rd centuries CE. more…

4) Why was The Zohar Hidden for So Long?
The Zohar was kept hidden for 900 years, between the 2nd and the 11th centuries CE, since those who possessed its wisdom understood that at the time, people did not need it and would misunderstand its contents. more…

5) Where do I Find Out More About The Zohar?
Bnei Baruch provides introductions and free lessons on The Zohar, as well as shorter articles describing concepts from The Zohar, and how to prepare for the encounter with these concepts. more…

www.kabbalahblog.info

As far as traditional Kabbalists are concerned, string’s not the thing - an Article in The Telegraph

2007-11-01T21:44:00.000+11:00

As far as traditional Kabbalists are concerned, string’s not the thing - an Article in The Telegraph
October 31, 2007 at 6:58 am · Filed under News, Press

THE TELEGRAPH (October 26, 2007): This month, the popularization of Kabbalah has definitely seen a significant turn from the faddish to the authentic. Journalist Jill Moon contributed to this month’s press demystification of Kabbalah with her article “As far as traditional Kabbalists are concerned, string’s not the thing.”

Rather than scratching around the surface of conflicts in opinion between different brandings of “Kabbalah,” Moon took an investigative dive into Bnei Baruch’s teaching of Kabbalah, searching for how Bnei Baruch defines authentic Kabbalah, its purpose and its fundamental concepts.

“The goal of Kabbalah is to change the ‘will to receive’ into the ‘intention to bestow,’ or to become more like the ‘creator,’ that wants everyone to be fulfilled,” Moon quoted Bnei Baruch senior instructor Michael R. Kellogg, who teaches live, interactive Kabbalah introductory courses for free at the Learning Center.

“The literal definition of Kabbalah is the revelation of ‘his Godliness’ to his creatures. In other words, it means that here, in this world as we exist, we are in complete and total concealment of any upper power of God … Kabbalah is the revelation of this thing called ‘God,’ meaning not revelation of belief, but of actually sensing the force called ‘God,’” Kellogg continued.

Moon went on to quote Kellogg discussing the work between intention and egoism in Kabbalah, and how Kabbalah explains our evolution in terms of evolving egoistic desires. Moreover, Kellogg fit in the very popularization of Kabbalah within this explanation, in that “all other desires have been fulfilled, and now the desire for spirituality is coming out. Egoism had to grow to a point that society is ready for Kabbalah.”

Click Here to Read the Full Article

Feature Article in Kabbalah Today Issue 8

2007-10-23T22:04:00.000+10:00

Natural Disasters Explained through Kabbalah
October 22, 2007 at 9:10 pm · Filed under Articles, Kabbalah Today

Feature Article in Kabbalah Today Issue 8

As Rav Laitman spreads the word around the United States and Canada this month on how Kabbalah holds the solution for the global crisis, the feature article “The Tip of the Iceberg” in Kabbalah Today Issue 8 presents the same message, focusing on natural disasters.

“The Tip of the Iceberg” discusses the major increase of natural disasters around the world in relation to what is causing them: the rules that control nature and our attitude to these rules. Nature’s most fundamental principle is interconnectedness and unity, and as human beings, we are not realizing our potential to actualize this interconnectedness and unity among ourselves. more…

Click Here to Read the Full Article

Radio Interview with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on The Brian Sussman Show, San Francisco

2007-10-22T22:55:00.001+10:00

Radio Interview with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on The Brian Sussman Show, San Francisco
October 19, 2007 at 9:19 pm · Filed under Audio, Interviews

SAN FRANCISCO (October 11, 2007): Rav Michael Laitman, PhD was interviewed on the Brian Sussman Show, KSFO-560AM. Sussman tried clarifying both what is Kabbalah and also extended the investigation to see what Kabbalah’s outlook is on political and religious issues.

Expert says Kabbalah best understood as a science - an Article in the South Jersey Courier Post

2007-10-22T22:52:00.000+10:00

Expert says Kabbalah best understood as a science - an Article in the South Jersey Courier Post
October 21, 2007 at 5:22 am · Filed under Interviews, News

COURIER POST (October 20, 2007): Spirituality columnist Kim Mulford interviewed Rav Michael Laitman, PhD for her Saturday column “Keeping the Faith.” As well as the usual ice-breaking questions about Kabbalah that Rav Laitman often gets asked by journalists, like whether it is a religion or mysticism, whether someone practising a religion can also study Kabbalah, and whether the Kabbalah Rav Laitman teaches is connected to the Kabbalah Madonna studies… Kim Mulford also asked unique questions about the experience of Kabbalah; what it’s like to connect to the Creator and how this is related to its dissemination.

Kim Mulford: What is it like to connect with the Creator?

Rav Laitman: It’s a personal connection. It’s as if you stop caring for yourself and you experience everybody else’s thoughts and cares. You become connected and related and you feel beyond. You don’t just feel it, you really are beyond time and place and motion. You become eternal in a way, because you have eternal perception. It gets you to a point where you just want to give and give.

Kim Mulford: Is that why you want to share this with other people, because you want to give them this same experience?

Rav Laitman: Yes, of course. You experience the harmony of nature and reality and you want to share it. Also, it’s not just a privilege. It’s really an obligation, because the whole of humanity must come to that point where all of us experience that harmony. Actually, the crisis we are experiencing today isn’t coming for no reason. It’s there to prompt us to think about life, to see how we can build our harmony with it. more…

Click Here to Read the Full Article in the Courier Post Online
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More than just Madonna: Kabbalah has millions of online students around the world

2007-10-21T01:35:00.000+10:00

More than just Madonna: Kabbalah has millions of online students around the world - an Article in the Canadian Press
October 18, 2007 at 10:31 am · Filed under News

TORONTO (October 17, 2007): Without the Internet, studying Kabbalah every day would be more of a chore for Susan Morales, who already leads a busy life teaching and checking up on her nursing students.

But by going online, her class with her teacher Rav Michael Laitman, which is webcastlive every day from Israel, is just a click away for the Toronto resident who lectures at Ryerson University.

“The miracle of that is just fantastic,” said Morales, 58, who has been doing Kabbalah every day - a requirement for all students - for the past six years.

Laitman is the founder and president of the Bnei Baruch Kabbalah Education and Research Institute in Israel, which has branches all over the world including Toronto.

Kabbalah, which is Hebrew for reception, is an ancient “method of spiritual growth and development offering an inspiring path of self-discovery and spiritual elevation,” according to the centre.

It aims to answer life’s deepest question: What is life about?

In an interview during a visit to Toronto, Laitman said the Internet plays a major role in getting the Kabbalah message out.

“When I started building the academy in 1991, the Internet was basically non-existent,” he said in Hebrew as he spoke through an interpreter.

Laitman went through some difficult years using “snail mail.”

The web improved communication, and, “as a result now today we have approximately two million students worldwide - about 200,000 in Canada - using the Internet from 47 countries in 26 languages,” he said.

Thousands more practise it through The Kabbalah Centre, another Israel-based organization that uses the web and has branches worldwide.

Through Bnei Baruch, said Morales, classes can be done any time because it has one of the largest archives of downloadable lessons.

“If I wanted to sit in front of my computer and listen and study 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year, I could do it and not view (the same) lesson again.”

Rob Taylor, 56, a project management consultant in the power industry, says he’s up at 3 a.m. to study Kabbalah.

Generally he either studies texts or takes classes online with Laitman. Then throughout the day he’s always working on what he learned.

“You start evaluating yourself,” said Taylor, an eight-year veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps and a former undercover cop who lives in Toronto.

“Why do I see it this way? Why is it affecting me the way it does?”

In 1984, when he first learned about Kabbalah, there wasn’t a lot of translated material, he said. Until the late 20th century, it was closed to all but a few select and serious students.

“There were commentaries but nothing you could really get your teeth into, to really understand it,” he said.

Then in the late 1990s, things began to change, he said.

“I started coming across material mostly put together by Laitman,” author of “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah.”

Now, more than 5,000 books are available on Amazon.com, most written after 2000, according to the Idiot’s Guide. As well, more than 200,000 lessons are available online.

Besides books, such as the Idiot’s Guide, making it more accessible to people, interest really ignited after pop singer and actress Madonna became heavily involved.

“When she went public about it, more people were asking about what this is,” said Jacob Kessler, 25, who helped established the Kabbalah Club at the University of Toronto.

“More people started coming out to study meetings or … taking a class here and there at The Kabbalah Centre,” said Kessler, who was introduced to Kabbalah by his parents when he was a young child.

Kessler, who is working on a bachelor’s degree in Judaic studies with a focus on mystical Judaism and Kabbalah, says lots of students are interested in Kabbalah - sometimes classes are full.

But Madonna is only part of the reason why Kabbalah is being studied by so many people these days, said Laitman.

