Written by Rabbi Max Weiman

The word "Kabbalah" is a feminine noun.

These ten essays are written for beginners. Kabbalah is a field of study that is elusive and requires the neophyte to gather bits of information and piece them together by himself. I will assume no prior knowledge and explain each new idea on its own. However, one of the principles of Kabbalah is that many things are left to the student to comprehend on his own and cannot be explained. A true teacher of Kabbalah, which I do not claim to be, is not permitted to teach every concept he knows. Some concepts he is only permitted to hint to. Therefore, whenever delving into Kabbalah you need to be willing to think a bit more deeply into what's being stated in order to get closer to the truth.

God is one, and infinite.

Kabbalah is traditionally a secret or hidden doctrine. Even though the Bible uses the masculine pronoun "He" when referring to God, obviously God has neither gender nor any physical form whatsoever and can't possibly be male or female. The side of God that is revealed we call masculine. That's why God in the Bible, His revealed word, is masculine. The side that is hidden is His feminine side. There are many references to feminine traits of God in the Prophetic writings and the Hebrew prayer book. That which conceptually relates to male is more external. Women have been known to be more in touch with spirituality, intuition, and other hidden things. Women, historically, have often been able to accomplish more behind the scenes than men have being in the limelight. In this way Kabbalah, which is considered more special, more powerful and more spiritual than the more revealed wisdom of the Bible can be looked at as the "feminine" side of Judaism.

Kabbalah is part of Judaism.

Although some of the kabbalistic tradition predates Moses, it is part of the Jewish belief that God gave Moses a written law and an oral law. Kabbalah is part of that oral law.

Kabbalah is defined in different ways. It is most basically the mystical aspect of Judaism. There are meditative aspects of Kabbalah. There are dimensions of Kabbalah that could be called White Magic. There are philosophical aspects. Kabbalah is not a separate study that can be divorced from its roots. In order to understand it fully, we must keep a perspective on traditional Judaism.

Kabbalah is the Hebrew word which means to receive. There is wisdom that is learned through hard study. There is wisdom that is understood through experience. But most mystical or spiritual understandings of our reality can only be "received'. This implies that the recipient must be ready for, and be a fitting vessel for receiving such special and holy ideas.

Kabbalah's basic ideas can be studied and understood by anyone.

A clear understanding of Kabbalah is dependent on an understanding of basic Judaism, the foundational sources, which are the Bible, (the five books that God dictated to Moses), the books of the Prophets, and the Talmud, (the compendium of Jewish oral law which was handed down from God to Moses and from teacher to student in every generation until its codification in about 400 C.E.) Even without this knowledge, however, many insights into life's ultimate purpose can be understood through the concepts of Kabbalah. You can also learn invaluable things about yourself from studying these mystical concepts. It is for these reasons and others that I have chosen to write these ten essays called "Introductory Kabbalah".

Even though, in writing these essays, my attempt is to elucidate the basics, they are not meant to define THE first steps in the mystical tradition. This is merely one approach. In fact, you may find more basic concepts than these. However, these concepts are not merely basic but also foundational, and part and parcel of so many advanced ideas. Without this concept of 'man as a microcosm', much knowledge will be hard to put in a context. As you grasp any one core idea in Kabbalah, it is like grabbing onto a piece of that which is infinite. When you grasp a piece on infinity at any point, though, you are grasping onto the whole thing. There can't truly be a separate piece of infinity; it just appears that way to our limited understanding. Therefore if this thought is expanded and connected by the reader, he will begin to piece many parts of the puzzle together.

For example, when you first begin to understand electricity, you begin to understand automatically how all electrical appliances work and your home becomes more understandable to you, you understand why some appliances need cords, why they stop when unplugged; you understand why sockets can be deadly, etc.

One concept brings so much into focus. In various Jewish texts man is referred to as an 'olam katan', a small universe. This is a clear reference to the idea we are touching on.

Mankind is the fusion of spirituality and physicality.

