Tree of Souls (Schwartz)

645 texts · Page 28 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 Ba'al Shem Tov Ascends On High

Tree of Souls

The Ba'al Shem Tov, the founder of Hasidism, reportedly did just that. The story goes that on Rosh ha-Shanah – the Jewish New Year, a day of judgment and profound spiritual signifi...

AngelsHeavenMessiahTorah

The Unfinished Corner Of Creation

Tree of Souls

Jewish tradition holds a fascinating idea: that God, in creating the world, deliberately left one small part of it unfinished. I know. Why would God do that? Well, according to Pir...

CreationDemonsAdam & EveNoah & Flood

The Darkness That Existed Before Creation

Tree of Souls

We read, "the earth being unformed and void, with darkness over the surface of the deep" (Gen. 1:2). Pretty straightforward. But hold on. The Torah doesn't say God created the dark...

CreationHell/GehennaAdam & EveNoah & Flood

The Banishment Of Dumah

Tree of Souls

We often hear about the benevolent angels, the messengers, the healers. But what about the ones who fall from grace? Let's talk about Dumah. According to Jewish tradition, Dumah wa...

AngelsHeavenHell/GehennaMoses

God's Prison

Tree of Souls

It speaks of a place far, far removed from the familiar landscapes of heaven and earth. A sort of cosmic timeout corner. Imagine this: You’re at the very edge of everything, where ...

AngelsDemonsHeavenHell/Gehenna

Adam And The Demons

Tree of Souls

It's easy to imagine him and Eve, heartbroken, trying to make sense of their new, harsher reality. But the stories don't stop there. Some delve into a rather…unsettling chapter of ...

DemonsHeavenHell/GehennaAdam & Eve

Lilith Rises From The Deep

Tree of Souls

Maybe it was just your imagination... or maybe, just maybe, it was Lilith. The Zohar, that foundational text of Kabbalah, tells us of a terrifying figure born not of dust like Adam...

DemonsHell/GehennaMosesAdam & Eve

A Spell To Banish Lilith

Tree of Souls

There is, and it involves a name whispered through generations: Lilith. Now, Lilith isn't just some scary story. She’s a figure deeply embedded in Jewish folklore, often portrayed ...

AngelsDemonsMosesAdam & Eve

The Woman In The Forest

Tree of Souls

The Jewish mystical tradition, particularly within Hasidism, grapples with this idea constantly, often personifying temptation in the figure of Lilith. There's a tale told about Ra...

AngelsDemonsTorahPatriarchs