What is Kabbalah?

Signup for your FREE trial to The Great Courses Plus here: ow.ly/2h9b30rzWhn
Special thanks to Seth Weprin for co-writing this episode. Thanks to Gavi from @UNPACKED for reading an early draft.
Join my online seminars on ancient religion: www.speakeasy.com/speaker/and...
Or, join our Patreon community!: / religionforbreakfast
One-time donations here!: www.paypal.me/religionforbrea...
Check out my favorite religious studies books by following this affiliate link to my Amazon page: www.amazon.com/shop/religionf...
References:
Boaz Huss, "All You Need Is LAV: Madonna and Postmodern Kabbalah," The Jewish Quarterly Review, Vol. 95, No. 4 (Fall 2005).
Burack, C. D. H. Lawrence's Language of Sacred Experience: the Transfiguration of the Reader, 2005.
Gershom Scholem. “First Lecture: General Characteristics of Jewish Mysticism.” In "Major
Trends in Jewish Mysticism," 1-39. Jerusalem, Israel: Schocken Books, 1974.
Joseph Dan, "Kabbalah: A Very Short Introduction," 2007.
Yaacob Dweck, "The Scandal of Kabbalah: Leon Modena, Jewish Mysticism, Early Modern Venice."
Itzik Lodzer (Arthur Green), “Notes from the Jewish Underground: Psychedelics and Kabbalah,”
Response 2:1 (Winter 1968): 9-21.
Steven T. Katz, Comparative Mysticism: an Anthology of Original Sources. Oxford University Press, 2013.
Harriet Ryan and Kim Christensen. “Celebrities Gave Kabbalah Centre Cachet, and Spurred Its Growth.” Los Angeles Times, 18 Oct. 2011.

[@ReligionForBreakfast]

Signup for your FREE trial to The Great Courses Plus here: ow.ly/2h9b30rzWhn

[@erdood3235]

I'm a native Hebrew speaker, and you've mispronounced Kabbalah

[@saintsm]

Pop kabbalah is pure bulshit

[@randomango2789]

Can u do a video on the mystical practices of Christian hesychasm?

[@elijahyoung11]

Do a video on Ron Wyatt lol

[@thomasridley8675]

With such a diverse collection of religious beliefs. You have a job for life.

[@garrettf7139]

Please do something on hermetics. Or Victorian occultism like the Golden dawn, Thelema, how it all relates to Kabbalah and other forms of high magick in general. That’s a crazy wormhole I’d love to hear your explanation on.

[@ghosthunter2211]

I completely agree. 👆 Would love to hear your take on this.

[@AshHeaven]

I agree! I would love videos on Thelema ceremonial magick and magickal fraternal societies as well.

[@ancientfae7246]

Yes yes yes!!!

[@Yabyummy2000]

Yes! Now that Jewish Kabbalah has been covered, let's hear how it was adapted into Hermetic Qabalah!

[@spithere4933]

It’s the same source. Why would u get it thru a human or an angel or a demon name when you can get it thru God’s name

[@EMO_alpha]

Yeah, its nice hearing about religion from a secular world view thats not anti theist.

[@TV---kn2rl]

@@billybobthekidiswack Thanks!

[@EMO_alpha]

@@Ozzymandius1 Which is what secular should mean.

[@yoryteperman429]

Good comment, but, it is true atheists who can possibly be anti-theists, and, do keep in mind that in real life there are almost no atheists exist: Majority of self-identified atheists, when you press them a little harder, admit to being agnostics rather than real hardcore atheists. It just that some people are unwilling to blindly believe, and true miracles are hard to come by... Still, as the Jewish joke goes: on a falling plane, every atheist passenger very promptly is transformed into a true believer...

[@EMO_alpha]

@@yoryteperman429 I also think alot of secular people are given theological straw man by pop culture of both being a mon materialist and by what religion actually is.

[@originaluddite]

@@yoryteperman429 interesting you say that. I'm a self-professed agnostic and I've had militant atheists try to tell me I'm really an atheist like them, because of my lack of belief in God. Even if there was something in what they say, the tone they take puts me off.

[@fratercontenduntocculta8161]

I love how virtually everything about Judaism is never easily explained. The Zohar is anything but light reading, and a working knowledge of the Tanach (all of the books of the old testament) is needed to comprehend it's largely symbolic written style. Understanding and a desire to have it would help us all get along, so I'm telling every one I know of your channel. I find Theology to be one of my favorite non professional hobbies, and am thankful you make such thoughtful videos.

