Christian David Ginsburg - The Kabbalah, its doctrines, development, and literature, 1920 by gnosisclassics

OL 1 BM 175 ES G49 .

19;: :v

Cornell University Library

The tine

original of

tliis

book

is in

Cornell University Library.

There are no known copyright

restrictions in

the United States on the use of the

text.

http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924075115380

CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

3 1924 075 115 380

THE KABBALAH Its Doctrines,

Development, and Literature

CHRISTIAN

GINSBURG

Ll.D.

Second Impression

London

GEORGE ROUTLEDGE & SONS LIMITED Broadway House:

68-74 1920

Carter Lane E.G.

Reprinted verbatim

from

the first

which contained (pp. 1-82) entitled " The Essenes." edition

PERCY I

M. DOVE,

ESa,

F.I.A.,

F.S.S.,

&&,

AFFECTIONATBLY INSCRIBE THIS ESSAY,

AS AN EXPBESSION OF

MY HIGH REGARD FOB

HIM,

BOTH

AS A FRIEND AND A CHRISTIAN GENTLEMAN.

CHRISTIAN

GINSBUBO.

THE KABBALAH.

SYSTEM of

philosophy,

religious

more properly of

theosophy, which has not only exercised for hundreds of years

an extraordinary influence on thu mental development of so

shrewd a people, as the Jews, but has oapdvatod the minds of

some of the greatest thinkers of Christendom

in the sixteenth

and seventeenth centuries, claims the greatest attention of both the philosopher and the theologian. that

among

its captives

were

scholastic, metaphysician

Baymond

When

it is

added

Lully, the celebrated

and chemist (died 1815)

;

John

Beuchlin, the renowned scholar and reviver of oriental literature in

Europe (bom 1455, died 1528) John Picus di the famous philosopher' and classical soholcr ;

Mirandola,

(1463-1494)

Cornelius

;

Henry Agrippa,

the distinguished

philosopher, divinÂŤ and physician (1486-1535)

;

John Baptist

von Helmont, a remarkable chemist and physician (15771644)

;

as well as our

famous physician and

own countrymen Bobert Fludd, philosopher

Henry More (1614-1687)

;

and that these men,

lessly searching for a scientifio system

them " the deepest depths

them the

r6al tie

after rest-

which should disclose

" of the Divine nature,

which binds

all

this

theosophy,

claims of the Kabbalah on the attention of students

and philosophy

will readily

and show

things together, found the

cravings of their minds satisfied

ture

the

(1574-1637), and Dr.

be admitted.

the

in. litera-

The claims

of the Kabbalah, however, are not restricted to the literary

man and

philosoplier

the

ample materials can

was

poet too

the

yiill

find in

for the exercise of his lofty genius.

How

be otherwise with a theosopb^ which, we are assured,

bom

God

was nursed and reared by

in Paradise,

the choicest of the angelic hosts in heaven, and only held

converse with the holiest of

man's children upon earth.

Listen to the story of

growth and maturity, as told

its birth,

its followers.

The Kabbalah was first taught by God himself to a select company of angels, who formed a theosophic school in Paradise.

After

the' fall

the angels most graciously

communicated

this heavenly doctrine to the disobedient child of earth, to

furnish the protoplasts with the pristine nobility

and

Noah, and then

with

means of returning

From Adam

felicity.

to their

passed over to

Abraham, the friend of God, who emigrated

Egypt, where the patriarch allowed a portion of It was in this way that some knowledge of it, and the other

this mysterious doctrine to ooze out.

the Egyptians obtained

Eastern nations could introduce

into their philosophical

systems.

Moses, who was learned in

Egypt, was

first initiated

became most wilderness,

into

all

the

wisdom of

in the land of his birth,

but

proficient in it during his wanderings in the

when he not only devoted

to it the leisure

of the whole forty years, but received lessons in of the angels.

hours

from one

the aid of this mysterious science the

lawgiver was enabled to solve the difiiculties which arose

during his management of the Israelites, in spite of the grimages, wars and the frequent miseries of the nation. covertly laid

the

first

down

the principles of this secret doctrine in

four books of the Pentateuch, but withheld them

from Deuteronomy. and the

pil-

latter the

This constitutes the former the man,

woman.

Moses 'also

elders into the secrets of this doctrine,

mitted them from hand to hand.

initiated the seventy

and they again trans-

all

who formed

the

85 unbroken

line of tradition,

down,

David and Solomon were most

Kabbalah.

initiated into the

one, however, dared, to write

Simon ben Jochai, who

till

destruction of the second Temple.

lived at the time of the

Having been condemned

by Titus, Babbi Simon managed

to death

to escape with his

son and concealed himself in a cavern where he remained for twelve years.

Here, in this subterranean abode, he occupied

himself entirely with the contemplation of the sublime Kab-

was constantly

bclah, and

disclosed to

him some of

from the theosophical Rabbi. sorted

be initiated

mysteries

by the Prophet

visited

its secrets

which were

concealed

Here, too, his discipled

and here, Simon ben Jochai expired with

;

Scarcely had his spirit departed,

disciples.

dazzling light the Babbi it

;

filled

re-

master into these divine

their

heavenly doctrine in his mouth, whilst discoursing on his

who

Elias,

still

this it to

when

the cavern, so that no one could look at

whilst a burning

fire

appeared outside, forming as

were a sentinel at the entrance of the cave, and denying

admittance to the neighbours.

and the

fire outside,

was not

till

the light inside,

had disappeared, that the

disciples per-

ceived that the lamp of Israel was extinguished.

As they

were preparing for his obsequies, a voice was heard from heaven, saying, " Come ye to the marriage of Simon b. Jochai,

entering into peace, and shall rest in his chamber

flame preceded the

burning like

fire.

coffin,

which seemed enveloped by, and

And when

the remains were deposited in

the tomb, another voice was heard from heaven, saying, " This is

he who caused the earth to quake, aud the kingdoms to

shake well

treatises,

called

His son, B. his

disciples,

Eliezer, and his secretary, R.

then collated

Simon

Abba, as Joohai's

and out of these composed the celebrated work

Sohar (IHT)

i.e.,

Sj)lendour, which is the grand store-

house of Eabbahsm.

From what has been

said, it will

be seen that the followers

of this secret doctrine claim for

and maintain it

a pre-Adamite existence.

that, ever since the creation of the first

man,

has been received uninterruptedly from the hands of the

patriarchs, the prophets,

It is for this reason that it

<fec.

Kabbalah (rT?3p from ^3p to receive) which primarily denotes reception, and then a doctrine received by oral tradition. The Kabbalah is also called by some Secret Wisdom (rnr/Oi nODrr), because it was only handed down is oallei'

tradition through the initiated,

and

is indicated in the

Hebrew Scriptures by signs which are hidden and unintelligible to those

From

who have not been

is also

its

mysteries.

denominated Grace (l"n=n"inD3 nD3n).V Vague and

indefinite as this

instructed in

the initial letters of this name, this theosophic system

name may seem

to the uninitiated,

inasmuch

conveys no idea whatever of the peculiar doctrines of the

system, but simply indicates the

been transmitted,

manner in which they have the classical and acknow-

it is nevertheless

ledged appellation of this theosophy. the word

Kabbalah {T02p

Massorah (iTilDD

receptio)

traditio, firom

The

difference between

and the cognate term

1DD

transmit)

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;which

denotes the traditionally transmitted various readings of the

Hebrew

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Scriptures

receiving,

which in

part of one

that the former expresses the act oj

is,

this technical sense

who has reached a

could only be on the

certain period of

life,

as well

as a certain state of sanctity, implying also a degree of secrecy

whilst the latter signifies the act of giving over, surrendering,

without premising any peculiar age, stage. of holiness, or degree of secrecy.

The name,

therefore, tells us

no more

than that this theosophy has been received traditionally,

ascertain its tenets

the books which

we must analyze the system

propound

;

and to

this

task

itself oi

we now

betake ourselves.

The to

cardinal doctrines of the

solve the grand problems

Kabbalah are mainly designed about

(I)

The nature

of the

The cosmogony, (III) The creation of angels and man, (IV) The destiny of man and the universe, and (V) To point out the import of the Eevealed Law. Assenting and consenting to the declarations of the Hehrew

Supreme Being,

(II)

Scriptures about the unity of

;

vi, 4

God (Exod.

xx, 3

Deiit. iv, 85,

;

xxxii, 39), his incorporeity (Exod. xx, 4

;

15; Ps. xiv, 18), eternity (Exod.

;

Deut.

Isa.xli, 4; xliii, 10; xliv, 6; xlviii, 12), immutability (Mai. 6), perfection (Deut. xxxii,

16;

Ps. xviii,

31),

Ps. XXV, 10; xxxiii, 5;

2 Sam. xxii, 31

;

Job

iii,

xxxviii,

(Exod. xxxiv,

goodness

infinite

iv,

14; Deut. xxxii, 40;

iii,

cxlv, 9), the creation of the

world in time according to God's free will (Gen.

1),

the

moral government of the universe and special providence, and to

the creation of

Kabbalah seeks the finite unity,

man

in the

image of God (Gen.

between them

;

upon matter,

the operation

the relationship oi the Creator to the creature,

moreover, endeavours to show

names and assigns infinite

;

in spite of the infinite gulf

so as to be able to exercise supervision

;

27), the

the procedure of multifariousness from an absolute

;

and of matter from a pure intelligence

of pure intelligence

Being

to explain the transition fronÂť the infinite to

attributes

how

and providence.

It,

is that the Bible gives

and a form to so

spiritual a

the existence of evil

compatible with the

goodness of God, and what

the Divine intention

how

about this creation.

Jn our analysis of the Kabbalistio doctrines on these grand problems, we shall follow the order in which they have been enumerated, and accordingly begin with the lucubrations on the I.

Supreme Being and the Emanations. The Supreme Being and the doctrine and

of the Emanations, or Sephiroth. Being boundless in his nature that he

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; which

classification

necessarily implies

an absolute unity and inscrutable, and that there

88 is

nothing without him, or that the

En Soph

called

CTID r»)

him,

t6 irav is in

Endless,

firt/poc

this boundlessness, or as the

*— God

boundless?

Soph, he cannot be com-

nor described in words, for there nothing which can grasp and depict him to us, and as such

prehended by the is

is,

intellect,

in a certain sense, not existent

(])>*),

our minds are concerned, that which hensible does not exist.^

and

To make

because, as far as

is perfectly

incompre-

his existence perceptible,

to render himself comprehensible,

the

Soph, or the

But

Boundless, had to become active and creative.

the

direct creiitor, for he has neither will,

Soph cannot be the

intention, desire, thought, language, nor action, as these properties imply limit

Soph

and belong to

finite beings,

whereas the

Besides, the imperfect and circumscribed

boundless.

nature of the creation precludes the idea that the world was created or even designed by him,

produce anything but what yin I'HW i;ta3' ifflM

toa J>M1

lu-i ib

DID

<tm

]<H1

niM

'» J'«

»)»)

who can have no

himself, boundless

inaii pi) toi

•p'n «xx>,

-nmn

on' vh

Commentary of

nor

will

t)iD ^'h '3

and

the ten Sephiroth,

This doctrine,' however, that everything is in the Deity is ed. Berlin, p. 4 a. not peculiar to the Kabbalah, it has been propounded by the Jews from lime immemnrial, before the Kabbalah came into existence, as may be seen from the following passage in Vie Midrash.^ *' The Holy One. blessed be he, is the space of the universe, but the universe is not his space (D^Wn ]W dVi)> bv) Toypa •l"ipn ^Dlpo). B. Isaac submitted: from the passage Dip ^nbM n313?0 (Deut. xxxiii, 27), we do nut know whether the Holy One, blessed be he, is the habitation of the universe or the universe his habitation ; but from the remark nnM n3?ip ^^IM Lord Hum art tlm duiclling place (Ps. xo, 1^, it is evident that the Holy One, blessed be he, is the dwelling place of the universe, and not the universe his dwelling (Bereshith Rabbai § Ixviii.) place." To the same effect is the remark of Philo, " God himself is the space of the universe, for it is he who contains all things." (De SomnitB, i.) It is for this reason that God is called Dipo or Dipon o rdirof hais, and that the Septuagint renders 'ijl b«-ns' 'rts nMIN-'l (Exod. xxiv, 10), by Brtt elfov rdv tottov, oi! AarlfKU i StAf which has occasioned so much difficulty

t? interpreters.

i3n^iD3 Mbi

I'M

npH

{Sohar

pmn«iH')T wi m\»'m-q im no vyrwt x'ji'jfT vh 2 233 6.) To the same effect is the ancient expository work on the doctrine of the Emanations which we quoted in the preceding note, comp. DMT 'i2\» ni •ftw rro'ien nnrt«3 miaj nwii»rm »im mo )'« 'inp ta.-io ijimn no i:on

«no3m

iii,

pn J'M "juj 'tan «in, Commentary

nswoi 1OT ihid., i a.

k'ji

on the ten Sephiroth,

naiunn h^i yon m^i mi3 ubi )in

ed. Berlin, p.

loib j's-mo rM'.o »t 3

89 perfect.

the other hand, again, the beautiful design dis-

played in the mechanism, the regular order manifested in the preseryation, destruction,

and renewal of

things, forbid us to

regard this world as the offspring of chance, and constrain us to recognize therein

an intelligent design.*

compelled to view the

Soph

are, therefore,

as the creator of the world in

an indirect manner. Now, the medium by which the En Soph made his existence known in the creaiion of the world are ten Sephiroth ° (ZnTSD) or intelligences, which emanated from the Boundless One (^1D '|'i<) in the following manner :— At first the En Soph, or the Aged of the Aged {V\>T\V\ ^P'nV) or the Holy Aged (J^iy^p Kp'W),

as he is alternately called,

sent

forth from his infinite light one spiritual substance or intelli-

This

gence.

all eternity,

first

Sephira, which existed in the

and became a

than seven appellations.

reality

by a mere

It is called

—

because it occupies the highest position because

it is

seen,

Crown QPO), II, Jhe Aged (Np'/li*),

^m^^\>:i),

nOIU'B). because, as the Sohar

Smooth Point (HTipj

or the

When the

tells us,

of the Concealed wished to reveal himself, he picn

mo nmn

— aud this name

Aged of the Aged, which, as of the En Soph ; III, (he Pri-

the

the appellation

mordial Point (n3Wi«1

from

has no less

the

the oldest or the first emanation

must not be confounded with

we have

;

En Soph

act,

to atjrA ar ic'jw niriii jv3

Vaon, Commentary on the ten Sephirotl],p. 2

first

-iita

xin

Again, says

Concealed

made a

tlie

single

o mMn ds same

Buthority,

miDWro "xm (o'jisn) Kino nm obisri n-n nwn uno Nsojn ^iisnc -ionh d«i 1:013 Nino mrn ,mpDa nxnan nnTi p dm wnnji jv3 «';© isMn a«i jawpno on itd ^si ,110 oni «• a'>ra;n '3 c'xi-i iwi ,-nD -h )'w mpnj nan ist tai DimnnD on itd toi, D'teano on itd tei, ihid., p. 2. •

•

th'ED (plural mi'2D) S Both the etymology aud the exact meaning of tVic word R. Azariel, the first KJvbbalist, derives it from 120 to matters of dispute. mimhcr, whilst the later Kabbalists derive it nlternntely from TED Saplilr, from jM 1133 Dncco D'Dicn (Ps. xix, I), aiul from the Greek aipalpai, aud are not at principles {apxal), or as siihstiiiiccs all certain whether to regard the Sephiruth as {iwotrraaus), or as potencies, powers (Ivvafuic), or as IntdligeKt worlds (Kiiir/toi organs of the Deitij (O'ta). voijnicoi), or as attributes, or as entities (niQSV), or as are

90 point

unknown, and

the Infinite was entirely

light before this luminous point Tiolently broke

vision;" (Sohar,i, 15 a). lY, the White

diffused

through into

Head (miin Kt&n)

V, the Long Face, Macroprosopcn (^^3^* T"Âť**), because tho whole ten Sephiroth represent the Primordial or the Heavenly

Man

(HN'tj; Dfl*), of which the

first

Sepkira

the head;

VI, The hiscrutable Height (n^^D Dll), because highest of

all

forth,

(Song of Solomon

iii,

can behold the King of Peace, seeing that

{Sohar ii. 100

4.)

glory

the

sees

And, VII,

Divine name Ehejeh, ot

it is

incom-

But he who King of Peace."

even to the heavenly hosts

Crown

the

sees

ye daughters

with the Crown the Sohar remarks, " But who

of Zion, and behold the King of Peace

prehensible,

the

the Sephiroth proceeding immediately from the

Soph. Hence, on the passage "

it is

of the

expressed in the Bible by the

I Am (nTIN Exod.

iii,

4), because it is

absolute being, representing the Infinite as distinguished from

the

finite,

and in the angelic order, by the

celestial beasts of

The first Sephira contained the other nine Sephiroth, and gave rise to them in the following order At first a masculine or active potency, designated Wisdom (HD^n), proceeded from it. This Sephira, which among the divine names is represented by Jah (H' Isa. xxvi, 4),

Ezekiel, called Ghajoth (/IVn).

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

and among the angelic hosts by OpJianim sent forth an opposite,

i. e.

denominated Intelligence the divine

{7\T1),

which

name Jehovah (mn'), and

(D''7K^^*),

and

(D^3S)i<

represented by

angelic

remaining

Sohar

(iii,

seven

290 a)

name Arelim

from a union of these two Sephiroth,

which are also called Father (K3N) and Mother the

Wheels),

a feminine or passive, potency,

Sephiroth expresses

it,

(^*0l*), that

proceeded. Or, as the " When the Holy Aged,

6 The Sohar, like the Talmud, generally renders the words nobtj -po King Solomon ; while verses in the Song of Songs, by irVi xn'jirJ n t/tfya the King to

wham peace

belongs.

91 the Concealed of

Concealed, assumed a form, he pro-

all

duced everything in the fonn of male and female, as the

Hence Wisdom, when it proceeded

things could not continue in any other form.

which

the beginning of development,

irom the Holy Aged, emanated in male and female,

Wisdom expanded, and

Intelligence proceeded from

for

and

it,

thus obtained male and femaleâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; viz.. Wisdom, the father, and Intelligence, the mother,

from whose union the other pairs of

These two opposite po-

Sephiroth successively emanated." tencies

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

viz..

Wisdom

joined together by the yielding the

From

first triad

and Intelligence (HJ^S)

(nOD^TT) first

potency, the

Crown (^rO)

;

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; are thus

of the Sephiroth.

the junction of the foregoing opposites emanated again

the masculine or active potency, denominated Mercy or Love,

(IDn), also called Greatness (n'?n3), the fourth Sephira,

which among the divine names

represented by

(/N),

and among the angelic hosts by Ghashmalim (DvDiyn, Comp.

Ezek. passive

From

4).

again emanated the feminine

this

potency, Justice (ri), also called Judicial Power

(rni3J), the

fifth

Sephira, which

represented by the divine

name Eloha (H/X), and among theangels by Seraphim Isa. vi, 6)

;

and from

this again the uniting potency.

(C'BlIf,

Beauty or

Mildness (/TlSD/1), the sixth /SejoAjVa, represented by the divine

name Elohim (DTI/K), and among (D'JNJty, Ps. Ixviii, 18).

the angels

by Shinanim

Since without this union the exist-

ence of things would not be possible, inasmuch as mercy

not tempered with justice,

and

mercy would be unendurable

justice

not tempered with

and thus the second

trinity

of the Sephiroth is obtained.

The medium

of union of the second trinity,

Beauty

(m>*3/l), the sixth Sephira, beamed forth the masculine or active potency.

sponding

Firmness (HSJ), the seventh Sephira,

to the divine

and among the angels

name Jehovah Sabaoth to

Tarshishim

corre-

{tVH^yi HliT),

{WWWM^, Dan.

x. 6)

;

92 this again

dour

gave

feminine or passive potency, Splen-

rise to the

(Tin), the

eighth Sephira, to which answer the divine

name Elohim Sabnoth (niN32: Betiei

Elohim

DTl'jN),

03, Gen.

(DTl'jt*

vi.

and among the angels ;

and from

again,

(TID*), the ninth Sephira,

emanated Foundation or the Basis

name El Chai (^rt 7K), and among by Ishim {WV^, Ps. civ. 4), which is

represented by the divine the

angelic hosts

the uniting point between these two opposites

From

the third trinity of Sephiroth.

Bads

(110^)

emanated the tenth, called Kingdom

all,

(Tvd^ti), and Shechinah (nJOIf), which divine

name Adonai

("'3'^^^),

The

Cherubim (DOT13). the different

represented by the

and among the angelic hosts by

table

on the opposite page exhibits

names of the Sephiroth, together with the

names of God and the

From

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; thus yielding

the ninth Sephira, the

this representation of

threefold principle, viz.,

feminine, and

several

angels, which correspond to them.

the

each triad, as consisting of a

two

opposites,

the uniting principle, the

masculine and

development of the

Sephiroth, and of

life

Balance

because the two opposite sexes, are com-

(iibpr\J2),

generally,

symbolically called the

pared with the two opposite scales, and the uniting Sephira is

compared with the beam which joins the

scales,

and

indi-

cates its equipoise.

Before we enter into further particulars about the nature, operation, and classification of these Sephiroth,

the Sohar's speculations about the

shall give

Supreme Being, and

its

account of the origin of the Sephiroth, and their relationship to the Deity.

The prophet Elias having

learned in the heavenly college

the profound mystery and true import of the words in Isa. xl, 25, 26,

saith the

To whom

Holy One.

who CD) hath Simon b. Jochai

will

Lift

ye liken me, and shall I be equal

up your eyes on high, and behold'

created these things (n'?X)," revealed to K. that

God

in his absolute nature is

unknown

ill

Is"

2 EC

COS

n o

SH 9 3

uo Km Ha

(3.

g e °

a-«! 1DS5

I E § g P «

2 a

& i E F

» F 6 ^

I <a 3

i-io4m^u3coE»ao

-a

and incomprehensible, and hence, existent

become that

active

it is

Who

that this

;

and

(^'?^Âť

creative, to

showed him i.

had

to be

demonstrate his existence, and

made

only by these (H^K) works of creation that he

therefore the combination of the

himself known to us. It is unknown Who CD) with

posed,

a certain sense, non-

unknotsn subject)

these

(n'?N)

visible

God (D'H^N which

works that

produced by

and united with n'?K).

Or, as

trans-

in the

it is

language of the Kabbalah ; " Before he gave any shape to this world, before he pro-

duced any form, he was alone, without a form and resemblance

Who

to anything else.

was before the

how hs

then can comprehend him

creation, since he

was formless

Hence

it is

forbidden to represent him by any form, similitude, or even

by his sacred name, by a single to this the

words

letter or a single point

Ye saw no manner

add

;

of similitude on the

day that the Lord spake unto you" (Deut.

iv,

15)

i.e.

have not seen anything which you could represent by any

But

form or likenessâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; refer.

Man

Heavenly

(

after

he created the form of the

T\K7y mi<), he used

as a chariot

(n231D)

wherein to descend, and wishes to be called by this form, which is

the sacred

attributes,

himself

called

God

the

Almighty,

God

thereby to

make known

how to

his

(Isa. vi, 3) ?

own

attributes

foundation

Hence, the form

God

and the Being.

his nature,

could we ever have

see

world and light

known him

upon

How

The whole earth is full of his Woe be to him who compares him with

fulfilled,

still

the dust, in

wishes

and that we should to the

his

had

Justice,

For if he had not poured out his

how

could the words be glory

;

known by

and therefore

mercy and compassion extend both

all his creatures,

his

wishes to be

Mercy, the

Sabaoth,

operations.

all

name Jehovah.

and each attribute separately

worse with the son of

who

man whose

vanishes and is no more

which we delineate him simply describes

06 each time his dominion over a certain attribute, or over the creatures

generally.

cannot understand more of his

nature than the attribute expresses. vested of

The form

any similitude or form. depicted

Hence, when he

is di-

in which he is generally

be compared to a very expansive sea;

these things, he has neither any attribute nor

all

for

the waters of the sea are in themselves without a limit or form, and

only when they spread themselves upon the

earth that they assume a form (1VD1). the following calculation

can now make

the source of the sea's water and

ihe water stream proceeding therefrom to spread itself are two.

great reservoir is then formed, just as if a huge hollow had

been dug

this reservoir is called sea,

;

unfathomable deep divides

The

seven long vessels.

and

itself into seven

Tha

the third.

streams, resembling

source, the water stream, the sea

and the seven streams make together

And when

ten.

the

master breaks the vessels which he has made, the waters return to the source, and then only remain the pieces of these vessels, dried

up and without any water.

way

It is in this

The

that the Cause of Causes gave rise to the ten Sejihirdth.

Crown light

the source from which streams forth an infinite

the highest cause

nor shape, and there

prehend

it, '

written,

(Ecclus.

designated is

iii,

the

21.) ',

things

He which

then

that

made

is filled

which the Supreme Cause is

ever,

for it then

neither any

had neither form

means whereby it.

are

above

Hence

comit is

for thee,

thy strength.'

a vessel, as small as a point,

ftom

this source (i.e. the

This is the source of wisdom, wisdotff itself (J\OSin), after

called

wise God.'

a large vessel like a sta, which

(nj*3)

= infinite, by which

Seek not out the things that are too hard

like the letter

made

("IID ]'N)

nor a way by which to know

neither search

Soph)

En Soph

hence the name

be remarked that God I

intelligent is wise,

Upon

this

called Intelligence

God.'

It must,

how-

and through himself,

for

wisdom does not

who

the wise one

through him who

fills

is intelligent

God needs

dried up.

This

but through

and

fills

with his

only to withdraw himself and

is also

the meaning of the words,

have disappeared from the up.'

itself,

which flows from him, it not comprehended through itself, but with the light

just as intelligence is

stance.

name through

derive its

The

(Job xiv, 11.)

and the bed

sea,

sea

own

it '

would be

the waters

dry and parched

finally divided into

sub-

seven

streams, and the seven costly vessels are produced, which are

(mUJ), Beauty

called Greatness (nVllJ), Judicial Strength

(mjon), Firmness (IID*),

and Kingdom

Splendour

(HitJ),

(niD/D).

