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 Comments on Kabbalah

(My motivation in writing this piece is somewhat selfish. I have taken a tremendous amount of criticism for sharing insight and teachings from the Kabbalah with students in certain classes, and for making available a series on DVD called Kabbalah101. These DVD’s are nothing more than the introductory teachings of Rabbi Yehuda Lev Ashlag zts”l on the Kabbalah. Through many years of teaching I had never encouraged students to study this sublime area of learning without a qualified teacher, and I still do not. I do not consider myself a qualified teacher, which is why all of my lessons in this field come directly from skilled teachers like the late Rabbis Ashlag and Aryeh Kaplan, from the Masters of Chassidut, and from contemporary experts like Rabbi Yitschak Ginsburgh and Reb Avraham Sutton. There are many reasons I began to share a course on Kabbalistic understanding; one of them was the great ignorance of the subject on the part of those that should have known better, another was the simple fact that so many of the basic teachings from the Sages that I was already sharing with classes was actually coming from this level of understanding. But, to be honest I simply got tired of hearing ignorant and arrogant scorn poured upon the Kabbalah by largely western Christian scholars. If you are going to criticize something, then you should really know what it actually is, otherwise you are constantly putting your foot in your mouth. In the interest of arresting this rampant ‘foot in mouth’ disease, I have made this teaching available.)

Kabbalah - What is it?

There are 4 levels of Jewish Biblical Interpretation known by the acronymn PaRDeS (פרדס). P (פ) is for Peshat = Simple or Literal. R (ר) stands for Remez = Hint. D reflects (ד) Drosh = Inquire or Search for an Answer. S (ס) is Sod = Secret, Hidden, Mystery. PaRDeS means ‘orchard’ in Hebrew and is the source of the English word PaRaDiSe. It should be pointed out that all of the above levels of interpretation are based on ancient and sound hermeneutical rules.  No one in Orthodox Judaism is in any way making it up as they go.

These 4 levels of interpretation are what makes up the Oral Torah; that body of teaching from the Jewish Sages that dovetails and explains the written text of the Torah and NaCh (prophets and writings of the Jewish Bible).

Hebrew students know that the shoresh (root) of a word and the root’s interrelated words tell us much. The shoresh of Kabbalah is kuf-beit-lamed קבל whose basic meaning is “received” or “to receive.” So the Kabbalah is something “received,” and it must be understood that the successful student of Kabbalah must be willing “to receive.”

Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan zts”l (1934-1983) tells us that the term Kabbalah “implies that it is a certain kind of wisdom that is received.” He goes on to say: “The Mishnah says that ‘Moses kibel – received Torah on Sinai and [subsequently] transmitted it to Joshua. Joshua transmitted it to the Elders. The Elders transmitted it to the Prophets. The Prophets transmitted it to the Men of the Great Assembly. Moses was the master of all prophets. He understood the Torah completely. In this sense his prophetic vision was on the level of an open vessel that could always receive more. Perhaps the secret of Moses’ receiving was, the more he transmitted, the more he was able to receive. The Mishnah thus says, ‘Moses kibel Torah’ because he was the paradigm of complete and total kabbalah – receptivity to the prophetic experience.” Then Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan boils down the essential point: “The idea of Kabbalah, then, is to become completely infused with Torah and to connect with it on every possible level. Without Kabbalah, a person could understand Torah on a number of levels. The only way to grasp every single nuance of Torah, however, is through the prophetic wisdom that is contained in Kabbalah.” (From Innerspace by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan zts”l and edited by Reb Avraham Sutton.)

Of course the ‘receiving’ and ‘transmitting’ included all 4 levels of Torah interpretation. It should be pointed out that the inner aspect of Torah more commonly known as Kabbalah has been transmitted almost exclusively in an oral tradition from Master to student on a one-to-one basis. The secrets of Torah were guarded in this manner until the time was correct for this level of understanding to be disseminated on a larger basis. But this fact did not stop the Kabbalah from being interwoven into all levels of Jewish interpretation and worship of the One G-d long before Kabbalistic works began to appear in print. The levels of interpretation are truly inseparable. In a sense they are one.

Here we should emphasize that there are many (including some misinformed Jewish authorities) who bah-humbug the Kabbalah at every turn. Unfortunately, many never miss an opportunity to heap ridicule upon the Sod-level teaching of Kabbalah, and this question often comes my way: “what about the scholars who say the Kabbalah is occultic witchcraft?” The simple reply is that these people are certainly not scholars of Judaism, and especially not scholars of Kabbalah. To make such a statement about the Inner Dimension of the Torah based upon what someone else has said, or even by certain statements found in some Kabbalistic text taken out of its larger context does not make one a scholar in the highest level of Jewish thought.