[@A-No-One]

Theology will never help you understand these teachings lol

[@NimsChannel]

Advanced dungeon and dragons.

[@jdoe7674]

@@A-No-One exactly if you want to understand things you gotta go to God directly but to be honest most people aren’t ready to experience things not of this earth some people are better off sticking with there books

[@freedomaboveallll]

Because they dont want you to know they are satanists. Devil worshipers.

[@ether23-23]

@@jdoe7674 And how exactly do you do that?

[@AG_KEMPER]

We started talking about the sefirot and Tree of Life yesterday at Torah study, so thank you for helping me unpack it further!

[@EzraB123]

I'm Jewish and this is bar far the best explanation of Kabbalah I've seen on KZbin, even better than some Rabbis, lol.

[@elitaerms]

shalom shalom

[@caroldreiling3899]

I would love to get your take on who Jesus was.

[@EzraB123]

@@caroldreiling3899 A false prophet. Not negative, not positive. Just indifference. The Jewish take on Jesus is the same as the Christian take on Vishnu. He simply does not play a role in Judaism, nor do his teachings.

[@youtubeuseri57]

@MJXO you’re getting defensive for no reason lol.

[@hadriananton9762]

@MJXO Pretty ignorant take honestly. Don’t blind yourself with dogmatic truths there mate do your own research in the subject

[@AdamMorganIbbotson]

You’re one of the best educational KZbinrs. You’ve helped me realise how fascinating the history of religion is.

[@ReligionForBreakfast]

Glad to hear it, thank you! The history of religion is indeed fascinating.

[@astraeusgodofthestars676]

Agree! ✨

[@singhjasbeer5216]

@@ReligionForBreakfast I wish you long and a very happy life sir. I want to bring to your notice one more exclusive religion of Japan (actually a religious Buddhist sect) named Jodo Shinshu, this is the largest denomination of Buddhism in Japan which has it’s roots in Pure Land Buddhism. The great scholar D.T Suzuki was born a Jodo Shinshu Buddhist too.

[@ChaplainBobWalkerBTh]

Kabbalah is magic, satanism and witchcraft masquerading as Judaism

[@ChaplainBobWalkerBTh]

@Jacob Price Abraham and Jesus did not practice magic and I do not adhere to anything with the vatican

[@danielpaulson8838]

This is definitely a favorite channel. The more one knows about religious diversity, the more one sees their similarities.

[@dixon6300]

I learned so much but what REALLY got me was “bibliography in the description” as a historian I never appreciated a KZbin video description so much. Thank you thank you! I will be checking out those sources soon.

[@danielmoore4871]

Seriously. Such a rare, but wonderful thing on this platform. When sources are cited, you can do fact checking and often times find interesting reading to do in your spare time.

[@caterinagerbasi1594]

I looooove that you are not using the usual youtube style. you dont care if this is too dense. you trust your audience not being babies. this is an amazing video that I will have to see a couple of times to start understanding it.

[@jay-rene992]

I normally watch videos at 1.25 but I have to watch him at .75 and I love it haha

[@NimsChannel]

I could go for less of his face, I prefer to listen to the audio.

[@caterinagerbasi1594]

@@NimsChannel leave his face alone!

[@carlosmedina8783]

@@caterinagerbasi1594 lol

[@redneckshaman3099]

I'm addicted to pigger nussy 🤠

[@be1tube]

"You've probably seen schematic drawings of this tree around the internet if you ..." (4:13) watched Fullmetal Alchemist. I've never done any research into Kaballah, but as soon as I saw the diagram, I recognized it as being connected to the anime.

[@sethapex9670]

You might also recognize it from neon genesis evangelion, in the title sequence.

[@danman1950]

Ditto Neon Evangelion Genisis

[@be1tube]

Thinking about it, I also remember it in Ghost in the Shell during the final battle sequence. It ends up defaced.

[@jasonGamesMaster]

Also, the name of Sephiroth from Final Fantasy 7 is derived from Sefirot, if I remember correctly.

[@pendaflux]

...have impaled your eva with the lance of longinus.

[@singhjasbeer5216]

I was always and always waiting for an explanation of Kabbalah in this channel. Kabbalah is something which has made me see Jewish religion in very positive light, I am a Sikh and an Indian and kabblah helped me in clearing many mystical concepts of Sikhi also.

[@abeninan4017]

Both Kabbalah and theories of Stephen Hawking are taken from the Indian vedas and upanishads.

[@singhjasbeer5216]

@@abeninan4017 Knowledge of Upanishads are truly amazing. I love Vedanta and Vedas are kings no doubt about that.