We will look at different aspects of this microcosm idea: One example of this is that man embodies vastly different elements brought together to form a unit. As you read this page you tie together the physical world and the spiritual realm by you, a finite being, reaching out to the infinite. You do this because God fused those two realms together when He formed man. We are both a symbol and also an expression of the very fabric of all creation. We are at once both physical and spiritual. In a similar vein, the human body contains the four basic elements of creation. Also we know the body is mostly water yet it doesn't leak; it knows how and when to release liquid from itself. It is also surprisingly waterproof, rain rolls right off. We can produce a kind of wind from our lungs. There is a natural heat within us. Lastly, God in Genesis 2:7 said He created man from the dust of the ground. We see water, air, fire, and earth, all four primordial elements of creation in man.

Another example of this idea is the analogy of the soul in man. Man's soul in the body parallels God's presence in the universe. The soul fills the body just as God's presence fills the universe. The soul is the life-giver to the body, just as God is the life-giver to the universe. (Judaism teaches that God didn't just make the universe and leave it, He constantly wills it to exist.) The soul is the only reason for the body's existence, the body exists to serve the soul, and similarly the universe exists to serve its creator. The soul cannot be seen yet you know it is there, just as God can't be seen yet we know He is there. This is one way of understanding the verse in Genesis 1:26 when God said, "Let us make man in our image." This means that there are a number of similarities in the way God manifests Himself in our world and how the soul manifests itself in the body.

We control the universe.

Another basic understanding of the kabbalists that man is interwoven with the universe in a way that causes the entire universe to be spiritually elevated when man elevates himself, and lowered when man lowers himself. For example, if you give a poor person some money, or a job, you have changed yourself, molded yourself to be a little bit more like the Almighty. You have increased the positive energy in the world, and removed some of its negativity. Because you are interwoven with the fabric of the universe you have elevated not only yourself, but also the entire creation. There is now more mercy and kindness in all of creation.

To conclude, in advanced Kabbalah there are a many references to spiritual limbs, analogies to the human form, and conceptual links to personality traits, gender, and the body. The references are metaphor, yet they do represent man's connection to the spiritual realm.  All the spiritual realms are contained in man. All wisdom is contained in man.

This 'microcosm' concept will come up explicitly and implicitly in the rest of the essays.

The enigmatic title of this chapter is a quote from the book called the Zohar. It's the most famous kabbalistic treatise, and most Kabbalah that is studied these days is based on it. It is attributed to a sage from Talmudic times named Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai (about 170 C.E.)

Israel is the name given to Jacob, the third of the Jewish patriarchs, when he wrestled with an angel in Genesis 32:29 (see also 35:10). It also refers to the Jewish people as a whole. They were formed as a people from Abraham's time until Moses, and were established with God's mandate on Mount Sinai.

In the previous chapter we discussed the idea of man being a microcosm of the universe. In one sense everything in creation mirrors man and vice versa. The point of creation, however, was just for man, and therefore he has more importance than all the rest of creation. In the beginning of Genesis, even though he was created last, man is the central figure. The universe is the arena in which he fulfills his divine task. The vehicle to communicate that task is the Torah. Although the word Torah can refer to the actual scroll of the Bible, it also refers to the entirety of God's instructions to man.

There are the written instructions, which include the five books of Moses, the Prophets, and the Writings; as well as the oral instructions, which include the Mishna, Medrash, Talmud, and Kabbalah. There is a tradition, however, that all of the oral instructions are hinted to in the written instructions, which in turn are all hinted to in the five books of Moses. Therefore our title technically refers to the entirety of knowledge that is imbedded in the five books of Moses. As instructions to man, then, the Torah represents the very will of the Creator. His will is the closest to Him we can come. It's the next best thing to God's actual presence, as it says in Exodus 33:20 "for no man can see Me and live." In this way we say that God and the Torah are one, as it is the greatest manifestation or revelation of God we have here on earth. In the Zohar, the Torah is even referred to as one long name of God. In a matter of speaking it is His very words, thoughts, and desires.

If you think about it, you realize that the creation itself is also an expression of God as well. He created it. It is His handiwork, and it has His wisdom all the way through it. He made the apple pretty to look at, a pleasure to smell, delicious to eat, and healthy. If one examines the universe properly one can come to the unmistakable conclusion that there is a Creator and designer; it could not have been an accident. Psychologists often examine great works of art and draw conclusions about the artist. With the creation, though, God purposely designed His universe to hide Himself just a bit beneath the surface. Not only that, but since God's oneness fills the universe and constantly wills it into existence, the universe is more like a living self-portrait with a thin veil to look past.

