Speaking Torah Vol 2

Description

The most powerful Hasidic teachings made accessible—from some of the world's preeminent authorities on Jewish thought and spirituality.

"The teachings of Torah, from beginning to end, are read here as a path toward liberation, a way of uplifting your soul and allowing it to journey homeward, back to its Source in the oneness of all being. Or, even better, to discover that oneness right here, in a loving but transformative embrace of both world and self."
—from "To the Reader"

While Hasidic tales have become widely known to modern audiences, the profound spiritual teachings that stand at the very heart of Hasidism have remained a closed book for all except scholars. This fascinating selection—presented in two volumes following the weekly Torah reading and the holiday cycle, and featured in English and Hebrew—makes the teachings accessible in an extraordinary way.

Volume 1 covers Genesis, Exodus and Leviticus, and includes a history of early Hasidism and a summary of central religious teachings of the Maggid's school. Volume 2 covers Numbers and Deuteronomy and the holiday cycle, and includes brief biographies of the Hasidic figures. Each teaching is presented with a fresh translation and contemporary commentary that builds a bridge between the eighteenth and twenty-first centuries. And each teaching concludes with a dynamic round-table discussion between distinguished Jewish scholar Arthur Green and his closest students—the editors of this volume. They highlight the wisdom that is most meaningful for them, thus serving as a contemporary circle's reflections on the original mystical circle of master and disciples who created these teachings.

Volume 2 of a 2-volume set

Volume 2
Sefer Be-Midbar—The Book of Numbers 1
Be-Midbar 3
Naso 8
Be-Ha'alotekha 16
Shelah Lekha 23
Korah 32
Hukkat 38
Balak 49
Pinhas 57
Mattot 69
Massa'ey 75

Sefer Devarim—The Book of Deuteronomy 83
Devarim 85
Va-Ethanan 93
'Ekev 99
Re'eh 105
Shoftim 113
Ki Tetse 120
Ki Tavo 128
Nitsavim 132
Va-Yelekh 138
Ha'azinu 143
Ve-Zot ha-Berakhah 150

Shabbat and Holidays 157
Shabbat 159
Rosh Hodesh 168
Rosh Hashanah 171
Yom Kippur 179
Sukkot 185

Shemini ‘Atseret—Simhat Torah 190
Hanukkah 193
Shabbat Zakhor 200
Purim 203
Pesah 208
Shavu‘ot 215
Tish‘ah be-Av 224
Sources and Authors 229
Afterword 239
Hebrew Texts 422

Sujets

• Religion
• Judaism
• Jewish philosophy
• List of Jewish prayers and blessings
• Philosophie et théologie

Informations

• Publié par: Turner Publishing Company
• Date de parution: 23 juillet 2013
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781580237710
• Langue: English

Extrait

PRAISE FOR SPEAKING TORAH: SPIRITUAL TEACHINGS FROM AROUND THE MAGGID S TABLE
Insightful ... puts in dialogue the thought of the most original and formative group of Hasidic masters, demonstrating the nature of their spiritual aspirations and the dynamics of the laboratory that produced the leadership of Hasidism as a movement. A fresh and inspired project that brings to life the spirituality of an unprecedented constellation of religious geniuses.
- Moshe Idel , Max Cooper Professor of Jewish Thought, Hebrew University, Jerusalem
Sparkling translations, judicious selections, wise-framing comments, comprehensive scope, with an authoritative historical introduction that masterfully summarizes a lifetime of scholarship: Rabbi Arthur Green and his students have produced the most insightful, valuable and accessible presentation of early Hasidism available in the English language, an indispensable resource for study and devotional work.
- Nehemia Polen , professor of Jewish thought, Hebrew College
As heaven and earth met in creation, so too does scholarship and true passion of the love of the Hasidic masters meet in this monumental work of devotion and wisdom. If you were to commit to learning one book, this should be it!
- Reb Mimi Feigelson , Mashpia Ruchanit
In a world which too often feels fractured and dark, these precious teachings come along to lend clarity, light and hope. This extraordinary work stirs the mind, uplifts the spirit and makes age-old wisdom accessible in a way which liberates us from our most narrow places.
- Matthew D. Gewirtz , senior rabbi, Congregation B nai Jeshurun,Short Hills, New Jersey
Magnificent ... a treasure for all who seek to understand the rich variety of spiritual worldviews and religious experiences of the people who created the Hasidic movement. The world of those sitting around their master s table comes alive in this book. The multiple levels of interpretations offered in their teachings allow us to encounter these incredible personalities in their own world and to then explore the vitality of their teaching for our contemporary Jewish life.
- Melila Hellner-Eshed , research fellow, Shalom Hartman Institute
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Contents
Volume 2
Sefer Be-Midbar -The Book of Numbers
Be-Midbar
Naso
Be-Ha alotekha
Shelah Lekha
Korah
Hukkat
Balak
Pinhas
Mattot
Massa ey
Sefer Devarim -The Book of Deuteronomy
Devarim
Va-Ethanan
Ekev
Re eh
Shoftim
Ki Tetse
Ki Tavo
Nitsavim
Va-Yelekh
Ha azinu
Ve-Zot ha-Berakhah
Shabbat and Holidays
Shabbat
Rosh Hodesh
Rosh Hashanah
Yom Kippur
Sukkot
Shemini Atseret-Simhat Torah
Hanukkah
Shabbat Zakhor
Purim
Pesah
Shavu ot
Tish ah be-Av
Sources and Authors
Afterword
Hebrew Texts
About the Authors
Copyright
Also Available
About Jewish Lights
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Volume 1
To the Reader
Introduction: Hasidism-The First Three Generations (1740-1815)
What Is Hasidism?
Setting the Stage: Ashkenazic Piety before Hasidism
Personalities and Historical Events: 1740-1762
Around the Maggid s Table: Dramatis Personae
The Path to God: Key Teachings, Ideas, and Practices
The Tsaddik as Holy Man and Hasidic Leader
Controversy and Religious Innovation
The Emerging Movement and its Struggles: 1772-1795
The Wellsprings Spread Forth: 1796-1815
Sefer Bereshit -The Book of Genesis
Bereshit
Noah
Lekh Lekha
Va-Yera
Hayyey Sarah
Toledot
Va-Yetse
Va-Yishlah
Va-Yeshev
Mi-Kets
Va-Yiggash
Va-Yehi
Sefer Shemot -The Book of Exodus
Shemot
Va-Era
Bo
Be-Shalah
Yitro
Mishpatim
Terumah
Tetsaveh
Ki Tissa
Va-Yakhel
Pekudey
Sefer Va-Yikra -The Book of Leviticus
Va-Yikra
Tsav
Shemini
Tazri a
Metsora
Aharey Mot
Kedoshim
Emor
Be-Har
Be-Hukkotay
Hebrew Texts