[@NousSpeak]

I really love how academic yet completely accessible your channel is. Thank you for producing all this amazing content!

[@jecaurhyn]

Brave of ReligionForBreakfast to tackle this topic. What is and isn't Kabbalah is way more controversial than I think us outsiders could ever understand. Great job making it digestible!

[@ReligionForBreakfast]

Such a vast subject to cover in only one video.

[@ramingr]

@@ReligionForBreakfast which is why you might wanna make it into a mini series! I love all of your videos but this one I found particularly interesting.

[@chendaforest]

@@ReligionForBreakfast Soon you'll be ready to take on Hinduism ;)

[@Ellier215]

Why is it controversial?

[@chendaforest]

@@AnhadNaad9 Agreed

[@Qwajman97]

I’d love to see a video in regards to Kabbalah, Gnosticism, and Jung. Very fascinating subjects to think about.

[@Built_By_Bacon]

I’m reading his book on synchronicity right now lol

[@deeroberts8090]

Play Xenogears lol

[@rosap5458]

That would be very interesting, would love to see that as well.

[@oumaimaelamraoui8218]

My favorite topics

[@zebakhawaja]

❤The Kaaba'Lah is House/Throne of the One(God) that Abaraham re-built in Mecca called the House of God which was originally built by Adam and Eve ... the Kaaba is called the Black CUBE, The Black Throne of the ONE covered in a Black Cloth written with the songs of Abaraham in gold writing in Arabic and is the representation of the Kaaba'Lah (Throne of ONE) Lah translates to ONE in Armiac and Arabic. and praises of the al/the LAH, Al/The YUD of Compassion and Merci and Love.. The Kaaba is the centre of the Earth which is the reflection of the Heavens Universe above... The white light radiates from the Kaaba in Mecca seen by the Astronauts from above Everything you teach is taught in Isa'lam in the Qur'an and specifically In Sufism. Peace be upon all followers of Abaraham Amen, Muhammad who practice the Laws of Moses called Mose'lim and religion or Jesus Isa (Isa'lam is the religion of Jesus co.pleted by Muhammad) Amen In the name of The LAH/ONE/YUD ❤ The Qur'an says to read Zohar and the Zohar Prooves Isa'lam is the religion of God and the House of God in Mecca is The Throne of God called the Kaaba'La Kaaba translate to Throne.al/the LAH, Al/The YUD

[@mr.richardryan7506]

The best overview of kabbalah I have seen. Excellent, clear and concise without any long winded and vague explanations. Thank you.

[@M4YPL3]

Thank you for your work, to see you talk about what I'm working on religiously is really cool! ❤️

[@allyzapena1001]

i have been waiting for this!! i went on a jewish/christian rabbit hole because of how weird evangelion was and their references to biblical angels

[@quattrobajeena135]

Legends of History is the channel

[@alphavolta5038]

Lol the only real way into religion

[@emsavings]

love this

[@whathell6t]

@@alphavolta5038 Nah! The way to be depressed and suffer death-induced existential & societal anxiety.

[@jon9428]

I'm Jewish and Evangelion is my favorite anime. It's what got me curious about Kabbalah and really gave me goosebumps about the whole nature of reality, suffering and the self. It's a deep work of fiction.

[@jonathanheisler3587]

Would love to see you take a look at the new Dead Sea Scroll finds!

[@cg1906]

Brilliant! Me too

[@canttellyoucuzurastranger9400]

the ones about the 3rd impact

[@Epiousios18]

Didn't hear about this. What did they find exactly?

[@a787fxr]

Some of the ones that I have seen are just ordinary. A letter about food. An agreement for rent even.

[@tabryis]

@@canttellyoucuzurastranger9400 😂

[@troyhongsermeier9462]

from Bowie's Station to Station, "Here are we, one magical movement from kether to malkuth,”

[@junaid1]

Really well done! You took a very complicated subject and explained it in a very basic way and with great sensitivity. Clearly there is a lot more to say but what a beautiful 20 minute introduction.

[@davidschmidt5507]

Orthodox Jew: This was really well done. Although my only reading of texts mentioned here is when I use the Zohar as a commentary on the Torah, even then I usually have no idea what is going on.

