Book Review (God is a Verb: Kabbalah and the Practice of Mystical Judaism) Rabbi D.A. Cooper

The Discovery of Authentic Identity and Interconnectivity with All of Life
Kabbalah is a way of life and a way of interpretation. Things in this world are more than we think they are. This world is a reflection of, and is in symbiotic relationship with, other realms of reality. Everything is connected. As above, so below. The mundane and the sacred are connected. Even further, the mundane, physical aspects of life are dwarfed by the mystical.

The level of our consciousness plays a key role in what we manifest, the souls we attract, and our perception of the Truth.

The Lower Levels: Illusion of Separateness
At lower levels, consciousness experiences the illusion of separateness. What we see as beginnings and endings are actually segments of something without boundaries. Our identity is the accumulation of all of our illusions/experience.

Here love manifests as the yearning for completion. The sacred texts often refer to our relationship to the Divine in the erotic imagery of lovers merging. In the section on “The Divine Kiss” the author quotes the Song of Songs in which the mystic whispers about the kiss of its lover. “We can feel the aching heart of the lover.” I often feel this indescribable yearning.

Getting to the Higher Levels: Some Awareness Practices
Wisdom comes from within and through direct experience when we live in a way that invites it. The book describes a relationship process in which we partner with the Divine and we raise our consciousness (raise Holy Sparks in ourselves and in the world) to discover our authentic identity and interconnectivity with all of life.

Realize our hearts are covered with a thick shield. Unshielding involves learning how to let go of our fear, for fear maintains the barriers of separation. Break down the barriers, one baby step at a time. Let go of the inner critic. Peel away the veils and notice what was present the whole time.

At the higher levels of consciousness, the reality of oneness of all is manifested. This is the mystical epiphany. We do not need Divine intervention. We do not have to search for God, because the presence of the Divine permeates all things. The urge to call out to God is always answered simultaneously for there is no difference between the caller and that to which it calls. If there is a search at all, it is God searching for Itself. At each step we take, the Divine steps with us. Each breath we draw is connected with the breath of the universe. Lover, beloved, and the essence of love itself all are reflections of exactly the same thing. In these moments we know the presence of the Divine without separation. “Behold we are the source and the source is us. We are so intimately united with It, we cannot by any means be separated from It, for we are It.”

Ultimately, we may see who we really are. Do everything in our power to live with authenticity, live with integrity, and remove our finger from the dam of self-identity.