Jewish Mysticism

2 Enoch and the New Perspective on Apocalyptic

by Crispin Fletcher-Louis

Maskil, Community, and Religious Experience in the Songs of the Sage (4Q510–511)

by Joseph Angel

Published in Dead Sea Discoveries 19.1 (2012): 1-27.

The Language of the Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice Compared to Hekhalot Literature (in Hebrew)

by Noam Mizrahi

Published in Meghillot 7 (2009) 263-298

Geomancy Texts of Rabbi Shalom Shabbazi

by Hananya Goodman

Judaeo-Yemenite Studies, Proceedings of the Second International Congress, Institute of Semitic Studies, Princeton University, 1999

" YE SAGES, BE CAUTIOUS OF YOUR WORDS" A TALMUDIC TRADITION OF HYDROPHOBIA

by Ido Harari

Review of: Lawrence Fine - Physician of the Soul, Healer of the Cosmos: Isaac Luria and his Kabbalistic Fellowship. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2003, in: ARC: The Journal of the Faculty of Religious Studies McGill University 34(2006): 281-284

by Carla Sulzbach

Short book reviews (Hebrew and General Linguistics) in Language (1999-2003).

by Tawny Holm

* Review of M. Rosenbaum, Word-Order Variation in Isaiah 40-55: A Functional Perspective (Studia Semitica Neerlandica, Assen: Van Gorcum, 1997), in Language 75 (1999), pp. 388-89.
* Review of A. Wagner, Sprechakte und Sprechaktanalyse im Alten Testament (Berlin: de Gruyter, 1997), in Language 75 (1999), p. 844.
* Review of T. Goldfajn, Word Order and Time in Biblical Hebrew Narrative (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998), in Language 76 (2000), p. 954.
* Review of B. Rojtman, Black Fire on White Fire: An Essay on Jewish Hermeneutics, from Midrash to Kabbalah, translated by S. Rendall (Berkeley: U. of California Press, 1998), in Language 76 (2000), p. 477.
* Review of C. Dollerup, Tales and Translation: The Grimm Tales from Pan-Germanic Narratives to Shared International Fairytales (Amsterdam: Benjamins, 1999), in Language 77 (2001), p. 865.
* Review of M. Nänny and O. Fischer, eds., Form Miming Meaning: Iconicity in Language and Literature (Amsterdam: Benjamins, 1999), in Language 78 (2002), pp. 381-82.
* Review of S. Vogeleer, W. de Mulder, and I. Depraetere, Tense and Aspect (Amsterdam: Benjamins, 1999), in Language 78 (2002), pp. 382-83.
* Review of O. Fischer and M. Nänny, The Motivated Sign: Iconicity in Language and Literature 2 (Amsterdam: Benjamins, 2001), in Language 79 (2003), pp. 437-438.

A.Destro - M.Pesce, “Le voyage céleste. Tradition d’un genre ou schéma culturel en contexte?”, in N.Belayche - J.-D. Dubois (eds.), L’Oiseau et le poisson. Cohabitations religieuses dans les mondes grec et romain, Paris : PUPS (coll. Religions dans l’histoire), 2011, 361-386.

by Mauro Pesce

Schattner-Rieser, Ursula, Die Vision Gabriels (Hazon Gabriel-HazGab). Ein Steintext vom Toten Meer?“, Early Christianity 2/4 (2011), 517-536.

by PD Dr. Ursula Schattner-Rieser

LISY, Preliminary Remarks for the Comparative Study of Mysticism - Mysticism is, what unio mystica is, in Communio viatorum 54, 2012, (in print)

by Keren Mice

The article will be published in: Communio viatorum 54, 2012, pp. (in print). When I receive the article from the author it will be available here for free.

I found his article very interesting and useful in its new perspective. It is obvious that the author follows Huss' and Balagangadhara's approach and his final argument is based on Wittgenstein. Also, we can understand his article as a polemic with a book: The Origins of Jewish Mysticism by Peter Schäfer.

Interestingly, the author mentioned in the article that a part of the material was already discussed at the international conference Rethinking Religion in India III. I followed for some time links of its participants and it seems to me there is a research group using Balagangadhara's approach from different countries and from various fields in Humanities. If you follow their links it is possible to find more books and articles on the study of comparative religion and most of them you can download for free (see more links in my About section and Profile). And all of them share a common ground. It is Balagangadhara's framework very well argued in his book: Heathen in His Blindness. Note, there are scholars who sharply disagree with him. The whole scientific discussion is very interesting and inspiring and leads to new directions in the study of mysticism and religion. Some of them you can find through Web of Science.

There is an abstract in the article.

Natural Magic: A Literary Shamanic Art-Form

by Kathryn LaFevers Evans

Draft only

Excerpts from my Master's Thesis that categorize and define Literary Natural Magic. Followed by Introductory notes on... more Excerpts from my Master's Thesis that categorize and define Literary Natural Magic. Followed by Introductory notes on C. G. Jung's 'Red Book' as Jungian Natural Magic, a Literary Shamanic art-form.

