Preety_India

Because some men are downright sociopathic and don't understand the meaning of consent or dignity of another human being. Sociopaths like to inflict pain and have no remorse or empathy.

I don't think that kessinger is involved in this. Because if she really was, Chris would spend no time throwing her under the bus and show her up to free himself of any responsibility. This tells me that she wasn't involved. Do I think that Chris enjoyed killing the family? I've a slight suspicion that this might be true that he enjoyed it. Because he sent the Doll picture a week before. Then he looked up Metallica song Battery to convince himself that he wasn't the monster but something else made him insane in that period of time. I also feel like the way he referred to Bella was very derogatory. He said something like "little quiet Bella had the will to live." it almost felt sarcastic. Also he said how easy it was to simply lower Cece into the hatch. Was he reliving it for pleasure? Was he feeling powerful? This is obvious that he had planned these murders long ago, almost a week ago with certainty. The descriptive details of the murders tells me that part of him was feeling good about it, kinda bragging about how much monstrosity he was capable of. He was always playing the role of a shy coy guy in the relationship. Maybe his masculinity was curtailed a bit. Maybe this was his chance to kinda show the world that he could do something that people thought only tough guys or physically tough guys could do. Maybe he felt more manly showing his aggression this way because he could see people being scared of him for the first time in his life, was this an achievement for him, did he feel better that he could scare people and maybe this gave him a sense of power that he never had as a dad. Was this a victory for him? Did he feel powerful? There are a few sadistic antagonizing elements here and there and one has to look harder to spot them. For example the Doll picture. I felt like he was mocking his wife and trolling her with that picture. And it's his actions after the murder that confirms this theory. He was looking for a new apartment. He was acting relieved and casual. He was smiling during abc interviews on the morning of 14th. He was hiding a duping delight sort of a smile. He couldn't smile fully but it seemed like he was feeling glad that it was over. He did break into a smile occasionally during the interview but quickly regained his composure in order to look serious.

I went through the interview the 8th time and every time I learn something new.

Nichol kessinger using distancing language. She tried to make it look like Chris had everyone fooled. And then act like she cared for his kids. She has no emotion while talking about him murdering his family. That's not normal behavior. She is not in shock or distraught or anything. Because she didn't freaking care. She wanted the wife out of the picture. She acted as if nothing happened. At one point during the interview it seems flattered that he did this for her. The crushing part is that even during the interview she is trying to be the center of attention. She wants it to be all about herself and not let Shanann take any space. She was so jealous of Shanann that even in death she could not respect her. In her mind, it was as if "who cares if this woman is dead, why make it a big deal, why is she so important." The way she spoke was so forced and disgusting. And the Creepy way in which she talks about the kids in a nostalgic sense. Not only did she not seem upset but she was also in control of the interview almost dominating the investigators. With her granie evil voice. She would have eventually grown tired of Chris and moved on to someone else. She planted the seed. He did the deed.. She didn't want to tell everyone because she was cheating with a married man not because she wasn't committed to the relationship yet. She wasn't exactly the mastermind but she was the puppet master. She knew what she was getting into. Rumour has it that she was some kind of a devil worshipper. She tried to skate around the whole subject by running her mouth. She loves and craves attention from men, would have been unusual to see a female detective interviewing her. Considering the situation, she was awfully casual. It's called vocal fry and it's synonymous with stupid and manipulative chicks. Her demeanor is completely disingenuous. Imo, it was all the "firsts" comments she made to him "I just wish you hadn't done it before the wedding,the kids, and we could have some firsts" where what led him to begin thinking of committing the murders. Remember the card he gave her with "we will have many firsts" written in it.