Man is God's most important and special creation and thereby the greatest expression of His will. Man also, as a microcosm of all creation, is a representation of the whole of God's will as manifested in the world. So just as the universe and the Torah are fused and connected with God, so is man. Yet it is man in his fulfillment of the purpose of creation that best expresses the presence of God. Therefore as the Bible forms this nation called Israel as the embodiment of God's will through history and the people charged with the task to follow His instructions, they become as close to the actual presence of God as you can get as a nation.

In expressing the idea that God's will to create the universe is embodied in the Torah, the Zohar states that God looked into the Torah and then created the universe. Somehow it is the blueprint of creation. They also say that there are 600,000 primary souls that make up the Jewish people in any generation. Symbolically, though not technically, there are 600,000 letters in the Torah. The Torah, the Jewish people, and God are one to the extent that they can keep their separate identities and still be one. Israel, as it lives the principles of the Torah, also becomes a living expression of God's will in man. They are the people that were given the instructions, and they are the ones who are living those instructions. Israel, the Torah and God are all one.

It must be noted as a side point at this time that Israel is not an exclusive club. Anyone who sincerely wants to join Israel by converting may do so.

Practical and mystical Judaism converge on this point. Man's most essential question as a living human being is "Why are we here?". Every thinking person must ask this question sooner or later. The Torah's answer to this question is the very heart and soul of everything in the Torah. What could possibly be the point of all the commandments if they don't fulfill this purpose? We often view the commandments as being a set of rules for a healthy society, and they certainly are. Society is more civilized when no one steals, kills, rapes, etc. They are good for society, but that is the most superficial level of the Torah. They do so much more.

There are 613 commandments in the Torah. Each one is a conduit or method of becoming one with God. We see that cleaving to God or imitating God is a general theme in the Torah, as it says in Deuteronomy 10:12, "..what does God, your Lord, ask of you? To be in awe of God, your Lord, to walk in His ways..." It also says in Deut. 11:22, "..love God, your Lord, to walk in His ways and to cling to Him." (see also Deut. 10:20, 13:5, 28:9) Philosophically speaking, the intention of the Creator in His creation was to give another being the greatest possible good and ultimate pleasure. As God is the source of infinite good and bliss, the greatest possible good and pleasure is to be a part of Him. To be given this good without any effort would be lacking in the essential quality of God that He Himself was not given goodness. The closest we can come to this is to earn it. That defines the purpose of our creation but not the method. The method of us earning this greatest good is the struggle in a realm seemingly devoid of God, and striving to be one with Him. By fulfilling the commandments we are perfecting ourselves, emulating God, and becoming one with God all at the same time. The period of struggle is a finite one, and the period of experiencing what we have accomplished is infinite. In the end we must come out of the realm of illusion where God is not apparent, and go into the realm of reality. One act of goodness done by us, a simple "Have a nice day" when said with sincerity, makes us more Godly, and brings more Godliness into the world. A spiritual perspective on the commandments is to look at each one as a way of making God's oneness more evident in the world. The kabbalists even have a short phrase to say before the performance of a mitzvah to remind them of this, which translates as "For the sake of unifying the Holy One, Blessed is He with His Divine Presence, through He who is hidden and unseen." Many of the commandments are easily mistaken as mere ritual. However, every so-called ritual act that's requested from us by God is actually a mystical connection that binds the soul to its source, the Infinite One. For example, on Passover we eat matza ostensibly as a symbol of the exodus from Egypt. The mystical sources say that Abraham, who lived many years before the exodus, also ate matza on the night that would one day be called Passover. He saw past the surface to the spiritual benefit that lies beneath. The matza is an expression of humility. The power of the holiday is the ability to nullify ourselves to God's will. This power is enhanced and activated through the mitzvah of the matza, which is like a spiritual injection meant to last until the next year. The forefathers' level of spirituality was so strong they didn't need to be told to eat matza on that night in the month of Nissan. They understood the mystical significance of all the commandments, and fulfilled them without any obligation.

