January 14, 2025
November 14, 2014 at 5:30 pm · Filed under Articles, Books
The Secret to Seeing the Sublime Sweetness of Creation beyond the Illusion of Evil
Kabbalists who attain the Creator feel that He is absolutely kind. They explain that He cannot cause even the slightest pain to anyone in the world because egoism, the will to enjoy for oneself, the cause of every unpleasant sensation, is absent in Him. On the other hand, we do harm to others for the sole purpose of satisfying our own want for something. If this feeling did not have a constant grip on man, there would be no foundation for evil in the world. Since we perceive the Creator as absolutely perfect and whole, the absence of the will to “acquire” in Him leads to the absence of any evil in Him.If this is the case, then He should appear to us as absolutely kind, a sensation that seizes every one of us in moments of joy, delight, and fulfillment. However, since everything we feel comes from the Creator, all of His creatures should feel only good and kindness… And what do we feel instead?!
A Must-Not-Miss Lesson on the Unripe Fruit that Boosts Confidence and Turns Bitter to Sweet
The whole of nature consists of four levels: inanimate, vegetative, animate, and human. Each level undergoes purposeful development: slow, gradual, cause-and-effect growth. This resembles a fruit growing on a tree that becomes appealing and edible only at the end of its ripening.
Yet, how many intermediate states has the fruit gone through from the beginning to the end of its growth? The intermediate states reveal nothing about the fruit’s final condition, when it becomes mellow and sweet. Rather, the opposite occurs: as good as the ripe fruit is at its end, so is it bitter and hard during its ripening.
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November 13, 2014 at 5:30 pm · Filed under Articles, Books, Free Will
How to Get Back to the Garden – the Riot of Color, Texture, Fragrance That Is ‘We’
Kabbalah says that all that was ever created in all the worlds consists only of the Light and the vessel it fills. The only creation is the vessel that wishes to receive the Light coming directly from the Creator. This will to receive the Light that brings life and pleasure to the vessel is both the spiritual and the corporeal substance, depending on one’s intensity of desire.
The differences in nature, quality, and quantity among all created beings lie only in the extent of this desire, which is accordingly filled with the Light coming from the life-giving Creator. All that separates one object from another and produces colors, substances, waves, and other differentiating factors results from the capacity of the will to receive, and therefore, of the amount of Light that fills it. In other words, a desire of one size yields the form of a mineral; different sizes of desires form liquids, colors, or waves. Everything depends on the position on the scale of desire, while the amount of Light that embraces us and all the worlds is equal and invariable.
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November 12, 2014 at 5:30 pm · Filed under Articles, Books, Free Will
Freedom Beyond Programmed Development—From Larva to Butterfly and the Limitless Sky
Every object in the world is constantly developing. This implies that every object constantly abandons previous forms and acquires new ones under the influence of four factors:
- Origin
- Evolution that stems from its own nature and is therefore invariable
- Evolution that changes under the influence of external factors
- Evolution and transformation of external factors
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November 7, 2014 at 5:30 pm · Filed under Articles, Books, Perception of Reality
Blind and in the Dark
As a person begins to transition from an animal-like existence, concerned only with survival, to the level called “human” or “speaking” in the wisdom of Kabbalah, deep existential questions and feelings of despair often well up. We begin to see such attainments as food, sex, family, money, honor, and power as shallow and unsatisfying, and begin to identify with an inner longing for something more.
Questions that define the human being: the Eternal Question, “Why?”
- Who am I?
- Why do I exist?
- Where did we come from? Where are we going? And what is our purpose here?
- Have we been in this world before?
- Why is there suffering in this world and can we avoid it?
- How can we attain peace, fulfillment, and happiness?
From generation to generation, people try to find answers to these painfully insistent questions. The fact that they continue from generation to generation indicates that we still have not received satisfactory answers to them.
Why the Nearsighted Don’t See the Stars
While studying nature and the universe, we discover that all that surrounds us exists and functions according to precise and purposeful laws. Yet, when we examine ourselves, the zenith of Creation, we find that humanity seemingly exists outside of this system of rational laws.
For example, when we observe how wisely nature created our bodies and how precisely and purposefully every cell in our bodies functions, we are unable to answer the question: “Why does the entire organism exist?”
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November 6, 2014 at 5:30 pm · Filed under Articles, Books
Nature Is Interconnected, Indivisible and Indestructible from Within
Nature’s actions are interconnected; hence, by violating one of its laws, we upset the balance of the entire system. It does not matter whether we speak of nature as a heartless, purposeless guide or as a Creator with a plan, a goal, and wisdom. We exist in a world of certain laws, and by violating them we are punished with the corrupted environment, society, and our corrupted selves.
Why Serving Your Ego Is Like Shooting Yourself in the Foot, or Worse
Since nature’s laws are interconnected, breaking one of them may cause us to suffer an unexpected, harsh blow from a different direction. It is incomprehensible why nature is so gentle in the mother’s womb and during early childhood, and so ruthless in adulthood, when we seemingly need its help even more. Could it be that our lack of love is at the root of nature’s cruelty toward us?
You Cannot Break the Law; You Can Only Break Yourself Against It
Nature, or the Creator (which are the same, i.e. the quality of love and bestowal), influences us through certain laws, which we are obliged to regard as objective and compulsory, and thus follow them. We must understand nature’s laws, i.e. the laws of love and bestowal, because failing to follow them is the cause of all our sufferings. The essence of the Creator’s law lies in love. The law of love requires the maximum attention and compassion for all members of society, the same as one would want for oneself.
Warning: Nature Easily Snaps a Single Twig
It is common knowledge that humans are social beings. We cannot survive without the assistance of others in the society. Thus, one who suddenly decides to isolate oneself from society will be subject to a life of suffering because that person will be unable to provide for his or her needs. Similarly, in the case of excessive reception (such as stealing), society’s penalty quickly follows.
Why It Is a Stretch to Think You Can Break Away
Nature obliges us to live among others like us, and by communicating with them, carry out two operations: to receive everything needed from society, and to give the society the product of our labors. Violating either rule upsets the balance in society and therefore deserves society’s punishment. However, should a person refuse to serve society, punishment, as a rule, does not follow at all, is delayed, or is not directly related to the transgression. This is why the condition that obliges one to provide a service to society is usually ignored.
Beware the Snap-Back Effect
Nature, however, acts as an unbiased judge and punishes humanity according to its development. The gravity of the situation is that humanity does not yet imagine the calamities that lie ahead of it. The goal has been set and the laws of the universe are invariable. Personal everyday sufferings and periodic global catastrophes are making every one of us acknowledge the need to observe the Creator’s law – to annul egoism and envy and instead develop compassion, mutual aid, and love.
Be Like Clay in the Potter’s Hand to Enjoy Your Massage
The only difference lies in the path: a person who willingly and consciously advances towards the goal of living in harmony with the law of love gains twofold. Such a person gains by saving time on the journey toward unification with the Creator. In addition to that, such a person enjoys experiencing the delight of merging with the Creator along the way, instead of traveling through suffering.
“How to Avoid Pitting Yourself Against the Indestructible Law” is based on the book, Basic Concepts in Kabbalah: Expanding Your Inner Vision by Dr. Michael Laitman.
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Image: Variation of "Color Cave in the Sea of Synesthesia" by garlandcannon.
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