Was Nichol Kessinger involved? Not at all. If not involved, what was her role in this? She created a Situation of luxury for Chris. She showed him what he was missing out on. She showed him that he could enjoy his life to the full and the only thing in the way was wife, kids and family responsibilities She showed him that he could be actually carefree and happy and live the life he wants and it was in his hands to make it happen. She never gave him an avenue to work on his relationship, he had no chance to warm up to Shanann. She fed on and exploited his weaknesses and made herself feel special around him. She made it look like it was miserable when he was with his wife but wonderful when he was with her. She made herself look like a coveted prize, a luxury woman that he couldn't afford to have because of his circumstances. She didn't directly manipulate him but made him feel deprived of the affection she could give which would be available only on the condition where they could be exclusively together. She made herself look the high and mighty Goddess that he is missing out on, because she is vicious cunning narcissist herself meanwhile she made him look small and unworthy of her status. His own narcissism found it appealing to find this prize and he wanted to fight to keep this prize. But it came with a tag, the tag of family abandonment and divorce which placed Chris in a tight spot where he had no option but to either separate from his family in a big way and choose Nichol over them or be with his "in her eyes miserable" family and forget her for good. This choice was both enticing and agonizing. She indirectly gave him this choice. "be with your miserable family that is wife that you always complain about or be with me." this she didn't say directly. Also even if she said it, one can never know because she cleverly deleted relevant texts. But even if she didn't say it directly, she made it appear that way by placing herself way above Chris and his wife and making them both look small by belittling their expensive furniture like "you guys can't afford this kind of shit." She made sure that she was around Chris 24/7 as her messages and calls dropped into his life regularly. This way he never had any chance to reflect on his affair or on her cunning behavior. Her tactful measured subtle interference was there 24/7. She was extremely covert with her subtle constant manipulation constantly making Chris guilty for having an affair with her and not leaving his wife for her. This made Chris to suffer turmoil and split over a choice. She by her actions and not words showed Chris that she was a much better option than the wife long term. This made Chris feel inadequate and she preyed exactly on this particular emotion and weakness of Chris's Narcissist Personality. Narcissists don't like the feeling of inadequacy or being left out of the party, they can go to great lengths to feel included in the fun, they feel deeply entitled and can suffer a horrible backlash when they think that they are missing out and suffering while others are enjoying. This can cause them to have fatal emotional responses where they can kill someone to get what they want or to even prove a point of how badly they want what they want. Think of Elliot Rodger. Chris was in a dilemma by the end of July. This particular last week was very bad for Chris. The nutgate had happened in the month of July. She had pretty much severed ties with his family, even vented on Facebook which was obviously seen as a demonizing of the Watts family. It hurt Chris's pride and ego. He had had enough. He wasn't going to take the humiliation of his parents. He wasn't the one to show open anger like a fist fight but in his mind he wish he could punch Shannan. He was upset at how the family relationships were and now he couldn't even talk to his own dad. He sensed their helplessness and the bossiness of his wife. Here comes in the mistress with her angelic manipulative wings ready to take away his pain and give him comfort. In comparison the wife started looking like a witch with a pitchfork ready to strike. Watts's resentment was growing unabated. If only somehow Shannan wasn't in the picture, then it would be so nice. No stress, no financial problems, no more baby and babysitting, no more thrive and social media, no more saying yes to the boss, no more being the unappealing character in the back row of his wife's show. Everything could be his if he only claimed it. Kessinger's pathetic lack of empathy and feigned emotions during the interview gives her away and she loses all credibility when she opens her mouth. She had absolutely no remorse over the affair or no guilt over the death of the wife..she only wanted to hop out of the mess and start over again with someone else, perhaps break other homes she can get her hands on. She didn't want to overburden herself with the tragedy and loss which is a typical characteristic trait of narcissistic women who are only bothered about their beauty and status. She didn't want to directly say things or put things in his head because she didn't want to sound like a bitch but she acted like a bitch. Did she hamper the investigation? Yes of course. How did she hamper the investigation? By deleting relevant texts that would have revealed the motive as well as her role. She constantly played the detectives by not being serious, constantly deflecting the conversation to unimportant irrelevant casual things, by running her mouth non stop, giving them no time to think or ask or even have a productive few minutes, simply derailing the whole conversation and turning it into a coffee chat so important things never get discussed, and by gaining their confidence and trust through her blabbermouth, trying to appear cool and friendly giving them no chance to be hostile to her and exhausting them with her blabbering so they could eventually let her go. She played them like a fiddle and slithered her way out of the investigation very tactfully and skilfully and went back home happily. She put wool in their eyes and gave them nothing useful to work