Why did God create the universe? If He is infinite, then He needs nothing. It could not have been to fill any need or lack in Him. It must be that creation was done for the sake of the created. In order for the created to experience the ultimate gift it must face moral challenges, and struggle to cling to spirituality. This is the way to become Godlike. We need a universe in which to experience these challenges. We need to have the potential for good and evil both inside and out. Why are there people starving in the world? So we will feed them. Why is there evil in the world? So we will fight it. God's presence also must be somewhat hidden in the world lest we be forced by the power of it into doing His will. The word in Hebrew for universe is "haolam". This word also means "that which is hidden". God doesn't need robots. The essence of our existence is in using our free will to come closer to God. This is the "image of God" that's mentioned in the Torah.

There is nothing superfluous in the Torah. There is nothing extra in the world. For every human endeavor whether its work, sleep, sex, eating, or anything else, there is a principle of spirituality that the Torah teaches regarding that endeavor. There is a way to elevate the act. All physicality can be used for spirituality. With this in mind the Torah can be used as a spiritual encyclopedia. Man's personality and life experiences are designed to be the tests of our free will to become one with God.

The study of His will is not only the best way to know how to accomplish the task of our existence; it is also the act that carries with it the greatest ability to make us Godlike. Torah study is the mitzvah that can change us, elevate us, and sanctify us the utmost. This explains the intrinsic relationship between God, man, and Torah. It has to be that the Torah is called God's name, as we mentioned previously, because it is the instruction manual of how to connect to God. The study of Kabbalah, which is the closest thing to studying God himself, is the most potent and holy aspect of Torah study. This is the perspective to have whenever engaged in the study of Jewish mysticism, you are making your mind and soul one with your Creator.

Astronomers and other scientists say that life on earth has a finite amount of time to exist. There are different scenarios, but it seems inevitable there will be an end to life on Earth. There's something slightly emotionally disturbing about the thought of the end of mankind even if it's off in the future and I won't be around for it: "You mean we won't be here forever?"

Kabbalah also teaches that life as we know it won't last forever. In fact, the universe is quickly coming to the end of its journey. The Jewish calendar counts our years as 5761. Parenthetically, this is not necessarily a negation of the present scientific viewpoint that the universe is billions of years old. This is a subject addressed by other authors. Read Genesis and the Big Bang by Gerald Schroeder. It is stated that the world will last 6000 years. This means we have at most 239 years left. (I say at most because it is a Jewish belief that the messiah may come at any moment and thrust humanity into a new and different realm of being.) Although anyone reading this now won't be around in 239 years to see it, this time period seems incredibly short. It is an interesting point that 239 represents a fraction of 1/25th of the total 6000 years. Kenneth Feder in The Past in Perspective quotes that single celled organisms appeared on earth 3.5 billion years ago. Christopher McKay of NASA Ames Research Center has a prediction that the earth will no longer be inhabitable in approximately 145 million years. If this is true, 145 million years represents the exact same fraction 1/25th of the total life span of 3.5 billion plus 145 million. According to science and Kabbalah we are at the very end of the cycle of life. To give an analogy, if the entire span of life is considered an hour we are in the last two and a half seconds. The finality, however, is not the main point.

We cannot possibly fathom the intent of an infinite Being in His creation of the universe. The perspective that He taught us to have is that it is for our pleasure. Man was created to come close to the infinite Being in every possible way. In order for this to take place there needs to be two periods: a period of challenge and struggle, and a period to realize the fruits of our labor. This world is the place of illusion, and striving for closeness to the Creator. It has a beginning and an end. The second stage is called "the world to come," and will last for eternity. From a spiritual point of view, in order for our reality to make sense the world as we know it must end. If you suggest this world should continue forever, you're willing to accept all the imperfections that we live with like war, hatred, famine, etc. We are in a limited and finite world where God's existence is hidden. Is this a world that God is happy with? It can't be that a wise, loving, and infinite Being would allow this to continue forever.

It is in this context that the kabbalists are writing; and the mystical perspective on history or historical events must be viewed in this way. We cannot see it, but there is a design in the history of man. Although we are given free will, all events that happen are part of a plan we are not privy to. Our choices cause a reaction on a spiritual level, but the entire production is being lead, directed, and influenced by the infinite Creator. It's not merely that there is an end point to life on Earth, but somehow all mankind as a unit is being perfected. Many aspects of the creation we assume are random, like how many souls have to come into the world, have already been determined. Not only that, but our individual circumstances may be dictated for us for the sake of the perfection of humanity as a whole.

