On Lag B’Omer, Kabbalah’s ‘Patron Saint’ Inspires Pilgrimage, DonationsThe Zohar was actually written in late thirteenth-century Spain by Moses de León, perhaps in collaboration with others, and published pseudepigraphically in the name of R. Shimon bar Yohai. It may contain older material, but I doubt that any of it goes back to actual teachings of R. Shimon. Be that as it may, it has been a profoundly influential mystical tradition.
By Nathan Jeffay (The Forward)
Published April 28, 2010.
Tel Aviv — As millions of people worldwide — celebrities like Madonna among them — turn to Kabbalah in hopes of solving their problems, hundreds of thousands of Israelis are going one step further by appealing directly to the man some consider to be the author of mystical Judaism’s most important text.
In early May, Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, whom some believe wrote the Zohar, is purportedly holding court from beyond the grave. Some 500,000 Israelis will flock to a Galilee hilltop, Mount Meron, to sing, dance, feast and pray at the resting place of the second-century sage. Many more pay a third party to appeal to Bar Yochai on their behalf — a move some say is a gimmick that depersonalizes prayer.
The mass gathering will take place during the minor festival of Lag B’Omer — this year it takes place May 1 and 2 — which coincides with the anniversary of Bar Yochai’s death; Kabbalah adherents believe that Bar Yochai’s powers are strongest around his yartzheit. Each year, more people go, often with high expectations for what the visit will reap. “Rav Shimon promises that everyone who comes will be healthy in body and soul and that all that they want comes,” said Bnei Brak resident Esther Shnitzer, a Haredi woman in her late 50s who works for a credit card company, and who fundraises to provide free refreshments to any pilgrims who want them.
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Background on R. Shimon bar Yohai is here. And there's more on Daniel Matt's superb, in-progress translation of the Zohar here.