The tree of life.

Kabbalah (Hebrew קַבָּלָה "reception", Standard Hebrew Qabbala, Tiberian Hebrew Qabbālāh; also written variously as Cabala, Cabalah, Cabbala, Cabbalah, Kabala, Kabalah, Kabbala, Qabala, Qabalah) is an interpretation (exegesis, hermeneutic) key, "soul" of the Torah (Hebrew Bible), or the religious mystical system of Judaism claiming an insight into divine nature. This image is in the public domain because its copyright has expired in the United States and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years. ... This image is in the public domain because its copyright has expired in the United States and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years. ... Tree of life is an important notion within the Kabbalah of Judaism. ... The Modern Hebrew language is a Semitic language of the Afro-Asiatic language family. ... The Modern Hebrew language is a Semitic language of the Afro-Asiatic language family. ... Tiberian Hebrew is an oral tradition of pronunciation for ancient forms of Hebrew, especially the Hebrew of the Bible, that was given written form by masoretic scholars in the Jewish community at Tiberias in the early middle ages, beginning in the 8th century. ... Torah, (תורה) is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or especially law. It primarily refers to the first section of the Tanakh–the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, or the Five Books of Moses, but can also be used in the general sense to also include both the... 11th century manuscript of the Hebrew Bible with Targum Hebrew Bible refers to the common portions of the Jewish and Christian canons. ... Mysticism (ancient Greek mysticon = secret) is the pursuit or discovery of what is believed to be the direct experience of union with divinity, God, or Ultimate Reality; or the belief that such experience is a genuine and important source of knowledge. ... Judaism is the religious culture of the Jewish people. ... Divinity is seen as the existence of some entity or entities which are greater than humankind. ...

Kabbalah is a doctrine of esoteric knowledge concerning God and the universe. Kabbalah stresses the reasons and understanding of the commandments, and the cause of events described in the Torah. Kabbalah includes the understanding of the spiritual spheres in creation, and the rules and ways by which God administers the existence of the universe. (Some of its adherents may describe Kabbalah as: A unique, universal and secret knowledge of God, the laws of nature and of the universe. Technically speaking it explains laws of "light". All things in the world are different levels, the closer to God the more revealed the Godliness.) According to Jewish tradition, this knowledge has come down as a revelation to elect saints from a remote past, and preserved only by a privileged few. It is considered part of the Jewish Oral Law. It is the traditional mystical explanation of the Torah. Esoteric knowledge is knowledge that is secret or not generally known. ... In Judaism there is a tradition that the Torah contains 613 mitzvot (Hebrew for commandments, from mitzvah - מצוה - precept, plural mitzvot; from צוה, tzavah- command). ... The deepest visible-light image of the universe, the Hubble Ultra Deep Field. ... The deepest visible-light image of the cosmos. ... Prism splitting light Light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength that is visible to the eye, or in a more general sense, any electromagnetic radiation in the range from infrared to ultraviolet. ... The word Jew (Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination of these attributes. ... An oral law is a code of conduct in use in a given culture, religion or other regroupement, by which a body of rules of human behaviour is transmitted by oral tradition and effectively respected, or the single rule that is verbally transmitted. ... Torah, (תורה) is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or especially law. It primarily refers to the first section of the Tanakh–the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, or the Five Books of Moses, but can also be used in the general sense to also include both the...

Origin of Jewish mysticism

Era of Torah and Tanakh

The origin of mysticism for Jews goes hand-in-hand with the origins of the entire Tanakh (the Hebrew Bible). The Torah's description of the creation in the opening of the Book of Genesis remains the strongest textual source for an "invisible" and "inscrutable" God creating the universe, the world, and finally Adam and Eve, who are placed in a mysterious Garden of Eden with its Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and a Tree of Life, and the interaction of these creations with the Serpent which leads to disaster when they eat the forbidden fruit, as recorded in Genesis 2 [1]. 11th century Targum Tanakh [תנ״ך] (also spelt Tanach or Tenach) is an acronym for the three parts of the Hebrew Bible, based upon the initial Hebrew letters of each part: Torah [תורה] (The Law; also: Teaching or Instruction), Chumash [חומש] (The five, also Pentateuch or The five books of... 11th century manuscript of the Hebrew Bible with Targum Hebrew Bible refers to the common portions of the Jewish and Christian canons. ... Torah, (תורה) is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or especially law. It primarily refers to the first section of the Tanakh–the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, or the Five Books of Moses, but can also be used in the general sense to also include both the... This article is about Genesis, the first book of the Hebrew Bible. ... This article is about the biblical Adam and Eve. ... Extensible VAX Editor EVE stands for Extensible VAX Editor, a flexible text editor that is part of the VMS operating system. ... This article is about the Biblical location. ... In the Hebrew Bibles Book of Genesis, the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil was the tree in the middle of the Garden of Eden from which God forbade Adam and Eve to eat. ... The Tree-of-Life is a fictional plant (the ancestor of yams, with similar appearance and taste) in Larry Nivens Known Space universe, for which all Hominids have an in-built genetic craving. ... Serpent is a word of Latin origin (serpens, serpentis) that is normally substituted for snake in a specifically mythic or religious context, in order to distinguish such creatures from the field of biology. ... In the Bible, the forbidden fruit is the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil eaten by Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. ...

The near sacrifice of Isaac, Jacob's vision of the ladder to heaven, Moses' experience with the burning bush and his encounters with God on Mount Sinai, the prophet Ezekiel's visions are all evidence of mystical events and beliefs in the Tanakh, and most importantly, all these episodes form the bed-rock of Kabbalah's teachings. The near-sacrifice of Isaac, in Genesis 22, is a story from the Hebrew Bible in which God asks Abraham to present his son Isaac as a sacrifice on Mount Moriah. ... Jacob Wrestling with the Angel – Gustave Doré, 1855 Jacob or Yaakov, (יַעֲקֹב Holder of the heel, Standard Hebrew Yaʿaqov, Tiberian Hebrew Yaʿăqōḇ; Arabic يعقوب Yaʿqūb), later known as Israel (יִשְׂרָאֵל Prince with God, Standard Hebrew Yisraʾel, Tiberian Hebrew Yiśrāʾēl; Arabic اسرائيل Isrāʾīl) is a biblical patriarch. ... Jacobs Ladder refers to a ladder to heaven which Jacob saw while fleeing his brother Esau: Jacob left Beersheba, and went toward Haran. ... Moses or Móshe (מֹשֶׁה, Standard Hebrew Móše, Tiberian Hebrew Mōšeh, Arabic موسى), son of Amram and his wife, Jochebed, a Levite. ... Burning bush at St. ... Sunrise on the Mount Sinai View from the summit of Mount Sinai Sinai Peninsula, showing location of Jabal Musa Mount Sinai is the name of the mountain where, according to the Bible, God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses. ... Ezekiel the Prophet of the Hebrew Scriptures is depicted on a 1510 Sistine Chapel fresco by Michelangelo. ...

Early forms of Jewish mysticism at first consisted only of empirical "lore". In the medieval era it greatly developed with the appearance of the mystical text, the Sefer Yetzirah. Jewish sources attribute the book to Abraham. It became the object of the systematic study of the elect who were called baale ha-kabbalah (בעלי הקבלה "possessors or masters of the Kabbalah"). From the thirteenth century onward Kabbalah branched out into an extensive literature, alongside of and often in opposition to the Talmud. Mysticism (ancient Greek mysticon = secret) is the pursuit or discovery of what is believed to be the direct experience of union with divinity, God, or Ultimate Reality; or the belief that such experience is a genuine and important source of knowledge. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ... Sefer Yetzirah (Hebrew, Book of Creation, ספר יצירה) is the title of two books on esoteric Jewish mysticism. ... Abraham (אַבְרָהָם Father/Leader of many, Standard Hebrew Avraham, Tiberian Hebrew ʾAḇrāhām; Arabic ابراهيم IbrāhÄ«m) is the patriarch of Judaism, recognized by Christianity, and a very important prophet in Islam. ... The first page of the Talmud, in the standard Vilna edition. ...

Kabbalah teaches that every Hebrew letter, word, number, and accent of the Hebrew Bible contains a hidden sense; and it teaches the methods of interpretation for ascertaining these meanings. Note: This article contains special characters. ... 11th century manuscript of the Hebrew Bible with Targum Hebrew Bible refers to the common portions of the Jewish and Christian canons. ...

Orthodox Judaism typically rejects the idea that Kabbalah underwent significant historical development and change. Orthodox Judaism is the oldest form of Judaism practiced by Jews. ...

Mystic doctrines in Talmudic times

In Talmudic times the terms Ma'aseh Bereshit ("Works of Creation") and Ma'aseh Merkabah ("Works of the Divine Throne/Chariot") clearly indicate the Midrashic nature of these speculations; they are really based upon Genesis 1 and Book of Ezekiel 1:4-28; while the names Sitrei Torah (Talmud Hag. 13a) and Razei Torah (Ab. vi. 1) indicate their character as secret lore. In contrast to the explicit statement of the Hebrew Bible that God created not only the world, but also the matter out of which it was made, the opinion is expressed in very early times that God created the world from matter He found ready at hand — (according to some, this is an opinion probably due to the influence of the Platonic-Stoic cosmogony). The first page of the Talmud, in the standard Vilna edition. ... Midrash (pl. ... This article is about Genesis, the first book of the Hebrew Bible. ... This article is about the Book of Ezekiel. ... 11th century manuscript of the Hebrew Bible with Targum Hebrew Bible refers to the common portions of the Jewish and Christian canons. ...

Eminent rabbinic teachers in the Land of Israel held the doctrine of the preexistence of matter (Midrash Genesis Rabbah i. 5, iv. 6), in spite of the protest of Gamaliel II. (ib. i. 9). The Land of Israel (Hebrew: ארץ ישראל Eretz Yisrael) is the land that made up the ancient Jewish Kingdoms of Israel and Judah. ... Midrash (pl. ...

In dwelling upon the nature of God and the universe, the mystics of the Talmudic period asserted, in contrast to Biblical transcendentalism, that "God is the dwelling-place of the universe; but the universe is not the dwelling-place of God". Possibly the designation ("place") for God, so frequently found in Talmudic-Midrashic literature, is due to this conception, just as Philo, in commenting on Genesis 28:11 says, "God is called ha makom (המקום "the place") because God encloses the universe, but is Himself not enclosed by anything" (De Somniis, i. 11). Philo (20 BCE - 40 CE) was an Hellenized Jewish philosopher born in Alexandria, Egypt. ... Genesis (Greek: Γένεσις, having the meanings of birth, creation, cause, beginning, source and origin) is the first book of the Torah (five books of Moses) and hence the first book of the Tanakh, part of the Hebrew Bible; it is also the first book of the Christian Old Testament. ...

