On the Kabbalah and its Symbolism

Rating:
Summary: Introdaction to Kabbalah
Review: As it's titel, this book is a must book for every freshman student in Kabbalah & Jewish Mysticism (although not easy to read).But not only for freshmen. As a Ph.D student,I need to use this book & the other musterpiece works of Prof. Scholem. Although many criticism was written about Scholem's views (mainly by Prof. Idel & Prof. Libbes), his books & his other works are & will remaine the masterworks of the Kabbalah study.

Rating:
Summary: kabbalah
Review: I learned a great deal from Herr Doktor Gershom Scholem (1897-1982) through his text, "On the Kabbalah and Its Symbolism". Dr Bernard McGinn, Divinity School, University of Chicago, wrote in the introduction, "I believe that all students of mysticism should read Scholem, not only for his profound insights into the Jewish mystical tradition, but also to deepen their understanding of the dynamics of other mysticisms -- Christian, Islamic, and even those further afield." Professor Scholem presents an historical perspective with the full knowledge that there are other approaches. "From an historical point of view", he writes, "the sum of religious phenomena known as mysticism consists in the attempts of mystics to communicate their experiences to others." Within this context, this text explores broad sweeping topics in each chapter -- topics that deservedly have receieved attention by intelligent scholars for centuries. In the first chapter, "Religious Authority and Mysticism" Herr Doktor Scholem presents a thesis fundamental to his research, "there is no mysticism as such, but only the mysticism of particular religious systems, Christian, Islamic and Jewish mysticism, and so on". The mystic working within a religious system is, according to Scholem, at the same time both conservative and revolutionary. "Conservative" because the mystic tries to preserve the sources of traditional authority, and "revolutionary" because the mystic also may subsititue his own opinion for that prescribed by authority. In the second chapter, titled, "The Meaning of the TORAH in Jewish Mysticism", Scholem explains the dynamic relationship between the TORAH and the mystic. Scholem presents three fundamental principles on which the Kabbaslistic conceptions of the nature of the TORAH are based: (1) YWVH; (2) TORAH as oganism; (3) Infinite meaning of the divine word. As an example of the third, in addition to the the concept of written and oral TORAHs, the author of the "ZOHAR" speculates four levels of meaning: (1) literal (2) hermeneutic (3) allegorical and (4) mystical. The history of Judaism, Scholem explains in the third chapter, is a tension between the purity of the reality of GOD. The dynamic involved is clearly presented in the realization that the price of GOD's purity is the loss of her living reality. Scholem offers that the Book Bahir, a cornerstone of 12th century Kabbalistic thought, introduces myth into Judaism. Remarkably, it contends evil as an attribute of GOD. In a similar vein, the commentary on the Sefer Yetzirah by Judah ben Barzilai introduced speculative thinking to Jewish theosophy. The fourth chapter, "Tradition and New Creation in the Ritual of the Kabbalists" presents a solution to a problem faced by each new generation. Namely, how are the traditions passed on in a vital and meaningful medium. The Mishnal codified Jewish religious law and ritual for an agrarian community had survived for centuries. As the agrarian society diminished, the TORAH became obsolete and the natural rituals became less meaningful, historical rituals. The Spanish Kabbalists found a new ritual to express the old traditions. Scholem writes, "The rejuvenation of religion repeatedly finds its expression in a return to ancient images and symbols, even when these are 'spiritualized' and transformed into speculative constructions." R. Yanassan Gershom has already succinctly summarised the fifth chapter which deals with the concept of the Golem. I will take the liberty to direct you to his comments. If you are interested in historical issues of the Kabbalah, this is essential reading for you.

