I FIRST PUBLISHED “The Big Picture: Thirty-six Sessions to Intellectual & Spiritual Clarity” in 2000. I had begun to learn the teachings of the Leshem Shevo v’Achlamah, Rabbi Shlomo Elyashiv, zt”l, (1840-1926), and was compelled to share what I had merited to see with others who would probably never see such knowledge.
Everyone needs to digest food, but few people understand how digestion works and do not eat in ways that help it. This often results in health issues for many people, if not immediately then after time. Therefore, when some people do learn about the digestion system, they often feel compelled to teach others what they now know to benefit them too.
Similarly, the “Leshem,” called this after his seforim, provided so much deep and profound knowledge about how the world works, and why. It’s all kabbalah, and much of it requires many years of learning to understand it. But much of it is also explainable in everyday terms, providing profound insights that everyone can and should benefit from.
Part of the inspiration for “The Big Picture,” as the Introduction to the book explains, was a timely article by Time Magazine back in the 1990s called, “What Does Science Teach Us About God.” The term “big picture” is old, but their application of it was compelling, especially given what I was learning from the Leshem.
In two short paragraphs, the article had unwittingly described the essential difference between the Aitz HaChaim, the Tree of Life, and the Aitz HaDa’as Tov v’Ra, the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, in very modern and applicable terms. Their questions became the basis my answers and guide to writing “The Big Picture.”
Why 36 sessions?
I chose the name Thirtysix.org because, as the book explains, 36 is the number that indicates a revelation of the Ohr HaGanuz, the Hidden Light of Creation. This light is the basis of Torah and even our souls, and we are here to reveal it through Torah and mitzvos. This is the purpose of my writing and my organization.
It is also the specific point of this book, to reveal this light on whatever level possible. Therefore, it just seemed natural to do this in thirty-six sessions, not to mention that it gave me many different chapters to write about various different topics. Though I have written many other books since The Big Picture, b”H, it remains to be a flagship project of Thirtysix.org.
Since it was published before I began to work with Amazon, I decided to reformat it to make it available through the Amazon store. Once I began reformatting it, I couldn’t help but edit it as well, fixing old mistakes and streamlining the material. At the time, I had no idea how many other books would discuss details of The Big Picture, so I clearly put everything I could into the book, sometimes at the cost of brevity. That’s been fixed now, b”H. There are even some updates because a lot has happened historically since the first printing.
I don’t think there is any other work of this nature, organized as it is and revealing so many fundamental concepts of Creation and history under one cover. To make this point, I am going to be giving over much of the material in a 8-part series of classes over Zoom, starting Tuesday November 2, 8:15 pm Israel time, b”H.
The cost for the series of classes is $110, and includes a hardcover and PDF copy of the book. It is important that you provide a mailing address for the book when registering through PayPal. You can buy the book in Paperback and Kindle formats as well through Amazon.
For questions regarding the book, the classes, or to receive the Table of Contents of the book, write to [email protected].
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