[@angelashort1331]

One can be forever learning , There's a COMMENTARY , ON THE COMMENTARY , ON THE commentary , and on and on , THERE IS ONE WHO EMBODIED ALL KNOWLEDGE AND ALL WISDOM , AND AT 12 YRS OLD , HE HELD THE AUDIENCE OF RABBIS IN THE PALM OF HIS HAND AT TEMPLE . , WISE HEADS SAID OF HIM, NEVER HAS ONE SPOKEN AS THIS MAN SPEAKS , This MAN embodies the TORAH , . HE IS TORAH ,HIMSELF , He worked miracles , but still , THEY went to stone Him, FINALLY HE LET HIMSELF BE TAKEN , AND RIGHT ON SCHEDUAL, HE BECAME THEIR LAMB OF SACRIFICE , FOR PESACH. HE IS INDEED , THE LAMB OF G D, SLAIN FOR THE SINS OF THE WORLD , PERFECT TORAH, THE LIVING WORD , YESHUA, G D SAVES , INDEED, ani Angela nz

[@angelashort1331]

THIS IS , My Beloved Son , HEAR HIM , . ❤ 😍 💖 ❣ 💕 💘 ❤ 😍 💖 ❣ 💕 💘 ❤ 😍 💖 ❣ 💕 💘 ❤ 😍 💖 ❣ 💕 💘 ❤

[@WhatCanSmith]

tell us about the Talmud...are there any rules in there regarding non-jews that non-jews might raise an eyebrow at?

[@jbghumanjr]

I wish SO BADLY your entire channel was taught to all High School students across the globe. It'd change the rational of our species towards dogma and overall induce a deeper conscious awareness for the patterns in our way of "belief." All of which would lead us into future that is more connected to a larger scope of reality. But yea... I dig it. TY for all your hard work. You deserve millions of subs. And I've no doubt you'll get them.

[@Spacemuffin147]

Knowing God is quite something. The mathematics go with God anyways. Divide some numbers and they end up in the infinite.

[@mishookropiridze]

@@Spacemuffin147 That which you asserted is nonsense. Mathematics is independent of reality, thus independent of God.

[@R2-DPOO]

Im an atheist and i love this channels work so I'm not sure i agree with you saying that it will lead people to piety but i do agree that it would definitely be a better world if all people where more literate in regards to religious history.

[@jbghumanjr]

@@R2-DPOO piety? I def was not saying (that). I said a “larger scope of reality.” Not religion.

[@R2-DPOO]

@@jbghumanjr ok, it was your use of the word dogma that made me think that is what you meant.

[@yoryteperman429]

A really good overview of the topic. Harold Bloom, that Giant of American Literary Criticism who passed away after decades of teaching at Yale, also wrote several books on the subject, with the smallest and rarest also being the densest and most illuminating - it is called "Kabbalah and Criticism", and it is very dense indeed, as its "only" 67 small format pages will boggle your mind for days. It does address most important concepts, though its focus is primarily with Isaak Luria's teachings, which remain the most mysterious teachings within the body of Kabbalah... Highly recommend the book to all, except those who seek some magical formulas, as you will not find any in this book. Just pure intellectual stimulation... Cheers!

[@jaderbabe2535]

I've been watching your videos for years now and this is, by far, my favorite.

[@Lilly-Gorney]

I recognize a lot of these symbols almost entirely just from Japanese media, which tends to have a fascination with religious symbols of this nature. I'd be curious to learn the reason behind that.

[@colereece3902]

I haven’t done much anime watching, but I have noticed a massive correlation with witches, and anime. I’m not saying correlation = causation. It is something I’ve noticed however

[@mattbenz99]

Japan just has a fascination with Western symbols. It is actually quite similar to how the West has a fascination with Eastern symbols. If you go to Japan, you will see a lot of decretive English that doesn't make a lot of sense when you try and read it. The same is true in the West where you will sometimes see random Chinese or Japanese characters on things. Really, it just shows how similar humans are in the end. Adding those foreign symbols to things makes people feel like your product is exotic.

[@faithlesshound5621]

The most striking example of this kind of cultural appropriation must be the adoption of the swastika symbol by the Nazis, and their successors on the far right. The neo-Trumpians have morphed that into the Odal rune.

[@1TutorialBoss]

I'd really like to see a video oh him disecting Neon Genesis Evangelion

[@erlinacobrado7947]

It's all icing and decoration for them. There's really no genuine attempt in Japanese media to either understand or dignify or give adequate honour to these symbols.

[@Liquidsback]

As American Dad once said, Kaballah is Judaism...after dark.

[@user-in1yw9ty5t]

chaos study?

[@Epiousios18]

Not a bad joke. MacFarlane is an idiot when it comes to religion in general though. I'd argue he's legitimately done some harm in American Culture in regards to how his shows propagate ideas of religions based off their "lowest common denominator."

