Table Of Content9{av !4.vraham Itzfzak... JiaCofien 'l(pok.._
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SU:J{y Series in Judaica:
J{ermeneutics, Mysticism, and 1?.g[igion
Michael Fishbane, Robert Goldenberg, and Arthur Green, Editors
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j(av YLvrafzam Itzfzaf( 5-{aCofzen fj(pol(
fJ3etween j(ationa!ism aruf M!Jsticism
Benjamin Ish-Shalom
Translated from Hebrew
by
Ora Wiskind-Elper
STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK PRESS
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Production by Ruth Fisher
Marketing by Theresa A. Swierzowski
Published by
State University of New York Press, Albany
© 1993 State University of New York
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
No part of this book may be used or reproduced
in any manner whatsoever without written permission
except in the case of brief quotations embodied in
critical articles and reviews.
For information, address the State University of New York Press,
State University Plaza, Albany, NY 12246
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Ish Shalom, Binyamin.
[Rav Ku~. English]
Rav Avraham Itzhak Hacohen Kook : between rationalism and
mysticism I Benjamin Ish-Shalom.
p. em. -(SUNY series in Judaica)
Translation of: ha-Rav ~u~.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-7914-1369-1 (cloth). - ISBN 0-7914-1370-5 (pbk.)
1. Kook, Abraham Isaac, 1865-1935- Teachings. 2. Orthodox
Judaism. 3. Mysticism-Judaism. 4. Philosophy, Jewish. I. Title.
II. Series.
BM755.K66I8513 1993
296.8'32'092-dc20 92-8087
CIP
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In memory of my mother
Pnina Maika, :1"37
Whose soul ever strove for freedom
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Preface ix
Part One: Introduction
1 In the Grip of Contradiction 3
• Formative Influences and Sources
• The "Old Yishuv" and the "New Yishuv" -Unbridgeable
Distance
• The Problem of Education-Tradition versus Innovation
• From "Zion" to "Jerusalem"
Part Two: Elements of Reality and Perception
2 Reality and Truth-Epistemology and Ontology 31
• Certainty and Doubt
• The Ontological Status and Epistemological Value of
Metaphysical Speculations
• Types and Stages of Perception
• Will and Wisdom-Elements of Reality and Perception
3 Revelation as a Principle 79
• Will and the Concept of Revelation
• Relativity of Views and Deeds
• The Jewish People as a Revelation of Divine Will
• The Perception of Torah and Status of the Commandments
Part Three: Religion and Freedom
4 The Concept of "Freedom" and the Category of "Self" 99
• Freedom of Thought, Free Choice, and the Concept of
"Self"
vii
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Vlll Contents
• "Self-Awareness" and Intensification of Will
• Individualism and Moral Relation to Society
• The Concept of "Sin" and Idea of Repentance
5 Man and the Origin of the Religious Phenomenon 127
6 The Purpose of Man and Existence 139
7 The Way of the Holy 151
Part Four: Between Rationalism and Mysticism
8 The Dynamic of Rationalism and Mysticism in Rav
Kook's Thought 175
• Rationalism and Mysticism-A Definition of Terms
• Domains of Rationalism and Mysticism
• Mysticism and Reason-Experience and Interpretation
9 Mystical Language, Myth, and Symbol 193
• Expression and Concealment
• Myth and Symbol
• Conclusion
10 Before the Secret of Existence 207
• The Experience of Encompassing Unity
• The Experience of Metaphysical Ability
• Mystical Striving
Afterward 229
Notes 241
Glossary of Selected Names and Terms 331
Bibliography 335
Indexes 349
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The spiritual-social processes and the problems confronting the
State of Israel today are rooted in the events of the late nineteenth and
early twentieth centuries, when the Zionist movement came into be
ing and the major ideological camps crystallized within Jewish society
in Eretz Israel. Many of the difficult questions that have troubled
Israeli society for years-such as relations between the "religious"
and the "secular," the problem of state versus religion, issues be
tween ultraorthodoxy and religious Zionism, the phenomenon of be
coming observant, the question of peace and greater Israel, problems
of "mysticism" and political rationalism, the nature of Jewish identity
in Israel-are linked to the figure, works, and thought of Rabbi
Abraham Isaac HaCohen Kook (1865- 1935), the first chief rabbi of
Eretz Israel, and one of the most prominent leaders of the Jewish
community in the period of the Second Aliyah.
Rav Kook was the spiritual and halachic authority who laid the
foundation of religious Zionism. Discontent with the "Mizrakhi" po
litical pragmatism, he envisioned Zionism as a movement of return
and all-encompassing Jewish renaissance. The contention voiced by
Dr. Benjamin Ze'ev Herzl that Zionism had nothing to do with reli
gion served to reassure the ultraorthodox apprehensive about the
influence of the Zionist leadership and ideology in the domains of
culture and education and paved the way to cooperation between the
"haredim" and the "free ones" in the Zionist Organization. Rav Kook,
however, adamantly opposed this policy. In writing and in speech, he
did his utmost to convince the leftist and rightist camps their way was
wrong, that Zionism would reach no glory by alienating itself from
tradition.
It seems that Rav Kook's influence was greater after his death
than during his life. With his novel approach and fearless indepen-
ix
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