with. Her interview at best was just hocus pocus and empty rambling. Did she put a crystal under the kids beds? No idea and it's irrelevant. Is there a Paranormal element to this case? No. But the pain of Shanann and kids will turn into a haunting. Also the darkness of Chris and Kessinger were revealed. There is a hierarchy of evil and darkness of character in this mysterious haunting murder mystery. The first starts with low grade evil, more like human flaws and it starts with Shanann. Shanann was stupid and reckless. She was greedy for money and status but not in an evil way but a childish way. She had a child like greed for everything. She wanted everything she could get her hands on. She wanted a high life whether she could afford it or not. She would use her kids as props and neglect her husband in the process. Her social media was more important, her friends were more important than marriage. Everything was meant for display. Even if things on the inside were bad, on the outside everything had to look perfect. Shanann suffered from mental illness of being obsessed with a materialistic life, like an OCD and couldn't let go. She was an overt bossy narcissist who needed things to be her way or else she would get mad and upset. At some point, the whole marriage was weighing her down and the only way to stay afloat was to be completely oblivious to deeper problems and keep the show going on as long as she could get it going, maybe the whole thrive business was acting like a therapy for a lonely tired miserable Shanann who got more on her plate than she could afford to manage and this thrive was the last chance to feel alive in life, connect with new people through social media, and make her dream of the picture perfect wealthy family come true. She would make videos after videos, the only way to talk to people directly from home, without having to pay money for parties or hangouts at restaurants. This was a much easier way to connect with people and have her communication needs fulfilled and remove the emptiness she felt from feeling down and tired from lupus and the struggles of a young mother in the modern world. This was the best way to vent. No need to have a therapist In hindsight, Shanann needed intense therapy and help for her hyper behavior and restlessness. She wanted someone to have a heart to heart talk with. She didn't need fake friends and marketing bullshit but someone to let her relax her anxieties. She drowned her anxieties in the thrive business. She wanted to convince herself that everything was going to be perfect so that she wouldn't suffer the anxiety trigger. However thrive was not what Shanann thought it was. It was a cunning manipulative deceptive company that got its employees bankrupt and it was a failing business, not thriving. People like Shanann were easy exploits, who were too desperate to work, but had babies on their arms, so no way could they flip burgers. MLM marketing businesses attracted such housewives desperately looking for ways of income. MLM is a horrible strategy to make money. However Shanann wouldn't figure this out. This business was draining her emotionally and draining her bank account dry. This business was about to completely ruin what she built with great persistence and hard work. In short MLM is a scam. And shannan, being a busy mother had no time to figure this out. Chris was too slow, autistic and uninterested to carry out his own research on this. He wasn't thrilled to be a part of it but he did it for wifey. Shanann's only evil was in being childishly selfish and stupid and completely ignoring deeper family troubles and taking great financial risks and completely unbothered about future consequences. The second grade evil, the stronger evil resided in Chris. He had this deeply buried narcissism, psychopathy and Insecurity as a man that got stronger over time and took a heinous turn under the circumstances that year, 2018. The circumstances made his dark side darker. They brought out the worst in him. He always had this darkness but there was no outlet for it or any way for it to get stronger. But Kessinger exploited this darkness. She fed on his darkness like a vulture. I remember 3 years ago when I was researching a case and a phrase ran through my mind constantly and it was "the demon in me finds the demon in you." I think this correctly applies to Kessinger. She had the demon herself and her demon found the demon in Chris. She knew his weaknesses. She exploited these weaknesses. She baited him with sex. The way a fisherman hooks a fish, she hooked Chris to herself with sex. The thing she is did was very covert. She tried to test his moral boundaries and made him feel free. She made immorality look okay. She made him feel like anything was okay. Nothing was immoral. The affair wasn't immoral.. She preyed his moral boundaries and broke them so that he wouldn't know right from wrong. She didn't give him an opportunity for reflection. She made it look like there was nothing immoral in her world. Any kind of sex was okay, no matter how animalistic. She had only one code - pleasure. As long as something gave pleasure, it was fine, even though it was immoral. It was fine to cheat on the wife. It was fine to have sex with her. It was fine to separate family. Everything was fine as long as she they were having fun. Nothing was off limits. Nothing was wrong. What a freedom! What a liberation! Nothing must have felt like this before. Chris was mesmerized and enamored. He was besotted with her. He could be his evil self in front of her. If he wanted anal sex, nichol would encourage it. She would encourage the evil in him. Asking Shanann about anal sex was out of question. She would have looked back at him with scorn and temper. There was no way he could be himself with Shanann. But with Nichol he could be whatever he wanted. He could say the most psychopathic shit and still get away with it. He could be an asshole and nichol would encourage him. With Shannan there was no such freedom. With Shanann he had to be on his best behavior. With Nichol however, he could be his worst