Even in very early times of the Land of Israel as well as Alexandrian theology recognized the two attributes of God, middat hadin (the "attribute of justice"), and middat ha-rahamim (the "attribute of mercy") (Midrash Sifre, Deuteronomy 27); and so is the contrast between justice and mercy a fundamental doctrine of the Kabbalah. Other hypostasizations are represented by the ten "agencies" (the Sefirot) through which God created the world; namely, wisdom, insight, cognition, strength, power, inexorableness, justice, right, love, and mercy. The Land of Israel (Hebrew: ארץ ישראל Eretz Yisrael) is the land that made up the ancient Jewish Kingdoms of Israel and Judah. ... Antiquity and modernity stand cheek-by-jowl in Egypts chief Mediterranean seaport Located on the Mediterranean Sea coast, Alexandria (in Arabic, الإسكندرية, transliterated al-ʼIskandariyyah) is the chief seaport in Egypt, and that countrys second largest city, and the capital of the Al Iskandariyah governate. ... Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible. ... Sephirah, also Sefirah (Hebrew language סְפִירָה Enumeration); plural Sephiroth or Sefiroth סְפִירוֹת. ...

While the Sefirot are based on these ten creative "potentialities", it is especially the personification of wisdom which, in Philo, represents the totality of these primal ideas; and the Targ. Yer. i., agreeing with him, translates the first verse of the Bible as follows: "By wisdom God created the heaven and the earth." Philo (20 BCE - 40 CE) was an Hellenized Jewish philosopher born in Alexandria, Egypt. ...

So, also, the figure of Metatron passed into Kabbalah from the Talmud, where it played the role of the demiurgos (see Gnosticism), being expressly mentioned as God. Mention may also be made of the seven preexisting things enumerated in an old baraita (an extra-mishnaic teacing); namely, the Torah, repentance, paradise and hell, the throne of God, the Heavenly Temple, and the name of the Messiah (Talmud Pes. 54a). Although the origin of this doctrine must be sought probably in certain mythological ideas, the Platonic doctrine of preexistence has modified the older, simpler conception, and the preexistence of the seven must therefore be understood as an "ideal" preexistence, a conception that was later more fully developed in the Kabbalah. An early Christian portrayal of Metatron Metatron (alternate spelling: Metraton, sometimes referred to as the latin Metator) is the name of an angel in Judaism and some branches of Christianity. ... The first page of the Talmud, in the standard Vilna edition. ... Gnosticism is a blanket term for various mostly mystical religions and sects most prominent in the first few centuries A.D. // General characteristics The word gnosticism comes from the Greek word for knowledge, gnosis (γνῶσις), referring to the idea that there is special esoteric knowledge, a key to transcendent understanding, that... The Mishnah (Hebrew משנה, Repetition) is a major source of rabbinic Judaisms religious texts. ... Torah, (תורה) is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or especially law. It primarily refers to the first section of the Tanakh–the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, or the Five Books of Moses, but can also be used in the general sense to also include both the... The Jewish Messiah, or Mashiach, or Moshiach, has traditionally referred to a future Jewish king from the Davidic line who will be anointed (in Hebrew, mashiach (messiah) means anointed [with holy olive oil]) and inducted to rule the Jewish people. ...

The attempts of the mystics to bridge the gulf between God and the world are evident in the doctrine of the preexistence of the soul, and of its close relation to God before it enters the human body — a doctrine taught by the Hellenistic sages (Wisdom viii. 19) as well as by the Palestinian rabbis.

In the Middle ages, Baruch Spinoza may have had this passage in mind when he said that the ancient Jews did not separate God from the world. This conception of God may be pantheistic or panentheistic. It also postulates the union of man with God; both these ideas were further developed in the later Kabbalah. (He was excommunicated from the main Jewish community of his times by the rabbis at the time for espousing these views). Baruch Spinoza Benedictus de Spinoza (November 24, 1632 – February 21, 1677), named Baruch Spinoza by his synagogue elders and known as Bento de Spinoza or Bento dEspiñoza in the community in which he grew up. ... Pantheism literally means God is All and All is God. It is the view that everything is of an all-encompassing immanent God; or that the universe, or nature, and God are equivalent. ... Panentheism (Greek words: pan=all, en=in and Theos=God) is the view that God is immanent within all Creation and that the universe is part of God or that God is the animating force behind the universe. ...

Kabbalah of the early Middle Ages

See Nahmanides; Bahya ben Asher; Isaac the Blind; and Azriel (Jewish mystic).

There were certain early rishonim who are known to have been experts in Kabbalah. One of the best known is Nahmanides (the Ramban) (1194-1270) whose commentary on the Torah is considered to be based on Kabbalistic knowledge as well as Bahya ben Asher (the Rabbeinu Behaye) (d. 1340). Another was Isaac the Blind (1160-1235) who wrote about the mystical classic the Bahir, and his student known as Azriel. Nahmanides is the common name for Moshe ben Nahman Gerondi; the name is a Greek translation of the Hebrew Ben Nahman, meaning Son of Nahman. He is also commonly known as Ramban, being an acronym of his Hebrew name and title, Rabbi Moshe ben Nahman, and by his Catalan name... Bahya ben Asher or Bahya ben Asher ben Halawa also known as the Rabbeinu Behaye, born about the middle of the thirteenth century at Saragossa, died 1340 was a 13th century rabbi and scholar of Judaism. ... Isaac the Blind (c. ... Azriel was one of the most important Jewish mystics in the Spanish town of Gerona (north of Barcelona) during the thirteenth century when it was an important center of the Kabbalah. ... Rishonim (Hebrew - sing. ... Nahmanides is the common name for Moshe ben Nahman Gerondi; the name is a Greek translation of the Hebrew Ben Nahman, meaning Son of Nahman. He is also commonly known as Ramban, being an acronym of his Hebrew name and title, Rabbi Moshe ben Nahman, and by his Catalan name... Events November 20 - Palermo falls to Henry VI, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire December 25 - Henry VI is crowned king of Sicily. ... For broader historical context, see 1270s and 13th century. ... Torah, (תורה) is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or especially law. It primarily refers to the first section of the Tanakh–the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, or the Five Books of Moses, but can also be used in the general sense to also include both the... Bahya ben Asher or Bahya ben Asher ben Halawa also known as the Rabbeinu Behaye, born about the middle of the thirteenth century at Saragossa, died 1340 was a 13th century rabbi and scholar of Judaism. ... Events January 26 - King France June 24 - The Battle of Sluys is fought between the naval fleets of the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of France. ... Isaac the Blind (c. ... Events Erik den helige is succeeded by Karl Sverkersson. ... Events Anglo-Norman invasion of Connacht St. ... The Bahir (Hebrew for Illumination) is a pseudonymous mystical work attributed to Nehunya ben ha-Kanah, a first century rabbinic sage, and a contemporary of Johanan ben Zakkai (first century), because it begins with the words, R. Nehunya ben ha-Kanah said. It was first published in the 12th century... Azriel was one of the most important Jewish mystics in the Spanish town of Gerona (north of Barcelona) during the thirteenth century when it was an important center of the Kabbalah. ...

Lurianic Kabbalah in the Middle Ages

See main article: Isaac Luria.

Following the upheavals and dislocations in the Jewish world as a result of the Spanish Inquisition and the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492, the trauma of Anti-Semitism during the Middle Ages, Jews began to search for signs of when the long-awaited Jewish Messiah would come to comfort them in their painful exiles. As part of that "search for meaning" in their lives, Kabbalah received its biggest boost in the Jewish world when the explication of the Kabbalistic teachings of Rabbi Isaac Luria (1534-1572) (known as the ARI), by his disciple Rabbi Chaim Vital who published the ARI's teachings, gained wide-spread popularity. It was Rabbi Isaac Luria who popularized and gave credence to the teachings of the Zohar which had until then been a little-known work. The author of the Shulkhan Arukh (the Jewish "Code of Law"), Rabbi Yosef Karo (1488-1575, and Rabbi Moses ben Jacob Cordovero (1522-1570) were also great scholars of Kabbalah and spread its teachings during this era. Isaac Luria (1534–August 5, 1572) was a Jewish scholar and mystic who was secretly believed by some to be the messiah. ... The Spanish Inquisition was the Inquisition acting in Spain under the control of the Kings of Spain. ... Events January 2 - Boabdil, the last Moorish King of Granada, surrenders his city to the army of Ferdinand and Isabella after a lengthy siege. ... The Eternal Jew: 1937 German poster. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ... The Jewish Messiah, or Mashiach, or Moshiach, has traditionally referred to a future Jewish king from the Davidic line who will be anointed (in Hebrew, mashiach (messiah) means anointed [with holy olive oil]) and inducted to rule the Jewish people. ... Isaac Luria (1534–August 5, 1572) was a Jewish scholar and mystic who was secretly believed by some to be the messiah. ... Events May 10 - Jacques Cartier explores Newfoundland while searching for the Northwest Passage. ... Events January 16 - The Duke of Norfolk is tried for treason for his part in the Ridolfi plot to restore Catholicism in England. ... Rabbi Chaim Vital (1543-1620) was the closest disciple of the great 16th-century kabbalist, the Ari - Rabbi Itzchak Luria and his foremost interpreter. ... Isaac Luria (1534–August 5, 1572) was a Jewish scholar and mystic who was secretly believed by some to be the messiah. ... The Zohar (Hebrew זהר Zohar Splendor, radiance) is widely considered the most important work of Kabbalah, Jewish mysticism. ... The Shulkhan Arukh (Hebrew: Prepared Table), by Rabbi Yosef Karo is considered the most authoritative compilation of Jewish law since the Talmud. ... Rabbi Yosef (Joseph) Ben Ephraim Karo is one of the most important leaders in the history of halakha (Jewish law). ... Events February 3 - Bartolomeu Dias of Portugal lands in Mossel Bay after rounding the Cape of Good Hope, at the tip of Africa becoming the first known European to travel this far south. ... Events February 13 - Henry III of France is crowned at Reims February 14 - Henry III of France marries Louise de Lorraine-Vaudémont August 5 - Henry Sidney is appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. ... Rabbi Moshe Cordevero or RAMAK 5282-5330 (1522-1570) He who was the head of the Tzefat school of Kabbalah before the Ari One of the greatest of all Kabbalists. ... Events January 9 - Adrian Dedens becomes Pope Adrian VI. February 26 - Execution by hanging of Cuauhtémoc, Aztec ruler of Tenochtitlan under orders of conquistador Hernán Cortés. ... Events January 23 - The assassination of regent James Stewart, Earl of Moray throws Scotland into civil war February 25 - Pope Pius V excommunicates Queen Elizabeth I of England. ...

