Kabbalah By Heart

Is Friday the #13 really a LUCKY day?

Well, according to Judaism it is!!! Here's a list of all the reasons why the #13 is lucky:

This list was compiled by John Kunza on this website talking about the Jewish associations with the #13:

• 13 attributes of Hashem/Mercy- שלושה עשר מידיא (appears in Exodus after we were forgiven for the whole golden calf incident)
• 13 Jewish principles of faith according to Maimonides
• 13 is the age a Jewish male becomes obligated to follow Jewish law, (i.e. the age at which a Bar Mitzvah is performed)
• Israel (Jacob) had 13 children
• According to gematria (Jewish numerology) the words אהבה (Ahavah/Love) and אחד (Echad/Unity) add up to 13
• Number of days of Yom Tovs (festival days) in a year in the diaspora
• 13 months in a leap year on the Hebrew calendar
• Adar II (or the 13th month in a leap year) is considered extra lucky because the month of Adar according to tradition is a “lucky month”
• 13th of Adar (or Adar II in leap years) is the Fast of Esther
• Unit Shayetet 13 (שייטת 13‎ is considered to be the Navy Seals of the IDF

But he left out one: the word "GOOD" in Hebrew = 13 in gematria. The word good in Hebrew is "tov" which is used in Genesis in reference to the third day - "And God saw that this was good. (13) And there was evening and there was morning, a third day."

You might argue - but that's Tuesday, the third day. What about FRIDAY? So, Friday is actually a very good day in Judaism since it is the day we begin to greet each other with "Gut Shabbos!" or "Shabbat Shalom!" since we are full of anticipation for the holiest day of the week: the 7th day! Friday is permeated with the Sabbath because most of us are preparing for the Sabbath on that day by cooking, planning meals, inviting guests, bathing and choosing the clothes we will wear! Friday then is associated with a Holy, Divine day.

Tarot and the 13th Card

When I was in grad school many years ago, I learned that the #13 was associated with the Tarot card called "Death". Yikes!! But I found out that it didn't mean "death", it meant one door closing and another door opening. So, could it be that all depends on your interpretation of the #13? Yes, I believe it does and why not interpret things in a positive way?

The word "Tarot" itself spelled backwards can be read: Torah. So, let's interpret things in a Holy, Divine way. Stav Appel has shown very clearly that the Marseille deck, which all the later decks were based on, was created by Crypto Jews in the 1600's hiding Judaism in the cards because it was a time when you'd be hung, burned or otherwise slaughtered for teaching it. (See his video lectures here.)

A Bit About My Kabbalah Cards

When I learned Tarot, I learned it from a teacher who's wisdom I wanted to absorb. So I took all her classes on Tarot and used the cards to try to heal myself. I later wondered why it was called "Tarot" when it sounded like "Torah" and why there was something called "Qabalah" attached to it and why there were Hebrew letters on the cards as well and why did the major arcana have the same number as the Hebrew alef-bet but how strange that we weren't learning anything about Judaism!!! This made me determined to create my own cards.

49 is also an interesting number because it can be associated with the 49 Gates of Wisdom. "The Babylonian Talmud states that there are 50 gates of wisdom and Moses was only revealed 49 of them; therefore, no human, not even Moses, can attain the absolute Truth of 50. (Babylonian Talmud Nedarim 38a)" (This quote is from this webpage.) In addition, the number 49 equals the number 13 in numerology because 4+9=13!!

The daily ritual I created to use with these cards is like asking a question and then going to the Rebbe's letters or to a holy book and randomly choosing a page to answer your question. Plus, it's not about fortune-telling. Instead it's about self-trust. It's using a mirror outside of you to unlock your own Inner Knowing. It can help remind you that you have all the answers to your own questions. Just pull a card, see what it says on it. If it doesn't help you answer your own question, well then, it's ok because you've just learned something Jewish from the Kabbalah that I have learned from all my teachers. Jewish history, holidays, concepts, Tree of Life.

For people who have bought cards from me, I have now put up on my website pdf's to download to help you work with them. Just go here and find the booklet. If you just pull one card a day or a week, you can learn lots about Judaism and Kabbalah. And if you want to apply these concepts to your life, do what I learned to do with the Tarot - pull one card and refer back to it as your day or week goes along. Apply that concept to your life.

Because really, it all depends on your interpretation!!

Allison