On June 5, 1940, Rav Yehuda Ashlag, known as Baal HaSulam (author of the Ladder) for his Sulam (ladder) commentary on The Book of Zohar, published the first copy of the paper, The Nation. In it, he tried to offer a lasting solution to the causes of the Holocaust, and to unite the people of Israel, for he perceived its fragmentation as its prime impediment to happiness. His efforts, however, were thwarted by Jews who opposed his views, and that first issue became the only issue ever to be printed.