"A profound exploration of the necessity of paying attention to God's presence." Library Journal In a daring blend of scholarship and imagination, psychology and history, Lawrence Kushner gathers an inspiring range of interpretations of Genesis 28:16 given by sages, from Shmuel bar Nachmani in third-century Palestine to Hannah Rachel Werbermacher of Ludomir who lived in Poland two hundred years ago. Through a fascinating new literary genre and Kushner s creative reconstruction of the teachers lives and times, we enter the study halls and sit at the feet of these spiritual masters to learn what each discovered about God s Self and ourselves as they ascend and descend Jacob s ladder. In this illuminating journey celebrated in this special 25th anniversary edition with a new preface by the author our spiritual guides ask and answer the fundamental questions of human experience: Who am I? Who is God? What is God s role in history? What is the nature of evil? How should I relate to God and other people? Could the universe really have a self? "