Mubarak, Kabbalah and the Golden Age of Mysticism

February 11, 2011

Egyptian Democracy Protesters Victorious
I don't write about politics and have to say honestly that I frequently try to avoid the topic entirely.  We are not islands however and I was reminded of the state of the world twice today - a synchronicity which seemed worth noting in my personal hand-written journal.  I'm repeating it here.  

Early this morning I caught a glimpse of CNN.  There is jubilation in the streets of Cairo.   Mubarak has resigned.  The face of the Middle East is changed forever and for better or worse, there is no going back.  And while I support democracy and open government wholeheartedly, I worry about a majority rule position on Israel and the West. 

On a humanitarian level I wonder what will become of the ideal of freedom if a fundamentalist Islamic party is voted in.  Two recent polls  (Pew Research and Pollock & Pechter) report that a majority of Egyptians support traditional biblical law which includes stoning and the death penalty for crimes such as adultery.  Life under Mubarak was brutal with severe curtailment of personal freedom.  Certainly the  future can be better but there are no hard and fast guarantees .

On a personal level, I am glad that the people of Egypt have seized an opportunity to right social wrongs.   I wish them the best and hope it is a step in the direction of free and open society.  This is my position politically.  Now for the synchronicity.  Today I was reading about Babylonia at the same time as I was watching CNN.  The contrast between Middle Eastern culture then and now seemed particularly significant.


The book I was reading, The Mystic Quest by David S. Ariel, talks about the relationship between Islam and Judaism during the golden age of Jewish mysticism.  What is most surprising about this golden age is that it existed under Muslim rule in Babylonia, the land of the Israelites captivity.  From the birth of Islam  in the 7th century until the rise of the Mamluk Empire some 600 years later, a cultured and advanced Persian state made significant advancements in multiple disciplines.  And in that progressive and open society there was an exchange of ideas between Muslims and Jews. 

According to the Zohar there are seven heavens.  And this is case in Persian legend (Cup of Jamshyd) as well and I can't help wondering if this is one of the point where two very different cultures crossed.   It seems that there were areas of agreement then, a possible shared understanding of energies, dimensions, God and the universe. 

There is less agreement now.  But the truth is that it is still the same heaven.  And that even more surprisingly all of us do still exist together beneath it.  As long as this is the case, anything remains possible. 

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