“Humanity is in a global crisis: Divorce rates are soaring, drug abuse, depression. Globalization causes us all to be interconnected and at the same time we’re all hateful to each other,” he said.

“When you lose hope … you start searching. Instinctively people are discovering that the answer to it probably exists in Kabbalah,” he said.

“That’s why kabbalists for the first time in 5,000 years of Kabbalah’s existence are now exposing it to the whole world,” he said. As a result, “we see that Kabbalah is a method for correcting and for restoring balance.”

People of all walks of life are finding it helpful, said Morales. She has met devout Christians, Orthodox Jews, observant Muslims and agnostics studying it.

At the core of Kabbalah, she said, “is the correction of oneself.”

How does one become more like the bestowing creator, or God, said Morales. That’s how spirituality is defined in Kabbalah.

In Kabbalah, correct intentions will lead you closer to God, or the creator, who is a giving force, a bestowing force, said Laitman. “The whole of nature is a giving nature, a loving nature.”

Each organ in our body functions to benefit the body, he said.

If one, however, begins “to pull towards itself to consume the rest of the body” it becomes cancerous, he said.

“This is why Kabbalah states that if humanity rises above its egoism it will not be cancerous towards the whole of nature.”

Today’s interconnectedness “should compel us to rise above our personal egos and achieve the right harmony and connection among us in giving to each other.”

“When Kabbalah opens up the picture of the world to us it kind of forces us to become good,” he said.

Taylor says he gradually turned to Kabbalah during his stints in the Marines and with the police out of frustration.

“You spend a lot of time in those environments because you want to fix things,” he said. “Then you reach a point of understanding that you can’t.”

Finally, “you come to realize that the whole structure begins with individual correction,” he said.

“We have to fix ourselves internally before we can even think about going out there and correcting something else.”

That, he said, “has probably been the biggest change” in his life since he began … studying Kabbalah.

Click Here for the Original Article

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How to Understand Nature’s Program and Know What Path to Take - an Interview with Rav Michael Laitman PhD in Shalom Toronto

2007-10-17T22:45:00.000+10:00

How to Understand Nature’s Program and Know What Path to Take - an Interview with Rav Michael Laitman PhD in Shalom Toronto
October 16, 2007 at 11:52 am · Filed under Interviews, News

In an interview with Shalom Toronto columnist Jonathan Dahoah-Halevi, Rav Michael Laitman, PhD explained that studying the Kabbalah can help humanity have a positive influence on the forces at work in the world and reach a high spiritual level to become one with nature and God. The following is an excerpt from the interview:

Shalom Toronto: Does the Kabbalah have the power to solve global problems?

Rav Laitman: The Kabbalah is the answer to all the world’s problems because it deals with the world in general. Man is driven by his ego. The development of the ego leads to hatred, despair, drugs, terrorism and air pollution, and for all those things there is the Kabbalah which teaches us how to relate to the world and our fellow men to reach harmony, to have a positive influence and to reduce human suffering.

Shalom Toronto: How can the Kabbalah solve the problem of air pollution?

Rav Laitman: The Kyoto Protocol [an international agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions] and other agreements cannot reduce air pollution. Nature has another program. Nature needs to bring us into a state of balance. It is a mistake to think that all we have to do is burn less. What we have to do is understand nature’s program and then we will know what path to take. Air pollution is not the main issue, but human thoughts and behavior are what influence nature and everything else is completely marginal.

Click Here for This Issue of Shalom Toronto, and Read the Full Interview on Page 49

Rav Laitman will be giving a public lecture tonight in Toronto at the B’nai Brith Building, 15 Hove Street (Bathurst & Sheppard).
Click here for bookings, and for more information on Rav Laitman’s United States and Canada tour

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Australian BB Kabbalah Group: Now Is the Time for Kabbalah to Enter the Education System

2007-10-14T22:34:00.000+10:00

Australian BB Kabbalah Group: Now Is the Time for Kabbalah to Enter the Education System

http://www.kabtoday.com/epaper_eng/content/view/epaper/5697/(page)/3/(article)/5702

What is Kabbalah? Don’t ask Madonna

2007-10-14T22:22:00.001+10:00

What is Kabbalah? Don’t ask Madonna - an Article in the Chicago Daily Herald
October 12, 2007 at 11:22 am · Filed under Press

CHICAGO DAILY HERALD (October 12, 2007): In advance of Rav Michael Laitman’s Oakton Community College Skokie campus lecture “From Chaos to Harmony: Kabbalah as the Solution to the Global Crisis,” Journalist Jamie Sotonoff of the Chicago Daily Herald focused on a key disclaimer Rav Laitman has been questioned about repeatedly throughout his United States tour, that the Kabbalah Rav Laitman teaches is completely different and unrelated to the Kabbalah that Madonna is associated with.

Click Here to Read this Full Story in the Chicago Daily Herald

Click Here for More Details About the Lecture and to Register

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Kabbalah Introductory Lecture by Rav Michael Laitman PhD in San Francisco, Oct. 11 2007

2007-10-14T22:20:00.000+10:00

Kabbalah Introductory Lecture by Rav Michael Laitman PhD in San Francisco, Oct. 11 2007
October 13, 2007 at 9:03 pm · Filed under Lectures

SAN FRANCISCO (October 11, 2007): Rav Michael Laitman, PhD gave a public lecture at the Embarcadero Center, Le Meridian Hotel entitled “The Kabbalah Experience”—an introduction to the wisdom of Kabbalah.

Rav Laitman opened the lecture stating that the wisdom of Kabbalah has it written that the year 1995 would see the beginnings of the disclosure of the wisdom of Kabbalah to humanity. In order to explain this, Rav Laitman compared the state that humanity is in today to the state that humanity was in 5,000 years ago, and why this difference has come about.

Rav Laitman was asked to clarify what makes the Kabbalah he teaches authentic, as well as answering questions on how Kabbalah treats the ups and downs of everyday life, who or what is the Creator, how is peace found in one’s life, Kabbalah on the family, Kabbalah on the education of children, and whether there are age restrictions on the study of Kabbalah.

Download the Lecture: wmv video | mp3 audio

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Michael Laitman's Book Tour October 2007

2007-10-14T22:01:00.000+10:00

USA Sydney
City Day Date Time
Chicago Monday 15th 7am
Toronto Wednesday 17th 10am
Miami Friday 19th 10am
Philadelphia Wednesday 24th 6am
New York Thursday 25th 10am

Day/Date/Time Sydney EST

Log into http://www.kab.tv to see it live at the above times

Australian Unity Congress!

2007-10-12T12:35:00.000+10:00

Australia BB Group Invites the whole world Kli to our Unity Congress

It will be held on the weekend of November 2nd to 4th.

Starting Friday afternoon till Sunday afternoon.

Location Blue mountains (Leura),

Transport 1 ½ hours drive from sunny Sydney, also close to train station. We have space in group cars going up and coming back.

Cost $100 per person.

Program

Lectures and workshops
Song writing workshops for the World congress in Israel,
Cultural night,
Local area circulation for group effort, newspapers, dvd, and books.
Lots of homemade wholesome food and locally made and distilled pyrtzofka (lots of).

RSVP 25th October

Now Is the Time for Kabbalah to Enter the Education System

2007-10-10T00:04:00.000+10:00

Now Is the Time for Kabbalah to Enter the Education System
October 9, 2007 at 12:10 am · Filed under Education

The Soul Is Ageless
Article in Kabbalah Today issue 8

In times when the education system is being criticized for its inability to turn children into mature, confident adults, Kabbalist Rav Michael Laitman, PhD, believes that now is a unique time to introduce a new concept into our schools—the wisdom of Kabbalah. more…

Click here to read the full article

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New Kabbalah.info Website Delivers the Power of Kabbalah to the World

2007-10-08T18:34:00.001+10:00

“There has been rapidly growing interest in Kabbalah. For this reason, we have renewed www.kabbalah.info taking first-time visitor needs into specific consideration,” reports Kabbalah.info spokesperson Tony Kosinec.

read more | digg story

New Kabbalah.info Website Delivers the Power and Wisdom of Kabbalah to the World

2007-10-06T16:12:00.001+10:00

New Kabbalah.info Website Delivers the Power and Wisdom of Kabbalah to the World
October 5, 2007 at 4:43 am · Filed under Press

Expanded and revised Kabbalah.info website delivers comprehensive information and tools to meet worldwide demand

Tel Aviv, Israel October 5, 2007 – www.Kabbalah.info, the world’s largest online source for free Kabbalah content, has updated and expanded its site to meet the growing worldwide interest in the wisdom and study of Kabbalah. The new site offers quick and easy access to a wealth of information and resources for learning the science of Kabbalah.

“There has been rapidly growing interest in Kabbalah. For this reason, we have renewed www.kabbalah.info taking first-time visitor needs into specific consideration,” reports Kabbalah.info spokesperson Tony Kosinec.