[@GOREilla.]

@@Epiousios18 "american culture" would be better if people know what jews do after dark

[@Epiousios18]

@@GOREilla. Hard to disagree with that.

[@thebuddhistjesus9878]

Same could be said about Abraham's god and his demands for child sacrifice

[@barbaraolson600]

Thank you and the team. Love, light, joy and blessings to all.

[@yaelella7554]

I cant believe you also included ‏שיר השירים (song of songs) in your explanations. Well done - also your pronunciations was very good particularly the way you said Shimon Bar Yochai was impressive.

[@porterlazure2984]

Straight to the point, explicative and complete (as far as a single youtube video on the subject can be).

[@Crick1952]

I loved that you mentioned Night by Eli Wiesel. We read it in High School and it really impacted me.

[@Bei-Abedan]

I usually find some mistake in your videos. This time I would say your introduction was flawless. Well done and thank you. This saves me a lot of time and I will be linking to your video from some of my own which might require students to have a background understanding first.

[@movie30000]

I feel so blessed to enjoy your knowledge. We need a more people like you .

[@3ou1man]

Great content as always!! Best religious studies channel on KZbin. The hard work you put in shows. Keep it up!

[@TheForeignersNetwork]

Kabbalah is incredibly, INCREDIBLY similar to Advaita Hinduism and Kashmir Shaivism. "Ein Sof" is basically equivalent to the Hindu concept of brahman (cit). Brahman is contracted into the individual human atma much in the way that Kabbalists see Ein Sof as contracting into the living universe. In Kashmir Shaivism, the masculine principle is all-pervasive awareness (sat cit ananda, or Shiva, or Bhairava), and the feminine principle is represented by the Mahavidyas (goddesses that are much like Sefirot; they are the receivers of the masculine awareness). The feminine envelopes the masculine, such that there is no Shiva without Shakti. There's a common saying in Kashmir Shaivism that Shiva without Shakti (the letter "i") is "Shava" or a corpse. There are just so many fascinating parallels between this system and Kabbalah.

[@tychocollapse]

A little. Atman "contracted" into living beings versus the ein sof contracted from the universe means different things. Contracted is " " quoted in ref to Hinduism as the word is a descriptor, but in kabbalah, very much a deliberate verb. Its the nature of atman to be inside, and not so much a procedural minimizing of Brahman. In kabbalah, the contracting is a physical absence to allow the universe separate from the divine. Atman is Brahman as micro is macro, so that beings are so. There is no empty separation. Further, kabbalah believes the separated parts can be reconstructed into the whole. There is few explicit similar Hindu take on the Atman "reconstructed", since it is its nature, as is. Educate me otherwise.

[@ChiGyu620]

Ehh... sort of. There are some superficial similarities, but they're definitely not perfectly analogous.

[@darlene_1998]

I remember in ethics & religions class in 2012 i did a presentation on Kabbalah because I was so fascinated by it, always nice to revisit it, thanks

[@blixten2928]

WONDERFUL WONDERFUL WONDERFUL. Your lectures are SO interesting, SO scholarly, and SO much fun!! THank you so much!!

[@MIKAEL212345]

This is incredible. I searched your channel a couple of days ago thinking you already had a video on this and now you do.

[@cindypurina2327]

I don't feel like I ever really started out with an interest in Kabbalah, but this video has definitely made me far more interested.

[@mattbenz99]

If you plan to look into it, try and find people actually qualified to teach it. There are so many conspiracy theory type lessons on youtube and other services pretending to be experts. Really, you need to just think of Kabbalah like a Jewish version of meta-physics.

[@connormcintosh4828]

Early exposure to F.M.A. ensured my interest.

[@tophers3756]

@@mattbenz99 how is one qualified to teach mystical superstition?

[@ookie4179]

It’s the devils science!

[@oaktree__]

If you're interested in learning kabbalah, you must start by converting to Judaism under the auspices of a qualified rabbi and synagogue community. Kabbalah is a closed cultural practice. Once you've converted to Judaism (this should take about a year, maybe two), you can master Tanakh and Talmud, and then you can begin the process of finding a teacher of kabbalah. If you start the conversion process now, you might be able to begin learning kabbalah within 5-10 years.

[@kicksterama]

Dude, you’re awesome! I love your sophisticated yet down to earth teaching style. Thanks so much!

[@brunogiambroni1422]

As usual, incredibly informative! Thank you

[@hczdiy]

You should do a video on the Qlippoth!

