The source of the Book of Zohar

A. My opinion is that it is clear that it was not composed by Rashbi (after all, there are sections in it that were said by sages later than Rashbi). It is common today to think that it was compiled in the Middle Ages, perhaps by Rabbi Di Leon. It is not true that there is full agreement in the yeshivot on this. Rabbi Emdin has already stated this in Mitpach Sharif and much more.
B. Although I have dealt with this, I do not feel qualified. I also do not think that there is a general path for everyone. Everyone must choose their own path. It is better to find someone and start studying with them, and then start turning to books and teachers that seem suitable for you. —————————————————————————————— emir: I think Rabbi Yaakov Emdan in “Mitafach Sfarim” attributes the Zohak to Rashbi but doubts the attribution of parts of it to Rashbi and claims that they are a later addition.

By the way, there was a very difficult dispute on this issue among the observant community [not to mention people who were not from the world of Torah who spoke out on the issue – people studying Kabbalah, etc.] in the last generation in Yemen between the students of Rabbi Yahya Kapach, who claimed that the Zohar was written later and that the words did not come from the mouth of the Rashbi, and that there was no holiness in his words. Those who followed this path were called “Dardei” and their opponents, the students of Rabbi Yahya Yitzhak Halevi bar Halevi bar Halegta of Rabbi Kapach, who believed in the holiness of the Zohar and attributed it to the Rashbi, were called “Iqash”

This dispute was difficult and painful and in some ways was reminiscent of the historical dispute between the Hasidim and the Dissidents. —————————————————————————————— Rabbi: thanks. —————————————————————————————— Israel: Do you recommend Gershom Shalom’s books? —————————————————————————————— Rabbi: I haven’t read it (except for the stuff in the bio). It’s interesting. Recommendations are a matter of taste.