The Classical Wisdom Of Kabbalah And The Evolution Of The

Urgently Needed Planetary Consciousness

An article written by Rav Michael Laitman PhD for the “Wisdom

and Science in a Dialogue: The new Planetary Consciousness”
scientific symposium in Düsseldorf, Germany, March 2006.

1. Dear friends

The escalating global crisis calls for resolution. Many renowned scientists
and philosophers from around the world study and research the crisis, yet,
we cannot presently say that we understand its cause, and, even more so,
the actions we should undertake to resolve it.

Today we can no longer deny its presence, theories and suggestions

concerning both the nature of crisis and the means for its elimination
abound. In this presentation, I will try to depict the present state of
humanity from the perspective of the science I’ve been engaged in for the
past thirty years of my life—the science of Kabbalah.

2. In ancient times, man was closer to nature and tried to maintain

intimacy with it. There were two reasons for this:
* The undeveloped egoism did not distance man from nature and made
humans feel as integral parts of it;
* Insufficient knowledge about nature evoked fear of it, forcing man to
regard nature as superior.

3. Because of these two reasons, man aspired not only to accumulate

knowledge about the phenomena of the surrounding world, but to know
the forces that govern the world. People could not hide from the elements
as they do today, avoiding nature’s forces in an artificially created world.
Their sense organs, still undistorted or degenerated by contemporary
technology, were able to feel the surrounding world more profoundly. Fear
of nature and, simultaneously, closeness to it, urged man to discover what
nature wanted of him, whether it has a goal, and what it created humans
for. Humanity aspired to understand it as profoundly as possible.

4. Ancient scientists shared their knowledge about nature. Kabbalists too

shared their knowledge with scientists. Kabbalah studies the system that
governs our world. Its main task is to explicate the causes and goals of
Creation.

Naturally, I am not referring to what is today sold under the title

“Kabbalah,” capitalizing on its popularity. Authentic Kabbalah is a serious
science that researches the structure of the universe, and which gave the
basic knowledge to many other sciences. Contact between Kabbalists and
ancient philosophers gave rise to ancient philosophy, which became the
origin of science. To honor the organizers of our symposium, I purposely
chose statements of German scientists and scholars on this topic.
 5. Johann Reuchlin writes in his book De Arte Cabbalistica: “My teacher
Pythagoras, the father of philosophy took his teaching from Kabbalists …
he was the first who translate the word Kabbalah, unknown to his
contemporaries, to the Greek word philosophy… Kabbalah does not let us
live our lives in the dust, but elevates our mind to the height of
knowledge.”

For many centuries, Kabbalah had remained a hidden teaching, a secret

wisdom, giving rise to numerous legends and fallacies around it, which
baffle any contemporary person who tries to sort out the true sources.

In particular, the great mathematician and philosopher, Leibnitz, wrote

about this in his book Hauptschriften zur Grundlegung der Philosophie:
“Because man did not have the right key to the secret, the thirst for
knowledge was ultimately reduced to all sorts of trivia and superstitions
that brought forward a sort of ‘vulgar Kabbalah’ that has little in common
with the true Kabbalah, as well as various fantasies under the false name
of magic, and this is what fills the books.”

6. Philosophy assimilated a part of Kabbalah and took it in a different

direction. It gave rise to modern sciences that research our material world
and its laws within the framework of phenomena perceived by our five
senses.

Meanwhile, the ancient teachings, Kabbalah included, remained outside

the scope of researchers’ interests. Whatever science was unable to
comprehend, whatever remained unattainable for it, fell within the realm
of religions, rituals, and customs. The ancient teachings were gradually
forgotten.

7. Science and religion are two parallel paths that humanity followed
investigating this world, and trying to understand man’s place and
possibilities, and to define the purpose and meaning of existence.
However, both trails led humanity astray from attaining the Upper
Governing Force, from correspondence with it. Man studied nature not in
order to learn what it wants of him, and thus change himself, but to
change and conquer nature for the sake of man’s own egoism.

8. Crises in all realms of human activity, from science to personal

predicaments, prompt the same eternal questions about the meaning and
the purpose of life. We are becoming increasingly certain that we know
nothing about nature, the reason for our existence, the governing process,
and the purpose of existence.

The troubles lead us to accept the existence of the Great Wisdom, the
Upper Plan in nature. Since Science is unable to answer our questions, it
compels us to look for a new approach to nature, leading us to search for
truth in religion, beliefs, and mysticism. The external crisis has led us to an
internal crisis, and we have found ourselves confused in this world.
 9. The overwhelming interest in these teachings, in explaining our lives
not through scientific research but by using all sorts of “supernal”
methods, has been underway for the past 30 years, and is now withering
away before our very eyes. Out of all human misconceptions, humanity
still has to test, reject, and finally forget a few remaining belief systems.

