Creation of the World in Jewish Mysticism

The book Zohar - The Book of Splendor is the most important work of the Spanish Kabbalah. Zohar is a Mystical Commentary on the Torah. After the Hebrew Bible and the Talmud it is the third canonical text of Judaism. In this book the reader will have the possibility to read the Mystical Creation Story of the Zohar. Whereas in the Zohar the beginning is connected with the idea of God's extension in all directions, the reader will have the possibility to read this masterpiece of the Spanish Kabbalah. The Jewish existence in Spain came to an end in the year 1492, when the Jews were expelled from Spain and several years later from Portugal. Rabi Isaac Luria (1534-1572), the Founder of modern Kabalah, deeply reflected upon the meaning of this worst expulsion of the Middle Ages. Rabbi Luria did not write a lot - he mainly preached and his disciples wrote down what he said. Following a deep meditation, Rabbi Luria came up with a new concept - God put upon Himself a voluntarily Exile, He withdrew from the World - because of His solidarity with Israel. There are many writings falsely attributed to Rabbi Luria. This short Commentary on Zohar by Rabbi Luria is authentic, it was first published in Zion in Jerusalem in 1940, edited by Gershom Scholem.

Josef Blaha was born in Brno, Czech Republic in 1963, and is lecturer in Jewish Studies and specializes in Jewish Mysticism. He published fifteen books in Czech and in English dealing with Judaism and especially with the Jewish Mysticism. Josef Blaha teaches the US students at the Charles University in Prague.