Rating:
Summary: kabbalah
Review: I learned a great deal from Herr Doktor Gershom Scholem (1897-1982) through his text, "On the Kabbalah and Its Symbolism". Dr Bernard McGinn, Divinity School, University of Chicago, wrote in the introduction, "I believe that all students of mysticism should read Scholem, not only for his profound insights into the Jewish mystical tradition, but also to deepen their understanding of the dynamics of other mysticisms -- Christian, Islamic, and even those further afield." Professor Scholem presents an historical perspective with the full knowledge that there are other approaches. "From an historical point of view", he writes, "the sum of religious phenomena known as mysticism consists in the attempts of mystics to communicate their experiences to others." Within this context, this text explores broad sweeping topics in each chapter -- topics that deservedly have receieved attention by intelligent scholars for centuries. In the first chapter, "Religious Authority and Mysticism" Herr Doktor Scholem presents a thesis fundamental to his research, "there is no mysticism as such, but only the mysticism of particular religious systems, Christian, Islamic and Jewish mysticism, and so on". The mystic working within a religious system is, according to Scholem, at the same time both conservative and revolutionary. "Conservative" because the mystic tries to preserve the sources of traditional authority, and "revolutionary" because the mystic also may subsititue his own opinion for that prescribed by authority. In the second chapter, titled, "The Meaning of the TORAH in Jewish Mysticism", Scholem explains the dynamic relationship between the TORAH and the mystic. Scholem presents three fundamental principles on which the Kabbaslistic conceptions of the nature of the TORAH are based: (1) YWVH; (2) TORAH as oganism; (3) Infinite meaning of the divine word. As an example of the third, in addition to the the concept of written and oral TORAHs, the author of the "ZOHAR" speculates four levels of meaning: (1) literal (2) hermeneutic (3) allegorical and (4) mystical. The history of Judaism, Scholem explains in the third chapter, is a tension between the purity of the reality of GOD. The dynamic involved is clearly presented in the realization that the price of GOD's purity is the loss of her living reality. Scholem offers that the Book Bahir, a cornerstone of 12th century Kabbalistic thought, introduces myth into Judaism. Remarkably, it contends evil as an attribute of GOD. In a similar vein, the commentary on the Sefer Yetzirah by Judah ben Barzilai introduced speculative thinking to Jewish theosophy. The fourth chapter, "Tradition and New Creation in the Ritual of the Kabbalists" presents a solution to a problem faced by each new generation. Namely, how are the traditions passed on in a vital and meaningful medium. The Mishnal codified Jewish religious law and ritual for an agrarian community had survived for centuries. As the agrarian society diminished, the TORAH became obsolete and the natural rituals became less meaningful, historical rituals. The Spanish Kabbalists found a new ritual to express the old traditions. Scholem writes, "The rejuvenation of religion repeatedly finds its expression in a return to ancient images and symbols, even when these are 'spiritualized' and transformed into speculative constructions." R. Yanassan Gershom has already succinctly summarised the fifth chapter which deals with the concept of the Golem. I will take the liberty to direct you to his comments. If you are interested in historical issues of the Kabbalah, this is essential reading for you.

Rating:
Summary: Historical view of Kabbalah
Review: Speaking mainly in a historical sense, the author discusses many of the concepts that have developed in the study of Kabbalah. The concepts are not written about to be understood, only where they have developed. The author presents his material in a very objective way without any noticeable bias toward one system or another. Don't expect to walk away from this and be on the road to enlightenment. However, with that said, I do think it is important to the student of Kabbalah to understand the roots of the matter. This book does nicely in this respect. One should not start on the mystic road unless one knows who cleared the trees and laid the gravel.

Rating:
Summary: Historical view of Kabbalah
Review: Speaking mainly in a historical sense, the author discusses many of the concepts that have developed in the study of Kabbalah. The concepts are not written about to be understood, only where they have developed. The author presents his material in a very objective way without any noticeable bias toward one system or another. Don't expect to walk away from this and be on the road to enlightenment. However, with that said, I do think it is important to the student of Kabbalah to understand the roots of the matter. This book does nicely in this respect. One should not start on the mystic road unless one knows who cleared the trees and laid the gravel.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Intro to Jewish mysticism
Review: This book is a reprint of the now-classic work that was first published by Scholem in the 1960's, and still an excellent intro today. Not a "New Age" work by any means, Professor Scholem's book takes an academic (but readable) approach to such questions as: The meaning of Torah in Jewish mysticism, the nature and purpose of kabbalistic rituals, religious authority vs. mysticism, etc. Of special interest is the chapter, "The Idea of the Golem," which presents the theory that, contrary to popular folklore, the Golem was not some sort of physical automaton. Rather, it was a group exercise in meditative visualization!