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Two questions I received on how to connect spirituality and regular life

Question: How does the spiritual world influence and enliven our world, if the two worlds aren’t connected? Do they have a “cause-and-effect” connection? If so, then why isn’t our world also perfect and eternal?

My Answer: Our world is governed entirely from above. And every day we are becoming more and more convinced of this, because no matter how we try to change things, nothing goes according to plan.

The only way we can influence the Upper World (from below upwards) is to evoke (ask for) an acceleration (but not a change) of the process of our correction (by studying in the group and disseminating). We will perceive this acceleration as if evil and suffering are replaced by goodness and pleasure.

Question: Why does a person have to separate the spiritual part of his life from the regular one?

My Answer: It’s necessary to separate the two worlds. However they aren’t separate in and of themselves, but only relative the person who attains them. Outside a person, there is only the general Light. Once a person attains the Upper World, through it he sees our world, and he is no longer confused about the origin of everything that happens and about the connections between all parts of the world. But if he starts attaining the Upper World from our world, then he will get confused and start seeing forces through objects. He will do the same thing that the religions and faiths do – start thinking that there is spirituality inside the objects of our world, worshiping material objects such as trees, lucky charms, red strings, holy water, or predicting the future. This is why Baal HaSulam writes that one first attains the Upper World, and only after such attainment, one starts researching (from the Upper World) the descending forces that form our world, and the phenomena in our world.

Related Material:
Kabbalah Today Article: On Roots and Branches
Kabbalah Today Article: Baal HaSulam on the Perception of Reality
Kabbalah Today Article: I Saw a Reversed World

 

 Physical and Spiritual: Play Now | Download

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A question I received: The more Kabbalah is revealed to the world, the more the forces controlling this world are revealed. Does this mean that we’re going to see more and more of the world’s problems resolved if we realize that we’ve created an illusion for ourselves in this world? I am particularly referring to cancer. With our egoism we have created a terrorist in our body that we can’t control. We have built a massive industry around this illusion, including our educational system, medicine, fund raising, government, the pharmaceutical system, and health care industries. The pain and suffering that have been created by this illusion are just as enormous as the stress and anxiety it has created in the world. The realization that cancer is a force in the body that’s controlled by the brain makes it something that can be fully controlled by the mind.

My Answer: Certainly everything we perceive is a picture created by us, by our egoism (the picture of our world) or by the quality of bestowal (the picture of the Upper World). How we “depict” it depends on us, on our desire + intention. However, it is impossible for an individual to “depict” the picture of the world - it can only be done with everybody together, or in the very least, in a group. This is because spirituality is “depicted” in the connection between us, between the souls.

Incidentally, it’s the same with our egoistic world – we depict (imagine) it in our attitude to others, i.e. in selfish desires. Souls do not see the picture of the world within themselves; they see it in what’s between them, in the quality of the connection between them. Therefore, because of your dependence on others, the other cogs in the system, you cannot use Kabbalah to cure yourself or put yourself into a comfortable state. Moreover, as long as there remain to be people needing correction, disasters and diseases will also remain. We will “depict” one beautiful picture only when we (i.e. humanity as a whole) correct ourselves together.

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 TV Program: Natural Disasters [27:17m]: Play Now | Download

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A question I received: Where you openly present the state of the world as being in a deepening crisis, Bill Gates talks about how it’s getting better: “The world is getting better, but it’s not getting better fast enough…” (Bill Gates, in his World Economic Forum speech). He talks about the developing technologies, longer life expectancy, the status of women and minorities, the increasing number of people who have a say in the governance of their nations, and he is generally optimistic about the future. What is your opinion about this?

My Answer: Those are the opinions of a person who spent his whole life believing in money, that the world’s entire strength lies only in money, that only money can solve the world’s problems, and that if we give everyone money, and lots of it, then everyone will be satisfied.

And even if you object and say, “No - besides that he also has far reaching plans, and Baal HaSulam says that we must satisfy everyone at the minimum level” – any path that sets out to do any task without aiming to attain adhesion with the Creator is wrong from the outset. The very best idea will fail and end in nothing, just like Bill’s life.

Question: So what is the method you suggest?

My Answer: Please understand that I can’t give an answer to every person about something that I’ve already answered. The blog isn’t a directory. Look through previous posts, and go to the kabbalah.info website.

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Two questions and answers on the issue of questions and answers

Question: What’s the point of listening to someone else ask you a question? And in general, what’s the point of questions?

