Does Matter Exist?

Remark: If we conduct a comparative analysis of the spiritual and the material world, then the spiritual world has always existed, but matter did not always exist. It was created from nothing at some point in time.

My Comment: There is no such thing as matter. Matter is what is given to us in our sensations, but in itself, it does not exist. After all, everything that we see and feel exists in our sensations and nothing more.

It is the desire that perceives something. This “something” is matter. It may be material, it may be spiritual, but this feeling is in the desire.

Perception in the desire to receive for oneself is called material matter. Perception in the desire to give, to fill, to bring joy to someone, is called spiritual matter.

Remark: In principle, scientists also say that our world of matter is an illusion and exists in our sensations only.

Even during experiments when a person looks at particles, one sees them in the form of electrons, etc. In the absence of man’s eye, i.e., when the research is not disturbed by human desires, feelings, and sensations, they take the form of energy and force.

My Comment: Yes. Everything is only in our sensations.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah,” 6/10/19

Let The Desire Mature

Question: In the book A Sage’s Fruit, Baal HaSulam writes that one should rejoice in the descents. How can a person rejoice in states in which he has no desire to reveal the Creator?

Answer: Many times when I was invited to a dinner party, I saw the following picture: before dinner, guests were offered an aperitif to drink and a bite of something spicy.

In anticipation of a good dinner, guests would walk around the garden or chat with each other in the living room. The host would keep it going on purpose for another half an hour, then fifteen minutes more, and when they were already at their limit and it was clear that they were ready to eat, he would let them in.

We need to understand that the task of the Creator is to make our egoism, our desire to fulfill it, mature. And He does.

Therefore, either we quickly develop ourselves and then we can soon move from the living room to the dining room, or, as usual, we can develop slowly and experience numerous problems.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah,” 3/27/19

When The Truth Is Revealed

Question: It seems that I did not start my life with the feeling: I am born with a desire to bestow and this is quite normal for me. But when I discovered the wisdom of Kabbalah, I realized that I am in an odd situation. I started to feel the incompleteness of life. In that regard, I have this question: Does the wisdom of Kabbalah also perceive movements in the opposite direction?

Answer: People who start to engage in Kabbalah soon begin to feel that they are corrupt and that they are egoists.

Previously, a person thought that he was an altruist, ethereal, completely spiritual. And suddenly, he realizes that he is not that at all because the truth is revealed to him. The upper light shines upon him and shows him that he is actually an egoist. And this is very good.

This is called the revelation of truth, the recognition of our evil nature, and this is the first step in understanding it.

What happens is a transition from illusion to truth. So, I congratulate you on starting your spiritual path.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah,” 1/26/20

How To Fill This Life?

Question: In general, there are three main strategies for combating the coronavirus in the world.

The first is quarantine, when almost everything is closed, you cannot go outside, except to the doctor and to the supermarket.

The second is contact tracking, meaning extensive testing of all contact population groups, identification of patients, and their isolation from the total mass of people. This is a more expensive way.

And the third is the development of national [herd] immunity, when only risk groups, for example, people over 65 are isolated, and everyone else should get contaminated, and thus, develop immunity to the virus.
What technique is most effective for our further development as humanity?

Answer: I would generally put everyone in absolute quarantine, except for those who supply people with everything necessary. I would close everything, for example, for a month and discover from all human occupations, what we need.

For example, we need the police, teaching children, distributing food, etc., that is, the necessary minimum for the normal existence of mankind.

People should get used to the fact of communicating with each other in a very limited range and getting the food they need and not more than that. Children receive school education. Adults gain knowledge about how the world system works and how we should interact with nature. And then we’ll see what to do next, whether we want to expand the field of our activity at all. But first, let’s get used to this for half a year.

Question: That is, would you limit all egoistic connections and leave only the most necessary for the existence of our physical body?

Answer: Yes, as it is said in Kabbalah. Like an animal that never consumes what it does not need, but only what is needed at the moment.

Question: Would you stop supplying an excess of the necessary for now?

Answer: Not just temporarily, but in general. Then we would have a wonderful ecology: air, water, birds singing, everything would be fine. We would work a maximum of 2, 3, or 4 hours a day, and everyone would be happy. And all that is superfluous that could possibly be, we do not need at all.

Comment: But it is not easy to decide what is superfluous. That which is superfluous for you, for example, is not for me.