[@Reporterreporter770]

Yeh right kilpot 🤩

[@gingercore69]

Its a topic that is very hard to find good info on... I also want to see that

[@psyie666]

Teach us more!!!

[@hczdiy]

For those who are interested, Rose Crowley has videos on the Qlippoth.

[@satansjihad6353]

OH YEAH

[@cool_sword]

Thanks for consistently providing clear and concise explanations to things that made me say "that sounds neat, but I'm too lazy to read about it" like 3 months ago

[@michaeljosefjackson]

6:05 is the opposide of my faveret Einstein quote: The most incomprehensible thing about the universe is that it is comprehensible

[@fransmars1645]

Only, it is not! There is no rule that states that things have to be comprehensible.

[@jefesilvia8326]

My new favorite channel! Keep ‘em coming!

[@KomodoMagic]

4:11 Thanks to End Of Evangelion, I know that image very well 8:47 The Zohar, thanks to the Xeno series, I also know this very well

[@bandera_father]

Man of culture

[@bagelmeister2295]

Profile pic of culture

[@cleitonfelipe2092]

An otaku nerd of culture

[@quattrobajeena135]

Hey man any good anime recommendations?

[@ElZorroXIV]

I can also thank Shadow Hearts and SMT

[@dddboom]

Fascinating, love to here more detail on this and go down thr rabbit hole. I find your videos very easy watching , great channel 👏

[@blink11101]

I kind of wish I hadn't found your channel. You explain complex topics too clearly. Now I find myself binging a lot of your videos.

[@annalisette5897]

Thank you for this. I could never begin to understand Kabbalah. I still do not understand it but the basics have been presented in twenty minutes and if I want to know more I can watch the video over and over. I think I learned something. This is one of the most complex religious practices I have ever heard of.

[@souvlaki9951]

You deserve more subscribers! Your videos are so fascinating. Loving every upload!

[@aliastagami2346]

I know you put a lot of work into your videos and I know you practice extraordinary care in how you present different religious topics. It is so appreciated and it makes your work's quality and accessibility top notch. Thank you!

[@DanielGrovePhoto]

Great video! Ironically I'm watching this BECAUSE of the great courses. I'm listening to the Story of the Bible and Kaballah comes up, I've always wondered what's up with it. Thanks for making this and the delivery was great.

[@alittleatinyatiny1821]

Recently had read the sefer yetzirah. It was a great experience of knowledge and learning.

[@SeekersofUnity]

Beautifully done Andrew. You managed to pack so much into those 20 mins and kept it rigorous and entertaining. Stunning work.

[@chrisman5493]

Thank you for putting out this video! I'm a big fan of the more mystical sides of religion :)

[@DEichenberg]

Good video! Always been interested in the subject, as it pops up everywhere in studies of the occult.

[@lucasjeemanion]

wow. this is a highly informative and well researched account of kabbalah. i have been a kabbalist for many years and this is one of the best videos on kabbalah if not he best I have yet to see on youtube.

[@robertl4522]

This video helps fill some knowledge gaps I had about this subject. My journey down this rabbit hole was seeing the kabbalah on the full metal alchemist brotherhood anime.

[@davidcheater4239]

If you do a Kabbalah part two; I'd love you to talk about some of the ways Kabbalah is part of "normative" Jewish practice such as the Kabbalat Shabbat service on Friday nights and the use of the sefiroth in counting the Omer.

[@JGRAECE]

This is super helpful! Thank you. Keep up the great work 🌹

[@jackpullen3820]

So good, I can tell you have fun doing this Andrew

[@monalisa8638]

This is incredibly interesting stuff to learn about. First introduced through an anime of all things and then later finding out an ancestor of mine was Moses de Leon who wrote the Zorah, I was just left instanely confused. This video helps a lot.

[@intercyanide]

haha, yeah, there’s a bunch of kabbalah references in anime culture. i learned about it from a rhythm game song.

[@brucewilson1958]

Hi. I've been a member of the Baha'i Religion, the Baha'i Faith, for 35 years. Since we celebrate and believe in all of the Prophets and Sacred Scriptures, I study all of them. You really helped me get my little mind around this subject. Thank you. Love and Light.

[@mrmcface713]

Read Psalm 22

[@mmm-cs7tb]

you believe in the Bible the Quran and the Torah in conjunction? they disagree with each other about who God is though and who are projects etc. so you mean you pick and choose from everything..?

[@TruthAmidstTribulation]

Thank you for sharing this video! Great research.