NO AM ELIMELEKH
Y-H-W-H spoke to Moses in the desert of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting, on the first day of the second month [ hodesh ] of the second year since they had left Egypt.
(NUM. 1:1)
With this sentence the Torah is teaching correct conduct. The words the desert of Sinai are a reminder that the Torah was given on Mount Sinai in order to teach you to be extremely humble and self-effacing. Remember that God rejected all the high mountains and chose Mount Sinai, which was the lowest of them all.
But take care that this submissiveness not lead you into depression, for that is a great obstacle to God s service. The Torah teaches that you should always be joyful. The shekhinah is not present amid sadness. The words in the Tent of Meeting ( be-ohel mo ed ) imply that you should enter the tent of joy, for the word for meeting ( mo ed ) is also the word for festival.
On the first day of the second month [hodesh] ( renewal ). But should you say, how can I rejoice when I have sinned so extensively? The Torah teaches that you should nevertheless engage in repentance with joy. Encourage yourself by saying, I am reborn this very day and I will never return to my foolishness. Renewal ( hiddush ) is about becoming a new person, and this is alluded to in the words the first day of the second month [ hodesh ] . Indeed this is the second new start-the first was when you were born, and the second is when you repent and are forgiven.
The second year since they had left Egypt refers to the same thing. For the blessed Holy One took us out of Egypt, meaning the terrible shells, the forty-nine gates of impurity. The Exodus from Egypt happens again whenever a person breaks the shells on the way toward holiness. Our reality is referred to as year ( Sefer Yetsirah 6:1), so the second year comes to teach that there is a second Exodus from Egypt that happens in our own times, whenever a person repents.

This is a powerful example of the upbeat message that the Hasidic masters sought in even what seem to be the most bland and ordinary words of Torah. They see nothing in Torah as ordinary, of course. Think how this verse might be translated in accord with R. Elimelekh s reading. It would go something like: Y-H-W-H tells us that even while we are to be lowly and humble, we should fill ourselves with joy. There is always a chance to begin again and change, since we are ever being liberated anew from whatever enslaves us. Wow, what a message!
RAV YEEVI
Y-H-W-H spoke to Moses in the desert of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting, on the first day of the second month of the second year since they had left Egypt.
(NUM. 1:1)
We have not found reference anywhere else in the Torah to a desert of Sinai, only to the mountain. But we have to interpret the word Sinai , as did the Zohar , by noting that its numerical value is 130, identical to that of sulam , or ladder ( Zohar 1:149a). The mountain was given that name when God descended upon it to give Torah to Israel. Y-H-W-H, who is supremely transcendent and elevated, spread down to earth, metaphorically speaking, like a person descending from heaven to earth would come down on a ladder stuck into the ground whose head reached heaven (Gen. 28:12). It is called Sinai because it is a ladder-mountain, its head reaching into heaven. Thus God came down ... upon Mount Sinai (Ex. 19:11).
But sometimes it is called the desert ( midbar ) of Sinai, for a person can cleave to God and attain the holy spirit by means of speech ( midbar/dibbur ). Every letter of the alphabet is attached to God above. When you speak here below employing those letters, their source rises upward; your speech itself becomes a ladder ... whose head reaches heaven. Your words ascend and come before God. This is called the midbar or speech-act of Sinai.

The play of midbar and dibbur is irresistible and is widely found in Hasidic teaching. The sacred power of speech is extended already by the Ba al Shem Tov from the holy words of Torah and prayer to include all of human speech, including the vernacular. Leshon ha-kodesh , the holy tongue, no longer means only Hebrew as distinct from other languages, but pure human speech in any language, kept free from sin.
GINZEY YOSEF
Y-H-W-H spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai ... saying: Lift up the head [i.e., count] of the community of the Children of Israel according to their families, their fathers households, counting [ be-mispar ] the names of all the men, counting their heads.
(NUM. 1:1-2)
RaSHI says that because He loves them, He repeatedly counts them.
But the real counting of Israel points upward, toward their Root above. The six hundred thousand Israelite souls have their source in the six sefirot [from hesed to yesod ], the six directions. That is why the text says Lift up the head and not simply count. This act of Moses s counting awakened the light of that Source, shining down brightly upon Israel. It raised them up to the highest rungs of awe and lov