Kabbalah unites everyone who ever lived, or will live, under the banner of God's will. His goal and purpose will be achieved no matter what. Our free will is whether or not to consciously be a part of it.

Some call it - karma. Others say, "What comes around, goes around." We often see an uncanny tit for tat in everyday events. Someone who's known to gossip may get a toothache. Another who donates to charities may get an unexpected windfall. This is a rule of the spiritual world. Just as the physical world has physics, so does the spiritual. Everything we do has an effect on the spiritual realm, and in turn the spiritual world responds. If you generate love, love will come your way. If you are tolerant of the mistakes of others, God's attribute of Justice will be more tolerant of your mistakes. If one person says, "Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One," then God's presence will fill the entire universe. When a person imitates God's attributes of mercy, the attribute of mercy is strengthened everywhere. These are some examples of nuances of the same rule of the spiritual world that it responds in kind to man's actions. We don't see it all the time. There's no way to know what the reaction may be. Yet because the two worlds are interwoven and interdependent, there has to be some response from the Heavens that affects us here on Earth.

This is what we call providence or "hashgacha" in Hebrew. Kabbalah in large part is a description of how God runs the universe. It's a hidden world. We don't know all the rules. In fact sometimes the spiritual side of things seems to be in opposition to our way of looking. An interesting episode in the Talmud brings out this point: a person died and subsequently came to a friend in a dream. The friend asked what it is like on the other side. The dead man replied, "It's an upside-down world." The spiritual side of life is often the opposite of what we think or feel. For example, a funeral is a sad time for the living. However, from the spiritual point of view the deceased are now going to a place of extreme pleasure and bliss. We should be happy. To drive home this point, some mystics even asked that their disciples dance on the day of the teacher's death. The realm of the non-physical where God's plan is more evident is a very different world than our own.

In line with this, hashgacha means that everything happens for a reason. All of one's life experiences have a spiritual purpose. God by definition is aware of and in control of every molecule of existence. If He doesn't will it, it can't happen. The sages go so far as to say that since we don't have prophets to deliver God's messages, life events are the only way God can get our attention. Similarly, it is a Jewish practice to analyze your deeds after a bad thing happens to you. This does not mean that there is a clear recognizable message from God in all the events that happen to us. We're not so astute to figure them out and He knows it. If you're looking for messages, though, you may find them. Practically speaking, it's best to check out our interpretations with another person. Since interpreting Divine messages is also a challenge, the door is open to interpret an event in a self serving way. "I stubbed my toe getting out of bed. I guess God wants me to lie in bed all day and relax." Call a friend and ask what they think, just to make sure you're being honest. Although the spiritual world responds in a way that mirrors our actions, not all of our circumstances are a reaction to us, some are purely designed for our spiritual growth. God knows what situations and challenges we need to get to the next spiritual level. That's certainly the main point of all that occurs to us. Even when an event is a reaction, it comes in the context of a person's spiritual level and what they need for growth. The point of this rule of the spiritual realm to react to our decisions is obviously not to be a system of reward and punishment. It can be to a partial extent, but there can't possibly be a reward in the physical world that really pays someone for a mitzvah. There's no amount of pleasure in this world to truly compensate for a spiritual achievement. Also, we don't see righteous people getting tons of wonderful experiences and not righteous people getting terrible circumstances. All of that is left for the next realm, the world to come. That's for eternity. The rule of spiritual interaction with us is to constantly fill our life with chances for growth and spiritual challenges that fluctuate with our own spiritual fluctuation.

A word of caution: with all this talk about the meaning behind every event small and large in our lives, you might get the idea that we should question all day long what's happening and why it's happening. This might turn into a very unproductive activity. Every kabbalistic insight must be tested to see if it heightens your spiritual awareness or if it leads to confusion, or worse. If you're striving for greatness and ethical excellence you don't necessarily need to know why you have a specific challenge. We always have the potential to rise to the occasion. If not, God won't give us that spiritual challenge. Sometimes it's better to put on blinders and merely try to be a good person in all circumstances. As it says, "You should be innocent with God, your Lord." (Deuteronomy 18:13) However, if you find it effective, you may learn some important insights about yourself by analyzing your life's circumstances. Nothing is an accident.