In the past twelve months alone, www.kabbalah.info has attracted 2.5 million visitors – three times more than the preceding twelve months. Kosinec expects this boom to continue rising: “Whether it’s through pop celebrities or quantum physicists, people are hearing about Kabbalah from all kinds of directions, and this media-influenced curiosity is bringing them to our site. Our aim with this new site is to serve this curiosity, providing initial explanations of what Kabbalah is and isn’t, letting people know who it’s for and why it’s studied, and to do this in an entertaining, quick and easy-to-understand way.”

The site offers all of its materials and services free, using the latest Flash technology, video clips and list-style articles to present its message to first-timers. Two minutes on the home page already gives the visitor “3 Things You Should Know About Kabbalah” – an introductory Flash presentation explaining (1) What is Kabbalah? (2) What is not Kabbalah? and (3) What is the goal of Kabbalah?

Visitors can get this information elaborated in the “What is Kabbalah?” environment, or go directly to a guided introductory course (either with a live instructor or recorded lessons). There are options to download free eBooks and audio books, participate in live daily lessons, listen to Kabbalistic music, browse an extensive library of authentic Kabbalah texts, watch video clips and films, and even ask questions and get answers live, daily, with internationally renowned Kabbalist Rav Michael Laitman, PhD – the principle teacher and founder of Kabbalah.info.

“In the end, this site is for everybody because today, Kabbalah is for everybody. Kabbalists throughout history have pointed to our era as the one where the secrets of Kabbalah would become disclosed to humanity. While there is definitely growing interest in Kabbalah, there is still a lot of confusion as to what it actually is and what it can do for people. Our new site has been developed to eliminate this confusion. It makes clear the essence and purpose of Kabbalah, so that after a short time on the site people can see what authentic Kabbalah entails, and decide whether it’s a path they want to take or not,” says Kosinec.

Kabbalah.info was founded by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD, Israel-based kabbalist, professor in ontology and the theory of knowledge, and author of over thirty books on Kabbalah. Rav Laitman will be touring the United States and Canada during October 9 – 24, 2007, publicly lecturing on authentic Kabbalah. Click here for location, date and time information.

Read this press release at PR Web

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International Authority on Authentic Kabbalah Brings Ancient Wisdom and Insights to Nine US Cities and Nationwide

2007-10-04T23:38:00.000+10:00

International Authority on Authentic Kabbalah Brings Ancient Wisdom and Insights to Nine US Cities and Nationwide
October 4, 2007 at 1:34 am · Filed under Press

Is Kabbalah a religion? Spiritual practice? Science? - What is a Kabbalah Spiritual Boot Camp? - Who studies Kabbalah and how is it compatible with Christianity and other world religions? - Celebrities including Madonna and Demi Moore ignite interest in Kabbalah; learn how their practices differ from authentic Kabbalah teaching. - Find the answer to life’s deepest question “What is life about?” - Where is Kabbalah practiced? Find out about Kabbalah’s dramatic growth and how many people practice Kabbalah in the U.S. and around the world. Worldwide, some 1.3 million people study and practice authentic Kabbalah through the Bnei Baruch Kabbalah Education & Research Institute, and from October 9-28, the world’s leading authority on authentic Kabbalah will be traveling on a nine city tour of the US, speaking to audiences on this ancient science. Rav Michael Laitman, Ph.D., the founder and president of the Institute, will be available for interviews and can discuss the Kabbalist position on a host of current issues including terrorism, the Iraq War, the difference between celebrity and pop culture practices of Kabbalah and authentic Kabbalah, global warming, etc. At the conclusion of his US trip, he will travel to Monterrey, Mexico, where he will attend the World Wisdom Council and present at the 2007 Monterrey Forum. more…

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What is the One Thing Bnei Baruch Wants from Its Dissemination of Kabbalah?

2007-09-26T07:21:00.000+10:00

What is the One Thing Bnei Baruch Wants from Its Dissemination of Kabbalah?
September 25, 2007 at 12:49 pm · Filed under Meaning of Life, Depression, Video

Rav Michael Laitman, PhD discusses the purpose for the dissemination of Kabbalah in the world today.

RAV MICHAEL LAITMAN PhD, OCTOBER US TOUR 2007, INFO PAGE: http://www.kabbalah.info/kabbalah-tour-2007.htm

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Rav Michael Laitman, PhD tours the United States and Canada this October

2007-09-23T23:29:00.000+10:00

Rav Michael Laitman, PhD tours the United States and Canada this October
September 23, 2007 at 7:14 am · Filed under News, Notices

Click here for Rav Michael Laitman’s USA and Canada tour information page

This October, Rav Michael Laitman, PhD will be touring the United States and Canada giving public lectures and media interviews. The primary focus of his tour’s message will be the global situation today and humanity’s future, which has been predicted and perceived in the authentic wisdom of Kabbalah since its inception 4,000 years ago.

This tour is a follow-up to the success of Rav Laitman’s latest publication, The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah (Alpha, a member of Penguin Group (USA) inc., 2007), one of Rav Laitman’s most easy-to-understand and clearly written books on authentic Kabbalah for English speakers to date.

Tour Dates and Locations:

Los Angeles
October 9th at 8 - 9:30 pm
JCC Sherman Oaks
13164 Burbank Blvd. Sherman Oaks 91401

October 10th at 8 - 9:30 pm
The Olympic Collection
11301 Olympic Blvd. West Los Angeles 90064

for further information: 818-985-8900, 310-376-4277
BneiBaruchLA @ yahoo.com

San Francisco
October 11th 8 pm

Toronto
Oct 16th, at 8:00 - 9:30 pm
B’nai Brith Building
15 Hoove Street (Bathurst & Sheppard), Toronto

for further information:
Tell: 416-840-5487
for further information: info @ bbtoronto.info
www.bbtoronto.info

Miami
October 18th at 8 – 9:30 pm
Ramada Marco Polo http://www.marcopolobeachresort.com
19201 Collins Ave. Sunny isles, Florida 33160
Tel 877-327-6363

New York City
October 24th at 8-9:30 pm
Marriot Marquis
1535 Broadway
New York 10036

Click here for more information and contact details

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Interview with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on his Upcoming USA Tour

2007-09-23T16:20:00.000+10:00

Interview with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD on his Upcoming USA Tour
September 22, 2007 at 8:56 pm · Filed under Interviews, Kabbalah Today

Rav Michael Laitman, PhD teaching the authentic Kabbalah sources in the Bnei Baruch daily lessons

In recent years, Kabbalah has made a name for itself in the United States. But its fame has not always done justice to the ancient lore that was kept secret until only a few years ago. Now, with the publishing of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah and his upcoming North America book tour this October, we at Kabbalah Today editorial staff decided it was an excellent time to interview Rav Michael Laitman, PhD, co-author of the book. Click here to read the full interview

When we knock on his office door, he hollers, “Come in!” We enter a small, barely furnished office with a large, plain looking desk occupying the bulk of the room. The only noteworthy object on the table is a large LCD computer screen displaying his latest book or article. Rav Laitman, a man of average height in his sixties with vivid eyes and a hint of a smile, ushers us in and gets right to the point: “What do you want to know?” he asks. His direct gaze leaves no room for doubt—there is no small talk with this man. more…

Click here to read the full interview

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Israel, the Role of Jews and the Story of Prophet Jonah

2007-09-20T21:51:00.000+10:00

Israel, the Role of Jews and the Story of Prophet Jonah
September 20, 2007 at 4:02 am · Filed under Articles, Kabbalah Today

A Prophet in His Own Country
Article in Kabbalah Today issue 7

Whether we are aware or not, Jews are a people on a mission—to lead humanity to the final correction—and pay heavily for any attempt to avoid that mission. If examine the story of Prophet Jonah, we will understand the essence of this mission.

Click here to read the full article

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VIDEO: Israel and the Nations of the World

2007-09-19T23:50:00.001+10:00

VIDEO: Israel and the Nations of the World
September 19, 2007 at 7:18 am · Filed under Daily Lessons, Definitions

From Today’s Daily Lesson:

Rav Michael Laitman, PhD commentates on an article from Rabash’s Shlavey HaSulam, providing the spiritual definitions to the terms “Israel” and “Nations of the World.”

Video clip taken from the lesson on Rabash’s article #25 from Shlavey HaSulam, Volume 4 (19 September, 2007)
Download the full lesson: wmv video | mp3 audio (55 min)

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VIDEO: How Can There Be A Finite Process in Something Infinite?

2007-09-19T13:18:00.001+10:00

VIDEO: How Can There Be A Finite Process in Something Infinite?
September 18, 2007 at 4:40 am · Filed under Daily Lessons, Video

From Today’s Daily Lesson:
Rav Michael Laitman, PhD discusses the Thought of Creation in relation to the creation’s sensation of that Thought.