(Hiri),

Therefore

Foundation

he called the

Greater the Merciful, the Mighty, the Glorious, the God of victory, the Creator, to

whom

Upon

tion of all things.

all

praise is due, and the

the last attribute

universe, for everything is in his power

King of

the

he can diminish the

the vessels, and increase in them the light which

streams from them, or reduce

{Sohar,

;

Founda-

the others are

Finally, he is also the

based as well as the world.

number of

all

a, section

it,

just as

pleases him."

HX)

In another place again the same authority gives the following description of the Deity and the emanation of the Sephiroth.

" The Aged of the Aged, the

form and yet has no form.

Unknown

of the

Unknown, has

He has a form whereby the universe

is preserved,

and yet has no form, because he cannot be com-

prehended.

When

first

assumed the form [of the

Sephira"], he caused nine splendid lights to

which, shining through directions.

it,

diffused a

bright light in

Imagine an elevated light sending forth

in all directions.

Now

we approach

first

emanate from

it to

it,

all

its

rays

examine the

rays,

we understand no more than that they emanate from the said light. So is the Holy Aged an absolute light, but in himself concealed and incomprehensible.

him through

those luminous

can only comprehend

emanations

(niTBD) which

97 again are partly visible and partly concealed. tute the sacred

Four things Sephiroth.

name of God." mnst he borpe

These

{;Idra Suta, Sohar,

iii,

consti-

288

a.)

the

mind with regard

That they were not created by, but emanated

(7SM3) from, the

Soph the ;

difference between creation

and

emanation being, that in the former a diminution of strength takes place, whilst in the latter this

among

they form

and simply represent

unity,

same being, just

colours of the

same

of one differ

from the

like the

They

;

and IV,

finite

that, as

emana-

Sephiroth are infinite and perfect

and perfect when the

and

III.

different

emanations alike partake

Soph, and yet constitute the

fulness to them,

form only

light.

from each other as the

En Soph

Infinite, the

are infinite

one and the

which proceed from the

and the same

light, all the ten

of the perfections of the tions

That strict

different things to the eye,

different manifestations

That since they simply

II.

Soph^ a

case.''

different aspects of

as the different rays

and which appear

light,

not the

themselves, and with the

first finite things.'

Soph imparts

his

and imperfect when the fulness

withdrawn from them, so that in

respect

this

these

ten

Sephiroth exactly correspond to the double nature of Christ, his finite

and imperfect human nature and his

infinite

and

perfect divine nature.

In their

totality

and unity these ten Sephiroth are not only

denominated the world of Sephiroth (JllTBDn D/iy) and the world of Emanations (/IITSK D/TV), but represent

and are called the Primordial or Archetypal IIDTp

= wpwroyoyoc),

In the

figure, the

the brains

;

and

and the Heavenly

Crown

("IJ13) is the

Man

Man (DIN

(n>*^>y DIN).

head; Wisdom (nDDH),

Intelligence (Hty^), which unites the two

lonnni loosnn n300i'toi:» rwia WH1 i:nD ]''mbi:io niVsMn rra Commentary on tlje ten Sephiroth, 2 6; 4 a-. •

•

and

ta 'J,7.

iDn,

imiaVarro nan

rscno c^jpn nmD3

]iiDn3i rrabiDna 'jwo'i ns

cna

"'3'!

-orrn rrn

icn na ona

o^wn cne niTSDn 3 cno sown »3orni s'jw

98 produces the

first triad,

the heart or the understanding

The

thus formiag the head.

fourth and fifth Sephiroth, are the two

("JDn) and Justice (TTTS),

Mercy

distributing

life

and the other death.

(/^^tSJ^), which

Beauty

produces the second

—

i.e..

(Tin), of the third triad,

ninth

the

left,

two opposites and

these

seventh

Firmness (nS3) and Splendour

—are the two

legs

and Foundation

;

Sephira, represents the genital orgam,

Thus

since it denotes the basis and source of all things. it

said " £yery thing will return to

proceeded from

All marrow,

it.

Hence

congregated in this spot.

origin just as

its

all sap,

and

all

power

(Sohar,

The following is

290

iii,

the tenth Sephira, represents the

of the whole Archetypal Man.

are

powers which exist

all

originate through the genital organs."

Kingdom (ilWD),

one

the sixth Sephira,

triad, is the cheat; whilst the

and eighth Sephiroth,

(T)D*),

unites

i.e.,

arms of the

Lord, the former the right arm and the latter the

And

—

a.)

harmony

the archetypal

figure of the ten Sephiroth. It is this

form which the prophet Ezekiel saw in the

mysterious chariot, and of which the earthly

marked, created the world and their

own archetype

Heavenly

Man

we propound world,

it is

trinity

a faint

Now

all

re-

things therein according to

or in the likeness and similitude of the

or the

World of Emanations.

But, before

the Kabbalistic doctrine of the creation of the

necessary to describe a second

of triads in the

Sephiroth

mention the appellations and

offices

mode

in which the

and to

represented,

of the respective triads.

in looking at the Sephiroth which constitute the first

triad, it will

be seen that they represent the intellect

this triad is called

The second it is

man

Moreover, these Sephiroth, as we have already

copy.

the Intellectual

triad, again, represents

World moral

qualities

designated the moral or Sensuous World (tt'JIlD

whilst the third triad represents

power and

;

hence

dw).

('jStt'ia ;

hence

D^V)

stabilitg,

and

MBVK

09 hence

World (J^SQIDn

designated the Material

These three aspects in which the are called the

Facet (^S^K and

WW).

Soph manifested himself

]^91!t1S

irpdaunroy,

the two

words are identical, the former being pure Aramaic, and the latter

from the Greek).

In the arrangement of

of triads, so as to produce what tree,

denominated the Tree of Life

Tree (P'H), the third are placed

first triad is

called the

(D'^FT "^Tj),

this trinity

Kabbalistio

or simply the

placed aboTe, the second and

below, in such a manner that the three

masculine Sephiroth are on the right, the three feminine on the as

left,

whilst the four uniting Sephiroth occupy the centre,

shown in the following diagrams 1.

100 a.

The

three Sephiroth

FNt>i.Ess.

on the

right, representing the principio

of mercy (^D^), are called the Pillar of

IVrn N11DV) principio

;

the

of rigour

three {\'r\),

Mercy (NTD^ KlIDD

the

are

denominated the Pillar of

Judgment (nj^TV iVTiay N'jKOttTt NIDD) Sephiroth in the

centre,

representing

left,

representing

;

the

whilst the four

mildness

(D^Dnn),

101

Middle Pillar (X/l^yitDNl KniDJ'). Each Sephira composing this trinity of triads is, as it were, a trinity are cnlled the

I, It

itself.

from above

;

has

its

own

absolute character

and III, It communicates

;

II, It receives

what

below

it.

Hence the remark, "Just as the Sacred Aged is represented by the number three, so are all the other lights {Sephiroth) of a threefold nature."

units,

{So/tar,

iii,

288

Within

b.)

each unit and trinity of triads there

trinity in

this

a trinity of

which must be explained before we can propound the

Kabbalistic view of the cosmogony.

have seen that three of the Sephiroth constitute uniting

links between three pairs of opposites, and by this

produce three

triads, respectively

means

denominated the Intellectual

World, the Sensuous or Moral World, and the Material World,

and that these three uniting Sephiroth, together with the one which unites the whole into a called the

common

what

unity, form

Middle Pillar of the Kabbalistic

tree.

Now

from

the important position they thus occupy, these Sephiroth are

synecdoehically used to represent the worlds which by their uniting potency they respectively yield.

Crown

("1^3),

Hence the Sephira, Wisdom (n03n)

from which the Sephiroth,

and Intelligence (rUO), emanated, and by which they are also united, thus yielding the intellectual World, is by itself used

designate

the

Intellectual

Its

own names, however,

and

it still

World (WaiOrt d!?W).

are not changed in this capacity,

continues to be designated by the several appel-

lations mentioned in the description

The

sixth

Sephiroth

Sephira, called

IV (IDn, Love) and

ing the Sensuous World,

Sensuous World, and

of the

first

Sephira.

BEAUTy (mi*3n), which is

V by

unites

(irtS, Justice), thus yielditself

used to denote the

in this capacity is called the

Sacred

King (Nl^np ND^D), or simply the King (ND^D) ; whilst the Sephira called Kingdom (mO^a), which unites the whole Sephiroth,

here used to represent the Material World,

102 instead of the ninth Sephira, called is

Foundation pID'), and

denominated the Queen (i»n37D) or the

in this capacity

Matron (N/1^3nt3D).

Thus we

ohtain

of triads a higher trinity of units,

—

the

trinity

Grown

(tJIS),

within the

viz.,

Beauty (mX3n), and Kingdom (n'0'?a),— which represents the potencies of

the Sephiroth.

all

The Creation or the Kabbalisfic Cosmogony. Having arrived at the highest trinity which comprises

II.

all

the Sephiroth, and which consists of the Grown, the King,

and

tlie

Queen, we shall be able to enter into the cosmogony

Now,

of the Kabbalah.

not the

it is

En Soph who

created

the world, but this trinity, as represented in the combination

of the Sephiroth

or rather the creation has arisen from the

;

The world was born from the union of the crowned King and Queen or, according to the language of the Kabbalah, these opposite sexes of royalty, who emanated from the En Soph, produced the universe in their own conjunction of the emanations.

;

Worlds, we are told, were indeed King and Queen or the Sephiroth gave

image.

created before ever

the

birth to the present

not continue, and necessarily

state of things, but they could

perished, because the

human form

Soph had

noi:

yet assumed this

completeness, which not only implies a

its

moral and intellectual nature, but, as conditions of development, procreation, and continuance, also comprises sexual opposites.

This creation, which aborted and which, has

been succeeded by the present order of things,

Gen. xxxvi, 31

— 40.

The kings of Edom,

as they are also denominated,

who

indicated in

or the old kings

are here said to have

reigned before the monarchs of Israel, and are mentioned as

having died one

after the other, are those primordial

which were successively convulsed and destroyed sovereigns of Israel denote the

from the

En Soph,

the present world.

Ejng and Queen who emanated

and who have given birth

Thus we

;

worlds

whilst the

are told

and perpetuate

103 " Before the

the

[i.e.

Aged

of the Aged, the Concealed of the Con-

expanded into the form of King, the Crown of Crowns

cealed,

first

Sephira'], there

He hewed and

was neither beginning nor end.

incised forms and figures into

crown] in the following manner cover,

and carved therein kings

—He

[i.e.

the

spread before him a

worlds], and

marked out

their limits and forms, but they could not preserve themselves.

Therefore

'These are the kings that reigned

written,

Edom

in the land of

before there reigned any king

over

(Gen. xxxvi, 31.)

This refers to

the primordial kings and primordial Israel.

All these were

the children of Israel.'

imperfect: he therefore removed them and let them vanish, till

he finally descended himself to this cover and assumed a

(Idra Rabba, 8oha/r,

form."

iii,

148 a.)

This important fact that worlds were created and destroyed prior to the present creation is again and again reiterated in

These worlds are compared wifh sparks which

the Sohat.^ fly

out from a red hot iron beaten by a hammer, and which

are extinguished according to the distance they are

from the burning mass. tells us,

" which perished as soon

were formless, and

when hammering These sparks

removed

" There were old worlds," the Sohar as"

they came into existence

Thus

they were called sparks.

the iron, lets the sparks fly in all directions.

are the primordial worlds,

continue, because the Sacred

which could not

Aged had not

as yet

assumed

—the King and Queen], and 292 work." {Idra Suta, Sohar, —" Nothing can be

his form [of opposite sexes

iii,

master was not yet at his

But

the smith

since nothing

in this world, not even

annihilated

the b.)

perisheth

the breath which issues from the

and destroyed prior to the 9 The notion, however, that worlds were creatca iresent creation, was propounded in </w Micbrash Jong before the existence of " everything that he had God saw And Thus on the verse, the Kabbalah. " inM ^"<^ made, and behold it was very good (Gen. 1, 31), R. Abahu suhmits iw r» \r<iv> -» pnnrn nydrw irnr pnrroi nio'ns lou rm n'(3pn« ]n3o

p -KM *l

rif «^

vwld, and when he ones

4:>l

from thus we see that the Holn One, blessed and destroyed sundry worlds before he created

•Pin

successively created

be he, had the present

created the present world he said, this pleases me, the previous (Bereehith Bahba, section or Farsha iz.)

'wt please me.

104

month, for

this, like

everything

into his service;" {Sohar,

given

Why

110

ii,

has

place and dea-

its

b.)

turns

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; these worlds could not

Hence when the question

be absolutely destroyed.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

else,

and the Holy One, blessed be his name

tinfttion,

were these primordial worlds destroyed

asked

the reply

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; "Because the Man, represented by the ten Sephiroth,

was not

The human form contains every

as yet.

thing,

as it did not as yet exist, the worlds were destroyed."

added, "

Still

when

said that they perished,

it is

meant thereby that they lacked the form came into being, in which which also contains

true form,

down from

human

Hence, though the

Scripture ascribes death (niO*')) to the kings of

denotes a sinking

only

it is

the

things are comprised, and

all

those forms.

all

till

and It is

their dignity,

i.e.,

Edom,

the worlds

only

that time did not answer to the Divine idea, since they had

not as yet the perfect form of which they were capable."

{Idra Rahba, Sohar,

was therefore

and

after the

iii,

185

b.)

after the destruction of previous worlds,

En Soph

or the Boundless assumed the Sephiric

form, that the present world was created.

The Holy One,

blessed be he, created and destroyed several worlds before the

when

present one was made, and

this last

work was nigh com-

pletion, all the things of this world, all the creatures of the

universe, in whatever age they were to exist, before ever they

entered into this world, were present before

form. '

What

Thus

God

in their true

are the words of Ecolesiastes to be understood

was, shall be, and what has been done, shall be done.'"

f Sohar,

\\\,

61 b.J

"The

pattern of the upper world

be found as

upper world

is to

the whole

one."

lower world eirery

;

flbid

This world, however,

ii,

made

after the

thing which exists in the

were in a copy upon earth

;

still

a. J

not a creation ex nihilo, but

simply an immanent offspring and the image of the King and

Queen,

or,

in other words, a farther expansion or evolution of

105 the Sephiroth is

which

are the emanations of the

This

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; passage " The

expressed iu the Sohar in the following

indivisible point [the Absolute],

Soph,

who has no

limit,

and who

cannot be comprehended because of his purity and brightness,

expanded from without, and formed a brightness which served as a covering to the indivisible point, yet

viewed iu consequence of

expanded from without, and

Thus everything

this

It too

light.

expansion was

its

garment.

originated through a constant upheaving agi-

makes

Sephiroth, and reveals and

Deity in less splendour than

{Sohar,

immanent emanation from

therefore is an

the Concealed of the Concealed.

too could not be

and thus finally the world originated."

tation,

The universe

it is

immeasurable

its

a.)

the

Boundless and

visible the

And though

exhibits the

parents the Sephiroth, because

its

further removed from the primordial source of light, yet,

God

manifested,

all

the multifarious forms in the

oat the unity which they represent

and nothing

world

i>oint

can be destroyed, but everything must return

source whence

Hence

emanated.

it is

said that "

all

the

things

of which this world consists, spirit as well as body, will return to their principal,

{Sohar,

ii,

218

b.)

and the root from which they proceeded." " He is the beginning and end of all the

degrees in the creation. his seal, unity.

one, notwithstanding the innumerable forms

which ore in him."

Now

All these degrees are stamped with

and he cannot be otherwise described than by the {Ibid

21 a.)

these Sephiroth, or the

World of Emanation

(

D7iy

/YlVsK), or the Atzilutic World, gave birth to three worlds in the following order

and Queen

{i.e.,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;From

King The World

the conjunction of the

the ten Sephiroth) proceeded

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

of Creation, or the Briatic World (n^nnn dw), also called The Throne (^<'D^^^), which is the abode of pure spirits,

and which,

or Emanations.

like its parents, consists of ten Sephiroth,

The Briatic World,

again, gave rise to.

lOG II.

World of Formation, or the

The

iryyTTS D^TV), which

consists of ten Sephiroth

sent forth. III. (n^ffiWT Q'?'\y),

World

Jetziratic

and

the habitation of the angels,

also

whilst the Jeiziratic World, again,

;

The World of Action, or the Assiatie World also Called the World of Keliphoth (D^W

J11S*bpn), which contains the Spheres (Dv^bj) and matter,

and

the residence of the Prince of Darkness and his legions.

Or, as the Sohar describes their use,

God made

the

— " After the Sephiroth, eaA

Throne

the

{i.e.,

World of

with four legs and six steps, thus making ten of Sephiroth which each world has).

and

the dec&de

{i.e.,

For

Throne

this

formed the ten Angelic hosts

service he

its

for

Creation),

the

(('.«.,

of Formation), Malachitn, Arelim, Chajoth, Ophanim,

World

Elim,

Chashmalim,

Seraphim

'33

D''n'7«

Benei Elohim, Ishim,

DOBW

Ubvwr]

(D'''?«

tl^lH

Dtsntt^

Elohim,

UrbVi), and

for

and

OOsVo

JlVn a*'?«n» their

service,

made Samael and his legions (i.e., the World of Action), who are, as it were, the clouds upon which the angels again, he

ride in their descent

Hence

their horses.

on the it is

upon a swift cloud, and {Sohar

ii,

shall

There

a.)

and

earth,

serve, as

— Behold

written

come

the

into Egypt.'"

are, therefore,

were, for

Lord

rideth

(Isa. xix, I.)

four worlds, each of

which has a separate Sephiric system, consisting of a decade the

I. The Atzilatic World, World of Emanations (ni'?'Sl« D^y),

eiKav with

of emanations.

nt*^y),

prefixed),

and

which, by virtue of

its

from Grod and most intimately perfect and immutable.

World of Creation which

II.

{r\Vi'''\:xr\

the

called alternately

the

Image

Heavenly

(Wpm

Man

(C*TN

being a direct emanation allied

with the Deity,

The Briatic World,

itf

called the

d'jW) and the Throne («'D11D),

the immediate emanation of the former, and whose

ten Sephiroth, being further

removed from the

Soph, are

of a more limited and circumscribed potency, though the

substances they comprise are of the purest nature and without

107

any admixture of mattar.

III.

World of Formation (rrCSTT which

(K*3l*7D),

The Jetziraiic World, called the D!?iy) and tlie World of Angels

proceeded from the former

whose ten Sephiroth, though of a

still

-world,

and

less refined substance

than the former, because further removed from the primordial source, are

still

without matter.

It is in this angelic world

where those intelligent and uucorporeal beings

reside,

who

are

wrapped in a luminous garment, and who assume a sensuous to man. And IV. The Assiatic World, World cf Action (H^K^yn D^y) and the World of

form when they appear called the

Matter {TWShp'n

UTfSf)

which emanated from the preceding

world, the ten Sephiroth of which are

elements of

down

all

made up of

the grosser

the former three worlds, and which has sunk

in consequence of its materiality

and heaviness.

Its

substances consist of matter limited by space and perceptible to the senses in a muldplioity

of forms.

It is subject to

constant changes, generations, and corruptions, and

abode of the Evil

the

Spirit.

Before leaving this doctrine about the creation and the

Supreme Being

relationship of the reiterate

two things.

gave birth

to the universe,

itself,

an evolution

thus a further expansion of the

must not be supposed that the Kabbalists

believe in a Trinity in our sense of the word. this

we must

the trinity of the Sephiroth

to the univeilse, or, in other words, is

of the emanations, and

Deity

Though

subject will

best be

understood

Their view on

from the following

remark in the Sohar

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; " Whoso wishes to have an insight into

the sacred unity, let

him consider

a flame rising from a burn-

ing coal or a burning lamp. He will see first a twofold light, a bright white and a black or blue light; the white

and ascends in a direct light, whilst the blue or dark light is below, and seems as the chair of the former, light is above,

yet both are so intimately connected together that they constitute only

one flame.

The

seat,

however, formed by the

108 again connected with the burning matter which is under it again. The white light never changes its colour, it always remains white ; but various

blue or dark light,

shades are observed in the lower light, whilst the lowest above it is connected light, moreover, takes two directions

with the white

Now

this

ascends to the upper

light,

HTW^

unity ("TH

single

and

light,

belout

with the burning matter.

constantly consuming

and perpetually

itself,

and thus everything merges into -^VipiMi

«'713l

Sohar,

61 «).'«

And II. The creation, or the universe, is simply the garment of God woven from the Deity's own substance or, as Spinoza For expresses it, God is the immanent basis of the universe. ;

although, to reveal himself to us, the Concealed of

the

all

Concealed sent forth the ten emanations called the Form of

God,

Form of

Heavenly Man, yet since even

the

luminous form was too dazzling for our vision,

assume another form, or had

to put

consists of the universe.

The

this

had

on another garment which

universe, therefore, or the

expansion of the Divine Substance, the Kabbalah " the Garment of God." Thus

visible world, is a further

and

called in

are told, "

when the Concealed of all the Concealed wanted

to reveal himself,

shaped

and covered world."

first

into a sacred it

made

form

a point [«>. the

[*.*.

first

Sephira],

the totality of the Sephiroth],

with a rich and splendid garment that

{Sohar,

the

2 a).

The Creation of Angels and Men. The different worlds which successively emanated from the En Soph and from each other, and which sustain the relationIII.

ship to the Deity of

first,

second,

are, with the exception of the

nations), inhabited

tliird,

and fourth generations,

first {i.e.,

spiritual

the

World of Ema-

beings of various grades.

10 The question, however, about the doctrine of the Trinity other passagfes of the Sohar will be discussed more amply in the sequel, where we shall point out the relation of the Kabbaldi to Christianity.

109

God animated

This '

every part of the firmament with a separate

and forthwith

spirit,

all

the heavenly hosts were before him.

meant by the Psalmist, when he says

the breath of his

{Sohar,

iii,

and bad

;

mouth were made

(Ps. xx^iii, 6) their hosts.'

all

These angels consist of two kinds

a.)

— good

they have their respective princes, and occupy the

As has already Man, in whose occupied by no one else. The

three habitable worlds in the following order.

been remarked, the

image everything angel

Metatron

first

world, or the Archetypal

formed,

(11"1I3tOD)

occupies the second or the Briatic

World (nxn^ D^iy), which

the

alone constitutes the world of pure of niy is

i.e.,

first

spirits.

habitable world

the visible manifestation of the Deity

numerically equivalent to that of the Lord.

231

a.)

;

his

name

'(Sohar,

iii,

governs the visible world, preserves the unity,

harmony, and the revolutions of lieavenlybodios, and gelic hosts"

;

the garment

who people

all

the spheres, planets and

the Captain of the myriads of the an-

the second habitable or the Jeiziraiic

11 The Kabbalistic description of Melatmv is taken from the Jewish angelology of a much older date than this theosophy. Thus Ben Asai and Bun Soma already regard tlui divine voice, the Xoyos (D'nbn ^ip) as Metatron. (Beresh. Jinh., Parsha t.) He is ealled t!ie Great 7'cach.er, the Teacher of Teachers (»n N1ED), and it is for this reason that Enoch, who walked in c'oae communion with God, and taught mankind by his holy example, is said by the Chaldee paraphrase of Jonathan b. Uzziel, to have received the name Metnlron, tJie Great Teacher after he was triinsplnuted. (Gen. v, 34.) Metatron, moreover, is the Presence Angel (crren ys), the Angel of the Lord that was sent to go before Israel (Exod. xxiii, 21) ; he is the visible manifestation of the Deity, foi in him is the '

name of tlie Lord, i.e., his name and that of the Deity are identical, inasmuch as they are of the same numerical value (viz. :— no and JliBBO are the some 314; according to the exegetical rale called Gematria, - 10 + T 4 + f .100 1 fl I 200 40=.314. See Hashi on Exod. xxiii, 21, a9-|-ICi9 + ] 50 'nnM is'niaT and Saiiluidrim 38 b). 'TO MHTiOJl pipDO in Dil)3 lowo Jiicco So exalted is AXetatron's position in the ancient Jewish angelology, that we are told that when Elisha b. Aboja, also called Acher, saw this angel who occupies tlie first position after the Deity, he exclaimed, ' Peradventure, but far be it, there are two Supreme Powers' (fi nvian Tie Dl'rai on ndc Talmud, Chagii/a, 16 o). The etymology of jniBCp is greatly disputed ; hut there is no doubt that it is to be derived from Metatou, messenger, outrider, u^ay maker, as has been shown by Elias Levita, and is maintained by Cassel (Ersch und (Sfruher's EncyklopHdie, Judek, p. 40, note 84). Sachs (BeitrOge xur Sprachsection ii, vol. xxvii, s. v. mid AUertltifmrforsehung, vol. i, Berlin 1852, p. 108) rightly remarks that this passage from Siphra, quoted in KapUer-VaPlierath, is etymology fixed by the c. X, p. 34 b hKW p» to in»im rpoo'j pnooo rrj»: t^i'v^ ;« isis« the finger of (rod was the messenger or guide to Motes, and sitowed him all tlie land of Israel,

;

no World (JVf^ thMf), and who

divided into

are

Each

answering to the ten Sephiroth.

One has

over a different part of the universe.

ten ranks,

of these angels

jp set

the control of

one sphere, another of another heavenly body ; one angel has charge of the sun, another of the moon, another of the earth, another of the sea, another of the

another of the wind,

fire,

another of the light, another of the seasons, &c. &c.

and

names from the heavenly bodies they Hence one is called Venus (HJU), one

these angels derive their respectively guard.

Mars (D'01ÂŤ0), one the substance of Heaven (D^Otyn DSy), one the angel of light (7J<nW), and another the angel of (7t*'^^J.)

fire

(Comp. Sohar

stituting the second class of angels,

most

deficient of all forms,

too,

roth, in

con-

which are the grossest and

and are the

shells (JTlSvp) of being,

inhabit the third habitable or Assiatic

They,

The demons,

42, &e.)

World (n'tPi^D^W).

form ten degrees, answering to the decade of Sephi-

which darkness and impurity increase with the descent

of each degree.

Thus the two

than the absence of

all

visible

first

degrees are nothing more

form and organisation, which

the

Mosaic cosmology describes in the words IHll inn before

the

hexahemeron, and which the Septuagint renders by

Ka\ aKaTaaKcvaoToc.