My Response: What is unnecessary for our animal organism is superfluous.

Question: And who decides this?

Answer: Let’s decide together. If you need to play sports, you can go jogging in the park. It’s not a problem. But what’s the use of flying planes from one end to the other end of the earth like crazy?

Question: And what’s wrong with traveling? I like to dress beautifully, I like to go to the theater. I don’t know if this is superfluous or not from your point of view?

Answer: Here it is necessary to draw a very clear, reasonable line that will not lead you to something else: “Ah, the theater? If the theater, then it should be La Scala. So, I have to fly to Italy. Ah, to Italy? Coronavirus. What will I do?” Therefore, let’s limit human life to normal, reasonable boundaries. How? Why do we exist? This question has to be resolved for us.

Question: That is, we will decide what is superfluous and what is not with respect to some higher goal?

Answer: And why do we exist? Only to watch a good movie, go to the theater, listen to pleasant music, sit in company with friends, have a drink and eat? This is all wonderful, but if you fill life with this and only this, then it ends with a zero result.

After this life there is so much more. Let us first reveal what exists after. I would do that. The fact that I can fill this life with all sorts of interesting things, that I understand, I already lived it. And now I’m wondering if there is anything else behind it. And if so, how can I continue this, for what, why?

Comment: Indeed, it is worth considering whether there is life after death, and how we can, being here in this body, prepare for it.

My Response: Not to prepare, but to see it! “Discover your future world in this world.” This is exactly what the science of Kabbalah teaches us. When you have a clear picture of your future life, you can decide how to fill this life.
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From KabTV’s “Coronavirus Is Changing Reality,” 3/26/20

I Am Looking For A Person Like Myself

Remark: I tried to find information on the Internet about the principle of similarity of qualities, but I have found almost nothing.

My Comment: Because there are no clear indications of this in our world. But we can see the example of a child with his mother: he receives from his mother and she enjoys it at the same time. If he had enough understanding to rise above his desires and do what his mother wants, how big their conjugation would be.

Question: For example, should a married couple be similar in their qualities or should they be different so it would be easier for them to complement each other?

Answer: Nature is established in such a way that the more we develop, the more our egoism develops inside us, and therefore we become more and more opposite to each other.

We can see how difficult it is in our world to build communication between people in families, within countries, between peoples, and between countries. There is an ever-increasing dissociation, separation, and estrangement because the egoism is increasing in every individual person.

Question: But it is better to try to find a person more similar to you in qualities, isn’t it?

Answer: It will not work. If you find someone like yourself now, in a couple of years it will be revealed how different you are. People should have some common goal that is more important than their estrangement.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah,” 6/10/19

Suffering Or Joy?

Question: The Book of Zohar says that there is not a single blade of grass that does not have an appointee above who strikes it and tells it to grow. What does that mean?

Answer: First, growth occurs only under pressure from above.

Question: Is it done through suffering?

Answer: It is not done necessarily through suffering. But in principle, yes, because pressure is suffering. This is suffering for growth.

Therefore, what is felt as suffering on one hand, can also be felt as joy and pleasure. On the other hand, it depends on what a person identifies with. If I only think about the calmness of the body, then I compare and measure myself only in relation to this calmness. And if I rise above the calmness of the body and believe that something needs to be achieved, then I am glad that I am moving forward, producing something.

Question: That is, nature develops us and does not allow us to be at rest?

Answer: That is the point. If I remain in my state, I do not want to understand nature and make any efforts to develop myself, then I get blows. Then for me, the force of development is felt as something negative. I do not want to develop; I only want peace.

If, on the contrary, I want to develop, then whatever happens to me under the influence of the upper force is a joy for me.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah,” 6/10/19

The Work Of The Creator’s Intermediary

Question: Does the Creator only answer the prayer for others?

Answer: Yes. As a rule, He does not answer a prayer for oneself since this is an egoistic prayer.

Question: And what do the others lack? What should I pray for?

Answer: For everything that they lack.

Question: If they lack money or health, can I pray for that?

Answer: Ask for others. But it’s even better to ask the Creator to be revealed to them; by doing so you will bring Him pleasure. You are only an intermediate element who wants nothing for himself but only to be an intermediary.

Question: And what’s in it for me?

Answer: You are the messenger of the Creator in this world. Is this a bad title? 🙂

Question: I don’t know. I need to try. What will I get out of it?

