Within the Zohar’s commentary on this week’s parasha, Ha’azinu, is the treatise known as the Idra Zuta. This text describes the well-known narrative of the passing of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, and includes his very last discourse to his students. It is one of the most profound and penetrating teachings in the Zohar. It isn’t a coincidence that it was wedged within Ha’azinu, which our Sages similarly described as the deepest and most cryptic parasha of the Torah. A significant part of the Idra Zuta concerns matters of light and vision. Incredibly, the Zohar describes things that scientists only uncovered centuries later. In fact, one of these famous scientists may have used the Zohar as the inspiration for his discovery! Continue reading →