What is "zohar"

Zohar \Zo"har\, n. [Heb. z[=o]har candor, splendor.] A Jewish cabalistic book attributed by tradition to Rabbi Simon ben Yochi, who lived about the end of the 1st century,

1. d. Modern critics believe it to be a compilation of the 13th century.
   --Encyc. Brit.

Jewish mystical commentary on the Pentateuch, 1680s, Hebrew, literally "light, splendor."

The Zohar (, lit. "Splendor" or "Radiance") is the foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah (the five books of Moses) and scriptural interpretations as well as material on mysticism, mythical cosmogony, and mystical psychology. The Zohar contains discussions of the nature of God, the origin and structure of the universe, the nature of souls, redemption, the relationship of Ego to Darkness and "true self" to "The Light of God", and the relationship between the "universal energy" and man. Its scriptural exegesis can be considered an esoteric form of the Rabbinic literature known as Midrash, which elaborates on the Torah.

The Zohar is mostly written in what has been described as a cryptic, obscure style of Aramaic. Aramaic, the day-to-day language of Israel in the Second Temple period (539 BCE – 70 CE), was the original language of large sections of the biblical books of Daniel and Ezra, and is the main language of the Talmud.

The Zohar first appeared in Spain in the 13th century, and was published by a Jewish writer named Moses de León. De León ascribed the work to Shimon bar Yochai ("Rashbi"), a rabbi of the 2nd century during the Roman persecution who, according to Jewish legend, hid in a cave for thirteen years studying the Torah and was inspired by the Prophet Elijah to write the Zohar. This accords with the traditional claim by adherents that Kabbalah is the concealed part of the Oral Torah.

While the traditional majority view in religious Judaism has been that the teachings of Kabbalah (lit. "tradition") were revealed by God to Biblical figures such as Abraham and Moses and were then transmitted orally from the Biblical era until its redaction by Shimon bar Yochai, modern academic analysis of the Zohar, such as that by the 20th century religious historian Gershom Scholem, has theorized that De Leon was the actual author. The view of some Orthodox Jews and Orthodox groups, as well as non-Orthodox Jewish denominations, generally conforms to this latter view, and as such, most such groups have long viewed the Zohar as pseudepigraphy and apocrypha while sometimes accepting that its contents may have meaning for modern Judaism. Jewish prayerbooks edited by non-Orthodox Jews may therefore contain excerpts from the Zohar and other kabbalistic works, even if the editors do not literally believe that they are oral traditions from the time of Moses.

There are people of religions besides Judaism, or even those without religious affiliation, who delve in the Zohar out of curiosity, or as a technology for people who are seeking meaningful and practical answers about the meaning of their lives, the purpose of creation and existence and their relationships with the laws of nature, and so forth; however from the perspective of traditional, rabbinic Judaism, and by the Zohar's own statements, the purpose of the Zohar is to help the Jewish people through and out of the Exile and to infuse the Torah and mitzvot (Judaic commandments) with the wisdom of Moses de León's Kabbalah for its Jewish readers.

Zohar meaning "Splendor, radiance" can refer to:

Zohar is an album by the Mystic Fugu Orchestra ( John Zorn (as Rav Tzizit) and Yamataka Eye (as Rav Yechida) who perform a range of music inspired by historical recordings of ancient Judaica. To simulate the "antiquity" of these recordings, a heavy layer of surface noise was overlaid on the music to represent the playing quality of a 78 rpm gramophone record.

Zohar is a four-piece music ensemble from Great Britain, which “blends mystical middle eastern sounds with modern technology and dance grooves, while retaining a sense of spirituality.” Zohar combines Jewish cantors, Arab muzzeins, and Byzantine chants to create their unique musical sound. The band is signed to Miles Copeland’s Ark 21 label, and their first album, “Onethreeseven,” was released worldwide in 2001 to critical acclaim. Their second album “Do You Have Any Faith?” was released in 2007. The group was founded, and is led by musician and producer Erran Baron Cohen. Zohar’s music reflects the beats and textures of modern club culture, hip-hop, electronica, dub and future grooves. Zohar have also DJ’d internationally, as well as at some of London’s most popular clubs including Momos, China White and Bartok. They have also performed live both in the United Kingdom, and internationally, all while establishing a dedicated body of fans in various parts of the world.