Even more misleading (and disgusting) are the statements that the Kabbalah incorporates all kinds of pagan thought, because of the teachings concerning reincarnation (the cycle of the soul) and its emphasis on meditation. It is quite popular among Christian scholars of the West, in particular, to run for the hills and circle the wagons when certain code words like ‘meditation’ are used. (The mere mention of ‘reincarnation’ can send some into an epileptic fit.)  What a cop-out! If something does not agree with your pre-taught or pre-conceived thought, then instead of examining the teaching, denigrate it at all costs. To paraphrase a personal teacher, Rabbi Chaim Richman: ‘Christian scholars often come to a question with all the answers already in hand, while Jewish scholars come with even more questions.’

The Kabbalah level is considered the most ancient of all knowledge. The authorship of the Sefer Yetsirah, the most mysterious and oldest of all published Kabbalistic texts, is attributed to none other than the Patriarch Avraham himself. From where did Avraham get such knowledge? Of course, we know from Torah that without doubt he received (קבל kibel) revelation from Hashem, but he could also have acquired a large part of this understanding of the mysteries of the universe from an oral tradition that went all the way back to the creation of Adam Harishon, the first Adam. In fact many students of Kabbalah think just that.

So instead of reacting to so-called code words like ‘meditation’ or ‘reincarnation’ and instantly relegating the level of Kabbalah to being corrupted by some ‘Eastern’ pagan religion, let us ask a question. Could it be that the reason we find things like meditation and various beliefs regarding reincarnation among almost every world culture and religion is from the influence and once general knowledge of the most ancient area of wisdom, the Kabbalah, instead of the other way around? (You will forgive me here for reacting to so many statements on the part of Western Christian scholars made out of pure ignorance of what the Kabbalah actually is. I suppose that I am a little tired of such nonsense, and I’m sure I’m overreacting. Forgive me.)

Let’s take the 4 levels of interpretation again: PaRDeS (פרדס) from which we get the word Paradise. Remember, P (פ) is for Peshat = Simple. R (ר) stands for Remez = Hint. D reflects (ד) Drosh = Inquire. And S (ס) is Sod = Secret, Hidden, Mystery. If we delete the final level of Sod from which the Kabbalah is developed, we are left with pered פרד  which is literally a “mule.” So if we rub out the final samech (ס), the Sod (secret) level, we move from the orchard of Paradise to being a mule. Psalm 32:9 specifically tells us: “Be not like a horse, like a mule, uncomprehending…” Do we get the point? To ignore the Sod level of the Kabbalah is to be like a mule used for plowing the field. If the plowman says “gee” the well-trained mule steps to the right, and if the plowman says “hah” the mule then steps to the left, but the mule has no idea WHY he is moving right or left. The analogous situation is a well-disciplined human being observing (or not observing) the mitsvot and the command comes “gee” or “hah,” but the person has no clue as to the WHY they are being moved right or left. It is the Kabbalah that comes and begins to move us into the WHY.

Rabbi Moshe Miller in his new translation of the Zohar (published by Fiftieth Gate) also points out another aspect of the study of Kabbalah: “The Zohar is one of the classic texts of the Kabbalah, which means ‘received tradition’ for the teachings of Kabbalah were handed down from master to student, from generation to generation… But, ‘Kabbalah’ [קבלה] means ‘parallel,’ from the Hebrew word ‘hakbalah,’ [הקבלה] because Kabbalah in general, and the Zohar in particular, draws parallels between things which have no apparent connection whatsoever. The Zohar does this by examining the spiritual root of things above, and finding that ultimately everything is connected in and through their original source.”

This idea of parallelism between the physical and spiritual is a fundamental of Judaism, and is brought out by the RaMChaL (Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzatto zts”l) clearly in his work Derech Hashem (The Way of G-d, published with the English translation of Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan zts”l by Feldheim Publishers). The Ramchal points out that everything in the physical plane is rooted in the spiritual planes. All things physical are branches (thus Rabbi Ashlag zts”l calls Kabbalah the ‘language of the branches’) and emanate from the spiritual worlds according to its root; this is true of every phenomenon to the point that “there is not a blade of grass down below that does not have an angel on high that strikes it and tells it to grow” (Bereishit Rabbah 10:6, Zohar 1:34a, 1:251a, 2:15b… to name a few sources). Of course it is man’s free will that is the wild card, so to speak, in determining what actually emanates from the spiritual realm, thus it is of the utmost importance what a person thinks, says and does.

