REL 134: Jewish Mysticism (subtitled: Jewish Mysticism is neither Jewish nor Mysticism; discuss.)
I dug out an old HD and a suitable enclosure and managed to find that old Jewish Mysticism paper I mentioned previously, which several of you requested to see. I attempt to reproduce it below. This paper was a lark, not a serious scholarly exercise. Despite this there are only a few jokes within it.
Spring ‘99
essay #2
Rabbi Card Sharkhinya
(“Card Shark” for short)
presents
the T2K guide
to
Poker
The card deck as theogonic theosophy.
It is written, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” (Deut. 6:4) Just as God is one, the infinite en-sof, so too is poker played with one deck. From this divine unity, certain divisions are made, so too are there divisions within the deck of cards.
“The later Kabbalists spoke of four worlds which constitute such a spiritual hierarchy” 1. The four suits in a deck of cards represent these four worlds. The first world, that of divine emanation, corresponds with the diamond, for the emanation of the divine is a precious thing. The second world, that of creation, corresponds with the heart, for God loves the Jews. The third world, that of formation, corresponds with the spade, for it is a tool of gardening, which is man’s earthly re-enactment of God’s act of creation. The fourth world is that of activation, which is represented by the club, for it was the beating / oppression of the Jews which motivates them to activism.
Furthermore, just as the divine unity is further divided into the ten sefirot which fall into three “worlds”, so too is the deck of cards divided into thirteen types of cards.
Beginning with the ten sefirot: The numberical cards, “2" through “10", correspond to the second through tenth sefirah. The ace has the value of 1 in poker, and corresponds to the first sefirah, that of “Elevated Height”, which is appropriate because the ace is the highest card. Rabbi Azriel wrote, “The nature of sefirah is the synthesis of every thing and its opposite.” 2 The ace embodies this, as it is also the lowest card.
Rabbi Azriel further tells us that the ten sefirot are divided into 3 worlds. These are what the “face cards” correspond to. The “Jack” equals the world of intelligence, which is composed of sefirot 1-3. The “Queen” is that of the soul, which is 4-6. And the “King” is that of the body, which is 7-10.
These 3 divine worlds, and 3 face cards, also represent the 3 strands of spirits written about in the Zohar. These are nefesh (Jack), ruah (Queen), and neshamah (King). This has great theurgic significance, as will be explained later.
The card deck as a miror image of humanity.
There is one deck, so too does each human have a single body. Just as poker is one game that may be played with a deck, so too is any impulse which a body may have just one of many possible. Carrying out such an impulse involves the four limbs of the body; so too does a deck of cards have four suits. Lastly, just as each suit has thirteen cards, so too does each limb end in 13 parts: (example) 4 fingers, each with three segments, plus a thumb (4 x 3 + 1 = 13).
The game of poker as theurgy.
Rabbi Hoyle has written that the object of poker is to assemble a hand in which the cards are either all the same suit or numerical values (to as great an extent as possible in this latter case) or in some sort of a sequence. Knowing, as we now do, that each suit represents one of four divine worlds, and that each card is a sefirah, a group of sefirot, or one of three strands of spirit, it is clear that the game of poker is all about the conjoining of the parts of the divine!
A “high card” is the lowest ranked hand in poker. It basically means that you have failed to conjoin any of the divine. This is not a very good bet. If you are fortunate, the card will be a face card or an ace. A face card, corresponding to a divine world which encompasses 3 or 4 sefirah, represents the conjoining of three (Jack or Queen) or four (King) sefirah. (This is why the King is higher than the Queen and the Jack.) An ace, since it represents the first of the sefirot, that of the power of “Elevated Height”, is also advantageous.
The next two ranked hands in poker are “1 pair” and “2 pairs”. A pair represents a limited amount of conjoining of the divine, as you have joined a sefirah of one of the worlds with that of another. Two pairs is better, representing twice as much conjoining.
Greater in value than any of these is “three of a kind”, as this hand represents the conjoining of the sefirot of 3 of the 4 divine worlds.
Next is a “straight”, which is 5 cards in a sequence. This represents the conjoining of any 5 which fall in numerical order, regardless of their worlds.
Similarly, a “flush” is 5 cards in the same suit, representing the conjoining of any 5 which inhabit the same world.
A “full house” (3 of a kind plus 1 pair), “4 of a kind”, and a “straight flush” (5 cards in sequence in the same suit) represent extensions of already described hands, better due to the increased conjoining.
Lastly is the “royal flush”, which is a “straight flush” with the ace, three face cards, and 10. This represents the ultimate conjoining. The face cards comprise all 10 sefirot, thereby representing the entire divine, and the ace and the 10, representing the first and last sefirah, further enforce this. This hand also represents the conjoining of the 3 strands of spirit. The nefesh is the throne for the ruah and the two are the throne for the neshamah; without any one of them, the conjoining is not complete.
Just as there can be no flush nor straight with a Queen and a King but no Jack, so too is there no unity when ruah and neshamah are present without nefesh.
Clearly, playing poker satisfies a divine need by conjoining the parts of the divine. If you play poker, meditating with each hand upon these matters, you will draw the stream of emanation down from the upper to the lower, and perhaps God will bless you as Enoch was blessed.
What a true devotee of PK probably thinks of all of this T2K.
“It’s all backwards! The concentration should be on the meditation itself, not on the mysteries upon which are meditated! And the author of the Zohar is too plebian, just an average Jew like me! I get my mysticism from the enlightened. There is too much scripture in the Zohar too; I get all that I need in temple! None of that T2K for me!”
