Works by
Zalman Schachter-Shalomi
(Aka Reb Zalman)
(Rabbi, Writer)
[1924 - ]

 

This page is under construction.  If you would like to expedite its completion, please write to us and we'll place a priority on it.

Audio/Visual

• The Kiss of God: A Dialogue of Devoutness Between Father Thomas Keating & Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi (2005)
  DVD.  In 2005, two of the world's great spiritual elders, Reb Zalman, a Hasidic rabbi and founder of the Jewish Renewal movement, and Father Thomas Keating, a Trappist monk and founder of Contemplative Outreach, came together in Denver, Colorado for an intimate "dialogue of devoutness." Join them as they are swept away in the joy of one another's presence, moving easily from Father Thomas' discussion of the "mouth to mouth kiss of God" to Reb Zelman's speculation about science and the consciousness of matter!

• A Vision of Spiritual Eldering (1995)
  Audio cassette.

• The Baal Shem Tov (1995)
  Seven audio cassettes.  Israel ben Eliezer (1700-1761), known as the Baal Shem Tov, founded modern Hasidism, a movement within Judaism intent on bringing the most profound spiritual teachings to ordinary people.   Rabbi Schachter, a spiritual heir of this tradition, delves into the life and wisdom of the "Master of the Good Name."

• Entering the Gates of Jewish Spirituality (1994)
  Audio cassette.

• Hasidic Archetypes (1994)
  Five audio cassettes.  The stories, rituals and symbols of Hasidic tradition provide a rich resource for living soulfully. Rabbi Schachter skillfully weaves these elements together, creating a framework for experience and understanding that can help enrich life in the world.

• The Next Rung (1994)
  Five audio cassettes.  "We are trying to format soul," says Reb Zalman, discussing the importance of grappling with texts as a way of attuning to the mind of a person separated by time. This workshop explores historic sources and commentaries of Kabbalah.

• Torah & Dharma (1994)
  Six audio cassettes.  Glassman-roshi, a widely respected Zen teacher, joins Rabbi Schachter in a wide-ranging and incisive discussion of spiritual practice in terms of Jewish origins and modern merica, reflecting on commonalities and conflicts between Judaism and Buddhism.

• Davvening with Reb Zalman: Everyday Prayers (An Audio Siddur) (1987)
  Recorded simultaneously in Hebrew and English. Both sides of the tape are the same.

Books

• Integral Halachah: Transcending and Including (2007) by Rabbi Daniel Siegel and Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi
  Reb Zalman turns to the implications of his reworking of Jewish mysticism. In previous books, he outlined his belief system using the kabbalistic image of the Ten S'firot, reframed the Lurianic concept of the breaking of the vessels, and argued for the continued centrality of a messianic teleology in Judaism. Now, he outlines how this new mystical vision can be applied to Halachah, the expression of vision in the details of living. Integral Halachah "transcends and includes," maintaining continuity with the past and providing flexibility for the present. This book is torah she-b'al peh/oral teaching, allowing for update and revision.

• Credo of a Modern Kabbalist (2006) by Rabbi Daniel Siegel and Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi
  Kabbalah, the Jewish mystical tradition, is an object of great interest in a world satiated with material possessions and struggling to find meaning. There are people who present Kabbalah as a doorway into greater detachment and others seek the ability to gain control over their lives and fortunes.
  
  For us, the Kabbalistic tradition serves as the foundation for a rethinking of Judaism in light of the great changes taking place in human thinking and society. Because it is a record of the direct experience of the Divine by individuals and groups, it helps provide both language and concepts on which we can build, not a restored Judaism, but a renewed Judaism. We look to Kabbalah to help us redefine basic concepts, redesign individual and communal practice, while simultaneously remaining within the river of tradition we call Judaism.
  
  Thus, a renewed Judaism anchored in mysticism, will serve as a vehicle for the transformation of the individual practitioner, the community of spiritual seekers, the Jewish people, and, hopefully the larger world. By adding this book to the many already available, we hope that we succeed in connecting the text you will read here with your feeling world. We ask to develop a spiritual imagination as you read, so that you can enter into worlds that are already deeply within us and, at the same time, beyond us. It is for this reason that we have presented the material in a kabbalistic manner, based on the deep structure of the sfirot. By doing so, we hope that the integral horizon will become a way for you to look at the world and for seeing yourself in it.
  
  What we mean by Kabbalah goes even beyond the sense of a God in the center, surrounded by His creatures. For us, there must also be a sense of the truly monistic, that all is God, and that we are participants in the Divine life. We embrace the Jewish term for meditation, hitbonnut, which stands for a stepping back, a looking at ones place in the universe and becoming aware of the interrelation of all dimensions, embracing contradictions and paradoxes and the giving of assent that this is really so.
  
  At the same time, the study of Kabbalah without connecting the ethereal realms to the world of action makes both Kabbalah and the student into disembodied ghosts. Finally, we offer you this book in the spirit of this deep teaching. In the kdushah / sanctification prayer in the musaf / additional service on Shabbat and holy days, we recite the question, Ayei mkom kvodo / Where is the place of Gods glory? It is also possible to read this as a response. Ayei / Where is, is the place of Gods glory. The urge to search and look for God, that very search is the place of Gods glory.

• First Steps to a New Jewish Spirit: Reb Zalman's Guide to Recapturing the Intimacy and Ecstasy in your Relationship with God (2003) by Donald Gropman and Rabbi Zalman M. Schachter-Shalomi
  This extraordinary spiritual handbook is a compassionate call to reconnect with your spiritual roots and nourish your relationship with God. Breaking free from ways of Jewish worship that no longer inspire, Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi--one of the most important Jewish spiritual teachers since Abraham Joshua Heschel--guides you through practical exercises for enriching the most important aspects of everyday life--physical health, work, marriage, family, prayer--and empowers you with contemporary ways to satisfy your modern spiritual hunger.
  