Video clip taken from the lesson “Introduction to the Wisdom of Kabbalah - Lesson 3.”
Download the full lesson: wmv video | mp3 audio (55 min)

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2 Ways to Achieve Perfection

2007-09-19T13:01:00.000+10:00

2 Ways to Achieve Perfection
September 17, 2007 at 5:41 am · Filed under Lectures

A lecture Rav Michael Laitman, PhD gave on
Baal HaSulam’s article “The Essence of Religion and Its Purpose”

Baal HaSulam: Bear in mind, that two forces serve to push us up the rungs of the aforementioned ladder, until we reach its head in the sky, which is the purposeful point of the equality of our form with our Maker. And the difference between these two forces is that the first pushes us from behind, which we refer to as the Path of Pain, or the Way of the Earth.

Commentary by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD: Progress always arises out of pain. As a result, our entire life turns into flight from misfortunes and problems towards something that is possibly better. Baal HaSulam calls this path “the path of pain.” Generally speaking, its benefit is that it gives us a possibility to identify our ego as the source of pain. Without having the ego, I would not perceive nature that continuously acts upon me and pushes me forward. I would develop in a different manner. Let’s see what the other path of development is.

Baal HaSulam: The second force pushes us consciously, that is of our own choice. That force stands in front of us and pulls us forward, and that is what we determine as the Path of Torah and Mitzvot. For observing Torah and Mitzvot in order to bring contentment to our Maker, rapidly develops that sense of the recognition of evil, as we’ve shown in The Revelation of Godliness.

Commentary by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD: We attract upon ourselves the Upper Light paying absolutely no attention to the ego, pain and everything else. Only a Light that Reforms is important to us. We are drawn forward as a result. Naturally, we feel everything that is awakened by pain, egoism, and our nature as evil. However, we long for good and because of this recognize evil very quickly.

View this lecture: wmv video | mp3 audio (55 min)
Read lecture transcript: html | doc
Read Baal HaSulam’s original article: html

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2 Ways to Achieve Perfection

2007-09-18T16:54:00.001+10:00

We attract upon ourselves the Upper Light paying absolutely no attention to the ego, pain and everything else. Only a Light that Reforms is important to us. We are drawn forward as a result. Naturally, we feel everything that is awakened by pain, egoism, and our nature as evil. However, we long for good and because of this recognize evil very quic

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The Zohar and the Wisdom of Kabbalah Hold the Key for Spiritual Success

2007-09-13T10:34:00.001+10:00

The Zohar and the Wisdom of Kabbalah Hold the Key for Spiritual Success
September 11, 2007 at 11:09 am · Filed under Articles

Rabbi Hya’s Vision
Article in Kabbalah Today issue 7

The Zohar reveals a new perspective on life: that all the troubles and suffering we experience are intended to make us realize our own imperfections. To rise to the perception of the complete reality, we need to prefer the internal to the external, to find opportunities to incorporate the wisdom of Kabbalah into our lives. When we do that, we will rise, like Rabbi Hya, to a higher spiritual state, to the reality we truly do exist in. In that state we will be like all the Kabbalists before us, and discover the reality where all the souls are united in their perfect state. more…

–from Kabbalah Today issue 7

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VIDEO: What is Light in Kabbalah?

2007-09-10T21:45:00.000+10:00

VIDEO: What is Light in Kabbalah?
September 9, 2007 at 10:03 pm · Filed under Definitions, Video

A spiritual definition of “Light.” Rav Michael Laitman, PhD explains what is Light in Kabbalah, and how one studying Kabbalah draws the Light for the sake of “reforming” or “correcting” his- or her ego.

Click here to view the video at Kabbalah TV

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MUSIC: Hine ka Chomer

2007-09-09T22:16:00.000+10:00

MUSIC: Hine ka Chomer
September 9, 2007 at 3:22 am · Filed under Uncategorized
Listen to the file by clicking on the Flash player’s button below:

Hine ka Chomer
Melody by Baal HaSulam

1. Download Version by Seth Breitman and Haim Cotton
2. Download Instrumental Version
3. Download Vocal Version performed by Rabbi Baruch Shalom HaLevi Ashlag (Rabash)

“Those who sing praises at night raise, by their singing, all whose soul sings that song.

When the lower ones begin life by song, the Upper Ones help the lower ones with power, so that the lower ones realize and attain what the mortals are not able to attain. Earth and heavens, Zeir Anpin and Nukva, rise by this power, thanks to this singing.”

The Sulam Commentary on The Zohar, Shemot, pg. 104.

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New Online Learning Centre Hosts 1000 New Students

2007-09-07T12:31:00.000+10:00

New Online Learning Center Semester Hosts 1000 New Students
September 6, 2007 at 8:10 am · Filed under News, Lectures

A review of the first Online Learning Center lecture, written by Ed Stedman.

The new semester of the Online Learning Center started on September 4th with a Fundamentals lesson by Tony Kosinec with more than 800 new students. This was followed by an intermediate lesson also taught by Tony with more than 100 students.

Students come from all around the world including many unlikely places such as China, Saudi Arabia, and Monaco. Of course the 8:00 PM EST time is impossible for some locations on the other side of the world, and so many students will watch the recorded lessons instead of watching the live lessons.

As always, the first Fundamentals lesson started with an explanation of what Kabbalah is and also what it is not. There were the usual questions asking whether Kabbalah could coexist with various religions and mystical practices and also about the nature of reality:
• Can Catholics study Kabbalah?
• Does practicing Judaism help in coming to spirituality?
• Can commandments be skipped altogether?
• Is this world a reality or a dream?

The difference between the new fundamental students and the intermediate students who have already completed the fundamental course is a testament to just how effective the fundamentals classes have been. Tony’s first intermediate lesson featured the “Peace in the World” article from Baal HaSulam and questions centered on the intricacies of the attributes of truth and mercy (discussed in the article).

Many of the intermediate students will be going to the Learning Center Retreat that has been scheduled for October 26th through 28th in St. Louis, and there was some discussion and anticipation of this event.

Further Study

The first fundamental and intermediate technical lessons from Mike Kellogg and Igal Zahavi respectively are scheduled for Sunday September 9th while the first of the Advanced Tutorials conducted by Mark Berelekhis is due to happen on Monday September 10th.

Want to enrol to the new Online Learning Center course? Click here for free registration and more information

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A Trail of Anti-Semitism

2007-09-05T22:55:00.000+10:00

September 5, 2007
A Trail of Anti-Semitism
June 4, 2007 at 8:13 pm · Filed under Anti-Semitism, World Peace, Articles

Israeli Social Affairs Minister Isaac Herzog was quoted as saying, “There is a long trail of anti-Semitism in Europe.” Kabbalah says we must look inside for the reason.
Click here to read full article

According to the wisdom of Kabbalah, anti-Semitism will continue to spread and intensify until Jews fulfill their reason for being in this world: to learn how to love their neighbors as themselves, as taught by Rabbi Akiva, and then pass this teaching on to the rest of the world.

Click here to read full article

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VIDEO: The Intention Behind the Action

2007-09-03T20:43:00.000+10:00

VIDEO: The Intention Behind the Action
September 3, 2007 at 6:00 am · Filed under Thought of the Week, Video
A section of Baal HaSulam’s article “The Acting Intelligence” with commentary.
Click here to view this video at Kabbalah TV

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Kabbalah Today Issue # 7

2007-09-03T07:14:00.000+10:00

Kabbalah Today issue #7 explains the spiritual meaning of the upcoming holidays
September 2, 2007 at 3:22 am · Filed under Kabbalah Today

Kabbalah teaches that the Creator is a force, or quality, of love …

In Kabbalah, the goal is to achieve the Creator, to become like Him. And the means to do it is to love our fellow person, as reflected in the verse, “love thy neighbor as thyself.” If we keep in mind that the goal is to become similar to the Creator, the coming holidays will introduce new meaning to the ceremonies, something that will continue with us all year long.

As part of the effort to promote the goal of love of man, Rav Michael Laitman, PhD, founder and president of Bnei Baruch and publisher of this paper, co-authored The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah. Immediately following the holidays, he will begin a month-long tour in North America promoting the message of the book: egoism is humanity’s only enemy, love of man is the only cure, and the wisdom of Kabbalah is the only means to achieve this love.

In the spirit of love of man, we dedicate this issue of Kabbalah Today to the internal, spiritual meaning of the holidays, and to a special interview with Rav Laitman describing the message of his new book. We hope you will enjoy reading Kabbalah Today and feel the love with which it was produced.