Today is a time when, through mysticism, humanity is rediscovering the

true ancient wisdoms. The science of Kabbalah, which is becoming
revealed in recent years, must play a key role in this process.
Kabbalah appeared some 5,000 years ago in Mesopotamia, the cradle of
civilization, as did all ancient teachings. This is where humanity discovered
them back then, before it forgot them until our time. Now they are being
rediscovered. It is not a coincidence that where ancient Mesopotamia once
was, now is the center of the modern clash of civilizations.

10. The evolution of man’s egoism determines, defines, and indeed

designs the entire history of mankind. The developing egoism urges
humans to study the environment so as to realize the intensifying egoistic
desires. In contrast to the still, vegetative, and animate nature of our
world, humans evolve ceaselessly, in each generation, and each
individual, during their brief existence.

Human egoism evolves by five levels of intensification. In ancient times

man was not egoistic enough to place himself in opposition to nature. He
sensed nature and everything that surrounds him, and the sensation of
reciprocity was his mode of communication with nature. In many respects
it was even silent, as in telepathy, on a certain spiritual level. This mode of
communication can still be found among indigenous peoples.

The first level of egoistic growth prompted a revolution in mankind. It

created a desire to change nature for man’s own sake, instead of changing
man to become similar to nature. Metaphorically, this desire is described
as a desire to build a tower that reaches the sky—to overrule nature.

11. The increased egoism tore man away from nature. Instead of
correcting the increased oppositeness to nature, man dared to imagine
that he could attain the Creator egoistically, not through correction of the
egoism, but by dominating everything.

Thus, man placed his “self” in contrast to the environment, opposite from
society and nature. Instead of perceiving others as kindred and close, and
nature as home, human beings no longer understood nature and others.
Hatred replaced love; people became remote from one another, and the
single nation of the ancient world was divided into two groups, which
drifted to the east and to the west. Subsequently, each such group further
divided into many nations, and today, we are witnessing the beginning of
the coming together and reconnection into a single nation once more.

12. The Torah describes this allegorically (Genesis, 11:1-8) in the following
way: “And the whole earth was of one language and of one speech. And it
 came to pass, as they journeyed east, that they found a plain in the land
of Shinar; and they dwelt there … And they said: ‘Come, let us build us a
city, and a tower, with its top in heaven, and let us make us a name; lest
we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.’ And the Lord
came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men
builded. And the Lord said: ‘Behold, they are one people, and they have all
one language; and this is what they begin to do; and now nothing will be
withholden from them, which they purpose to do. Come, let us go down,
and there confound their language, that they may not understand one
another’s speech.’ So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon
the face of all the earth; and they left off to build the city.”

13. Josephus Flavius writes that Nimrod urged the people to defy the
Creator. He advised them to build a tower higher than the waters could
rise, if the Creator were to send the flood again, and thereby avenge the
Creator for the death of their forefathers. Sparing no zeal or efforts, they
began to build a tower. Seeing that people are not correcting themselves
after the lesson of the flood, the Creator made them speak many
languages. They no longer understood each other and dispersed. The
place where the tower was built is now called Babylon, as it was the place
of mixing of languages, instead of the single language that was before.

14. At the beginning of the 20th century, a German archeologist, Robert

Koldewey, discovered in Babylon the ruins of the tower the size of
90x90x90 meters. Additionally, Herodotus (about 484-425 BCE) described
the tower as a 7-tier pyramid of that same size.

Historical sources recount that in the center of Babylon, there was the
temple town of Esagila, and nearby, the temple of the supreme deity,
Marduk, the Tower of Babel. It was called Etemenanki, which means the
cornerstone of heaven and earth.

In those days, Esagila was the religious center of the world in its struggle
against the monotheistic religion. Astrology, the signs of the zodiac and
horoscopes, divination, number mysticism, spiritualism, magic, witchcraft,
spells, evil eye, calling of evil spirits—all those were developed in Esagila.
These beliefs still persist, and particularly today we are witnessing their
final outburst.

15. Since that time, and over the past 5,000 years, man has been
confronting nature, i.e. the attribute of absolute altruism. Instead of
correcting the ever-growing egoism into altruism, instead of similarity with
nature, humanity has erected an artificial shield to protect it from nature.
To assist in that protection, humanity has been developing science and
technology for the past 5,000 years, and this is, in fact, the erection of the
Tower of Babel. Thus, instead of correcting ourselves, we want to govern
nature.

