Beholders of Divine Secrets: Mysticism and Myth in the Hekhalot and Merkavah Literature

This is the author's doctoral dissertation in book form. It is a study of mythological motifs from the Ancient Near East in the Jewish mystical tradition in late antiquity and early medieval period. It is an interesting study from a comparative perspective, but does not draw any conclusion regarding the transmission of the ideas from Mesopotamia in 500BC and the Hekhalot and Merkavah literature of 200-800AD.

great

This is an excellent book which uncovers the mysteries of the Hekhalot/Merkava (Divine Palaces/Chariot) School of Judaic Mysticism, one of the richest and most enigmatic movements in Western Spirituality. Sometimes associated with the Kaballah, its writings purport to be mystical accounts of journeys through the Seven Heavens to God by various religious adepts of the time.In lucid, clear prose Arbel takes us through the complexities of the literature, provides a historical context and shows how the writings have parallels with similar Mesopotamian texts of the time. What makes the book really special, though, is the treasure trove of quoted passages taken from the originals which, other than as fragments in other books, are almost impossible to find translated into English.A wonderful book, highly recommended, which takes you on a long journey into the origins of our Western Spirituality in all its visionary splendour.