The Seventh Telling: The Kabbalah of Moeshe Katan

Rating:
Summary: An engrossing novel that teaches Kabbalah and about life
Review: Certain books call to me. Most books I won't buy until I've read and analyzed all the reviews on Amazon, but this book I picked up in a bookstore, read til the store closed, and then at every opportunity until I finished it. The narrative is real enough to be believable, but strongly tinged with the mystical, and works at many different levels. The telling of stories to teach and heal is an art and science, and Mitch Chefitz has mastered both ends of the spectrum with this extraordinary work.

Rating:
Summary: A transformative experience
Review: I don't know why this book called my name as I chanced upon it at a bookstore. But, it did. I picked it up, began reading, read at every opportunity, ordered the sequel before I was finished, moved right on to the sequel, and am now re-reading the first book. I even e-mailed Mitchell Chefitz (he answered my e-mail, by the way). I hardly recognize myself.

This book is transformative. It took this hard-headed realist into the nature of mysticism, slowly, evenly and intelligently. (I think the ancient kabbalists were on to quantum mechanics well before the 20th century physicists were.) It can be read on so many levels that there is something in it for everybody.

It changed my view of death. Read it.

Rating:
Summary: The highest and deepest; the sweetest and holiest
Review: The other reviewers talk about how The Seventh Telling is a key to the Jewish Kabbalah which I suppose it is. But I am not Jewish and knew virtually nothing about the Kabbalah when I read it-- and I say it is a key to the spiritual path with heart. It is a doorway out of the labyrinth of life and to the divine. If God is a great river then this is one of the wells deep enough to touch the divine and sate our thirst for spiritual truth. The Seventh Telling is transformational because it includes EVERYTHING as part of our spiritual lives, part of our deep connection with everything else. In this novel, spirituality does not exclude sexuality and all the juiciness of life or even money and the financial/physical energy that moves through our lives. Love, art, death, motorcycles, it is all here. There are lots of secrets (but they are whole, clean, exciting secrets, not dirty little secrets). This book is a parable, a story and not a bunch of bullet points. There is a reason Jesus, Buddha, and all great teachers have spoken in stories and not provided "how to" lists. Instructions make it easy to stay on a mental level and never actually allow yourself to be affected by the truth, to acknowledge your spiritual yearning, to glimpse the real meaning of suffering and obstacles and get to the joy. And here it is. For everyone. Christian or Jew or for those who walk a path with no name. Read it. Read it on every level. Tell your friends and loved ones to read it. I did. And I'm planning to read it again soon. And yes, I am happier, richer, more loved, more joyful than when I first read it. You bet. If you learned something from The Celestine Prophecy you might be ready to read The Seventh Telling, a far more interesting and well written novel containing far more profound and enlightening truths.

Rating:
Summary: The Seventh Telling works on many levels
Review: The Seventh Telling is a remarkable book that "works" on many levels. It introduces and explains kabbalistic thought in a very accessible way, and demonstrates how the theory can be put into practice by modern people. However, unlike other guides, this one is also a gripping story, in several layers, whose characters are compellingly human and complex. As we engage in the multiple narratives, we experience the power of the "telling" to open our consciousness to new insights. We are invited to accompany Moshe Katan, the protagonist, as he explores the relationship among the worlds of action, feeling, thought, and pure emanation in his daily life, as well as through the practice of kabbalistic meditation. For those who, for whatever reason, will never directly experience the power of this practice to change oneself and the world, reading The Seventh Telling the next best thing.

Ruth Goldston

Rating:
Summary: A story with many levels for understanding and enjoying
Review: This is a powerful,beautifully written novel that has the ability to speak to the reader in many different ways. The first time I read it was for pleasure and I could not put it down. I literally finished the last page and went back to the first page to read it again. Each reading has given me a different level of understanding and I am sure that when I read it again I will learn on still another level. What a rarity for Kabballah to be made so accessible and what a surprise to have it in the form of a very readable novel. You will be swept up in the lives of the characters and captivated by the stories. I am looking forward to the sequel that is due out next year!