The Baal Shem Tov, 18th century founder of the Hebrew mystical movement called Hassidism, writes that the ecstatic swaying motion which is characteristic of Hebrew prayer is the swaying and rocking of the couple in lovemaking. Rabbi Isaac Luria write ...
Archive for the ‘Eros-Ethics-Meaning’ Category
Love Travels With Us: Marc Gafni
It is in the move through the sexual to the erotic that we achieve the ultimate goal of the spirit: higher union with the Shechina, erotic fulfillment in every arena of living. As Rilke aptly wrote of the ability of love to travel with us” “Belie ...
We need to De-Centralize the Sexual: Marc Gafni
I have received some mail – from I am sure lovely – but superficial readers who think that the blogs from the last couple of months somehow violate the Orthodox relationship to sexuality. Precisely the opposite is true. The piece below &# ...
Esoteric Reading of the Song of Songs: Part Two: Marc Gafni
That reading however is but the cloak which allows Akiva to hide his truly radical esoteric doctrine. This doctrine is no less than the Secret of the Cherubs – the spring of enlightenment from which we have been sipping this entire chapter. Whe ...
Esoteric Hebrew Tantra: Marc Gafni
posted by dr. gafni assistant Akiva teaches – the song of song is a Mashal. Usually translated as allegory. Usually understood to mean – the song of passion and sensuality is but an allegory for the higher loves – particularly the l ...
On the Inside of the Inside: Marc Gafni
Song of Songs, Holy of Holies Holy= Inside Holy of Holies = on the Inside of the Inside posted by Gafni assistant The Zohar teaches that Akiva used to read the song of songs on the Sabbath and cry. Tears of Ecstasy. I have asked my assistant to post ...
Love or Die: Marc Gafni
Eros we now begin to understand is the primal desire from which the word springs into being. God’s Eros created the world. One of the great questions asked by the realized beings in every tradition is -“Why is there a world”. That the w ...
Marc Gafni: The Cry of the Shekina; “Woe to me who has become powerless once again”
When man and woman come together in sacred union, God is a third partner in their union. They participate not only in the potential creation of new life below in the visible world, but also create new life above, in the divine. They not only fulfill ...
“The Evolution of Love” – Marc Gafni and Sally Kempton
Three Saturday afternoons, 2-5 p.m. October 19, November 8, December 13 $50 per session CLICK HERE for more information Join Dr. Marc for a wondrous journey into the greatest question of life; How do you become an enlightened spiritual lover in every ...
Want to hear and feel something gorgeous; Read This: Marc Gafni
Akiva teaches the people two great teachings which are really one. First, he points to the Hebrew words for man and woman — I-Y-SH (×יש) and I-SH-A ×שה)). They are made up of two sets of letters. The first set of common letters ...
The Feast of Tabernacles {Sukkot} and Eros: Marc Gafni
advanced post for those initiated into kabbalah: The Baal Haleshem says explicitly that the cherubs are Ze’ir Anpin {the masculine expression of the divine} and Nukva {the feminine manifestation of the divine} (Sha’arei Haleshem, section 1:17; se ...
Mystic and Lover: Marc Gafni
On the first day of the Intermediate days of the Feast of Tabernacles {Chol HaMoed Sukkot} according to the calendar of the land of Israel. Akiva; Mystic and Lover In the Kabbalistic tradition, the hebrew sage, Akiva is the penultimate lover. He is a ...
Notes from a Lover On the Pain of Eros
by Marc Gafni and Diane Musho Hamilton I have written before of the beauty of Eros–the divine life force–and how our sexuality models the greater movement of Eros in our lives. By Eros, I mean the fullness of presence, inner space, participating ...
What is a committed relationship: Marc Gafni
On the first day of the Intermediate days of the Feast of Tabernacles {Chol HaMoed Sukkot} according to the calendar of the land of Israel. In the previous post I talked about a committed relationship. Someone wrote in immeidately and said what does ...
Sacred Union: Who are the Partners? : Marc Gafni [
posted by dr. gafni assistant To really touch at what the ancient mystics meant when they so deeply linked the sexual, the erotic and the sacred, we need to go one final step further. We mentioned earlier that the holy of holies is understood as the ...