View/Download Kabbalah Today Issue 7:
- E-version
- PDF version

Subscribe to Receive the Print Version of Kabbalah Today by Mail

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Free Interactive Video Kabbalah Course

2007-08-28T21:08:00.000+10:00

Free Interactive Video Kabbalah Courses Starting September 4
August 27, 2007 at 10:25 pm · Filed under Lectures

Next Course Begins September 4

Part One of our free online interactive courses explains the key to this long hidden wisdom, and provides a firm basis in the Fundamentals of Kabbalah revealing its methodology making clear its true purpose and use. Those who are interested can then move to Intermediate study (semester 2) after which they can join classes taught by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD.

Click here for free registration and more information

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Oregon State University

2007-08-24T22:06:00.000+10:00

Oregon State University Philosophy Course Incorporates “Kabbalah Revealed” Book
August 22, 2007 at 6:48 am · Filed under News
OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY: Rav Michael Laitman’s book Kabbalah Revealed: The Ordinary Person’s Guide to a More Peaceful Life has been adapted by Prof. Monica Brodnicka for the fall course “Great Ideas in Philosophy” at Oregon State University.
Click here for more information about this course
Click the following for free download or to purchase “Kabbalah Revealed”:
Download Free PDF | Purchase for only $4.95

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The Thought is the Intention: Tips for Maintaining a Correct Intention

2007-08-21T17:56:00.001+10:00

The Thought is the Intention: Tips for Maintaining a Correct Intention
August 21, 2007 at 3:19 am · Filed under Thought of the Week
Listen to the “The Thought is the Intention” (”Intentions from the Heart” track #6) audio file by clicking on the Flash player’s button below:
In the science of Kabbalah the thought is the intention. In a regular life thought belongs to the considerations made by the desire to receive in order to receive. A thought is that which you want to do with your desire. The activation of the desire according to an egoistic or altruistic plan, no matter which, is called “thought.” A thought that is clarified regarding its source, meaning for whom is it intended—you or the Creator—is called intention. The intention we are studying cannot be like every other intention of our world. Intention is a thought analyzed in the spiritual work.
The hardest part is to maintain the intention. That is what requires the most effort. It is hidden and not felt. It doesn’t express itself in any way and great efforts are needed to hold on to it. It is always necessary to check and to find out that it is still there. The recognition of evil relates to focusing our intention, as expressed in “get away from evil and do good” (Psalms, 34:15). All is in relation to the intention.
We have to constantly awaken the importance of the intention over all the other activities and inner processes. We have to identify with and connect to the intention, not the action, matter, or anything else. This shows that a person is in the spiritual in his or her work, and is on the path.
Since these are concealed issues, you can tell jokes or perform all sorts of strange actions, and no one will know what is really happening within you. On the contrary, this is a wonderful remedy: The more distant you are from the external action and speech, the better you will be able to keep the intention, stay more focused on it and thereby be charged with a high voltage. A wonderful remedy, a method for self-preservation, as well as other benefits, is hidden here. But this is hard work. more…
Click here to view the complete “Intentions from the Heart” index
Click here to download the complete “Intentions from the Heart” audio book
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All are One and One is All

2007-08-20T22:01:00.000+10:00

All are One and One is All
August 20, 2007 at 6:29 am · Filed under Articles, Kabbalah Today
All are One and One is AllArticle in Kabbalah Today Issue 6
The way we perceive reality dictates all that we experience in life. So how do we know that we are not missing something that could have made our experience in this world a whole lot better? more…
Click here for the full article
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Who is He?

2007-08-18T08:11:00.001+10:00

Who is He?
August 17, 2007 at 8:58 am · Filed under Thought of the Week

In the beginning, Rabbi Elazar began by saying, “Lift up your eyes on high and see. Who has created these things?” Lift up your eyes. To what place? To the place where all eyes depend on Him. And who is He that created these things? He is the opening of the eyes. And you should know that this is the concealed Atik where lies the question: Who has created these? And who (ed. “who” in Hebrew is “Mi,” and will be referred to as such herein) is He? He is called from the extremity of heaven on high, as everything belongs to Him. The question arises because of Him, and He is concealed. He is called Mi because beyond Him there lies no question. Thus, the extremity of heaven is called Mi.
Item 7 from the Introduction to the Sulam Commentary to the Book of Zohar.
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Question Your Reality

2007-08-17T00:56:00.000+10:00

Question Your Reality
August 16, 2007 at 7:28 am · Filed under News, Perceiving Reality, What is Kabbalah?, Perception of Reality, Notices

QUESTIONYOURREALITY.com - the world’s first ever interactive video FAQ site on authentic Kabbalah, spirituality, world crisis and natural law.
QUESTIONYOURREALITY.com uses cutting edge flash video to deliver the authentic wisdom of Kabbalah in an entertaining, informative and dynamic fashion.
Choose from 5 categories of questions, asked by people off the streets, and receive answers and guidance to free further study on the topics.
Click here to go directly to QUESTIONYOURREALITY.com
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VIDEO: Our Environment - The Collective Soul

2007-08-15T23:28:00.000+10:00

VIDEO: Our Environment - The Collective Soul
August 14, 2007 at 10:04 am · Filed under Free Will, World Peace, Video
Our Environment - The Collective SoulOur true environment is one of total interconnection with others, but we don׳t feel this interconnection. Why? What should we do about it? 04:07
Click here to view the video at Kabbalah TV
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Kabbalah for Beginners

2007-08-14T09:45:00.000+10:00

Kabbalah for Beginners
August 13, 2007 at 9:45 am · Filed under Books, What is Kabbalah?
Kabbalah for Beginners is a book for everyone who is seeking answers to life’s essential questions. We all have problems; we want to know why we are here, why there is pain and how we can make life more enjoyable.
The four parts of this book tell us exactly how the wisdom of Kabbalah came about, who discovered and developed it, and what they discovered. Afterwards, the book tells us about the world we live in and finally, it explains how we can make our lives better for ourselves and for our children.
Part One discusses the discovery of the wisdom of Kabbalah, and how it was developed, and finally concealed until our time.
Part Two introduces the gist of the wisdom of Kabbalah, using 10 easy drawings to help us understand the structure of the spiritual worlds, and how they relate to our world. These drawings are accompanied by explanatory texts that make understanding Kabbalah very easy.
Part Three reveals Kabbalistic concepts that are largely unknown to the public. For example: the Creator exists nowhere but within us; our senses reveal what they sense, not what is really out there; and reality is nothing but a reflection of our perception, and hence changes when we change.
Part Four elaborates on practical means you and I can take in order to make our lives here better and more enjoyable for us and for our children. It explains how we can implement Kabbalistic principles such as freedom of choice and the power of society, and thus become more whole and fulfilled individuals.
View/Download/Purchase Kabbalah for Beginners:- PDF version- MS Word version- Purchase the Book from our Bookstore for only $7.00
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Why was Ben Gurion so intrigued by what Baal HaSulam had told him?

2007-08-14T09:43:00.000+10:00

Why was Ben Gurion so intrigued by what Baal HaSulam had told him?
August 12, 2007 at 10:47 am · Filed under Israel, Articles, Kabbalah Today
Time to ActArticle in Kabbalah Today Issue 6
One windy winter eve in Poland in 1921, Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag returned home even more withdrawn than usual. He put his haversack at the corner of the room and sat thoughtfully on the sofa. He did not utter a word. After a long silence, he informed his family: “We are standing on the verge of a new era. I can no longer stay in Poland. It is time to make Aliyah (immigrate) to Israel…”
Baal HaSulam was one of the greatest Kabbalists of all time. He was a unique soul that came into this world to bring us the wisdom of Kabbalah, and to move us closer to a life of happiness, peace, and unity.
“I have a great desire to break an iron wall that has been separating us from the wisdom of Kabbalah,” Baal HaSulam wrote. Indeed, he was the first Kabbalist to interpret the entire Book of Zohar and the writings of the Ari, and to make the ancient wisdom of Kabbalah accessible to every single person. He was also the first to publish a Kabbalistic paper and disseminate it among the people. His heart ached with concern for the future of the people of Israel and the world at large, a concern that controlled his every move. more…
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Mercy and Truth

2007-08-10T20:47:00.000+10:00

Mercy and Truth
August 9, 2007 at 9:59 pm · Filed under Articles, Thought of the Week, Quotes

What is the attribute of mercy? Our sages defined it as: “what’s mine is yours and what’s your is yours.” And if all the people in the world were to behave that way, it would cancel all the glory of the attribute of truth and judgment, because if each and everyone would be naturally willing to give everything he has to his fellow man and take nothing of another for himself, then the whole interest in lying to one another would disappear, and there would be no room to speak of the attribute of truth whatsoever, because true and false are relative - and if there were no falsehood in the world, there would be no concept of truth. Needless to say that the other attributes that are there only to strengthen the attribute of truth because of its weakness, would also be cancelled.
Truth is defined in the words: “what’s mine is mine, and what’s yours is yours.” That contradicts the attribute of mercy and cannot altogether tolerate it because in truth, it is unjust to labor and strain for another, because besides causing his friend to fail, he accustoms him to exploit his fellow man. Thus, truth dictates that every person treasure his own assets for a time of need so he will not have to be a burden on his fellow man. more…
Baal HaSulam, Peace in the World.
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VIDEO: Where is Our Freedom?