Answer: Nothing! Only problems, headaches, and heartache. But the reward will be that you are the messenger of the Creator. Although it does not mean that He will treat you any better.

Your job is aimed at bestowal toward the Creator and the world, and you are in between, you have nothing to gain from it nor do you want to. You rejoice in being His intermediary while He knows nothing about you. Your pleasure comes from bestowing to the whole world and you leave nothing for yourself.

Question: If neither the world nor the Creator know anything about it, where does the energy come from?

Answer: You ask Him for energy in order to give wholeheartedly to both. Otherwise you will not be able to do your work.

Question: It follows that He does know that I’m an intermediary since He gives me the energy?

Answer: Granted, nothing is hidden from the Creator. He gives you the energy knowing that you are an intermediary. But you don’t know that He is taking you into consideration. Just the opposite, all the world’s problems are your own, as if you’re at fault for everything happening around you because you didn’t ask Him to correct the world or didn’t do it enough. So you consider yourself guilty.

Question: So, if one feels that he has a special connection with the Creator or that the Creator has a special relationship with him, is it not so?

Answer: These are the special connections, special relations, when you feel yourself at fault for everything, feel worthless, and you’re convinced that you have to serve anything and everyone. This is how a Kabbalist feels.

Question: Who would want to become a Kabbalist if that is how they feel?

Answer: A person realizes that he is on top of the ladder of human ascent.

Question: You are saying that he is experiencing these two states simultaneously. On the one hand, he feels worthless, and on the other, on top of all humanity due to the fact that he is a messenger of the Creator. And the Creator does not know about this?

Answer: The Creator knows nothing about it. A person is a messenger in a small way, to the extent that he can channel the quality of the Creator to the whole of humanity.

But the part where humanity is still suffering, still remaining in its egoistic state, he feels the responsibility to disseminate the knowledge of the true spiritual qualities although they are impossible to convey, but even somewhat, in general terms.

Look at what is written in the Torah about Moses, how he suffered for everyone, what kind of work he was doing without a minute to rest. Because he was a messenger of the Creator. And he died in a nameless place on mount Nevo.

Comment: But everyone respected him. He was a leader of the entire nation.

Answer: The question is what kind of people and what does it mean to be their leader? Everything has to fall under the umbrella of the greatness of the Creator with no other reward.

Therefore, we have to ask for energy, strength, to serve humanity and the Creator! It is one and the same. This very prayer, coming from the heart, is the one that the Creator answers.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah 4/1/20

A Teacher Of The Wisdom Of Kabbalah

Question: Those who teach courses in the wisdom of Kabbalah have not attained the state that they teach. How can a person convey what he has not attained?

Answer: Do you think that a teacher of mathematics needs to necessarily be a triangle or a square?

Comment: I think that he needs to understand what it is.

My Response: A teacher gives you access to knowledge so that you can be in contact with it, connect and integrate in it according to the method that he teaches you. In any case he cannot convey his spiritual feelings to you.

Question: These are subjective feelings, of course. Are you in a corrected state?

Answer: I will not tell you. Open your eyes a bit more widely and you will see.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah,” 12/15/19

Visit Our Site, Read And Grow

Question: If a person cannot be in a group because he travels a lot and is constantly on the move, but at the same time he reads books and studies the wisdom of Kabbalah, can he discover the Masach inside him? Can the environment he is in interrupt in this process?

Answer: Of course, an ordinary society interrupts a person’s study because it has different goals. A person needs a society that studies with him in order to advance, not the society he is part of in his everyday life. Of course one’s family, workplace, etc. do not disappear, but other than that, he should be in an environment that supports his spiritual development. It is impossible to advance any other way.

In order to study in the right environment, we have a huge virtual system and the materials in our archives are displayed on our sites for free, including books, movies, and practically all our materials. You can also participate in our daily lessons, which are translated to many languages.

But without the support of the right environment that advances toward a common goal, you will not attain anything.

Question: Does this mean that if one travels, it doesn’t necessarily interrupt his studies because there is a virtual society today?

Answer: Of course. In 1995 when I opened my first Kabbalistic site, it was not a simple matter. I used to sit and type every letter. This is the reason that everything is ready for all of you today. Visit our site, read, and grow! If you don’t, you will not advance. How can you picture your adaptation to the upper world and to the management of the creation if you don’t study?

Question: And if I wish to study but only from books, do you think that it is possible or not?

