Cabala: Novas Perspectivas

by Moshe Idel

In this prizewinning new interpretation of Jewish mysticism, Moshe Idel emphasizes the need for a comparative and phenomenological approach to Kabbalah and its position in the history of religion.

Genres: Judaism, Religion, Jewish, Mysticism, Judaica, Philosophy, Nonfiction

423 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1988

Reviews

[Greg · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an absolute classic that should be read by every student of Kabbalah. However, it should be read after studying Scholem's Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism. Idel's book is predicated on Scholem's. The main benefit in Idel's work is that he studies the experiential dimension of Kabbalah too. He is very interested in the actual practices that kabbalists used, not just their doctrines and myths and their history, which seemed to be the most interesting aspects to Scholem.

[Brian · Rating 5 out of 5]

The title of Idel's 1988 historical and phenomenological analysis of Kabbalah's theoretical and practical genesis aptly indicates its thoroughgoing reevaluation of assumptions then current in Kabbalah scholarship, many of which can be credited to the commanding influence exercised by the authoritative works of Gershom Scholem dating to the mid-20th century. Idel presents Kabbalah as comprising two distinct streams: the mystical-ecstatic, wherein the devotee practices techniques for attaining a personal experience of unity with the divinity, and the theosophical-theurgical, which focuses upon the actively-intentional adherence to the Torah as a means of effecting positive reactions within the divine structure, and ultimately the maintenance of the cosmos. In terms of historical transmission, Idel refutes Scholem's attribution of certain Kabbalistic concepts to the influence of Gnosticism, as well as any probability that the emergence of Kabbalah per se in the late 12th century represented an innovative discontinuity. Rather, he demonstrates that the epistemological underpinnings of Kabbalah were already present in the earliest Rabbinic texts of late antiquity.

Despite an abundance of obscure historical personages and Hebrew theo-philosophical terminology, even non-specialist readers should have little difficulty following the essential arguments. Idel's interpretations of the evidence, both historical and theoretical, are supported by his closely-argued readings of copious primary sources; nevertheless, the text is far from dry, and retains an engaging authorial voice throughout. This book is well worth reading for anyone with a serious interest in Jewish intellectual history, or religious mysticism generally.

[Eliezer Sneiderman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Moshe Idel has a very good critique of Sholem. Worth the read.

[Seekers of Unity · Rating 4 out of 5]

Idel goes on a rampage to correct Scholem’s assertion that Jewish Mysticism has no Unio Mystica and goes to town on the sources. I like. In the very beginning of the work he tries to distinguish himself from Scholem methodologically by opting for a phenomenological approach as opposed to a historical-philological approach. Great scholar, great work, I’m a fan.

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[Hassan Zayour · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great introduction into the Field of Jewish Mysticism. This book discusses the origins, practices, beliefs, of course briefly at some points and extensively at others. It is a great first read if you know nothing about Kaballah.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Theosophical-theurgical Kabbalah - a theory of the divine structure of the world
Ecstatic Kabbalah - Highly anthropocentric, Elitist to this day, centrality of letter compilation,
Abraham Abulafia (said to have founded the school of prophetic Kabbalah, born in Zaragoza in
1240.
Hasidism was the last major school of Jewish mysticism and was a combination of the above trends.
"classical Spanish and Lurianic Kabbalah was reinterpreted ecstatically.
Kabbalah really includes: the Spanish from early 1300's until 1492, the Safedian, the Ashkenazic
Hasidism of the Franco-German provinces (12th-13th centuries)
If mysticism is the quintessence of religion, the quintessence of mysticism is the sense of union with
God.
"Kabbalah attempted to spiritualize philosophical thought by decoding personal mystical
experiences according to speculative concepts that were rendered in terms of Aristotelian or
Neoplatonic thought. p. 42
Kabbalah in the Hasidic system "is preeminently a paradigm of the human psyche and man's
activities rather than a theosophical system." p. 152
"Kabbalah preferred un understanding on cosmic processes to that of historical ones." p. 155?
"To summarize the myth that underlies the augmentation theurgy: divine power is dependent upon
human activity, which is able to strengthen or diminish it, alternatively the relationship between
the divine attributes is a function of human deeds." p. 166
Drawing down theurgy: "According to talmudic-midrashic thought, one of the basic repercussions
of the fulfillment of the commandments is the indwelling of the Divine Presence in the Jewish
people." p. 166
"...The theurgical Kabbalah articulates a basic feature of Jewish religion in general: because he
concentrates more upon action then thought, the Jew is responsible for everything, including
GOD, since his activity is crucial for the welfare of the cosmos in general." p. 179
Whereas Lurianic Kabbala tends to be an elitist theurgy, Hasidism is more a popular theurgy.

[Christian · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the mandatory next step to diversify your opinions, after you have read Scholem's "Major Trends" and are somewhat familiar with its topics. Although Idel writes from a phenomenological perspective, his approach is sound and smells not of generalizations fellow academics of religion like Hasenfratz et al. were prone to. He presents a carefully researched and explained overview, with an especially interesting commentary on kabbalistic hermeneutics and some historical connections; two chapters I'd rather expected to find at the beginning of the book. This neglectable structuring issue aside it is a phenomenal treatise.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I passed this up for years. I passed this guy off as a popularize. Wrong Idel is a shit kicker. This book was amazing and really is a great work.

[Courtney Stirrat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this when I was 20, so to the extent that I could understand it, I thought it was wonderful. Very dense, however.