Learning How the Zohar Was Discovered

The greatest misconception or confusion when it comes to the Zohar is imagining it's dealing with everything we talk about in our corporeal reality, due to the similar terminology. However, when studied properly this special book helps us strengthen our advancement on the path. Its goal is to raise us above reason, rather than doing things according to our own brain.

In honor of Lag Ba'Omer, today we're learning about the history of the book of Zohar, who wrote it, how they wrote it. And how we need to access it. Who opened it up for us. How Baal HaSulam took an ancient text and made it more accessible for us.

Michael Laitman did the same, bringing the text down to a level for us to understand. He also taught us how to approach the study, meaning the various conditions for studying the Zohar such as absorbing it with our hearts, rather than our mind. If we want the book to change us, reading the text from the Zohar attracts the light that reforms.

Throughout the years we heard all kinds of stories about the Zohar that were handed down from our teacher's teacher - Rabash - and from his father, Baal HaSulam.

We need to understand what process we're in: Exile from Egypt, as in getting out of the ego. This is why we start the counting of the Omer. It's a process where each time we need to overcome the ego, and when we reach the 50th stage - we receive the light of the Torah. Before that there is a "tiny" condition that we need to be connected in mutual responsibility.

There is a stage called 33, and when we make it that means we're confident we'll reach the end of correction. Meaning there is no way back. 2000 years ago to this day Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai left our world and that's what we'll talk about today.

The book of Zohar is a commentary on the entire bible, which was written some 3000 years ago. And only after the destruction of the temple, ten people gathered and took this creation called Torah, Neviim, Ktuvim. Some people say the scrolls for this commentary were so great, the donkey could barely move. And when they wrote the scrolls, Rashbi and his son and eight more people - Israel was under Roman rule. Rashbi and his son were hiding in the cave. Jews were exiled from here to all over the world. By the way, we'd love to invite you to see the Hidra Raba cave where they say the Zohar was written. Whoever comes here, we usually take them there.

We don't know what happened next, but what we do know is that after the commentary was written, this book disappeared for over 1000 years. It showed up in the 13th century in caves in Safed up North. It was actually Arabs searching for gold who came upon these scrolls. They didn't know what to do with it so they sold it to the people in the market to wrap their fish. This is how a Rabbi from Safed discovered the source. He sent his students to buy all the scrolls and that's the basis of the book of Zohar. And then passed everything on to the Ramban.

The Jews that were exiled from the Roman empire went to Spain where many people were studying Kabbalah in those days. Many people copied the scrolls and they reached Rabbi Moshe De Leon. In order to verify if he's writing from himself or if he has the original - another Rabbi went to meet him to check. They set a meeting but Moshe de Leon died right before the meeting. Some of his students said he had written it himself. Others said it's the original script. That Rabbi also interrogated his wife.

At the end of the day the scrolls come back to Israel. No one knows where the original is. After the exile to Spain most of the Kabbalists were in Spain and they studied Kabbalah there. The Ari and other Kabbalists worked on the texts. The book was finally printed in Italy, but it was not really promoted. Then it reached Baal HaSulam and it's written in Aramaic - a language from 3000 years ago that all the great empires used. It's actually the opposite to Hebrew. In Hebrew "or" is light, and in Aramaic "orta" means darkness.

In 1953, Baal HaSulam translates the book of Zohar to Hebrew. That was a real revolution. Then on the basis of his knowledge of the writings of the Ari - he wrote a very comprehensive commentary on the book of Zohar, making up about 1/50 of the entire publication. He also wrote a few introductions to the study of the Zohar as guides for us.

He left the Aramaic above and beneath that he added Baal HaSulam's commentary. Rav and our friends took it further by putting the Aramaic below so that the text flows. Rav and his big team worked on it for quite a few years until we published the English version in 2014. Soon we'll be finished the Russian translation.

Here's the precise chronology of what transpired -

1. The Age of Destruction: The Fall from Love to Hate

The Spiritual Level: During the days of the Temple, the people lived according to the law of "Love your neighbor as yourself".

The Internal Break: The Transition from Brotherly Love to Unconditional Hatred.

The Result: Physical Destruction (the Temple) and Spiritual Destruction (Exile).

2. The Transitional Generation: Rabbi Akiva and His Disciples

The Attempt at Restoration: Rabbi Akiva tries to return the people to the foundation of love.

The Tragedy: 24,000 of his disciples die in a plague and the Bar Kochba Revolt fails.

The Remnant: Only five disciples survive, including Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai (Rashbi).

3. The Birth of the Zohar: The Connection in the Cave

The Escape: Rashbi and his son Elazar hide in a cave in Peki'in for 13 years.

Rashbi speaks and Rabbi Abba writes the Zohar as a tool for future generations.

4. The Genizah Period

A. The Accidental Discovery

The scrolls are shelved near Safed and forgotten.

In the 13th century, workers find them and sell the parchment as wrapping paper for spices in the market.

B. The Rescue and Wanderings

A sage from Safed recognizes the writing, buys the wrappings and passes them on to the Ramban.

The Ramban sends the book to Spain, where it reaches Rabbi Moshe di Leon.

After his death, the book is secretly copied and passed from one Kabbalist to another.

5. The Revolution in Safed: Printing and the Ari

The Breakthrough to the World: In the 16th century, the book is printed for the first time in Italy and returns to Safed.

The Decipherment: The Holy Ari constructs the "key" to understanding the Zohar.

The Project: Writing the "Tree of Life" - transforming the Zohar from a pictorial midrash into an orderly system of worlds.

6. The 20th Century: Making it accessible to the masses

The Barrier: For centuries, the Zohar remained "locked" and written in Aramaic.

The Baal HaSulam Commentary: In 1950, Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag completes a life's work:

Translating the Zohar into Hebrew.