version and she wouldn't mind. She taught him there was nothing moral or immoral. It was just social standards. Behind closed doors everything was okay. Yet she wasn't going to fool herself by simply giving pleasure to Chris. She wasn't going to be just his "happy time"... She wanted more. So she kept dropping hints that she was frustrated and didn't want to play second fiddle. They would definitely have pleasure but there would be certain conditions. And this meant that Shanann be replaced by her as soon as possible or else she was going to put her foot down and make Chris lose his ultimate prize. Eventually Chris was brainwashed with the idea absolutely nothing is immoral, even killing and murder if it was to benefit the self and live the pleasurable life. Chris became a sex addict. She hooked him to sex.. Now there was no escape. Thrive had only made his addiction receptors stronger. To Chris, everything was bleak, he even told Kessinger in the first week of August that he was looking for separation. Kessinger immediately started apartment hunting. She cleverly disguised this in the interview as her searching for an apartment for his kids. Why would she need to look for an apartment for his kids? Wasn't he able to do that himself? And yet she had never met his kids? What a joke? Nichol also tried to play victim during the interview.. methinks the lady doth protest too much. She had too much to hide. She is a clever cunning master manipulator who used her skills perfectly to evade the whole situation. The third grade evil and the greatest evil resided in Nichol. She didn't mastermind it but she was holding the strings to a volatile situation. She played it for herself. She didn't care who was going to be hurt as long as it wasn't her. She had zero empathy. She was entitled. She was exploitative. And she broke moral codes for her own pleasure and attention.. She needed Chris as her narcissistic supply. In this she didn't think what she was doing. She was jealous of Shanann. She was going to have her life. She couldn't be a bystander watching Shanann eat the cake. She had to snatch lt from her and get everything to herself. In this she failed to realize that Shanann had built everything on her own. In her mind, everything Shanann was, was because of Chris and now it was her time to shine and have the same things that Shanann had, with the same man. Whats the mystery behind Nichol googling the couple a year ago in 2017? This will always be a mystery. Did she know Chris at that time? Was she already at anadarko? Did Thrive patches contribute to this? Thrive patches might not have contributed directly but they definitely accelerated his rage and energy in the wrong direction. Strangulation is not a simple process and it takes massive energy and time for it to be successful. Chris tried to kill his daughters twice. First he smothered them and they woke back up again. This time he had to make sure he got the job done right. Thrive definitely caused him to have less control on his impulses. Chris changed tremendously not only in his body but also in his facial expressions. He was this chubby guy in 2016. And even in 2017. But his appearance began to change rapidly in 2018, the year of the murders. He developed a lean body, got rid of excess fat, his cheeks looked sunken, his skin got darker, his eyes began to look hollow, he was getting thinner and thinner, maybe because of thrive, the caffeine was driving him crazy, he wouldn't sleep, constantly with high energy and not knowing what to do with this energy. At the same time, he began to have tons of gray hairs and looked very tired and stressed and aged. He wasn't looking normal at all. The pregnancy news didn't bring any cheer, instead it heightened his stress. He was going crazy and found comfort with Nichol. Nichol had set such a trap that she had become irresistible. Did Shannan have anything to do with this? Yes. Her angle cannot be dismissed. She put a lot of stress on poor Chris who was just a shy guy. She did give him a big family but took away his peace of mind. Everything was all about her and the kids. Chris began to live in her shadow and she couldn't care less. She was thriving on thrive but he wasn't. However this is not to be interpreted as she deserved to go through something horrific, but only that such a dynamic can drive a person over the edge if nothing is done within time to fix it. Was Chris Watts addicted in some way? Yes. He was addicted to sex. But he was also addicted to thrive and weight loss, a lethal combination of madness. Was sex a big factor in this case? Yes absolutely. Nichol was trying to get him addicted to sex so she could have him all for herself. Was Chris Watts always capable of such cruelty? I think there was always a certain darkness to Chris that was deeply buried but not released. Nichol triggered this release with her immorality dialogue and philosophy. Was this because Chris did it or because something else took control over him in those horrific murder moments? This is uncertain. Was this an act of evil or insanity? Both. How legit is the theory that Chris puts out there that in those moments and before that day, something took control over him and actions? I think he is trying to throw people off. Like a true narcissist, he doesn't want to take any responsibility and blame either Shanann or Nichol or some supernatural evil. How is the demeanor of Chris in prison? Very bad. He still has that cold hearted, zero empathy, mean streak, grumpy, psychopathic demeanor that he displayed on the day of the welfare check. Does Chris have a mean streak or did he always have a mean streak? I think he always did. Was Chris a weak man? Yes. Is Chris stupid or smart? Both. He was smart enough to understand what he was doing. But stupid to not understand why he was being made to do all this. What was the motive of the crime? Selfishness and a new life with nichol Was the affair responsible for the crime? Yes. Only that. Did Chris love or hate Shannan? Maybe he did love her. But his love fragmented and faded over time and he lost interest..

