It is not known exactly how old the Kabbalah is, but the earliest documents relating to these practices date back to the first century C.E. There are those who believe that this tradition goes back as far as Melchizedek and even that Pythagoras was influenced by such Hebrew sources.
The period 100AD - 1000AD i.e. medieval times (and therefore not strictly Kabbalistic) is filled with Jewish mystical references. Scholem has ultimately determined the origins of Kabbalah to hark back to the 12 century.
Do I Need to be Jewish to Study Kabbalah?
You don’t need to be Jewish to study Kabbalah but there are some aspects that may seem very hard to understand to those who are not part of the faith. On the other hand there are many principles contained within the Kabbalah that can be easily grasped by almost anybody.
However, it should be recognized that Kabbalah is indeed part of Judaism and its history and is of importance to members of the faith. This should be given the appropriate respect.
Can Women Study the Kabbalah?
You may have heard that the practice of studying the Kabbalah is not open to women. If Kabbalah is studied within the Jewish faith then this is indeed true but if you are not a practicing Jew there are no restrictions placed on you. People of any gender may study and embrace its principles if they desire to do so. In fact, women have done so for the past 100 years!
Do I Need to Speak and Read Hebrew to Study the Kabbalah?
You don’t have to be able to speak and understand Hebrew, either, to embrace the principles of the Kabbalah, a minimal understanding is sufficient for most rituals and exercises. If you can speak Hebrew, your experience will no doubt be enhanced but it isn’t essential.
What is the Hermetic Kabbalah and is it Authentic?
Kabbalah is studied by many people who are not Jewish and this has been happening for about 500 years! There are even some Jewish people who choose to study the hermetic Kabbalah over more traditional forms.
Whether it is authentic is a matter of personal opinion. Many devout Jews would say it is not but this is open to debate. In general, it probably contains the most important principles with a few discrepancies.
There are those who feel there is one major and important difference between Kabbalah (as practiced by devout Jews) and hermetic Kabbalah: traditional Kabbalah practice focuses on the divine for the purposes of the betterment of creation while hermetic Kabbalah may gravitate towards the betterment of self. This is open to debate.
