Table of Contents
Preface: Why I Wrote This Book vii
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction: What You Need to Know If You Are Not a Kabbalist or Talmudist xiii
1 The Mysticat Arrives 1
2 Night, Part I 5
3 Night, Part II 6
4 Shevirat Ha-Kelim 9
5 Tefillin 10
6 The Canine Hora 15
7 Preparing for Shabbat 18
8 Commune in Your Hearts (Imru B'levavchem): A Tale of Meditation 19
9 The Mysticat and the Mocker 21
10 Postscript to the Mysticat and the Mocker 24
11 The Mysticat as Thwarted Writer 25
12 A Visit to the Vet 28
13 Memories of a World Relinquished 30
14 The Holy Mysticat's Inconsistent Acosmism 32
15 A Birthday Present 34
16 The Blessing of Renewed Life: A Yamim Noraim Tale 35
17 Mysticat Miracles 39
18 A Winter's Mysticat Tale 40
19 Apology to the Holy Mysticat 42
20 Bikkur Cholim Kitty 44
21 Further Adventures of the Bikkur Cholim Kitty 46
22 Divine Providence 48
23 A Birthday Tradition 51
24 The Mysticat Offended 52
25 No Food, No Torah (Im Ain Kemach, Am Torah) 54
26 Incommunicado 57
27 Bed Mice 60
28 The Mystery of Pesach 63
29 The Mysticat Ponders the Month of Tammuz 65
30 Picky Picky 67
31 The Mysticat's Churban Bayyit 70
32 The Mysticat in Exile 74
33 Flunking Exile 76
34 The Mysticat's Error 79
35 The Mysticat Comes Home 81
36 Eyes Closed, Soul Wide Open 84
Appendix A The Cycle of the Jewish Year 89
Appendix B What Is Kabbalah? 103
Appendix C Jewish Perspectives on Sacred Texts 107
Appendix D Anatomy of the Talmud 111
Appendix E What Is Midrash? 115
Appendix F What Is Halakhah and Why Do Jews Need It? 117
Appendix G What Are Codes? 121
Appendix H Timeline of the Jewish World 125
Glossary 139
About the Author 149
