A TASTE OF KABBALAH
Who Was Abraham?
Abraham is a key figure in Biblical history. He was originally called Abram who became Abraham when he revealed inside himself the foundations for his spiritual work, the father of the nation, Av HaAm. From this moment onward, he began to build a new spiritual form in himself.
According to the Book of Genesis, God called him to leave his homeland and travel to a land that God would show him. God made a covenant with Abraham, promising that his descendants would become a great nation, that his descendants would inherit the land of Canaan and through his descendants, the families of the earth would be blessed.
Abraham trusted God’s promise even when its fulfillment seemed impossible. He is often considered a model of faith. He was willing to leave his familiar life in response to God’s call, demonstrating trust and commitment. The Bible describes Abraham welcoming visitors and providing food and rest for them, demonstrating his qualities of kindness and hospitality.
Abraham is important to three major religious traditions. In Judaism he is a founding patriarch and the recipient of God’s covenant. Christianity teaches he is an example of faith and trust in God’s promises. In Islam he is known as Ibrahim, a prophet and a central figure in the tradition of devotion to one God.
Get Mary Miesem’s stories in your inbox
Join Medium for free to get updates from this writer.
From a spiritual perspective, Abraham represents the beginning of a journey toward a deeper relationship with God. In Kabbalistic teachings, Abraham is especially associated with loving-kindness, generosity, and giving.
The wisdom of Kabbalah explains that the name Abraham means “father of the nation.” Abraham is actually the spiritual father of all of humanity since he was not only the founder of many nations but the creator of the spiritual method of the correction of the world. The main idea of his method was the indication that the Creator is the only one unique and united force of nature which manages all of creation, and that “there is none else besides Him.”
Abraham represents the quality of mercy, which means that he is merciful, responsive, incorporates everyone, feels everyone, and in no case connects it with himself, but raises everyone above himself. His life models these qualities.
He was the first who started to organize a group, and so he is considered the father of the nation of Israel. This nation is a Kabbalistic group, the school founded by Abraham. The concept of the group was formed, and it is impossible to reveal spirituality without it. The more we advance, the bigger the groups become. First, the groups were only a teacher and a student, and now has grown to an international group who study and practice Kabbalah in groups of ten.
After Abraham founded his school, he began to develop the Kabbalistic method with the students who joined him. He created three systems: a system of studying, a system of dissemination, and a system of fulfilling the wisdom of Kabbalah. These systems exist today as the model within which students study and practice this wisdom. He explained that we must invert our innate egoism into its opposite state, called altruism. This is the work of today’s Kabbalah students.
In summary: Abraham was a biblical patriarch whose life became a symbol of faith, trust, obedience, and loving-kindness. His story teaches that spiritual development begins with trust in God and can be expressed through the way we treat others.
To learn more about Biblical patriarchs and the fascinating world of the wisdom of Kabbalah, you may go here.