16. Egoism in humankind has been growing ever since, and today it
culminating. Humanity has become disillusioned with fulfilling the egoism
 through social or technological development. Today we are beginning to
realize that since the time of the crisis in Babel, we have treaded our path
in vain.

Particularly today, as we acknowledge the crisis and the dead-end point of

our development, it can be said that the confrontation of the egoism with
the Creator this is the actual destruction of the Tower of Babel. Formerly,
the tower of Babel was ruined by the Upper Force, but today it is being
ruined in our own consciousness, as if by us. Humanity is ready to admit
that the path it chose, to compensate for the egoistic oppositeness from
nature through technology instead of correcting the egoism into altruism,
leads to a dead-end.

17. The process, which started in Babel, of separation into two groups that
drew apart geographically and culturally, is culminating today. Over the
past 5,000 years each group evolved into a civilization of many different
peoples. One group is what we call The Western Civilization, and the other
comprises the Eastern Civilization, and includes India, China, and the
Islamic world.

It is not a coincidence that today we are witnessing a titanic clash of

civilizations which threatens the sustainability of humanity. This is one of
the key factors in the global crisis. Moreover, this clash reflects the
culmination of the process that began with the fall of the tower of Babel. In
Babel, the single nation was divided because egoism separated its
members, and now it is time for the members of the single nation of
humankind to reunite into one, united people. Today we are at the
separation point that occurred in the time of Babel, except now we are
aware of our situation.

According to the wisdom of Kabbalah, this clash, the global crisis, and the
surfacing of mysticism and superstition, are the beginning of the
reconnection of all humanity into a new and united civilization, similar to
its state prior to the tower of Babel.

18. At the time of the Babylonian bewilderment, Kabbalah was discovered

as a body of knowledge about the cause of the stage-by-stage growth of
human egoism. Kabbalah states that the nature of all that exists is an
egoistic desire for self fulfillment.

However, egoistic desires cannot be filled in their natural form, because

the fulfillment of a desire annuls it, and as a result, it is no longer felt.
Similarly, food reduces the sensation of hunger, and along with it, the
pleasure from eating is gradually extinguished.

But because we are unable to exist without enjoyment, we are forced to

constantly develop new desires so that we may fulfill them. Otherwise, we
will not feel pleasure. This endless pursuit of pleasure constitutes our
entire life, although the pleasure itself is impossible to achieve. Ultimately,
disenchantment and emptiness cause depression and bring to drugs.
19. If fulfillment annuls both desire and fulfillment, then is it even possible
to experience lasting fulfillment?

Ancient wisdoms metaphorically recount that man is created as a single

creature. That is, originally, all people are connected as one human being.
This is exactly how nature relates to us—as to a single human being.

This collective prototype is called “Adam,” from the word Dome (similar).
In Aramaic, the spoken language of ancient Babylon, it means “similar to
the Creator.” Originally, we were created internally connected as a single
individual. But as our egoism grew, we gradually lost the sensation of
unity and became increasingly distant from one another. Finally, we have
come to a point of reciprocal hatred.

20. According to the wisdom of Kabbalah, nature’s plan is for our egoism
to grow until we acknowledge our condition. Today, globalization shows us
that, on the one hand, we are all connected, and on the other hand, our
enormously overblown egoism alienates us from each other.
The reason we have to first be created as a single creature, and then be
separated into egoistic, distanced, and detached individuals, is that this is
the only way for us to see our complete oppositeness from the Creator,
and to acknowledge the attribute of absolute egoism that we possess. In
this state we will acknowledge its pettiness, limited nature, and
hopelessness, and come to hate our egoistic nature, which separates us
from each other and from nature, and develop a desire to unite, to
transform our nature into the opposite, altruistic nature. Thus we will
independently find a way to transform ourselves into altruists and to
reconnect with the entire humanity as a single, united whole.

21. Just as egoistic cells that join into a single body annul their individual
egoism for the sake of the body’s existence and, as a result, feel the life of
the whole body, so we must reach such a connection among ourselves.
Then, according to our success in unification, we will feel the eternal
existence of nature instead of feeling our current physical existence.

The ancient principle of “Love thy neighbor as thyself” calls upon us to do

this. This principle was in effect until the building of the Tower of Babel,
and was later incorporated in the rudiments of all the religions that
emerged from the ancient Babylonian wisdom, after the destruction of the
Tower of Babel and the division of the people into nations and states. By
carrying out this rule, each person no longer remains an isolated and
empty egoist, but feels the life of the whole organism, Adam, in similarity
to the Creator. In other words, in that state we feel the eternal, perfect
existence of nature.

