Yearnings of the Soul: Psychological Thought in Modern Kabbalah

308 Pages·2015·1.2 MB·English

by  Jonathan Garb

Yearnings of the Soul

Yearnings of the Soul
Psychological Thought in
Modern Kabbalah
Jonathan Garb
The University of Chicago Press Chicago and London
Jonathan Garb is the Gershom Scholem Professor of Kabbalah
in the department of Jewish thought at the Hebrew University of Jeru­
salem. He is the author of several books, most recently Kabbalist in the
Heart of the Storm and Shamanic Trance in Modern Kabbalah, the latter
also published by the University of Chicago Press.
The University of Chicago Press, Chicago 60637
The University of Chicago Press, Ltd., London
© 2015 by The University of Chicago
All rights reserved. Published 2015.
Printed in the United States of America
24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 1 2 3 4 5
ISBN­ 13: 978­ 0­ 226­ 29580­ 0 (cloth)
ISBN­ 13: 978­ 0­ 226­ 29594­ 7 (e­ book)
DOI: 10.7208/chicago/9780226295947.001.0001
Library of Congress Cataloging­in­Publication Data
Garb, Jonathan, author.
Yearnings of the soul : psychological thought in modern
Kabbalah / Jonathan Garb.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978­0­226­29580­0 (cloth : alk. paper)—ISBN 978­0­226­29594­7
(e­book) 1. Cabala—Psychological aspects. 2. Psychology. 3. Judaism
and psychology. I. Title.
BM526.G38 2015
296.1'6—dc23
2015017044
♾ This paper meets the requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48­ 1992
(Permanence of Paper).
In memory of James Hillman, who
spoke with passion for the soul

Contents
Preface ix
1 The Return of the Soul: Psychology and Modern
Kabbalah 1
2 The Safedian Revolution 22
3 Psychological Theories 47
4 National Psychology 78
5 The Soul and the Heart in Twentieth­ Century
Kabbalah 104
6 Modern Mystical Psychology: A Comparative View 126
7 The Soul of the Nomian 148
Appendix: The Soul in the Work Binyan Shmu’el 169
Notes 173 Bibliography 245 Index 285

Preface
As I shall write on its last page, the book was written in joy,
as a song of the soul. I wish to thank true friends who have
shared of their own creative joy:
My thoughts on the general direction of the book were
presented at lectures in 2012 in the Judaic Studies Programs
at the Department of Religions at Rice University and Yale
University, and many thanks for the learned comments
and warm welcome. Parts of the Habad­r elated portions of
the book were presented at the 2012 conferences “Habad
and the Academe” at the University of Pennsylvania and
“Epic Exposition: The Ayin Bet Discourses and the Mys­
tical Thought of Rabbi Shalom DovBer Schneersohn of
Lubavitch (RaShaB)” at the Center for Jewish History, and
warm thanks are due to the participants.
My “wanderyear of the soul” in the United States (quot­
ing the late lamented John S. Dunne, as encountering his
work and corresponding with him truly transformed the
last part of this year) was made possible mostly through
the wonderfully challenging, yet supportive atmosphere of
the Tikvah Center for Law and Jewish Civilization at New
York University, and special thanks are due to its visionary
leaders, Moshe Halbertal and Joseph Weiler. My time in New
York was greatly enriched by deep conversations with Elliot
Wolfson. At the same time, the sabbatical that enabled this
year of immersion in the “story of the soul” was enabled by
Hebrew University’s continued insistence on the vital need
for periods of reflection, a laudable policy that will hope­
fully survive the deadening pressures exerted on academia
these days. My ability to join the resources of the excellent
ix