“THOUGH IT IS MORE THAN sixty years later, the memories of World War II continue to haunt me. However determined I was to erase them from my consciousness through the years, they simply would not fade away. Thus, I resolved to write this memoir in the hope that it would liberate me from the shackles of their continual recollection.”   With these words, Leo Michel Abrami begins his poignant memoir of childhood in Nazi-occupied France, recounting the numerous dangers faced by his family during these years and his hiding on an isolated farm in Normandy. It is a story seen through a child’s eyes, full of beauty and betrayal. It is a story of ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances, most importantly, young Leo’s courageous and inventive mother who, according to him, is “the real hero of this story.”  “[The Eleventh Commandment], like The Cellist of Sarajevo brought me close to the horrors of war and shows in a touching and highly personal way how people are changed by it and how powerful and admirable is the will to survive.” — Barbara Milbourn, reviewer, Nashville, Tennessee

The Eleventh Commandment: A Jewish Childhood in Nazi-Occupied France

Religion & Spirituality

ABRAMI, LEO MICHEL

Judaism

Albion-Andalus Books

Rabbi Moshe Leib of Sassov (1745-1807) was one of those wonderful Hasidic masters who could speak equally well to the head and to the heart. A disciple of the learned Rabbi Shmelke of Nikolsburg, he had been educated in the manner of a classical Hebrew scholar, but his concern was always with communicating a simple message of love for God and his fellow human beings. In this little book of wisdom, translated by the contemporary master, Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, Reb Moshe Leib gives the reader a series of aphorisms on how to travel the Hasidic spiritual path, as well as a small selection of his parables and teachings.

A Guide to Spiritual Progress

Moshe Leib of Sassov

What would happen if a Hasidic rabbi from Eastern Europe suddenly found himself in the 'Old West' of the American 1850s? This is the question Bahir Davis answers in the delightful and often profound stories of The Light Giver, in which Reb Ya'ir, a Hasidic Jew from the Polish town of P'shyskha embarks on an adventure through the 'New World,' trying to reach San Francisco, where he has been offered a position as rabbi. Along the way, he finds that the true purpose of his coming to America has little to do with his destination. Rather, it lies in the journey of discovery, in the meeting of different cultures, in the wisdom he gains from fugitive slaves, Native American medicine men, and settlers on the frontier. And we, the readers, benefit from the light that he shares from his own spiritual tradition. In each story, a different Jewish holiday is experienced and explored in a unique and inviting manner. An accomplished storyteller, Bahir Davis, a circuit-riding rabbi and founder of Rocky Mountain Hai in Lafayette, Colorado, skillfully combines his love of 'Old West' lore with his true vocation as a spiritual teacher in this wonderful book of Jewish wisdom for the American frontier. Praise for The Light Giver: "What fun it is to follow Reb Bahir's rabbi-hero on his journey through the Wild West and the Jewish calendar. A wonderful read, it sneaks in solid teaching wrapped in a rollicking tale." — Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, founder of the Jewish Renewal Movement "Jewish mystical stories were born at the strange, hazy crossroads between uncommon wisdom and common sense. The Light Giver hearkens back to the time when rabbis didn't lecture from podiums and write blog posts from iPads, but went on adventures into the wild, befriending runaway slaves and dodging Injun arrows, throwing themselves into the wide world because G-d created it all. Written in the fine tradition of Reb Shmuel Munkes and The Frisco Kid, the stories in this book are funny, sad, innocent and world-weary, and truly, truly wise." --- Matthue Roth, author of Yom Kippur A Go-Go: A Memoir "At once funny, touching, and profound, The Light Giver takes us on a journey through the Jewish calendar, the Jewish spirit and into the Jewish soul. Rabbi Davis is by no means conventional, and this book is unlike any other. Within it there are sparks of Divinity waiting for us to unearth. This book is a delight to read and learn from." --- Mayim Bialik, actress and author of Beyond the Sling

The Light Giver: The Holy Adventures of a Hasidic Jew in the Old West

Davis, Bahir

The great 20th century Indian sage, Ramana Maharshi, has often been described as the very incarnation of non-dualism, or advaita, even though the Hindu philosophical school of Advaita Vedanta claims that no one has ever been born, lived or died. It is this paradox that the Advaitin philosopher John Allen Grimes explores in this profound new work, skillfully combining biography with philosophical and spiritual inquiry. For, as he tells us in his introduction, as one passes Ramana’s life and teachings before the lens of Advaita, both are seen to be in perfect accord with the essence of Advaitin philosophy. But what is astonishing about this fact is that Ramana’s teachings seem to have emerged spontaneously, as the fruit of his own sudden ‘Awakening’ at 16 years old; for it was only after this experience, almost by accident, that he learned of the ancient Hindu teachings of non-dualism! Ramana Maharshi: The Crown Jewel of Advaita reintroduces us to the life and teachings of the sage Ramana Maharshi through the darsana or ‘philosophical system’ known as Advaita Vedanta. But, as the Sanskrit word darsan also means ‘being in the presence’ of a sage or deity, we should not be surprised to find that this is something that this book also manages to accomplish.