@hamedsf stop telling people what opinion they are supposed to have. Don't impose your opinions on others. Everyone has a different opinion and respect that.

Man, I got no time to deal with assholes really.

It's just so creepy. Life is so creepy. Everything is a mystery. And we will never know certain things.

I'm watching a lot of documentaries on Jewish culture and history and it blows my mind how they thrived through all the brutality they were made to go through.

Lol. I'm not sure if humanity is gonna survive till 2060. If it did it would be a miracle.

I'm just beginning to learn about Judaism. And it has provided me a huge refuge during my bad times. It makes a lot of sense.

Why is he pardoning so many people? Whats his motive?

Going to start this year on a clean slate. Finally.

Happy New Year to everyone here. May you have a great year ahead and may all your resolutions come true.

Call hippie or whatever, at least stage Green peeps are better than Trumpists. ~ a fellow Greenie. Lol. This comes as posted on January 1. Cool.

The more I'm learning about Judaism the more I'm liking it as a religion. I can already see how the beliefs are strongly interlinked to higher wisdom.

I'm too poor to give money. Plus I can't walk the big walk because I'm not Leo. I'm not rich. In your case, you're both of the above

Why would you need stimulus packages when you're rich? Shouldn't the poor and less fortunate benefit from it? Also why would you not be enthusiastic about policies that benefit the less fortunate? Are they going to hit a jackpot with such policies? At best they will get a decent time in life for a short while? You should really be enthusiastic about progressive policies because for you it's only a little price to pay whereas for the poor its a whole lot of benefit. Doesn't look good for you to crib about stimulus packages. The whole idea of enlightenment and spirituality should be for you to be able to have empathy for the needy. It's not a gym yoga practice. You should be the last person to talk about stimulus money. You are too rich.

Why has Jewish culture survived for so long? Maybe because they have less toxic elements in their culture. Jewish communities are never known for violence or high crime rate and their cultural practices do not cause any sort of annihilation. People in Jewish communities are more conscientious towards creating healthier families with long lasting bonds. Most families focus on wealth, independence and success and general prosperity leading to success throughout generations. Most Jewish people make smart choices in life.