[@acreymundo]

Excellent, as usual. Thank you 🙏🏼

[@Mutxarra]

Thank you for your videos. I have never commented on any of them before, but I appreciate your work very much. I am a Catalan and when you mentioned Girona as a Kabbalistic center my mind immediately jumped to a very good book for both laymen and people interested in the field about the lives, discoveries, sciences and writings of the catalan jews before the progroms of 1391. The book is by Hebraist Manuel Forcano and its title is "Els Jueus catalans" (The Catalan Jews). I don't know if it's been translated into english, but I thought you may like to check it out. Thanks again for your good work!

[@faithlesshound5621]

I looked it up on Amazon UK, where "A History of Jewish Catalonia" by the same author is said to have come out in 2009, seven years before the similar book in Catalan. However, they claim that it too is in Catalan: shurely shome mishtake?

[@carazy123_]

17:14 this is pretty wild, but I actually learned of Kabbalah through Assassin’s Creed! In AC: Revelations, one of the game’s “clues” references the Tetragrammaton and the 72 names of God from Kabbalistic tradition. This Wikipedia rabbit-hole inspired a lot of my personal interest in historical interpretations/criticism of the Bible and has massively expanded my faith. Who would’ve guessed?

[@stephenking5852]

I can’t remember how I learned about it, but it had something to do with learning about various types of magic.

[@MrCmon113]

Me. People can easily be 100% resistant to new information. You can give someone a text that disagrees with their position diametrically. They can say that they understand and agree with the text. But if you quiz them, they still hold their old position. So something can seem profound to a person without them understanding any of it nor changing their prior opinions.

[@ZeSheshamHahu]

I had a class at university about Jewish folklore and we went to the home of a collector of Yudenka (Jewish material cultural items). The collector had a huge scroll of an extended Kabalah tree. Have no idea what it included but just seeing the scroll made it clear Kabalah is waaay more complex then most people think.

[@yizzlekizzle2311]

This page is refreshing as much as it is entertaining an educational. I don't even know if the people behind this are spiritual or religious themselves.

[@neilm.frau-cortes7305]

As a Kabbalah scholar myself, congratulations on this lesson. Of course a few details here and there would be out for discussion but I will still recommend it as a great introduction. Thanks so much

[@giorgiaolivotto8442]

The exam on Qabbalah and jewish philosophy at my university was one of the toughest I had to prepare, but it was indeed very interesting.

[@jco2273]

Thanks. That was a great lecture.

[@jussiaarnio4449]

I think this is one of your best videos yet. I would love to see a similar one on Hermeticism.

[@grahamrankin4725]

Thank you for this. I would like to learn more about the numerological aspects of Kabbalah.

[@skjoldursvarturskikkjan7860]

Interesting. Thanks for the video. Although I am an atheist I became obsessed with Kabbalah after reading Foucault's Pendulum, by Umberto Eco. This video was very useful, because, differently from Eco, I am not fluent in every single language ever to read many of the sources about Kabbalah.

[@Neenerella333]

My favorite book ever. There is a lot to keep track of,for sure. Diatollevi finding the 17 names of God using an old computer was a whole thing in itself, though not central to the story. Mad fun.

[@sharky7665]

I see all the comments that ask you to make a video on this or that. Your presentation of the Kabbalah made you a trusted source of information. Very well done.

[@julioalbertopalomo968]

I was just thinking about the Book Night when you mentioned it. Interesting stuff

[@mcobb8823]

Basic of masonry tearing is from Kabbalah.

[@GiladManor01]

Thank you for this video! Would love to hear your take on Shabtai Zvi, the movement he sparked and its relationship to kabalah.

[@ReligionForBreakfast]

That’s coming up soon!

[@andrewalexander5436]

Oooooo, that would be a fantastic video. I'd especially love to see something on the reaction of his followers to his conversion to Islam.

[@JohnSmith-qx8ll]

Read The Jewish Revolutionary Spirit for a true understanding on Zevi.

[@ilikeitidont]

Wonderful video! Hats off to you!!

[@JM-qi5dm]

Sir, your content is amazing! Please, I look forward to your future video's on the Yogic traditions and Hinduism.

[@Amirous]

I'm currently studying in university "introduction to Kabala" and you summarized things pretty well, but i feel like this should have been a couple of videos and not just one- because you covered a lot of stuff in one video 😅

[@Leiferuphugus]

Excellent video! Any chance we'll get a video on the western appropriation of kabbalah into the theurgic practices of the Hermetic traditions?

