The Zohar: Pritzker Edition, Volume Eight (Volume 8)

The Zohar is the pre-eminent work of what most people refer to as Kabbalah. Far too often people who are interested in Kabbalah are given some new age crap filled with Neo-Platonic or worse dribble. There are far too many people who publish and hold themselves out as a scholar or "practitioners" of Kabbalah, who are nothing more than charlatans. The Zohar is the real thing and it is the basis of mystical Judaism. The Zohar contains a discussion of the nature of G-d, the origin and structure of the universe, the nature of souls, redemption, the relationship of G-d and man. For those affected by Rabbi Cooper's position of G-d as a verb, the Zohar reinforces the idea of the spiritual journey as the most significant aspect of Kabballah. The practice of Tikkun olam, humanity's shared responsibility to heal, repair and transform the world, flows from [at least according some scholars] the ideas expressed in the Zohar of how it is through the striving of humanity to obtain moral perfection through unity with G-d as expressed by the practice of virtue and by moral perfection, man may increase the outpouring of heavenly grace. Thus we as humans, participate in the redemption of the world through our virtuous actions.This translation will help those who wish to understand the basic concepts of Kabbalah but I caution folks who buy and read these volumes, that it is not easy to wrap one's head around these concepts. Too often people will read and reinterpret what they read in terms of prior experience and cultural identity. It is important you find a reputable scholar or rabbi who will assist you in placing the concepts you read about here in the proper internal context [how they fit together in this work] as well as the external context, [how they fit into the body of Jewish religious thought they are derived from]. One need not be a Jew to read and study these volumes. In fact I encourage anyone who wishes to embark on the study of the Zohar as regardless of your own spiritual path, your experience will be enriched by exposure to the principles found here.

Daniel C. Matt has done for the student of ancient literatures what I wish all orientalists could do with their translations - create out of the ashes of history a readable, easily referenced edition of the Zohar. Though other translations and editions exist of value, none have done for the modern scholar and student of the Torah and Zohar, what this work has done. To be more specific, the compendious note are as valuable as the translation itself! And a must for a well rounded syntopic investigation of this work and its relationship to the Torah and other Talmudic and Sage teachings. Again, I bow politely to Dr. Matt. Excellent work and most welcome to student or mere bibliophile. P.S. Being able to have access to the actual reconstructed Aramaic text is without question most welcome. If you are only now learning of this set of the Zohar - collect the previous yet while ye may!!! - MCH

A tremendous, scholarly resource on true Judaic mysticism in English. A tour de force. Useful to study along with other Torah commentaries. Rich with history, poetic imagery, metaphors, counsel, laws, and legends. One can only hope that it's deep mysteries will reveal valuable insights, or at least the evolution of a Jewish spiritual world view.

The Pritzker edition has an excellent English translation and great notes enabling the ordinary reader to understand the meaning of this otherwise mysterious text. Every new volume is well-bound and anyone interested in Kabbalah will rejoice to own it. I have consulted the various volumes many times and eagerly acquired each volume as it came out. I recommend it highly and of course my teachers also recommended it to me to start with.

Learning book

I'm going to comment on the series of Zohar: Pritzker Editions instead of just on book. This series is a wonderful translation and composition of all of the remaining copies of the Zohar. The footnotes really help in understanding what the (at times) cryptic text is saying. I would recommend this series to anyone interested in reading the Zohar.

Reading the Zohar has made my life so different. I have been given so many revelations to my asked questions. Long before I found the Zohar, the Almighty sent me a message that I did not understand. After reading volumes 1-5 and 8 (I skipped six and seven due to monetary problems) I now have the understanding of Almighty God's message. The Zohar is a living guiding light for seekers of the Truth. Because money is an issue, I have not been able to purchase every available Zohar, but I "know" that money will no longer be an issue and I will have the entire collection before the end of the year, I call on the "Book of Genesis" to witness and grant this testimony!

How happy I am to have a set that translated it all. And reading exaustive footnotes adds to the amazement of the Zohar. I'll be reading this set over and over and thinking about every page for the rest of my life.