12,014 related texts · Page 38 of 251
The Heikhalot (the heavenly palaces) Rabbati, a foundational text in the Heikhalot literature (think early mystical journeys into the divine realms), gives us a glimpse into this a...
It's not exactly light reading, but trust me, the stories it contains are mind-bending. Our tale centers on Rabbi Hananya ben Teradyon, a figure who, according to this text, someho...
The ancient mystical text, Heikhalot (the heavenly palaces) Rabbati – one of the key works of the Heikhalot literature, focused on heavenly ascent – gives us a glimpse, or rather, ...
One such text is Heikhalot (the heavenly palaces) Rabbati, a work of Jewish mystical literature that takes us on a journey through the heavenly realms. And in it, we find a truly a...
It’s not a casual stroll; it's a carefully orchestrated, potentially dangerous undertaking. How do you even begin? Well, Heikhalot (the heavenly palaces) Rabbati, one of the centra...
That feeling, that jolt, might just echo a tale from the mystical heart of Jewish tradition. We're diving into the world of the Heikhalot (the heavenly palaces) Rabbati, a text bri...
Specifically, we’re looking at section 22. It's a short passage, but packed with intrigue. The story begins with Rabbi Ishmael, a prominent figure in Jewish tradition, expressing h...
That’s a feeling that echoes through the ages, and it’s captured with raw emotion in the ancient text, Mitpachat Sefarim. Imagine the scene: The Knesset Yisrael, the assembly of Is...
Da'at (Knowledge) Tevunot, a profound work of Jewish thought, offers a fascinating explanation, linking our desires directly to the boundaries of our minds and the spiritual light ...
Jewish mysticism offers a profound, and frankly kind of wild, explanation. It all starts with… primordial kings. Yeah, you heard right. Primordial Kings. Kalach Pitchei Chokhmah, a...
Kabbalah, Jewish mystical tradition, delves into this very question, mapping out the intricate pathways through which divine energy and understanding flow. One fascinating text tha...
And in the Kabbalah, we find some truly mind-bending answers." It deals with the relationship between Abba (Father) and Imma (Mother) – not literally, of course, but as archetypal ...
The mystics of old certainly did. And they found some fascinating answers hidden within the fabric of reality itself. One of the keys they discovered involves this intricate dance ...
Kabbalah, the Jewish mystical tradition, has some fascinating things to say about the very source of wisdom. Specifically, let's talk about Israel Sabba-Tevunah. Now, that's a mout...
We often think of wisdom as something we acquire, something we learn. But in the Kabbalistic tradition, specifically within texts like Kalach Pitchei Chokhmah (which translates rou...
The Sefer Yetzirah, the "Book of Formation," gives us a glimpse into just that. It’s a mystical text, attributed by some to Abraham himself, that delves into the very building bloc...
The Jewish mystical tradition, especially the Zohar, understands this feeling deeply. Exile, both literal and spiritual, is a central theme. But within that feeling of distance, th...
The Tikkun (spiritual repair)ei Zohar, a central text of Kabbalah (Jewish mysticism), speaks of just such a time. It paints a vivid picture, filled with shattering and trembling, a...
The Tikkun (spiritual repair)ei Zohar, in its mystical exploration of the Torah, tells us something surprising. It says: "There is no tzedakah but prayer." Wait, what? How can pray...
The Tikkun (spiritual repair)ei Zohar, a profound and mystical text expanding on the Zohar itself, offers a fascinating glimpse into this very question. It speaks of how the divine...
You're not alone. The Tikkun (spiritual repair)ei Zohar, a central text of Kabbalah, speaks to just this feeling. It paints a stark picture of a world where the people of Israel ar...
The Tikkun (spiritual repair)ei Zohar, a central work of Kabbalah, uses the story of Jonah to explore just that feeling. You know, Jonah, the prophet who tried to run away from God...
The Tikkun (spiritual repair)ei Zohar, a central work of Kabbalah, delves into this very idea in its 113th section. It begins with a seemingly simple verse from Exodus (35:3), "You...
It describes a time when God, so to speak, is "in the darkness," enclothed in tohu and bohu – "chaos and void," and ḥoshekh and tehom – "darkness and abyss." Imagine the universe b...