The

third degree is the

adparoc

abode of the dark-

ness which the book of Genesis describes as having in the

Whereupon

beginning covered the face of the earth. seven infernal halls (r\T>yr\

Wif)

= Hells, occupied by the

demons, which are the incarnation of

all

human

vices,

and

which torture those poor deluded beings who suffered themselves to be led astray in this world. halli

are subdivided

into

These seven infernal

endless compartments, so

The terminn'ion p has been appended to iTDao tnobtain the same numerical value, as ntt). The derivation of it from iitra &p6vog, because this angel is immediately under the divine tUroue (w**Di^3 ) which is maintained by Frank (Kabbala, p. 43), Graetz (Gnosticismus, p. 44) and oOiers, has been shoTU by Frankel ,

(fieilH-hiifl, 1846. vol. iii, p. 113), and Cassel {Ersch uud Griiber's Encyklof. ii, vol. ixvii, p.. 41), to be both contrary to tie form of the word and to the description of Metatron.

section

HI afford a separate

The

chamber of

torture for every species of sin.

prince of this region of darkness,

the Bible,

who is called Satan in denominated by the Kabbalah, Samael{bHQD}

= angel of poison or of death. Satin, the serpent, the Harlot or the

same

the

evil spirit,

who seduced Eve.'* He has a wife, called Woman of Whoredom (D'JJUTntt'N), but

they are both generally represented as united in the one name of the Beast (KVn. Oomp. Sohar, ii, 255—259, with i, 35 b.)

The whole receive

its

universe, however, was incomplete,

finishing

acme of the

the

himself the

stroke

totality

primordial obscurity

Adam."

{Sohar,

ii,

the highest degree

the

b.)

himself

all

for

which reason he was

As soon

complete, including

forms."

En Soph), created theEiRTHLY "Man is both the import and

of creation,

worlds, for everything

who

" The He evenly Adam who emanated from tha highest

formed on the sixth day. everything was

and did not

formed,

beings.

{i.e.,

man was

and the microcosm uniting in

creation,

the ten Sephiroth),

(i.e.,

till

man was

created,

upper and nether

the

He unites in Man was created

comprised in man.

{Sohar,

iii,

48 a.)"

with faculties and features far transcending those of the

The

angels.

bodies of the protoplasts were not of that gross

Adam

matter which constitutes our bodies. the

fall,

which the

celestial spirits are clad,

and which

angels of the highest rank. as

The

neither sub-

They were envied by

ject to want nor to sensual desires.

all,

and Eve, before

were wrapped in that luminous ethereal substance in

fall,

the

however, changed

are told in the following passage

— " When

Adam

The view

th&t the serpent which seduced the protoplasts is identical with rot peculiar to the Kabbalah. It is stated in the 7Vi/niui:{ in almost the same words rtra SM0D1 Tiv mr\ Mrvjnoa nmn "pAo Min jown «in sin i<r ttwi n'aoi TIV J'Bt'OI the evil tplrii, Salan, and llie anyel of death, are tlu same. It is propoitnded in tlbc B&raitha that he descends and seduces ; lie then ascends and Baba Bathra, 16 a, accuseSf and then comes down again and kills.

13 Satan

«r.io'';w i!TH

•

Di»3

WsHM

t•fa^

«nm

M'T^Virw

tei

jpnnx aiM

msn \n

112 dwelled in the garden of Eden, he was dressed in the celestial

garment, which

But when

a garment of heavenly light.

he was expelled from the garden of Eden, and became subject ' The Lord God to the wants of this world, what is written ?

made

them" (Gen. light

Adam and

coats of skins unto

— light

Eden."

21)

iii,

of that light which was used in the garden of

{Sohar,

mean our

had garments of

for prior to this they

;

and clothed

to his wife,

889

ii,

i:)

The garments of skm,

present body, which was given to our

in order to adapt

them

changes which the

to the

therefore,

first

parents

fall intro-

duced.

But even every

the righteous are above

in the present form,

the angels," and

member

man

every

his

part of the

visible

simply skin,

flesh,

constitutes the real

the microcosm,

still

body corresponds "

universe.

bones, and veins

man

What

and

constituent Is

That which

the soul, and those things which

and the

are called the skin, the flesh, the bones,

veins, all

these are merely a garment, they are simply the clothes of

the man, but not the

man

When man departs, he man is clothed.

himself.

puts off these garments wherewith the son of

Yet

are

all

these bones and sinews formed in the secret of the

highest wisdom, after the heavenly image.

The

skin repre-

sents the firmament, which extends everywhere, and covers

everything like a garment

— as

it is written,

out the heavens like a curtain.'

(Ps. civ, 8)

Who

flesh represents the deteriorated part of the world

stretchest .

;

The

the

bones and the veins represent the heavenly chariot, the inner powers, the servants of God. 11 That the

But

these are the

than the angels is already propounded in the D»Vnj Sanhedrim 93 o) ; and it is asserted that no one angel can do two things (nirr^ 'no mmt ittm "pAo •(» Bereshiih Babba, section 1), for which reason three angels had to be sent, one to announce to Sarai the birth of Isaac, the other to destroy Sodom and Goinorrah, and the third to save Lot and his family ; whilst a man can perform several duties. The superiority of man over angels is also asserted in the New Testament. (1 Cor, vi, 3.) riiiihteons are greater

Talmud (men 'Dxtea inv

uyn

113 outer gannents, for in the inward part

ia the deep mystery of Everything here below, as above, is Therefore it is written God created man in

the heavenly man.

mysterious. his

own image,

27)

—

in the image of

repeating the word

;

the other for the

woman.

God

preated he

twice,

The mystery of

mystery of the Heavenly Man.

after the

him

(Gen.

one for the man and the earthly

And just

man we

see

in the firmament above, covering all things, different signs

which are formed of the

stars and planets, and which contain and profound mysteries, studied by those who

secret things are wise

and expert in these signs

which

the cover of the body of the son of man, and which

is like

the sky that covers

are the stars

all

;

so there are in the skin,

things, signs

and planets of the

and features which

skin, indicating secret things attracted, who human face." (So/tar, of God upon earth (l*/iy3t£?

and profound mysteries, whereby the wise are understand to read the mysteries In the ii,

a.)

is still

the presence

ilMn/l), and the very form of the body depicts the Tetra-

grammaton, the most sacred name Jehovah (mn*). head

the form of the

Thus

the

the arms and the shoulders are like

the n, the breast represents the form of the \ whilst the two legs with

the

(Sohar,

The

ii,

souls of

tent in the

back represent the form of the second

il.

a.)'* all

these epitomes of the universe are pre-exis-

World of Emanations,'^ and

are without exception

10 The Earmarthi, who interpreted the precepts of Islamiem

ollegorically, also

mamtained that the hamau body represents the letters in the name of God. When standing the hnnian body represents an Uli/, -when kneeling a LAm, and vhen prostrated on the ground a Hi, so that the body is like a book in which may he read the name Aixah. De Sacy, Introduction i lExpoit ie la Selifion Comp. Frank, Die Kabbala, p. S3. de» Driae; pp. 86, 87. 16 The pre-existence of the hnman souls in the celestial regions was believed by the Jews before the Kabbalah came into vogue. We 6nd this doctrine in the Book of Wisdom (viii, 30) ; in Josephus, where we are told that the Essenes believed ' that souls were immortal, and that they descended fi'om the pore air, uvuirMKtaBai &ainp tlpKraXg rolf a&nan, to be chained to bodies' (<fc Belt. the air was full of them, and that those which Jttd. ii, 13) ; by Fhilo, who says

were nearest the earth Kariaaiv iK!t9tiaoiuvat ffti/ian 9vtiT0t[, descending to be tied to mortal bodies, wcAwipoitovn aiBift return back to bodiest being

114 destined to inhabit

human

upon

earth for a certain

that,

When

the

bodies,

number of

Holy One,

then formed

their course

Hence we

was before him in

All were minutely before him in the same form

which they were to assume iu the human body. one of them

would corrupt Like the

;

way upon

their

looked

and there were some among them which (Sohar,

the earth."

Sephiroth from which

b).

emanates, every soul

has ten potencies, which are subdivided into a

and are respectively represented by

triads,

idea.

the souls which are destined fDr the whole

all

race.

at each

are told

blessed be his name, wished to

create the world, the universe

human

and pursue years.

trinity of

Tlie Spirit,

(I)

(notyj), which is the highest degree of being, and which

both corresponds to and (nn3),

representing

InteUectual

the

celled

which

qualities,

operated upon by

highest

(II)

The

evil,

Cruder

Spirit.

the body,

and

anim.al

life,

and

(,JT)NSJ1), representing the

(K'BJ),

which

the direct cause of

Sephiroth,

Soul

(mi),

as well as the moral

and which both corresponds

World

the Sephiroth, called the Moral

The Crown

the

triad

World;

the seat of good and

upon by Beauty in

the

;

operated

second

triad

and (III) The

immediately connected with its

lower functions, instincts,

and which both corresponds to and

upon by Foundation (IW), representing the

operated

third triad

in the Sephiroth, called the Material World.

its

original state each

soul

sepai'ated into male and female when

he borne in a human body.

We have

androgynous, and

descends on earth

seen that the souls of

desiiouE to lire in them.' [De Gignat.f. S33, 0. ; JOe Samniit, p. 455, D. Comj). Arnold on the Book of Wisdom, viii, 80, and Whitby on John ix, 8., where these qnotations and others are given) ; and in the Talmud where it is declared that the human souls which are to be bom (niwianrrt J'TfWW niomsi mmi), have their abode in the seventh heaven {Chagiga, 13 V) ; that they leave gradually the storehouse ot souls to people this earth (r|lMW niD»3n to lte<W Jebamoth, (!8 ; Abodtt Sara, 5 ; Nidda, 13) ; and that the Holy One, blessed be he, t'lok counsel with them when he was about to create the world "An: yy"l3 'to miBDJJ oVWrt r>» Will n"3prT {SereshWi Babha, section viii).

116 the righteous, in the world of spirits, are superior in dignity to the heavenly powers therefore, be asked

and the ministering angels-

why do

It might,

these souls leave such an abode

of bliss, and come into this vale of tears to dwell in tabernacles of clay

The only reply to be given is that these happy souls Indeed we are told that the

have no choice in the matter.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

assuming a human body, addresses God

soul, before

of the Universe

am happy

Lord

in this world, and do not wish

to go into another world, where I shall be a bond-maid, and

be exposed to

all

kinds of pollutions." {Sohar,

can you wonder at this pitiful ejaculation

ii,

96.)"

And

Should your

philanthropic feelings and your convictions that our heavenly

Father ordains

all

things for the good of his children, impel you

to ask that an explanation of this mystery might graciously

be vouchsafed to you in order to temper your compassion and calm your faith, then take this parable. " A son was bom to a

King

;

he sends him to the country, there to be nursed and

brought up

till

grown up, and instructed in the ceremonies

and usages of the royal palace. the education of his son

impel him to do

For his

him

his motlier, conducts

When

is finished,

the

King

what does

hears that

his fatherly love

son's sake he sends for the

into the palace

Queen

and makes merry

Thus the Holy One, blessed be he, has a son with the Queen this is the heavenly and sacred soul. He seiids him into the country, that is into this world, therein to grow up and to learn the customs of the court. When the King hears that this his son has grown up in the country, and with him

all

day.

tliat it is

time to bring him into the palace, what does his

love for his son impel

him

sends, for his sake,

this world is also I'l The notion about the reluctance of the sool to enter into not jjeculiar to the Kabbalah. The most ancient tract of the Mishna thus speaks of the soul : " Against thy will thou becomest an embryo, and against thy will thou art bom " (1^: nnÂť yra Ian isi: nnÂŤ yna te Aboth, iv. 89) ; on which Bartcnora, in his commentary, remarks " The soul does not wish to quit tlie pure abode of the curtain which encloses the Holy of Holies." :

116

Queen and conducts

for the

246

{Sohar,

b.)

already been remarked, the

As has

descends into the world, consists of all

Iiim to the palace."

human

androgynous, or in other words,

—" Each soul and

which comprises

parts, each of

two component

the elements of our spiritual nature.

tells

4oul, before it

spirit,

Thus the Sohar

prior to its entering into this

world, consists of a male and female united into one being.

When

descends on this earth the two parts separate and

At the time of marriage, the who knows all souls and spirits,

animate two different bodies.

Holy

One, blessed be he,

them again as they were before, and tliey again constitute one body and one soul, forming as it were tlie right and therefore There is nothing new under left of one individual unites

;

This union, however,

the sun.'

(Eel.

influenced

by the deeds of the man and by the ways

9.)

man

If the

he walks.

the sight of God, he soul which was his

{Sohar,

pure and his conduct

in which

pleasing in

united with that female part of his

component part prior to

The

5.)'*

his

rth."

soul carries her knowledge with her

to the earth, so that " every thing which she leama here below

she iii,

knew 61

already, before she entered into this world."

Since the form of the body as well as the soul, after the

image of the Heavenly Man, a figure of the

coming body which sent

{Ibid.,

*.)

down from the

to clothe the newly descending soul,

celestial regions, to

of the husband and wife

conception

may

made forth-

when they

hover over the couch

copulate, in order that the

be formed according to this model.

" At

MJDo M^nrn hts poonni mtid pinnni h3pi ji i3t )W3 vfn j'nD«3i j'rm ]i;'h ta 1 ponnm jrinjT xrwoai ma© rh^ no: 'in [;m^3>s] jn'MTis bj ipcnNi sn'^o n"3p yiTrtT Nmn jts [una] mbd iji hvdj ':m irrt n'rwi »i ]d cnpN mi •^•joiri jioicno Tn HBM in iT»nw pmriH I3i ifr'bs misni Hn'rjirma ]'^ nano ^r,OEi:i ]T|i-< ;iy« sm KJTO n-'; ):<:n »n xo'n "W xecmn nnn win ta ]'m ip pji 'in Mpi3 m'jmoibi wo' Knnos 'mi mn '3n ci in 'imi»i '11319 els') ^» Ti^rn xinrt '31 p«3rw iiiwi o\ 'wi 3 OS H"i K pVn imi p'Dji Tvm rpi msnnn'i

'1T3

•

••

117 connubial intercourse on earth, the Holy One, blessed be

human form which

he, sends a

This fonn

divine stamp.

we were permitted

to see

bears the impress of the

present at intercourse, and

we should

human As long

heads an image resembling a

face

image that we are formed.

as this

sent by

God and

heads, there

And God

perceive over our

and

;

it is

image

in this

not

does not descend luid hover over our

be no

can

man

conception,

for

written

oym image.' (Gen. i, '27.) This image receives us when we enter the world, it developes itself with us when we grow, and accompanies us T^hen we depart this life as it is written Surely, man walked '

created

in his

—

;

in an image' (Ps. xxxvii, 5)

When

from heaven.

the souls are to leave their heavenly abode, each soul

separately appears before the

Holy King, dressed in

form, with the features in which It is

and this image

from

it is

to appear in

subUme

tliis

world.

form that the image proceeds.

this sublime

It is

the third after the soul, and precedes

present at the conception, and there

no conception in

world where this image All

not present."

homan countenances

(Sohar,

more or

iii,

it is

;

101 a

tlie

5.)'°

at the mysterious chariot

throne in the vision of the prophet Ezekiel,

man, of the Hon, the ox

eai-th

are divisible into the four primor-

which appeared

dial types of faces,

on the

Our

aiui the eagle.

viz.,

the face of

faces resemble

according to the rank which our souls occupy in the intellectual or moral dominion. " And phythese

less

siognomy does not consist in the external lineaments, but in the features wliich are mysteriously dr»'«Ti in us. Mjpin

"Ft

mrnoM

n'jp ira snrt

sjiin Knsinn

«:mwM

The

features

idra na^oi fnEDi la

«o"pi 1S1 j'a nanM mdMs ix\nr\y\ »j in mdisibs MO'un xa'ns -m rro'-i !>r :"a Y'nn fi niPM vh pn ronisn rrsn to itino rr^ tvcn xobis [no"P *h isi »"d] Dbs Mirm pE3 T3 Mo'js'! p'sii IS rr'jjp') fDTiH ote Minn in'ai Dinn n» B'n':» wii'i jrm )i;'MT amnsi nb'sbnirrM o'rs '«ni \B'»iVin' D'ni"[«Y'nn i'w d'is simn •ii.in <3ipni xo'Tp Hira 'op jpnriK unm Nnn ta irr-inMo j-ps: note 'Mm ''xp MEis-iBj

•

Hnsca

tutin 'una no'TpNi a,

N Tp

t|T J

fin

sm';

-irni

•

n»n'')n «ti in"ii33

•

mrvm

a'js

'»n pfo:

nVi md'jjs

v. va\yn Mjpn

nam

I'l

Minrrai

n^n totveh

mwn

118 in the face change acocrding to the

the inward face of the

fona which

It is the spirit

spirit.

all

those physiognomical peculiarities

and

it is

peciiKar to

which produces

known

to the wise

only through the spirit that the features have any

meaning.

Ail those spirits and souls which proceed from

Eden

the highest w?sdom) have a peculiar form, which

{i.e.,

(Sohar,

reflected in the face."

lighted

up by the peculiar

mirror of the soul

ii,

distinguished intellect

and

and profound ;

silliness

a broad but

the

arched forehead

spirit,

as well as of a

of mind and vanity.

flat

forehead indicates

whilst a forehead which

;

compressed on the sides and

and the formation of the head indicates

;

a sign of a cheerful

foolishness

face thus

the body,

spirit inhabiting

the character and temper of the man. is

The

h.)

(Comp. Sohar,

flat,

betokens narrowness

spiral, ii,

a necessary condition of free existence

a.)

and of moral

endowed by the Deity, from the very

being, the souls are

beginning, with the power of adhering in close proximity to

the primordial source of infinite Ught from which

they

emanated, and of alienating themselves from that source and

pursuing

independent and

Simon ben Jochai

said, "

opposite

had not put within us both the good and the wliich are denominated light

better if reward in that case

of doing

vice.

evil.'

Wherefore

this reason

rejoined, It

at all, since

incapable of sinning and

was meet and right that he

should be created as he was created, because the created

and

To this the Would it not be

and punishment had not existed

life

it is

(Deut. xxx, 15.) is all this ?

man would have been

evil.

For

have set before thee this day

good, and death and disciples replied.

evil desire,

and darkness, the created man

would have neither virtue nor

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; 'Behold, written

Hence,

course.

If the Holy One, blessed be he,

for him, wherein are written

Law

was

punishments for the

119 wicked and rewards for the righteous and there would not have been nny reward for the righteous and punishment for the wicked but for created man." {Sohar i, 23 a.) So ;

complete

their independence, that souls, even in their pre-

and do choose which way they intend tc pursue. " All souls which are not guiltless in this world, have existent stnte, can

already alienated themselves in heaven from the blessed be he

;

their very existence,

are to descend

and have anticipated the time when they

on earth

Thus were

before they came into this world."

IV. The Destiny of

En Soph

the

the Deity

Man and in

tliis

iii,

the souls

b.)

the Universe.

man

constituted

is reflected

{Ibid.,

the microcosm, and as

epitome of the universe more

than in any component part of the creation,

and

Holy One,

they have thrown themselves into an abyss at

invisible are designed to aid

him

all

things visible

in passing through his

probationary state here below, in gathering that experience for

which his soul has been sent down, and in returning in a

pure state to that source of light from which his soul emanated.

This destiny of

manâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; i.e.,

from which he emanated

and man, and its

very

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

God

an essential principle of the soul, underlying

essence.

Discarding that blind power from our

nature, which governs our animal earth,

the reunion with the Deity

the constant desire both of

life,

which never quits

and which therefore plays no part in our

this

spiritual being,

the soul possesses two kinds of powers and two sorts of feelings.

It-vhas the faculty for that extraordinary prophetical

knowledge, which was vouchsafed to Moses in an exceptional

manner, called the Luminous Mirror (X'lnj l*'l7p3DN specularia) ,

and the ordinary knowledge termed the Non-

Luminous Mirror (Niru

vh"!

NH^pSOK),

respectively re-

presented in the earthly Paradise by the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge of good and evil

;

and

possesses

120

and the lower feeling of

the higher feeling of love

Novr

fear.'"

the full fruition of that higher knowledge and of that

loftier

feeling of love can only be reaped

when

the Infinite Source of Light, and

wrapped in that luminous

the soul returns to

garment which the protoplasts forfeited through the fall. Thus

are told, "

place

which

Come and

when the

see

called the Treasuiy

reaches that

soul

("m

of Life

itITIS),

she enjoys a bright and luminous mirror (KHHil ^^**^7p^D^^),

which receives

its light

The

from the highest heaven.

soul

could not bear this light but for the luminous mantle which

she puts on.

For just

when

as the soul,

sent to

tliis

earth,

puts on an earthly garment to preserve herself here, so she receives above n shining garment, in order to be able to look

without injury into the mirror whose light proceeds from the

Lord of Light.

Moses

too could not approach to look into

that higher light which he saw, without putting on such an ethereal garment

;

midst of the cloud lated hy

it is

written

—

And Moses went into the

(Exod. xxiv, 18), which

be trans-

is to

means of the cloud wherewith he wrapped himself

if dressed in a gnnaent.

that time

the whole of his earthly nature

;

it is

written,

— And Moses

was on the mountain forty days and forty nights

God

{ibid.)

lie

thus approached that dark cloud where

this wise the departed spirits of the righteous dress

(Sohar,

The two

feelings of love

a.)

and

20 The two kinds of

themto

designed to aid the

when she

shall

no more

tlie two sorts of feelings, are also Thus it is siiid " Ail the prophets looked into the whilst our teacher. Moses, looked into the Luminous

faculties, as well ns

Tnlnuid.

Nox-LuMiNous Mirror, 4).

love,

and not hy Sola, 22 a.)

—" Also the divine service which

And ngaia

rn'MOn Jchamuth, 40 fear

and

^ fear, are

soul in achieving her high destiny,

iiieiuioiied in llie

;

enthroned.

which streams from the Lord of

able to endure that light

Light."

luminous garments,

the upper regions in

selves in

Moses almost discarded

has

its

merit."

engendered

(Jerusalem Berucltoth, 44; Babylon

121

look through the dark glass, but see face to face in the presence of the Luminous Mirror, by permeating

And though

obedience and divine -worship.

which

attain

God

serving

knowledge,

purely out of love, like that higher

to be man's destiny in heaven, yet the soul

some of

all acts

perfect love,

earth,

may

and endeavour to serve God out of

love and not from fear, as thereby she will have an antepast on earth of its union with the Deity, which is to be so rapturous

" Yet

and indissoluble in heaven.

the service which arises

from fear not to be depreciated, for fear leads to true that he

who obeys God out

love.

It is

of love has attained to the

highest degree, and already belongs to the saints of the world to come,

but

out of fear

though in

this case the

There

slight.

must not be supposed that to worship God Such a service has also its merit,

no worship.

only one degree which

In love

it is love.

union of the soul with the Deity

the mystery of the divine unity.

elevates everything to that position where everything

the

This

is also the

Lord our God

Hence

mystery of the words,

one God.'

{Sohar,

ii,

Hear

216

It is

love which unites the higher and lower degrees together

one.

higher than fear

;

must be Israel,

a.)

that these two principles play so important a

it is

part in the devotions and contemplations of the Kabbalists:

Love

made

whilst Fear is

and

it is

conespond

made

Mercy, the

fourth Sephiru,

to answer to Rigouk, the fifth Sephira

asserted that

when

these two principles are thoroughly

combined by the righteous in

their divine worship

and acts of

name Jehovah, which comprises these two and which is now rent in twain by the preponder-

obedience, the principles,

ance of sin and disobedience, will be re-united. then only, will of our spirits place,

all ;

the souls return to the

bosom of

Then, and the Father

then will the restitution of all things take

and the earth

shall be covered with the

even as the waters cover the sea.

This

knowledge of God

the reason

why

the

182 Kabbalists utter the following prayer prior to the performance of any of the

commandments

" For the re-union of the Holy

One, blessed be his name, and his Shechinah, I do this in love and fear, in fear and love, for the union of the

with

ni into a perfect harmony

name

Israel

all

senses the words so

^^<^^ and Love otlier that

across or down, as follows

thus

In order to represent this union to the

Fear

placed above each

When

name

I pronounce this in the

Hins, are divided, and may be read either

they

fulfilling the

commandments the pious not only

enjoy a prelibation of that sublime light which shines in heaven, and which will serve them as a garment

when they

enter into the other world and appear before the

Holy One

{Sohar,

299

ii,

*),

but become on earth already the habita-

the Sephiroth,

tion

incarnate in

and each saint has that Sephira

him which corresponds

cultivates, or to the feature

Among

the

patriarchs,

the virtue he most

most predominant

in his character.

who were

therefore,

the

most ex-

we find that Love, the fourth Sephira, was Abraham Eigour, the fifth Sephira, in Isaac

alted in piety,

incarnate in

;

Mildness, the sixth Sephira, seventh Sephira, in Moses in

Aaron

;

Jacob

;

Firmness, the

Splendour, the eighth Sephira,

Foundation, the ninth Sephira, in Joseph

;

and

Kingdom, the tenth Sephira, was incarnate in David. Hence all the righteous who constitute the emanations, of the ten Sephiroth are divided into three classes corresponding to the three principles or Pillars exhibited in the Kabbalistic Tree, viz.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

The Pillar

n*m MTirra n'w

n"'

xin'';

Mercy

(IDn), represented by the

wrni iVmn iVrm lo'ma nnj'aci n"ap

pob 21 'nrw ta DW3

-nn'

123

Abraham (comp. Dn*13S^ TDn Micah,

Patriarch

The Pillar of Jdstick

II.

(comp. pnS'' inSl Gen. xxxi, 42) and PiLLAK, represented by Jacob (comp. ^pvh

148

nOK Micah vii, 20),

the connecting or uniting principle. 'It is for this

J.)

;)

The Middle

III.

;

which

vii,

nnSJ), represented by Isaac

{Sohar,

146 ÂŤ

reason that the patriarchs are denomi-

nated the Chariot-throne of the Lord.

Following the paths of righteousness, the saints on earth enjoy the protection of heaven in an especial manner, by

wisdom inherent in them,

virtue of the divine

able to decipher the signs which

them from

to shield

accidents.