Answer: If you are only attracted to books, start “swallowing” them. But you should know that there is a great variety of other sources in our archive that will help you advance more intensively.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah,” 2/2/20

The Spiritual Role Of Women, Part 5

Why Produce Offspring?

Question: Very often, children ask their mother: “Why did you give birth to me? I didn’t ask for it.” How can we answer this question?

Answer: If a child asked me: “Why did you give birth to me?” I would say: “Because it is the law of nature.”

I must produce an offspring just as they gave birth to me so that together, consistently, over generations, we correct the general egoism that exists in each of us in a small volume.

I correct the ego a little, you correct it a little, and so does each of us. In this way, all of humanity is moving toward the general correction. Therefore, we must give birth to children.

The Torah says that a family should have two children: a boy and a girl. But if in one family there are not two children, then some other family makes up for it.

Question: What should be the correct intention of a woman engaged in Kabbalah toward giving birth to a baby so that this is not a corporeal desire but a spiritual one?

Answer: The intention should be only for bestowal. Therefore, both in conceiving and the upbringing of children, it is desirable to be in the intention to give. And talk to them about it all the time. Gradually, they will get used to these words and become interested in their inner meaning.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah” 3/8/20

Kabbalistic Terms: “Reshimo”

Reshimo is an informational record that exists in creation so that it can somehow orient itself in the past, present, and future, and direct itself toward the goal.

Usually people simply have an understanding of where they exist. And the elderly with dementia (memory loss) do not have this, so they just do things without any basis. In the same way, the Reshimo decisively commands a man and determines his forward movement.

A Reshimo is in the soul, at each level and sublevel. Where there is a desire, where there is light, there is always a Reshimo, which connects this light and this desire and controls them inside the soul.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah,” 6/17/19

What Gives The Effect Of Spiritual Glue?

Question: The essence of the wisdom of Kabbalah is the unity of desires, intentions, thoughts, and souls. What is the main tool that gives the effect of spiritual glue between them? What connects them?

Answer: They are connected by our desire, when we in the ten want to be together so much that we feel a mutual yearning, interaction, and mutual thoughts, that is, the manifestation of a completely new feeling of reciprocity that no one had before.

It is also not yet spiritual, but it is already the manifestation of a single field that the Creator blesses. And then we will connect more and more closely until in mind, in heart, and in intention, we begin to feel how we want to help each other, to manifest within each other, and to connect with each other.

Then, by establishing this network of connection, we will feel that the Creator is there, as if we caught Him in this network like a huge dolphin.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah,” 3/1/20

Debunking The Myth Around Matan Torah (The Giving Of The Torah)

Posted on May 28th, 2020 at 4:11 pm

From My Facebook Page Michael Laitman 5/28/20

Today we’re celebrating the giving of the Torah. According to tradition, on this day, some 3,400 years ago, the people of Israel stood at the foot of Mt. Sinai and received the Torah. Incidentally, it is written that when Moses came down from the mountain with the Torah in his hands, it was written on two tablets. Afterwards, the Torah was written on parchment, then on paper, and finally on tablets again, so in that sense, we went full circle.

However, what’s really important is what the Torah is and why it was given. It is written that the Creator said, “I have created the evil inclination; I have created the Torah as a spice.” In other words, the Torah is something that corrects, improves. The word “Torah” comes from the word Ohr, which is Hebrew for “light,” meaning a force, energy that changes our inclination from evil, self-centered, to good, namely giving. According to the wisdom of Kabbalah, every other explanation of the meaning of the Torah is a myth.

Another myth concerns the intended recipients of the Torah. The people of Israel who came out of Egypt and received the Torah had descended from Abraham’s initial group. Abraham was not a Jew. In his days, there was no Jewish people. Abraham was Babylonian, and he found a way to mend the evil inclination that was spreading across his country, and offered his ideas to anyone who’d listen. The people who liked his ideas and united around him later became known as the people of Israel. When the people of Israel received the light, the correcting force called “Torah,” they were merely following Abraham’s legacy of correcting the ego, the evil inclination.

Therefore, the Torah is not for the Jews; it’s for everyone, since everyone is egoistic, and everyone needs a force that will correct us, since we clearly can’t correct ourselves. And the final myth for this post concerns the way to receive the Torah—the correcting force. According to Kabbalah, receiving the force has nothing to do with Judaism, and everything to do with unity. To receive the Torah, Israel had to unite “as one man with one heart.” Only after they did this, they received the force of correction for their egos, and once they united, they became the Israeli nation. So anyone who truly wishes to unite with all the people, to bring them all into the heart, will receive that correcting force, and that will be his or her reception of the Torah.