Ramana Maharshi: The Crown Jewel of Advaita

Grimes, John Allen

Hinduism

Although Abraham Joshua Heschel (1907-1972) is well-known today—as a philosopher, a Jewish theologian and a social activist—Heschel the poet is not. Nevertheless, those who have read his writings in English, spiritual classics like The Sabbath and Man is Not Alone, and have been moved by the power of his prose and the subtlety of his expression, will not be surprised to find that in his youth he had actually published a volume of Yiddish poetry in the heyday of Yiddish literature before the Holocaust. The 66 precious poems of Der Shem Ham’forash—Mentch, published by Indsel Verlag in Warsaw in 1933, remained close to Heschel’s heart all of his life, though few people knew of their existence. It was more than a decade after his passing before most of his admirers learned of them, being treated to a few tantalizing snippets in Samuel Dresner’s anthology, I Asked for Wonder (a line taken from the dedication of Der Shem Ham’forash—Mentch). But what was unknown to most of Heschel’s readers was that a complete translation of his poetry in English already existed in his lifetime; and still more amazing, it had been made by his younger contemporary, Zalman Schachter-Shalomi (b. 1924), who would himself become a towering figure in Jewish and world spirituality, but who at the time was just coming into his own and looked to the older Heschel as a mentor. As we learn in the introduction, the first drafts of these translations were given as gifts to Heschel after his heart attack in 1969 to cheer him through his convalescence (sometimes accompanied by recordings of Schachter-Shalomi reading both the Yiddish originals and the English translations!) Schachter-Shalomi notes that Heschel was satisfied with some of these early drafts and unsatisfied with others. The poems were deeply personal to him and the translations would need to be revised. Unfortunately, Heschel died before he and Schachter-Shalomi could come together to discuss a revision and the translations were put on a shelf. But now, in honor of the 40th anniversary of Heschel’s passing, Schachter-Shalomi has taken them down again and completed his own revision for the modern reader of sacred poetry. Thus, we have in this volume something truly unique—the combined work and vision of two of the 20th century’s greatest Jewish spiritual luminaries and master’s of Yiddish!

Human---God's Ineffable Name

Literature & Fiction

Heschel, Abraham Joshua

Poetry

THE GAYAN OF HAZRAT INAYAT KHAN is one of the three most important works of inspiration for Inayati Sufis; the others being the Vadan and Nirtan. This edition of the Gayan: The Song of Divinity has been edited and adapted from the original for clarity in modern English, numbered and reformatted for ease of use, and made gender inclusive for modern readers.

Gayan: The Song of Divinity

Khan, Hazrat Inayat

Islam

Once, when Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi was still a young Hillel director, he took his students to meet the seventh Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson (1902-1994). To his embarrassment, one of his students asked the Rebbe, "What is a rebbe good for?" But the Rebbe was not offended and offered this amazing response: “I can’t speak about myself; but I can tell you about my own rebbe. For me, my rebbe was the geologist of the soul. You see, there are so many treasurers in the earth. There is gold, there is silver, and there are diamonds. But if you don’t know where to dig, you’ll only find dirt and rocks and mud. The rebbe can tell you where to dig, and what to dig for, but the digging you must do yourself.” In this amazing series of talks, Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, the founder of the Jewish Renewal movement and one of the world's leading authorities on Hasidism, discusses Jewish spiritual leadership from the perspective of the Hasidic Rebbe, applying traditional Hasidic models and teachings to contemporary situations. He covers issues of identity for spiritual leaders, the teacher-student relationship, spiritual guidance and intercessory prayer. Anyone who is deeply involved in Jewish spiritual leadership, or a student of Hasidic models of leadership, will find a wealth of valuable information in these informal talks on the subject.

The Geologist of the Soul: Talks on Rebbe-craft and Spiritual Leadership

Schachter-Shalomi, Zalman

The tikkun klali, or 'general remedy,' are ten psalms specifically chosen by Rebbe Nahman of Bratzlav to expiate guilt for various kinds of sins. Many Bratzlaver Hasidim recite these psalms daily, while others do so once a week. Recitation of the tikkun klali also forms the most important aspect of the ritual around visiting the grave of Rebbe Nahman in Uman, Ukraine. About this ritual, Rebbe Nahman said:When my days are over and I leave this world, I will intercede for anyone who comes to my grave, says these ten psalms and gives a coin to charity. No matter how great their sins, I will do everything in my power, spanning the length and breadth of creation, to cleanse and protect them. . . . I will pull them out of Gehennom by their peyos! It makes no difference who it may be, or how seriously they may have sinned. All they have to do is to take upon themselves not to return to their folly."In this beautiful new edition, Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, one of the world's great teachers of Hasidism, has made a new prayable translation of the Hebrew psalms in everyday English. For those who are fluent in Hebrew, the original psalms are provided in the back.

Tikkun Klali: Rebbe Nahman of Bratzlav's Ten Remedies for the Soul

Nahman of Bratzlav

In THE KING'S MESSENGER, Michael Kagan draws us into the world of the imagination and gives us an original parable about Judaism's long journey through the centuries that might have sprung from one of Judaism's classic storytellers of old. Although the parable itself is short, its message is profound and far-reaching. It is a teaching that will be read and read again, and passed on to others.

The King's Messenger: A Parable About Judaism

Kagan, Michael L.

In this wide-ranging essay, Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi and Netanel Miles-Yépez explore the profound implications of the kabbalistic idea of Tzimtzum, the 'contraction' of God that allows for Creation, through different paradigms of Jewish belief over the centuries, and look at its function in Judaism and Jewish practice today.

God Hidden, Whereabouts Unknown: An Essay on the 'Contraction' of God in Different Jewish Paradigms

Miles-Yépez, Netanel

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