Eastern European Jewish Heritage: Adapting Old World Traditions with a Modern World through Storytelling, Artifacts, and Place-making

by Megan Sharpless

Presented paper at the 2011 Midwest Popular Culture/ American Culture Association Conference; Jewish Studies Panel, October 14-16, 2011.

This ethnographic interview examines culturally specific dimensions related to being raised in the Midwest by... more This ethnographic interview examines culturally specific dimensions related to being raised in the Midwest by Yiddish-speaking parents with an Old World ethos. The use of linguistic anthropology can be instrumental in exploring the modern ethnic fusion of Old World traditions in the New World, offering analyses and understanding to mysticism, place-making and material culture which links the past to the present day. Central to this study is placing the subject in a broader linguistic anthropological and cultural framework. Formal ethnographic documentation of first-generation immigration stories provides answers pertaining to intergenerational culture change as well as expands knowledge of American Jewish subculture today. Research questions addressed in the participant interview are relevant to the cultural dichotomy of the Old and New Worlds and how these cultural phenomena continue to reproduce and reinforce language, customs, and storytelling tradition in ethnic American families today. Research mediums such as anthropological linguistics, ethnography, and narrative can heighten awareness of the Jewish cultural-socio-historical experience.

Accepance and Devaluation: Nahmanides' Attitude towards Science

by Tzvi Langermann

First published in the Journal of Jewish Thought and Philosophy, vol. 1, 1992. Home scan!

IL Sefer Yetzirah

by marco pucciarini

Dispensa universitaria

Introduzione e versione del Sefer Yetzirah. Introduzione e versione del Sefer Yetzirah.

Salamandra and the Flames of Hell

by Reb Chaim HaQoton

Throughout Rabbinic literature—the Talmud and the Midrash—a mysterious creature known as the Salamandra is mentioned.... more Throughout Rabbinic literature—the Talmud and the Midrash—a mysterious creature known as the Salamandra is mentioned. This creature is also mentioned by various early philosophers and scientists. It is reported to have been created in fire and therefore have fire-resistant capabilities. Other sources attribute the origins of the Salamandra to witchcraft. This discrepancy is elaborated upon and several methods of resolution are presented. Nonetheless, all these mythological stories seem to contradict the reality where no such creature is found. This paper explores and reconciles the differences between various descriptions of the Salamandra’s origin and its role in rabbinic literature. Many Classic Rabbinic sources (from Medieval to contemporary) have been used throughout this work to illustrate the Salamandra’s significance in Jewish theology and laws of purity.

letters of hebrew alphabet_2_8

by Tzvi Langermann

Philosophers and scientists,not just mystics, explored the deeper significance of the letters of the alphabet; here I... more Philosophers and scientists,not just mystics, explored the deeper significance of the letters of the alphabet; here I discuss two hitherto unknown treatises on the topic.

Metatron as the Scribe

by Andrei Orlov

Stand In Awe: A Parable About Love, Youth, & Change

by Horace Columbus Neal II

Draft N: December 9, 2011 - It is finished.

This is a simple three-page short story that calls for a reflection on the core need of today's troubled youth. In 36... more This is a simple three-page short story that calls for a reflection on the core need of today's troubled youth. In 36 CE, a group of rowdy, Cushite-Hebrew youths go to see the Roman crucifixions, hoping to have some fun taunting the victims. Their encounter at one man's cross causes them to stand in awe. Notes and images follow the narrative to aid the readers' conceptualization of some of the story's themes. The story is thematically multilayered to facilitate productive discussions on a number of topics.

Daniel Abrams: "‘Text’ in a Zoharic Parable: A Chapter in the History of Kabbalistic Textuality", Kabbalah: Journal for the Study of Jewish Mystical Texts 25 (2011), pp. 7-54

by Daniel Abrams

Cities of the Dead: Architectural Motifs and Burial Practices in Curaçao’s Religious and Ethnic Communities

by Laura Leibman

Co-authored with Kent Coupé . Published in Markers: Annual Journal of the Association for Gravestone Studies. XXVII, pp. 56-87.

In this study we analyze the cemeteries of Curaçao, a small desert island in the Dutch West Indies near the coast of... more In this study we analyze the cemeteries of Curaçao, a small desert island in the Dutch West Indies near the coast of Venezuela that was once a crucial player in colonial smuggling and the slave trade. Our study compares the island’s Jewish (Spanish-Portuguese), Protestant (primarily Dutch), and Catholic (Afro-Curaçaoan) cemeteries. Following the work of Dickran and Ann Tashijian, Keith Cunningham, Lynn Gosnell, Suzanna Gott and others, we interpret these stones within the religio-cultural context of the people who used them. We argue that whereas ethnic cemeteries in the United States often emphasize the distinctiveness of the communities, Curaçao’s cemeteries emphasize both ethnic distinction and ethnic elision. The permeability of racial and religious boundaries in the cemeteries reflects the island’s complicated racial history and is an important reminder of how race is often constructed differently outside of the United States. This permeability should not be confused with social equality: indeed, as racial categories became more fluid following emancipation, islanders used other categories such as wealth and status displays to reinforce social privilege within (as opposed to between) ethnic groups.