God

for they are

has put in the firmament

" In heaven above, that sur-

rounds the universe, are signs in which the deepest mysteries are concealed.

Hence

These signs

are constellations

and deciphered by the wise."

are studied

the admonition

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; " He

who has

and

stars,

{Sohar,

which 76 a.)

ii,

on a journey

to start

very early, should rise at daybreak, look carefully towards the east,

and he

will perceive certain signs resembling letters

pierce through |he sky

Now,

heaven and earth.

man knows

God

the secret

of the sacred name, consisting of forty-two tates

These

and appear above the horizon.

shining forms are those of the letters wherewith

letters,

which

created

meaning

and medi-

with becoming devotion and enthusiasm, he will

perceive six Jods (T"1V) in the pure sky, three to the right

and three

to the

as well as three

left,

about in the heavenly arch. priestly benediction

morning he

Vavs

(V"11),

These are the

(D'Jn^naia).

which hover

letters of

the

In the bright

will perceive a pillar towards the west,

hanging

perpendicularly over the earthly paradise, and another pillar

This luminous pillar

hanging over the centre of paradise. has the three colours of a purple web it,

singing in the following manner.

lujah the

Praise,

Lord

three birds stand on

The

first sings,

(Ps. cxiii,

1 )

;

the second,

'Halle-

name of Blessed be the name

ye servants of the Lord, praise the

124 of the Lord from this time forth and for evermore

From

and the

third,

down of

the same, the Lord's

This

V. 3).

(ibid. v. 2)

the rising of the sun unto the going

name is to be praised when the pious traveller is

the time

(ibid.

to offer

up his morning prayer, in order that he may secure heaven's hlessings and the sublime and divine

(Sohar,

Now

ii,

130

since

mercy

as his sure guide."

b.)

it is

an absolute condition of the soul to return

to the Infinite Source

from which

emanated, after developing

all

those perfections, the germs of wMch are eternally implanted

;

and since some souls do not at once develope these which precludes their immediate

fruits of righteousness,

union with their Primordial Soiirce, another term of vouchsafed to them, so that they

may be

able to cultivate

those virtues which they stifled in their former bodily

and without which heavenly home.

human body and

Hence,

the soul, in its first assuming a

sojourn on earth, it

till

through repeated

state

fails to

acquire that ex-

descends from heaven, and becomes

contaminated by that which

body again and again

life,

impossible for them to return to their

it is

perience for which

re-

life is

polluting, it

trials.

must

re-inhabit a

able to ascend in a purified

Thus we

are told that** " All

souls are subject to transmigration (l*7l3^33

TW). and men

do not know the ways of the Holy One, blessed be he

;

they

do not know that they are brought before the tribunal, both before they enter into this world and after they quit are ignorant of the

it,

they

many transmigrations and secret probations

which they have to undergo, and of the number of souls and spirits

which enter into this world, and do not return to the

palace of the Heavenly King.

Men

do not know how the

imw ««» <32 prr m^iAm fnxa j>no»: to 38 ym Ho'jy 'MTrt ]Ti» lA » «3'i2 )'W pomj "pm jrr toai «dv ten woj <n wiw "pn H^p^ «Q"?"pi mnyia wsnin •fin -pT3 •

tofnt

tramp

p>»

wTu-iEft ij'Mt

ps'nD

paw

m"?!

noai

vfn trcha ttvvn

fi\i)i rras

•

«Dto >Mnn >pBn ini^

mj-is fvia

Ym ]'>Ams-w jnn now )'«')^i» pnom: rras nm

las souls revolve like as it is written

—

a stone which

And the

throvm from a sling

souls of thine enemies them shall he

sling out, as out of the middle of a sling.'

But the time

will

{Sohar,

ii,

is at

hand when these mysteries

be disclosed."

b.)

The transmigration of is restricted to

residence in

Sam., xxv, 29.)

the soul into another body, however,

three times

human

and

;

bodies are

two souls in

still

their third

too weak to resist

all

earthly trammels and to acquire the necessary experience, they are both united

and sent into one body, so that they may be

able conjointly to learn that which they were too feeble to do It sometimes, however,

separately.

singleness and isolation of

tlie

happens that

soul which

it is

the

the source of

her weakness, and she requires help to pass through her

In that case she chooses for a companion a soul which has more strength and better fortune. The stronger probation.

of the two then becomes as

were the mother

;

she carries

the sickly one in her bosom, and nurses her from her

woman

substance, just as a ciation

therefore called

stronger soul gives as

Such an

nurses her child.

pregnancy

were

life

("113'^),

and substance

own asso-

because the to the

weaker

'companion.''^

"pn

j^rpjwo Mtn

HMon

i/rprt >]3

pm lA van 'ui fo'riD prte rxeai -[mnMi hd'isi im pn.nM ps^* noji

"pra

33 According

nj»V jyix «b:

mmi iom r»o msa snoDipa «33»3 nQW: jta^jno f '1 OS r|T '3 imi 'to «rn nioA n'»

Josephns, the doctrine of the transmigration of sonis into other bodies (/lET-Cfi^xunf), was alsoheld by the Pharisees (comp. Autiq. xviii, 1,3: de Bell. Jnd. ii, 8, 14), restricting, however, the metempsychosis to the to

righteous. And though the Midrashim and the Talmud are sileut abo'it it, vet from Saadia's vitnperatioos against it (DTirr D'WipJW nsb DiBJW 'riMjirno ioim ism viii, S) there is nprsna inw D'«iipi mjoni Dinw Emunoih ve-Veoth, vi, 7 no doubt that this doctrine was held among some Jews in the ninth eentury of ;

the present era. At all events it is perfectly certain that the Karaite .lews firmly believed in it ever since the seventh century. (Comp. Frankel, Monatschr\ft, X, 177, &e.) St. Jerome assures us that it was also propounded among the early Christians as an esoteric and traditional doctrine which was entrusted to the select few, {abttcondite quasi in fbveia viperarum versari et quasi haered'Uario maio serpere in paucis. Comp. epist. ad Demedriodem) ; and Origen was convinced that it was only by means of this doctrine that certain Scriptural narratives, such as the struggle of Jacob with Esau before their birth, the reference about still in his mother's womb, and many others, nan possibly be explained, (vipi ipxuy i, 1, cap. vii; Advtr, Oelsum, i, S.

Jeremiah when

19,6

the world, like

other living beings,

all

pansion of the Deity's own substance, share that blessedness which

This

indicated in the letter

the creation begins letter in the

{i.e.

enjoyed in

a further ex-

too must ultimately its first

evolution.

with which the history of

DWHy^),

and which

Even

word blessing (nDT'2).^*

also the first

the archangel of

wickedness, or the venomous beast {IXV^, K"in), or Samael

(WOD),

as he is called, will be restored to his angelic nature

and name, inasmuch as he too,

like all other beings, proceeded

from the same

of his

name (DD), which

and he

name

infinite source

will retain the

all

signifies

The

first

part

the

common

This, however, will only take place

the angels.

new

things.

second part (/M), which

at the advent of Messiah.

very few

all

venom, will then be dropped,

But

his

coming

retarded by the

souls which enter into the world

;

many

the old soxils which have already inhabited bodies have to reenter those bodies

which are now born, in consequence pi

having polluted themselves in their previous bodily existence,

and the soul of the Messiah, which, like other souls, has

till all

human

its

bom

pre-existence in the world of the SepAiroik, cannot be

souls have passed through their period of pro-

bation on this earth, because the end of days.

Then

it is

to be the last

bom

one at

the great Jubilee year will commence,

when the whole pleroma of souls (DIDIi'Jrf ISIN), cleaned aud bosom of the Infinite Source

purified shall return into the

;

and they shall be in " the Palace which

is situate in

and most elevated part of heaven, and which

the secret

called the

Palace of Love (rQHX ^STT). There the profoundest mysteries are there dwells the Heavenly King, blessed be he, ;

with the holy souls, and

is uilited

with them by a loving kiss.

thnt the creation is a blessing, and that this is indicated in the already propounded in the Midrash, as may be seen from the The reason why the Law begins with Beth, the second letter following remark. of the Alphabet, and not with Alepk, the first letter, is that the former is the first letter in the word bleasing, while the latter is the first letter in the word accursed,

Hi The notion

flrat letter, is

rmn \tth mnÂŤ rt"m

m^i nsia p'Ort wirro 'jdo

my no^

(Midnah Sabba,

sec. 1).

127 (Sohar,

ii,

a.)

" This kiss

the suhstanoe fiH>m which

Then hell shall disappear

;

nor temptation, nor sin

there shall be

{Ibid.,

168

a.)

nc more punishment,

be an everlasting

life will

Then

Sabbath without end.

union of the soul with

is the

emanated."

feast,

be united with the

all souls will

Highest Soul, and supplement each other in the Holy of

(m^a^H W©).

Holies of the Seven Halls

then return to unity and perfection into one idea,

The

which shall be over, and

basis of this idea, however

cealed in

it),

will never be

{i.e.,

Creator, the

same idea

will

be united

the whole universe.

the light which

con-

will

be comprehended.

it shall

not be distinguished from the

Then the soul God, and what she shall command

will illuminate both.

will rule the universe like

he will execute.

fill

fathomed or comprehended ; only

the idea itself which emanates from

In that state the creature

Everything will

— everything

{Sohar,

45 a and

b.)

V. The Kabbalistic view of the Old Testament, and

its

relation to Christianity.

have already seen that the Kabbalah claims a pre-

Adamite existence, and conveyed in the of us

who

asserts that its mysteries are covertly

four books of the Pentateuch.

first

them any of the above-mentioned for the principles of exegesis

doctrines, will naturally ask

whereby these secrets are de-

duced from or rather introduced into the ciples are laid

Law e.

down

These prin-

text.

in the following declaration

—" If the

simply consisted of ordinary expressions and narratives,

gr., the

or of

Those

read the Books of Moses, and cannot discover in

words of Esau, Hagar, Laban„ the ass of Balaam,

Balaam

himself,

why should

be called the

truth, the perfect Law, the true witness of

God

Law

Each

word contains a sublime source, each narrative points not only to the single instance in question, but also to generals." " Woe be to the son of man who {Sohar, iii, 149 b.) says that the

Tora (Pentateuch)

contains

common

sayings

128 and

ordinary narratives.**

For, if this were the case, we

might in the present day compose a code of doctrines irom profane writings which should excite greater respect.

Law

If the

contains ordinary matter, then there are nobler sentiments

in profane codes.

and we

Let us go and make a selection from them,

shall be able to compile a far superior code.'*

But,

literal narrative ia unworthy of inapiratloo, and spiritual meaning uoncealed under the garment of ihe not peculiar to tlie Kabbalah. Both the Synagogue and the Cht\rch have Thus the Talmud already maintained the same from time inuneniorial. describes the impious Manasseh, King of Israel, as making himself merry over the narratives of the Pentateuch and ironically asking (aw rrn« rrpm J3 mtno mrn yjn,-ii won pib mnw m";!* iin^'i rrxa'j i^ rrn «S '31 -mn 'on 'tv nnjni «nTn

85 Thi» view that the mere

that it

must contain a

letter, is

n'Min msci D'an -v^p 'o'j pwT •^p'^ p^'ivh ©Ac), whether Moses could not Hnd anything better to relate than ihnt " Loton's sister was Timna " (Gen. xixvi, rrrjjs

23) ; " Tiniua was the cou' ahine of Eliphaz " {ibiil, v. lH) ; that " Uenben weut in the days of the wheat harvest, and fount! mandrakes i^ the field " (ibid., xxx, 14j, &c., &c. And it is replied that these narratives contain another sense besides tlie literal one. {Sauhedrim, 09 b.) Hence the rule (nan') STWO to Onib JO'S), what happened to tlie fathers is typical of the cliildren.

—

36 Origen's words are almost literally the same " Si adsideamns littene e( •eeundum hoo vel quod Judaeis, vel quod vulgo videtur, accipiamus quie in lege videbuntar aeriptii aunt, embesco dicere et con&teri quia tales leges dederit Deus enim magis elegantes et ratiouabilea hominum leges, verbi gratia vel BoraenoruDi Again, the vel Athenicnsium, vel Laceduemonioram. Homii. vii, in Levit. same erudite father says, " What person in his senses vill imagine that the first, second, and third day, in connection with which morning and evening are mentioned, were without sun, moon and stars, nay that there was no sky on the flxat day ? Who is there so foolish and without common sense as to believe that God planted trees in the garden eastward of Eden like a husbandman, and planted therein the tree of life, perceptible to the eyes aud senses, which gave life to the eater thereof; and another tree which gave to the eater thereof a knowledge of good and evil? I believe tliat everybody must regard these as Lib. iv, cap. il, irc^i figures, tmder which a recondite sense is concealed." Comp. Davidson, Sacred Hermcneutia, Hnet, Origeniana, p. 167. ipxOv. :

Edinburgh, 181'J, p. 99, &o. It must, however, not be supposed that this sort of interpretation, which defies all rules of sound exegesis and common sense, is confined to the ancient Jewish Itabbius or the Christian fathers. The Commentary on Genesis aud Exodus by Chr. Wordsworth, D.D., Canon of Westminster, may fairly compete in this respect with any production of bygone days. Will it be believed that Dr. Wordsworth actually sees it " stigyeated by the Iloly Spirit Hinuelf" that Noah drunk, exposing bis nakedness, aud mocked by bis own child. Ham, is typical of Christ who drank the cup of God's wrath, stripped Himself of His heavenly glory, and was mocked by his own children the Jens 1 But we must give the Canon's own words. " Noah drank the wine of bis vineyard ; Christ drank the ctlp of God's wiath, which was the fruit of the sm of the cultivators of the vineyard, which be bad planted in the world. Noah was to his shame ; Christ consented for our sake to strip Himself of His heavenly glory, and took on him the form of a servant. (Phil, ii, 1.) He He hid (John, xiii, 4.) laid aside his garments, and washed his disciples' feet not his iiwie ttota shame and spitting. (Isa. 1, 6.) When he was on the Cross, (Matt, xsvii, 39.) they that pused by reviled Him. He was mocked by Hii

made naked

129

Law

every word of the

has a sublime sense and a heavenly

Now

mystery

the spiritual angels had to put on

an earthly garment when they descended to

this earth

and

;

they had not put on such a garment, they could neither have

And just

remained nor be understood on the earth. with the angels so earth, the

Law had

which

spirit

world to come '

this

and

;

it is

Open thou mine eyes

out of the Law.' of the

Law

as it

was

descended on

garment.

its

no portion

the

for this reason that David prayed,

that I

There are

the real Law, and not the

may behold What

(Ps. cxix, 18.)

There

garment

clothed, but these have

put on an earthly garment to be under-

stood by us, and the narratives are

some who think that

When

with the Law.

it is

the wondrous things is

under the garment

the garment which every one can see

;

and there are foolish people who, when they see a well-dressed man,

tliink of notliing

ment, and take

more worthy than

itself consists in the soul. is

this beautiful gar-

for the body, whilst the worth of the

The Law

too has a body

body :

this

the commandments, which are called the body of the Law.

This body

clothed in garments, which are the ordinary

The

narratives.

fools of this world look at nothing else but

which consists of the narratives in the Law they do not know any more, and do not understand what is beneath But those who have more understanding do this garment. this garment,

;

not look at the garment but at the body beneath moral) those

soul

;

it {i.e.,

the

whilst the wisest, the servants of the Heavenly King,

who (i.e.,

dwell at

Mount

Sinai, look at nothing else

the secret doctrine), which is the root of

but the all

the

Law, and these are destined in the world to come to behold the Soul of this Soul {i.e., the Deity), which breathes in

real

the Law."

{Sohar,

iii,

152

a.)

He deigned to be exposed to ins-ilt for our sakes, io the Cross (Heb. xii, 2), in order that we ii}ight receive and be clothed through His weakness with sboroe, eternal glory from His garments of heavenly beauty." (Commentary on Oenesit and Exodm, London, own

children, the Jews.

shame and nakedness on

1861, p. es.)

ISO

The opinion

Kabbalah

that the mysteries of the

found in the garment of the Pentateuch

is still

are to be

syste-

"Like a beautiful woman, concealed in the interior of her palace, who when her friend and beloved passes by, opens for a moment a matically propounded in the following parable.

secret

window and

seen by

herself immediately

him

alone,

and disappears

and then withdraws

for a long time, so the

doctrine only shows liersolf to the chosen

devoted to her with body and soul)

understanding this gentle hint. the

name

(i.e.,

him who

This

the interpretation

Afterwards she approaches him a

tD'^.

him a few words, but her form

with a thick

which his looks cannot penetrate.

the so called K1TT.

at the

generally depends upon his

little closer, lisps

veil,

and even to him not

At first she simply beckons

always in the same manner.

passer-by with her hand, and

known by

;

is still

covered

This

She then converses with him with her

face covered

by a thin

the !Tf!in.

After having thus become accustomed to her

society, she at last

veil

;

this is ine

shews herself face

to face

with the innermost secrets of her heart. the Law, yiD.^

He who

enigmatic language of

and entrusts bim

This

the secret of

thus far initiated in the mysteries

37 The notion that the Bible i» to be explnined in tliis fonrfold manner iras propounded by the Jewish doctors generally, long before the existence uf the Kabbalah (Comp. Oinaburg, Historical and Critical Conmientnri/ on frcbnwtM. Longman, 18A1, p. 30), and has been adopted by some of the Origen, although only advocating a threefold sense, fathers and schoolmen. viz. •w^aricoc, tfivxusic, trvtvftariKlit, to correspond to the Platonic notion of the component parts of man, viz. vw/ta, ^x4' "Vfvita, almost uses the sam; words aa the Kabbnlah. " The sentiments of Holy Scriptures must be imprinted upon each one's soul in a threefold manner, that the more simple may be built up by the Jksh (or body) of Scripture, so to speak, by which we mean the obvious explanatiAn; that he who has advanced to a higher state may be edified by the lout of Scripture as it were; but be that is perfect, and like to tlie indiyiduals spoken of by the Apostle (1 Cor. ii, 0, 7), must bo edified by the spiritual mpi apx^< l'^- >v, cap. ii, law, haYing a shadow of good things to come, Comp. Davidson, Sacred Jl'crmeiicutici!, p. 07. Whilst Nicholas de Lyra, the celebrated commentator and forerunner of the Beformaticn (bom about 1270, died October S3, 1310), distinctly espouses tlie' Jewish four mode* of intcrpretaliou, which be desoiibes in the following couplet— " I.ltt«ra |MU docct, quid critlfti Alktorlt, Moralii qvU tgu: quo tcnilu •aa^gta.'* olso

—

Comp. Alexander'a edidon of Kitto'i

Cyctoptedia of BiUieal Litentun,

Lnu,

131 of the Tora will understand that are based vrith it

upon the simply

and from

;

and are in harmony

literal sense,

not a single iota

this literal sense

taken and nothing to be added to

This fourfold sense

those profound secrets

all

{Sohar

it."

ii,

is to

09.)

gradually disclosed to the initiated in

the mysteries of the Kabbalah by the apphcation of definite

hermenentical rules, which chiefly affect the letters composing

The most prominent of

the words. 1.

Every

letter of

and the word

Thus from (Gen.

a word

these canons are

reduced to

its

numerical value,

explained by another of the same quantity.

" Lo

the words

men stood by him

three

deduced that these three angels were

xviii, 2), it is

Michael, Gabriel, and Rajihael, because TWbV.. nam and

^N3'D 1^»

three men, and "JKB")! "^ItnaJ

and Raphael,

Gabriel,

lo !

these are Michael,

same numerical value, as

are of the

will be seen from the following reduction to their numerical

value of both these phrases.

300

800

? 80

This rule

called

« +

«nt3»J

of the Greek word

yp^a,

Every

letter of a

word

13 + +

200

= 701

8 1

M'BOIJI which

= 701 is

a metathesis

ypa/i/it/a, or ypa/i/ion/o, in

sense of numbers as represented 2.

^ 30

M +

+ 80+1 + 20+10 + +

the

letters.

taken as an

initial or abbrevia-

Thus every letter of the word /I'JfNIS, the word, and we first word in Genesis, is made the initial of a n'u;«i3 nvD in the beginning cnVN obtain mijl V»iw» iVap'S? tion of a word.

God saw

that Israel would accept the Law.

This rule

132

ppHBU

denominated

hand

one

writer,

class of writers

notarieun, from nofarius, a short-

who among the Romans belonged to that who abbreviated and used single letters to

signify whole words. 3.

The

initial

and

spectively formed

final letters of

into

several words are re-

separate words.

Thus from

beginnings and ends of the words no'Diwn 1J^

the

ii>l^

who

shall go

up for us to heaven ^ (Beut. xxx, 18) are obtained tXyO circumcision and TVnV Jehovah, and inferred that God ordained circumcision as the way to heaven. 4.

Two words

gether and are

made

into

Thus ^D who and m'A

into one.

D^n?^ Qod by

transposing the

Âť

to-

these

and D.

Fide

.94.'*

supra, J). 6.

occurring in the same verse are joined

made

The words of those

verses which are regarded as con-

taining a peculiar recondite in such a

manner

meaning

as to be read

are ranged in squares

either vertically or boustro-

phedonally, beginning at the right or left hand.

Again

the

words of several verses are placed over each other, and the

which stand under each other are formed into new

letters

This

words.

verses in

Exod.

especially seen in the treatment of three xiv,

(viz.,

19-21), which are believed to

2S The above-mentioned exegelical canons, lioveTer, nre not peculiar to the Kabbslolt. I'bey have been in vogue among the Jews from time immemorial. Thna ÂŤTp^i which is rendered in the Authorised the difBcult passage in Isa. ;isi, 8, * as a lion* cru.'d, lion.' or as tlie margin Vei-sion, ond he A has it, is explained by the ancient Jewish tradition as a prophecy respecting Habakkuk, who, as I.sniah foresaw, would in coining (lays use the very words here predicted. (Comp. Isa. xxi, 8, 0, with Hab. ii, t) and this interpretation is obtained by rule i; inasmuch as lion and pipw Babakktih are numerically the same, vii.

;

n 6

200

-f

218 and 100

p 100

816

(See the Commentaries of Bashi, Ibn E2ra, and Kimchi on Isa, xxi, 8.) Again, in the fact that Jacob made Joseph a cout of maiiif 'colovrs (Gen. xxxvii, 3), as the Authorised Version has it, or' jyieces,' ns it is in the margin, the Midrasli or the ancient Jewish exposition, sees the sufferings of Joseph indicated inasmuch as DSB according to rule ii, is composed of the initials of irsID Potipliar, who imprisducd Joseph mcrchnnis D^'luSOV Ishmaehtes and D'J'TO Miiiinnilet, who bought him and sold hira ngnin as a slave. (Gen. xxxvii, S-i-Stl xxxix, 1 cotnp. Baslii on Gen. xxxvii, 3.) For more extensive information on this subject, we must refer to Qi.isburg's Hitljrrical and Critical Commentary on Eccleriatta, Longman, 1861, p. 30, &c. ^

;

183 contain the three Pillara of the Sephiroth, and the Dxvino

Name

of seventy- two words.

The following tables will The first of these

trate this principle of interpretation.

verses

"j'jT

bvcw' nrto

Dnnnxa nojn

Drrjsn

the angel of God, which

*3Si'?

three

I'jHn D*n'?Mn -\vhn yrÂťi

pyn "noy yo^ onnrwa, and went before the camp of

removed and went behind them went from before

illus-

Israel,

and the pillar of the cloud their face, and stood behind them (Exod. ;

xiv, 19), is read boustrophedonally, as follows 1.

184 II.

13S

Whilst the third of these three verses

O^DH

W nÂŤ JWO

iyp2*l niS^n?, aÂŤrf Moses stretched out his

the sea east

bif

;

and

wind

Lord caused the sea that night, and made

the

all

hand

0*|

over

go hack by a strong

tlie

sea dry land,

and

the waters were divided (Exod. xiv. 21), is divided as follows,

and read from the

right,

beginning at the bottom. rv.

136

137 in

the middle, and one half

changing alternately the

put over the other, and by

first letter

or the

first

two

letters at

the beginning of the second line, tvrenty-two commutations

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

are produced ex. gr. :

These anagramic alphabets obtain the

first

two specimen pairs of

change.

from the

first

c n

3-1

names from

which indicate the

first is

called Alhath

inter-

ni'vN

words, the second Abgath r\3"3>i, arid so on. table exhibits

alphabetical permutations. C3

their respective

letter

Thus, for instance, the

The following

the es'tablished

rules

the

188 Besides these canons the Kabbalah also sees a recondite sense in the form of the letters, as well as in the ornaments which

adorn them.

Eabbalah

to the relation of the

Christianity,

it is

maintained that this theosophy propounds the doctrine of the

and the sufferings of Messiah.

trinity

may be

How

far this is true

ascertained from the following passages.^"

have

already remarked in several places that the daily liturgical declaration about the divine unity is that

Bible (Deut. '

which is'indicated in the

43), where Jehovah occurs Rrst, then Elohenu,

vi,

and then again Jehovah, which three together constitute a unity,

and for

how can

this reason

they be

And

one?

Now

are they really one ?

although we read one (irW),

this is revealed

This

that the three are only one.