2007-08-10T10:40:00.000+10:00

August 9, 2007 at 10:16 am · Filed under Video
Where is Our Freedom? 02:03We are our ego - the desire to enjoy. Not knowing how to aim our ego correctly is the cause of all our problems. Discovering how to aim our ego correctly means discovering where we have freedom.
Click here to view the video at Kabbalah TV
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Havoc in Modern-Day Babylon

2007-08-08T23:04:00.000+10:00

Havoc in Modern-Day Babylon
August 8, 2007 at 8:13 am · Filed under Israel, Articles, Kabbalah Today
Havoc in Modern-Day BabylonArticle in Kabbalah Today Issue 6
The idea of unity among all human beings is no more to us than an imaginary children’s story. Back in babylon, someone had a way for humanity to unite. Today, our world needs such a method more than ever. more…
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Talmud Eser Sefirot and the Need to Define Spirituality Correctly

2007-08-08T10:20:00.000+10:00

Talmud Eser Sefirot and the Need to Define Spirituality Correctly
August 7, 2007 at 3:11 am · Filed under Kabbalistic Terminology, Daily Lessons, Definitions
Rav Michael Laitman, PhD teaching Talmud Eser Sefirot in today’s daily lesson
From Today’s Daily Lesson
Today’s lesson began the first in a series of studying Part 1 of Talmud Eser Sefirot (The Study of the Ten Sefirot), by Baal HaSulam.
In his commentary, Rav Michael Laitman, PhD stressed the importance of understanding the correct definitions of the spiritual terminology in this opening part of the text. One needs to attune one’s focus on Baal HaSulam’s definition of each word one comes across in order to properly attune oneself to the text’s spiritual meaning, otherwise one can easily misinterpret the text with corporeal, physical meanings.
Rav Laitman placed special emphasis on the spiritual world (which Talmud Eser Sefirot describes) being completely disconnected from the corporeal, physical world that we perceive through our senses. Therefore, in order to base one’s approach to the study of Talmud Eser Sefirot correctly, and not mix up spirituality with corporeality, understanding the spiritual definition of each term presented in Talmud Eser Sefirot is a must.
To aid the reader of Talmud Eser Sefirot establish the correct approach to the study and clarify the spiritual meanings of the terms presented in the text, Baal HaSulam included tables of questions and answers for the meanings of the spiritual words at the end of each part. In this lesson, Rav Laitman and the students of Bnei Baruch present a very good example for students interested in delving deeper into the study of Kabbalah, of how to use these tables of questions and answers together with the body of the text to best absorb the text’s spiritual meaning.
The lessons on Talmud Eser Sefirot will be continuing daily at 9pm 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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Kabbalistic Terminology

2007-08-07T12:04:00.000+10:00

Kabbalistic Terminology: “Spiritual Degree” “Sefirot” “Bad”
August 4, 2007 at 6:00 am · Filed under Definitions
What is a Spiritual Degree?
Two things make up a spiritual degree: a desire for something and the intention to use it for the Creator. (p. 91 “The Reality Cycle” in The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah)
What are the Sefirot?
The whole business with the Sefirot may sound confusing, but it is less so if we remember that they stand for desires. Keter is the Creator’s desire to give Light (pleasure); Hochma is our reception of the pleasure; Bina stands for our desire to give back to the Creator; ZA is our desire to receive in order to give to the Creator; and Malchut is our pure desire to receive, the actual Root of the creatures - us. (p. 89, “Before the Big Bang” in The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah)
Bad
There is no bad in Kabbalah; it’s all a question of how we relate to the situations we’re in. Pharaoh is considered an evil force. But Kabbalists inverted the Hebrew letters of the name Pharaoh and found that it really means Oref H (the posterior side of the Creator). In other words, Pharaoh is really the Creator goading you harshly to progress to spirituality because you are not pushing yourself fast enough. If you push faster, you will find that Pharaoh is your friend. (p. 141, “Letters, Numbers, Names” in The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah)
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Kabbalah Today - Issue 6

2007-08-07T12:02:00.001+10:00

Kabbalah Today - Issue 6
August 6, 2007 at 11:07 am · Filed under Articles, Kabbalah Today

Editor’s NoteDays of Do or DieA glance at last month’s news reveals a startling picture: floods, fires, quakes, terror, corruption, and a nuclear radiation leak are just some of the issues that made the headlines. It seems we are approaching days of do or die.
And indeed, there is a lot we can do for ourselves, but we must resolve to do it. According to Kabbalah, things do not happen by chance; they occur to show us the direction towards happiness. The faster we follow the signs, the sooner we will achieve this goal.
This issue of Kabbalah Today discusses why we are unhappy, but mainly what we can and should do to change that. The items in this issue present the solutions Kabbalah offers from multiple angles. It is our sincere hope that reading this paper will provide you with renewed sense of strength, hope, and faith in the good future of humanity.
Click here to view the e-version of Kabbalah Today Issue 6
Click here to download the Kabbalah Today Issue 6 PDF
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Kabbalah Today Issue 5 Podcast

2007-08-06T13:58:00.001+10:00

Kabbalah Today Issue 5 Podcast
August 5, 2007 at 4:35 am · Filed under Audio, Kabbalah Today
Listen to the Kabbalah Today Issue 5 podcast by clicking on the Flash player’s button below:

A Kabbalah Today Issue 5 podcast compilation has been created containing the following playlist (the links are to the articles in the paper, containing the audio files for the articles alone):
- What is (and is not) Kabbalah?- Creation, Evolution and Beyond- Baal HaSulam on Our Perception of Reality- Contradictory Phenomena- Kabbalah Icons: The Rabash
Click here to download the podcast (MP3 36.55mb)
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New Rav Laitman Lecture Transcript

2007-08-04T19:27:00.000+10:00

New Rav Laitman Lecture Transcript
August 1, 2007 at 6:00 am · Filed under Humanity, Evolution, Lectures, Q&A
Click here to read lecture transcript
A transcript from a public lecture filled with Q&A given by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD in Toronto (January 7, 2007) is now available. Rav Laitman first gave an overview of humanity’s egoistic development and some of the key stages of egoism’s growth in this development, and then answered the following questions:
 Is there a connection between the Torah and Kabbalah?
 How do Kabbalists feel about all the existing religions?
 Are you aware of the energetic images which constitute the Kabbalistic tree of life, and which were received as a consequence of extrasensory perception?
 From what I heard, famous Kabbalists are of the Jewish faith. Are there any Kabbalists of other faiths?
 Will everything written in the Torah occur in reality, or is it just an object of one’s imagination and unreal?
 What is the Creator? How do you see Him?
 How do you feel about Berg’s Center?
 Can a person join a group the moment he realizes or feels his “point in the heart”?
 Is it possible to change your fate once you grow spiritually?
 How does a person’s diet influence his studies in Kabbalah?
 How does Kabbalah differ from theosophy?
 Has any scientific data been collected affirming Kabbalah?
 Why did the Book of Zohar only become available in 1995?
 Are there Kabbalists-scientists who are not of Jewish descent (except Madonna)?
 Why do you call egoism an integral part of Kabbalah? Why is it egoism specifically, and not another positive word? Doesn’t egoism refer to a situation when something is done for one person, while Kabbalah wants the opposite, for everyone?
 Based on Kabbalah, as a science, can you assert that there is immortality?
 For how long does one need to study Kabbalah, and what will happen once a person learns it? Does having a grasp on Kabbalah help to conquer illnesses?
 What awaits North America?
 What can you tell us about the works of the Roerichs and the Blavatskys?
 Are the laws of the Upper Providence known?
 Can one study the original sources in translation?
 What do cybernetics, the theory of informational governance, and Kabbalah have in common?
 Why did Kabbalah become available during World War II?
 Kabbalah rejects religion. What connection does Kabbalah have with following a religion? In particular, what is the meaning of the Kippah (yarmulke)?
 Is there such a thing as reincarnations of souls?
 Is there a separation between the soul and the body after death?
 How can we tear a teenager away from drugs? What does Kabbalah say about this?
 How do the governments of different countries that are in authority today feel about Kabbalah?
 Is asceticism necessary in order to achieve the Upper spiritual world?
 Do you teach about the spiritual world?
 There are lots of different directions in Kabbalah. Which of them is correct? Are the Ari and Chefetz Chaim primary sources?
 Does Kabbalah engage in medical treatment, such as acupuncture?
 What happens to the soul after a person dies? Do all the feelings remain in the soul after death?
 Can Kabbalah explain the fact of life after death, or rebirth?
 Can you briefly state your opinion about the spiritual act called “the blow of fire,” or Pulsa Denura?
 Does this mean that there exists only one reality? …and we will need to return in order to achieve the proper level, or a transition to another reality?
 Is it possible to study Kabbalah without a teacher?
 Who is a Kabbalah teacher?
 How important is it to undergo the beginner stages of the revelation of egoism in one’s development? Is it possible to reach the Upper level, by-passing the lower stages?
 Are the books that laid the foundation for Kabbalah also written by people?
 Is Kabbalah the only way to attain the Upper level?
 How do I rid my wife and children of super egoism?
 By learning Kabbalah, do you believe in God?
 You mentioned that the world is becoming more dangerous. When will this change, when will it become better?
 Is it possible to receive the information we need without studying from books?
 You said that only by developing the soul and attaining the Upper World is it possible to fix our fate. In our understanding, this means finding a better position in this world, getting married successfully, making more money, or finding a better job. If a person attains the Upper World, doesn’t he become a part of the governing system?
Rav Michael Laitman, PhD, Lecture presented at the Bnei Baruch Kabbalah Education Center, Toronto. wmv video mp3 audio ms word transcript
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All's well that ends well