  Whether refreshing your soul with a midday mini-Sabbath or improving your relationships by refining your awareness, Reb Zalman will introduce you to new models of practicing Judaism. In doing so, he will challenge you to embrace your faith as both spiritually and emotionally enriching, and will awaken you to innovative, inspiring ways for leading a meaningful Jewish life.

• Wrapped in a Holy Flame: Teachings and Tales of The Hasidic Masters (2003), Nataniel Miles-Yepez, ed.
  Early in the eighteenth century the legendary holy man and teacher Rabbi Israel Ba'al Shem Tov launched a spiritual movement in Eastern Europe known as Hasidism. The Hasidic movement thrived on parables and stories promulgating joy, the potential for personal transformation, aspirations of the Divine, and the infusion of daily life with music, dancing, and loving exultation— and there is no Jewish institution today that has not been affected by Hasidism. Since the time of the Ba'al Shem Tov, generations of disciples, holy men, gurus, rabbis, and teachers have spread the Hasidic movement throughout the world. Now this book presents in one volume a collection of profound insights from the greatest Hasidic masters.
  
  Wrapped in a Holy Flame offers rare stories, new translations, and an innovative introduction to the meaning and value of these classic tales and teachings. It features the work of Hasidic masters of legendary fame and influence, including the Maggid of Mezritch, Reb Pinchas of Koretz, Shneur Zalman of Liadi, Reb Nachman of Bratzlav, all the way to the twentieth century Rebbe and artist Reb Shlomo Carlebach. The author has studied and taught Hasidic stories and teachings for over fifty years. This book contains a lifetime of experience and will stand for years to come as the basic, definitive work in the field.

• The Dream Assembly: Tales of Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi (Consciousness (1988, 1998) by Howard Schwartz and Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi

• Spiritual Intimacy: A Study of Counseling in Hasidism  (1991, 1996)
  How does one become a rebbe (hasidic master) or a hasid (his disciple)? What is the nature of the relationship between them? What happens during the private interview (known as yehidut) between rebbe and hasid? How does the yehidut compare to other forms of psychological counseling and in what ways is it distinctive? In Spiritual Intimacy: A Study of Counseling in Hasidism, Zalman Schachter-Shalomi provides a thorough exploration of these issues. The conceptual framework that underlies Hasidism plays an important role in understanding the life cycle of a hasid and the different stages at which he seeks the rebbe's counsel. Rabbi Schachter-Shalomi illuminates the dimensions of a hasid's life pattern, as well as the social, historical, and ideological aspects of Hasidism that inevitable influence the rebbe's role and his ability to discern the hasid's life tasks.

• From Age-Ing to Sage-Ing: A Profound New Vision of Growing Older (1995) with Ronald Miller

• Gate to the Heart: An Evolving Process (1993)

• Jewish With Feeling : A guide to Meaningful Jewish Practice (2005) written with Joel Segel
  Scholar, mystic, teacher, friend to spiritual teachers from Thomas Merton to the Dalai Lama, from Ram Dass to the revered Native American elders, Zalman Schachter-Shalomi is himself one of the great spiritual leaders of our time. In Jewish with Feeling, Rabbi Schachter-Shalomi brings the core tenets and practices of Judaism into the twenty-first century. Drawing on a wide range of philosophies and religious traditions, Schachter-Shalomi illuminates the universal aspects of Judaism and shows readers how to apply them to daily life. Emphasizing personal experience over doctrine, he offers sage insight into how Judaism-both old and new-can help us lead satisfying spiritual lives.

• Some Psalms in a Translation for Praying (2002 approximate)
  A private printing of a new translation of the Psalms. Publication date uncertain.

• Worlds of Jewish Prayer: A Festschrift in Honor of Rabbi Zalman M. Schachter-Shalomi (1993), Jonathan Omer-Man, Shohama Harris Wiener, and Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, eds.

• Fragments of a Future Scroll: Hassidism For the Here and Now (1982)

• Fragments of a Future Scroll: Hassidism for the Aquarian Age (1975)

• S.J. Agnon's Iddo w'Eynam: A Study of a Myth About Myth and Its Symbols (1966)

See also:

• Graceful Passages: A Companion for Living and Dying (2006) by Ram Dass with works by Alan Jones, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, Gary Remal Malkin, Lew Epstein, Maximillian Mizzi,  Michael Stillwater, Thich Nhat Hanh, and Zalman Schachter-Shalomi

• Higher Wisdom: Eminent Elders Explore The Continuing Impact Of Psychedelics (2005), Charles S. Grob and Roger Walsh, eds.
  Psychedelics have been a part—often a central and sacred part—of most societies throughout history, and for half a century psychedelics have rumbled through the Western world, seeding a subculture, titillating the media, fascinating youth, terrifying parents, enraging politicians, and intriguing researchers. Not surprisingly, these curious chemicals fascinated some of the foremost thinkers of the twentieth century, fourteen of whom were interviewed for this book. Because no further human research can be done, these researchers constitute an irreplaceable resource. Higher Wisdom offers their fascinating anecdotes, invaluable knowledge, and hard-won wisdom—the culmination of fifty years of research and reflection on one of the most intriguing and challenging topics of our time.  Includes interviews with Albert Hofmann, Alexander T. Shulgin, Ann Shulgin, Betty Eisner, Gary Fisher, Huston Smith, James Fadiman, Laura Archera Huxley, Michael Harner, Myron J. Stolaroff, Peter T. Furst, Ram Dass, Stanislav Grof, and Zalman Schachter-Shalomi

• Paradigm Shift: From the Jewish Renewal Teachings of Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi (1993), Ellen Singer, ed.