Happy Matan Torah to everyone.

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And Suddenly, Came A Virus And Stopped Hollywood

Comment: The whole world has a problem with Hollywood. For several months now the industry has been shut down, movie-theaters are vacant, all the money that has been invested is frozen or lost. So, all the superheroes are afraid of this 60-micron virus.

600 shows that were supposed to be produced are now all being put on hold. The Oscars ceremony has been postponed.

What is more, Hollywood is facing a dilemma with respect to script writing: “Our manner of story-telling will forever change. Everything prior to the pandemic will seem outdated.”

My Reply: Naturally. People all over the world have changed a lot.

Comment: People used to believe the Hollywood stories, all these soap operas, and TV shows. And suddenly, such a disaster hits that aims them to seek the truth, the essence, something which is quite different.

My Reply: We have entered a new world. We are already different.

Question: So, what would we like to see? I am interested as a producer. What screen play would appeal to us? What would the world want to see? How will it change Hollywood?

Answer: I have never written any scripts.

Comment: But you are a great playwright, seriously!

My Reply: But those are not my ideas! I take them from the sources.

Comment: We are living the script of the Last Generation.

My Reply: Yes. That screenplay is now being implemented. Schwarzenegger can fight for the truth here too. It is a fight against egoism, which is holding us all by the throat, not allowing us to breathe.

And until we grab this scrawny old woman by the hand and rip her throat, nothing will change. She will keep pressuring us all the time, again and again.

Humanity will have to do it.

Comment: So, you believe that such a hero will appear?

My Reply: There must be a hero. We need a hero.

The hero is the Creator. But we need that hero to be someone we can love, hate, agree or disagree with, be disillusioned with, only to later realize that it was all Him! HIM!

Question: But do you feel that this hero is moving toward the Creator? Do you really think that the time of such a hero is approaching?

Answer: We are already in it. I am completely serious. We do not feel this yet because, as usual, we only see things in retrospect. But we are already in it, absolutely! Moreover, it is very clear externally and internally. The first wave of the coronavirus has already passed and all we see now are the remains of it. This wave has passed and we are already thinking and feeling differently; everything is different.

The virus passes through us as we cope with our own sickness. We see the world differently; we do not realize it yet but the awareness of how much we have changed and how differently we view everything now will come. Thus, the first wave has already passed.

Question: Do you think that the time of reveling in those “soap operas” with fights and violence in the movies is gradually passing?

Answer: You can even see this in the youth that was still interested in it a mere half-a-year ago. You can see if they are still interested in it today. I am confident that they no longer are. And the pre-teens that are growing up will have no interest in it. It would seem to them as an antiquated Hollywood of the last century.

Question: You think they will be looking for something beyond this fighting, this violence?

Answer: They will be looking for a greater action. And the greater action is already inside. It is not in fighting, not in throwing someone off the 20th floor and he grabs the landing gear of an airplane and flies off. The need will be beyond the mechanical action, beyond the imagery or the framework of this world. It will be internal.

Question: Internal scrutiny?

Answer: Yes. Or it could be a war like the coronavirus is fighting against us. And so, our hero gets accustomed to it and travels inside the human body, inside the human society, fighting this virus that wants to smite humanity. And our hero is against it.

And then he perhaps begins to realize that he should not be fighting against it because everything that the virus does is good.

It was only I who thought that it needed to be destroyed. No! We must help the virus destroy human egoism. It only aims to destroy the ego and not to harm humanity. On the contrary, it is saving humanity.

Comment: So, man realizes the positive mission of this virus, which is aimed against human egoism. And if we renounce it…

Answer: One suddenly realizes that if not for this virus, we would be headed toward the destruction of our planet. Had the virus not come to us now, we would have surely destroyed it in the very near future.

It actually sounds like a great title: “And Suddenly, Came a Virus.”
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From KabTV’s “News with Michael Laitman,” 4/27/20

“Fake News For A Fake World” (Medium)

Medium published my new article “Fake News for a Fake World”

The director of the World Health Organization said about COVID-19: “Fake news spreads faster and more easily than this virus.” Indeed, if you’re looking for truth in today’s world, then the truth is that everybody’s lying. Every media outlet warps and manipulates the news according to the agenda of its owner.

