THE CATHARS AND THE KABALA

by Bishop John Cole



The distinctive forms of medieval kabbalism can with a great deal of certainty be said to have had its birth or rather rebirth in the area of the Languedoc. Many sources place the root of this revival in Spain, however it was not until the early thirteenth century that it was transplanted to places such as Aragon and Castille from the Languedoc.

The time period of this development in Southern France would be between the years 1150-1220. This appears to be a very magical period for intellectual as well as for theological and theosophical speculation. We also received some of the most impressive and enlightened Grail literature from this period.

The area of Languedoc would have been an idea place for Jewish culture to flourish during the 12th and 13th centuries. Catholic Christianity had lost its reign and the much more tolerant Cathars had become the prominent Christian culture of the region. The Cathars detested the corruption of the catholic clergy, and sought to practice a form of Christianity more identical with Primitive Christianity, claiming their own apostolic lineage.


So in effect arose a very unique opportunity for religious expression in a time when this attitude of tolerance was becoming a rare phenomenon in the world at large. The most interesting aspect of this situation however was that of the co-existence and close proximity of Jewish and Christian Gnostic schools. In fact this became fertile soil where the Judeo-Christian esoteric traditions produced several hybrid strains that continue to enlighten and influence us to this day.

The Bahir, one of the older and most profound of all Kabbalistic texts was well received on many fronts in the Languedoc. The cosmology of the Bahir appears only a slightly modified form of that of the Christian Gnostics. One of the more important Gnostic ideas found in the Bahir is in the Hebrew word 'ha=male'; the full or the fullness having the same meaning as the Gnostic Pleroma. In the Bahir we find:

What is the meaning of the verse (Deut.33: 23): "And full of the Lord's blessing, take possession of the west and south." That means: In every place the letter Beth (with which the Torah and also the word berakhah begin), is blessed because it is the fullness. This verse may thus be understood: And the "fullness" id the blessing of God. And it is He who gives drink to the needy and with it counsel was taken at the very beginning.

Here the word 'ha-male' does not simply mean the world of angels as it does in other literature, rather it refers to the highest reality in which the 'fullness' of God's blessing is contained. It may also be interpreted as a pool of dammed up waters from which God gives drink to those who thirst.

Another word representing this fullness is 'ALL'. In the Gospel of Truth we find:

They found...the perfect Father who generated the ALL, in the midst of which is the ALL and of which the ALL has need...for what did the ALL need if not the Gnosis concerning the Father.

Compare it to the Gospel of Thomas.

IN CONCLUSION

Opponents to the theory of a solid connection of the Kabbalists and Cathars in twelfth century France might say that there is a lack of hard evidence for making such conclusions, however if one uses a fine tooth comb and searches meticulously, there will be little doubt that there was a meeting of the mystic minds, the only question being of what degree.

The most common similarity of both groups is the notion regarding the reality of a separate higher world belonging entirely to God Himself and in which there occur certain dramatic events that have their counterpart in the lower world. This supreme world of the unknown God may correspond, in the case of the Kabbalists, to the Gnostic pleroma. The Cathars recognize four elements as composing that supreme world just as did the circle of Isaac the Blind. The creator God or Demiurge of the Cathars is identical with Satan, has a form and figure in which he appears to the prophets; while on other hand, the true and good God imperceptible to the eye and for all practical purposes is unknowable to the hylic mortals. The Cathar idea of Satan also holds a resemblance in the Bahir of the prince of Thou, who was the creator of the material world.

The system of syzygies or the coupling of masculine and feminine potencies in the upper world, and its reflection in the lower world can be found in the doctrines of the Spanish Kabbalists as well as the Cathars. This connection, however seems not to be from the immediate influences but rather from a common source within the ancient Gnosis. This may be further deducted by the fact that the idea of the syzygy may be found universally, especially in the east in such rich esoteric traditions as Taoism.

Lastly, the one major issue that our two groups have most in common is that of the transmigration of souls, although the details vary to some degree. The Cathars regarded the higher souls as those of fallen angels that must continue to wander until they attain the body of a Cathar Perfecti did. Similarly, when a student engaged himself to a Kabalistic school, one of the first things taught to the novice was that he probably would not complete his work in the present lifetime (assuming that the present lifetime was the first one to partake of this spiritual path). In fact, the idea of transmigration of souls can be traced back among both traditions to a much older time frame. The earliest Christian Gnostic embraced this idea, as did the Jewish mystics of the same period.

Perhaps the similarities of the Cathars and Kabbalists may be attributed to other factors than direct contact. The mystical concepts accepted by these traditions can also be found in numerous other esoteric lineages, east and west. Due to the geographical barriers between these groups there appears to be ample evidence that these people were drawing from the same archetypal well of wisdom, and with this in mind, we need only lower our pail into the same well of the collective unconscious.

If you liked this article the next article is also written by +John Cole, Other articles by Bishop John Cole: THE SONS OF ZADOK AND THE CHRISTIAN GNOSIS, SANCTUARY OF THE HOLY GRAIL, INTRODUCTION, THE DHARMA OF DEVEKUT

Article Source : Order of the Grail