Kabbalah of the Sefardim and Mizrahim

The Kabbalah of the Sefardi and Mizrahi Torah scholars has its own long history. Rabbis Moses ben Jacob Cordovero, Chaim Vital, and Yosef Karo are part of this school of Kabbalah. In the strictest sense, a Sephardi (ספרדי, Standard Hebrew Səfardi, Tiberian Hebrew Səp̄ardî; plural Sephardim: ספרדים, Standard Hebrew Səfardim, Tiberian Hebrew Səp̄ardîm) is a Jew original to the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal: ספרד, Standard Hebrew Səfárad, Tiberian Hebrew Səp̄áraḏ / Səp̄āraḏ), or whose ancestors were among the Jews expelled from... Mizrachi is also an organisation of the Religious Zionist Movement Mizrahi Jews or Oriental Jews (מזרחי eastern, Standard Hebrew Mizraḥi, Tiberian Hebrew Mizrāḥî; plural מזרחים easterners, Standard Hebrew Mizraḥim, Tiberian Hebrew Mizrāḥîm) are Jews of Middle Eastern origin; that is to say, their ancestors never left the Middle East. ... Rabbi Moshe Cordevero or RAMAK 5282-5330 (1522-1570) He who was the head of the Tzefat school of Kabbalah before the Ari One of the greatest of all Kabbalists. ... Rabbi Chaim Vital (1543-1620) was the closest disciple of the great 16th-century kabbalist, the Ari - Rabbi Itzchak Luria and his foremost interpreter. ... Rabbi Yosef (Joseph) Ben Ephraim Karo is one of the most important leaders in the history of halakha (Jewish law). ...

Kabbalah of the Maharal

See: Judah Loew ben Bezalel.

One of the most important teachers of Kabbalah recognized as an authority by all serious scholars until the present time, was Rabbi Judah Loew ben Bezalel (1525-1609) known as the Maharal of Prague. Many of his written works survive and are studied for their deep Kabbalistic insights. During the twentieth century, Rabbi Isaac Hutner (1906-1980) continued to spread the Maharal's teachings indirectly through his own teachings and scholarly publications within the modern yeshiva world. Judah Loew ben Bezalel (Judah Loew son of Bezalel), (according to some his name was Yehudah ben Bezalel Levai [or Loew]), (1525 — 1609) was an outstanding Talmudic scholar, Jewish mystic and philosopher who served as a leading rabbi in Prague (now in the Czech Republic) for most of his life. ... Judah Loew ben Bezalel (Judah Loew son of Bezalel), (according to some his name was Yehudah ben Bezalel Levai [or Loew]), (1525 — 1609) was an outstanding Talmudic scholar, Jewish mystic and philosopher who served as a leading rabbi in Prague (now in the Czech Republic) for most of his life. ... Events January 21 - The Swiss Anabaptist Movement was born when Conrad Grebel, Felix Manz, George Blaurock, and about a dozen others baptized each other in the home of Manzs mother on Neustadt-Gasse, Zürich, breaking a thousand-year tradition of church-state union. ... Events April 4 – King of Spain signs an edit of expulsion of all moriscos from Spain April 9 – Spain recognizes Dutch independence May 23 - Official ratification of the Second Charter of Virginia. ... Prague (Praha in Czech) is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s The 20th century lasted from 1901 to 2000 in the Gregorian calendar (often from (1900 to 1999 in common usage). ... Rabbi Yitzchok (Isaac) Hutner (1906 - 1980) was born in Warsaw, Poland, to a family with both Ger hasidim and mitnagdim in their origins. ... 1906 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... 1980 is a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... A yeshiva (or yeshivah, Hebrew, pl. ...

The failure of Sabbatian mysticism

Main article Sabbatai Zevi and Jacob Frank.

The spiritual and mystical yearnings of many Jews remained frustrated after the death of Rabbi Isaac Luria and his disciples and colleagues. No hope was in sight for many following the devastation and mass killings of the pogroms that followed in the wake the Chmielnicki Uprising (1648-1654), and it was at this time that a controversial scholar of the Kabbalah by the name of Sabbatai Zevi (1626-1676) captured the hearts and minds of the Jewish masses of that time with the promise of a newly-minted "Messianic" Millennialism in the form of his own personage. His charisma, mystical teachings that included repeated pronunciations of the holy Tetragrammaton in public, tied to an unstable personality, and with the help of his own "prophet" Nathan of Gaza, convinced the Jewish masses that the "Jewish Messiah" had finally come. It seemed that the esoteric teachings of Kabbalah had found their "champion" and had triumphed, but this era of Jewish history unravelled when Zevi became an apostate to Judaism by converting to Islam after he was arrested by the Ottoman Sultan and threatened with execution for attempting a plan to conquer the world and rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem. Sabbatai Zevi, also transliterated Shabbethai, Shabbetai, Sabbetai, or Shabtai; Zvi or Tzvi (July 23, 1626–possibly September 30, 1676) was a famous claimed Messiah and Kabbalist. ... Jacob Frank (1726-1791) was a Jewish merchant who claimed to be the messiah. ... Isaac Luria (1534–August 5, 1572) was a Jewish scholar and mystic who was secretly believed by some to be the messiah. ... A pogrom (from Russian: погром (meaning wreaking of havoc) is a massive violent attack on a particular ethnic or religious group with simultaneous destruction of their environment (homes, businesses, religious centers). ... Chmielnicki Uprising or Chmielnicki Rebellion is the name of a civil war in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the years 1648–1654. ... // Events Peace treaty signed at Westphalia ends the Thirty Years War. ... Events April 5 - Signing of the Treaty of Westminster, ending the First Anglo-Dutch War. ... Sabbatai Zevi, also transliterated Shabbethai, Shabbetai, Sabbetai, or Shabtai; Zvi or Tzvi (July 23, 1626–possibly September 30, 1676) was a famous claimed Messiah and Kabbalist. ... Events September 30 - Nurhaci, chieftain of the Jurchens and founder of the Qing Dynasty dies and is succeeded by his son Hong Taiji. ... // Events January 29 - Feodor III becomes Tsar of Russia First measurement of the speed of light, by Ole Rømer Bacons Rebellion Russo-Turkish Wars commence. ... Millennialism (or chiliasm), from millennium, which literally means thousand years, is primarily a belief expressed in some Christian denominations, folk religions, and literature, that at some point in the future there will be a Golden Age or Paradise on Earth when universal peace will reign, when all people will dwell... The Tetragrammaton in Phoenician (1100 BC to AD 300), Aramaic (10th century BC to 1 BC) and modern Hebrew scripts. ... The Jewish Messiah, or Mashiach, or Moshiach, has traditionally referred to a future Jewish king from the Davidic line who will be anointed (in Hebrew, mashiach (messiah) means anointed [with holy olive oil]) and inducted to rule the Jewish people. ... Apostasy (Greek απο, apo, away, apart, στασις, stasis, standing) is the formal renunciation of ones religion. ... Islam  listen? (Arabic: al-islām) the submission to God is a monotheistic faith, one of the Abrahamic religions, and the worlds second largest religion. ... The Ottoman Empire at the height of its power Imperial motto El Muzaffer Daima The Ever Victorious (as written in tugra) Official language Ottoman Turkish Capital İstanbul ( Constantinople/Asitane/Konstantiniyye ) Sovereigns Sultans of the Osmanli Dynasty Population ca 40 million Area 12+ million km² Establishment 1299 Dissolution October 29, 1923... A sultan (Arabic: سلطان) is an Islamic title, with several historical meanings muslim monarch ruling under the terms of shariah The title carries moral weight and religious authority, as the rulers role was defined in the Quran. ... The Temple in Jerusalem or the Holy Temple (Beit HaMikdash בית המקדש in Hebrew) was built in ancient Jerusalem and was the center of Israelite and Jewish worship, primarily for the offering of sacrifices known as the korbanot. ...

Many of his followers continued to worship him in secret and most leading rabbis were always on guard to root them out. The Sabbatian movement was followed by that of the "Frankists" who were disciples of another pseudo-mystic Jacob Frank (1726-1791) who eventually became an apostate to Judaism by converting to Catholicism. This era of disappointment did not stem the Jewish masses' yearnings for "mystical" leadership. Jacob Frank (1726-1791) was a Jewish merchant who claimed to be the messiah. ... Events George Friderich Handel becomes a British subject. ... 1791 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... The Roman Catholic Church is the largest Christian body with over 1. ...

Spread of Kabbalah during the 1700s

See main articles Israel ben Eliezer; Vilna Gaon; and Moshe Chaim Luzzatto.

The eighteenth century saw an explosion of new efforts in the writing and spread of Kabbalah by three well know rabbis working in different areas of Europe: This article incorporates text from the public domain 1901-1906 Jewish Encyclopedia Israel ben Eliezer Rabbi Israel (Yisroel) ben Eliezer (about 1698 Okopy Świętej Trójcy - May 22, 1760 Międzyborz) was a Jewish Orthodox mystical rabbi who is better known to most religious Jews as the Baal Shem Tov, or the... Elijah Ben Solomon, the Vilna Gaon Elijah (Eliyahu) Ben Solomon Kremer, born April 23, 1720, Vilna (now Vilnius), Lithuania; where he died on October 9, 1797, was a prominent Jewish rabbi, Talmud scholar, and Kabbalist. ... Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (also Moses Chaim, Moses Hayyim, also Luzzato) (1707-1746), also known by the Hebrew acronym as the RAMCHAL, was a prominent Italian Jewish rabbi, mystic, and philosopher best remembered today for his ethical treatise Mesillat Yesharim (Path of the Just). ... (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ...

1. Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer (1698-1760) in the area of Ukraine spread teachings based on Rabbi Isaac Luria's foundations. From him sprang the vast ongoing schools of Hasidic Judaism, with each successive rebbe viewed by his "Hasidim" as continuing the role of dispensor of mystical divine blessings and guidance.
2. Rabbi Elijah of Vilna (1720-1797), based in Lithuania, had his teachings encoded and publicized by his disciples such as by Rabbi Chaim Volozhin who published the mystical-ethical work Nefesh HaChaim. However, he was staunchly opposed to the new Hasidic movement and warned against their public displays of religious fervour inspired by the mystical teachings of their rabbis.
3. Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (1707-1746), based in Italy, was a precocious Talmudic scholar who arrived at the startling conclusion that there was a need for the public teaching and study of Kabbalah. He established a yeshiva for Kabbalah study and actively recruited outstanding students, in addition, wrote copious manuscripts in an appealing clear Hebrew style, all of which gained the attention of both admirers as well of rabbinical critics who feared another "Zevi (false messiah) in the making". He was forced to close his school by his rabbinical opponents, hand over and destroy many of his most precious unpublished kabbalistic writings, and go into exile in the Netherlands. He eventually moved to the Land of Israel. Some of his most important works such as Derekh Hashem survive and are used as a gateway to the world of Jewish mysticism.

