The Kabbalistic embodied movement project exemplifies an aim of the Alef Trust, and one that relates to the transformative challenge of Transpersonal Psychology. The intention was to explore an older wisdom school (in this case, that of the Kabbalah), and revitalise core aspects of its teachings. This was to be achieved, firstly by reviewing the kabbalistic knowledge in the light of relevant contemporary scientific and psychological insights, and secondly by drawing on other lines of practice—meditation, visualisation, and movement, voice and breath work—to create approaches to esoteric practice which resonate with contemporary concerns and pathways to embodied spirituality.
Our focus was on kabbalistic teachings embedded in the Hebrew letters. That the letters embody essential mystical principles is a central tenet of the tradition. In the words of two thirteenth-century kabbalists:
Within the secret of the twenty-two letters you will find the entire creation of the world, its structure and the fullness of lifeforms. All is dependent on the letters. One who understands their hidden mysteries … will contemplate the profundities of the letters, yet no created being can fully grasp their infinite depths. (Gikatilla, 1248-c.1325).
The letters are without any doubt the root of all wisdom and knowledge, and they are found at the core of prophetic consciousness…. (Abulafia, 1240- after 1291).
