This long-awaited, magisterial study-an unparalleled blend of philosophy, poetry, and philology-draws on theories of sexuality, phenomenology, comparative religion, philological writings on Kabbalah, Russian formalism, Wittgenstein, Rosenzweig, William Blake, and the very physics of the time-space continuum to establish what will surely be a highwater mark in work on Kabbalah. Not only a study of texts, Language, Eros, Being is perhaps the fullest confrontation of the body in Jewish studies, if not in religious studies as a whole. Elliot R. Wolfson explores the complex gender symbolism that permeates Kabbalistic literature. Focusing on the nexus of asceticism and eroticism, he seeks to define the role of symbolic and poetically charged language in the erotically configured visionary imagination of the medieval Kabbalists. He demonstrates that the traditional Kabbalistic view of gender was a monolithic and androcentric one, in which the feminine was conceived as being derived from the masculine. He does not shrink from the negative implications of this doctrine, but seeks to make an honest acknowledgment of it as the first step toward the redemption of an ancient wisdom. Comparisons with other mystical traditions-including those in Christianity, Buddhism, and Islam-are a remarkable feature throughout the book. They will make it important well beyond Jewish studies, indeed, a must for historians of comparative religion, in particular of comparative mysticism. Praise for Elliot R. Wolfson: "Through a Speculum That Shines is an important and provocative contribution to the study of Jewish mysticism by one of the major scholars now working in this field."-Speculum

One of the worlds foremost literary critics meditates upon seven books he long had in mind to write but never did. Massively erudite, the essays are also brave, unflinching, and wholly personal.

Analyzes the feelings and problems involved in different types of human love, including familial affection, friendship, passion, and charity.

Don Miguel Ruiz, the author of the classic The Four Agreements and one of the most influential spiritual leaders in the world today, offers students of mystery a new path of knowledge through the most powerful force in the uni-verse: love.

Eros is the expression of our sexual sensualities in our relationships. It is also the initial language of love. It is the magnetism of the first glance, the interlocking of eyes, and the warm and fuzzy feeling that draws us into the intimate space of another. It is the rush of euphoria that swoons our rationale; it is the eruption in our stomach that makes it flutter with butterflies; it is the adrenalin that causes us to hear and feel our heartbeats outside of our chest as our souls connect; and, it is the crazy instantaneous attachment that we develop for people we barely know. Although "Eros" is the essence of infatuation, it is also the first indication of our affection. But it is often frowned upon, as if it is shameful, to be free to express passion for someone you are attracted to. Since the beginning of time, it has been the primary building block of the structure of a loving relationship. When we examine the first couple on earth, Adam and Eve, Adam was aroused by what he saw in the woman that God created. That initial arousal made Adam agree with God that His creation of woman was indeed, "good". In its raw natural form, Eros is the stimulus that moves us to recreate and procreate. It is also the deviant that makes us explore the deeper, darker side of our sexual fantasies. In this book, I delve into the innocent and the naughty realms of Eros where you will feel both the exhilaration of romanticism as well as the liberation of erotica.