This article incorporates text from the public domain 1901-1906 Jewish Encyclopedia Israel ben Eliezer Rabbi Israel (Yisroel) ben Eliezer (about 1698 Okopy Świętej Trójcy - May 22, 1760 Międzyborz) was a Jewish Orthodox mystical rabbi who is better known to most religious Jews as the Baal Shem Tov, or the... Events January 4 - Palace of Whitehall in London is destroyed by fire. ... 1760 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Isaac Luria (1534–August 5, 1572) was a Jewish scholar and mystic who was secretly believed by some to be the messiah. ... Hasidic Judaism (Hebrew: Chasidut חסידות, meaning pious from the Hebrew root word chesed חסד meaning loving kindness) is a Haredi Jewish religious movement. ... Rebbe (Hebrew: רבי also rebbi) is a title that may be given to a rabbi in Orthodox Judaism, particularly within Hasidic Judaism. ... Elijah Ben Solomon, the Vilna Gaon Elijah (Eliyahu) Ben Solomon Kremer, born April 23, 1720, Vilna (now Vilnius), Lithuania; where he died on October 9, 1797, was a prominent Jewish rabbi, Talmud scholar, and Kabbalist. ... // Events January 6 - The Committee of Inquiry on the South Sea Bubble publishes its findings February 11 - Sweden and Prussia sign the (2nd Treaty of Stockholm) declaring peace. ... 1797 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Chaim Volozhin (or Chaim Volozhiner or Chaim of Volozhin) (1749 - 1821) was an Orthodox Judaism rabbi, Talmudist, and ethicist. ... Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (also Moses Chaim, Moses Hayyim, also Luzzato) (1707-1746), also known by the Hebrew acronym as the RAMCHAL, was a prominent Italian Jewish rabbi, mystic, and philosopher best remembered today for his ethical treatise Mesillat Yesharim (Path of the Just). ... Events January 1 - John V is crowned King of Portugal March 26 - The Act of Union becomes law, making the separate Kingdoms of England and Scotland into one country, the Kingdom of Great Britain. ... Events January 8 - Bonnie Prince Charlie occupies Stirling April 16 - Battle of Culloden brings an end to the Jacobite Risings October 22 - The College of New Jersey is founded (it becomes Princeton University in 1896) October 28 - An earthquake demolishes Lima and Callao, in Peru Catharine de Ricci (born 1522... The first page of the Talmud, in the standard Vilna edition. ... A yeshiva (or yeshivah, Hebrew, pl. ... The Modern Hebrew language is a Semitic language of the Afro-Asiatic language family. ... The Land of Israel (Hebrew: ארץ ישראל Eretz Yisrael) is the land that made up the ancient Jewish Kingdoms of Israel and Judah. ... Derekh Hashem (The Way of God) is a philosophical text about Gods purpose in Creation, justice, and ethics by Rabbi Moses Chaim Luzzato, the author of the well known Mesillat Yesharim. ...

The modern world

See Hasidic Judaism and Abraham Isaac Kook.

Two of the most influential sources spreading Kabbalistic teachings have come from the growth and spread of Hasidic Judaism, as can be seen by the growth of the Lubavitch movement, and from the influence of the writings of Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook (1864-1935) who inspired the followers of Religious Zionism with mystical writings and hopes that interpreted the rise of modern day Zionism as the onset of the atchalta dege'ula - the "beginning of the redemption" of the Jewish people from their exile, in expectation of the arrival of the "final redemption" of the Jewish Messiah. The varied Hasidic works (sifrei chasidus) and Rabbi Kook's voluminous writings drew heavily on the long chain of Kabbalistic thought and methodology. Hasidic Judaism (Hebrew: Chasidut חסידות, meaning pious from the Hebrew root word chesed חסד meaning loving kindness) is a Haredi Jewish religious movement. ... Abraham Isaac Kook (1864 - 1935) is known in Hebrew as הרב אברהם יצחק הכהן קוק HaRav Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook, and by the acronym HaRaAYaH. Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook The first official Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of then British-controlled Palestine (a position which was later succeeded by that of Chief... Hasidic Judaism (Hebrew: Chasidut חסידות, meaning pious from the Hebrew root word chesed חסד meaning loving kindness) is a Haredi Jewish religious movement. ... Chabad Lubavitch, also known as Lubavitch Chabad, is a large branch of Hasidic Judaism. ... brendan is gay ... Abraham Isaac Kook (1864 - 1935) is known in Hebrew as הרב אברהם יצחק הכהן קוק HaRav Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook, and by the acronym HaRaAYaH. Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook The first official Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of then British-controlled Palestine (a position which was later succeeded by that of Chief... 1864 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... 1935 was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Religious Zionist Movement, or Religious Zionism is an ideology combining Zionism and Judaism, which offers Zionism based on the principles of Jewish religion and heritage. ... For other meanings, please see Zionism (disambiguation) Zionism is a political movement among Jews, although supported by some non-Jews and not supported by some Jews, which maintains that the Jewish people constitute a nation and are entitled to a national homeland. ... The Jewish Messiah, or Mashiach, or Moshiach, has traditionally referred to a future Jewish king from the Davidic line who will be anointed (in Hebrew, mashiach (messiah) means anointed [with holy olive oil]) and inducted to rule the Jewish people. ...

Primary texts

Tile page of first edition of the Zohar, Mantua, 1558 (Library of Congress).

• Sefer Raziel HaMalakh ("Book of Raziel the angel") - the first and oldest book of Kabbalah. It explains Mazal ("fortune" or "destiny" associated with the notions of Kabbalah astrology)
• Sefer Yetzirah, ("Book of Creation"). The first commentaries on this small book were written in the 10th century, and the text itself is quoted as early as the sixth century. Its historical origins are unclear. It exists today in a number of editions, up to 2500 words long. Like many Jewish mystical texts, it was written in such a way as to be meaningless to those who read it without an extensive background in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) and Midrash.
• Bahir ("illumination"), also known as The Midrash of Rabbi Nehuniah ben haKana. It is some 12,000 words long. First published in Provence in 1176, many Orthodox Jews believe that the author was Rabbi Nehuniah ben haKana, a Talmudic sage of the first century. Historians, however, believe that the book was likely written not long before it was published.
• Zohar (זהר "splendor") - the most important work of Jewish mysticism. It is an esoteric mystical commentary on the Torah, written in Aramaic. In the 13th century, a Spanish Jew by the name of Moses de Leon claimed to discover the text of the Zohar, attributing it to the 2nd century Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai. This book was subsequently published throughout the Jewish world. Though the book was widely accepted, over the subsequent centuries a small number of significant rabbis published works espousing the view that it was a forgery, and that it contained concepts contrary to Judaism.

Modern historian Gershom Scholem (a famous scholar and historian of Kabbalah in the twentieth century), echoing many of the arguments of some of these rabbis, contends that de Leon himself was the author of the Zohar. The Zohar contains and elaborates upon much of the material found in Sefer Yetzirah and Bahir, and is considered the Kabbalistic work par excellence. Download high resolution version (450x718, 180 KB)Tile page of first edition of the Zohar, Mantua, 1558. ... Download high resolution version (450x718, 180 KB)Tile page of first edition of the Zohar, Mantua, 1558. ... Raziel (Hebrew: secret[s] [of the] Lord), is an archangel within the teachings of Jewish mysticism (of the Kabbalah of Judaism) who is the Keeper of Secrets and the Angel of Mysteries. He is associated with the Sephiroth of Kabbalah. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Some factual claims in this article or section need to be verified. ... Sefer Yetzirah (Hebrew, Book of Creation, ספר יצירה) is the title of two books on esoteric Jewish mysticism. ... 11th century Targum Tanakh [תנ״ך] (also spelt Tanach or Tenach) is an acronym for the three parts of the Hebrew Bible, based upon the initial Hebrew letters of each part: Torah [תורה] (The Law; also: Teaching or Instruction), Chumash [חומש] (The five, also Pentateuch or The five books of... Midrash (pl. ... The Bahir (Hebrew for Illumination) is a pseudonymous mystical work attributed to Nehunya ben ha-Kanah, a first century rabbinic sage, and a contemporary of Johanan ben Zakkai (first century), because it begins with the words, R. Nehunya ben ha-Kanah said. It was first published in the 12th century... Provence is a former Roman province and is now a region of southeastern France, located on the Mediterranean Sea adjacent to Frances border with Italy. ... The Zohar (Hebrew זהר Zohar Splendor, radiance) is widely considered the most important work of Kabbalah, Jewish mysticism. ... Torah, (תורה) is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or especially law. It primarily refers to the first section of the Tanakh–the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, or the Five Books of Moses, but can also be used in the general sense to also include both the... Aramaic is a Semitic language with a 3,000-year history. ... Rabbi Moses ben Shem-Tov de Leon (c. ... Judaism is the religious culture of the Jewish people. ... Gershom Scholem (born December 5, 1897 in Berlin, died February 21, 1982 in Jerusalem) was a German-born, Jewish philosopher and historian. ...

Theodicy: explanation for the existence of evil

The ten Sephiroth or 'emanations' of God

Kabbalistic works offer a theodicy, a philosophical reconciliation of how the existence of a good and powerful God is compatible with the existence of evil in the world. There are mainly two different ways to describe why there is evil in the world, according to the Kabbalah. Both makes use of the kabbalistic Tree of Life: The ten Sephiroth This image is in the public domain because its copyright has expired in the United States and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years or more. ... The ten Sephiroth This image is in the public domain because its copyright has expired in the United States and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years or more. ... Theodicy is a branch of theology that studies how the existence of a good or benevolent God is reconciled with the existence of evil. ... Tree of life is an important notion within the Kabbalah of Judaism. ...

