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How are sorcery or witchcraft viewed in Judaism? I have heard that it has something to do with Kabbalah. Please correct me if I am wrong. Also Solomon (may peace and blessings be upon him) is falsely accused of having exercised control over demons and genies in his reign with the help of sorcery.

According to David Livingston, author of The Dying God, the Kabbalah is a system of magic and sorcery developed by Jews during their exile in Babylon.

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Maxood
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    related: http://judaism.stackexchange.com/q/14383/759 – Double AA Mar 28 '12 at 12:11
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    All sorts of people up-ed this question, as if the claim that Jews made up a system of "magic" in Babylonian exile isn't absurd and blemishing to the authenticity of our religion. – Aman Apr 04 '12 at 22:07
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    @Aman I upvoted, FWIW. The question is valid, and the questioner, polite. There is a lot of misinformation about Kabbalah out there, and someone coming here for the truth definitely deserves an upvote. The "system of magic" claim, is not made by the questioner but rather by some author who thinks he knows Jewish mysticism. There's no reason to be upset at Maxood just because he read a book by someone who didn't know what he was talking about. – HodofHod May 08 '12 at 12:40
  • Btw, Maxood, if my answer doesn't properly address some part of your question, please let me know and I'll do my best to fix that. – HodofHod May 08 '12 at 19:01
  • @HodofHod Your answer is indeed based on truth! I being a Muslim cannot tolerate any of the Prophets (may peace and blessing be upon them) to be falsely accused of such evils. This is exactly what Islam teaches and stresses upon as well. – Maxood May 11 '12 at 12:01

2 Answers2

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Sorcery and witchcraft are explicitly forbidden by the Torah. Period. However, there are other methods of manipulating nature that do not fall into the category of "sorcery". For example, when a prophet or a tzaddik performs a miracle, they do it with G-d's implicit help and/or permission.

Mystically, the difference between these two methods (sorcery and G-d given miracles), is their sources. When G-d created the world, He created spiritual forces of purity and impurity, and forbade the latter (cf. Deuteronomy 30:19). (Judaism does not believe in the autonomy of evil). Sorcery draws from the powers of "impurity" in the world, and as such, is forbidden. Miracles and Practical Kabbalah draw from the forces of purity (kedusha) and are therefore permitted.

As far as King Solomon's control over demons, all the stories I've heard of that involve his using pure forces (specifically, names of G-d), to capture and bind them. From the Talmud, Gittin 68a:

...Solomon then sent Benaiahu son of Yehoyada, giving him a chain on with the [Divine] Name engraved and a ring with the Name engraved...

Oh, and David Livingston? I would say that he's wrong, but the fact is that English does not really differentiate between magic and miracle. They both defy nature, and when performed by a person, they fall under the blanket of the English word "magic". Rest assured, though, there is no magic or sorcery involved.

While your question is not really a duplicate as worded, most of this information is available on other questions on this site.
See further: Why is practical kabbalah not considered kishuf?, Did the prophets practice magic?

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HodofHod
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    An interesting read of D 30:19 – Double AA Mar 28 '12 at 15:42
  • @DoubleAA My understanding is that that pasuk is (among other things) a general statement about evil (including klippah). – HodofHod Mar 28 '12 at 15:47
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    @HodofHod, could you bring a source that kabbala and sorcery are similar except that they use opposite sides of sanctity? – YDK Mar 28 '12 at 15:52
  • @YDK, They're not that similar at all. They also differ in methods, uses, and practitioners. The only similarity is that they can both be used to defy nature. – HodofHod Mar 28 '12 at 19:52
  • @YDK Also, in general in Kabbalah, evil and sin come from Klippah, while holiness and mitzvos come from Kedusha. Therefore, by the very fact that magic is forbidden, it gets its life force from Klippah, and the fact that Practical Kabbalah is used for the service of G-d means it comes from Kedusha (or perhaps the Kedusha from within Klipas Nogah). – HodofHod Mar 28 '12 at 19:55
  • I can grant that, but that doesn't demonstrate a similarity in defying nature. It just says that however they work, they are coming from opposing sides of sanctity. I don't know how either work, that's why I am asking for a source. – YDK Mar 28 '12 at 23:24
  • @YDK Let's continue this in the main [chat] room – HodofHod Mar 28 '12 at 23:36
  • @HodofHod This is one good reason that i have always sought to read, learn and research on languages of the scriptures. I love Hebrew as much as i love Arabic! What David Livingston said in his book is merely his own understanding which is obviously false. – Maxood May 11 '12 at 11:49
  • @HodofHod This is one reason i always stress upon reading, learning and studying the present scriptures in thier own pure and original languages. Infact, we as human beings are not powerrless wo translate or tranliterate God's word. – Maxood May 11 '12 at 11:55
  • Relevant chat between YDK and myself is here – HodofHod Aug 26 '14 at 17:35
  • Is there some implied distinction between "sorcery" and "witchcraft" in the first sentence? Perhaps it's better phrased as "Sorcery and witchcraft are both ..." – Zev Spitz Jan 08 '17 at 19:42
  • @ZevSpitz, No distinction intended, though I think the word "both" contains a stronger implication that they are two different things. That said, the Torah certainly does talk about different kinds of sorcery (e.g., soothsaying). This answer is not intended to address any such differences. – HodofHod Jan 09 '17 at 18:49
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"God has made one corresponding to the other" - Eccl.7:14 which hints (see Shaarei Kedusha by Rabbi Chaim Vital Gate 1 ch.1) that just like there are forces of holiness in the world, there are likewise forces of Tumah (spiritual impurity). Each is as strong as the other. So today since the forces of holiness are so weak, the forces of tumah are also weak.

Likewise, just like there are holy Names which can be used to do things to manipulate the world according to certain books, so too there are names of tumah, which can be used to do things. this is witchcraft. (read this somewhere forgot where)

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