Interview of Rav Michael Laitman, PhD with journalist Sharon Atia
January 10, 2005
Question: Lately, hundreds and thousands of human lives were lost by natural cataclysms such as floods, earthquakes and tsunamis. This raises the question of whether these catastrophes are intended to force humankind to consider the meaning of their existence or rather, they happen accidentally. We are unable to govern nature and foresee its transformations. Can we only expect another worldwide catastrophe to befall us at any moment? Or do you believe that there are reasons that can be justified and explained for things that are going on?
First, we should understand what kind of world we exist in. This world is a total derivative of our inner world. Beyond us there is nothing else but the Upper Light. People who have passed through the boundary of life and death (clinical death), also talk about this fact. The whole picture of phenomena, objects, human beings and the Universe, as each of us imagines it, is a result of our inner state.
If we want to see the world in a different and better way, like people who have crossed the boundary of death and feel that the Light carries only Kindness, we should approach Him. It is possible only through the attainment of similarity of properties to Him. Where there is no concept of “place,” the closeness is spiritual and it is determined by one’s inner similarity to
Him.
The whole science of Kabbalah teaches us only the way of approaching the Light and merging with Him in His perfection and eternity. The attitude towards us of that Light which is called
“the Creator,” is constant, absolute, and perfect. That is an unbounded and unceasing love.
Originally we were created in a form and properties opposite to Him. We desire everything for ourselves, not taking into account anything outside of us. Each of us is submerged in our constantly growing egoism. We reincarnate from one life cycle to another and live our lives in which every moment a stronger egoistic desire is awakened in us. Regardless of everything and at any cost, the egoistic desire demands that it fills itself with various pleasures. Thus, our properties are different from those of the Upper Light, and this difference increases in proportion to our growth. Throughout history man becomes more and more egoistic and the difference between him and the Upper Light continues to grow and is perceived by everyone as greater suffering.
Our egoistic desire to receive pleasure is divided into many levels. The transition of humankind from one egoistic level to a more developed and cruel level, leads him into a greater opposition to the Light and results in wars, epidemics, natural disasters, and revolutions breaking out in our world. This happens in various forms such as earthquakes on the inanimate level, crop-failures and the destruction of forests and flowers on the vegetative level, locust attacks and epidemic outbursts among animals and beasts on the animate level. On the human level it causes the escalation of violence, epidemics of serious diseases, and wars or revolutions. That is the result

of our oppositeness to the Upper Light. Lots of phenomena such as above are experienced within us and transformed into one great question: “What is the reason for all these disasters?”
As a human being progresses, becoming wiser and more active, he acquires more opportunities and appears to be more developed in comparison with an ancient caveman. But at the same time he feels greater sufferings and becomes more miserable. He feels less confident in contrast with that one who lived in a cave ten thousand years ago. He is less joyful than that one who was dancing by the fire with a piece of meat in his hand. He enjoys his family life less than any countryman who saw only his land, his rickety house, and his wife and children.
He is convinced that he is intended for taking pleasure in music, art, adventures, and development of science. But in the end this pleasure just brings him to a greater feeling of emptiness. And when man begins to ask questions (since suffering leaves him no choice but to ask them), he discovers his total inability to understand why things occur in such a way.
Only nowadays, these questions arise in general within the whole of humankind. Yet, they are far from being the most prevailing and widely discussed questions anywhere in the world, including being addressed in the media. In order to achieve that state of questioning, new and unpleasant events and more disasters should occur. Or on the contrary, the Light may come down from
Above and even in his present situation man will see in what a critical state he exists.
So there are two ways of clarifying the question: “Why are we suffering?” Either to go through these disasters and see how opposite to the Upper Light we are, despite the fact that we do not perceive It (and considering that the question has arisen due to the blows). Or to attract the Upper
Light and then see that because of the blows endured, we have had enough, and that we need to do something with our lives. And then in that very Light we will see the way we should alter ourselves in order to achieve that Kindness which people who have passed the barrier between life and death tell us about.
The disasters we are observing nowadays, are one of the results of man’s attitudes toward his nature, not toward the animate and the inanimate nature or Earth. These are trivial things.
Primarily our bad influence is displayed in human’s thoughts. It’s a simple law: the more illusory and imperceptible a human’s influence is, the more powerful it is. We know that an atom bomb is quite small compared to an ordinary bomb, and the waves the atom bomb radiates are invisible and imperceptible, but what dreadful consequences they bring.
A thought can bring even greater damage. It’s the most destructive force of all that exists in a human being. It originated from his spiritual, inner most system and it is much higher than the inanimate, vegetative, animate and speaking levels in man. And unfortunately, his negative thoughts of the world and other human beings also cause changes on the lower levels of nature.
It’s incorrect to think that all of the world’s problems are the result of using too much oxygen or burning too much fuel. So far scientists haven’t found the real reason for what is going on. They point out that everything we burn, absorb and alter in nature, if measured, shouldn’t lead us to disasters. It’s an absolute fact that disasters occur as a result of our unkind and egoistic attitudes

toward the world, and also because of man’s negative thoughts about the world and other human beings.
Question: So what should we do then? Be optimists?
You shouldn’t be optimists. We haven’t any chance to be optimists. We should inform the whole of humankind, that in order to resolve the problem of our existence, get over the crisis and secure a joyful and happy future, we should become better by improving human’s nature. If we improve it, we’ll be guaranteed a good future. Otherwise, such disasters as tsunamis and the like will continue happening until we really come to the question: “Why are we suffering?” And out of these great sufferings, we’ll start looking for the solution.
Question: Does that mean that the disasters are predetermined and we have no chance to avoid them?
These disasters are not predetermined. Three thousand years ago the prophet’s predictions that in the end of days we must suffer certain blows, are not inevitable. He writes about that if you don’t listen and take necessary measures, you should expect such and such events. So it will happen, but under certain conditions; and that doesn’t mean the disasters are inevitable. You may follow the path of Kabbalah or the path of suffering. The path of Kabbalah is the way of attracting the
Light that Reforms, and that is possible only through studying Kabbalah. And the path of suffering is the way of living our ordinary lives without thinking of anything, and continuing to use our egoism. However the very use of our egoism will bring us to such blows that we’ll aspire to get rid of it.