Kabbalah?

[muffler dragon]

Thank you very much! It's going to be a change, that's for sure (there is a population of 4 Chassidim in this entire province). It will be a struggle at first too, but I think it is the right place for me.

G~d bless,
~Little_Lily613~

If G-d ever calls me to conversion, I'm not sure what it will be to. I already know that Reconstructionist is out, and I think the same for Reform. It would probably be conservative at least. Anyways...

 

[little_lily613]

when I was first converting, it was between Conservative and Orthodox for me as well. I NEVER thought I would end up on the Chassidic path. It shocked me when I discovered that that was what I wanted. I started with Conservative and then went to Modern Orthodox. A couple months later I was set on Chassidism and have been for the past 3 years or so.

 

[muffler dragon]

when I was first converting, it was between Conservative and Orthodox for me as well. I NEVER thought I would end up on the Chassidic path. It shocked me when I discovered that that was what I wanted. I started with Conservative and then went to Modern Orthodox. A couple months later I was set on Chassidism and have been for the past 3 years or so.

Maybe it will be easier when you make aliyah.

Chassidism is definitely the way to go as I see it. The problems that come into play for me are when Oral Torah does become a burden. But that's a matter of perspective.

 

[little_lily613]

Maybe it will be easier when you make aliyah.

Chassidism is definitely the way to go as I see it. The problems that come into play for me are when Oral Torah does become a burden. But that's a matter of perspective.

I personally find that Torah, as taught by Torah-observant Jews in the proper way, is very liberating. It helps me stay focused on HaShem and what He wants for the World. (Oral Torah included, which IS Torah, and just as important as Written Torah.) Wherever you end up, and whatever you decide, I wish you the best of luck on your path to HaShem. It is a difficult road no matter what you choose and a big lifestyle change, but well worth it in my opinion!

G~d bless you,
~Lily~

 

[Bodhicitta]

This most righteous one was also a Kabbalaist:

ravkook.net

 

[Bodhicitta]

Some aspects of a tzaddik by Rav Kook, who was one:

Tzaddik (Holy Person)

 

[Robban]

isanyone here familr with the practices ad beleifs of the Kabbalah? And I'm not talking about Holloywood Maddona-Kabbala, I'm talking Pre-fad trendy practices and beleifs.

Jewish Kabbalah is the deeper inner dimension of Torah.

The Crown Jewels are kept in the palace.

The path to the palace comes to a fork, or into two paths,

So a man wanted to go to the palace to see the Crown Jewels.
So he set out on his way,
and he came to the fork in the path and not knowing
which one to take,
he asked a farmer working in a field nearby,

Which path to take to the palace,

the farmer pointed to one and said,
"This is the short long path."
Then he pointed to the other and said,
"And that one is the long short path."

 

[Bodhicitta]

"An impoverished person thinks that God is an old man with white hair, sitting on a wondrous throne of fire that glitters with countless sparks, as the Bible states: "The Ancient-of-Days sits, the hair on his head like clean fleece, his throne—flames of fire." Imagining this and similar fantasies, the fool corporealizes God. He falls into one of the traps that destroy faith. His awe of God is limited by his imagination.

But if you are enlightened, you know God's oneness; you know that the divine is devoid of bodily categories—these can never be applied to God. Then you wonder, astonished: Who am I? I am a mustard seed in the middle of the sphere of the moon, which itself is a mustard seed within the next sphere. So it is with that sphere and all it contains in relation to the next sphere. So it is with all the spheres—one inside the other—and all of them are a mustard seed within the further expanses. And all of these are a mustard seed within further expanses.

Your awe is invigorated, the love in your soul expands."

Essential Kabbalah, by Daniel Matt

 

[Bodhicitta]

The purpose of the marriage of a woman and a man is union.
The purpose of union is fertilization.
The purpose of fertilization is giving birth.
The purpose of birth is learning.
The purpose of learning is to grasp the divine.
The purpose of apprehending the divine is to maintain the
endurance of the one who apprehends with the joy of apprehension.

 

[Bodhicitta]

Morality and Faith in God

The ideological conflicts in the human race, among all people, and
particularly among Jews, are based on the issues of morality. Everyone
knows that wisdom and talent refer to capacity, to strengthen the
intellectual or practical capacities. Morality seeks to perfect the human
will that it seek the good. If man's capacity should increase but his will
for the good remain undeveloped, then the increase in his powers can
only lead to disaster. When the love of self rises beyond the equitable
through the loss of moral sensitivity, it is bound to make life more difficult
to the extent that one's powers increase, and this love itself, being without
a proper base in the spiritual, eternal life, will degenerate progressively
to crude and ugly desires. On the other hand, with a good moral state,
which engenders refinement of soul, a higher sense of holiness and a love
for people, it becomes possible for man to structure the limited forces
operative in his humble capacities in such a way that they will engender
good and blessing for him and the world.

Rav Kook