Heavenly Powers: Unraveling the Secret of the Kabbalah

Author and historian Neil Asher Silberman traces the history of the ancient Jewish spiritual tradition of the kabbalah in this lively and highly readable book. Silberman contends that the kabbalah is as much a revolutionary political doctrine as an occult system of knowledge; as he follows the story of the ancient collection of mystical writings from Babylon in the sixth century B.C.E. to Jerusalem in Jesus' time, from Medieval Europe, Golden Age Spain, and the Ottoman Empire to new age centers in the present day, Silberman explores not only the spiritual significance of the cabalistic texts but also the fascinating stories of the people and the historical events they are connected to.