AboutRabbi Ari Shishler Expertise I'm happy to answer questions on Jewish belief, Jewish spirituality & Kabbalah.
Experience Rabbi, lecturer on Talmud and Jewish spirituality at Chabad House, Johannesburg, South Africa 1997-present.
Talmud teacher at local Jewish high school 1996- present.
Organizations Chabad Lubavitch.
Publications Jewish Tradition, South Africa.
Jewish Report, weekly newspaper, South Africa
SAUJS annual Holiday guide.
Education/Credentials Six years of tertiary education at Rabbinical seminaries in South Africa, Israel and New York.
Question Can a 16 year old guy benefit from the study of Kabbalah?
Answer Hi Sam
Kabbalah is very complex and obscure material and the average person cannot gain benefit from it. To understand and benefit from Kabbalah, you need to have a lot of background in Judaism and especially in Jewish philosophy.
However, there are many Kabbalistic ideas that are very worthwhile to study, even if you have little or no background in Jewish mysticism or philosophy. You can find this information through the teachings of Chassidic thought.
There are some very good online resources that you can use to start your studies and I am sure you will gain greatly from them.
Here are two excellent sites to start:
www.inner.org
www.kabbalaonline.org
