Building blocks of the soul

by Matityahu Glazerson

In this intensive study of Hebrew letters and words, Rabbi Matityahu Glazerson uses gematria (interpretive Jewish numerology) to reveal the mysterious correlation between Jewish ethics and practices, and the numeric values of the Hebrew words which name and describe them. This profound and lucid exploration uncovers the deep spiritual resonance of Jewish thought, and explains a variety of theological issues using the ancient Hebrew language as a key to understanding. Rabbi Glazerson compares the Hebrew letter to the atomjust as the atom is the basic module of physical life, so the Hebrew letter is the basic component that contains the essence of Jewish spiritual life. Hence, Jews have used gematria for centuries to understand spiritual and moral teachings embedded in the Hebrew language. The book begins with a detailed explanation of gematria, including: the basic concept that each Hebrew letter has an independent numeric value; the variety of ways in which the letters of a specific wo