Kabbalah – The Hidden Torah as passed on from generation to generation
What Why Where???
The kabbalistic portion of Torah is an indivisible and integral part of the Oral Torah that was given at Mount Sinai and has been passed down from generation to generation over a period of thousands of years. The fundamentals of kabbalah, as we know them, were laid out in the Zohar whose authorship is ascribed to Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, one of the Tenaim (rabbis from the Mishnaic period) buried in Meron in northern Israel. Since then many important works have been written on kabbalah including those by the Arizal HaKodesh (Rabbi Yitzchak Luria), RAMCHAL (Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzato), Rabbi Chaim Vital, and the RASHASH (Rabbi Shalom Sharabi). In particular though, the commentary and writings of the Arizal on the Zohar have impacted upon the understanding and spreading of the kabbalah amongst the Jewish people.
Kabbalah encompasses profound spiritual, mystical, secrets focusing on the deeper or internal point of understanding. While it is an integral part of the Torah, often referred to as the hidden or secret part of Torah, it is only properly studied by a select few and generally only transmitted orally from teacher to student.
The prophet Amos describes the thirst for Torah and knowledge of G-d that will prevail preceding the coming of the Messiah: “Behold, days are coming, says the Lord G-d, when I send a famine in the land, not a famine for bread, nor a thirst for water, but for hearing the words of the Lord…” (Amos 8:11)
In our times, we have seen such an awakening of interest in hearing the word of G-d and specifically in studying and understanding these deeper parts of Torah.
Kabbalah encompasses profound spiritual, mystical, secrets focusing on the deeper or internal point of understanding. While it is an integral part of the Torah, often referred to as the hidden or secret part of Torah, it is only properly studied by a select few and generally only transmitted orally from teacher to student.
The prophet Amos describes the thirst for Torah and knowledge of G-d that will prevail preceding the coming of the Messiah: “Behold, days are coming, says the Lord G-d, when I send a famine in the land, not a famine for bread, nor a thirst for water, but for hearing the words of the Lord…” (Amos 8:11)
In our times, we have seen such an awakening of interest in hearing the word of G-d and specifically in studying and understanding these deeper parts of Torah.
Current Imperative
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Location and Redemption
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Recording Torah Innovations
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