My Answer: It is written that “a shy person cannot study.” One has to ask questions, but at the same time one should heed the answers and delve deeper into them, until they become absolutely clear, that is, until they enter you. When you listen to your friend, you unite with him in his desire for the goal, and this is important for uniting within the group. I mean, your desire on its own is never enough to attain the goal, for the Ohr Makif (Surrounding Light) to evoke a new intention “for the sake of another” in your desire. It was only for the sake of such unity with others that the worlds appeared, that the soul of Adam was created and then broken, and that this world was created so low. This was all done in order to create for the person a place for free will. Therefore, the only thing we do is realize our free will in our attempt to absorb the desires and goal of our friends in the entire world group.

In such a way, humanity will have to solve its common crisis, i.e. the revelation of mutual hatred and separation. People will discover that this mutual hatred and separation is causing a life threatening situation, to the point of the destruction of their lives. Even though their life is empty and worthless, they treat it as being very valuable since it is the only life they have, and as such, people will start listening to questions - to the desires of others - until everyone will unite in one question (as stated in item 2 of the “Introduction to Talmud Eser Sefirot“): “What is the meaning of our lives?” They will then come to Kabbalah.

Question: You often say that spirituality is beyond time, motion and space. What do you mean?

My Answer: You need to find the answer in Talmud Eser Sefirot, Part 1 “Histaklut Pnimit (Inner Reflection).” You can’t get around it - you have to study. Those who are looking for an easy way out by asking questions don’t understand that only by studying Baal HaSulam’s materials (in any language) can they evoke the Upper Light of correction. Questions and answers are only intended to introduce beginners to the path. At the very least, you should go through all the posts on this blog. Perhaps, for now, this form of studying is most appropriate for you.

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News Story: DNA Explodes Greek Myth About Women

“Women in Ancient Greece were major power brokers in their own right, researchers have discovered, and often played key roles in running affairs of state. Until now it was thought they were treated little better than servants.

The discovery is part of an investigation by Manchester researchers into the founders of Mycenae, Europe’s first great city-state and capital of King Agamemnon’s domains.

‘It was thought that in those days women were rated as little more than chattels in Ancient Greece,’ said Professor Terry Brown, of the faculty of life sciences at Manchester University. ‘Our work now suggests that notion is wrong.’”

My Comment: Science never insists on anything, but only states whatever it considers to be fact at a given moment. The opinion of tomorrow will be opposite to the opinion of today. I hope that the same will soon happen to our perception of the cause of evil in the world and how to eliminate it. People are gradually starting to understand that it is not our actions that harm nature and evoke its negative reaction upon us, it is our egoistic thoughts.

Take, for example, Carbon Belch Day: Grassfire.org’s protest against taxation for financing the fight against carbon dioxide emissions and global warming, their protest against Al Gore’s “absurdity,” and against the feelings of guilt for ruining the climate.

In our world, we see only the consequences of the Upper Force’s influence; we do not see the connections between the forces, what takes place between them. Even when we observe the cause and consequences in our world, it only seems like they take place within the plane of our world. In reality, however, they come from their own cause, pass through the Upper World, and then return to our world, bringing about the consequences we see. Every event in our world is a consequence of the governing force that descends from above. If, instead of seeing part of the world’s picture, we were to see all of the forces - the causes and consequences - we would discover that it is not carbon dioxide emissions affecting the atmosphere (contrary to the “obvious” facts we see today), but that it is the Upper Forces that determine the atmosphere, and the main component of these forces is our desires and thoughts (heart and reason).

Related Material:
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 Can the Global Suffering Be Avoided? [03:35m]: Play Now | Download

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News Story: Gorging Gore “addicted” to steak

“According to the animal rights organization PETA, Al Gore’s love for steak and sausage is creating greenhouse gas emissions.

A gorging Gore, complete with potbelly and chicken drumstick is the latest PETA PR stint.
The take-no-prisoners animal rights organization has launched a campaign called www.offsetalgore.com.

’Since Gore’s addiction to meat is apparently stronger than his desire to secure a better future for our planet, we’re asking those who recognize that actions speak louder than words to help offset Gore’s greenhouse-gas emissions by pledging to go vegetarian for 30 days,’ PETA says on its offsetalgore.com campaign.

Just in time for Earth Day, Gore will see himself plastered on posters across the Internet, an embarrassing fate for a guy who claims to be saving the world from Global Warming/Climate Change.”

My Response: Until people come to realize that people themselves (their egoism) are the real reasons behind all the crises, they’ll seek out every other possible reason, overlooking themselves.

