Kabbalah Simply Stated: A Conversation with the Rabbi

By Aziel Abraham, Bob Waxman, Rabbi Aziel Abraham, et al.

Book Overview

One rainy afternoon a young man meets a wise Rabbi from Jerusalem and his life changes forever. Over the next thirteen years the young man and the Rabbi develop a close relationship as the Rabbi... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1557788421
• ISBN13: 9781557788429
• Release Date: October 2004
• Publisher: Paragon House Publishers
• Length: 128 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.4" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

I'm a Rabbi who appreciates this book.

This is one of the few books I have read about Kabbalah that explains the basic concepts in an intelligent and truthful manner. I use this book as one of my standard teaching tools in all my classes in Brooklyn and New York City. There are many students who attend my classes who have been misled by certain Kabbalah organizations and this book helps to set them straight. Some of these Kabbalah organizations have a a 'cult-like' following and their members purposely slander excellent Kabbalah books like this one. Not only does this book explain the wisdom of Kabbalah, but there are also beautiful illustrations from The Kabbalah Art Museum in Zefat, Israel. Rabbi Abraham was a brilliant teacher of Kabbalah and this book is a tribute to his intellect, compassion and deep understanding of this subject.

From one Rabbi to another

I'm a Rabbi now for 32 years, and I must say that Rabbi Abraham, who speaks about Kabbalah in this book, was an astute, no-nonsense teacher with a biting sense of humor. He takes Kabbalah out the realm of hodge-podge fantasy, and puts it squarely into the category of Jewish esoteric philosophy. There are hints of Maimonides, Spinoza, Mendelsohn and Hermann Cohen in the Rabbi's teachings. I can also see the influences of Gershom Scholem, Aryeh Kaplan and Moshe Idel. Rabbi Abraham had a rare talent to articulate the major tenets of these prolific philosophers and scholars, and combine them into a basic instruction manuel on how to live a good life based in rightousness. There's an important message in this book for everyone, and I admire the Rabbi's chutzpah as he tells his new student exactly what's on his mind.

Now, I understand what Kabbalah is all about!

I have read more than a dozen books on Kabbalah and have attended many lectures and seminars. Like most of my friends, I have found Kabbalah to be contradictory, confusing and at times, illogical. After reading this wonderful, informative and entertaining book, I now have a true understanding of the basic concepts that Kabbalah has to offer. The dialogue between the Rabbi and the author makes the book enjoyable because it's written in everyday language. The Rabbi has a great sense of humor, and the author asks the same exact questions that I would have asked in the same situation. Don't think this book is like "The Dummies Guide to Kabbalah" - it's not. It's filled with detailed explanations of Kabbalah's most complex philosophical ideas, but it's written in an easy to read style. Just about anyone (even my friends who barely graduated from community college) can understand these important ideas that are the foundations of whole philosophy. I only wish the glossary had pronunciation markings for a few of the Hebrew words that I'd like to pronounce properly. Otherwise, I loved this book, and I'd recommend it to anyone who really wants to understand what Kabbalah is all about.

This book really helped me....

I'm glad I found this book. It was recommended to me by a friend, but it sat on my bookshelf for awhile because I'm not Jewish and I wasn't sure I'd understand it. Well, the minute I started reading it, something inside of me said - "this sounds like everything you've always believed in" - and it just felt right. This book was a great affirmation for me because all my intuitive truths are in it. Now, I see Kabbalah as a universal study of religious common sense and Godly wisdom. The great thing about this book is that it constantly stresses the importance of looking inside yourself to find the answers to life's most difficult questions. I'm not sure I totally understand the Tree of Life, but I'll get it eventually. The diagrams are great and the artwork is intense. Donag definitely makes Kabbalah easier to understand, but putting all this knowledge into practice on a daily basis will surely be the most difficult challenge for all of us.