As mankind travels through time towards the ultimate redemption, historical events are all happening as responses from the spiritual realm. They are designed to fit man's needs in terms of their spiritual growth as well as the ultimate destiny of man. Whether we see it or not, there's a reason for everything.

Man was meant to live forever. We were originally created and designed to be a spiritual /physical unity that has an infinite connection with our Creator, and does not die. This is hard to fathom given the biological reality we live with. Death is the one thing that all mortals consider inevitable. How did the plan for humanity get changed so drastically? Rabbi Luzzatto explains: The first creation made a fundamental mistake and ate the fruit that God said not to. That mistake changed him from a pure being into a mixture of purity and impurity. That mixture cannot be perfected unless it undergoes disintegration and renewal. This mistake affected all of us because we are all pieces of him. You might say - we die for his sin. If we were to collectively rectify the blemish Adam created we could once again reach a perfection that denies the inevitability of death. This is an example of a major principle that runs through Kabbalah - that mankind, as an extension of the first man, is one.

Our collective purpose of connecting to the Infinite is thwarted by any one individual's transgression. Therefore we bear the negative consequences of other's mistakes. We find this expressed in the Yom Kippur liturgy. The formal confession, that is repeated a number of times during the prayers, is expressed in the plural: "We have betrayed. We have stolen. We have slandered, etc." Upon reading this the first time everyone asks, "Why am I confessing to things I haven't done?" The answer is we are all responsible for each other's mistakes because we are one. Don't worry though; it works in our favor as well. Your fellow man benefits you with his mitzvahs. We can elevate each other or bring each other down. How can it be fair that I'm held accountable for someone else's transgression? The sages tell us that it's not possible for one person to transgress unless the desire for that transgression lies in the heart of us all.

The Torah enjoins us to study all the commandments, even if you don't think you personally will violate all of them. We are also commanded to educate each other, and point out (in a kind, loving, and sensitive way) the violations that we see in each other. It's expected that we protest wrongdoing, and try to convince others of their mistakes. Commandments like, "Don't stand idly be when someone's life is in danger" (Leviticus 19:16), underline the communal responsibility that permeates the Torah. These are not merely moral injunctions but expressions of the spiritual reality that we are all connected. If the essence of man is the soul, and the soul is connected to the Infinite, then all souls are connected and therefore one.

It may seem schizophrenic but many of us may not be only who we think we are. We may be carrying around an extra soul from someone else. We may be here for the second or third time. We may be a reincarnation of someone else, a piece of someone else, or we may share a soul with someone else who is living. It's even said that there is a piece of Moses in every one of us. These are not aspects of our idea of all humanity being connected, yet they accentuate the interconnectedness of the spiritual realm.

Our interdependence connects us throughout our entire history. From the time of the first human until the time of the intended perfection of all humanity. We see this in the kabbalistic teaching that the name Adam hints to this by being an acronym of the first letters of Adam, David, and Messiah in Hebrew. It seems that the DNA of the three major eras of mankind were inscribed in the first creation. It just might be that when mankind realizes how tied to one another we really are the ultimate perfection and purpose of creation will be at hand. And then we will live forever.See more of these essays on kabbalahmadeeasy.com

A principle that is part of the philosophical underpinnings of Kabbalah is the recognition that God is not only the creator of our reality, but He also is in control of everything in existence. This implies that all events that occur are either caused by His command or at least allowed to occur by His tacit approval. Of course since this is a basic point of Jewish philosophy all intelligent Jews hold its general understanding. The mystics, however, seem to be much more acutely aware of this aspect of truth.

The spiritual world responds to the physical world. This means that many of the events that happen to us are a specific reaction to something we've done. It may be a benefit that comes from a good deed, or a negative consequence of a bad deed. What goes around comes around in quite a specific way. If your spiritual composition passes through one area of challenge you may even find yourself in a negative situation (from your perspective) as a result of a good deed. What it means is you've risen to a new level and you're ready for a more significant challenge. From a non-spiritual perspective a person may say, "Why is this catastrophe happening to me?" This is like a sophomore in college going into junior year saying, "but I passed my finals, why are they giving me even more complicated work to do?" When you realize fully that life is meant to be a process of spiritual growth you will accept and even welcome new challenges.

