Dark Matters of the Soul: The Kabbalah of Shame

description of book It’s clear that rectified decision-making is a skill we must cultivate to find our way through this world of “good and evil” where everything is in shades of gray. Success requires a low-grade prophesy called ruach hakodesh. Yet as we’ll see, that requires a discerning will, which requires a pure heart, which requires equanimity, which requires an immunity to flattery and insult, which requires a mastery of our innate tendencies toward narcissism and shame… The Talmud presents a teaching tale that shows how baseless hatred is intricately entwined with unprocessed shame. Each person in the story made this choice or that, for this reason or that, yet really, what actually drove them to make a particular choice was an unacknowledged need to avoid the ego discomfort that is the very definition of shame… This book is an attempt to shine a light on this pervasive and debilitating problem. It is disowned shame that drives the violent communications and intolerant attitudes that poison our national discourse. It is comforting to know that the solution—at least the first step—is simple awareness.