• The kabbalistic tree, which consists of ten Sephiroth, the ten "enumerations" or "emanations" of God, consists of three "pillars": The left side of the tree, the "female side", is considered to be more destructive than the right side, the "male side". Gevurah (גבורה), for example, stands for strength and discipline, while her male counterpart, Chesed (חסד), stands for love and mercy. The "center pillar" of the tree does not have any polarity, and no gender is given to them.
• In the medieval era, old ideas from Babylon gained new strength. The Qliphoth, (or Kelippot)(קליפות the primeval "husks" of impurity), were blamed for all the evil in the world. Qliphoth are the "evil twin" of the sephiroth. The tree of Qliphoth is usually called the kabbalistic Tree of Death, and sometimes the qliphoth are called the "death angels", or "angels of death". The qliphoth are found in the old Babylonian incantations, a fact used as evidence in favor of the antiquity of most of the kabbalistic material.

Sephirah, also Sefirah (Hebrew language סְפִירָה Enumeration); plural Sephiroth or Sefiroth סְפִירוֹת. ... The term God is used to designate a Supreme Being; however, there are other definitions of God. ... Gevurah Also known as Geburah, and Din is the fifth Sefirot of the Tree of life (Kabbalah). ... Strength can mean: Physical strength of organisms means (especially the muscles of most metazoa) of locomotion and movement Strength of materials in physics, engineering and materials science Strength is a rap compilation presented by Asiatic Warriors The word strengths is one of the longest English words with one syllable. ... Discipline is any training intended to produce a specific character or pattern of behaviour, especially training that produces moral or mental development in a particular direction. ... Chesed is the forth Sefirah on the tree of life. ... A heart, a symbol of love Love has many meanings in English, from something that gives a little pleasure (I loved that food) to something one would die for (patriotism, pairbonding). ... Mercy is a term used to describe the leniency or compassion shown by one person to another, or a request from one person to another to be shown such leniency or compassion. ... Qliphoth or klippot (singular: qliphah) refer to the representation of evil forces in the mystical teachings of Judaism (such as in the Kabballah. ... The Tree of death, within the system of the Kabbalah of Judaism, is an expression of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil mentioned in the Book of Genesis. ... Death is eithers the cessation of life in a living organism or the state of the organism after that event. ...

Kabbalistic understanding of God

Ein Sof and the emanation of angelic hierarchies (Universes or olamot אולם)

Kabbalah (Jewish mysticism) teaches that God is neither matter nor spirit. Rather God is the creator of both, but is himself neither. But if God is so different than his creation, how can there be any interaction between the Creator and the created? This question prompted Kabbalists to envision two aspects of God, (a) God himself, who in the end is unknowable, and (b) the revealed aspect of God who created the universe, preserves the universe, and interacts with mankind. Kabbalists believe that these two aspects are not contradictory but complement one another. See Divine simplicity; Tzimtzum. Kabbalah - Ein Sof and angelic hierarchies (Universes or olamot) This image is in the public domain because its copyright has expired in the United States and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years or more. ... Kabbalah - Ein Sof and angelic hierarchies (Universes or olamot) This image is in the public domain because its copyright has expired in the United States and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years or more. ... Judaism is the religious culture of the Jewish people. ... In theology, the doctrine of divine simplicity says that God is without parts. ... Tzimtzum ( Hebrew צמצום - contraction or constriction) refers to the understanding in the Kabbalistic theory of creation that God had to contract his infinite essence in order to allow for a conceptual space in which a finite, independent world could exist. ...

Some Kabbalistic scholars, such as Moses ben Jacob Cordovero and Schneur Zalman of Liadi (founder of Lubavitch (Chabad) Hasidism), hold that the first aspect of God is all that there really exists; all else is completely nullified to God and therefore an illusion. Depending on how this is explained, such a view can result in panentheism, or pantheism. However, most other Jews who believe in Kabbalah hold that there is an aspect of God that is revealed to the world. Moses ben Jacob Cordovero or Moshe Cordevero (1522-1570), known by the acronym the Ramak, was a Medieval rabbi and one of the greatest scholars of Judaisms Kabbalah. ... Portrait of Shneur Zalman of Liadi (1745-1812) founder of Chabad Lubavitch and author of Tanya and Shulchan Aruch HaRav. ... Chabad Lubavitch, also known as Lubavitch Chabad, is a large branch of Hasidic Judaism. ... Hasidic Judaism (Hebrew: Chasidut חסידות) is a Haredi Jewish religious movement. ... Panentheism (Greek words: pan=all, en=in and Theos=God) is the view that God is immanent within all Creation and that the universe is part of God or that God is the animating force behind the universe. ... Pantheism (Greek: pan = all and Theos = God) literally means God is All and All is God. It is the view that everything is of an all-encompassing immanent God; or that the universe, or nature, and God are equivalent. ...

Kabbalists speak of the first aspect of God as Ein Sof (אין סוף); this is translated as "the infinite", "endless", or "that which has no limits". In this view, nothing can be said about this aspect of God. This aspect of God is impersonal. Ein Sof (Hebrew: without end denoting boundlessness), also known as Divine Being, is the name for God, within the Kabbalah of Judaism, as he is unknown, or the mysterious and ultimate source of all existence. ...

Sefirot

See main article: Sephirah (Kabbalah).

Most forms of Kabbalah teach that the Sefirot are not distinct from the Ein Sof, but are somehow within it in a potential manner. Kabbalists speak of the second aspect of God as being seen by the universe as ten emanations from God; these emanations are called sefirot. See also Kabbalistic use of the Tetragrammaton. This article is about the religious attributes. ... This article is about the religious attributes. ... Ein Sof (Hebrew: without end denoting boundlessness), also known as Divine Being, is the name for God, within the Kabbalah of Judaism, as he is unknown, or the mysterious and ultimate source of all existence. ... Sephirah, also Sefirah (Hebrew language סְפִירָה Enumeration); plural Sephiroth or Sefiroth סְפִירוֹת. ... At the bottom of the hands, the two letters on each hand combine to form יהוה (YHWH), the name of God. ...

The sefirot mediate the interaction of the ultimate unknowable God with the physical and spiritual world. Some explain the sefirot as stages of the creative process whereby God, from His own infinite being, created the progression of realms which culminated in our finite and physical universe. Others suggest that the sefirot may be thought of as analogous to the fundamental laws of physics. Just as gravity, electro-magnetism, the strong nuclear force, and the weak nuclear force allow for interactions between matter and energy, the ten sefirot allow for interaction between God and the universe.

A Christian theological view

The Kabbalah's idea of emanations can be compared to the distinction made by fourteenth century Christian theologian Gregory Palamas. Palamas drew a distinction between God's essence and energies, affirming that God was unknowable in His essence, but knowable in His energies. Palamas never enumerated God's energies, but described them as ways that God could act in the universe, and particularly on people, from the light shining from the face of Moses after Moses descended Mt. Sinai, to the light surrounding Moses, Elijah and Jesus on Mt. Tabor during the transfiguration of Jesus. For Palamas, God's energies were not some other thing separate from God, but were God; however the idea of energies was kept distinct from the idea of the three persons of the Trinity. Gregory Palamas (1296 - 1359) was a monk of Mount Athos in Greece, and later became Archbishop of Thessalonica. ... The Energies of God are a central principle of theology in the Eastern Orthodox Church. ...

The human soul in Kabbalah

The Zohar posits that the human soul has three elements, the nefesh, ru'ach, and neshamah. The nefesh is found in all humans, and enters the physical body at birth. It is the source of one's physical and psychological nature. The next two parts of the soul are not implanted at birth, but can be developed over time; their development depends on the actions and beliefs of the individual. They are said to only fully exist in people awakened spiritually. A common way of explaining the three parts of the soul is as follows: The Zohar (Hebrew זהר Zohar Splendor, radiance) is widely considered the most important work of Kabbalah, Jewish mysticism. ...

• Nefesh (נפש) - the lower part, or "animal part", of the soul. It is linked to instincts and bodily cravings.
• Ruach (רוח) - the middle soul, the "spirit". It contains the moral virtues and the ability to distinguish between good and evil.
• Neshamah (נשמה) - the higher soul, or "super-soul". This separates man from all other lifeforms. It is related to the intellect, and allows man to enjoy and benefit from the afterlife. This part of the soul is provided both to Jew and non-Jew alike at birth. It allows one to have some awareness of the existence and presence of God.

The Raaya Meheimna, a later addition to the Zohar by an unknown author, posits that there are two more parts of the human soul, the chayyah and yehidah. Gershom Scholem writes that these "were considered to represent the sublimest levels of intuitive cognition, and to be within the grasp of only a few chosen individuals". Instinct is the word used to describe inherent dispositions towards particular actions. ... Morality is a complex of principles based on cultural, religious, and philosophical concepts and beliefs, by which an individual determines whether his or her actions are right or wrong. ... Virtue (Greek αρετη; Latin virtus) is the habitual, well-established, readiness or disposition of mans powers directing them to some goodness of act. ... Good. ... Evil is a term describing that which is regarded as morally bad, intrinsically corrupt, wantonly destructive, inhumane, or wicked. ... Intelligence is a general mental capability that involves the ability to reason, plan, solve problems, think abstractly, comprehend ideas and language, and learn. ... Jewish eschatology is concerned with Mashiach (the Jewish Messiah) the continuation of the Davidic line, and Olam Haba (Hebrew for the world to come; i. ... The Zohar (Hebrew זהר Zohar Splendor, radiance) is widely considered the most important work of Kabbalah, Jewish mysticism. ... Gershom Scholem (born December 5, 1897 in Berlin, died February 21, 1982 in Jerusalem) was a German-born, Jewish philosopher and historian. ...

• Chayyah (חיה) - The part of the soul that allows one to have an awareness of the divine life force itself.
• Yehidah (יחידה) - the highest plane of the soul, in which one can achieve as full a union with God as is possible.

Both rabbinic and kabbalistic works posit that there are also a few additional, non-permanent states to the soul that people can develop on certain occasions. These extra souls, or extra states of the soul, play no part in any afterlife scheme, but are mentioned for completeness:

• Ruach HaKodesh (רוח הקודש) - ("spirit of holiness") a state of the soul that makes prophecy possible. Since the age of classical prophecy passed, no one receives the soul of prophesy any longer.
• Neshamah Yeseira - The "supplemental soul" that a Jew experience on Shabbat. It makes possible an enhanced spiritual enjoyment of the day. This exists only when one is observing Shabbat; it can be lost and gained depending on one's observance.
• Neshamah Kedosha - Provided to Jews at the age of maturity (13 for boys, 12 for girls), and is related to the study and fulfillment of the Torah commandments. It exists only when one studies and follows Torah; it can be lost and gained depending on one's study and observance.

