Customer Reviews

The Mystical Kabbalah

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I thoroughly enjoyed this CD set. Rabbi Cooper has a very likable, gentle persona and has so much good to share about the most significant matters. I've also listened to Rabbi David Aaron's Kabbalah Works: Secrets for Purposeful Living which I also enjoyed. Between the two, Cooper's is the more in depth, in part because it is 6 disks instead of 4, but also because Cooper takes on more complicated aspects of Kabbalah, gives more of a history, explains and uses more Hebrew words, and is generally the more scholarly. Aaron's seems meant for a broader audience in part because Aaron keeps things simpler and his manner is more familiar and folksy, with touches like personal anecdotes and acceptable attempts at humor followed by "just kidding" (he also includes a reference to Woody Allen). I enjoyed both and in fact Aaron's could be a nice introduction and Cooper's for those ready to take on the next level of intellectual, spiritual awareness of Kabbalah (in conjunction with books, discussions, meditation, etc.).

Cooper's also strategically intersperses guided meditations to explore the ideas he is talking about, in part because Kabbalah and mysticism generally are primarily modes of experience and the knowledge of direct perception. I couldn't always use these tracks at the time since I was driving (and right now, even when driving, I just do breathing meditation). But for those that are listening somewhere where they can do Cooper's meditations, it would almost certainly be beneficial (meditation is just relaxing and pleasurable anyway). And necessary in that you need the experiential part to really understand Kabbalah.

Cooper also includes a few important Jewish, Hassidic folktales ("midrash" apparently) which is quite a nice touch. They are fun to listen to and then Cooper discusses the stories and uses them to illustrate Kabbalah ideas, which will then lead into a guided meditation using those ideas. There is also some nice a capella singing between sections I liked. Another CD set that included more singing and stories might be nice -- in fact, maybe one pitched at children (Kabbalah for Kidz).

Reb. Cooper is a learned and personable teacher with decades of study and experience. This 6 CD set is a gift to yourself, with many layers of learning through stories (midrash), guided meditations, and intentional music (nigun). Reb. Cooper's teachings can bless and change your life if you let them.

I found it useful and inspiring. It helped me out with several issues in my life. I think it's a great audio book and I highly reccommend it. I'm going to be joining The Kabbalah Center very soon.