The

voice.

elements, [i.e.,

voice

fire

[i.e.,

voice,

all

this is

for

know

consists of three

water

also Jehovah, Elohenu,

— three

comprehend

En Soph

get to

breath], and

forms which are one.

indicated by the voice which

unity of the

also the mystery of the

[i.e.,

Thus

and can only be one.

prayer], thereby to

[i.e.,

air

by the vision of

these one in the mystery of the

and Jehovah constitute one

And

are closed is

only one, and yet

warmth],

humidity], yet are

in the said

three names, and

there are

Holy Ghost, and when the eyes

the

Jehovah]

[i.e.,

But

place called one CTTTM).

man

raises

spiritually the

most

the finite, since all

Jehovah, Elohenu, Jehovah]

loud voice, which comprises in

are

[i.e.,

perfect

the three

read with the same

And

itself a trinity.

this is

the daily confession of the divine unity which, as a mystery,

Holy Ghost.

revealed by the

'ron nosa poM «n inM npx T'l'i in Mrr

This unity has been explained

Murr »n\v\ nsiirti ixaA wnrr irpi* »rov taT xnirr 30 Mn i"it irn'jn num? t'it nipT vmrr vm trov 'n-\ vmrf Mimp m-n vmrn «')« nn pi'w jn inn j:'i-t 3; ':» f^ni in ]i:'k "pn ]i;>» jnow rtn inM fr>t Nrtm rn:o'j hotid kj'Ii ivm )i3<wi srnw ^ip SDHCMT /'npi Kn irrn mti irtei nisi »mii »»m ifywy Mrtn in<«i in imx in m'sm jij'm imVi bipi una M3n niM •

•

irrta

•

nMicSi xTin'iiOJ ii Tin'sip in'x n-n wTi

in jij'MT Mrtn 'jns t3»

t«pT iip

-in

•«« Htai

ji2<mi )'3T» •

ftoio

whn

•n vro

/in

-(vta

ji:"« <">

vim

wrtM""

«Tirp3

rrmn

189

who understands

in different ways, yet he

and he who understands

right,

The

in another

way

this

way

is also right.

idea of unity, however formed hy us here below, from

the mystery of the audible voice which

one, explains the

On another occasion we are informed that

R. Eleazar, whilst

{Sohar,

thing."

ii,

b.)

Simeon, was anxious to know how

sitting with his father B.

the two names, Jehovah and Elohim, can be interchanged,

seeing that the one denotes mercy and the other judgment.

Before giving the discussion between the father and the son, it is

necessary to remark that whenever the two divine names,

Adonai (OHht) and

Jehovah (Hin'), immediately follow

each other, Jehovah

The reason of

pointed and read (H^n^) Elohim.

this, us it is

generally supposed,

" E. Eleazar, when to him,

that whenever

mercy

Thus

Elohim.'

know

iv,

stand together (Comp.

which

'Know

therefore

thine heart, that Jehovah is

19); and again

{Ibid., ver. 35.)

denotes

To which he

occurs ?

said in the Scripture,

day and consider

Elohim' (Deut I

(iTIiT)

4, &c.j, seeing that the latter

in all the passages in

replied. this

;

Simeon, said

Elohim (D'H^l*)

the case in those passages wherein

Adonai ('3nM) and Jehovah ii,

recondite meaning.^'

Now how can Elohim sometimes

occurs, it Acnotes Justice.

put for Jehovah, as

Ezek.

sittiug before his father R.

we have been taught

Gen. XV, 8

avoid the

The Kabbalah,

otherwise always pointed and read (nVT)).

however, as we shall see, discovers in

is to

Tetragrammaton

repetition of Adonai, Adonai, since the

it is

written 'Jehovah

Whereupon he

this forsooth, that justice is

the son] said,

[i.e.,

sometimes tempered with

Tan ]HO TBicp ^ntei itsriK K-nm j'ma rrosi «cTp nrn una '^anto mdv ten Hmrr nrn i-m irnn ""ipT vra Mnno nrno jjh up tmrr 'mh. 'tm /T» 'hti Tan ]hdi Ta» "wi •

3"3 r]i

p^n

•

rfrtsy

vcr& vk; vn

H^ Vv'Hin wnvm toa vrfm p'jn t«n rrt toh law w'-n rrop aw mn -irrtH >ai

31 /mrr 'jtm jiaa crfjM npm tth mn n'ni'm vw /D'rw»n MW >'' '3 -jaa^ bn ."nawn oiti toti a'nai ivrpi vra »ir? on rrt lem d^tSct »on '*• s^nai rv>n Vina hictVi 'tim n'M mn rrm Tpwai hwt hi rte trt tom taa vsfn

nam

jiirn urn dti^k np»» 'mom

•

140 mercy and mercy with

Come and whenever

see that

into justice,

Elohim

word

it is

then

[i.e.,

the father],

Jehovah indeed does signify mercy sin mercy is changed

;

when through written

Jehovah (mni), but read

and see the mystery of the

Now come

(D^n'jJ*).

[».e.,

occurs, but

Quoth he

justice.

There are three degrees, and

Jehovah].

degree exists by itself

[i.e.,

each

in the Deity], although the three

together constitute one, they are closely united into one and are inseparable

from each other."

shall only give

of the Trinity .''^

{Sohar,

pause

(N)

at all

word ("»n«) One

wlio reads the

quickly, shorten

by this

a.)

one more passage bearing on the subject

in the declaration of the divine unity

the Aleph

iii,

sound a

its

and he who obeys

letter,

[i.e.,

VCW] must pronounce little,

and not

this, his life will

be lengthened. Whereupon they [i.e., the disciples] said to him [i.e., to R. Ilai], he [i.e., E. Simeon] has said. There are two,

and one

connected with them, and they are three

being three they are one.

said to

;

Jehovah Jehovah, are in the declaration Hear (Deut. vi, 4), and Elohenu {^1TO'^), between them,

Israel

with them as the third, and this

but in

them, those two names,

united

the conclusion which

But when these

sealed with the impression of Truth (TtOi*).

three are combined into a unity, they are one in a single

Indeed one Codex of the Sohar words " Holy, holy, holy is on the had the following remork (Sohar,

unity,"

the

Loi'(]

'^"Ipi"!

iii,

262

cf hosts" (laa.

n»,

tk« second to

a.)

iv, 3)

t^Hp

;

the .p-8t h<ihj refers to

Son

the Holt/

;

and

Sr'.^^

the

Huijf

n\ S'H? Fcteki.'r

the third to the Holi/

M'Tt -rjm H'3"n 'jcrrai nrwcii ^-am iriH '!3J t'it »m -im -irr «n rn vsm M:n n-w >^m 'ninta MJ-ni HM-n 'si jij'm ryn 'i rton Nn 'Tn wn tat* /a'rrw n-'; ];>-ipi mrr rriD )>-o '» rr,/3 f\i 'i pin inn nt tr\ 'iDicrm it'll irti ncp.-nai "in wtai 'inn ;

y>3 nv» '«nj 3»< xVi rfr\ ininp uisp'ii »)"w Mcun'; -p-iitt ins -tomt ;>« .18 Mrtn ftn 1:1 virbn pvm via r\nrfK» x-mi }•»:'« pn -ii^m i.-i Ttn noH vn ^wiHn' mt tmt irrw ins »|nmcM ijti^h mrr mn- ;i:'mt '!«ic rtioT irrow j'vi frtt ^'i iidm -m yav

)HOi

•

141

Ghost.^

This passage, however,

these passages tc be

omiited from the present

Some Jewish

recensions of the So/tar.

writers have

felt

so favourable to the doctrine of the

upon

Trinity, that they insist

their being interpolations into

the Sohar, whilst others have tried to explain them as refer-

ring to the SepJdroth?*

As as

atonement of the Messiah for the sins of the

to the

people, this

not only propounded in the Sohar, but

explanation of the fifty-third

the

given

chapter of Isaiah.^

" WTien the righteous are visited with sufferings and afflictions to atone for the sins of the world, it is that they

for all the

members of one member is afflicted all

the

which of them from

is tal\en

How

sins of this generation.

it,

The arm

may

they are

members one of

secured.

it is

proved

members

the

all

When

afflicts

one righteous from their midst, and for his sake

How is this shown ?

for our transgressions,

It is written

are

all

— He was wounded '

he was bruised for our

Holy One,

the

blessed be he, -wishes the recovery of the world, he

healed

And

recover.

with the children of the

another.

su£fer,

beaten, the blood

and then the recovery of

the body

might atone

this

members

all

in order that all

The arm.

When

the body.

iniquities,

With

and with his

stripes

stripes,'

healed, as

by the wound of bleeding an arm,

wound we

are healed,

i.e.,

and with 83 Couii),

this

ai'e

Galiititros, 7)c ylrcnuii

healed.'

CntM.

Coiket. of "lie Chiildee phnipbaise Ik !sr.

(Isa.

i.e.,

iib. '!.,

li, c.

Mnn tl\e JtM'j fritlfi; the Saiif linn, aud amothixu Hebnci i, U80 Graswi GesvhUhte j

iht

Jii-Aii

der Jviiiu

Jicligiuiiaphilosoplue del Suhnir.

» nidd'j pi f^rorj:

who

;

Sfiya

G;:t>»i

,•

m»

his

fust soai« «rsj &),ej Wmtf,

e-"7

3, Itcfi "jiv; 'Jr.p jf*\l

¥!%*%'

Si Coiuj). Joel, Die

was a healing

8, p.

5.)

liii,

Tii, 8-19,

Ldpiig,

lSi.9, p.

240

ff.

^vtoj »"pTs pconn w^vsn 86 to pram p3 >rn ••am HC"o irrVs K^« ';d noi wpSJ )"C"io 'at _wnro3 »n: tit too Mn I'-o Min rrio ip'CNi 'P^n i**""" 'W"'"' ^"^oi irfjj pcm ;';i nttiAnh "pssM hti t>i nr ni j'cil- )1!'n mo'm' ':j '^n rpM ncij -n'-vi tab khiidm arro'j n'.yp rcT\ ttram vroi -(no vhy: NniiDH yrv rr;'ai ^'ananii pirn invj-j Mimt m'! 'p'jN ho'w') uniion rp«T ;«3n won Kmips imanai i:'; xon: imjnii 'i3n:''ni3'nm mjitd i:>»odd 'Aino Him mb-.j rrnjn Minnn />wi-n 'Hn"nnT '3 pVr imi ;HDm ]'D'"« tab ub mn mhiidk /vrr

nrJa

•

142 (Sohar, iii, 318 a.) " Those souls

each one of us as members of the body."

same

the

effect is the following passage.**

which tarry in the nether garden of Eden hover about the

when they

world, and

those

who

see suffering or patient martyrs and

When

afflictions of Israel in exile,

do not

reflect in order to

they

the Messiah of the

tell

and that the sinners among them

know

and weeps because of those

wounded

God, they return and men-

suffer for the unity of

tion it to the Messiah.

he raises his voice

their Lord,

sinners, as it is written,

for our transgressions.'

(Isa.

those souls return and take their place.

Eden

there

one palace which

The Messiah goes

the sick.

upon him, and they

all

the palace of

into this palace and invokes

tbe sufferings, pain, and afHictions

all

In the garden of

called

Whereupon

6.)

liii,

come

of Israel to

Now

come upon him.

he did not

remove them thus and take them upon himself,

man

could endure the sufferings of Israel, due as punishment for transgressing the

Law

it is

written

When

xii, 8, 4.)

all

and

sacrifices,

removes them from the world."

liii,

with Bom.

trines of the Trinity

but now the Messiuh

{Sohar,

That these opinions favour,

who

Surely he hath borne

those sufferings and afflictions from

their prayers

orthodox sense,

(Isa.

the children of Israel were in the Holy

Land they removed

literati

—

and carried our sorrows, &c.

our griefs

the world

;

ii,

b.)

and the Atonement, though not in

many

not only admitted by

212

to a certain extent, the doc-

are adverse to the Kabbalah, but

the

of the Jewish

by some of

its

yitai prriMO p<Mi jtanom >bs«)d «nrt »n:3aT |^is«n ]i:ht 30 MTPwo^ n^ pB*n «nroa Mrron^ rrb pom fSHm pirvtOT tmv faui ji:»i \vyo '311

•

to oil

']w\«o') njo'; ''nnoo vin ;ini n M'i»n ]i:'«i jin.Tib3S ^e-i Miwt )i:'« pTi irnmso ij'SWDa ^"jinn Mini T'm inn p"n )i:'m

onM

yrom

yryy^ trti-n

rfjp

•

imi .'!«? mtn pi

'j'rro

mno

"jn vhiyn -ipKi hti Mta'n n'n

\m «.i:3i

•

irrnntii

•["m MnniHi -o:\! by ^mict yirmic tapab Van «: ii -in m'j 'rrhs y;;i \>ntin in-'Wo Tin '!» Mm pnp prtiB pjiJi i»«np xy-iMi 'nrw iin -n 'iji mn «in 'j"bn pd trateo pia'i jTio p<M bl yflua *p '1 f^ inn ttrm •:» p'; pteiD moo unffln •

•

143 Indeed, the very fact that so large a numher of

friends.

Kabhalists have from time to time embraced the Christian faith

would of

affinity

itself

show that

must be some

there

sort of

Some

between the tenets of the respective systems.

of these converts occupied the highest position in the Syna-

gogue, both as pious Jews and literary men. specify Paul Ricci, physician to the

Julius Conrad Otto, author of

The Unveiled Secrets

consisting of extracts from the

need only

Emperor Maximilian

Talmud and

(«n") N^J),

the Sohar, to

prove the vahdity of the Christian doctrine (Niirenberg, 1806)

John Stephen

Rittengal, grandson of the celebrated

Don

Isaac

Abravanel, and translator of The Book Jetzira, or of Creation (m^S'' "13D), into Latin (Amsterdam,

Kabbalah

the great apostle of the

642)

;

and Jacob Frank,

in the eighteenth century,

whose example in professing Christianity was followed by

The testimony

several thousands of his disciples.''

of these

distinguished Kabhalists, which they give in their elaborate

works, about the affinity of some of the doctrines of this

theosophy with those of Christianity, slighted

Leo

and

;

this

Modena, who,

by no means

fully corroborated

to be

by the celebrated

as an orthodox Jew, went so far as to

question whether^ God will ever forgive those

who

printed the

Kabbalistic works.'*

The use made by some well-meaning above-named Kabbalistic canons of

Christians

of the

interpretation, in contro-

versies with Jews, to prove that the doctrines of Christianity

are concealed under the letter of the

Old Testament,

will

now

be deprecated by every one who has any regard for the laws

of language.

a literary curiosity, however,

one or two specimens.

37 Comp. Peter Beer, Ocschirhtc 182i>-2.1, vol.

38 mODrt

ii,

shall give

less a person than the celebrated

tier

rcligiiisen

Secten der Jiiden.

Berlin,

p. 309, &c.

Dnw

CD'Cin ich'i "

Leipzig, 1840, p. 7.

')ina'

dm 'n»T

s^i

Comp. imj n»

ed. Fiirst,

144 Beuohlin would have

he found in the

verse of Genesis.

Hebrew word and

first

that the doctrine of the Trinity

which

M*13,

nn p

Upon

Son,

8j)irit,

obtain the expressions

Father, according to Rule 2

(p. 131).

the sBme principle this erudite scholar deduces the

the buildere refused (Ps. cxviii, 22),

by dividing the three 1404).

letters

composing the

Son (Oomp. De Verba In more recent times we find it Father,

maintained that the ' righteousness' spoken of in Daniel

means

first

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; " the stone which

become the head stone of the corner

stone, into )2

Basel,

ntirificu,

ix, 24,

of Jehovah, because the original phrase, numerical value, (which is by Gematria, given above, p. 131), the same as itliT' rfWO. So

the Anointed

D'D^y pis Rule

is to

if the

translated created, be examined,

two persons in the Trinity from the words

word

submits,

each of the three letters composing this word be taken

as the initial of a separate word, 3>*

the author with this discovery, that he takes great

pleased

care to

remark

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;"

It is a proof

which I believe has hitherto

escaped the notice of interpreters."

Such

proofs, however, of

the Messiaship of Christ bring no honour to our religion

and in the present day argue badly both against him who adduces them and against him who

convinced by them.

145

II.

now proceed

to trace the date

Taking the ex parte statement

and origin of the Kabbalah.

for

what

it is

worth, viz., that

this secret doctrine is of a pre- Adamite date,

himself propounded

and that God

the angels in Paradise,

shall

have to examine the age of the oldest documents which

embody

and compare these doctrines with other

tenets,

its

systems, iu order to ascertain the real date and origin of this

But

theosophy.

before this is done,

will

be necessary to

summarize, as briefly as possible, those doctrines which are peculiar to the Kabbalah, or which in an especial manner,

expounds and elaborates

and which constitute

system within the precincts of Judaism. as follow

boundless in his nature.

intention, desire, thought, language,

be grasped and depicted

Soph, and as such he

fect

a separate

doctrines are

has neither

nor action.

and, for this

will,

cannot

called

reason,

certain sense not existent.

not the direct' creator of the universe, since he ;

and since a creation proceeding

from him would have

as he

;

is in a

could not will the creation directly

God

The

be as boundless and as per-

is himself.

at first sent forth ten emanations, or Sephiroth,

are begotten, not

made, and which are both

which

infinite

and

.finite.

the

From

these Sephiroth, which are the Archetypal

different

worlds

gradually

and

successively

Man,

evolved.

These evolutionary worlds are the brightness and the express image of their progenitors, the Sephiroth, which uphold a! things.

.146 5.

These emanations, or Sephiroth, gave

own image

in their

human

all

rise to or created

These souls are

souls.

occupy a special hall in the upper world of

existent, they

and there already decide whether they

spirits,

good or had course in hody, which

pre-

will pursue a

temporary sojourn in the human

their

fashioned according to the Archetypal

is also

image.

En Soph at any time. It is the En Soph is incarnate, who have

one has seen the

whom

Sephiroth, in

the

whom Hagada refer;

revealed themselves to us, and

phisms of Scripture and the "

said,

God

descended

spake,

upon

the anthropomor-

Thus when

earth,

it is

ascended into

heaven, smelled the sweet smell of sacrifices, repented in his

was

heart,

angry,''

descrihe the

&c.,

when

the Hagadic works

body and the mansions of the Deity,

does not refer to the

&c., all this

Soph, hut to these intermediate

beings. 7.

It is an absolute condition of the soul to return to the

Infinite

Source whence

emanated, after developing

those

all

perfections the germs of which are indelibly inherent in

fails

develope these germs,

another body, and in case virtues for

which

and a stronger with

it,

which 8.

it is

is still

too

sent to this earth,

soul, which,

aids its weaker

must migrate weak

it is

to acquire the

united to another

in obtaining the object for spirits.

the pre-existent souls shall have passed their

all

probationary period here below, the restitution of will ^take place

;

things

all

Satan will be restored to an angel of

hell will disappear,

and

all

The

then be distinguished from the Creator. will rule the universe

light,

souls will return into the bosom

of the Deity whence they emanated.

With

it.

into

occupying the same human body

companion

came down from the world of

When

creature shall not

Like God, the soul

she shall command, and

these cardinal doctrines before us

God

obey.

shall

now

147 able to examine the validity of the Kabbalists' claims to the

books which, according

and determine the origin of

them, propound their doctrines this theosophy.

Their works are

The. Book of Creation.; II. The Sohar ; and III. The Commetttury of the Ten Sephiroth. As the Booi of Creation

acknowledged by

examine I.

all

parties to be the oldest,

The Book of Creation

monologue of the patriarch Abraham, and premises contemplations to

Hence

stars

Abraham,

and

embrace

the remark of the cele-

brated philosopher, E. Jehudah Ha-Levi

Book

to be a

that the

contains are those which led the father of the

abandon the worship' of the

the faith of the true God.

" The

shall

or Jeizira.

This marvellous and famous document pretends

Hebrews

it first.

(bom about 1086)

Creation, which belongs to our father

of the

....

demonstrates the existence of the

Deity and the Divine Unity, by things which are on the one

hand manifold and proceed from

The whole ters,

on the other hand

multifarious, whilst

they converge and harmonize

One who

;

and

originated

Treatise consists of six

harmony can only

this

{Khozari,

it."'

Perakim (Q'pIS)

iv.

25.)

or chap-

subdivided into thirty-three very brief Mishnas {nWtSQ)

The

or sections, as follows.

the second has three,

first

the third

five,

and the sixth four

chapter hastwelve sections,

five,

the fourth four, the

sections.

propounds are delivered in the

The

fifth

doctrines which

style of aphorisms or theorems,

down manner becoming the authority of this

and, pretending to be the dicta of Abraham, are laid

very dogmatically,

in-

patriarch.

As has already been is

intimated, the design of this treatise

to exhibit a system whereby the universe may be viewed

methodically in connection with the truths given in the Bible, Tso D'lvra nnAnno

o'-ana

wnnm

inin'jM bj

min

•

Dmas^nim nrriDD n"3

1 >j'iT

148 thus shewing, from the gradual and systematic development of the creation, and from the

harmony which

multitudinous component parts, that

and that

all,

over

rise to this creation

The order

all.

prevails in all its

One God produced

God

in which

out of nothing (iniriD tWDD IS'), and

harmony which pervades all the constituent pnrts of universe are shown by the analogy which subsists between

the

things and

'visible

wisdom

like words,

and of essence

Since the

medium between

essence and form, to the real essence,

to the

embryo and unexpressed thought,

attached to these

Abraham, letters

therefore,

of the

The

are capable.

patriarch

employs the double value of the twenty-

Hebrew alphabet

their phonetic nature

he uses them, both in

and in their sacred character, as ex-

pressing the divine truths of the Scriptures.

Hebrew alphabet

great

and to the combinations

letters,

and analogies of which they two

among men.

assume the relation of form

forms, but serve as the

value

the

means whereby

the signs of thought, or the

expressed and perpetuated

the

have no absolute value, nor can they be used as mere

letters

and

gave

is also

sented by the fundamental of the language are also

But, since the

used as numerals, which are repre-

number

te?i

len,

number,

and since the vowels this

decade

added

and these two kinds of signs

to the twenty-two. letters,

i.e.,

the twenty-two letters of the alphabet and the ten funda-

mental numbers

— are designated

wisdom; and the

treatise

t/ie

ways of secret

thirty-two

—"By

opens with the declaration'

thirty-two paths of secret wisdom, the Eternal, the

Hosts, the

God

of Israel, the living God, the

Lord of

King of

the

High and Exalted Glorious and Holy is His

Universe, the Merciful and Gracious, the

God, .He who inhabiteth

eternity.

It is for this reason that tlie Book Jetzira is also culled Letters or Alphabet of tlte Patriarch Abraham.

rti»

°"" °'"^

"f o''

nrs' iDD

;

''*"*'

'"^ "''"^

flD'W 1DD1 -fioa D'ibo n«rt«3

W3M

Dm;iM1

nvnw

^ Pi'" '™^" nw^B D'nw o'Cbua 8 lowwnpt dtto ts pw wini di pni Dim '^"'

'tut

ug name, hath created the world by means of (190) numbers, (^1^D) phonetic language, and writing (13D)." (Sephtr Jetzira, chapter

First of

dacade

all

Mishna

;

i.)

comes the fundamental number

This

ten.

divided into a tetrade and hexade, and thereby is

shown the gradual development of the world out of nothing. At first there existed nothing except the Divine Substance, with the creative idea and the articulate creative word as the Spirit or the

Holy

(D'TT

D'n^N

stands at the head of

God, blessed

spirit,

and word,

Mishna

things and

all

One is the spirit be His name, who liveth for ever

this

From

ix).

one with the Divine Sub-

Hence, the Spirit of the living God

by the number

represented living

nn)

which

Spirit,

stance and indivisible.

one.

Holy

the

this Spirit the

Gliost."

of the voice,

(Chapter

whole universe proceeded

in gradual and successive emanations, in the following order.

The

creative air, represented by

(miD

the Spirit

The water

letters."

" In

ni")).

proceeded from the

number

again, represented air

two, emanated from

engraved the twenty-two

by the number " In

(TVnQ WQ).

darkness and emptiness, slime and dung.' or

jffre,

represented by the

water (D^OD

" In

l£^K).

three,

engraved

Whilst the ether

number four, emanated from the He engraved the throne of His

Ophanim, the Seraphim, the sacred animals, and

glory, the

the ministering angels, and from these three he formed His habitation

;

it is

written

—

He maketh

gers, flaming fire his servants"*

intermediate

members between

(Cap.

the

wind his messen-

Mish.

ix, x.)

These

the Creator and the created

world sustain a passive and created relationship to God, and t

wrpn rm nn "nam m-n Vip nnaVnwr

'n 'va

low -piMi fia dtt dtAm

rm nnM

'B njwo '« piB D':wi m^B3 riMW nio« urtm no' ni'niK D'niJi vtm ni ism ppn rmo rm trrraj 6 ^03 jppn B10T OD^ t!ts\ inn pa asm ppn vena wa efw jnn nnM mil msiiiDD •ws cnuun Tiasn noa na asm ppn D'oo oh sain na'wn j'oa pao anin paa prai ravw tdioid e» vmwD nimi vante jo \o' jneVajoi men 'asta «Tpn nvm Dnmoi :

'^ 'b n:\no 'h

Xffrh

150 af}

actinif

God

and creating relationship

is neither in

material universe, nor

Then comes

to the

world

;

so that

immediate connection with the created and is

His

creative fiat hindered

by matter.

the hexado, each unit of which represents space

in the six directions (PlliJp tiV), or the four corners of the

world, east,

west, north,

and south, as well as height and

depth which emanated from the ether, and in the centre of

which

the

Holy Temple supporting

VJ>QJ<2 plOO).

The

the whole (t^llpn

^yVW

position of the decade is therefore as

follows

o Spirit.

o Ether or

Fire.

Height.

O North.

East.

Depth.

151

These constitute the primordial

from which the whole

ten,

universe proceeded.

And lastly follow " the twenty-two letters, hy means of which God, having drawn, hewn, and weighed them, and having variously changed and put them together, formed the souls of everything that has heen made, and that shall he

made."*

(Chapter

Mishna

ii,

These twenty-two

ii.)

letters

of the alphabet are then divided into three groups, consisting respectively

of,

^^V),

(JTIDit

the

three mothers, ox futidametital letters

3, seven

double (ni'?1D3

simple Consonants (JIIQIK'B

"WV

VyO) and

D''3!tf),

tweloe

deduce therefrom

a triad of elements, a heptade of opposites, and a duodecimo

of simple things, in the following manner. ]

Three Mothers, Aleph, Mem„Shin.

The ahove-named and

air,

the

fire

niDN th^

three primordial elements, viz., ether, water

which were as yet partially ideal and

more concrete and palpable

Thus

tt;"DN

the

ethereal,

became

course of emanation.

developed itself into the visible heaven, the

elementary water thickened into the earth, embracing sea and land, whilst the elementary air

became the atmospheric

air.

These constitute the three fundamental types of the universe {Vh^V'^

niDK vb^).

thickened

still

new order of

The

creatures,

and gave

also

birth to a

which constitute the course of the

From

year and the temperatures. heat,

elements

primordial

three

in another direction,

from the water emanated

cold,

the ether developed itself

and from the

air pi-oceeded

the mild temperature which shows -tself in the rain or wet.