Certain important books in Judaism The Torah Tanakh Moses Ten commandments Talmud Zohar Ketuvim Nevi'im

General Jewish beliefs. Judaism, monotheistic religion developed among the ancient Hebrews. Judaism is characterized by a belief in one transcendent God who revealed himself to Abraham, Moses, and the Hebrew prophets and by a religious life in accordance with Scriptures and rabbinic traditions. Jewish people believe there's only one God who has established a covenant—or special agreement—with them. Their God communicates to believers through prophets and rewards good deeds while also punishing evil. The most important teaching and tenet of Judaism is that there is one God, incorporeal and eternal, who wants all people to do what is just and merciful. All people are created in the image of God and deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. Eating shellfish is not allowed. It is forbidden to eat birds of prey. Only clean birds, meaning birds that do not eat other animals, can be eaten. Poultry is allowed. Meat and dairy cannot be eaten together, as it says in the Torah : do not boil a kid in its mother's milk (Exodus 23:19) . Orthodox Jews believe the entire Torah, both written and oral, is the divinely inspired word of God and is therefore literally true. Any attempt to interpret or adapt that word of God to the changing circumstances of society is a watering down of the tradition received at Mount Sinai and must be rejected. Judaism relates to consumption of alcohol, particularly of wine, in a complex manner. Wine is viewed as a substance of import and it is incorporated in religious ceremonies, and the general consumption of alcoholic beverages is permitted, however inebriation (drunkenness) is discouraged Every time a Jew engages with the Torah, the light of his or her soul ignites, which is why he or she moves like the flame of a candle. This striking image illustrates the desire of many religious Jews to connect directly with God by learning and praying. A strict interpretation of Scripture holds that burial is a biblical imperative. Of the three main branches of Judaism--Reform, Conservative and Orthodox--only Reform permits cremation but without enthusiasm. Any Jew can recite the blessing, provided they are old enough to understand the significance of the mitzvah. After the blessing, the mezuzah is attached. Whenever passing through the doorway, many people touch a finger to the mezuzah as a way of showing respect to God in a simpler fashion than saying the prayer. Most Jews will cover their heads when praying, attending the synagogue or at a religious event or festival. Wearing a skullcap is seen as a sign of devoutness. Women also cover their heads by wearing a scarf or a hat. The most common reason (for covering the head) is a sign of respect and fear of God Jews believe that there is a single God who not only created the universe, but with whom every Jew can have an individual and personal relationship. They believe that God continues to work in the world, affecting everything that people do. The Jewish relationship with God is a covenant relationship.

Ohe can say at least the craving can be reduced. The cravings usually disappear or reduce in intensity when you're practicing detox.

I'm going to embrace Judaism.

Ecstatic Kabbalah manifesting gold out of lead are interesting metaphors for the enlightened being, but what is truly astonishing is the ability to have a soft heart toward all those who have caused us harm, to care deeply for all who suffer, or to turn away from revenge, hostility, or violence under all conditions," writes Rabbi David A Cooper in this book, which has an accompanying CD. He has been called "one of today's leading teachers of Jewish meditation," and his bestselling God Is A Verb: Kabbalah and the Practice of Mystical Judaism has been translated into several languages and sold over 100,000 copies. In this sturdy little volume, Cooper presents the basics of ecstatic Kabbalah, which is built on the principle "that the light of universal truth is always present at all times." The practices described here and demonstrated on the CD have been used for centuries by Jewish mystics. They can now be used by anyone who is "sincerely committed to personal spiritual development." One of the offshoots of diligently using these meditation practices is peace of mind: "Peace of mind does not result from the attempt to control our lives. In fact, it is just the opposite. It comes from the wisdom that is illuminated when we learn how to relax in a way that allows us to 'be with what is.' In our practice, we learn how to engage in something when it is appropriate and how to disengage as well. Peace of mind comes from recognizing how one sits into the scheme of things, the degree to which all life is interconnected, and the realization that nobody is ever alone." Among the practices you will find here are a Yah breathing meditation that is designed to quiet your mind; a melodic chant for receiving Divine love; the Shema chant to inspire introspection and personal growth; chants from the great mystic Abulafia for invoking clarity and creativity; and a meditation on the thirteen attributes of God including humility, compassion, grace, patience, kindness and letting go. Another offshoot of using these practices is a "big mind," by which Cooper means a mind that "recognizes each moment as perfect, just the way it is. Big mind is equanimous about matters (but not apathetic), and it is sharply aware of the conditioning that lies under all of our activities. Big mind is never dissatisfied with the way things happen; it is a calm, expansive, spacious state. It sees clearly the mystery of life and rests comfortably in the state of 'not knowing' what is going to happen from moment to moment. Small mind has an urge to be in some kind of control; big mind recognizes that the intrinsic nature of creation is unknowable and uncontrollable." This is a fine resource from a Rabbi who knows the riches and depths of the Kabbalah tradition.