For the observance of a seventh day of rest in religions other than Judaism see Sabbath. ... Torah, (תורה) is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or especially law. It primarily refers to the first section of the Tanakh–the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, or the Five Books of Moses, but can also be used in the general sense to also include both the... Torah, (תורה) is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or especially law. It primarily refers to the first section of the Tanakh–the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, or the Five Books of Moses, but can also be used in the general sense to also include both the...

Foretelling the future

A small number of Kabbalists have attempted to foretell events by the Kabbalah. The term has come to be used to refer to secret science in general; mystic art; or mystery.

Following that, the English word "cabal" came to refer to any small, secretive and possibly conspiratorial group. The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ...

Practical applications

The Midrash and Talmud are replete with the use of Divine names and incantations that are claimed to effect supernatural or metaphysical results. Most post-Talmudic rabbinical literature disapproves of the use of any or most of these formulae, termed Kabbalah Ma'asith ("practical Kabbalah"). There are various arguments; one stated by the Medieval Rabbi Jacob Mölin (Maharil) is that the person using it may lack the required grounding, and the spell would be ineffective, leading to a de facto diminuition of belief in the power of these statements. Midrash (pl. ... The first page of the Talmud, in the standard Vilna edition. ... Rabbinic literature, in the broadest sense, can mean the entire spectrum of Judaisms rabbinic writing/s throughout history. ...

Kabbalistic knowledge is required to produce a Golem. Some adherents of Kabbalah developed the idea of invoking a curse against a sinner termed Pulsa diNura ("lashes of fire"). A golem (sometimes pronounced goilem), in medieval folklore and from Jewish mythology is an animated being crafted from inanimate material. ... Pulsa diNura - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ...

Textual antiquity of esoteric mysticism

Early forms of esoteric mysticism existed over 2,000 years ago. Ben Sira warns against it, saying: "You shall have no business with secret things" (Sirach iii. 22; compare Talmud Hagigah 13a; Midrash Genesis Rabbah viii.). The Wisdom of Ben Sira, (or The Wisdom of Yeshua Ben Sira or merely Sirach), called Ecclesiasticus by Christians, is a book written circa 180–175 BCE. The author, Yeshua ben Sira, was a Jew who had been living in Jerusalem, who may in fact have established his school and...

Apocalyptic literature belonging to the second and first pre-Christian centuries contained some elements of later Kabbalah, and as, according to Josephus, such writings were in the possession of the Essenes, and were jealously guarded by them against disclosure, for which they claimed a hoary antiquity (see Philo, "De Vita Contemplativa," iii., and Hippolytus, "Refutation of all Heresies," ix. 27). This entry only concerns the historical genre of apocalyptic literature. ... Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life, teachings, death by crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth as portrayed in the New Testament writings of his early followers. ... Josephus, also known as Flavius Josephus (c. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Philo (20 BCE - 40 CE) was an Hellenized Jewish philosopher born in Alexandria, Egypt. ... In Greek mythology, Hippolytus was a son of Theseus and either Antiope or Hippolyte. ...

That many such books containing secret lore were kept hidden away by the "enlightened" is stated in IV Esdras xiv. 45-46, where Pseudo-Ezra is told to publish the twenty-four books of the canon openly that the worthy and the unworthy may alike read, but to keep the seventy other books hidden in order to "deliver them only to such as be wise" (compare Dan. xii. 10); for in them are the spring of understanding, the fountain of wisdom, and the stream of knowledge.

Instructive for the study of the development of Kabbalah is the Book of Jubilees written under King John Hyrcanus. It refers to the writings of Jared, Cainan, and Noah, and presents Abraham as the renewer, and Levi as the permanent guardian, of these ancient writings. It offers a cosmogony based upon the twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet, and connected with Jewish chronology and Messianology, while at the same time insisting upon the heptad as the holy number rather than upon the decadic system adopted by the later haggadists and the Sefer Yetzirah. The Pythagorean idea of the creative powers of numbers and letters, upon which the Sefer Yetzirah is founded, and which was known in the time of the Mishnah (before 200 CE). The Book of Jubilees expands and reworks material found in Genesis to Exodus 15. ... Note: This article contains special characters. ... The Mishnah (Hebrew משנה, Repetition) is a major source of rabbinic Judaisms religious texts. ...

Gnosticism and Kabbalah

Gnostic literature testifies to the antiquity of the Kabbalah. Gnosticism - systems of secret spiritual knowledge, or some sources say - — that is, the cabalistic Chochmah (חכמה "wisdom") - seems to have been the first attempt on the part of Jewish sages to give the empirical mystic lore, with the help of Platonic and Pythagorean or Stoic ideas, a speculative turn. This led to the danger of heresy from which the Jewish rabbinic figures Rabbi Akiva and Ben Zoma strove to extricate themselves. Gnosticism is a blanket term for various mostly mystical religions and sects most prominent in the first few centuries A.D. // General characteristics The word gnosticism comes from the Greek word for knowledge, gnosis (γνῶσις), referring to the idea that there is special esoteric knowledge, a key to transcendent understanding, that... Platonic idealism is the theory that the substantive reality around us is only a reflection of a higher truth. ... Pythagoreanism is a term used for the religious and metaphysical beliefs held by Pythagoras and his followers the Pythagoreans, much influenced by mathematics and probably a main inspiration source to Plato and platonism. ... Stoicism is a school of philosophy commonly associated with such Greek philosophers as Zeno of Citium, Cleanthes, or Chrysippus and with such later Romans as Cicero, Seneca, Marcus Aurelius, and Epictetus. ... Heresy, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is a theological or religious opinion or doctrine maintained in opposition, or held to be contrary, to the ‘catholic’ or orthodox doctrine of the Christian Church, or, by extension, to that of any church, creed, or religious system, considered as orthodox. ... Rabbi Akiva (or Rebbi Akiva) was a famous Jewish rabbi of the 2nd century. ...

Original teachings of gnosticism have much in common with Kabbalah:

1. Core terminology of classical gnostics was Jewish names of God.
2. Mainstream Gnostics accepted a "Jewish Messiah" as a key figure of gnosticism
3. A Key text of Gnosticism - Apocryphon of John - mentions 365 powers who created the World. The same is a number of dark powers among 613 powers of the soul in Judaism and Kabbalah.

Essene, Manichaean and Nasorean doctrines (of gnostic character) claim that before Kabbalah there existed a so-called Aramaic Quabalta. Gnosticism is a blanket term for various mostly mystical religions and sects most prominent in the first few centuries A.D. // General characteristics The word gnosticism comes from the Greek word for knowledge, gnosis (γνῶσις), referring to the idea that there is special esoteric knowledge, a key to transcendent understanding, that... Gnosticism is a blanket term for various mostly mystical religions and sects most prominent in the first few centuries A.D. // General characteristics The word gnosticism comes from the Greek word for knowledge, gnosis (γνῶσις), referring to the idea that there is special esoteric knowledge, a key to transcendent understanding, that... The Secret Book of John (Apocryphon of John) is a 2nd century gnostic text of secret teachings, given a Christian context: the teaching of the savior, and the revelation of the mysteries and the things hidden in silence, even these things which he taught John, his disciple, are its opening... The Essenes (Issiim) were a Jewish religious sect of Zadokites that flourished from the 2nd century BC to the 1st century AD. The name Essene, itself, is either a version of the Greek word for Holy, or various Aramaic dialect words for pious, and is probably not what the... Manichaeism was one of the major ancient religions. ...

Criticisms

Dualism

One of the most serious and sustained criticisms of Kabbalah is that it may lead away from monotheism, and instead promote dualism, the belief that there is a supernatural counterpart to God. The dualistic system of good and of evil powers, which goes back to Zoroastrianism, can be traced through Gnosticism; having influenced the cosmology of the ancient Kabbalah before it reached the medieval one. Monotheism (in Greek monon = single and Theos = God) is the belief in a single, universal, all-encompassing deity. ... Faravahar, The depiction of the human soul before birth and after death. ...

• Some early mystics believed in a heavenly being called Metatron, a lesser Adonai-"God", that worked in concert with the greater Adonai. While this essentially Gnostic belief was never a mainstream trend within Jewish thought, some Kabbalists accepted it.

• Later Kabbalistic works, including the Zohar, appear to more strongly affirm dualism, as they ascribe all evil to a supernatural force known as the Sitra Ahra ("the other side".) "The dualistic tendency is, perhaps, most marked in the Kabbalistic treatment of the problem of evil. The profound sense of the reality of evil brought many Kabbalists to posit a realm of the demonic, the Sitra Ahra, a kind of negative mirror image of the "side of holiness" with which it was locked in combat." [Encyclopaedia Judaica, Volume 6, "Dualism", p.244]. However the Zohar indicates that the Sitra Ahra has no power over God, and only exists as a creation of God to give man free choice.

• According to Kabbalists, no person can understand the true, unknown nature of God. Rather, there is God that makes Himself known to man, and a hidden Ein Sof that is totally removed from man's experience. One can have a reading of this theology which is totally monotheistic; however one can also have a reading of this theology which is essentially dualistic. Professor Gershom Scholem writes "It is clear that with this postulate of an impersonal basic reality in God, which becomes a person - or appears as a person - only in the process of Creation and Revelation, Kabbalism abandons the personalistic basis of the Biblical conception of God....It will not surprise us to find that speculation has run the whole gamut - from attempts to re-transform the impersonal En-Sof into the personal God of the Bible to the downright heretical doctrine of a genuine dualism between the hidden Ein Sof and the personal Demiurge of Scripture." (Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism Shocken Books p.11-12)

An early Christian portrayal of Metatron Metatron (alternate spelling: Metraton, sometimes referred to as the latin Metator) is the name of an angel in Judaism and some branches of Christianity. ... In the Jewish Kabbalah tradition, Ayn Sof (Ain Sof, Hebrew boundlessness or without end), also known referred to as Divine Being, is the name for God as he is unknown, or the mysterious and ultimate source of all existence. ... Gershom Scholem (born December 5, 1897 in Berlin, died February 21, 1982 in Jerusalem) was a German-born, Jewish philosopher and historian. ...

