Search  for anything...
Ben Yehuda Press

Return to the Place: The Magic, Meditation, and Mystery of Sefer Yetzirah (English and Hebrew Edition)

    • Based on 48 reviews
Condition: New
Checking for product changes
$24.95 Why this price?

Buy Now, Pay Later

As low as $6 / mo
  • – 4-month term
  • – No impact on credit
  • – Instant approval decision
  • – Secure and straightforward checkout

Ready to go? Add this product to your cart and select a plan during checkout. Payment plans are offered through our trusted finance partners Klarna, PayTomorrow, Affirm, Afterpay, Apple Pay, and PayPal. No-credit-needed leasing options through Acima may also be available at checkout.

Learn more about financing & leasing here.

Free shipping on this product

This item is eligible for return within 30 days of receipt

To qualify for a full refund, items must be returned in their original, unused condition. If an item is returned in a used, damaged, or materially different state, you may be granted a partial refund.

To initiate a return, please visit our Returns Center.

View our full returns policy here.

Availability: In Stock.
Fulfilled by Amazon
Arrives Wednesday, Jun 5
Order within 55 minutes
Available payment plans shown during checkout

Recently Viewed

Description

Rabbi Jill Hammer has taken ancient Jewish mystical text and transformed it into a contemporary guide for meditative practice. In Return to the Place, Rabbi Hammer guides the reader through the story of creation as the ancient text of the Sefer Yetzirah draws readers in and invites them to become participants in the book's vibrant incantations, bringing the Creator's sacred energy into the world. The Sefer Yetzirah is a creation story like none other, describing the creation of the world in cryptic, mystical, poetic text. Rabbi Jill Hammer has taken a fresh look at this text that scholars believe goes back to the sixth century CE, embracing this text with healing intention. Through guided meditations at each step along the way, Rabbi Hammer allows readers to dig deeply into the text to experience the potential power of these ancient writings. Hammer builds a thought-provoking bridge from the past to the present-translating the text and focusing on its key aspects to give readers a relevant focus for contemplation. Advance Praise "Sefer Yetzirah has been called the foundational text of Jewish mysticism, but despite many scholarly attempts to explain it, readers still find its language baffling and its message indecipherable. Now Rabbi Jill Hammer has clarified the text for us all. Without ruining its mystery, she reveals its cosmic vision of 'space, time, and body-soul.' Beyond this, she has created a new-ancient meditative practice based on this mystical masterpiece. Her superb achievement is a gift for all of us!"-Dr. Daniel Matt, author of The Essential Kabbalah: The Heart of Jewish Mysticism "A tour de force -at once scholarly, whimsical, deeply poetic, and eminently accessible. Hammer combines translation, commentary, and meditations with her uniquely seasoned sensibility, one that balances feminine and masculine, sensual and philosophical."-Rabbi Tirzah Firestone, author of The Receiving: Reclaiming Jewish Women's Wisdom "Rabbi Hammer, one of the most original religious guides of our time, opens up for us a text that has fascinated mystics and philosophers for more than a millennium - and yet has remained deeply mysterious. Return to the Place shows us that the Sefer Yetzirah is a 'doorway into the deep structure of creation'-with the power to transform the cosmos as well as each person's most intimate experience." -Dr. Nathaniel Berman, author of Divine and Demonic in the Poetic Mythology of the Zohar "Like its subject, the mysterious Book of Creation, Return to the Place brilliantly defies categorization. It is a detailed commentary, a bold spirit- guide, and a valuable work of scholarship. It is both audacious and perspicacious. And no one could have written it but Rabbi Dr. Jill Hammer." -Rabbi Dr. Jay Michaelson, author of Everything is God: The Radical Path of Non-Dual Judaism Read more

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Ben Yehuda Press; Bilingual edition (September 7, 2020)


Language ‏ : ‎ English, Hebrew


Paperback ‏ : ‎ 380 pages


ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1934730068


ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 65


Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.21 pounds


Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.78 x 9 inches


Best Sellers Rank: #670,350 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #120 in Jewish Prayerbooks (Books) #518 in Kabbalah & Mysticism #4,500 in Meditation (Books)


#120 in Jewish Prayerbooks (Books):


#518 in Kabbalah & Mysticism:


Frequently asked questions

If you place your order now, the estimated arrival date for this product is: Wednesday, Jun 5

Yes, absolutely! You may return this product for a full refund within 30 days of receiving it.

To initiate a return, please visit our Returns Center.

View our full returns policy here.

  • Klarna Financing
  • Affirm Pay in 4
  • Affirm Financing
  • Afterpay Financing
  • PayTomorrow Financing
  • Apple Pay Later
Leasing options through Acima may also be available during checkout.

Learn more about financing & leasing here.