Does any of this sound dangerous? Yet countless times I have heard from people and scholars that this area of study is both deadly and dangerous. Sometimes these scholars bring evidence from scattered sources in the practical tradition of Kabbalah. Again, we turn to Rabbi Moshe Miller in the introduction to his new translation of the Zohar: “The practical tradition of Kabbalah involves techniques aimed specifically at altering natural states or events – techniques such as the incantation of Divine Names…. However, Kabbalah ma’asit [practical Kabbalah] is meant to be employed by only the most saintly and responsible of individuals and for no other purpose than the benefit of man or implementation of G-d’s plan in creation.” Rabbi Miller goes on to point out a very important fact: “Even in the era of the great kabbalist, Rabbi Isaac Luria, known as the holy Ari (mid 16^th century), there are indications of these techniques being abused by unfit practitioners [as they are today]. The holy Ari himself admonished his disciples to avoid [in fact he forbid it] the practical arts of Kabbalah, as he deemed such practice unsafe so long as the state of ritual purity necessary for service in the Holy Temple remains unattainable.”

But, even though the use of practical Kabbalah was forbidden by the Ari’zal until the Holy Temple is again with us, all human beings are practicing a lower-level of this principle every day. This basic tenet is: what you do, what you think and what comes out of your mouth has a profound effect on yourself, others, the physical and spiritual universes, etc., for either good or bad.  The real danger of the Kabbalah, as I see it, is by transgressing the stricture of the Sages to study without a qualified teacher. Many think that picking up a book on kabbalistic subjects is a valid option in learning this area, but this cannot replace sitting with a teacher. Without a teacher, the student can read his own ideas, culture, background, and agenda into the text, and thus make unpleasant mistakes. Until the mistake is corrected, (usually by contact with a qualified teacher) it can color all his learning to the point of gross error. This is also one of the reasons that I began to make these studies available to my classes and the public. I do not consider myself to be a qualified teacher, but the great Sages and Rabbis that I am using for the studies most definitely are in that category, plus I study and have access to living skilled Jewish teachers in this most beautiful level of Torah learning.

Rabbi Chaim Kramer and Reb Avraham Sutton collaborated on a work based on the teachings of the great Chassidic Master Rebbe Nachman of Breslov zts”l entitled Anatomy of the Soul (published by Breslov). In this work are many profound statements and teachings, but I want to share one section with you here:

“Midrashic and Kabbalistic tradition state that when prophecy existed, G-d's existence was much more evident than it is nowadays. G-d spoke in man's heart, heaven was on earth, spirit permeated matter. The truth is that this is still true. Man is still connected to G-d, earth is still connected to heaven, and matter is still permeated by spirit or energy. Today it is even known that matter is undoubtedly just another form of energy [see Kabbalah101 DVD part 11]. Still, this phenomenon is deeply hidden, and mankind is searching desperately for a way to reconnect to G-d.

“What connects G-d and man, heaven and earth, spirit and matter? Is there a bridge to G-d? Is there a ladder we can climb to heaven and bring its light back down into our lives?

“There is a bridge and a ladder. It is called Torah.

“Torah is the written document received and transmitted by Moses at Sinai a little over 3,300 years ago. It is also the oral tradition that accompanied that document, including instructions on how to understand the basic meaning of the Torah (for it is an extremely terse text that says much more than meets the eye) and fulfill its commandments.

“The Oral Torah dovetails with the written Torah in four primary ways encoded in the Hebrew word Pardes…. With these four keys, the Torah opens up and reveals not only its own secrets, but the secrets of the universe, the secrets of matter (space), history (time), and man ( soul and consciousness). If we wish to go behind the scenes and probe the mysteries of creation and human existence, the Torah is the address. The reason for this is that the Torah preceded creation. In truth, the Torah is nothing less than an illumination of what we call G-d’s Mind. It is the conceptual link between Him and His world, between Him and us.”

The Kabbalah is often referred to as the ‘inner dimension’ of Torah, and is lovingly spoken of as the ‘soul’ of Torah while the other levels make up the various levels of the ‘body.’ Kabbalah is simply the key that opens up so much. (And I must say because I have taught Christians about Judaism for so many years, an understanding of the Kabbalah on the simplest level can revolutionize the comprehension of the Christian scriptures.)  It is the path to a makes-sense world-view of G-d, Divine Providence, the Universe(s), and especially Life here in this dimension of reality. I invite you to study with me, but you must be prepared to slaughter any ‘sacred cows’ you may be harboring in your ‘mental corral.’

Be well,

Sam “Shmuel” Peak

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