These constitute the fundamental points of the year {tO'^ n3t£?2 /11DK).

Whereupon

the three primordial

elements

developed themselves in another direction again, and gave rise to the

human »d:i

human

head, which

-flSTT to 1DD3

organism. is

The

ether

the seat of intelligence

ura ys jEns ptim

p^ psn

sent forth ;

pipn -nw nvniM 'l "5«! <jw

the

the water gave

D'o* Dnt» 6

itsh

TMn to

168 rise to the body, or the

which organ.

abdominal system

These three domains,

lution of time,

whilst the

air,

viz.,

the macrocosm, the revo-

and the microcosm, which proceeded from the

by the three

three primordial elements, are exhibited

Aleph

;

the central element, developed itself into the genital

Mem

(J<),

Hence

(D) and Shin (0.)

by means of these three

letters

—which, both in

letters

it is said

that

their phonetic

and sacred character, represent the elements, inasmuch as

^*,

gentle

the aie

symbolises initial

D'D

and

aspirate,

D, as

;

the initial

a labial

a sibilant, and as the last letter of tfN Jire,

FIRE (Chapter

iii,

Mishna

iii)

the

Man —The

In the

air,

whilst

If,

typifies

the

— God created

World—The.

")*1>t

and as the

or mute,

the water;

water, represents

Fire,

Water, Air.

Head, Body, Breast.

Year— Heat,

Cold, Wet.

—

Seven double consonants Beth, Gimel, Daleth, caph, pe, eesh, tau msDija jm'?i3D :^nty The three dominions proceeding from the triad of the pri2.

mordial elements which emanated from the unity continued develope themselves

still

further.

the

macrocosm were

developed the seven planets, in time the seven days, and in the

microcosm the seven sensuous

faculties.

These are

represented by the seven double consonants "of the alphabet.

Hence

it is

said that

by means of these seven

letters,

which

are called double because they have a double pronunciation,

being sometimes aspirated and sometimes not, according to their being with or without the

In the World

Dagesh,

— Saturn,

Ged

created

Jupiter, Mars,

Sun, Venus,

Mercury, Moon.

Man —Wisdom,

Eiches, Dominion, Life, .Favour,

Progeny, Peace.

the Pear-^Sabbath, Thursday, Tuesday, Sunday,

Friday, Wednesday,

Monday.

163

Owing seven

to the opposite

letters,

= double

being hard and

soft,

pronunciation of these

they are also the symbols

human

of the seven opposites (/IIIIDD) in which viz.,

wisdom and ignorance,

and barrenness,

life

and poverty

riches

and death,

and war, beauty and deformity.

liberty

and bondage, peace

east

north .and south, and the supports them

;

fruitfulness

Moreover, they correspond to

(miSp Wlf), above and below, Holy Place in the

the seven ends

moves,

life

and west,

centre,

which

and with them God formed the seven heavens,

the seven earths or countries, the seven weeks from the feast

(Chapter

of Passover to Pentecost.

Mishna, 3.

iii,

Twelve simple consonants

The

Mishna,

i-v

;

cap. iv,

i-iii.)

./T)10W3 "W}} DTItt'

three dominions then respectively developed themselves

into twelve parts, the

macrocosm

into the twelve signs of the

Zodiac, time into twelve months, and the microcosm into

This

twelve active organs.

means of the twelve

God

shown by the twelve simple

Thus

consonants of the alphabet. letters,

declared, that

which are \»iW

created the twelve signs of the Zodiac, viz.

— Aries,

In the World Virgo,

Libra,

Taurus,

Scorpio,

l"? '•tan Tin,

Gemini, Cancer, Leo,

Sagittarius,

Capricornus,

Aquarius, Pisces.

Man—The Talking,

Sight,

Hearing,

Smelling,

Copulating,

Dealing,

Walking,

organs of Taste,

Thinking, Anger, Laughter. Sleeping. In the Year The twelve months, viz., Nisan, Jiar, Sivan, Tamus, Ab, Elul, Tisliri, Cheshvan, Kislev,

—

Tebet, Shebat, Adar.

The

(Comp. chapter

Mishna

i.)

three dominions continued gradually to develope into

perceptible in each. that infinite variety of objects which is of a few, combination the This infinite variety, proceeding from

propounded by means of the great diversity of combinations and permutations of which the whole alphabet is capable.

154

These

small in number, being only twenty-two, by their

letters,

power of combination and transposition, yield an endless

number of words and figures, and thus become the types of " Just as the all the varied phenomena in the creation.^ twenty-two letters yield two hundred and thirty-one types by combining Aleph (H) with with Aleph

;

Beth

with Beth, so

all

the letters, and

all

(3), with all the letters,

the formations and

(Chapter

from one name."

the opposite.page will shew

ii,

how

all

and

all

the letters

all

the letters

that is spoken proceed

Mishna,

iv.)

the two hundred

The

table

and thirty-one

types are obtained by the combination of the twenty-two letters.

The

exhibited by permutations, of which the

more strikingly Hebrew alphabet is

cnpable, and through wliich an

variety of types is

infinite

variety in

Hence

obtained.

creation is

the remark'

still

infii!iite

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; " Two

letters

form two houses,

three letters build six houses, four build twenty-four, five

build a hundred and twenty houses, six build seven hundred

and twenty houses

;

and from thenceforward go out and think

what the mouth cannot utter and the ear cannot hear." (Chapter

iv,

the letters,

Mishna

iv.)

by permutation,

The following

table will

TABLE OF PERMUTATION. a.

Two letters

show how

will yield an infinite variety.

155

+ *^

+ '^

+ +

Ep'^»i-*~5"ESSJiK.FgE

+^ '^

gFSJ;gEEgBSEf|E

+ '^ ^^

o HI

H-l

o «

j3gRBSsae.PS£

O t

+ + *^

n f5

+ °° 1

gss&pgg

** I

+ + + *

+ CO I

SE: |:

157 liver, the gall

and tbe tongue

but God, the faithful King,

;

One

rules over all the three systems.

God]

[i.e.,

over the

three, the three are over the seven, the seven over the twelve,

and

all

are internally connected with each other."

.Mishna whole

;

iii.)

Thus

it is like

whole creation

the

a pyramid pointed at the top, which was its

beginning, and exceedingly broad in fullest

(Chapter vi,

one connected

development in

all its

its basis,

which

is its

multitudinous component parts.

Throughout the whole are perceptible two opposites, with a Thus, in the macrocosm, " the ethereal

reconciling medium.

above, the water below, and the air

fire is

hostile elements to reconcile them."

The same

(Chapter

between these vi,

Mishna

i.)

the case in the heaven, earth and the atmosphere,

as well as in the microcosm.

But

the opposites in the cos-

all

mic, telluric and organic spheres, as well as in the moral world,

are designed to balance each other.

things one to oppose the other

proceeding from good, and

and

evil

good

purifies

;

evil

good

evil is reserved for the evil."

From this analysis Book Jeizira, which

its

;

from is

doctrines of the Kabbalah.

bearing on the tions .

;

placed in

oppose

good

evil,

all

good

purifies evil,

(Chapter

vi,

ii.)

be seen that the

claim as their oldest

common

There

Mishna

it will

with the cardinal

not a single word in

Soph, the Archetypal Man, the specula-

about the being and nature of the Deity, and the

Sephiroth, which

Even

evil

contents

document, has really nothing in

in store for the good, and

Kabbalists

the

God has

good

its

constitute the essence of

the

Kabbalah.

treatment of the ten digits, as part of the thirty-two

ways of wisdom whereby God created the universe, which has undoubtedly suggested to the authors of the Kabbalah the idea of the ten Sephiroth,

quite different from the

mode

which the Kabbalistic Sephiroth are depicted, as may be seen from a most cursory comparison of the respective diagrams which we have given

to illustrate the plans of the

two systems.

158 Besides the language of the Book Jetsira and the train of ideas therein enunciated, as the erudite

shew that

this treatise

Zunz

rightly remarks,

belongs to the Geonim period,

the ninth

century of the Christian era,

known.^^

The

when

i.e.,

it first

about

became

fabrication of this pseudograph was evidently

suggested by the fact that the Talmud mentions some treatises rC'y^'' JIID?!! and JIT'S' *13D which " E. Chanina and E. Oshaja

on the Creation, denominated

(Sanhedrim 65 studied years

;

every Friday, whereby they produced a calf three

old

and

it ;"'*

ate

and

Chananja declared he could take

whereby fruit

the trees which belong to them. cap.

vii.

shown

Joshua

hen

and instantly produce Sanhedrim,

{Jerusalem

Indeed Dr. Chwolson of Petersburg has

adfinem,}'^)

in his treatise " on the

Remnants of the ancient Baby-

lonian Literature in Arabic translations" that the ancient

Babylonians laid

down

maxim

as a

that if

man

were

minutely and carefully to observe the process of nature, he

would be able

to imitate nature

would not only be

but even

These

living beings.

Babylonians

call J^^*^v1J^

and produce sundry

creatures.

able to create plants and metals, artificial

productions or

productions the

r\1XS\'2.)k formations.

Gutami, the author of the Agricultura Nabat, who lived about 1400 B.C., devoted a long chapter to the doctrine of productions.

artificial

clares, in his

work on

The ancient artificial

man, and shows how he did

human being was not

eat,

many we

Ankebuta

other fragments adds

it;

but he confesses that the

E—

13 J>ie gotiesdienstHehen VoHrage der Judea.

^np i^j nrs' idd

't to

This and

from whose communication

show that there were many works

pVrasi fTToaNi

de-

without' language and reason, that he could

but simply opened and closed his eyes.

quote,

^'V**!

sorcerer

productions, that he created a

Babylon which

Berlin, 1833, p. 165, &c.

mm VS' vmn p •

J1JB1

io» 15 pijs juTm pu

siairr 'i

]>ij»M

169

on the

treated

living beings,

artificial

productions of plants, metals, and

and that the Book Jetzira, mentioned in the

Talmud, was most probably such a Babylonian document."** As the document on creation, mentioned in the Talmud, was lost in the course of time, the author of the Treatise which we have analysed

tried to

supply the

loss,

and hence

ISD

not only called his production by the ancient name iTTS' the

Book of Creation, but ascribed The perusal, however, of a

it to

ham.

will convince

mon

the patriarch Abra-

single page of this

any impartial reader that

has as

little

book

in com-

Talmud or with human creations,

with the magic work mentioned in the

the ancient Babylonian works which treat of

as with the speculations about the being and nature of the

Deity,

tlte

Soph and

the Sephiroth, which are the essence

of the Kabbalah."

Having shown

that the

balists as their first affinity

Jetzira, claimed

by the Kab-

doctrines, has

with the real tenets of the Kabbalah, we have

examine 16

Book

and oldest code of

Der

now

no to

Israelituche

VolkaUhrtr, vol. iz.

Fiankfott-on-the-Maiue, 1859,

p. 864, &c.

17 For those who should wish to prosecute the study of the metaphysical Jetzira, we must mention that this Treatise was first published in a Latin translation hy Postellas, Paris, 1 5SS. It wos then published in the original with five commentaries, viz., the spurious one of Sondia Gaon, one by Moses Nachmnnides, one by Eleazer Worms, oue by Abraham b. David, and one by Mosea Bolarel. Mantua, 1505. Another Latin version is given in Jo. Pistorii artis eabalMicttl semptorum, 1587, Tom. I, p. 809 aeq. which is ascribed to Beuchlin and Paul Ricci and a third Latin translation, with notes and the Hebrew text, was published by Rittangel. Amsterdam, 1603. The Book is also pnblishcd with a German translation and notes, by John Friedrirh v. Meyer, Leipzig, 1830. As useful helps to the nndersbmding of this difficult Book we may rnenlinn The Knsari of B. .lehndah Ha-Levi, with Cassel's German version and 1eame<l annotations. Part iv. chap 35, p. 344. ice, Leipzig, 18i3 Zunz, Die gottesdienslliclien VorlrSge der Jiiden (Berlin, 1832), p. 165, Sia. Graeiz. Giionlicismiit vnd Jiiden-

Book

;

thum (Krotoshin, 1846), p 102, JJcc. Jellinek, Beilriii/e zur Gescliichte der Comp. also Wolf, Bibliolheca Kabbala, Part i (Leipzig, 1852). p. :!, &c. tfrbraea, vol i., p. S3, Ac ,vol. ;i., p. 1 198. vol. iii p. 17, vol. iv p. 753, Sec. SteinPhiloioplue iter Gesrhicbte, vn\. i , Und ert. (Miinster, 1857), p 03, &c. schneider, JifwisA Literature [}sOni\ox\. 1^57), pp. 107, 302, &c. ; and by t)ie same author, Catalugui Libr. Hebr. in Blbliotheca Bodte'iana, cot. K>i. ;

;

160

The Book Sohar.

II.

Before

vre

enterinto an exatninntion concerning the date and

authorship of this renowned code of the Kabhalistio doctrines, it

will

be necessary to describe the component parts of the

Sohar.

seems that the proper Sohar, which

tary on the five

Books of Moses, according

commen-

to the division

into Sabbatic sections, was originally called 11>* 'n' IfHlD the

Midrash or Exposition, Let Gen.

The name

of this verse.

was given

there be Light, from the words in

because the real Midrash begins with the exposition

;

So/tar (^mt),

i.e.

Light, Splendour,

to it afterwards,- either because this

document begins

with the theme light, or because the word Sohar frequently occurs on the

first

page,

Book Sohar (imtH ISD)

It is referred to in the

by the name of the

component parts of the

(Comp. The Faithful Shepherd, Sohar,

itself.

The Sohar

CNnV

is also

P yWtW

puted author.**

Midrash of R. Simon b^ tt;-no), because this Rabbi called

treatise

153

iii,

b.)

Jochai

is its re-

Interspersed throughout the Sohar, either as

parts of the text with special

titles,

or in separate columns

with distinct superscriptions, are the following dissertations,

which we

detail according to the order of the

pages on which

they respectively commence. i

Tosephta and Mathanithan

Small Additional Pieces which 37 a; 54 b; 59 ÂŤ; 60

b,;

(^TT'J/ID

and

are given in vol.

^tJ^^D^/1), or i,

31 b

;

63; 98 b; 121 a; 122, 123 b

147; 151 a; 152 a; 232, 233 *; 234 a;

vol.

ii,

27 J;

18 The Sohar was first pnljlished by Da Fadova and Jacob b. Naphtali, 3 Tola. Mantua, 155S-15G0, with an Introduction bj Is. de La'ttes ; then again in Cremona, 1560, fol.; Lublin, 1633, fol. ; then again edited by Bosenroth, with the variations from the works Derech JBmeth, and with the explanation of the difficult words by Issachar Bar, an Index of all the passages of Scripture explained in the Sohar, and with an Introduction by Moses b. Uri Sheraga Bloch, Sulzbach, 1684, fol. ; with an additional Index of matters, Amsterdam, 1714, 3 vols. 8to; iUd. 1728; 1779, and 1805. The references in this Essay are to tlie lost mentioned edition. It must, however, be remarked that most of the editions have the same paging. Comp. Steinscbueider, Catalogia lair, ffebr. in Bibliotheca BoMeiana Col., S37-S45 ; Fiirst, BiUiotheca Judaica, iii, 329-335. 4to,

161

28 a; 68 b; 135 5;

vol. iii, 29 b; 30 a ; 54 b; 66. They by way of supplement, the various topics of

briefly discuss,

the Kabbalah, such as the Sephiroth, the emanation of the

primordial light, &o., &c., and address theniselves in apos-

trophes to

the

initiated

these

calling

mysteries,

their

some doctrine or explanation. Hechaloth {PiDyTX) or The Mansions and Abodes

attention to 2.

forming part of the

269

text, vol.

38 a

— 46 b

vol.

;

ii,

246 a

—

This portion of the Sohar describes the topographical

The mansions or

structure of Paradise and Hell.

which are seven in number, were at

Adam,

earthly

palaces,

the habitation of the

first

but, after the fall of the protoplasts, were re-

arranged to be the abode of the beatified saints,

who

for this

reason have the enjoyment both of this world and the world

The seven words

to come.

in Gen.

describe these seven mansions.

In some Codices, however,

seven Hells.

the Infernal Eegions

given vol.

Silhre Tora (n-lin

2 are explained to

Sohar,

ii,

nnO),

202

a, describes the

this description of

The Mysteries of

the

Pentateuch, given in separate columns, and at the bottom Vol.

of pages as follows.

— 8i 151

146

a— 102

"74 b

107

5-157

;

75 a; 76

b—U\

b—lt a

a; 140

1615—162 5;

78 a

«— 140 165;

vol.

ff;

152 5; 154

It discusses the divers topics of the Kabbalah, such

as the

evolution

the

ii,

Sephiroth, the emanation of the

primordial light, &c., &c. 4.

Midrash Ha-Neeltiin (O'jWn lyno),

or.

The Hidden

Midrash, occupies parallel columns with the text in

— 140

and endeavours more

mystically,

by way of Remasim

(m^nDDJ), and of the Kabbalah.

Gomorrah

vol.

97 a

to explain passiiges of Scripture

(D'T0"1)

allegorically, than to

and Gimairias

propound the doctrines

Thus Abraham's prayer

for

Sodom and

explained as an intercession by the congregatedi

souls of the saints in behalf of the sinners about to be

162 punished.

two

(So/iar,

proclivities in

104

Lol's two daughters are the

b.)

man, good and evil. wherein

this mystical interpretation

{/bid. t)ie

Besides

0.)

Kabbalistic rules of

exegesis are largely applied, the disiinguishing feature of this

portion of the Soliar

is its

discussion on the properties and

destiny of the soul, which constitute an essential doctrine of the Kabbalah. 5.

Raja Mehemna {WtX\a M'^n). or This portion of the Sohar

herd.

third volumes, in parallel

the Faithful Shep-

given in the second and

columns with the text

;

and when

too dispropoflioned for columns, is given at the bottom or

in separate pages, as follows.

93 a; 134

157

b; 20

63; 67

i— 68

J— 159

27,

a; SI

Vol.

J— 83

;

25, 40, 69 5; 91 b

i— 188

a; 187

a—29 a

ii,

b; 85

vol.

a— 34 a;

5—86 a;

iii,

—

J— 90

;

5— 98 a; 97 a— 101 a; 103 5— 104 a; 108 5—111 5; J— .'26 o; 145 a— 146 5; 152 5—153 5; 174 a— n&a; 178 6—179 5; 180 a, 215 a— 239 a; 242 a— 258 a; 263 a— 264 a; 270 5—283 a. It derives its name from the 92

121

fact that it records the discussions

which Moses the Faithful

Shepherd held in conference with the prophet Elias> and with B. Simon b. Jochai, the celebrated master of the Eabbalistic school,

chief

who

called the

object of

Sacred Light (»l»np K^SIl).

this portion is to

The

show the profound and

allegorical import of the

Mosaic commandments and prohi-

bitions, as well as of the

Rabbinic injunctions and religious

practices which obtained in

the course of time.

dialogue which Moses the lawgiver holds with R. Simon

Jochai the Kabbalistic lawgiver, not only present, but

the b.

the prophet Elias

Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Aaron, David, Solomon,

and God himself make

their appearance;

the disciples of

B. Simon are frequently in ecstaoies when they hold converse with these illustrious patriarchs and kings of bygone days. 6.

Eaze Derazin (1*01 T\), or

the

Secret of Secret!,

163 Original Secrets,

—

ii, 70 a 75 a, and is physiognomy of the Eahbalah, and

given in vol.

especially devoted to the

the connection of the soul with the body, based upon the

advice of Jethro to his son-in-law shalt 7.

Moses Htn/l

hoi into the face. (Exod. zviii, 21.) Saba Demishpatim (Q^iQStC'DI M3D),

of the Aged in Mishpatim, given in

and thou

il/IN!)

or the Discourse

vol. ii,,94

— 114

The Aged is the prophet Elias, who holds converse with R. Simon b. Jochai about the doctrine of metempsychosis, and the discussion D'BStt'D,

i.e.,

attached

Exod.

xxi,

the

— xxiv,

Sabbatic section called 18, because the

Kabbalah

takes this word to sigoifj punishments of souls (lUH), and finds its

psychology in this section. So enraptured were the disciples

when on

their master, the Sacred Light, discoursed with

this subject, that they

knew not whether

night, or whether they were in the

{Sohar,

ii,

105

Moses

was day or

body or out of the body.

b.)

Siphra Detzniutha (Knii^JSl XnSD), or the Book of 178 b. It is Secrets ot Mysteries, given in vol. ii. 176 i 8.

—

divided into five sections (D'plS), and

is chiefly

occupied with

discussing the questions involved in the creation, transition to

from the

infinite to the finite,

multifariousness, firom pure intelligence

double principle of masculine

Demonology

as seen in Gen. vi, 2

to matter, the

the androgynous proto-

concealed in the letters of Scripture, Josh,

Kings,

viii, 3,

ii,

mysteries contained in Isa.

Sephiroth concealed in Gen.

&c., as well as with

;

the import of the letters

gr. the

and feminine (MDK1 M3M),

expressed in the Tetragrammatcn, plast, the

from absolute unity

fT'in''

;

the

and the doctrine of the showing

composing the Tetragrammaton

which were the principal agents in the creation. This portion of the Sohar has been translated into Latin by Rosenroth in the second volume of his

the-Maine, 1684.

Kabbala DerMdata, Frankfort-on-

164 9.

Idra Rabba (Mil l*nS), or the Great Assembly

— 146

name from the fact that it purports to give the discourses which B. Simon b. Jochai delivered to his disciples who congregated around him in large numbers. Upon the summons of the Sacred Light, given in vol.

iii,

187 b

and derives

its

his disciples assembled to listen to the secrets

contained in the

Book of

and enigmas

Hence

Mysteries.

chiefly

occupied with a description of the form and various members of the Deity, a disquisition on the relation of the Deity, in his

two aspects of the Aged ipTIS) and the Young (HW),

the creation and the universe, as well as on the diverse gigantic

members of the Deity, such the nose, &o., &c. ology, &c., &c.

;

as the head, the beard, the eyes,

a dissertation on pneumatology, demon-

It concludes with telling us that three of the

disciples died during these discussions.

This portion too

given in a Latin translation in the second volume of Bosenroth's 10. is

Kabbala Denudata. Januka (SpU*), or

given in vol.

iii,

the Discourse

a— 192

of the

Sohar on the Sabbatic

Numb,

xxii,

S— xxv,

text

Balah,

i.e.

section

It derives its

of the Young Man,

and forms part of the called

nnme from

that the discourses therein recorded were delivered

man, under the following circumstances Jehudab, two of R. Simon

— E.

the fact

by a young

Isaac and R.

Jochai's disciples,

when on

journey, and passing through the village where the widow of

Hamnuna Saba resided, visited She asked her son, the young hero of

just returned from school, to go receive their benediction

;

this venerable

woman.

this discourse,

who had

these two Rabbins to

but the youth would not approach

them because he recognised, from the smell of their garments, that they had omitted reciting on that day the prescribed declaration about the unity of the Deity (i^Diy). When at meals this wonderful Januka gave them sundry discourses on the mysterious import of the washing of hands, based on

165

Exod. XXX, 20, on the grace recited

at meals, on the Shechinah, on the angel •who redeemed Jacoh (Gen. xlviii, 16), &o., &c., which elicited the declaration from the Rabbins that "this .

youth

Kin 3"a)

human

not the child of ;

and when bearing

(W^

parents "

all this,

R. Simon

^«p1J*

'NH

Jochai

coincided in the opinion, that " this youth is of superhuman origin." 1 1-.

Idra Suta (NBIt

given in vol. fact that

iii,

many

287

»mK)

J—296

or the Small AssetnUy,

and derives

its

name from

the

of the disciples of R. Simon b. Jochai had

died duiing the course of these Kabbalistic revelations, and that this portion of the So/tar contains the discourses

which the

Sacred Light delivered before his death to the small assembly of six pupils,

who

survived and congregated to listen to

still

the profound mysteries.

It is to a great extent a recapitular

don of the Idra Rabba, occupying about the Sephiroth, the Deity in

itself

with speculations

three aspects (J^K^T •H^Z?),

faia

or principles which successively developed themselves from

each other, viz.— the

Soph

in his absolute nature, the

(^IID

the Boundless as manifested in the

Microprosopon (V9JM

1'!^?),

VK), or the Boundless

Macroprosopon (VBiK^nK), or first

emanation, and the

the other nine emanations; the

abortive creations, &c., and concludes with recording the death

of Simon b. Jochai, the Sacred Light and the

whom God

medium through The Idra

revealed the contents of the Sohar.

Suta has been translated into Latin by Rosenroth second volume of his Kabbala Denudata.

From

this brief analysis of its

tents,, it will

component parts and con-

be seen that the Sohar does not propound a

regular Kabbalistic system, but promiscuously dilates

upon

and reiteratedly

the diverse doctrines of this theosophy, as indi-

cated in the forms and ornaments of the

Hebrew

the vowel points and accents, in the Divine letters of

in the

alphabet, in

names and the

which they are composed, in the narratives of the

166 Bible, and in the traditional

the

Sohar

and national

Hence

stories.

a collection of homilies or rhapsodies on

Kabbalistio subjects than treatises on the Kabbalah. for this veiy reason that

It is

became the treasury of the Kab-

balah to the followers of this theosophy.

Its diversity

became

The long conversations between its reputed E. Simon b. Jochai, and Moses, the great lawgiver

charm.

its

author,

and true shepherd, which prayers inserted therein

;

records

;

the short and pathetic

the religious anecdotes

tive spiritual explanations

the hearts and wants of

the attrac-

of scripture passages, appealing to

men

the description of the Deity and

;

of the Sephiroth under tender forms of

comprehensible to the

;

human

relationships,

mind, such as father, mother,

finite

primeval man, matron, bride, white head, the great and small face, the

&c.,

luminous mirror, the higher heaven, the higher earth,

which

gives

on every page, made the Sohar a welcome

text-book for the students of the Kabbalah, who, by

its vivid

descriptions of divine love, could lose themselves in rapturous

embraces with the Deity.

