NextSelf’s Guides to Ancient Wisdom

NextSelf’s Guides to Ancient Wisdom

*Correction on previous posts: Chabad Rebbeim explain feelings of aggression are through the Sefirot/energies of Netzach/Victory and Hod I write G-d below, because a Jewish tradition is to bury pages in the ground with G-d’s name when they are no longer used, instead of throwing in the garbage, it’s an act of reverence, it helps […]

How can a finite human have a real relationship with an infinite Creator?

“Creation has a beginning, the creator does not, we know this b/c the universe reveals infinite power and wisdom, and infinite means no beginning” A real relationship isn’t just belief or effort. It’s something you can feel. If there’s no joy, intimacy isn’t really happening. Many people feel like something is off in their relationship […]

Perfectionism looks different in different people.

Perfectionism looks different in different people.

Perfectionism isn’t one thing. It depends on how a person learned to feel safe. Trauma adaptive fight, flight, freeze, and fawn all try to be “perfect” in different ways, and all of them try to avoid a hard process. 1. Fight perfectionism “I must be right.” Arguing, controlling, overpowering others. Harm gets explained away as […]

Why Joseph never said “I forgive you.”

Why Joseph never said “I forgive you.”

Not because he was mean. Not because he held a grudge. But because they never asked him themselves. After Jacob (Israel) passed away, the brothers got scared. They did not go talk to Joseph. Instead, they sent messengers. And the messengers said: “Your father said before he died, Please forgive now your brothers’ crime and […]

Awe grows through appreciation, not emotion-hunting.

Awe grows through appreciation, not emotion-hunting.

Appreciation means noticing that something is real, meaningful, and not yours to control. When you truly appreciate G-d, or life, or existence itself, your mind doesn’t rush to comfort. It slows down. It notices depth. You feel connected. That’s how awe grows. This is how relationships begin. With people, relationship starts through curiosity. With the […]

Why perfectionism makes people fall for religious schemes

Why perfectionism makes people fall for religious schemes

Perfectionism isn’t about wanting to be good. It’s about being afraid to admit ‘bad’ or uncomfortable feelings. Ego feelings like: 1. jealousy 2. wanting attention 3. feeling better than others 4. feeling unimportant or confused For a perfectionist, these feelings feel dangerous. Not because they’re evil, but because the person thinks: “If I feel this, […]

A strange teaching from the Talmud

A strange teaching from the Talmud

Beit Shammai taught something that sounds harsh at first: It would have been better if a person had not been created. That doesn’t mean life is bad. It means being alive is risky. Because once a person exists, the Ego shows up. Wanting comfort shows up. The drive for reward, control, and validation (people pleasing) […]

AI won’t replace education.

AI won’t replace education.

It replaces guessing. AI doesn’t know what matters. It doesn’t know what’s wrong. It doesn’t know what to focus on. You do. AI only works as well as the mind guiding it. Prompting isn’t typing smart words. Prompting is knowing what to ask. And that comes from: 1. knowing the subject 2. seeing patterns 3. […]

Trauma doesn’t bring you closer to G-d by itself.

Trauma doesn’t bring you closer to G-d by itself.

It creates the need for a deeper kind of love. When life is smooth, you don’t notice love very much. You feel in control. But when something hurts, when you feel scared, ashamed, depressed, or confused, you lose that control. And that’s the moment something important happens. What trauma actually is, Trauma isn’t just what […]

If growth isn’t built on truth,

If growth isn’t built on truth,

it collapses when shame or fear appears. That’s why one should increase their study of the teachings of Moses. Moses was the greatest prophet, by the scale of revelation and miracles he was a channel for. But more importantly, his teachings give the deepest structure to suffering. They show what a real relationship with G-d […]