Understanding ecstatic Kabbalah In the latter part of the thirteenth century, at the time when theosophic kabbalah [the primary strand of kabbalah, aimed at understanding and affecting the divine world] was flourishing, there emerged as well an alternative kabbalistic tradition with a different focus. The main exponent of this tradition was Abraham Abulafia. Experiential Mysticism Whereas the theosophic kabbalists focused their attention on the hypostatic potencies [i.e. the underlying powers] that made up the divine realm, Abulafia turned his attention to cultivating a mystical system: that could assist one in achieving a state of unio mystica [i.e. union with God], which he identified as prophecy. He thus called his system “prophetic kabbalah” (kabbalah nevu’it), though modern scholars have referred to it as ecstatic kabbalah in so far as it is aimed at producing a state of mystical ecstasy wherein the boundaries separating the self from God are overcome. Prophetic kabbalah, according to Abulafia, embraces two parts, kabbalat ha‑sefirot and kabbalat ha‑shemot; the former is primary in time, but the latter is primary in importance. Abulafia is harshly critical of the theosophic kabbalists who interpret the sefirot as potencies that make up the divine. By contrast, according to him, the sefirot represent the separate intellects in the cosmological chain. Contemplation of the sefirot results in the intellectual overflow that facilitates the attainment of prophetic consciousness, which is essentially characterized as comprehension of the divine name. The process of intellection thus enables the mystic to unite with the divine. In so far as this process facilitates the union of the self with its divine source, Abulafia on occasion describes the sefirotic entities as internalized psychological states. There is a perfect symmetry between the external cosmological axis and the internal psychical one. How to Become a Prophet Abulafia adopted the understanding of prophecy found in the philosophical writings of Moses Maimonides (1135‑1204), who in turn was influenced by Islamic thinkers such as al‑Farabi and ibn Sina, to the effect that the prophet receives an overflow from, and thereby attains a state of conjunction with, the active intellect, the last of the ten separate intellects in the cosmological chain. For Abulafia, too, prophecy can be attained only when one is in a state of conjunction, a state that can come about only when the soul is freed from the bonds of the body. Thus, for example, he writes in his treatise ‘Or ha‑Sekhel: “The connection of human existence with the divine existence during intellection–which is identical with the intellect in [its] existence–until he and He become one [entity].” The union between human and divine intellects is so complete that in this state the individual can utter with respect to God, “He is I and I am He.” One of the things that distinguishes Abulafia’s mystical system from the more rationalist approach of Maimonides is that he introduced special techniques in order to bring about this state of conjunction or union (devekut). The main techniques consisted of letter‑combination (in three stages: written, oral, and mental) and recitation of the divine names, which involved as well special breathing exercises and bodily postures. Abulafia referred to his “science of letter‑combination” (hokhmat ha‑tzeruf), also identified as the “path of names” (derekh ha‑shemot) as the true account of the chariot [the prototypical Jewish mystical experience derives from Ezekiel’s vision of the merkavah, divine chariot or throne] (the term “merkavah” deriving from the root “rkb,” which can mean in one of its conjugational forms, “leharkiv,” “to combine”). [Scholar Moshe] Idel has attempted to locate the Abulafian technique of recitation of names as an ecstatic exercise in the history of Jewish mysticism, beginning with the Merkavah texts of late antiquity and culminating in some of the writings of the [12th and 13th century] German Pietists. Moreover, Idel has drawn our attention to some striking parallels between Abulafia’s system of letter‑combination and Eleazar of Worms [c.1176-1238] whose works Abulafia himself on occasion mentions by name. Envisioning the Divine Although Abulafia gives preference to the auditory mode over the visual, accusing the theosophic kabbalists of focusing primarily on the latter, in