Front Matter (PDF) - Stanford University Press
Front Matter (PDF) - Stanford University Press
Front Matter (PDF) - Stanford University Press
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volume. The standard Aramaic pagination of the Zohar is indicated in the<br />
this<br />
on each page (e.g., 1:34b).<br />
runninghead<br />
is no single right way to read and proceed through the Zohar, but I can<br />
There<br />
out certain features and suggest several guidelines.<br />
point<br />
of all, the Zohar is dynamicÐfull of surprises. Typically we ®nd that<br />
First<br />
Ḥiyya and Rabbi Yose were walkingon the way,'' wanderingthrough<br />
``Rabbi<br />
hills of Galilee, sharingsecrets of TorahÐbut also movingfrom one<br />
the<br />
to another, accompanied by Shekhinah, the Divine Presence Herself.<br />
dimension<br />
knows whom they will encounter on the road? A child amazes them with<br />
Who<br />
a beggar enriches them with precious teachings, a cantankerous old<br />
wisdom,<br />
turns out to be a sage in disguise.<br />
donkey-driver<br />
are about to enter an enchanted realm. Still, although the Zohar some-<br />
You<br />
reads like a mystical novel, remember that this is fundamentally a biblical<br />
times<br />
It's helpful to have a Bible at hand to check the original context,<br />
commentary.<br />
see how a particular verse becomes a springboard for the imagination. Every<br />
to<br />
pages we read: ``Rabbi Ḥiyya opened,'' ``Rabbi Yose opened,'' signifying<br />
few<br />
he is openingnot only his exposition but also the verse: disclosingnew<br />
that<br />
of meaning, expanding the range of interpretation. The reader of the<br />
layers<br />
should be open, tooÐopen to new ways of thinking and imagining. As<br />
Zohar<br />
Ḥavrayya (Companions) continually exclaim, ``Come and see!''<br />
the<br />
Zohar is ®rmly rooted in tradition but thrives on discovery. ``This verse<br />
The<br />
been discussed, but come and see!'' ``This verse has been established, but<br />
has<br />
and see!'' 32 ``Innovations of Torah are required here!'' 33 Innovation<br />
come<br />
through scrutinizing the biblical text, so questioning becomes a su-<br />
emerges<br />
value. After Rabbi Ḥizkiyah asks Rabbi Abba a challenging question, we<br />
preme<br />
told that ``Rabbi Abba came and kissed him.'' 34 Why? Because, as one<br />
are<br />
notes here, ``The question is half the answer; without a question,<br />
commentator<br />
is no reason for an answer.'' 35<br />
there<br />
when the meaningof a verse is perfectly clear, the Zohar may question<br />
Even<br />
structure, sometimes probingso deeply that the reader is stunned. To take<br />
its<br />
extreme example, come and see how Rabbi El'azar deals with the concluding<br />
an<br />
in the story of the Garden of Eden, which could hardly be more explicit:<br />
verse<br />
Zohar 1:56b, 112a, 136a, and frequently.<br />
32.<br />
Ibid., 155b.<br />
33.<br />
Ibid., 155a.<br />
34.<br />
Abraham Galante, in Or ha-Ḥammah, ad loc. On questioningin the Zohar, see<br />
35.<br />
``New-Ancient Words,'' 198±99.<br />
Matt,<br />
Genesis 3:24. Literally, He drove out the human.<br />
36.<br />
Translator's Introduction<br />
How to Read the Zohar<br />
xvii<br />
He drove out Adam. 36 ``We do not know who divorced whom: if the blessed