Filed under: World - 3 Comments →

There’s nothing more criminal in the modern world than the falsehood and irresponsibility permeating mass media. Anybody can write, anything can be written, and it also costs next to nothing, reaching and spoiling everyone. A person’s destiny completely depends on the environment (see Baal HaSulam’s article, “The Freedom“). Crimes, crises and suffering are all results of the involuntary absorption of incorrect and harmful information. Mass media feeds us this information and gets us hooked on it, changing the way we think and ruining us. Thus, by changing mass media, we’ll change the world!

Mass media needs to change to the degree we change. However, it needs to lead the way, as a group helping us reach a higher goal.

 

 The 4th World Spirit Forum - Plans to Better the World Using Media [17:00m]: Play Now | Download

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News Opinion Column: Mark Steyn: Guns and God? Hell, yes

“According to a global survey on optimism: 61 percent of Americans were optimistic about the future, 29 percent of the French, 15 percent of Germans.” The article’s author thinks that this is because Americans believe in God and are allowed to carry weapons.

My Response: Americans haven’t gone through everything Europe has. They are a young nation that still has the inertia of the consumer society and the cult of the dollar. The public doesn’t yet fully comprehend phenomena like the modern crisis, because it still has faith in its society and democracy.

Bernard Shaw wrote: “Democracy substitutes election by the incompetent many [like in America] for appointment by the corrupt few [like in Russia].”

We learn from the collapse of the system of the spiritual worlds (Shvirat Olam HaNekudim), that the higher a level (Malach) is, the lower it falls when it breaks. But this action takes longer than on lower levels due to the level’s height and reserve power, and hence its inability to recognize and predict the forthcoming developments that threaten it…

Similarly, faith in God and the feeling of safety one gets from carrying weapons delay one’s recognition of the forthcoming crisis. If society continues developing egoistically, the crisis will be devastating to all.

Nevertheless, we can already see the influence of Kabbalah’s dissemination. I don’t mean its mechanical dissemination, the fact that people know about Kabbalah. Rather, I’m talking about the fact that little by little, people are starting to think in Kabbalistic notions, even without being aware of it. Most of the dissemination happens through thought, through the Upper field of forces, and I hope that it will bring about recognition and a change in people’s attitude to the world, God and weapons.

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The threat of a geo-political catastrophe, brought about by the clash of the Christian and Muslim civilizations, forces each of them to guard itself by preventing the other’s expansion. The rational West and the irrational East consider each other wrong, and are unwilling to understand one another. The East does not accept the ideas of the Western civilization (democracy, equality, and freedom) as coming from man. They understand them as coming from the Creator. Islam believes that the Koran dictates the world’s proper structure, and that only the Muslims are a nation of God. In the Muslim world, politics and religion are united, and hence even a purely political change is perceived as a threat to their religion and way of life. Salvation lies in complementing one another, rather than eliminating each other. But it’s impossible to achieve this, so there’s no solution!

According to Kabbalah, the Creator’s governance is realized in three lines:
1. Abraham - the right line,
2. Isaac - the left line, and
3. Jacob - the middle line.

Klipat Abraham is Ishmael (Islam), and Klipat Isaac is Esau (Christianity). There’s also a Klipa of the middle line, of Israel - those who oppose “faith above reason” or “Lishma.”

The clash of the right and the left lines is inevitable, and they can only be reconciled by the middle line - by Jacob (Katnut, or “the small state”), or Israel (or, “the large state”). Put differently, only the spreading of Kabbalah in the world can bring the world to peace, conciliation and tranquility. Otherwise, what lies ahead is the fall of the Western and the Eastern civilizations. The only remedy for this world is to understand that it’s necessary to attain love for one’s neighbor in order to attain adhesion with the Creator, eternity, and perfection.

My Current Mood: optimistic

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News Stories:
* Food Prices Rising Across the World – Food Crisis Looming
* Bats Perish, and No One Knows Why
* Chinook Salmon Vanish Without a Trace

Apparently, we should get used to these headlines, as we’ll be seeing more and more of them, coming from all directions. Only then we will understand that there are no direct methods that can stop or even delay this downfall.

The only thing we need to do is balance ourselves with nature. Some say that we need to restore this balance; however the problem is that it had never existed in the first place. While our egoism was still small, this lack of balance wasn’t that dangerous. And even if we wanted to, we could never compensate for it, as we didn’t have any means to do so. [Read more →]

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