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Kabala...
Jewish or Greek?
(Part 1)
by Jack Courtis
People assume that kabala is Jewish
and any other variety is either not possible or not authentic. Is
this true?
The word kabala is spelt QBL
in Hebrew and means something like, "that which is received".
Further, most terminology used in kabala is Hebrew and there are
numerous books that speak of Jewish kabala. However we need to consider
the very close relationship between the Greeks and the Jews after
the conquest of Palestine and Egypt by Alexander the Great. This
relationship lasted from approximately 332 BCE until at least the
destruction of Jerusalem in 70 CE, by the Romans. In this nearly
400 year period a number of developments occurred which are important
in answering our question:
- The Jews of Egypt lost their ability to read
their scriptures in Hebrew. The Torah was translated into Greek
for their benefit. This is the Septuagint version.
- The Jewish philosopher Philo Judeus (his name
is Greek and means 'friend of the Jews'), a contemporary of Jesus,
wrote an explanation in Greek of the Torah, in which he explained
the Jewish scriptures according to Greek philosophy.
- Another Jewish contemporary of Jesus, Josephus,
wrote a number of books including The Wars of the Jews
and The Antiquities of the Jews, in Greek so that the Romans
could read them. Again, he used Greek philosophy to explain Jewish
beliefs.
- The Greek and Jewish alphabets have a common
origin and some commonality in their individual letters.
- The central notion of kabala is that letters
stand for numbers and numbers can be 'translated' into letters.
There is some evidence that this notion was given by the Greeks
to the Jews. This concept is called gematria and comes from the
Greek word geometria (geometry). In his Dialogues, Plato
hints at gematria as a means of direct knowledge of Reality.
- Another kabalistic concept is called notariqon
and comes from Latin, not Hebrew. The Romans were heavily influenced
by the Greeks.
- In terms of kabala itself, technical words such
as Macroprosopos (the Vast Countenance), Microprosopos
(the Lesser Countenance) and Tetragrammaton (the Four-lettered
Name of God), are Greek. So are the names of the archangels Metatron
and Sandalphon.
- In the New Testament and Gnostic scriptures,
the technical Christian words and titles of Christ, are kabalistic.
There is considerable scholarship available on this point. The
primary example is The Apocalypse of John. The entire New
Testament is written in Greek.
- The concept of the Tree of Life as a diagram,
is a Greek concept. It emerges naturally from geometry, which
is a Greek mathematical discipline. Both Pythagoras and Plato
used geometry to teach their more abstract material. It is contrary
to Orthodox Judaism because it portrays images of God. This is
blasphemous to Orthodox Jews.
The central kabalistic teaching is
the doctrine of emanation. It has no place in traditional Jewish
thought. However, it is a central teaching of Plato and the Neo-Platonists.
We are not saying that kabala is a Greek invention. There is certainly
a Jewish kabala. However, there is a genuine Greek kabala that emerged
in the New Testament and passed into the Gnostic scriptures. Subsequently,
it merged into the Hermetic Revival of the Renaissance and together
with Hebrew kabala, appeared in the Rosicrucian Manifestoes of 1614-16
CE. Today, kabala appears in Jewish form, but has a Greek substance.
If we understand this principle, it enriches our ability to use
kabala as a means to spiritual liberation because it opens up the
whole wisdom and knowledge of the Mystery tradition.
Copyright © 1998 by Stepney Nominees
Pty Ltd (ACN 008 869 485) Trustee for Courtis No4 Trust
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