<br><br><div><span class="gmail_quote">On 9/24/07, <b class="gmail_sendername">Arie Folger</b> <<a href="mailto:afolger@aishdas.org">afolger@aishdas.org</a>> wrote:</span><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">
<br>On account of this post, I took my trusted Moreh Nevukhim (thank you for the<br>impetus) and turned to the latter part of the third section, and sure enough,<br>chapters 50 and 51 seem difficult to read as an ultrarationalist. One must be
<br>careful, however, as you already pointed out, to consider that there are<br>things which we may consider to be nonrational, such as the soul, which for<br>the Rambam fit into Aristotelian physics and metaphysics. However, this does
<br>not detract from my observation that Rambam knows some kind of mysticism.<br>IOW, Rambam's rationalism included some nonrationalism in it, for it seemed<br>rational to him to include some nonrationalism.<br><br><br>
My point was that the existence of RSG's philosophical commentary on Sefer<br>Yetzira does not require that SY was read rationalistically only. Somehow,<br>barring explicit statements to that effect on Rambam's part, I would consider
<br>such a view very difficult.<br><br><br>Kol tuv,<br>--<br></blockquote></div><br>I posted years ago that Qabbalh and Mysticism were not identical - albeit overlapping. A Sephardic haCham confirmed this to me recently.
<br><br>He confieded to methat Mysitcism as exemplefied by Nevi'im and beni nevi'im is an old honorable Jewish Tradition to "encounter the Divine" etc. <br clear="all"> <br>Qabbalah is OTOH some kind of system [I was fuzzy as to exactly WHAT kind] and he claimed it has many questionable problems with Sephiros and other structures which would never fit a purely Maimonidean concept of Yichud Hashem. [for parallels see Selichos such as Macchnisei Rahcamim or "na kol Middah nechona, etc."]
<br><br>Back to Tanach: Some of the Purest forms of Mysticism can be found in
Tehillm and Shir haShirim. And some Jewish forms of Rationalism can
easily be noted in Mishlei and Kohelles. Therefore, both Rationlism
and Mysticism are native to Judaism<br><br>He concluded that Qabbalah was a form of mysticism heavily influenced by Babylonia and Eastern philosophies, while Rambam was influenced by Aristotle and Western Philosophies.
<br><br>Years ago I taught a class on Ratonalism and Msyticism and I showed that there were a series of many 'Rational Mystics." Some Great Examplars include the RambaN, Maharal miPrague and the Gra, RambaM might fit tis mold too, albeit his mysticism seems divorced from pure Qabbalah .
<br><br>-- <br>Gmar Tov<br>Best Wishes for 5768,<br><a href="mailto:RabbiRichWolpoe@Gmail.com">RabbiRichWolpoe@Gmail.com</a><br>Please Visit: <br><a href="http://nishmablog.blogspot.com/">http://nishmablog.blogspot.com/</a>