(eleven hundred words exactly, Sitra `Ahra!)
1 Sholem, On the Kabbalah and Its Symbolism pp73
2 Dan, The Early Kabbalah pp94
Spring ‘99
essay #2
Rabbi Card Sharkhinya
(“Card Shark” for short)
presents
the T2K guide
to
Poker
The card deck as theogonic theosophy.
It is written, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” (Deut. 6:4) Just as God is one, the infinite en-sof, so too is poker played with one deck. From this divine unity, certain divisions are made, so too are there divisions within the deck of cards.
“The later Kabbalists spoke of four worlds which constitute such a spiritual hierarchy” 1. The four suits in a deck of cards represent these four worlds. The first world, that of divine emanation, corresponds with the diamond, for the emanation of the divine is a precious thing. The second world, that of creation, corresponds with the heart, for God loves the Jews. The third world, that of formation, corresponds with the spade, for it is a tool of gardening, which is man’s earthly re-enactment of God’s act of creation. The fourth world is that of activation, which is represented by the club, for it was the beating / oppression of the Jews which motivates them to activism.
Furthermore, just as the divine unity is further divided into the ten sefirot which fall into three “worlds”, so too is the deck of cards divided into thirteen types of cards.
Beginning with the ten sefirot: The numberical cards, “2" through “10", correspond to the second through tenth sefirah. The ace has the value of 1 in poker, and corresponds to the first sefirah, that of “Elevated Height”, which is appropriate because the ace is the highest card. Rabbi Azriel wrote, “The nature of sefirah is the synthesis of every thing and its opposite.” 2 The ace embodies this, as it is also the lowest card.
Rabbi Azriel further tells us that the ten sefirot are divided into 3 worlds. These are what the “face cards” correspond to. The “Jack” equals the world of intelligence, which is composed of sefirot 1-3. The “Queen” is that of the soul, which is 4-6. And the “King” is that of the body, which is 7-10.
These 3 divine worlds, and 3 face cards, also represent the 3 strands of spirits written about in the Zohar. These are nefesh (Jack), ruah (Queen), and neshamah (King). This has great theurgic significance, as will be explained later.
The card deck as a miror image of humanity.
There is one deck, so too does each human have a single body. Just as poker is one game that may be played with a deck, so too is any impulse which a body may have just one of many possible. Carrying out such an impulse involves the four limbs of the body; so too does a deck of cards have four suits. Lastly, just as each suit has thirteen cards, so too does each limb end in 13 parts: (example) 4 fingers, each with three segments, plus a thumb (4 x 3 + 1 = 13).
The game of poker as theurgy.
Rabbi Hoyle has written that the object of poker is to assemble a hand in which the cards are either all the same suit or numerical values (to as great an extent as possible in this latter case) or in some sort of a sequence. Knowing, as we now do, that each suit represents one of four divine worlds, and that each card is a sefirah, a group of sefirot, or one of three strands of spirit, it is clear that the game of poker is all about the conjoining of the parts of the divine!
A “high card” is the lowest ranked hand in poker. It basically means that you have failed to conjoin any of the divine. This is not a very good bet. If you are fortunate, the card will be a face card or an ace. A face card, corresponding to a divine world which encompasses 3 or 4 sefirah, represents the conjoining of three (Jack or Queen) or four (King) sefirah. (This is why the King is higher than the Queen and the Jack.) An ace, since it represents the first of the sefirot, that of the power of “Elevated Height”, is also advantageous.
The next two ranked hands in poker are “1 pair” and “2 pairs”. A pair represents a limited amount of conjoining of the divine, as you have joined a sefirah of one of the worlds with that of another. Two pairs is better, representing twice as much conjoining.
Greater in value than any of these is “three of a kind”, as this hand represents the conjoining of the sefirot of 3 of the 4 divine worlds.
Next is a “straight”, which is 5 cards in a sequence. This represents the conjoining of any 5 which fall in numerical order, regardless of their worlds.
Similarly, a “flush” is 5 cards in the same suit, representing the conjoining of any 5 which inhabit the same world.
A “full house” (3 of a kind plus 1 pair), “4 of a kind”, and a “straight flush” (5 cards in sequence in the same suit) represent extensions of already described hands, better due to the increased conjoining.
Lastly is the “royal flush”, which is a “straight flush” with the ace, three face cards, and 10. This represents the ultimate conjoining. The face cards comprise all 10 sefirot, thereby representing the entire divine, and the ace and the 10, representing the first and last sefirah, further enforce this. This hand also represents the conjoining of the 3 strands of spirit. The nefesh is the throne for the ruah and the two are the throne for the neshamah; without any one of them, the conjoining is not complete.
Just as there can be no flush nor straight with a Queen and a King but no Jack, so too is there no unity when ruah and neshamah are present without nefesh.
Clearly, playing poker satisfies a divine need by conjoining the parts of the divine. If you play poker, meditating with each hand upon these matters, you will draw the stream of emanation down from the upper to the lower, and perhaps God will bless you as Enoch was blessed.
What a true devotee of PK probably thinks of all of this T2K.
“It’s all backwards! The concentration should be on the meditation itself, not on the mysteries upon which are meditated! And the author of the Zohar is too plebian, just an average Jew like me! I get my mysticism from the enlightened. There is too much scripture in the Zohar too; I get all that I need in temple! None of that T2K for me!”
(eleven hundred words exactly, Sitra `Ahra!)
1 Sholem, On the Kabbalah and Its Symbolism pp73
2 Dan, The Early Kabbalah pp94