his own system visionary experience plays a critical role. For Abulafia, not only is the esoteric wisdom of the divine chariot brought about by knowledge of the various combinations and permutations of the names of God, but vision of the chariot itself consists of the very letters that are constitutive elements of the names. The ecstatic vision of the letters is not simply the means to achieve union with God; it is, to an extent, the end of the process. The culminating stage in the via mystica [the mystical endeavor] is a vision of the letters of the divine names, especially the Tetragrammaton [the four letter name of God; the equivalent of YHVH], originating in the intellectual and imaginative powers. These letters are visualized simultaneously as an anthropos [a physical form]. Gazing upon the divine name is akin to beholding the divine form as constituted within one’s imagination. This vision results from the conjunction of the human intellect with the divine, but, like all prophecy, following the view of Maimonides and his Islamic predecessors, there must be an imaginative component. The latter is described either as the form of the letters or that of an anthropos. Both of these are figurative depictions of the active intellect who, in Abulafia’s writings, is also personified as Metatron [a supreme angel]. In some sense, as is pointed out most emphatically in the anonymous Sha’arei Tzedek, written by a disciple of Abulafia, the image is a reflection of the individual prophet or mystic, an externalization of his inner self to the point of identification of the human intellect and the active intellect [i.e. the intellect that actualizes human intellects], personified as an anthropomorphic shape or the letters of the name. With respect to the possibility of envisioning the letters as an anthropos, there is again an interesting parallel between Abulafia and the German Pietists as discussed above. The corporealization of the letters of the name in the shape of an anthropos represents, in my estimation, one of the cornerstones of kabbalistic thought, which has its roots in ancient Jewish esotericism. While it lies beyond the confines of this summary to substantiate my claim in detail, let me underline the essential point that the letters assume an anthropomorphic form [i.e. a human form]. This renders problematic [Gershom] Scholem’s general claim that Christian and kabbalistic doctrines of (visual) meditation should be distinguished on grounds that “in Christian mysticism a pictorial and concrete subject, such as the suffering of Christ and all that pertains to it, is given to the meditator, while in Kabbalah, the subject given is abstract and cannot be visualized, such as the Tetragrammaton and its combinations.” Scholem’s point concerning the centrality of the Passion for mystical visions in Christianity is well taken, but his characterization of the subject of visual meditation in kabbalah as always being abstract needs to be qualified. The visualization of the letters of the name as an anthropos in German Pietism, in Abulafia, and in theosophic kabbalists indicates that in the Jewish mystical tradition as well the abstract can be rendered in a pictorial concrete image in the contemplative vision. Abulafia’s Influence The ecstatic kabbalah had an important influence on the history of Jewish mysticism. In the last decade of the thirteenth century a circle of Abulafian kabbalah was established in northern Palestine. From this circle, which combined Abulafian mysticism with Sufic [Islamic mystical] ideas there derived several works, including Likkutei ha‑Ran (the teachings of Rabbi Nathan) and the anonymous Sha’arei Tzedek. It is likely, moreover, that two important theosophic kabbalists, Isaac of Acre and Shem Tov ibn Gaon, were influenced by this circle, and thus assimilated ecstatic kabbalah within their respective theosophical traditions. In the sixteenth century Abulafian kabbalah began to have a pronounced effect on some of the major kabbalists in Safed, such as Solomon Alkabetz, Moses Cordovero, Elijah de Vidas, and Chayyim Vital, and at the same time on kabbalists in Jerusalem, such as Judah Albotini, and Joseph ibn Zaiah. The influence of Abulafian kabbalah is also quite evident in eighteenth‑century Chasidic literature, deriving directly from Abulafian manuscripts or indirectly through the writings of Cordovero and Vital