Similar Products

Top Amazon Reviews

    • An important contribution for any person who acknowledges they are on a spiritual journey.
Return to the Place is an important contribution to the history of Jewish mysticism, to the broader world of mystic practice, and to any person who acknowledges they are on a spiritual journey. Disclaimer: I am not an academic and have no particular expertise in mysticism, Jewish or otherwise. However, I have a fairly solid background in Judaism and Jewish practice. Sefer Yetsira [or Sefer Yetzirah] (literally, “Book of Formation” but usually, as here, translated “Book of Creation”) is an ancient book of Jewish mysticism. Scholars debate when it was written, but a reasonable estimate is sometime during the 6th through 9th centuries C.E. There are three major “recensions” (or, editions) of the Hebrew text. It is clearly a composite work, with sections that were originally independent texts, but there is no consensus on what the original sources looked like. It has been, however, highly admired by Jewish and non-Jewish scholars through centuries. Rabbi Dr. Hammer offers a new translation with commentary. Overall, what is most striking about this work is its ability to meaningfully combine solid academic scholarship and spiritual sensitivity. The author has the academic wherewithal to conduct a serious investigation of the book’s history and how that impacts the work of a translator. She also has a deep familiarity with spiritual expression that allows her to present authentically the book’s invitation to mystic practice. As a result, Sefer Yetsira is shown to present itself as a work of science, of mystic knowledge, and of magic. In other words, Hammer is confident enough to allow the book to be itself, without imposing preconceptions. She avoids, for example, the common mistake of interpreting the book as if it were a work of Kabbala. She recognizes the connections to Merkaba and Hekhalot mysticisms, but knows that this book stands on its own. Indeed, she suggests that the book’s closest comparison is to Mesopotamian Jewish artifacts of magic, such as incantation bowls. The translation is engaging and reverberates with implications, references, and suggestions. Wisely, Hammer includes in her introduction a discussion of her approach to translating this work, and she focuses on the true center of translation philosophy: that it is a process of making choices. She lays out some of her choices and explains how she made those decisions and why. As a result, even when I might have preferred a different rendering (e.g., “good and bad” rather than Hammer’s “good and evil”), her choice makes sense in context and is clearly defendable. This is not, though, an attempt at a definitive scholarly edition of Sefer Yetsira. It is, rather, a presentation that aims to present the book on its own terms yet frame it in a way that makes it accessible to a modern audience. The commentary regularly shows how the book invites the reader to engage in concrete practices, such as the “wheel” of letters, that will facilitate a direct connection with the Divine. With this in mind, Hammer offers after each chapter a visualization practice intended to facilitate a “deeper connection to the universe” that may allow “a greater ability to influence” reality. (p. xl). For myself personally, visualization has never been an effective technique for spirituality, though these are well thought out, build on the book’s themes, and are often beautiful. (Hammer, though, encourages us to “[g]o at your own pace and trust yourself about what you need in order to make the practice work for you.”) What is important, however, is not that visualization doesn’t work for me. What is important is that the nature of the book itself, of Hammer’s translation, and of her insightful commentary all work together in such a way that I find myself seeking my own ways to engage with spirituality through the book. I find myself carefully deconstructing the composite text not to make a scholarly judgement about its redactional history, but to clarify the ways that different sections speak to me spiritually and how different sections connect to others (but not all) in a way that resonates in my thinking about the Divine. I find myself looking deeply into how some parts of the text, but not others, reflect to me a philosophy of where morality fits into our universe. I find myself delving (and that is a word that will stand out for those who have read the book) into how my own spiritual approach (and its development over time) does and does not mirror the history of what the book’s subtitle calls “magic, meditation, and mystery”. This is the book’s great success. It pulls the reader not into a neutral conceptualization of the cosmos but into a deep sense of What Matters, and offers pragmatic avenues for one’s own spiritual instincts. In doing so, the book is indeed accomplishing what the original text sought to do. Full Disclosure: I am personally acquainted with Jill, but have not discussed this review with her nor my intent to write it. I value her scholarship and admire her soulful caring that engenders commitment to family, friends, students, the community, and others. Nonetheless, we have theological differences, and my approach to Jewish ritual and practice is very very different. Although I respect her deep connection to earth-based and embodied spirituality, if her book were simply a presentation of mystic vagaries, this would be a very different review. It is not. Return to the Place: The Magic, Meditation, and Mystery of Sefer Yetzirah renders an ancient mystic text as an accessible and meaningful experience for the contemporary reader, regardless of their faith tradition, spiritual inclination, or lack thereof. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on October 25, 2020 by Hayyim Obadyah
    • Excellent companion to my studies
The book arrived in great condition, the print is easy to read, chapters are clearly marked. Overall really well published and a great companion to my studies so far!
Reviewed in the United States on May 28, 2023 by Morgan Kelley
    • Mind-blowing text and commentary
I am so moved by this translation of the text. It is deeply insightful, clearly informed by Rabbi Jill Hammer's deep relationship with the text and its concepts/energies. I have a copy of Aryeh Kaplan's translation of Sefer Yetzirah, and for a while thought I didn't need this one too. I am incredibly gratified that I took the step of purchasing this book. It is an entirely different experience - more accessible, it shares a highly relevant female perspective on the text, and the exercises provided by the author move the reader into deeper relationship with the magic of the text. You will not regret adding this book to your collection. It's now my favorite translation/commentary of Sefer Yetzirah, and quite possibly the most valuable spiritual text I own. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on January 22, 2021 by Bookworm
    • Beautiful gate to Wisdom and Wonder!
I’m a few chapters in and have skimmed through the book since I received it a day ago. I find myself wanting to delve right in go very deep with the beautiful translation of the Book of Creation and the suggested meditations. I’m very happy I bought this 💜 My gratitude to the author for putting together such marvelous work. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on June 14, 2021 by Fernando
    • A tool for making your life holy
Thank you to Kohenet Rav Jill Hammer for writing, channeling and gifting us the beauty that is, Return to the Place. I have learned so much from Jill over many years about the Sefer Yetzirah and now make a deep bow for this beloved book. I received it on the most holy day of the year, Yom Kippor. Thus, the book and work is engraved in the next year of my life as a compass and tool to understand more deeply how the Hebrew letters help me to become a more full expression of my soul's calling. Thank you for this treasure of my heart. - Rebekah Erev ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on October 6, 2020 by Susan Giffen

Can't find a product?

Find it on Amazon first, then paste the link below.