We can keep avoiding the sincere soul searching that we need to do and go down the path we have been on for decades, but evidently, it won’t lead us anywhere good.

In the past, when newspapers and television received their funding from subscribers, from people buying actual copies of newspapers, the press was obliged to provide the readers or the viewers with true stories. Today, when the media is owned by media moguls and depends on advertisers for its existence, it is indebted only to them, and honest reporting has become obsolete. The good news, if you can call it that, is that today everyone already knows that everyone is lying.

We still consume news from the media, since there is no other source of news, but at least it’s with a grain of salt. And speaking of salt, the media today is like the food we eat: big, shiny, and flawless in appearance. But inside, the food is pumped with hormones, steroids, and antibiotics. We all know it, and we all eat it. What else can we do?

Here we need to be honest with ourselves. It’s true that the media is corrupt, but this hasn’t been news for a long time now. So we should ask, Where did the journalists come from? Where did they grow up? Where were they educated? Where did they learn to distort and manipulate? They learned it in the same place where we grew up, where we were educated, where we learned to manipulate one another. The media are not more corrupt than the environment that bred them, which is all of us. They are made in our own image.

To get truthful news, it’s not enough to condemn them; they cannot be better than the public that engendered them. Instead, we need to look at ourselves in the mirror, admit that the people we patronize with our self-righteousness actually do reflect who we are, and ask ourselves if this is the society we want to live in.

If we do, then there is nothing to complain about. But if we don’t, there is a lot we can do. We can start by learning how we are all connected to each other. Just as one person with the coronavirus can infect dozens of people, if not more, so can our actions and even our thoughts. When ill-will toward each other reins high, people will do bad things to one another, reflecting what they feel inside. But when they feel connected to their communities and countries, when they care about their neighbors, they will not harm them. So the root of the problem that creates bad press is that we ourselves are bad to one another. If we are bad to one another, can we complain that someone else is bad to us?

We are reversing JFK’s motto, “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country,” and complain when it doesn’t work. In principle, we all agree with JFK, but we want everyone else to go first. With this attitude, we will die before anyone does something.

The present is the way it is because we have avoided dealing with ourselves, with how we relate to each other, and with what kind of society we are fostering. We can keep avoiding the sincere soul searching that we need to do and go down the path we have been on for decades, but evidently, it won’t lead us anywhere good.

Alternatively, we can decide that we have to finally get off our couches and start working for each other. It doesn’t require radical changes; we don’t need to donate our savings, if we have any, and we don’t have to sacrifice anything. We only need to look inside ourselves and observe how we relate to one another, because this is where we are really sick. This is the virus we are giving to each other morning, noon, and night. If we want to become different to each other, we will, provided we want it together. This is the idea we need to promote, that together we can build a caring society, whose people are responsible for one another. If we adopt that tiny shift in our mentality, we will see a different world. Together, we can move mountains.

“What Coronaphobia Tells Us About Human Nature” (Medium)

Medium published my new article “What Coronaphobia Tells Us about Human Nature”

Fear kills. As COVID-19 continues spreading and the appalling death toll in America and the world rises, the fear of the unknown is causing extreme anxiety — “coronaphobia.” US physicians are worried about additional deaths occurring as a large number of patients with life-threatening conditions have stopped seeking treatment at hospitals because they are afraid of contagion. There is much more to this new phenomenon than it seems. It reflects a fundamental change in human nature, a new perception of social interaction that the pandemic has triggered. We need to become more aware of this change in order to adjust to it properly.

Now is the time to realize that we are one interconnected and interdependent humanity and to strive to preserve the sense of integrality that the current crisis has taught us.

Our lifestyles and habits have changed dramatically, perhaps forever, as a consequence of the coronavirus. Those with obsessive compulsive disorder now see similar behaviors on a widespread level as people avoid personal contact, handshakes, touching stuff that is not theirs, and constantly wash their hands to prevent contracting the disease. Many are anxious to leave home and expose themselves to the non-sterile outside world unless they have no choice and are equipped with masks and all the necessary protective gear.

What manifests on the surface as an irrational fear of the illness is symptomatic of a shift in human perception in life priorities at a deeper level. Without question, treating the illness should not be delayed or avoided out of fear, but this recent human tendency to turn inward arises for a reason.

