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What should our policy be on Kabbalistic discussions?
We do not expound...upon Creation in a group of two, nor upon the 'Matter of the Divine Chariot' even to an individual, unless he is wise and can intuit on his own. Whoever delves into four topics, it is fitting for him if he was never born: that which is Above [i.e. the upper levels of the Heavens], that which is Below [i.e. the lower levels of the Heavens], that which is before [i.e. before Creation], and that which is after [i.e. after the world expires]" (Chagigah 11b.6-7 with Rashi and Tosfos ad. loc.).
With this in mind: Where do we draw the line for how esoteric of a question we should allow? For instance, should questions regarding the Tanya or Zohar be allowed, but questions about Sefer Yetzirah be considered too esoteric?
(Cf. this Chabad article, which cites various opinions regarding what is considered too esoteric, if there even is such a limit.)
1 answer
I should say up front that I am not learned in kabbalah. Like, at all. I recognize some of the words and names of sources.
From the text you quoted, it sounds like the danger of studying kabbalah is to the one studying it, not to other people. This is different from, say, a modesty policy, where the content we allow (or bar) affects whether some people can use the site at all, whether our site might be blocked by certain software, and the possible challenges of attractive prurient content. None of that seems to apply to kabbalah. The only danger is that people who shouldn't be using it might be tempted to use it, but doesn't that apply to other areas too? Won't the same people who are tempted by kabbalah also be tempted to self-pasken from answers here about kashrut or Shabbat or lashon hara, even though we say we don't provide p'sak?
If my understanding about the threat model is correct, then I don't see a reason to bar these types of questions. There might not be very many people interested in them, but for those who are, why not?
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