Who are the Tayyimim Dardaim?

All great sages of Israel have strongly distanced themselves from this sect. In the past, the concept of reincarnation was a matter of dispute; however, once Hashem revealed His world through the Arizal, who proved reincarnation conclusively, no shadow of doubt remained. All those fearing Hashem and conscientious of His word accepted reincarnation as a fundamental truth akin to the Ten Commandments. In distant Yemen, there were people untouched by this light who formed a sect that separated themselves from the Jewish people at large. As is well known and documented, with the immigration from Yemen in recent generations, one well-known family came from the Dardaim sect. One of its members, a great Torah scholar, rose to rabbinical prominence and even joined the Chief Rabbinate council. Yet prior to his appointment, he wrote a letter disavowing any connection to that sect and affirming belief in everything accepted by the broader Jewish community. Should the members of the Dardaim sect merit it, they will return through reincarnation regarding their earlier disbelief in the Zohar. This was testified to by Maran Rabbi Chaim Vital from what his teacher the Arizal said, that in a previous incarnation Rabbi Chaim Vital himself, though a great Torah scholar, did not believe in the wisdom of the Zohar; for this reason he reincarnated and was told, as recorded in Sha'ar HaGilgulim (Introduction to Kabbalah), "...And now I come again in this incarnation called Chaim, and I was told that the reason I needed to reincarnate this time was that in the previous incarnation I did not believe much in the wisdom of the Zohar, and I was told that what I must fix in this incarnation is to always engage to the best of my ability in the wisdom of the Zohar, for this is the great principle I must carry out now. Furthermore, I was told not to raise many questions about the Zohar until I have studied with it for a known period, after which I may ask and investigate whatever I wish in the Zohar." In the book Shem HaGedolim (section 10, paragraph 14), the Chida writes about Rabbi Yehuda Aryeh MiModena, Chief Rabbi of Venice, that he saw his book "Chayei Yehuda" in which he recounts parts of his life, including that initially, he did not believe in reincarnation. A remarkable event occurred when his neighbor’s son was born and fell gravely ill soon after birth. After six months, the child was dying. The neighbor summoned the rabbi to recite verses and words of Torah at the child’s passing, as was the custom among teachers in Italy. The rabbi went and saw the child shrinking and suffering, recited psalms, whereupon the child opened his eyes, recited the Shema Yisrael: "Hashem, Hashem is One," and then passed away immediately. This miracle convinced the rabbi to believe in reincarnation, having witnessed firsthand a six-month-old child, ill and fading, pronounce the Shema clearly and loudly as a great scholar in Torah would. 

Best wishes – Menashe Israel