This huge world upheaval has opened up before our eyes. The epidemic has slowed our pace, forced us to stop and think twice about the relevance of our endless quest for pleasures. We have realized that the obsessive pursuit of indulgence at all cost is our real trap, since as soon as a desire is fulfilled, a new and bigger desire arises. Thus, we have constantly fallen into the same vicious cycle of emptiness and lack of meaning in our lives.

In our new reality, sitting at home has started to become a habit, a second nature. What was first perceived as being in prison, trapped in a stressful set-up, suddenly feels comfortable and safe. Of course, it is impossible to generalize and say everyone feels this way or relates to it. Nor is there an interest in pushing anyone in that direction, but the trend does indicate that a transformation in the way we relate to and live our lives has occurred.

Occupations have also changed compared to previous generations. We are rapidly moving our jobs into the virtual space — an easy way to connect with people without physical and geographic boundaries. Even though we are still used to physical contact, we are increasingly realizing that the benefits of working from home pay off in many ways — more quality time with the family, fewer long and tiring commutes, and financial savings in lower office overhead costs.

However, the stage we are now in is not our final destination. The virtual space is only a way station in the transition from existence in the physical world to a more inner, introspective world. The sooner we begin to feel ourselves as an integral part of a global virtual space, the deeper our internal connection will be. That kind of connection refers to the unity of the hearts which is not measured by the number of physical interactions we have in the corporeal world.

In a nutshell, the virtual reality the pandemic has moved us toward is the preparation for the establishment of a more internal, integral society, an integral connection. In this new world, we will need to learn to connect above our differences, and create meaningful connections alongside engaging in business and livelihood activities.

This is the stage that the human race needs to implement now. We need to grasp the elements and means of this new reality and learn to use them to foster better human relations. Now is the time to realize that we are one interconnected and interdependent humanity and to strive to preserve the sense of integrality that the current crisis has taught us.

Our only requirement is to strengthen our inner connection to create an integral society between us that is based on the principle of “love covers all crimes,” as our sages wrote. Such an environment will dispel all phobias, uncertainty and anxiety about the future.

“Tikkun Olam And The Falsehood of Social Justice” (Times Of Israel)

The Times of Israel published my new article “Tikkun Olam and the Falsehood of Social Justice”

Always around the holiday of Shavuot (aka Feast of Weeks), we Jews discuss the concept of Tikkun Olam (lit. “correction of the world”). The prevailing understanding of Tikkun Olam is that the term speaks of the obligation of Jews to pursue social justice, lead an ethical life, and support equal rights to the underprivileged and minorities. These are all worthy goals, and the right for equality is a given for every human being. Nevertheless, placing the correction of the world on these values guarantees that the world will never be corrected, and below I will explain why.

At the foot of Mt. Sinai, when the Jews received the Torah—the code of law by which they lived—they received it only because they had met the precondition to be, even if only for that movement, “as one man with one heart.” That is, for one moment, they were in such absolute love for one another that they became as one person. Subsequently, they received their code of law which was meant to help them maintain that state of mutual love. This is why Rabbi Akiva, whose disciples gave us the texts that form the basis of our nation, taught that the overall rule of the Torah is that one sentence, “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Immediately after Israel received the Torah, they were tasked with passing on what they had achieved. In other words, they became a nation in order to be “a light unto nations,” spreading unity and mutual love to the rest of the nations.

But two thousand years ago, we fell into such depths of mutual hatred that we did not even need a reason to hate one another. This unfounded hatred brought upon us not only the destruction of the Temple and the loss of sovereignty, but also the permanent loathing and contempt of the nations. That loathing, whose root is our unfounded loathing for our brothers, brought upon us countless cataclysms since then, the most catastrophic of which is, of course, the Holocaust.

Nevertheless, we do not learn. We do everything to avoid loving one another, and turn instead to surrogates such as social justice and morals. Yet, as we can see, there is no social justice and there is no moral anywhere. Values can’t replace mutual love, which is what the nations truly want from us: to shine for them the light of unity.

If we loved each other, we would not need to promote social justice, since lovers do not behave unjustly to each other. We would not need to speak of morals since lovers do not behave immorally toward their loved ones. Ethics would not be an issue since there are no such things as exploitation or mistreatment among people who genuinely care for one another.

A mother does not need moral codes when she tends to her baby. Her love directs her and she always works with her child’s best interest in mind. Where you find laws, you won’t find love.

