Question: Is Kabbalah a spiritual or religious (Jewish) movement?
Answer: Kabbalah predates religion. Whether one considers the advent of the Judeo Christian religions to be Abraham or the Exodus from Egypt, according to the Kabbalists, the ancient wisdom of Kabbalah has been around since the creation of the world. The Zohar, which is the central Kabbalistic text, teaches that in the Garden of Eden, Adam was taught Kabbalah by the Angel Raziel. As such, this wisdom predates organized religion itself.
Many Kabbalists throughout history were Jewish. But these Kabbalists - such as Rav Yehuda Ashlag – taught that this wisdom was meant to be studied and used by all people, regardless of religious background.
