Background
Abraham Abulafia was born in Zaragoza, Spain in 1240.
( Sefer Ha-Tzeruf can be translated as Book of Permutatio...)
Sefer Ha-Tzeruf can be translated as Book of Permutation, or Book of Combination, since it refers to a kabbalistic combining technique. More precisely, the art of Tzeruf works with Hebrew letters. It takes a holy name, or whatever word one wishes to meditate upon, and interchanges its letters. This leads on one hand to an expansion of its meaning into new meanings, since certain combinations actually possess other meanings. From the other side, the original word is dematerialized of its original meaning, allowing the mind to shift its focus to the perception of new realities.
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(This is one of the rare autobiographic books in Kabbalah....)
This is one of the rare autobiographic books in Kabbalah. Abulafia relates his experiences and visions, some of which are really frightening. Most notable are his encounters with angels.
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( When Abulafia met his pupil, Saadia Bar Yitzchak, he wa...)
When Abulafia met his pupil, Saadia Bar Yitzchak, he was deeply impressed with his predisposition and desire to learn the concealed matters of Kabbalah. Thus, he felt that he had none among his books worthy of this meritorious student. In an attempt to fill the gap, he wrote the "Book of Desire" in 1279, which is supposed to touch very holy matters in a clear exposition, unlike most of abulafian works. With Life in he World to Come and Light of the Intellect, the Book of Desire completes the trilogy of the abulafian masterworks.
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(This book demonstrates the primacy of Kabbalah over every...)
This book demonstrates the primacy of Kabbalah over every other branch of knowledge. It classifies seven levels of understanding of the Torah, showing what they are and how to reach them.
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(Secrets of the Torah is the second commentary by Rabbi Ab...)
Secrets of the Torah is the second commentary by Rabbi Abraham Abulafia on the Rambam's Guide for the Perplexed, written around 1280. Guiding the hand of the seeker, Abulafia leads him in his direct experience of God. He explains that the World to Come is a state of consciousness that everybody can reach, but a shift in one's thoughts and perceptions is necessary to reach the eternal life in the Garden of Eden.
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(Amidst the rich panoply of Jewish Kabbalah, Abraham Abula...)
Amidst the rich panoply of Jewish Kabbalah, Abraham Abulafia (1240-c.1291) resonates the most with modern, philosophically minded seekers of direct mystical experience. In this Jewish handbook for meditation, Abulafia creatively combines ideas from Maimonides' Guide of the Perplexed (Moreh Nevuchim), the ancient Book of Creation (Sefer Yetzira) and Eleazar of Worms' Book of the Name (Sefer Ha-Shem) into an integrated method of concentrating on the Divine Name that opens the path to fulfilling the soul's deepest spiritual longings. Intense practice of Abulafia's methods of meditation propels the attentive soul into a state of awakened receptivity where the active divine influence can reach down to meet and illuminate the human intellect.
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(Get Ha-Shemot is Abulafia's attempt to describe the gener...)
Get Ha-Shemot is Abulafia's attempt to describe the general ideology and cosmology that underlie the fundamental principle of Kabbalah - that names and letters are the essential, active, and creative elements of reality. He meant it as a rule of thumb for the masters of the names to know the truth behind the names they use, because no name can properly be used without such knowledge. In this work, which was written from the start for general distribution, Abulafia outlines the cosmic stage on which his entire Kabbalah is set, and explains its general purpose - the perfection of the mind by way of the intellect. This makes Get Ha-Shemot an indispensable introduction to his entire Kabbalah. Abulafia explains that Kabbalah is the part of Torah that must remain concealed from the public, and only received by word of mouth from a worthy teacher to a worthy student. However, to set some guidelines about the form of Kabbalah, Abulafia presents us here with what he takes to be the first and fundamental principles of all of Kabbalah. This masterpiece of Kabbalah is a very lucid and actual introduction to Kabbalah both for beginners and advanced students.
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(Amidst the rich panoply of Jewish Kabbalah, Abraham Abula...)
Amidst the rich panoply of Jewish Kabbalah, Abraham Abulafia (1240-1291) resonates the most with modern, philosophically minded seekers of direct mystical experience. Abulafia creatively combined Maimonides Guide of the Perplexed and the ancient Sefer Yesira into an integrated method of concentrating on the Divine Name that opens the path to fulfilling the souls deepest spiritual longings. Intense practice of Abulafias meditative techniques propels the attentive soul into a state of awakened receptivity where the active divine influence can reach down to meet and illuminate the human intellect. Abulafia was unique amongst Jewish mystics in providing precise instructions for personal spiritual practice. I have translated meditations from three of Abulafias major mystical handbooks that reveal the true knowledge of the Divine Name as he puts it. These particular texts achieved a wide underground circulation amongst Jewish mystic elites despite a severe rabbinical ban on Abulafia promulgated by Shlomo ben Adret. -Abulafias Life of the World to Come (extant in more manuscript copies that the Zohar!) is quoted verbatim in Yehuda Albotinis Sulam HaAliya. -Abulafias Book of Desire is quoted in the fourth, censored part of Chaim Vitals Shaarei Kedusha. -Selections from Abulafias Light of the Intellect were printed in Moshe Cordoveros Pardes Rimonim. Abulafias meditations have intrinsic moral prerequisites that guard against their misuse. These techniques can provide short, liminal leaps into revelatory states of consciousness and the adept needs a kind of measured boldness to attempt this. Abulafia repeatedly emphasizes returning back and integrating these threshold experiences into ones daily life. Abulafia was an eclectic thinker who absorbed and adapted Sufi and even Yogic influences into his mystical toolkit. While the affinities between Abulafias methods and the ancient Hekhalot (Heavenly Palace) rituals are obvious, they also have interesting structural similarities to Graeco-Coptic magical invocations like those found in PGM XIII 646-1077. Translating Abulafia is an impossible task. These gleanings hope to prompt deeper study of Abulafias oeuvre that can provide a rich breviary of numerically equivalent concepts and rigorous linguistic interpretations to ponder and apply in ones spiritual path.
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Abraham Abulafia was born in Zaragoza, Spain in 1240.
Dissatisfied with the contentions of the rationalists, he turned to Cabala in the hope of cultivating prophetic powers and attaining communion with God. He was severely ascetic, believing that contact with the Divine might be achieved by constant prayer. He made an attempt to convert Pope Nicholas III to Judaism, and was thrown into prison in 1281. Later he was driven out of Sicily and settled on the island of Comino. He died in Barcelona about the year 1291.
(Get Ha-Shemot is Abulafia's attempt to describe the gener...)
(Amidst the rich panoply of Jewish Kabbalah, Abraham Abula...)
( When Abulafia met his pupil, Saadia Bar Yitzchak, he wa...)
( Sefer Ha-Tzeruf can be translated as Book of Permutatio...)
(Secrets of the Torah is the second commentary by Rabbi Ab...)
(This book demonstrates the primacy of Kabbalah over every...)
(Amidst the rich panoply of Jewish Kabbalah, Abraham Abula...)
(This is one of the rare autobiographic books in Kabbalah....)