[@ReligionForBreakfast]

I'm considering something along those lines...but Sabbatianism will come first. That video is about half done.

[@KilluminatiMujahad]

@@ReligionForBreakfast Sabateanism ties into the question. Learn about the asiatic brethren lodge. You could incorporate it into the same video if you know where to look for the information.

[@stoner4378]

Best video i’ve seen in a long time bravo!🙌

[@noahcarpenter8859]

I find it helpful for us to examine the possibility of us being wrong. I find your work as a breath of fresh air. If I am wrong in what I personally believe I will not insult or attack to defend my own ignorance. I understand I could be wrong

[@randomango2789]

Since you made one about Kabbala, can you do a video on Hesychasm? It’s very interesting stuff.

[@averagecomrade8849]

Thank you for this video, high quality content as always . do you have any plans to examine ancient Slavic pagan beliefs?

[@jonjenkins]

Excellent- Most informative & a highly lucid & articulate presenter

[@ronzloof]

Very nice very simple. The most accurate picture to what is kabala i have ever herd from one single source aline the force.

[@keithharrell2796]

Loving the haircut.

[@chrisray9653]

I have a big Zohar book in Hebrew sitting on my shelf, I have no memory of how it appeared or where it came from. 🤯

[@liltito1519]

i had a big žohar in my bathroom once

[@markmcmanus9960]

My go to guy...explains things so well.

[@Outis89]

Excellent video! Probably unrelated, but I couldn't help but notice the tree of the Divine Powers bears a fascinating resemblance to maps of the Norse cosmos, with the 9 realms interconnected through the World Tree, Yggdrasil.

[@vjagpal]

Would love hear the connection and difference between Kabbalah, Adwaita and Sufi traditions .

[@HBCrigs]

Yeah! This!

[@mohamedab9033]

The islamic Sufi tradition has nothing to do with those Gnostic practices, you'v been misinformed.

[@vjagpal]

@@mohamedab9033 It is not about what two traditions has to do with others but understanding the universality of an ideology. It's not the practice which for sure makes them different, it is the philosophy that connects them and make them universal.

[@mohamedab9033]

@@vjagpal The Islamic Sufi's spiritual backbone is the _absolute monotheism of a non anthropomorphic Creator, who is independent and non-contingent_ . And the muslim's spirituality in this sense is to relieve the heart of all desires except the desire of passing the test of life and meeting his/her creator in the afterlife. There are some extra practices that they have which have no islamic justification unfortunately, but the core is still the same. Kabbalah and its like is the exact opposite of Islam here, for these Gnostic idealogies' very foundation is based on Association of partners with the Creator, opposite of monotheism. In fact, Kabbalah goes even beyond and attributes divinity to man himself, and makes the entity called "Lucifer" an equal with the creator named "Adonai" and even paints him in pure holy light.

[@vjagpal]

@@mohamedab9033 Wow, sounds like an expert, not biased at all. Thanks for sharing your mind.

[@awsomeNika]

Thank so much for this! I found a symbol engraved on the back of my grandmothers jewelry, with some research, it lead me to Kabbalah. The symbol is a circle, triangle inside, with a small dot in the triangle. She was also into Magic & spirituality. Still trying to figure out more on the symbol though if anyone can help! Thank you so much! Very educational and beautiful ✨

[@No_jews_allowed]

Your grandma was a witch!!

[@zellaroberts7992]

this was fascinating good job!!

[@redwoodpartisan2433]

Ive been waiting for this video, oh yeah!

[@samrizzardi2213]

As a fan of "The Dark Crystal" and its netflix spinoff series, I really appreciate this. The film is loaded with kabbalistic symbolism.

[@lionofapollo4636]

A Hollywood film with Kabbalistic symbolism? NO WAY

[@rare_goth_metal_and_shoegaze]

@@lionofapollo4636 An anti-semitic Trump supporter? NO WAY

[@UberOtaku001]

Kabbalah symbolism is often used for an appearance of mysticism with no deeper meaning. It's cool, but largely just an aesthetic choice.

[@tulsacountytransparency3716]

@@rare_goth_metal_and_shoegaze Trump is literally a Jew

[@rare_goth_metal_and_shoegaze]

@@tulsacountytransparency3716 That doesn't matter at all.

[@HBCrigs]

I've only heard of this from my buddhist teachers as a equally valid path "up the mountain" to enlightenment Cool to finally learn more about it

[@donaldseigel4101]

Excellent non-biased description of Kabbalah based on just the facts.....you have a new subscriber!