Maurice Friedman and Zalman Schachter-Shalomi: Pilgrims to the East

This essay is a personal tribute to the author's mentors, Maurice Friedman and Zalman Schachter-Shalomi. The article describes her experiences in Eastern religions as being prototypical of the 1960s generation. For over thirty-five years, Friedman and Schachter have displayed true openness towards a significant segment of a Jewish generation's need for Eastern meditative practices. They have also understood that generation's hunger to find a way to embrace their own Jewish birthright in a meaningful way. As deeply spiritual human beings and brilliant academics with vast reservoirs of knowledge in world religions, philosophy, psychology, literature, and history, they are deeply committed to Jewish tradition and to the Jewish people. They have helped create a bridge for thousands of Jews to return to the practice of religious Judaism. They have modeled the possibility of being open to other traditions, while remaining loyal to the Jewish way.