22. Especially now, altruism has become necessary for the survival of
humanity. This is because it is now clear that we are all completely
interdependent. This clarity gives rise to a new definition of altruism: Any
intention or action that does not stem from a desire to help, but from a
necessity to connect humanity into a single whole, is considered truly
 altruistic. According to the wisdom of Kabbalah, all the altruistic actions
that do not aim toward uniting all humanity into a single body will
manifest as purposeless actions. Additionally, in the future, it will become
evident that we need not take any action or perform any correction in the
human society, only unite as one body.

23. Transformation of one’s attitude toward a fellow human being from

egoistic to altruistic elevates a person to a perception of another world.
We perceive the world with our sense organs, and accept what appears to
our senses as our sensation of life. The present egoistic perception
enables us to feel only our own impressions from the environment.
Correcting our nature will enable us to feel not what happens within us,
but what happens outside of us, the complete nature.

Thus, by perceiving outside ourselves instead of inside ourselves, we

switch to perceiving the entire surrounding world, instead of a fragment of
it. Ultimately, we discover that the world around us is a single altruistic
force of nature.

When we unite with it, we feel our existence the way nature exists—
eternal and perfect. We sympathize with that sensation, it governs us, and
in that state even when our body expires, we feel ourselves as continuing
to exist in the eternal nature. In such a state, physical life and death do
not affect our sensation of existence because the inner egoistic perception
has been replaced with external, altruistic perception.

24. The Book of Zohar, written approximately 2,000 years ago, writes that
toward the end of the 20th century humanity will reach its maximum
egoism and at the same time, its maximum emptiness. The book writes
that at that time, humanity will need the method of survival, of fulfillment.
Then, says The Book of Zohar, the time will come to disclose Kabbalah to
all mankind, as a method for reaching similarity to nature.

25. Correcting a human being and all humanity, reaching similarity with
the altruistic nature does not happen all at once and not simultaneously
by everyone. Rather, correction is possible to the extent that each person
and the whole of humanity acknowledge the global crisis.

Correction begins when a person realizes that his or her egoistic nature is
the source of all evil.

Subsequently, one searches for the means to change this nature. The
search yields the conclusion that only the influence of society can help in
this mission. This means that if society changes its values and elevates
the value of altruism, only this will propel man’s correction. By altruism I
am referring not to mutual help, but to uniting all humanity in similarity to
the Creator, as the only value in the world

26. Society has to raise human consciousness to the level of

understanding our collective responsibility. This is because the Creator
relates to us as to a single, united created being—Adam. Man has tried to
achieve his goals egoistically, but today humanity is discovering that it
must solve its problems collectively, altruistically. A gradual exposure of
egoism will compel us to implement the ancient method of Kabbalah,
which we failed to implement in ancient Babylon.

27. The source of all the suffering that appears in the world is the man’s
oppositeness from nature. All other parts of nature, still, vegetative and
animate, follow nature’s commandments instinctively and definitively.
Only man’s behavior places him in contrast to the still, vegetative, and
animate nature.

Since man is the height of nature’s creation, all other parts of nature (the
still, vegetative, and animate) depend on him. Through man’s correction,
all parts of nature, the entire universe will rise to its initial, perfect level, in
complete unity with the Creator.

28. According to the plan of the Creator, the entire universe must reach
this state, and the time allocated for the correction is limited. The Book of
Zohar indicates that the correction must be implemented from the start of
the 21st century. From this time on, humanity will be urged to correct by
intensifying sufferings.

Recognition of the purpose of creation and knowledge of the method of

correction will enable us to approach the goal consciously, faster than
suffering would have otherwise caught up with us from behind. Thus,
instead of suffering, we will feel fulfillment and inspiration even while still
on the path of correction.

Everything depends on our efforts to explain the cause of the crisis to

society, and the way to resolve it. We must explain that the crisis is
necessary for us to achieve the most beautiful, eternal and perfect state of
being. Explaining this purpose is not a simple task, but the escalating crisis
enables all of us to perceive the process as necessary and purposeful.
What makes our time special is that along with the escalating crisis, a
window of opportunity for change is now opening. We are capable and
indeed obligated to explain the crisis as the optimal state for the
attainment and the creation of a new, corrected civilization.

From Rav Michael Laitman personal blog

http://www.laitman.com/

About the author: Rav Michael Laitman is Founder and president of the Bnei Baruch
Kabbalah Education & Research Institute, which is dedicated to teaching and sharing
authentic Kabbalah.