Essential Papers on Kabbalah

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Format: Paperback
Pub. Date: 2000-09-01
Publisher(s): New York University Press
List Price: $35.00

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Summary

As recently as 1915, when the legendary scholar of Jewish mysticism Gershom Scholem sought to find someone--anyone--to teach him Kabbalah, the study of Jewish mysticism and Kabbalah was largely neglected and treated with disdain. Today, this field has ripened to the point that it occupies a central place in the agenda of contemporary Judaic studies.While there are many definitions of Kabbalah, this volume focuses on the discrete body of literature which developed between the twelfth and seventeenth centuries. The basis for most of this kabbalistic literature is the concept of the ten sefirot, the complex schema depicting the divine persona, and speculation about the inner life of God. It maintains the conviction that all human action reverberates in the world of the sefirot, and thus influences the life of divinity. Proper action helps to restore harmony and unity to the world of God, while improper action reinforces the breach within God brought about originally through human transgression.Collected here in one volume are some of the most central essays published on the subject. The selections provide the reader with a sense of the historical range of Kabbalah, as well as examples of various kinds of approaches, including those of intellectual and social history, history and phenomenology of religions, motif studies, ritual studies, and women's studies. Sections discuss mystical motifs and theological ideas, mystical leadership and personalities, and devotional practices and mystical experiences.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
Introductionp. 1
Mystical Motifs and Theological Ideasp. 25
The Zohar: Jewish Mysticism in Medieval Spainp. 27
Ayin: The Concept of Nothingness in Jewish Mysticismp. 67
The Doctrine of Man in the Zoharp. 109
Samael, Lilith, and the Concept of Evil in Early Kabbalahp. 154
The Meaning of the Torah in Jewish Mysticismp. 179
Myth vs. Symbol in the Zohar and in Lurianic Kabbalahp. 212
The Doctrine of Transmigration in Galya Razap. 243
Eternality of Punishment: A Theological Controversy within the Amsterdam Rabbinate in the Thirties of the Seventeenth Centuryp. 270
Mystical Leadership and Personalitiesp. 289
The Zaddiq as Axis Mundi in Later Judaismp. 291
The Art of Metoposcopy: A Study in Isaac Luria's Charismatic Knowledgep. 315
Devotional Practices and Mystical Experiencep. 339
Prayer and Devotion in the Zoharp. 341
Kabbalistic Rituals of Sabbath Preparationp. 400
Mystical Techniquesp. 438
Circumcision, Vision of God, and Textual Interpretation: From Midrashic Trope to Mystical Symbolp. 495
Woman As High Priest: A Kabbalistic Prayer in Yiddish for Lighting Sabbath Candlesp. 525
Indexp. 547
About the Editorp. 551
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.

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