2007-08-01T08:34:00.000+10:00

All's well that ends well
Column: Kabbalah.info
Rav Michael Laitman ReligionAndSpirituality.com
July 30, 2007

Optimism, according to the American Heritage Dictionary, is "a tendency to expect the best possible outcome or dwell on the most hopeful aspects of a situation." By this definition, Kabbalists aren't optimists; they don't have to be. They know it will all end well. In fact, they say that it will end in the best possible way. By "it," they are referring to the whole of creation, at all its levels, spiritual and corporeal, and at all times, since creation was first conceived and to all eternity.

If you read genuine Kabbalistic texts attentively, you will discover that according to Kabbalah, there isn't any "bad" in creation whatsoever, and there never has been. The greatest Kabbalists, such as Rabbi Shimon Bar-Yochai, the Holy Ari, and Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag (Baal HaSulam), are individuals who reached the top of the spiritual ladder, perceived the very thought that started creation, and from that apex declared that there isn't, never was, and never will be any "bad" in reality.

To help us understand why they made such statements, which, judging by today's world, do not coincide with reality, they wrote books that explained the process of creation and the thought behind it. In the essay "The Essence of Religion and Its Purpose," Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag wrote that to perceive reality correctly, we need not examine it with our present perspective, but first achieve the purpose of reality. With this knowledge, he claimed, we will observe our world with new eyes.

Below is a direct translation of Baal HaSulam's thought-provoking words from "The Essence of Religion and Its Purpose":

"By observing nature's systems, we understand that any being ... is placed under particular guidance. This is a slow and gradual growth by way of cause and effect, like a fruit on the tree is guided with favorable guidance to finally become a sweet and fine-looking fruit.

"Go and ask a botanist, 'How many phases does the fruit undergo from the time it becomes visible until it is completely ripe?' Not only do its preceding phases show no evidence of its sweet and fine-looking end, but as if to vex, they show the opposite of the final outcome. The sweeter the fruit is at its end, the more bitter it is in the earlier phases of its development.

"Thus, it is evident that His Guidance over the reality He has created is in the form of purposeful Guidance, regardless of the order of the phases of development, for they deceive us and prevent us from understanding their purpose, being always in an opposite position to their final shape.

"It is about such matters that we say, 'None are as wise as the experienced.' This is because only one who is experienced has the opportunity to examine creation in all its evolutionary phases, all the way through completion. He can soothe matters and not fear those faulty images that creation undergoes in ... its development, and have faith in its worthy and handsome ripening.

"Thus, we have thoroughly shown the conduct of His Providence in our world, which is a purely purposeful care. The attribute of goodness is not apparent before the arrival of the creation to completeness, to its final ripeness. On the contrary, it rather always takes a corrupt form in the eyes of the beholders. Hence, you see that God bestows only goodness upon His creatures, but that this goodness comes by way of purposeful care."

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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The Genius' Guide to Kabbalah

2007-07-31T10:27:00.000+10:00

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

2007-07-28T23:20:00.000+10:00

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

2007-07-27T18:27:00.000+10:00

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

2007-07-24T23:24:00.000+10:00

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.
View UPI Version

Baal HaSulam on Globalization

2007-07-23T21:36:00.003+10:00

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

2007-07-23T21:36:00.001+10:00

The Task of Disseminating Kabbalah: The Wisdom of Transformation

2007-07-23T09:06:00.000+10:00

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"

2007-07-23T08:58:00.000+10:00

“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

2007-07-21T09:31:00.000+10:00

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

2007-07-21T09:30:00.000+10:00

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)

2007-07-21T09:28:00.000+10:00

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

2007-07-21T09:25:00.000+10:00

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"

2007-07-21T09:21:00.000+10:00

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?

2007-07-10T01:00:00.000+10:00

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

2007-07-05T12:57:00.000+10:00

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

2007-07-03T13:40:00.000+10:00

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…
Click here to read the full article

New Kabbalistic Texts for Download

2007-07-03T13:37:00.000+10:00

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

2007-07-03T13:34:00.000+10:00

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…
Click here to read the full article
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The Purpose of Egoism

2007-07-03T13:31:00.001+10:00

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…
Click here to read full interview
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MUSIC: Ki Halatzta Nafshi

2007-06-19T22:45:00.000+10:00

MUSIC: Ki Halatzta Nafshi
June 15, 2007 at 6:23 am · Filed under Music
Listen to the quartet version for violin, bassoon, guitar and piano by clicking on the Flash player’s button below:
Ki Halatzta Nafshia song by Baal HaSulam
1. Download Instrumental Version2. Download Version Performed by the band “Bnei Baruch”3. Download Quartet Version for violin, bassoon, guitar and piano.
The melody to this song was composed by Rabbi Baruch Shalom HaLevi Ashlag (Rabash).
Perhaps this melody seems sad, but the truth is that it is not sad, it is tender, and it expresses the feeling of someone who entered the property of Bina - bestowal, the properties of the Creator - where there are no cries and everything rests in peace. Rabash expresses the entering into this state through this melody, when he undoubtedly sees that all of his Kelim, his entire soul, all of his desires submit to this Upper Force and begin to reign in it.
It is a short song that sings about serene peace, about a man entering the Upper Force and staying there in the state of absolute, eternal rest.
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What is God?

2007-06-19T22:43:00.000+10:00

What is God?
June 17, 2007 at 1:26 pm · Filed under Articles, Interviews
Bestselling novelist Edward Topol interviews Rav Laitman on topics ranging “What is God?”, the Bible code, smoking, human evolution, judgment, body and soul, freedom of choice, and Rav Laitman’s personal life. The following is a section from the interview:
What is God?
Edward Topol: I’ll tell you honestly. I’m not at all prepared. You are on one level and I’m somewhere there. My questions are simple, from the very first lower level.What is God?
Rav Laitman: The general law of the universe which surrounds us, and in relation to us reveals itself as absolute and total love, is called “God.” This is felt on all of the inanimate, animal, and vegetative levels in the capacity of the universe. We don’t feel this because our nature is opposite to that of the Creator.
The Creator is the quality of bestowal, the quality of love, a totally altruistic quality which surrounds us. This quality is invariable and constant, like the tremendous love of a mother towards her child. The child feels it to the degree of either its corruption or its correction. This is the relationship we are in with the Creator.
In Hebrew, the Creator and nature are described by the same word Elokim, the same word. The Creator and nature are one. There isn’t anything outside of our surrounding nature, the nature we perceive as well as the part of nature which we don’t perceive. There are higher layers of nature which are concealed from us, but are still within our scope. All of them together are called “nature” or “Creator.”
Edward Topol: If the Creator is love, if the Creator is something that surrounds us, then why do I have to move towards Him? He’s already right here, inside of me, and around me. Why do I need to study Kabbalah or other methods of attaining or comprehending the Creator? more…
Download the full interview (ms word format)
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The Spiritual Teacher in Kabbalah

2007-06-19T22:41:00.000+10:00

The Spiritual Teacher in Kabbalah
June 18, 2007 at 10:02 am · Filed under Video, Q&A
The Spiritual Teacher in Kabbalah 03:08The role of a spiritual teacher in Kabbalah is to draw everyone to the Creator, not to himself, and Kabbalists say that eventually, everyone will be in adhesion with the Creator. Rav Michael Laitman, PhD discusses the role of a Kabbalist teacher and spiritual attainment with European MTV host Eden Harel.
Click here to view the video at Kabbalah TV
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"Fighting Terror the Right Way"

