Tree of Souls (Schwartz)

645 texts · Page 10 of 72

Texts from Howard Schwartz's Tree of Souls: The Mythology of Judaism, a landmark anthology gathering myths and legends spanning the full arc of Jewish tradition, from the creation of the world to the coming of the Messiah.

The Shekhinah At The Wall

Tree of Souls

In Jewish tradition, we have a name for that Divine Presence: the Shekhinah. And there's a place where the veil between worlds is said to be especially thin: the Western Wall in Je...

TorahAdam & EveProphecyTemple

A Vision At The Wailing Wall

Tree of Souls

Our story today takes us to 16th-century Safed, a center of Jewish mysticism, and introduces us to Rabbi Abraham Berukhim, a man known for his profound connection to the Divine. Th...

CreationAngelsHeavenPatriarchs

God Makes Matches

Tree of Souls

According to Jewish tradition, He's not exactly kicking back with a cosmic cup of coffee. Nope. He's been busy making matches. That's right, God is the ultimate shadkhan—a matchmak...

CreationAngelsHeavenMoses

The Rabbis Overrule God

Tree of Souls

Bava Metzia 59b), a story about rabbinic authority and, surprisingly, God's good-natured acceptance of it. It all starts with a disagreement. Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus, a renowned...

CreationDemonsHeavenTorah

God Defers To The Earthly Court

Tree of Souls

It might surprise you. Imagine all the angels gathered, a celestial court in session. They turn to the Master of the Universe himself and ask, "What day is Rosh ha-Shanah?" That's ...

AngelsDemonsHeavenTorah

The First To Exist

Tree of Souls

It’s a question that’s haunted humanity since we first looked up at the stars. And Jewish tradition, particularly Kabbalah, has some pretty mind-bending answers. The core idea? Tha...

CreationMysticism

Before The World Was Created

Tree of Souls

Jewish tradition has some pretty amazing, awe-inspiring imagery about that very question. Imagine this: a God of pure, untamed power, riding not on a cloud, but on the very wings o...

CreationExile

Prior Worlds

Tree of Souls

Worlds created, then...undone. The image is striking, isn't it? Before our familiar heaven and earth, the Infinite, utterly alone, conceived of creation. The spark of Ein Sof, the ...

CreationHeavenTorahAdam & Eve

The Primordial Elements

Tree of Souls

It’s a question that has captivated Jewish thinkers for centuries. When God set about creating the world as we know it, what did God have to work with? The tradition tells us that ...

CreationDemonsHeavenAdam & Eve