David Bashevkin: ‘We are meant to teach the world how to embrace unchosen identity’ [18 Questions, 40 Mystics]
May 26, 2026
AI Summary
5 min read“If my wife’s not here, it can’t be Gan Eden. It can’t be paradise.” That line, from a 19th-century Hasidic commentary on Adam’s sin, is how Rabbi Dr. David Bashevkin, host of the 18Forty podcast, crystallizes what Jewish mysticism means to him. In a conversation that ranges from a high-school moment over beef and broccoli to the structure of the Messianic era, Bashevkin argues that Jewish mysticism is not primarily about esoteric texts or hidden codes. It is about paying attention to your experiential life, interpreting it, and finding divinity in the unchosen parts of existence — starting with your own identity and your own living room.
What Jewish Mysticism Actually Is
Bashevkin begins by rejecting the common notion that mysticism is about secrets that must be concealed. Drawing on the 19th-century Hasidic thinker Rabbi Zadok HaKohen of Lublin, he explains that Jewish mysticism is called “hidden” (nistar) not because the content is forbidden, but because its essence is experiential. It is not the words on the page; it is what you are able to experience and interpret in your own life. The mystical act is one of capturing a moment — what the Psalms call chevy — where past and future converge in a present that continues to animate you.
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What you'll learn
- 1 Timestamped Outline
- 2 (00:07) **Sponsor Introduction: Magen David Adom** - Overview of Israel's national emergency medical service and its 95-year history
- 3 (04:06) **Defining Jewish Mysticism: The Experiential Core** - Rabbi David Bashevkin introduces the definition through the lens of Rav Zadok HaKohen of Lublin
- 4 (06:36) **A Personal Entry Point: The Beef and Broccoli Moment** - Bashevkin recounts his first encounter with mystical teaching at age 17
- 5 (09:54) **Three Categories of Torah: Gift, Purchase, and Capture** - A framework for understanding how mysticism differs from other forms of Torah
- 6 (14:03) **Self-Knowledge and Divine Knowledge as Iterative** - How mysticism weds belief in God with belief in oneself
- 7 (16:24) **What Is God? The Capacity to Pray** - Bashevkin's personal understanding of God beyond theological abstractions
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Guests on this episode
Show Notes
What does it mean to live a Judaism that fits into our lives? David Bashevkin explores the meeting point of mysticism and modernity.
The founder of 18Forty, Rabbi Dr. David Bashevkin is the director of education at NCSY as well as an instructor at Yeshiva University. He is the author of four books, and has been rejected from many prestigious fellowships and awards.
Now, he joins us to answer eighteen questions with Rabbi Dr. Benji Levy on Jewish mysticism including how to embrace holiness, the purpose of prayer, and the search for meaning in an age of distraction.
Here are our questions:
What is Jewish mysticism?
How were you introduced to Jewish mysticism?
In an ideal world, would all Jews be mystics?
What do you think of when you think of God?
What is the purpose of the Jewish people?
How does prayer work?
What is the goal of Torah study?
Does Jewish mysticism view men and women the same?
Should Judaism be hard or easy?
Why did God create the world?
Can humans do something that is against God’s will?
What do you think of when you think about Moshiach?
Is the State of Israel part of the final redemption?
What is the greatest challenge facing the world today?
How has modernity changed Jewish mysticism?
What differentiates Jewish mysticism from the mysticism of other religions?
Does one need to be religious to study Jewish mysticism?
Can mysticism be dangerous?
How has Jewish mysticism affected your relationships with yourself and with others?
What is a Jewish teaching that you always take with you?
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