Deep of the Deep

Lag BaOmer beginning sundown May first is a festive day on the Jewish calendar, celebrating the anniversary of the passing of the great sage and mystic Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, author of the Zohar.

Rabbi Shimon lived 2000 years ago during the time when the Talmud-Book of Law and Midrash-Book of Metaphor were composed; Rabbi Shimon wrote the Zohar-Book of Secret at the same time but he wrote it in heaven and did not transmit the text to the earth for another 1000 years.

When Rabbi Shimon passed away he commanded the people to celebrate on the anniversary of his passing because he was going home. There are 49 days counted between Passover the Shavuot celebrating the giving of the Torah, Rabbi Shimon passed away on the 33rd day (Lamed-30 Gimal-3/Lag) known in the Cabala a Hod ShabaHod/Splendor of Splendor–the deepest of the deep.

Rabbi Shimon was able to penetrate the most hidden secrets, yet the Zohar has remained in obscurity up until recently. Now that the Zohar is available, translated and annotated, still the Zohar is obscure.

the Cabala, key to the Zohar, came a few hundreds years later, but still the Zohar remains aloft. The Zohar fills the holes, answers the outstanding questions, but if one does not know the Torah, the Zohar is meaningless because the answer is nothing without the question.

The Material Girl

Madonna accompanied by her partner Jesus wrapped up her Israeli tour with a visit to the Safed tomb of Rabbi Isaac Luri father of the Cabala. At the site she sang "Lecha Dodi/Come My Beloved."

There are many laws in the Torah concerning how to conduct one’s self in a cemetery; it is known from the Cabala though the soul ascends into heaven a bit reminds with the bones of the body that resemble the YHVH–Four Letter Name of God.

According to the strict interpretation of the Torah the voice of a woman singing is considered Airva/Nakedness. One can not fault the pop star for her insensitive ignorance, but the rabbi who accompanied Madonna and Jesus to gravesite certainly should have known better.

A few years ago she made a scene at the Western Wall in Jerusalem and later almost broke her neck in a freak accident. Just as there are laws of nature with adamant repercussions so too are there spiritual laws regarding ultimate profundities like death.

The Jewish People pray at the gravesite of the righteous because it is hollowed ground, hollowed because the person buried there lived an exemplar life, giving the Creator pleasure–the essential connector. We stand at the foot of that connection between man and the Creator with awe and wonderment while praying to God. Respect in front of those who can not respond is customary.

Too Fat to Fly

Director Kevin Smith says he was kicked off a Southwest Airlines flight from Oakland to Burbank this weekend for being too heavy.

The Torah is full of stories about fat people because fat indicates pleasure; some had physical pleasure while others had spiritual pleasure–both produce fat. The Talmud–Book of Law says some Rabbis became fat from the saying the phrase Yhay Shmay Raba/God’s Name is Great.

The Rabbis of the Talmud were renown for their fat; the Papas who lived in the north of Israel making beer were so fat that cattle could graze beneath the shadow of their prodigious stomach when they came together to speak. Fat was not always good as the Torah says They got fat and they kicked.

Shumen/Fat and Shemen/Oil share the same letters because their source is essence–pleasure. Shemen/Oil is the product of contraction squeezing the essence from within while Shumen/Fat accumulates often because of inaction. The animals sacrificed on the alter in Temple in Jerusalem 2000 years ago were eaten except for the fat which was burned in the fire.

The Cabala teaches the purpose of the human being on planet earth is to partake in pleasure that is later sacrificed to God–then the fat can fly.

Lag B'Omer

Two thousand years ago Rabbi Shimon ben Y’Choi author of the Zohar-Book of Secret passed away commanding his followers to celebrate this day since he was returning to the place from where his soul was hewn. The Zohar, the knowledge he transmitted to the earth a 1000 years later is unquestionably the highest knowledge known to the Jewish People.

Five hundred years ago the Cabala came along as key to the Zohar by explaining in intricate detail the workings of creation from the first moment of movement through myriad worlds culminating in the form of the human being upon planet earth. The celebration which still occurs throughout the world brings together all strata of Jewish People who sing and dance around fire throughout the night.

It is a sign that revelation of the essence will bring peace.

Dylan Releases 33rd

Bob Dylan prophet of our times for over fifty years has released his 33rd album; fifty is considered forever in the Torah as in a slave who sells himself forever goes free after 50 years and 33 is also famous.

The release of the 33rd album comes precisely two weeks before the holiday known as Lag Bomer the 33rd day of counting the omer. The 33rd day of the Omer is famous because it is when Rabbi Shimon ben Y’Choi author of the Zohar-Book of Secret 2000 years ago passed away.

Rabbi Shimon instructed his students to celebrate at his passing because he was going back to his essence–this day is celebrated throughout the world with dancing and fire.

In Cabala 33 is known as deep of the deep after that begins the process of illumination; as Bob says in his new album–I feel a change coming on.

Pig in Israel

In the final stretch of this month's Israeli election Rabbi Ovadia Yosef of the ultra-Orthodox Shas party charged Avigdor Lieberman of the secular Yisrael Beiteinu party with denigrating Israeli society by selling pork, and said “Whoever does so supports Satan and the evil inclination."

It is interesting that in the news the part about the evil inclination was left out leaving the reader to assume some hellish reference to the Judeo-Christian myth. There is no Hell in the Torah and Satan/Opposition is an angel who comes to stand against— sometimes for the good of the person. The evil inclination is a power created by God with tentacles in each human being from the time of birth tempting us to do wrong against God so freedom of choice can exist.

The pig is identified in the Torah as being the only animal in the world with the outer sign of a kosher mammal, cloven hooves while missing the inner sign of multiple stomachs. The Talmud-Book of Law says the pig is the sign of a hypocrite showing kosher, but being within not kosher.

By leaving off the part about the Evil Inclination the Rabbi’s words were skewed into a different meaning—what was said is not what was meant.