Why study kabbalah today? While kabbalah began as an esoteric practice of a small group of educated men, today this ancient mystical tradition is adapting to contemporary sensibilities, including respect for the environment, gender equality, and conscious connection to other spiritual traditions. Access to this wisdom does not depend on the wisdom of one leader or require you to join a cult. Kabbalah, which literally means "that which is received" refers not only to the mystical maps of reality handed down by tradition, but to the awareness each person "receives" along their own journey. Kabbalah has always aimed at healing, repairing and rebalancing the individual, the community and the cosmos as a whole, recognizing the unity in all creation. The literature and practices of kabbalah? including shamanic elements such as prayer, meditation, chanting, breath control, fasting?are teachings and tools for attaining a personal experience of the Divine Presence that surrounds us at every moment. Fundamentals of Jewish Mysticism and Kabbalah addresses both the historical sources and evolving tradition of kabbalah. Topics covered include shamanic healing, the divine feminine, amulets, sacred sex, dimensions of the soul, kabbalistic time, numerology, the kabbalistic Tree-of-Life, the Hebrew alphabet, and the role of sacred texts and Torah.