Now,

the

^ohar pretends

to be a revelation

municated through B. Simon A.D. 70

b. Jochai,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; 110, to his select disciples.

who

from God, comflourished about

We are told that

when

they assembled to compose the Sohar, permission was granted to

the prophet Elias, to

all

college, to all angels, spirits,

them

and the ten

;

the

members of the

and superior

spiritual substances

[i.e.,

celestial

souls, to assist

Sephiroth'] were

charged to disclose to them their profound mysteries, which

were reserved for the days of the Messiah." of death, B. Simon

the approach

Jochai assembled the small number

of his disciples and friends, amoogst

whom was

his son,

B. Eleazar, to communicate to them his last doctrines," " when

p^ imi

irrala jiwirc rman tiwi <5V

m iw>h

'ail

liny voÂť

'ii

ÂŤ^ witejh pi

I'll cti^i'j

167

he ordered as follows propound, and

let

—R. Aba

(Idra Suta, Sohar,

fi.

Simon

287

it."

upon the strength of

It is

b.)

upon the repeated representation

Jochai as speaking and teaching throughout

Sohar

this production, that the its

my son,

other associates quietly think about

iii,

these declarations, as well as

shall write, E. Eleazar,

ascribed to this £abbi on

very title-page, and that not only Jews, for centuries, but

Buch distinguished Christian Bartolocci, Pfeifer,

scholars

maintained this opinion. the following internal

Gill,

&o.,

have

careful examination, however, of

and external evidence

Thesaurus of the Kabbalah

this

Lightfoot,

Knorr von Bosenroth, Molitor,

show that

will

the production of the

thirteenth century. 1 The Sohar most fulsomely praises its own author, calls him the Sacred Light (Kt£?np X0S11), and exalts liim above .

Moses, " the true Shepherd."*"

" I testify by

the sacred earth," declares R.

sacred

the

Simon

b. Jochai,

heavens and " that I now see what no son of

has seen since Moses

ascended the second time

Sinai, for

man on Mount

face shining as brilliantly as the light of the sun

descends as a healing for the world

who

fear

my name

shall shine the

it is

written,

Sun of Righteousness with

(Malachi,

a healing in his wings.'

;

see

when it to you

[iii,

aO]

face is shining, but

iv,

2.)

Yea,

Moses did not

more, I know that know it nor understand it for it is written (Exod. xxxiv, 29), ' Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone.' " {Sohar, iii, 182 b ; 144 a.) The disciples deify R. Simon in the Sohar, ;

declaring that the verse, " the Lord

God " (Exod.

all

thy males shall appear before

xxiii, 17), refers to

R. Simon

b. Jochai,

Hon «^ riD mwn <nn «»<n ™tei nwto nvonp nn«i r»»teT ;'«')» k"did 'bs totttds 20 HorMH >nin33 x"!^^ '"O^M •o'on wivn '3'tn tniD') «3"3n mat moo p>tei novo -a: ii tm rpDMi nsnoi npTS wot) vm 'mt ca') nmn vnyy »«W) «niiDM3 pb'q'j ]'on nffpn lA rnDoi ym-i 'mejmt mjst m3mt pijTT imi T3D T» np '3 »T >A rreioi T'nrr tonoM «Vi 1

'3 a")p

ni "3

168

who

(Sohar, 2.

ii,

appear.

mystically explains the

Hebrew

all

38 a.)"

The Sohar quotes and

vowel .points

16 b; 24 6;

(i,

were introduced for the

A.D. 570,

men must

whom

and before

the Lord,

116 a;

ii,

time by B.

first

iii,

Mocha

66 a), which of Palestine,

to facilitate the reading of the Scriptures for his

students.^^ 3.

N^V") Faithful Shepherd,

The Sohar (n:D''nD

WVfTfp

iii,

celebrated

has

b),

Hymn

A.D. 1021 and died

ma'jD 1713

the

literally

Ibn

on section

borrowed two verses from the

Gebirol,

This

in 1070.

Royal Diadem,

who was born about

Hymn

which

is entitled

a beautiful and pathetic

composition, embodying the cosmic views of Aristotle, and

forms part of the Jewisli service for the evening preceding the Great-Day of tation in the

Atonement

Sohar from

to the present day.

Hymn

this

The quo-

beyond the shadow of

a doubt, as will be seen from the following comparison

Ibn Gebirol.

Sohar. iiMniOMi

Drrb» pi» «' taM

omiMO TOTra Drr'w )n« n'tn

omiMD "yvna

KPDc: Mta HD1M [UMSDW wifTD]

must be borne in mind

that,

in Aramaic, yet this quotation

though the Sohar

is in

written

Hebrew, and in the rhyme

of Ibn Gebirol.^ 4.

The Sohar

(i,

18 4

23 a) quotes and explains thj

;

interchange, on the outside of the Mezuza,"* of the words

p virai vrta jmot "'lun «t

pun

'jb

^mo 'n piMn

I'm rt

an Comp. Alexandei's edition of s.v.

Fji

Eitto's

'3d

'ifm inn

bn "pisi 'n rnrv

iniap nmnnM') 'Si

Cyclopadia of

misi

JBiblical Ziterattire,

Mocha.

23 Comp. Sachs, Die

religiose Poesie der

Juden in Spanien, Berlin,

184f>,

p. 220, note 2.

24. For a description of the Mezuza, which consists of a piece of parchment, whereon is written Deut vi, 4-9 ; xi, 13-21, put into a reed or hollow cylinder, and affixed to the right hand door-post of every door in the houses of the Jews, see Alexander's edition of Kitto's Cyclopiedia of Biblical Literature, s.v. Mezuza,

169 (nin> irnVi* nin*) Jehovah our

God is Jehovah for (ItlD tR31D2) Z^K«« Bemuchzaz Kuzu, by substituting for

ItID

each letter its immediate predecessor in the alphabet, which was transplanted from France into Spain in the thirteenth century."

The Sohar

whieh It

is a

in a Kabbalistic

words,

i.e.,

232

(iii,

uses the expression Esnoga,

Portuguese corruption of synagogue, and explains

manner

«£;»

compound of two Hebrew

as a

and Noga

= miJ brilliant light.^

6. The Sohar (ii. 32 a) mentions the Crusades, the momentary taking of Jerusalem by the Crusaders from the

Infidels,

and the retaking of

the time," received

by the Saracens."'

What

sign of circumcision!

the

One, blessed be his name Ishmael,

i.e.,

did

the

Holy

excluded the descendants of

Mahommedans, from

the

"Woe

"wherein Ishmael saw the world, and

says,

the congregation in

heaven, but gave them a portion on earth in the

Holy Land, The

because of the sign of the covenant which they possess.

Mahommedans

are, therefore, destined to rule for a time over

Holy Land

the

returning to

plished.

and they

;

it, till

will prevent the Israelites froim

the merit of the

Mahommedans

accom-

that time the descendants of Ishmael will be

the occasion of terrible wars in the world, and the children of

Edom,

i.e.,

the Christians, will gather together against them and

do battle with them, some

at sea

and some on land, and some

in the neighbourhood of Jerusalem, and the victory will Oqmp. Nissen,

25.

p'a, edited

in the collection of various

by Jost and Creizenach,

vol.

ii,

Hebrew

now

Dissertations, entitled

Frankfort^on-tbe-Uaine, 1842-48,

p. 161, Sue.

'm m'dt

p^ nmi

rrau

wm unw^a o^

vsarat tt»A

ruw nju mtu'Sw

Wt3«)' •:a'> yrfj prriM n"ap -at rro iartit\ tfclnn 'iMSmD' tViiht »ya\ mnn to 'ti 27 33 yvow ^inn it« mvth '(yi twnp mstimi linrt Mpbin vh am m'j'sVi Mnipiio wjira jin^T mji rroa 'jd 'jdi utao s'jpn 'rr« tj vncnp hsim vt^rnvfi 'jttsaxp

m im i

miM

na-ip '31'!

p)?m irrb* Dn« »33 ««»3nM^i

IDDiT

»'^

MWlp

NSIMI

)'')»1 fyt*

vdrs2

piD'jWl

p^n pip

rrarwh 'nanv

D'Wl'^ -pOD

'33

pon

M«n' to mi MO' to '» 3') RT '3 pin imi

170 be on the one side and then on the other, but the Holy Land 'trill

not remain in the hands of the Christians."

The iSoAar records events which transpired A.D. 1864. Thus on Numb, xxiv, 17, which the Sohar explains as 7.

referring to the time preceding the

remarks,°* "the

Holy One,

advent of Messiah,

blessed be he,

Previous to the rebuilding thereof he

rebuild Jerusalem.

cause to appear, a wonderful and splendid shine seventy days.

It will first be seen

prepared to

star,

which

•will

will

on Friday, Elul

= July 25th, and disappear on Saturday or Friday evening at On the day preceding

the end of seventy days. ance,

i.e.

October 2nd] when

it will still

[its .disappear-

be seen in the city of

Borne, on that self-same day three high walls of that city of

Borne and the great palace the city will die."

and the pontiff ruler of

will fall,

{Sohar m, Z]%

h.)

Now

the comet here

spoken of appeared in Borne, July 25th, 1264, visible

October 2nd, which are

till

comet

first

its

of Borne,

seventy days

Moreover, July 26th, when the

mentioned in the Sohar.

day of

literally the

and was

appeared, actually happened on a Friday

;

on the

disappearance, October 2nd, the sovereign pontiff

Urban IV,

died at Perugia,

the appearance of the comet was the the great and strong palace

when it was believed that omen of his death, and

(M313T K^STI) Vincimento,

on the self-same day, October

2itd, into the

fell

hands of the

insurrectionists.^ 8. I'he Sohar, in assigning a reason why its contents were not revealed before, says that the " time in which B. Simon

ben Jochai lived was peculiarly worthy and glorious, and that it is

near the advent of the Messiah," for which cause this

pro

vpi 'Ml |MBm 'M Mssjo MS'ap sasa in rnnriM^ u^nrri' 'jao^ nwap yen pn 88 n«n'no movhj'dv '» B'nVi vm vsr\ ]<3im« paa '» rri paMnwnwyi nissDMi rrsn nxoTp Wtov psv '» HID'; rwirye rrova wjan'i [rnwao] n»m'ne vim'} pav mna inn' yiDj' Maiai Mta'm '•am «n-ip vfvirra j'm'js piw 'J pto hot Minm tarn wmpa <inn» 'a a'n f|t 'j p^ irrn inw wnp «inni iw'wi I

29. Comp. Beer, in Frankel's MoruUichrift fikr Oeschichte its Judenthvnu, vol. T, Leipzig, 1806, p. 108-160.

und Wmenachirfl

171

was reserved

revelation

•

Simon, to be

the days of R.

till

communicated through him.

Yet, speaking elsewhere of the

advent of the Messiah, the Sohar, instead of placing

second century when this Rabbi says*"

—" When the

in the

and

forgets itself

lived,

have

sixtieth or the sixty-sixth year shall

passed over the threshold of the sixth millenium [a.m. 6060-66

= A.D.

1300—1806] h, Comp.

116 a, 117

Messiah

the also

iii,

will

appear" {Sohar

252 a); thus showing that

the author lived in the thirteenth century of the Christian

In perfect harmony with this

era. 9.

The

doctrine of the

the fact that

Soph, and the Sephiroth, as well

as the metempsychosisian retribution were not

known

before

the thirteenth century. 10.

The very

existence of the Sohar, according to the

confession of the staunch Kabbalist, Jehudah Chajoth (flourished as

500), was

unknown

to such distinguished Kabbalists

Nachmanides (1195-1270) and Ben-Adereth (1235-1310);

the

first

who mentions it is Todros Abulafia (1234-1306). Akko (flourished 1290) fully confirms all that

11. Isaac of

we have

hitherto adduced from the import of this book, by his

testimony that " the Sohar was put into the world from the

head of a Spaniard."

the same effect

the testimony

of Joseph Ibn Wakkar, who in speaking of

later

books

relied upon, recommends only those of Moses Nachmanides and Todros Abulafia; "but," he adds, "the

which may be

Sohar

full

of errors, and one must take care not to be

misled by them."

Upon

which, the erudite Stein Schneider

rightly remarks,'* " this is an, impartial and indirect testimony

that the

Sohar

firv las poi

-v&b recognised scarcely fifty years after its

ms mom im"Tfi D'pv ^xi

i'*""" J'"'' •

"^ !"'«"' nxn'ms f)')»

n3i

pm m: ^"vn prx -los i'mi w'ro p3 «b:

-ma Mnrei /*»i ''3 (imi) hp'jd /mi {\"tm) >"p rp 'H pVi imi stnEWO ttajvh pnio iin ps

pa\

tub

ij i"wi

D'^itoh 'a

81 SteiDBchneider, in Ersch und Gniber's Sna/ktopSdie, section p. 101 ; and Jeimah Literature, Longman, 1857, p. 113.

II, vol.

H"m

I'v

xad,

178 appearing as one of the later works, and was not attributed to

Simon ben Jochai." That Moses de Leon, who

12.

first

Sohar, as the production of E. Simon the author of as will

it,

published and sold the

was himself

b. Joohai,

was admitted by his own wife and daughter,

be seen from the following account in the Book

Juchassin, (p.p. 88, 89, 95, ed. Filipowski, London, 1857),

which we give in an abridged form.^'' When Isaac of Akko, who escaped the massacre after the capture of this city (A.D.

came

1S91),

Spain and there saw the Sohar, he was

anxious to ascertain whether

was

geuiiine, since it pre-

tended to be a Palestine production, and he, though born and

brought up in the Holy Land, in constant intercourse with the disciples of the celebrated Kabbalist,

Nachmanides, had

Now,

never heard a syllable about this marvellous work.

Moses de Leon, whom he met in Valladolid, declared to him on a most solemn oath that he had at Avila an ancient exemplar, which was the very autograph of E. Simon ben Jochai, and offered to submit

it to

him

In the

be tested.

meantime, however, Moses de Leon was taken

ill

on his

But two

journey home, and died at Arevolo, A.D. 1305.

'wnv 'Ton ijinjiw bid^ ffwon rawi nainj w» '3 13» pi pmi' 't ana tw wina 82 room 139D te'ji rp'!«o'«3 mn323 13S pT pns' '1 m mn n"D ra»ai »i"3 nin'o 'la dw 1DD 7TOSO Min ia» JOT pns* 'id Vn lb© Dts'n nai isoa >n»3oi iim^rvd) »3 rros» n"D 'T fya-m bw i:a )a pn o'lia lawji ia» unia nainji iM^nn rawa niap p '1 rra» iom •trrm ido uma «so3 -nra -iipn") TiEDb -fm Him 'Vt D"aoin p omau ja iiH 1MT mHa 'inno«') D'atin nm* msoa \a yah» 'ii psow rj"TO '3DD onnoM'j noMi DM1 'pso* '1 n3T on '3 j'Dun ydivm piota xsnio no '3 'japo ibw 'tm -m» nspta jiw'ja Hin >nospi iDDiro ':bo fjîon 'nai pi inai dj'n '3 pun ijnp pata ninn 'rta »'D«Dn YVan jvVsn -npaia laMC D'nteiD inai '3 wwio 'jam iVn ita na'TOTi' run Iran c'ln: onai DTa D'MSCun D'fia'inn riH rrtMwm vinM 'no-n 'iâwa rtapo D'TMian Dm iN33:i ana'b njnj Mb iwm no bt* noo D'taipn d'm'jdio niTio on'; «a 'n»oc ma ioim mi nsa idim m 'nwiao nm 'rtMiD ')» Drpniai»n 'nxsn }in -ibd >nip i:a') M'Jibiopb 'ytrvB^ y-inc im« n'jm Vi {"aoin pun ain <3 '.-i'jhib to '5 Dnoi« D'loiMio Nin jiH'!? n nion 'T oam Ta tai 'map ';«.') k't pain pub min warn rrr? m rron 't taM /m ibo •'ann nan »'; dîsdw m^'i 'niMJn Vmitt nwo 'i vte )D3 Vna TmD Dna np" iJnii /n'jM d'»')d: enaT-n rron 't aina' inaai amsn so »ti' inani iibVm 'ii '"aim -an icm iDon -pna idmi 'a-m r'jiDNa viai rfjin an am>

(D«) Tbon 11BH T'jn'jHl D'pb«

mor

M'rt •VaDJ' ru'-TCia <.-i<aa

T»

S«

nwo

T»

'7H

«aNl riTlDD 'Miaa <3M1

iidm'! sa«ri '^^iti <d» laTi vj'sa )n

'1 ']Vi

Dvn win tbj

'jdd

™m

Drt p>r»o »»(

m rron 'ib d« msomv

ich ]ioTpn iddVi onain inn 'm •'TtrM om

'"ann lan

rrtMrt

-l^M D*iaT

nsdmi

m")

d>«

»)w

<bH -iMiaa

nai

nViM

173

men of Avila, David Kafen and Joseph de Avila, who were dotermined to sift the matter, ascertained the distinguished

falsehood of this story from the widow and daughter of Moses

Being a rich man and knowing that Moses de

de Leon.

Leon

family without means, Joseph de Avila promised,

left his

that if she would give him the original MS. of the Sohar from which her hushand made the copies, his. son should marry her daughter, and that he would give them a handsome

Whereupon

dowry.

widow and daughter

the

declared, that

they did not possess any such MS., that Moses de Leon never had

but that he composed the Sohar from his own

it,

head, and wrote

with his

own hand.

Moreover, the widow

candidly confessed that she had frequently asked her husband

why he published

the production of his

own

intellect

another man's name, and that he told her that publish

under his own name nobody would buy

under the name of E. Simon This account

revenue.

manner by the

Jochai

confirmed

it in-

under

he were to

whereas

it,

him

yielded

a large

a most remarkable

fact that

nio T» *> mn lo'n mican ^sncai 'Die no'i krta-»a rfjrri mVin^ wa ^m ai«b wâiM ID lip jDwi Tn 't inoi ]pn bnj oan dc 'nNsoi m'j'im ^m nam tjsD 'j\'f> d'omi ss«i irnu Vihm dim 'jao irnm nsD miiD ib iTianjn lanh inyaom v:>sa ]n nMsow TiDDM 'D •» sir '3'wi noo IS p'son m"!! '"jm (nn'j ?) 'b -nj ids* rroo ni nsa idih rm naa /m muD 'T ^« i"P^ .ka vh DVlsn»J^7DD Mta "h •vara '3 noNa »t •tom'i ••âm la naiî 'rnniBDi ana* rra "a ana man anian d» ^»i rroD 'i rrn -vm idd oVisa ^'mi WDO no' f»a krsini >nj iidd rrn rron '! '3 »t :*> 'rara yn nvwa »d« nn»i p> iiB« (i')«) >Am c'j'nj nmoa D<:'aDn D'-vrntn -h uroc ami rjoa ubia wa mn avmn ts snanrnw nim-a ran inai nrnoN awo -w ita jpnnj inai anian DMja caina onb nmn TSa tom 'man Tosn ';« i^mi dipmi i')iai« TSa noiD iwooioai to loinai Mosai 133"W' h') iiDN 'imin iDDbnain n»M n»n yjn nn» ii"; idimi nVi» n f\pv 'iMnpan

•

m f)Dv 'i

'np n^ lOM'i inoM') '3'i

rf!

T\» iDM'i

mnota

miitw

nwi s'n 'ns»i •"ps'n

wi p «»m nwo :

i«d>»

nCM") nniM 'n>oi

nw nwsn dm n'ai3ii am inncw Ta nw: nnao m

'jisn '3 'jn nb noHi noo "i niDM nn'a mj taMb Drt ion' Mb Y^Mi 'lab -jna hm «vf> to oiab') xai loj* imin ibd pi Dbwa lai 100 nmpao ':m f mi p'nsra -pcM naias' -nuM onnai nM 'S'niBni nab nnabi xh rn hdmh nbM Dnai dtm 'aab jnw lann

ibm'j

tov

innn

'1 niDMb

laVi

iDMn J1TO

saoni

udmto iTOB')

lai

rma

nwM pni

-ja

wsni "pm

» mn m icd obiso dm

icn nrtan ama

toM

iniM 'niMia

-h

maiMi

•

vh dm D'jiian

D'py

»]>dv nai

vmn 'b

nsnji

m«>' n3

'anamnDbsanaibawi

nnMi ibdo p'nm nnM© inn ama nnM Dnb ruM ibM noM'i 'bM jri ib iias 11BM3 nn» baM DniM n-na Hin labo '3 noM' <3 nana Diiaw mv Mbi 'laia imasj' Dip" D'oia DniM lap" Dp'nso 'jm unpn mia '"ain -an iidm imin idd •yinoa i»o»' •rtasm

ama

idm';

"jb

hm: Mbn

'jm >tomo'0

m mo

ani3

nnM -yavna

pi ied

-[b ]'m

mm !

niMIT

yj* TOMa

174 13.

Leon

The Sohar

learned Jellinek has demonstratively proved. these passages here woiild occupy too

Moses de

contains whole passages whioh

translated into Aramaic, from his other works, as the

much

transfer

of our space.

must, therefore, refer the reader to the monograph

itself,**

and shall only give one example, which the erudite historian. Dr. Graetz,** has pointed out.

In his Sephar Ha-Rimon

(TtO^n 130), which he composed A.D. 1827, and which Kabbalistic explanation of the Mosaic precepts,

Leon endeavours Tetragrammaton

Moses de

to account for the non-occurrence of the in the history of the

hexahemeron, whilst

does occur immediately afterwards, by submitting that as the earthly world is finite and perishable, this divine name, which

denotes eternity, could not be used at the creation thereof; for if it

had been created under

its influence,

the world would

In corroboration of

have been as imperishable as this name.

Moses de Leon quotes the passage (/IvySD

this,

pÂťa

moa? Ua "WA

D\nVl*)

Gome, helmld

ITH ID?

the works

Elohim, what per ishableness he made in the earth (Ps. 8),

TWOW destruction, per ishableness, is consoname D'HW. In looking at the original, it

showing that

nant with the will

xlvi,

be seen that the text has

Moses de Leon, by a

slip of

with dm"?** ni'?yS)D

WI1

Elohim

(Ps. xlvi, 6).

samÂŁ blunder tators

ilin'

and not

DwN,

memory, confounded

13^

Come and

see

this

and that passage

the works of

Now, the whole explanation and the The commen-

are transferred into the Sohar.

this treasury

of the Kabbalah, not knowing the

cause of this blunder, express their great surprise that the

Sohar should explain a mis-quotation.

subjoin the two

passages in parallel columns. 33 Moses hen Schem-Tob dt Leon, und tein ferhdUiiiss ztan Sohar, von Jellinek also gives iidditional Adolph Jellinek. Leipzig, 1851, p. 21-36. iuformntion on tliis subject in bis other contributions to the Kabbalah which tliis Essay. third part of in the will be fuund mentioned 31 Comp. Graetz, OeschiclUe der Jiiden, vol. vii, Leipzig, 1863, p. 498, where other facts are given, proving that Moses de Leon is the author of the Sohar.

175 Sohar, iWH DTibM mteBD •

•

rmD rmrr

1WI 13^

-ranwi fTmpi« «np 'wi

•

Maaen de Leon,

>r»n 'T

p. 26.

traj

(pwow psA) «te^ Dna moo Hm 'mti mow ^iupmorp DiD'n'i'n 'm^EioTni^T moo DO DTiVi Hoo mbSBO frtpn ps '1J1

No. 133,

invDn ce niTO inn ctvb o btok w^ V»in i-iom minn te D"p^ mnnxa im o>n^« ni'wDO ttto 'jdo 'i3i wVjoo imi moo did mteoo vn vMwm

w mow

ii,

•

I'SWi lyiio cn<p do 'n I'n" mteeon 'JDO ffTDo: Dto 'son D'rwn Doi 'm'>vi too DOS vrp vMnno '«> Dovpi Dns"? vrr rta irrvon to to

mV toh ip»3

is for

It.

these and

now regarded by

mauy

other reasons that the Sohar is

Steinschneider, Beer, Jellinek, Graetz, &c.,

That Moses de

as a pseudograph of the thirteenth century.

Leon should have palmed

the

Sohar upon Simon

was nothing remarkable, since

Eabbi

this

embodiment of mysticism.

tradition as the

-b.

Jochai

regarded by better hero

could be selected for the Sohar than R. Simon, of whom the Talmud gives us the following account " Ouce upon a time, :

Jehudah, R.

and

.Jose,

Simon

R. Jehudah b. Gerim sat by them.

and said

—How

Romans)

the

beautiful are the works of this nation

but R. Simon

made markets

to gratify

R. Jose was

Jochai answered and said

have built they hav'e built for no one except use, they

(i.e.,

they have erected market-places, they have

erected bridges, and they have erected baths quiet,

and

together,

sat

R. Jehudah then began

what they

own made baths

for their

to allure prostitutes, they

themselves therein, and bridges to get

tolls

Gerim repeated this, and the emperor's government got to hear it, who passed the following decree Jehudah, who exalted, is to be exalted Jose, who was silent, them.

Jehudah

;

is to

be banished to Zipporis

to be killed.

(i.e.,

;

and Simon, who spoke

R. Simon)

evil,

once concealed himself

with his son, in the place of study, whither his wife daily brought them a loaf and a flask of water ; but as the rigour of the decree increased, he said to his son

minded

—

she

tortured she

women

are weak-

may betray us. Hence,

they left,

and betook themselves into a deep cavern, where by a miracle

176 were created for their subsistence.

a crab-tree nnd n well

He and

las son sat in the saud

cavern;

to their

when Elins

prophet came and

the

entrance of the cavern, and culled out

son of Jochai thai the emperor

commuted

^hey cnme

necks

nil

the day

Tliey spent twelve long years in this

studying the Law.

— Who

stood

will

the

inform the

dead, and that the decree

out and saw the people tilling and

Jerumlem Hhebiith, Bereshith Rabha, cap. Ixxix Midranh Kohelelh, x, 8 ix, 1 Midranh Esther, i, 9.) This is the secret why the story that E. Simon b. Jochai composed the Sohar during his twelve years' residence in the cavern obtained credence among the {Sabbath, 33

sowing."

Comp.

also,

;

foHiiwers of the Kabbalah. III. Ft

The Commentary on the Ten Hephiroth. this commentary to which we must look,

most ancient document embodying the Kabbalah.

