The voice of God on mount Sinai. Rabbinic commentaries on exodus 20:1 in the light of Sufi and Zen-Buddhist

The author declares that in his study of rabbinic Bible interpretation he has wrestled over the problem of how to understand a number of texts, that are stumbling-blocks for the rational way of thinking, but that to all appearances bear profound meaning. On Mount Sinai where the central event of the so-called five books of Moses occurred God spoke, according to the Rabbis, all the Ten Commandments in one single utterance or sound. Furthermore in one single utterance he spoke in seventy different languages at the same time. Among the various approaches to discovering the mysteries hidden in these sayings there is one that takes analogous passages from other religious traditions into consideration -a way which is described in this study with reference to Sufism and Zen Buddhism.