Let’s look at one that’s always intrigued me: “Your neck is an ivory tower” from the Song of Songs (7:4). Sounds poetic, sure, but what does it mean? Well, the Tikkun (spiritual re...
Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev opens his commentary on Parshat Vayera (Genesis 18:1) with a puzzle: the Torah says "God appeared to him," using only the pronoun "him" instead of...
Rebbe Elimelech of Lizhensk opens his teaching on Parashat Vayechi with a striking image from the Talmud (Shabbat 78b): a person who has "not yet repaid" their debt. Every human be...
The Torah lists the patriarchs in a specific order: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. In (Exodus 3:6), God introduces Himself to Moses at the burning bush as "the God of your father, the ...
R. Yehudah b. Betheira says: It is written (Exodus 6:9) "And they would not hearken to Moses (as to G–d's delivering them), for shortness of spirit, etc." Now is there anyone who i...
The Torah describes the Exodus with the phrase "I took out your hosts." The Mekhilta asks a question that might seem obvious but carries deep theological weight: whose hosts are be...
"In all of your habitations shall you eat matzoth": What is the intent of this? From (Devarim 14:23) "And you shall eat before the L–rd your G–d the tithe of your grain and wine an...
(Exodus 12:26) "And it shall be, when your sons say to you, etc.": At that time, Israel was receiving bad tidings, that the Torah was destined to be forgotten. Others say they were...
(Exodus 12:37) "And the children of Israel journeyed from Ramses to Succoth": From Ramses to Succoth was a distance of forty parasangs, and the voice of Moses traveled (the distanc...
"And the habitation of the children of Israel in Egypt and in other lands was four hundred and thirty years." This is one of the verses that they (the seventy-two elders changed) i...
(Exodus 12:41) "and it was at the end of four hundred and thirty years": We are hereby apprised that when the time arrived, the L–rd did not delay them for one moment. On the fifte...
God did not simply send Israel home from exile — He walked back with them. The Mekhilta DeRabbi Yishmael, a 3rd-century CE halakhic midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), make...
The students of a great teacher reported that he expounded a striking principle using the words of the prophet Jeremiah: "Therefore, behold, days are coming, says the Lord, when it...
The sages say: "the days of your life"—in this world; "all the days of your life"—to include the days of the Messiah. Ben Zoma said to them: Israel is destined not to mention the e...
"This day you go out in the month of Aviv" (Exodus 13:3) — a verse that seems to state the obvious. Of course Israel left in the month of Aviv (spring). The Torah already told us t...
(Ibid. 20) "And they journeyed from Succoth and they encamped in Eitam." Just as Eitam is a place, so, Succoth. R. Akiva said "Succoth" refers to the clouds of glory, viz. (Isaiah ...
Variantly: "and shalishim": Three (Egyptians) against every one (Israelite). Others say: three hundred against one. And how did Pharaoh know how many Israelites died in the three d...
Israel were four factions at the sea: One was for lunging into the sea; another, for returning to Egypt; another for warring against them; another, for crying out against them. Tho...
"And you, raise your staff": Ten miracles were performed for Israel at the sea: The waters were split and became like a dome, viz. (Habakkuk 3:14) "You split (the sea) for his trib...
(Exodus 14:30) "And Israel saw Egypt dead on the shore of the sea": For four reasons: That they not say: Just as we came up on this side, so they came up on another side (and will ...
Rabbi Yossi HaGlili presents one of the most famous calculations in rabbinic literature. He asks: how do we know that the Egyptians were struck with ten plagues in Egypt and fifty ...
Rabbi Meir takes the tradition further than either Rabbi Yossi or Rebbi. Even fetuses in their mothers' wombs, he declares, opened their mouths and chanted song before God at the R...
The Mekhilta de-Rabbi Ishmael preserves a stunning image of dialogue between Israel and the Holy Spirit—a call and response that echoes through the ages. When Israel declares the S...
The Mekhilta de-Rabbi Ishmael continues its portrait of the extraordinary dialogue between Israel and the Holy Spirit with another matched pair of verses. When Israel proclaims (De...