And as if we haven’t suffered enough, we still don’t want to love each other. We gladly bond with other faiths and practices, but when it comes to loving people of our own nation, we do not even speak of social justice, let alone love.

In relating so disparagingly toward our coreligionists, we shun the concept of being a light unto nations. We were, are, and always will be at the center of the world’s attention. Subconsciously, people are and always will expect us to project the light of brotherly love to the nations. But what we project is mutual derision and hate. When that is the case, no nation will love us, however hard we try to win its favor. Until we do our duty and cultivate love among ourselves, we will not fulfill the task for which we were given nationhood on the first Shavuot, at the foot of Mt. Sinai. And therefore, the nations will not love us.

So this year, I propose that we focus less on being morally just and ethical, and more, much more, on loving one another. Let’s dare, for once, to rise above our differences, avoid judging and patronizing, condemning and ridiculing. Instead, let’s stay who we are and unite above it. Let’s at least think about it. After all, Rabbi Akiva did not leave us a legacy of ethics, but a legacy of love, so let’s try to do what this teacher of our nation taught, and see what happens.
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“Conspiracy Theories, Chips And Other ‘Explanations’” (Newsmax)

My article in Newsmax: “Conspiracy Theories, Chips and Other ‘Explanations’”

Unusual situations produce unusual explanations. This is very true of the COVID-19 crisis. This is why there probably hasn’t been a crisis in recent memory that produced more fake news, conspiracy theories and other scares that no one knows who spread them and whether they are true or false.

But whether or not the coronavirus was made in a lab in Wuhan, China and whether or not it is meant to scare us into agreeing to implant in us a chip that will monitor our every move, those theories all have one major flaw: They ignore the root cause of the virus. In the end, it does not matter who created the virus or for what purpose. What matters is that it is here and it is changing the very fabric of human society. This is something that no human intended to achieve and no human can control.

The coronavirus is indeed exposing something, something that my teachers call “the recognition of evil,” the evil in human nature. The virus shut down all of our systems and sent us to do some thinking. While we were at home, nature thrived and animals began to roam freely where they had not roamed in decades, demonstrating how injurious we have been toward nature.

While we were at home, for fear of contracting the virus or infecting our more vulnerable loved ones, brash young demonstrators protested the lockdown by rallying together and carrying signs that said “Cuomo protects criminals” and “Cuomovirus the Real Threat in New York State.”

And while the common folk are begging for federal benefits to keep their families and businesses afloat, the tycoons are making hundreds of billions of dollars at everyone else’s expense. Even the richer hospitals got twice as much government aid as the poorer hospitals. How does one justify this? If this is not recognition of evil, I don’t know what is.

There is a good reason that I point out all those examples of human ugliness. The coronavirus did not create them; it only placed a mirror before our eyes so we could see who we are, how we treat one another and how alienated we are from each other. And if this is how we treat each other, it is no wonder that this is also how we treat nature. Is this what we want to go back to? Is this what we want to reopen? After all, this is what we locked down, so when we reopen, this is what will come out.

We do need to live, but we need to do it right. By “right,” I mean that we need to open only businesses that are truly essential and not, as one protestor’s sign said, “All Jobs Are Essential.” Essential to whom? To those who want to manipulate us into buying what we don’t need? Not every business is essential, and not all jobs are essential.

Rather, all people are essential. People whose businesses contribute real value to society, such as food, clothing, health care, education, construction and so forth, should be open and stay open. The rest of us should transition to a whole new field of expertise: human education.

By human education, I mean learning how to be human, namely humane toward each other. We should learn that we are all dependent on each other, because clearly, at the moment we are unaware of it. We should learn that when we promote values such as mutual consideration, mutual care and concern and accountability toward our communities and cities, we are the first to benefit from this. If we want to have a future, we need to acknowledge that the quality of our future depends on the quality of the society we live in. And if we don’t build a good, supportive society for ourselves, who will?

Activism is great, as long as it is directed toward uniting society around improving everyone’s life and not toward promoting the interests of various pressure groups. In order to solve the problems of society, all factions and elements of society must partake in the process, share their needs and the society (or its representatives) should decide together on the priorities in allocating resources and efforts to solve them.

In today’s interdependent society, if one faction remains dissatisfied, it will inevitably bring down the whole society. If we do not understand this now, we will understand it after the second or third wave of the virus. So why not do it now, a million victims earlier?