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All that is required of me is to understand that everything I receive comes from nature, from the single source that created and governs everything, and advances me toward the goal of us reaching balance with nature.
Every kind of influence upon me is given only so that I will direct myself more precisely toward this goal. Therefore, the question is always: how can I use what I am now receiving in order to aim myself more strongly toward the goal? First, I must connect myself with the goal itself, and only then look at what exactly this influence is acting upon within me. What is it directed against? As a rule, it is directed against my egoism, i.e., against my desire to enjoy for self-benefit at the expense of others, because there is nothing else in me. However, the force of nature that is constantly operating on us in all of our desires, thoughts, and states always touches a specific side of egoism, one of its qualities, manifestations, or hidden corners.
Usually, the strongest and most painful blow to egoism is an infringement of pride, an infringement of the self. We fear shame more than anything. We are terrified of being lowered and humiliated in the eyes of others, of losing our inner sense of importance. The defeat of pride, the defeat of the “I,” is the most powerful sensation we can experience. We are ready to die instead of having to go through such a feeling, because shame annuls the human within us. It destroys the self, leaving only an animal body behind. We cannot agree to remain merely an animal. We cannot descend to that level. That is why we are ready for anything in order to avoid shame.
Precisely this feeling, the threat of shame, the collapse of the egoistic self, is the strongest stimulus that nature gives us in order to push us toward the goal. The wisdom of Kabbalah explains that the entire system of creation, the whole emergence of the worlds, began from this primordial feeling of shame. Therefore, for us, it is the most effective tool for correction.
If we learn to feel ourselves correctly, to constantly awaken an inner analysis of the self, to recognize shame and at the same time rise above it, then it becomes easier for us to work on our egoism in every form. Shame becomes not a destruction, but a guide, a force that directs us toward balance with the positive, altruistic force of nature, to spiritual ascent.
Based on a Conversation about Integral Education with Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman on May 30, 2012. Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.