After all, being given a difficult task is actually God complimenting you; He's saying, "I know you're ready for this."Any life situation may be a challenge or even a message from the Al-mighty. The sages say that since we don't have prophecy in our era; life's events are the only way God can speak to us. We may not understand all the messages, but a moment's pause to reflect on a special event in your life may reap some interesting results. The very fact that you recognize God runs the world and nothing is an accident is an elevating thought, which can have powerful reverberations. The Zohar says that no blade of grass grows without an angel striking and saying, "Grow." Also, knowing that there is a meaning to everything can be calming in the face of life's many adversities. Sartre and other existentialists came to the correct conclusion that without God, nothing means anything. What many people don't realize is that with God everything is meaningful. This doesn't mean we can figure out the "why" behind all of life's difficulties or tragedies. If we could we'd be God. Some things that happen to us are recompense from previous existences, reincarnations. It even seems we're not meant to know it all. This itself is one of life's challenges, to trust the Infinite Being when we're confused by injustice. God's knowledge is clear, though, when you come to the point of the next world. What pain and suffering is so terrible when it is replaced with an eternity of pleasure? Not only that but the soul in the next world is unencumbered by the fog of physicality. It becomes attached to God and will comprehend the necessity for all that it went through.

The other side of the coin is also true. What to you may seem as a good thing happening to a bad person may in fact be to their detriment. The worst thing that can happen to a materialistic person is to win the lottery. They, of course, are ecstatic. Now, however, they can waste even more time. They can buy sixteen motorcycles, three houses, and all the other "toys" they want. Spiritually they are wallowing in the mud. People with less leisure time may actually be able to live a more spiritually sensitive life. Conversely, when an evil person is deprived of the ability to do evil, that is a tremendous spiritual benefit. As a wise woman I know once said to a criminal in jail, "You are very lucky they stopped you from doing more damage to your soul."

The Talmud says that the next world is upside down. With a little perspective or re framing you can bring some of the next world into this one. And then we all can have a bit more clarity.

Since this world is the corridor to the next, and our experience in the next world is dependent on our spiritual growth in this world, then it's clear that the purpose of life is only achieved through meaningful personal change. If we hide from, shirk, ignore, or pass by the challenges that life offers, we are doing ourselves the most serious disservice of all. We need growth. The mystically inclined are more attuned to the reality of the next world and, therefore, our purpose here. The effect of this has been that they have traditionally taken a keener interest in personal reflection, contemplation, and change. You can affect your own changes. If a person will do the work on him/herself, there is less need for challenges to be brought on a person from above.

An example of this is the beginning of the book of Job. God indicates to the prosecuting angel that Job is a very righteous person. The angel replies that his righteousness is due to the many blessings God has bestowed upon him. Give him pain and suffering and his righteousness will cease. The angel is pointing out that Job's personality has not been challenged with suffering. Therefore he is tested in order for him to have the chance to reach a higher level of righteousness. Had Job challenged himself and worked on raising his connection with God above and beyond appreciation for his blessings, he wouldn't have needed to be tested. We can attempt to elevate ourselves, or we can have circumstances thrust upon us from the spiritual realm that elevate us through challenge. Either way is for our benefit.

Not all challenges are the pain and suffering of Job, of course. They can be any moral dilemma, minor annoyance, or crossroads you face. Most of the points of growth we have are all in the same range of moral choices and therefore do not affect us in a significant way. Once in a while we face a major dilemma that causes us to tap into a much deeper part of ourselves. At that time you may feel like the movie caricature with a devil on one shoulder and an angel on the other each trying to convince you which way to go. It is that type of experience that changes the direction of your life and brings about a very different set of consequences from the spiritual realm. The spiritual responds to the physical and sets up new and different challenges and lessons based on your decision. (Lessons are sent to us to indicate the direction we need to grow in.) Somewhat separate from all the many challenges we face is a specific challenge that is our main test in life. This major test affects us and humanity in a defined way, which was constructed by God. This is known as a "tikkun." Litaken in Hebrew means "to fix." Your tikkun is that one spiritual blemish that you are created with, that represents your particular contribution to the tikkun of all mankind. We are not necessarily meant to know what that tikkun is. You may, however, be in touch with yourself enough to get a general idea. They say the prophets could tell you what your individual tikkun was. A famous kabbalist from the seventeenth century called the Ari HaKodesh was known to have been able to do this. There may even be kabbalists alive today who claim to have this ability. There's a reason why God does or does not let us know our personal test.