Debate about Kabbalah in Judaism

Although it was criticized by a small number of rabbis, Kabbalah has nevertheless been a fundamental part of most Jewish theology for many centuries, and is particularly influential in Hasidic and Sephardic thought. As well, the Vilna Gaon, the greatest leader of the Mitnagdim - opponents of the Hasidim - was also a major Kabbalist. Gershom Scholem has written that between 1500 and 1800 "Kabbalah was widely considered to be the true Jewish theology". Though many Modern Orthodox Jews do not ascribe to Kabbalah, most other Orthodox Jews still consider it a fundamental part of Jewish thought and belief. Hasidic Judaism (Hebrew: Chasidut חסידות, meaning pious from the Hebrew root word chesed חסד meaning loving kindness) is a Haredi Jewish religious movement. ... In the strictest sense, a Sephardi (ספרדי, Standard Hebrew Səfardi, Tiberian Hebrew Səp̄ardî; plural Sephardim: ספרדים, Standard Hebrew Səfardim, Tiberian Hebrew Səp̄ardîm) is a Jew original to the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal: ספרד, Standard Hebrew Səfárad, Tiberian Hebrew Səp̄áraḏ / Səp̄āraḏ), or whose ancestors were among the Jews expelled from... Elijah Ben Solomon, the Vilna Gaon Elijah (Eliyahu) Ben Solomon Kremer, born April 23, 1720, Vilna (now Vilnius), Lithuania; where he died on October 9, 1797, was a prominent Jewish rabbi, Talmud scholar, and Kabbalist. ... Mitnagdim (also: misnagdim) is a Hebrew word (מתנגדים) meaning opponents; this term was used to refer to European religious Jews who opposed Hasidic Judaism. ... Gershom Scholem (born December 5, 1897 in Berlin, died February 21, 1982 in Jerusalem) was a German-born, Jewish philosopher and historian. ... Modern Orthodox Judaism (or Modern Orthodox, also known as Modern Orthodoxy and sometimes abbreviated as MO) is a movement within Judaism that attempts to synthesize Orthodox Judaism with the secular modern world in its interactions with it. ...

Early critiques

The idea that there are ten divine sefirot could evolve over time into the idea that "God is One being, yet in that One being there are Ten" which opens up a debate about what the "correct beliefs" in God should be, according to Judaism.

Rabbi Leon Modena, a 17th century Venetian critic of Kabbalah, wrote that if we were to accept the Kabbalah, then the Christian trinity would indeed be compatible with Judaism, as the Trinity closely resembles the Kabbalistic doctrine of sefirot. This critique was in response to the fact that some Jews went so far as to address individual sefirot individually in some of their prayers. Location within Italy Venice (Italian Venezia), the city of canals, is the capital of the region of Veneto and of the province of Venice, 45°26′ N 12°19′ E, population 271,663 (census estimate 2004-01-01). ...

Belief in the sefirot would be similar to the Christian belief in the Trinity, which states that while God is One, in that One there are three persons. This interpretation of Kabbalah in fact did occur among some European Jews in the 17th century.

Kabbalah had many other opponents, notably Rabbi Yitzchak ben Sheshet Perfet (The Rivash); he stated that Kabbalah was "worse than Christianity", as it made God into 10, not just into three. The critique, however, is considered untenable. Most followers of Kabbalah never believed this interpretation of Kabbalah. The Christian Trinity concept posits that there are three persons existing within the Godhead, one of whom literally became a human being. In contrast, the mainstream understanding of the Kabbalistic sefirot holds that they have no mind or intelligence; further, they are not addressed in prayer, and they can not become a human being. They are conduits for interaction - not persons or beings.

Within Conservative and Reform Judaism

Kabbalah tended to be rejected by most Jews in the Conservative and Reform movements, though its influences were not completely eliminated. While it was generally not studied as a discipline, the Kabbalistic Kabbalat Shabbat service remained part of the Conservative liturgy, as did the Yedid Nefesh prayer. Nevertheless, in the 1960s, Rabbi Saul Lieberman of the Jewish Theological Seminary, is reputed to have introduced a lecture by Scholem on Kabbalah with a statement that Kabbalah itself was "nonsense", but the academic study of Kabbalah was "scholarship". This view became popular among many Jews, who viewed the subject as worthy of study, but who did not accept Kabbalah as teaching literal truths. Conservative Judaism (or Masorti Judaism) is a denomination of Judaism characterized by: A positive attitude toward modern culture The belief that traditional rabbinic modes of study, and modern scholarship and critical text study, are both valid ways to learn about and from Jewish religious texts. ... Reform Judaism (also known as: Progressive Judaism, while in the U.K. Reform Judaism and Liberal Judaism, together, make up Progressive Judaism) is an international branch of Judaism and the largest in North America. ... Saul Lieberman (1898-1983), was a rabbi and a scholar of Talmud. ... The Jewish Theological Seminary of America The Jewish Theological Seminary of America, known in the Jewish community simply as JTS, is the academic and spiritual center of Conservative Judaism, and is the movements main rabbinical seminary. ...

According to Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson (Dean of the Conservative Ziegler School of Rabbinical Studies in the University of Judaism), "many western Jews insisted that their future and their freedom required shedding what they perceived as parochial orientalism. They fashioned a Judaism that was decorous and strictly rational (according to 19th-century European standards), denigrating Kabbalah as backward, superstitious, and marginal".

However, in the late 20th and early 21st centuries there has been a revival in interest in Kabbalah in Conservative Judaism. The Kabbalistic 12th century prayer Ani'im Zemirot was restored to the new Conservative Sim Shalom siddur, as was the B'rikh Shmeh passage from the Zohar, and the mystical Ushpizin service welcoming to the Sukkah the spirits of Jewish forbearers. All Conservative Rabbinical seminaries now teach several courses in Kabbalah, and the Ziegler School of Rabbinical Studies in Los Angeles has a fulltime instructor in Kabbalah and Hasidut. According to Artson "Ours is an age hungry for meaning, for a sense of belonging, for holiness. In that search, we have returned to the very Kabbalah our predecessors scorned. The stone that the builders rejected has become the head cornerstone (Psalm 118:22)... Kabbalah was the last universal theology adopted by the entire Jewish people, hence faithfulness to our commitment to positive-historical Judaism mandates a reverent receptivity to Kabbalah".¹ The siddur is the prayerbook used by Jews the world over, containing a set order of daily prayers. ... The Zohar (Hebrew זהר Zohar Splendor, radiance) is widely considered the most important work of Kabbalah, Jewish mysticism. ... Sukkot (סוכות or סֻכּוֹת sukkōt, booths) or Succoth is an 8-day Biblical pilgrimage festival, also known as the Feast of Booths, the Feast of Tabernacles, or Tabernacles. ... This article is about the largest city in California. ...

Kabbalah Centre

See main article Kabbalah Centre.

The growth of the modern international Kabbalah Centre, with its fascination for non-Jewish devotees such as Madonna the famous female singer and others, continues to be a source of serious discussion within many Jewish communities today. There are those, Jews and non-Jews alike, who are drawn to its teachings absolutely convinced that they are indeed studying and practicing the Kabbalah, but all the main Jewish denominations find the Kabbalah Centre's actvities to be controversial and do not encourage their members to participate in any way. The Kabbalah Centre is an international organisation dedicated to teaching Kabbalah (esoteric Jewish mysticism). ... The Kabbalah Centre is an international organisation dedicated to teaching Kabbalah (esoteric Jewish mysticism). ... Madonna Ciccone Madonna Louise Ciccone (born August 16, 1958 in Bay City, Michigan), simply known by the stage name Madonna, also occasionally referred to as Madonna Ciccone Ritchie, is a highly successful American pop singer. ... The Kabbalah Centre is an international organisation dedicated to teaching Kabbalah (esoteric Jewish mysticism). ... Jewish denominations: Over time, the Jewish community has become divided into a number of religious denominations, also called branches or movements. Each denomination has a different understanding of what principles of belief a Jew should hold, and how one should live as a Jew. ...

Kabbalah in non-Jewish society

Kabbalah eventually gained an audience outside of the Jewish community. Christian versions of Kabbalah began to develop; by the early 18th century some kabbalah came to be used by some hermetic philosophers, neo-pagans and other new religious groups. Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life, teachings, death by crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth as portrayed in the New Testament writings of his early followers. ...

Hermetic Kabbalah

The Western Esoteric (or Hermetic) Tradition, a precursor to both the neo-Pagan and New Age movements, is intertwined with aspects of Kabbalah. Within the Hermetic tradition, much of Kabbalah has been changed from its Jewish roots through syncretism, but core Kabbalistic beliefs are still recognizably present. Neopaganism (sometimes Neo-Paganism, meaning New Paganism) describes a heterogeneous group of modern religions, many of which attempt to revive ancient, mainly European pre-Christian religions. ... New Age describes a broad movement characterized by alternative approaches to traditional Western culture. ... Syncretism is the attempt to reconcile disparate, even opposing, beliefs and to meld practices of various schools of thought. ...

"Hermetic" Kabbalah, as it is sometimes called, probably reached its peak in the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a 19th-century organization that was arguably the pinnacle of ceremonial magic (or, depending upon one's position, its ultimate descent into decadence). Within the Golden Dawn, Kabbalistic principles such as the ten Sephiroth were fused with Greek and Egyptian deities, the Enochian system of angelic magic of John Dee, and certain Eastern (particularly Hindu and Buddhist) concepts within the structure of a Masonic- or Rosicrucian-style esoteric order. Many of the Golden Dawn's rituals were exposed by the legendary occultist Aleister Crowley and were eventually compiled into book form by Israel Regardie, an author of some note. The credibility of Crowley is inconsistent at best though, as many of the rituals "exposed" were actually manipulated versions. Hermeticism is either of two things: The study and practice of occult philosophy and magic, of a type associated with writings attributed to the god Hermes Trismegistus, Thrice-Greatest Hermes, a syncretistic deity who combines aspects of the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth. ... Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers, in Egyptian costume, performs a ritual of Isis (not a Rite of the Golden Dawn). ... Ceremonial magic is a branch of magick. ... Sephirah, also Sefirah (Hebrew language סְפִירָה Enumeration); plural Sephiroth or Sefiroth סְפִירוֹת. ... Enochian is an occult language introduced by John Dee and Edward Kelley in the 16th Century. ... John Dee (July 13, 1527 – 1608 or 1609) was a noted British mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and consultant to Queen Elizabeth I. He also devoted much of his life to alchemy, divination, and Hermetic philosophy. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Statues of Buddha such as this, the Tian Tan Buddha statue in Hong Kong, remind followers to practice right living. ... the Square and Compasses Freemasonry is a worldwide fraternal organization. ... The Temple of the Rosy Cross, Teophilus Schweighardt Constantiens, 1618 The Rosicrucians are a legendary and secretive order dating from the 15th or 17th century, generally associated with the symbol of the Rose Cross, which is also used in certain rituals of the Freemasons. ... A ritual is a formalised, predetermined set of symbolic actions generally performed in a particular environment at a regular, recurring interval. ... Aleister Crowley Aleister Crowley (12 October 1875 – 1 December 1947) was a British occultist, mystic, writer, poet, astrologer, sexual revolutionary, drug addict, painter, mountain climber, and social critic. ... Israel Regardie (November 17, 1907 - March 10, 1985) was an occultist. ...