2007-06-19T22:36:00.000+10:00

Fighting Terror the Right Way
June 19, 2007 at 3:51 am · Filed under Articles, Altruism, Terrorism
From the Kabbalistic perspective, terrorists are the headache that makes us go to the doctor for treatment. If we don’t go, we will have to go when it’s a migraine.
Fighting terror the right way is an oxymoron: You can’t fight terror, so there is no way of doing it “right.” Why is it impossible? Because terrorism is here for a purpose. Hence, whenever the victims find new ways to defend against it, terrorists will find new ways to terrorize, murder and generally wreak havoc, disorder and fear.
The purpose of terrorism is no different from the purpose of every “evil” element in our world: to force us away from complacency when we are inclined to be idle, and to force us to re-examine our situation. If you look at the world from the Kabbalistic perspective, the whole of humanity is one system, and terrorists are the headache that makes us go to the doctor for treatment. If we don’t go when it’s a mild headache, we will have to go when it’s a migraine.
As is confirmed by science, and has been known to Kabbalists for millennia, the universe is a single, interdependent system, whose well-being depends on constant reciprocity among its elements. These interdependency and reciprocity are sustained by the system’s care for each of its elements, while each element devotes itself to the well-being of the system. Thus, the rule “All for one and one for all” is the mechanism that sustains everything, including life on Earth.
However, humankind is the only species that can choose to act contrary to nature’s law of reciprocity. People can choose to care for others, or for themselves. By choosing to care for ourselves, we place ourselves in total opposition to the modus operandi of the whole of nature, and thus invert the law to “All against one and one against all.” Conversely, by choosing to care for others, we are automatically in sync with the reciprocity law. It is our choice whether or not to act like the whole of nature, but there is really no one to blame but us if our choice to be opposite from nature makes us unhappy.
All this does not mean that terrorists are good-hearted people who are trying to make us see the truth. It means that wanting to work only for ourselves will eventually cause — at least some of us — to justify doing whatever we feel like, as long as it pleases us. From a self-centered perspective, it is perfectly justified to drop an atom bomb on America if I don’t like its president, put a bullet through my neighbor’s chest if his dog poops on my lawn, or murder dozens of innocent college kids because I got up on the wrong foot today. But will this make anyone happy, even the wrongdoer?
To be happy, we need to be synchronized with nature. There are several benefits to that:1) Nature itself will support us, instead of going against us, as it is doing now.2) Humankind, like the whole of nature, will work to guarantee the well-being of every person on every level — physical, emotional, and spiritual.
In this spirit, Kabbalist Rav Yehuda Ashlag (Baal HaSulam) wrote in his article “Peace in the World“: “First, everyone must thoroughly understand and explain to his surroundings that the well-being of society, which is the well-being of the state, and the well-being of the world are completely interdependent. As long as the laws of society are not satisfactory to each and every individual in the state, and leave an unsatisfied minority from the government of the state, this minority … will seek to overthrow it.”
Thus, well-being of the individual, well-being of the state and well-being of the world are all interdependent. Only if we all decide to work together to achieve the kind of society that Baal HaSulam describes, will we succeed.
3) If we choose to behave as does the whole of nature, and dedicate ourselves to our fellow person, we will become similar to nature’s law itself. That is, we will be working in the same way as nature — in reciprocity and interdependency, veering away from self-centeredness. This will grant us much more than a comfortable life: Because this modus operandi will stem from our own choice, we will also have the knowledge that begets that mode, the knowledge of the whole of nature, the Creator of the universe. After all, in Gimatria (the numerology of Kabbalah), Elokim (God) and “The Nature” are the same.
Click here to read the article at kabbalah.info
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Social Unity - Humanity's Basis for Happiness

2007-06-05T13:27:00.000+10:00

Social Unity - Humanity’s Basis for Happiness
June 2, 2007 at 7:59 pm · Filed under Quotes, Thought of the Week
Quote from Baal HaSulam:“Every basis for physical success is the measure of the unity of society, and the basis for the success of intelligence and knowledge, is the separation and disagreement among them.
It therefore turns out, that when mankind succeeds in the matter of success of the bodies, meaning by bringing them to the degree of complete love for the fellow man, all the bodies in the world will unite into a single body and a single heart. And only then will all the happiness intended for humanity will be revealed in all its glory.”
Baal HaSulam, in “The Freedom.”
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Baal HaSulam's Intention for Writing "Talmud Eser Sefirot"

2007-06-05T13:23:00.000+10:00

Baal HaSulam’s Intention for Writing “Talmud Eser Sefirot”
June 3, 2007 at 2:17 pm · Filed under Definitions, Daily Lessons, Talmud Eser Sefirot
From Today’s Daily Lesson:
Student: It’s unclear how the Partzufim of BYA receive the Light of Hochma. Baal HaSulam doesn’t explain it.
Rav Laitman: That’s right. Baal HaSulam doesn’t explain it nor does he intend to. This is the problem: We think that Talmud Eser Sefirot (The Study of the Ten Sefirot) is an explanation of the Ari (Rabbi Isaac Luria).
Baal HaSulam doesn’t explain the Ari at all. He wants to direct us in how to study the Ari to reach the goal: to correct ourselves and then to discover what the Ari discusses in our Kelim (vessels/tools/receptacles), because you will never know otherwise.
It is literally impossible to bring you a picture of what is happening in the world of Atzilut. If he does explain, sometimes, that some things happen somehow by different technical actions, he also doesn’t intend to give a technical explanation so that you will learn that the will to receive and the will to bestow need to be in mutual bestowal to one another, that the Upper Light will correct the will to receive, and so on and so forth.
Why would he explain spirituality? It’s impossible to depict. At the end of it all, Baal HaSulam strives so that you will direct yourself toward revelation by the explanation. This is his entire hope; that you will reach him by your own corrections, and then you’ll discover what is being discussed.
If your Kli (vessel/tool/receptacle) is not on a degree that is written here, in the same state as the world of Beria, Yetzira or Atzilut, then you won’t understand what is written, in each and every sentence. So you have to be brought. His entire trouble is to bring you there. Not to simply “blah blah” talk about it. It’s not a world where I can tell you about a certain state, a certain place and you depict it and imagine it to yourself…
This is how it is in our world, however, in the spiritual world you’re incapable of imagining it. It’s the opposite; it’s not worthwhile for you to imagine it, because all these imaginations give you satisfaction. Therefore, he has completely no intention of bringing you any knowledge—only Ohr Makif (Surrounding Light), as he mentions in item 155 of “Introduction to Talmud Eser Sefirot.”
Rav Michael Laitman, PhD in the lesson on Talmud Eser Sefirot (The Study of the Ten Sefirot), Volume 6, Part 16, item 107: wmv video mp3 audio (55 min)
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A Trail Of Anti-Semitism

2007-06-05T13:21:00.000+10:00

A Trail of Anti-Semitism
June 4, 2007 at 8:13 pm · Filed under Articles, World Peace, Anti-Semitism
Israeli Social Affairs Minister Isaac Herzog was quoted as saying, “There is a long trail of anti-Semitism in Europe.” Kabbalah says we must look inside for the reason.Click here to read full article
According to the wisdom of Kabbalah, anti-Semitism will continue to spread and intensify until Jews fulfill their reason for being in this world: to learn how to love their neighbors as themselves, as taught by Rabbi Akiva, and then pass this teaching on to the rest of the world.
Click here to read full article
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The Omnipotent Wizard Who Could Not Be Alone

2007-06-05T13:16:00.000+10:00

AUDIO: The Omnipotent Wizard Who Could Not Be Alone
May 25, 2007 at 9:05 am · Filed under Audio, Kabbalistic Stories
Listen by clicking on the Flash player’s button below:
The Omnipotent Wizard Who Could Not Be Alone: A Tale for Grownups is Rav Laitman’s story about a wizard who created all life and a person within it, and a person’s search for happiness within the world the wizard created.
Click here to read the story Click here to download the audio file (mp3)
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"The Complete Idiot's Guide to Kabbalah"

2007-05-20T16:38:00.000+10:00

New Book - “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah”
May 17, 2007 at 8:10 pm · Filed under Notices, Books, News

You’re no idiot, of course. You know that Kabbalah is more than a celebrity fad or a red string bracelet. Its philosophies encourage us to look beyond the tangible for purpose and enlightenment.
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah will show you exactly how to embrace these ancient teachings - and make them a part of your daily life. In this Complete Idiot’s Guide, you get:- The facts - and fallacies - about Kabbalah.- Enlightening advice on how to read the Bible or Torah from a Kabbalah point of view.- Down-to-earth guidance on how to incorporate the essence of Kabbalah into everyday life.- The story of creation according to Kabbalah.
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Kabbalah is Rav Michael Laitman’s first book written in English as an original language. Together with writer Collin Canright, this author duo produced a book rich with analogies, examples and alerts to explain this most ancient wisdom in the simplest way possible to the Western world.
Click here to pre-order your copy today!
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