The most important thing to realize is the following. With the idea of a major challenge or tikkun in mind, it's easier to see how what may appear to you as the biggest problem of your life, may in fact be your greatest spiritual benefit. It may be affecting and fulfilling your most important tikkun. The calmness that this perspective will give you will also give you a much greater chance of passing that test.

God's existence is something very far removed from anything we can comprehend. He is immanent and part of everything we know; yet we cannot know Him. To ponder Him confounds the mind. As He said to Moses, "No man can see me and live." (Exodus 33:20) Why can we not "see" God? Because we are not capable, while in the form of a human being, of grasping God. Our physicality, as a barrier, makes it impossible. When someone dies and the soul is detached from the body, then he can see God.

In between our existence and God's essence are levels and layers of worlds, universes, and spiritual entities. God created and designed these things. The study and understanding of these forces and realities are a large part of kabbalistic thought. There are upper realms and lower realms all in an intricately entwined matrix type design linking our realm of reality to worlds above which ascend to a reality much closer to God's essence. Since these realms are created as form without matter, they do not have spatial relationships. Hence, as soon as we try to picture these realms and levels we are distorting our understanding. This causes quite an obstacle for many to a true understanding of the spiritual world. To aid our ability to understand the spiritual side, God gave hints and clues in the physical realm, and in the written Torah. The Hebrew language is the foundation of the Torah, and the alphabet is the backbone of the language. Other languages may have evolved organically, or developed from one language mixing with another. Hebrew was something that was formed by an Infinite Being and has intrinsic meaning and holiness. Each letter is a symbol of a spiritual reality that God created. There are twenty-two letters, which are divided into three
groups by the kabbalists: A group of three that are symbolic of the primordial elements with which God created physicality: air, water, and fire. A group of seven that are symbolic of the seven main celestial bodies: Sun, Moon, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn, and Mars. These in turn have a connection with the seven days of the week. And a last group of twelve that are symbolic of the twelve signs of the zodiac, and the twelve months, which in turn are connected to the twelve tribes of Jacob.

Each of these groups fulfills a function in the world aside from its representation of a higher reality. The stars and planets are conduits for the spiritual influences from above. The first two groups combine to form a group of ten. This group is the precursor to the ten statements of creation, the ten plagues in Egypt, and the Ten Commandments. Ten is a unit. It represents completeness. God hid the knowledge of how the spiritual world is
structured; yet at the same time He revealed it to us through the stars, planets, and the alphabet. The Torah also hints to much of the mystical side of the universe. If you are sensitive to the words and looking for spiritual insights you will find them in the Torah, the Prophets, the Writings, and also the Siddur.

Understand that the group of ten is an essential theme in Kabbalah. The group expresses ten qualities of Godliness that we find in the world. These ten qualities are known as the Sefirot, and they exist as the backbone of the spiritual realm that exists somehow between God's essence and our reality. What is the purpose of the knowledge of these sefirot or any of the other aspects of Kabbalah? All of existence is here for us to come closer to God. Every commandment is an opportunity for a connection to God, and every piece of Torah knowledge binds you to God. It's His book, and His instructions. That's what the Torah and the commandments are here for. The study of Kabbalah in particular describes how God runs the universe, which is a much more powerful and more revealing glimpse of God's actual self, so to speak. We can never, as we've said, really know God while we are in the body. Kabbalah, however, gives us the greatest possibility of closeness. For this reason, Kabbalah in traditional sources is called Chachmas HaElohus" which means "The knowledge of Godliness". One who studies Kabbalah without wanting to understand and get closer to the Al-mighty is like reading a book on advanced Geometry because you like the looks of the diagrams. You're missing the point. If you separate Kabbalah from its source then you no longer have Kabbalah. You have something else. One must be involved in some way with Torah study and mitzvah observance in order to really ever know Kabbalah.

Written by Rabbi Max Weiman   
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Jorge Magalhães
Acesse:http://jorgemagalhaes.blogspot.com
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