Crowley made his mark on the use of Kabbalah with several of his writings; of these, perhaps the most illustrative is Liber 777. This book is quite simply a set of tables relating various parts of ceremonial magic and Eastern and Western religion to thirty-two numbers representing the ten spheres and twenty-two paths of the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. The attitude of syncretism displayed by Hermetic Kabbalists is plainly evident here, as one may simply check the table to see that Chesed (חסד "Mercy") corresponds to Jupiter, Isis, the color blue (on the Queen Scale), Poseidon, Brahma, and amethysts--none of which, certainly, the original Jewish Kabbalists had in mind! Aleister Crowley Aleister Crowley (12 October 1875 – 1 December 1947) was a British occultist, mystic, writer, poet, astrologer, sexual revolutionary, drug addict, painter, mountain climber, and social critic. ... The full name of this Class B document by Aleister Crowley is Liber 777 Vel Prolegoma Symbolica Ad Systemam Sceptico-Mysticae Viae Explicande, Fundamentum Hieroglyphicum Sanctissimorum Scientiae Summae. ... Tree of life is an important notion within the Kabbalah of Judaism. ... Syncretism is the attempt to reconcile disparate, even opposing, beliefs and to meld practices of various schools of thought. ... Chesed is the forth Sefirah on the tree of life. ... Jupiter In Roman mythology, Jupiter (sometimes shortened to Jove) held the same role as Zeus in the Greek pantheon. ... // Isis in Egypt Early Isis Isis (Greek corruption; the Egyptian is Aset) was originally a goddess from Nubia, and was adopted into Egyptian belief very early on. ... Andrea Doria as Neptune by Agnolo Bronzino: a potent allegory of Genoas hegemony in the Tyrrhenian Sea In Greek Mythology, Poseidon (Ποσειδῶν) was the god of the sea, known to the Romans as Neptune, and to the Etruscans as Nethuns. ... This article concerns the Hindu creator god, Brahma. ... Amethyst is a violet or purple variety of quartz often used as an ornament. ... Judaism is the religious culture of the Jewish people. ...

However popular within certain sects, Crowley is not without many critics. Dion Fortune, a fellow initiate of the Golden Dawn, disagreed with Crowley, and her work The Mystical Qabalah implicitly states this. Elphas Levi's works such as Transcendental Magic, heavily steeped in esoteric Kabbalah (rendering it very difficult to understand correctly; it is completely misunderstood by critics), agrees. Samael Aun Weor has many significant works that discuss Kabbalah within many religions usually considered unrelated to Kabbalah, such as the Egyptian, Pagan, and Central American religions, which is summarized in his work The Initiatic Path in the Arcana of Tarot and Kabbalah. Dion Fortune (1891 - 1946), born Violet Mary Firth, was a British magician and author. ... Samael Aun Weor Samael Aun Weor (March 16, 1917 - December 24, 1977) was a prolific writer, lecturer and teacher of occultism. ...

Modern forms

A recent modern revival has been initiated by the controversial Kabbalah Center founded by Philip Berg in Los Angeles in 1984, and run by him and his sons Yehuda and Michael. With a number of branches worldwide, the group has attracted many non-Jews, including entertainment celebrities such as Madonna, Demi Moore, Mick Jagger and Britney Spears. Reactions from organized Jewish groups have been almost uniformly negative. This Judaism-related article is in need of attention. ... This article is about the largest city in California. ... 1984 is a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Madonna Ciccone Madonna Louise Ciccone (born August 16, 1958 in Bay City, Michigan), simply known by the stage name Madonna, also occasionally referred to as Madonna Ciccone Ritchie, is a highly successful American pop singer. ... Demi Moore (born Demetria Guynes on November 11, 1962 in Roswell, New Mexico) is an American actress with a trademark husky voice. ... Sir Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Mick Jagger (born July 26, 1943, in Dartford, Kent) is a British rock musician, actor, writer, composer, record and film producer and businessman. ... Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American pop music singer. ...

Fictional representations

Neon Genesis Evangelion utilised the Kabbalah imagery heavily and implied a secret portion of the Kabbalah contained within the Dead Sea scrolls and maintained through time by various individuals and operating in a group currently known as SEELE (the leader of whom is believed to be either Cain or the Wandering Jew). Imagery such as the Systema Sephiroticum is utilised by various characters in the decorum of their offices and operation areas. During an apocalyptic sequence, referred to as the "Third Impact", in the film End of Evangelion, heavy use of the Tree of Life is undertaken, both visually and with characters "walking through" the explanation of what is happening. Neon Genesis Evangelion (Japanese: 新世紀エヴァンゲリオン Shin Seiki Evangerion) is an anime television series, begun in 1995, directed and written by Hideaki Anno, and produced by Gainax. ... Fragments of the scrolls on display at the Archeological Museum, Amman The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of about 850 documents, including texts from the Hebrew Bible, which were discovered between 1947 and 1956 in eleven caves in and around the Wadi Qumran, near the ruins of the ancient... This is a glossary of terms from the anime Neon Genesis Evangelion. ... In stories common to the Abrahamic religions, Cain or Káyin (קַיִן / קָיִן Possession, Standard Hebrew Qáyin, Tiberian Hebrew Qáyin / Qāyin; Arabic قابيل QābÄ«l) is the eldest son of Adam and Eve, and the first man born in creation according to the Genesis. ... See also Wandering Jew (plant) for a plant of the same name. ... The End of Evangelion (Japanese: 新世紀エヴァンゲリオン 劇場版, Shin seiki Evangelion Gekijō-ban) is an animated movie by Hideaki Anno. ...

The comic series Promethea by Alan Moore draws heavily on Kabbalah, and is in large part a framework for an overview and explanation of many Kabbalistic concepts. The main character journeys up through the entire tree of life over the course of many issues exploring the symbolism and meaning of each level and of the journey itself. Promethea is the fictional title character in the series created by Alan Moore and J.H. Williams III, and published by Wildstorm and Americas Best Comics imprint. ... Alan Moore Alan Moore (born November 18, 1953, in Northampton, England) is a British writer most famous for his work in comics. ...

See also

Related articles

• Mysticism
• Tzimtzum
• Donmeh
• Golem
• Abracadabra
• Dragon Rouge

Mysticism (ancient Greek mysticon = secret) is the pursuit or discovery of what is believed to be the direct experience of union with divinity, God, or Ultimate Reality; or the belief that such experience is a genuine and important source of knowledge. ... Tzimtzum ( Hebrew צמצום - contraction or constriction) refers to the understanding in the Kabbalistic theory of creation that God had to contract his infinite essence in order to allow for a conceptual space in which a finite, independent world could exist. ... Donmeh (dönme) is a Turkish word for a religious convert. ... A golem (sometimes pronounced goilem), in medieval folklore and from Jewish mythology is an animated being crafted from inanimate material. ... For other uses, see Abracadabra (disambiguation). ... Dragon Rouge is a society whose members believe in the occult and aim to explore dark magic. ...

Kabbalah personalities

• Isaac Luria
• Chaim Vital
• Yosef Karo
• Moses ben Jacob Cordovero
• List of Messiah claimants
• Sabbetai Zvi
• Yehuda Ashlag
• Elijah ben Solomon
• Israel ben Eliezer

Isaac Luria (1534–August 5, 1572) was a Jewish scholar and mystic who was secretly believed by some to be the messiah. ... Rabbi Chaim Vital (1543-1620) was the closest disciple of the great 16th-century kabbalist, the Ari - Rabbi Itzchak Luria and his foremost interpreter. ... Rabbi Yosef (Joseph) Ben Ephraim Karo is one of the most important leaders in the history of halakha (Jewish law). ... Rabbi Moshe Cordevero or RAMAK 5282-5330 (1522-1570) He who was the head of the Tzefat school of Kabbalah before the Ari One of the greatest of all Kabbalists. ... This is a list of people who have been said to be a messiah either by themselves, or by their followers. ... Sabbatai Zevi, also transliterated Shabbethai, Shabbetai, Sabbetai, or Shabtai; Zvi or Tzvi (July 23, 1626–possibly September 30, 1676) was a famous claimed Messiah and Kabbalist. ... Yehuda Ashlag (1885-1955) was an Orthodox rabbi, known for his published work as the Baal HaSulam. ... Elijah ben Solomon, the Vilna Gaon Elijah (Eliyahu) ben Solomon Kremer (born April 23, 1720, Vilna, Lithuania; died there October 9, 1797). ... This article incorporates text from the public domain 1901-1906 Jewish Encyclopedia Israel ben Eliezer Rabbi Israel (Yisroel) ben Eliezer (about 1698 Okopy Świętej Trójcy - May 22, 1760 Międzyborz) was a Jewish Orthodox mystical rabbi who is better known to most religious Jews as the Baal Shem Tov, or the...

Footnotes

Note 1: Artson, Bradley Shavit, From the Periphery to the Centre: Kabbalah and the Conservative Movement, United Synagogue Review, Spring 2005, Vol. 57 No. 2

References

• Aivanhov, Omraam Mikhael THE FRUITS OF THE TREE OF LIFE (The kabbalistic Tradition), ISBN 2-85566-467-5
• Kaplan, Aryeh Inner Space: Introduction to Kabbalah, Meditation and Prophecy. Moznaim Publishing Corp 1990.
• Scholem, Gershom, Kabbalah, Jewish Publication Society.
• Wineberg, Yosef. Lessons in Tanya: The Tanya of R. Shneur Zalman of Liadi (5 volume set). Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch, 1998. ISBN 082660546X
• The Wisdom of The Zohar: An Anthology of Texts, 3 volume set, Ed. Isaiah Tishby, translated from the Hebrew by David Goldstein, The Littman Library.

Omraam Mikhaël Aïvanhov (January 31, 1900, Serbtzi, Bulgaria - December 25, 1986, Fréjus, France) was a French philosopher, pedagogue, alchemist, mystic, magus, astrologer with Macedonian roots. ... Aryeh Kaplan (1934 - 1983) was a noted rabbi and author, who had a background in both physics and Judaism. ... Gershom Scholem (born December 5, 1897 in Berlin, died February 21, 1982 in Jerusalem) was a German-born, Jewish philosopher and historian. ...

External links

Jewish/Hebrew Kabbalah

• What Kabbalah Is & What Kabbalah Is Not
• True Kabbalah (Chabad Lubavitch)
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Chabad Lubavitch, or Lubavich, is a large branch of Hasidic Judaism founded by Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi. ...

General

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