Jewish Occult Daemonology Studies

Jewish Occult Daemonology Studies by Elliot HarrisFor centuries Jewish tradition has preserved a vast body of literature concerning the unseen world. From the Hebrew Bible and Talmud to medieval mystical writings and the folklore of Jewish communities across Europe and the Middle East, accounts of demons, spirits and protective rites have occupied a curious place alongside mainstream religious thought. Often overlooked, these traditions illuminate the fears, hopes, and theological imagination of generations of Jewish scholars and laypeople alike.Jewish Occult Daemonology Studies offers a careful survey of this remarkable heritage. Examining the origins and development of Jewish demonology through historical sources, rabbinic commentary, Kabbalistic texts, and popular tradition, it places these beliefs within their proper religious and cultural context. Figures such as Lilith, Ashmedai and the dybbuk are considered not as objects of superstition, but as windows into the intellectual and spiritual history of Judaism.Written for the general reader as well as the student of religion, history and mysticism, this volume presents a thoughtful introduction to one of the most intriguing and enduring dimensions of Jewish tradition.