The author of

Menachem, was born

this

doctrines

us the

the

commentary, E. Azariel

Valladolid,

about IICO.

dis-

tinguished himself as a philosopher, Kabbalist, Talmudist,

and commentator, as of Isaac the Blind,

and master

Kabbalah,

the

works indicate

his

who

Naohmanides, who

is also a

regarded of

the

;

he was u pupil the

originator of

celebrated

Moses

distinguished pillar of Kabbalism.

E. Azariel died A.D. 1238, at the advanced age of seventyeight years.

The Commentary on

questions and answers,'" and

as given

tlie

the

Ten

following

Sej)hiroth " is in

is the

by the erudite Jellinek, according

lucid analysis to Spinoza's

form of Ethics.

20. naicm rfyvm -pi nrvDD ixw tbitc Otmimentunj on ike Ten SepMiulh, by way of Questions auti Answers. This coromeDtary was tirst knowu througli t'je Kabhalistic works of Meier Ibu Gabliai, entitled n:mN yn, Tlie Path of Faith, printed in Padua, 1803, and Vl^pn rn». The Service of Holiness, also called crflH niKlD, Tlu: Fisiun oftlw Lord, first printed in Mantua, 1546 ; Ihen Venice, l.'iUV, and Cracow, l.'i78. It was then ptiblislied in Gabriel Warschawer'a volume entitled J CoUeelion o,' Kuhbalistic Treatises (rrtjpl D>mjf> ItJD), Warsaw, 17tt8 aiul has recently been' published in Be;'lin, l^tW. It is to this Berlin edition that the references in this EB!<i:y nn made. ;

177 1

Definition.

all

— By the Being who

boundless, absolutely identical with

without attributes,

will, intention,

(Answers 2 and

deed.

Definition.

the cause and governor

things, I understand the A'« Soph,

i.e.,

a Being infinite, united in

itself,

thought, word or

desire,

4.)

— By Sephiroth

1 understand the potencies

which emanated from the absolute

Soph,

entities

all

limited by quantity, which like the will, without changing its nature,

diverse

wills

objects

Proposition.

world

the

(Answer

dent. (a)

—The

are

the

both immanent and transcen-

I.)

effect

has a cause, and

which has order and design has a governor. {b)

Proof.

— Every

thing

limited is finite, what

the primary cause

visible

(c)

the

—As the primary cause of the world

un-

Soph.

;

is infinite,

hence he

imma-

{Ibid.)

—As

the

Soph

is invisible

the root of both faith and unbelief.

Phoposition.

the absolute

Proof.

—The

En Soph

—As

must exercise

and the

real world.

Scholion.

En it,

Soph,

still

the

Soph

or his perfection would

the Sephiroth, which, in their intimate con-

nection with the are imperfect,

it is

the real world is limited and not perfect,

his influence over

Hence

and exalted,

{Ibid.)

Sephiroth are the medium between

cannot directly proceed from the

cease.

2.)

Proof.

Scholion.

ii.

).)

what

invisible, therefore

nothing can exist without (extra) him nent.

a limit,

not absolutely identical

finite is

of the world

evei7 thing

(Answer

has

limited, infinite, absolutely identical, i.e

(Answer

possibilities

9.)

primary cause and governor of the

Soph, who

—Each

Proof.

that

(Answers 3 and

multifarious things.

Soph, are perfect, and in their severance

must be the medium.

—Since

all

(Answer

3.)

existing things originated by

means of

178 the Sephiroth, there are a higher, a middle, and a lower degree

{Vide infra. Proposition

of the real world. iii.

Proposition.

Proof.

— All

—There

bodies have three- dimensions, each of which

repeats the other (3 x

potencies of

(Answer

and by adding thereunto space

;

all

that

ten.

the Sephiroth are

must

they

limited

ten.

4).

Scholioh.

(a)

3")

we obtain the number

generally,

the

6.)

are ten intermediate Sephiroth.

— The

number

ten does not conti^adict the

absolute unity of the Eii Soph, as one

the biasis of

all

numbers, plurality proceeds from unity, the germs contain the development, just as

one basis, though they (J) Scholion.

mind

flame, sparks and colour have

fire,

differ

(Answer

from one another.

6.)

— Just as cogitation or thought, and even the

as a cogitated object, is limited,

becomes concrete and

has a measure, although pure thought proceeds from the

En Soph

;

so limit, measure, and concretion are the attributes

(Answer

of the Sephiroth. 4.

Proposition.

7.)

— The Sephiroth

are emanations and not

creations. 1.

Proof.

—As

absolute

the

Soph

perfect,

Sephiroth proceeding therefrom must also be perfect tliey are 2.

not created.

Proof.

(Answer

;

the

hence

5.)

—All created objects diminish by abstraction;

the

Sephiroth do not lessen, as their activity never ceases,; hence they cannot be created. Scholion.

—The

power before

first

(Ibid.)

Sephira was

became a

reality

;

the

Soph

as a

then the second Sephira

emanated as a potency for the intellectual world, and afterwards the other Sephiroth emanated for the sensuous and material

world.

This, however, does not imply a prius

or a gradation in the

a.nil

posterius

Soph, but just as a light whose

kindled lights which shine sooner and later and variously, so

embraces

all

in a unity.

(Answer

8.)

179 Proposition.

'6.

—The

both

Sephiroth are

and

active

passive ("japriDi "rapo).

Proof. the

—As

and impart

cessor,

Proposition.

third. Intelligence

Justice (TTTS))

Firmness (TOJ) the Righteous

;

second,

;

(Hm)

SchoUon.

(a)

;

the fourth, Love

;

(T^'D'H)

(mN3fl)

;

the

fifth.

the seventh.

;

the eighth. Splendour ("«in) the

;

.the ninth,

Foundation of the World {TSV

;

—The

first

pHS

three Sephiroth form the world of

the second three the world of soul

the world of

body— thus

SchoUon.

{b)

—The

inasmuch as

first

it is

(Answer

!0.)

(TWXV)

called a unit;/

denominated living

it is

much

termed spirit (m"I)

it is

called vital principle (IfSJ)

denominated soul {TVyOT)

last

Sephira stands in relation to the

inasmuch as as

and the four

;

corresponding to the intellectual,"

moral, and material worlds.

is called Imcrutabk Wisdom (nD3n) the

aMd the tenth, Righteousness (plS).

;

thought

soul,

prede-

Sephira

first

the

the sixth. Beauty

;

its

be receptive and

i.e.,

9.)

— The

Dn)

Height (n^VD

XinS)

to its successor

(Answer

imparting. 6.

the Sephiroth do not set aside the unity of

Soph, each one of them must receive from

;

(iTTT)

;

the fourth,

the fifth,

;

the second,

the third, inas-

inasmuch

inasmuch as

t.s it

the sixth operates on the blood,

the seventh on the bones, the eighth on the veins, the ninth

on the (a)

light,

flesh,

and the tenth on the

SchoUon.

—The

first

{Ibid.)

skin.

Sephira

the

concealed

the second like sky-blue, the third like yellow, the

fourth like white, the fifth like red, the sixth like white-red, the seventh like whitish-red, the eiglith Uke reddish-white, the

ninth like white-red- whitish-rcd-reddlsh- white, and the tenth is like

the

hght

reflecting all colours.^*

21 The abOTe analysis is taken from Dr. Jelliiieli's Beitriige zut Geachichte der Kabbalah. Erstes Heft. Leipzig, 1 85'i. This erudite scholaj: also gives some additional information on H. Azariel in the second part of his BeitrSge zur GescMclUe der- Kabbalah, p. 32, Sec. Leipzig, 1803.

]80

The gradation of

the Sephiroth

rrt»n

as follows

nis3n

Til

D^w TB'

ns:

Till

Tin

For

this date

the testimony of

TDn

niMBn

TTiB

of the Kabbalah

some of the

{i.e.,

earliest

Thus R. Joseph

Kabbalists themselves.

1160-1190) we have

and most b.

intelligent

Abraham

(born about 1247. and died 1307) most distinctly

Gikatilla

tells

us that

R. Isaac the Blind, of Posquiers (flour, circa 1190-1210), the teacher of R. Azariel, was the this theosophy.''''

first

who taught

the doctrines of

R. Bechja b. Asher, another Kabbalist who

lived soon after this system

tary on the Pentateuch,

was made known,

in his

commen-

which he composed A.D. 1291,

R. Isaac the Blind, as the Father of the Kabbalah.^

Tob

Abraham Ibn Gaon (born 1283), another

styles

Shem ancient

Kabbalist, in attempting to trace a Kabbalistic explanation of

a passage in the Bible to

its

fountain head, goes back to

R. Isaac as the primary source, and connects him immediately with the prophet Elias,

who

said

have revealed the

naa •» tdo nyna nwso ntap rfnfiwa D'oarm ilw ni'n to utmj Tfap aa [sn'p«jiDa«]iinpi3«)DrPQM'T»Tii?rTpiin3<3Dpns' iTonn This passagn from Oikatilla's rmnnoTTD wliich is contained in Vloaes de Leon's munn iOB3n "WD is der quoted by Qraetz, OetehicMe Judtn, vol. vii, p. 411. 'ans'TT

38 ntapn <3m "nrn 'JO pnr 1811.

Comp. Commentary on Pmoope n^vn ed. Lemberg,

181 mysteries of this theosophy to this corypheus of the Kahbalah.**

Whilst the author of the Kftbbalistic work entitled /13"iyD

Solomon b. Abraham b. Adereth A.D. 1260), frankly declares that " the doctrine of the

/lin7t* the contemporary of R. (flour.

En Soph

and the ten Sephiroth

neither to be found in the

Law, Prophets, or Hagiographa, nor in the writings of the Rabbins of blessed memory, but ore scarcely perceptible." It has indeed

upon signs which

rests solely

been supposed that covert allusions

Sephiroth are to be found in the Talmud.

to the

If this could be

proved, the date of the Kabbalah would have to be altered from the twelfth to the second or third century after Christ.

examination, however, of the passage in question, upon which this

opinion

The

passage is as follows

the

name

based, will

show how thoroughly

— " The Rabbins

it is.

first

of twelve letters was communicated to every one,

but when the profane multiplied,

was only communicated

the most pious of the priests, and these pre-eminently

pious priests absorbed chant.

from

the orchestra in the

Temple

their fellow priests in

Turphon

It is recorded that R.

bending forward it

fanciful

propound. At

after

name of Rab,

the divine

name

the

once went up

maternal uncle, and,

ear to a priest, I heard

from his fellow priests in the chant.

the

said, I

how he absorbei

R. Jehudah said in

of forty-two letters

only communicated to such as are pious, not easily provoked,

uot given to drinking, and are not self opinionated.

He who

24 In his Snper-Coniineiitary mi Nacliuiaoides' Treatise on Seorets, (niTiD ^SO'^n) entitled alio vm ins or lim DW "IBD Shew Tob Ibn Goou on Pericope rfncn piDB wtd <3 'CO en Min remarks as follows irp^ IS [V'3»n] nn p prw 'TW trisr In another Kabbalistic work, entitled 'nayn ynDi^nxma which he comon<D nan nsiTjD '»»<iw 'ni NTiw 'm nnjnn pleted at Tafet in 13St, lie siiys— mVDnn witd •arh tnw H'mm rrtap 'o These two -iin: '3D pns' 'no i')ii?» ids • • worts are still in MS, and the quotations are given in Cbrmoly's Itintmri», vol. vii, p. 445. p. 376, and in Graetz's Geachiclite der Jiideii,

•

\!i"T

mVi Dwaja x'n mina vh no-i «3'» M-vn fOM r|iD )'>«n <3 sti 85 rmivn "toa la i^ap ]« Comp. mrrtHnaiSo cap. vii, 82 b, ed. Mantun, 1688,

naia x^t d'iwm

T01 nsp

182

knows

name and

this

preserves

in pui'ity> is beloved above,

cherished beloWj respected by every creature, and

both worlds

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;the World that now

{Babylon Kiddushin,

is,

Upon

a.)

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;"Now every-

knows that the forty-two

iortelligence

cannot possibly make one word, and that they must

have composed several words.

words conveyed certain

man

ideas,

There

celebrated

the

this

Maimonides (born 1135, died 1804) remarks one who has any

is heir

to come."

and the world

letters

therefore

no doubt that these

which were designed

to bring

nearer to the true conception of the Divine essence,

These words,

through the process we have already described.

composed of numerous name, because

letters,

have been designated us a single

names they

like all accidental proper

one single object

and

;

make

the object

many words

several words are employed, as

indicate

intelligible

are sometimes

This must be well under-

used to express one single thing.

by these names,

stood, that they taught the ideas indicated

and not the simple pronunciation of the meaningless Neither the divine name composed of twelve

one of forty-two

Mephorash

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

letters,

ever obtained the

letters.

nor the

of Stiem

title

Ha-

of the particular

being the designation

this

letters,

name, or the Tetragrammaton, as we have already propounded.

to the

two former names, they assuredly convey a certain

metaphysical lesson, and there contained a lesson of this kind

Talmud with regard very holy, and &c., &c., &c.'

proof that one of them

;

for the

The name

Eabbins say in the

of forty-two letters

only communicated to such as are pious,

Thus

far the

Talmud.

the meaning of their author

words

But how remote from

the sense attached to these

Forsooth most people believe that

simply by

the pronunciation of the mere letters, without any idea being

attached to them, that the sublime things are to be obtained,

and

tliat

is for

them that those moral

that great preparation are requisite.

But

qualifications it is

and

evident that

183 the design of

all this is to convey certain metaphysical ideas which constitute the mysteries of the divine Law as we have

already explained. that

it is

shewn

It is

in the metaphysical Treatises

impossible to forget science

tion of the active intellect

— and

remark in the Talmud,

forty-two letters

— I speak of the percep-

this is the

whom

[to

meaning of the

the divine

communicated] retains what he

It is this passage, as well as Maimonides' it,

which led the erudite Franck

mysteries of

of "'"

comment upon

to the conclusion that the

Kabbalah were known

the

name

learns.'

to the doctors

the Talmud, and that the forty-two letters composing the

name are Vav conjunctive

divine

the ten Sephiroth, which,

forty-two letters, as follows ft

-f

niD'1 jiid'jd

Tin

But Franck,

many

.^+4+4

3= 42

noan iriD

nj'-a

other writers, confounds mysticism

That the Jews had an extensive mysticism,

embracing theosophy with ology, as well

mxsin nmna n"?™

rtso

with Kabbalah.

by supplying the

before the last Sephira, consist exactly of

its collateral

angelology and uran-

magic, long before the

as christology and

development of the Kabbalah, and that there were a certain class of people

who

specially devoted themselves to the study

of this mysticism, and

(/lUISK wV^H),

the Jewish literature.

of the Lord

who

styled themselves

evident from a

"Mew

of Faith"

most cursory glance

Based upon the remark

— " The secret

with them that fear him, and he will show them

his covenant," (Ps. xxv, 14,)

some of the most distinguished

Jewish doctors in the days of Christ, and afterwards, claimed an attainment of superhuman knowledge, communicated to

them

either

the prophet 3

by a voice from heaven

{Baba Mezia, 59

;

(zip JIS)

10 a; Sanhedrin, 48 b; Nidda, 20 b

36 Oomp. More Nebuchim, part

1, cap. Izii.

by Elias

Sabbath, 77 b; Chagiga, ;

Joma, 9

b).

184

The sages had (n''t£^«"13

hexahemeron

also secret docti-ines about the

nW^)

and the Vision of Ezekiel

Theosophy

(n33")D nvyO), "which were only communioated dents of courts of justice and those 12 a

heart" (Chaff i^a,

— 16

who were

Coeven with

a).

to presi-

of a careful this are

the

mysteries connected with the different letters of the several

names [Kiddushin, 71

divine

worthy 'call

new

into existence

vegetable

kingdom

Sanhedrin, drive

Those who were deemed

a).

any moment

to be admitted into these secrets could at

vii)

out evil

;

creations

{Sanhedrin,

either in

67 b

they could fly in the

spirits,

the animal or

air,

;

Jerusalem

heal the sick,

and suspend the laws of nature, by

and commutations of the

sundry mystical transpositions

composing the divine names, which they wrote down on slips of vellum or pieces of paper and called " amulets"

letters

(/IVDp). began

This mysticism and the literature embodying

to develop themselves

fully

and

to spread

extensively from the end of the eighth and the

ment of

the ninth centuries.

commence-

Towards the close of the eighth

century came into existence

The celebrated mystical work entitled the Alphabet of Rabbi Akiba, which alternately treats each letter of the Hebrew Alphabet as representing an idea as an abbreviation for a word (^IpHtSU), and as the symbol of some sentiment, 1.

according to

its

peculiar form, in order to attach to those

letters moral, theoanthropic, angelogical

and mystical notions.

This work has recently been reprinted

irl

Jellinek's

Beth Ha-Midrash, yo\.

iii,

two recensions in

12-^64, Leipzig, 1865.

2. The Book of Enoch which describes the glorification of Enoch and his transformation into the angel Metatron, regarding him as lllOpn T'll^ the Minor Deity, in contradistinction to bnjn T'lT the Great God and which was originally a

constituent part of the Alphabet of R. Akiba.

in Jellinek's

1868.

Beth Ha-Midrash,

vol.

ii,

It is reprinted

pp. 114-117.

Leipzig,

185 3..

Kama

Shiur

(HDIp

or the Dimensions of the

T1i?''iy),

Deity, which claims to be a revelation from the angel Metatron to R. Islimael,

and describes the size of the body nnd thj

sundry members of the Deity.

It is

Amsterdam, 1701, and 4.

The Palaces

throne

(n23ian

Worms,

This mystical document opens

who

are

worthy

to see the chariot

n^'BS), declaring that they

happens and whatever he who oifends them

printed

Warsaw, 1812.

(rm''y'X\).

with an exaltation of those

know whatever

about to happen in the world

be severely punished

will

Book

given in the

Raziel (^K'n ISO) of Eleazer b. Jehudah of

;

that

;

and that they

are so highly distinguished as not to be required to rise before

any owe except a king, a high

priest,

and the Sanhedrim.

then celebrates the praises of Almighty throne

;

describes

the

chariot throne (n33")0) the martyrs and the the angels,

adjured.

God and

dangers connected with seeing this ;

gives an episode from the history of

Roman emperor

Lupinus, a description of

and of the sundry formulae wherewith they

Whereupon

his chariot

a description

follows

heavenly palaces, each of which

the

are

seven

guarded by eight angels,

and into which the student of the mysterious chariot throne

may

transpose himself in order to learn

tion of the formulee

virtue of

all

mysteries, a descrip-

which these angelic guards

are obliged to grant admission into the celestial palaces, and

who The document then concludes

of the peculiar qualifications of those into

them.

some hymns

desire to enter

with detailing

of praise, a conversation between God, Israel,

and the angels about those mysteries, a knowledge of which

makes man suddenly learned without any

trouble,

and with

a description of this mystery, which consists in certain prayers

and charms.

This mystical production has also been

printed in Jellinek's

valuable

Beth Ha-Midrash,

vol.

reiii,

pp. 83-108.

These mystical

treatises constitute the centre

around which

186 claster all the productioDs of this school,

came

into existence in the course of

hecame the

which gradually

So numerous

time.

disciples of mysticism in the twelfth century,

and so general became the

belief in their

miraculous cures, driving out

evil

power of performing

by virtue

spirits, &c., &c.,

of charms consisting of the letters composing the divers divine

names transposed and commuted in mystical forms, Maimonides found it necessary to denounce

that the celebrated

" which

the system.

have one divine name only," says he,

not derived from His attributes,

grammaton,

for

which reason

it is

called

the Tetra-

viz.,

Shem Ha-Mephorash

Believe nothing else, and give no credence to

(tt'^^^D^ UID).

the nonsense of the writers of charms and amulets (^^illJ

JIWDpn),

what they

tell

you or

what you find in

foolish writings about the divine names,

their

which they invent

without any sense, calling them appellations of the Deity {tWOV}), and affirming that they require Jioliness and purity

and perform miracles.

man

will

not listen to them,

{More Nebuchim,

But by

is to

knows

much

a sensible

less believe in them."

61.)

this mysticism, with its

later Kabbalists

perfectly distinct

and

All these things are fables

thaumaturgy, though espoused

and incorporated into their writings,

from the Kabbalah in

its first it

has no system,

Soph, the ten

be distinguished by the fact that

nothing of the speculations of the

and pure form,

Sephiroth, the doctrine of emanations, and the four worlds, which are the essential and peculiar elements of the Kabbalah.

Franck's ingenious hypothesis, based upon the same

number of letters

constituting a divine name, mentioned in the

Talmud, and the ten Sephiroth, we can only say that the Kabbalists themselves never claimed this far-fetched identity,

and that Ignatz Stern has shown {Ben Chananja, that the

Sohar

in the Bible,

itself takes the ten divine

which

enumerated in

vol.

iii,

p. 261),

names mentioned

iii,

11a, and which

187 it makes to correspond to the ten Sephiroth, name composed of forty-two letters, viz.

to be the sacred

2+8+

+4+5 +2+5+3+4+3+4 =

?» JT1X2S

»jn» 'n

tit

niT* on"?** •?»

rT* r^'^r^vi

"h£;n

h^hn

Having ascertained its date, we now come to the oriffin of Nothing can be more evident than that the

the Kabbalah.

cardinal and distinctive tenets of the Kabbalah in

its

original

form, as stated at the beginning of the second part of this

Any doubt upon this must be relinquished when the two systems are comThe very expression En Soph (*^1D ^^^*) wliich the

Essay, are derived from Neo-Platonism. subject

pared.

Kabbalah uses foreign,

The

and

designate the Incomprehensible One,

speculations about the

actual being, thinking and

Flatonic

Soph, that he

candidly

tells

we have seen,

superior to

knowing, are thoroughly Neo-

{iiriKciva ohaias, ivepylag, vov

whose work,

evidently an imitation of the Greek 4ir«poc.

the

yai vanataq)

;

and R. Azariel,

Kabhalistic production,

first

us that in viewing the Deity as purely negative,

and divesting him of

he followed the opinion of

all attributes,

the philosophers.*' When R. Azariel moreover tells us that " the En Soph can neither be comprehended by the intellect,

nor described in words

;

for there is

letter or

word which can

grasp him," we have here almost the very words of Proclus,

who

tells

{to ev)

us that, " although he

or the

first,

generally called the unity

would be better

no name were given

—

him for there is no word which can depict his nature he is (Theol. (ipfJip-oc, ayviDOTOQ), the inexpressible, the unknown." ;

Plat,

ii,

6.)

The Kabbalah propounds that the En Soph, not being an object of cognition, made his existence known in the creation of the world by the Sephiroth, or Emanations, or Intelligences. 27

>rt

-pT to DM "3 laijwn px

the ten Sephiroth,

2 u.

onniMi ijia tr-nn npnon

'mm

Commentary

188 are divided in the

Kab-

balah into a trinity of triads respectively denominated

D7W

So Neo-PIatonism.

The Sephiroth

jDiyn the Intellectual World, ^^Ti D'jIV the Sensuous World,

and V^'QT^

D^W

the Material

World, which exactly corre-

sponds to the three triads of Neo-Platonism ipvate.

The Kabbalah

infinite

and

perfect,

I'oSs,

^vxVy and

teaches that these Sephiroth are both

and

finite

and imperfect, in so

far as the

source from which they emanate imparts or withholds his fulness from them. Neo-Platonism also teaches that " every

emanation, though Jess perfect than that from which nates, has yet a similarity with

goes, remains in

it,

departing from

but as far as possible being one with

Even

ema-

so far as

it it

it is

unlike,

and remaining in

it."''''

the comparison between the emanation of the Sephiroth

from the

describe the

same

and, so far as this similarity

Soph, and the rays proceeding from light to

immanency and

perfect unity of the two, is the

as the Neo-Platonic figure

emanations from one principium

employed (0/01-

to illustrate the

kx ipuTos ri)v tÂŁ avroi

irtpCKafii^iy

38 Proclus, Imt. Theol. 7, 81 ; Smith, DidM/nary of Biography and Mytliology, Âť.v. Fboolvs.

Roman and

Oreek

189

III.

now remains

for us to describe the development of the

Kabbalah, to point out the different schools into which

its

followers are divided, and to detail the literature which this

theosophy called into existence in the course of time. of this Essay

limits

demand

The

that this should be done as

briefly as possible.

The balah

great land is

mark

in the development of

theosophy into two periods,

this

and the post-SoAar period. ferent schools developed

Kab-

viz.,

the Tpte-Sohar period

During these two periods

I,â&#x20AC;&#x201D;THE

SCHOOL OF GEBONA,

the founders of

established the school in

dif-

themselves, which are classified by

the enidite historian, Dr. Graetz, as follows

fact that

the

the birth of the Sohar, which dividesi the history of

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

so called from the

were born in this place and

it.

this school,

which

the

cradle of the Kabbalah, belong

Isaac the Blind

(flour.

Father of the Kabbalah.

1190-1210), denominated the

His productions have become a

prey to time, and only a few fragments have survived as quotations in other theosophic works.

From

these

we learn that

he espoused the despised doctrine of metempsychosis as an article of creed,

could

tell

and that from looking into a man's

face,

whether the individual possessed a new soul from

the celestial world of spirits, or whether he had an old soul

which has been migrating from body accomplish

its

purity before its return to rest in

home. 1

Comp.

body and has

Oetclachte tUr Juden, vol.

vii, p.

IIC, &c.

its

still to

heavenly

190 2.

Ten

the

The Commentary on

Azariel and Ezra, disciples of Isaac the Blind.

former of these

the author of the celebrated

Sephiroth, which

the

Kabbalistic production,

first

and of which we have given an analysis in the second part of

Essay Cvide supra,

this

known beyond led

some

Of Ezra next

nothing

the fact that his great intimacy with Azariel

writers to identify the two names.

Jehudah

Kabbalists.

known

p. 176).

Jakar,

a contemporary of the foregoing

works of his have survived, and he

as the teacher of the celebrated

only

Nachmanides and from

being quoted as a Kabbalistic authority. 4.

Moses Nachmanides,

bom

Gerona about 1196, the

pupil of -Azariel, Ezra, and Jehudah Ibn Jakar.

conversion of this remarkable and famous Talmudist

newly-born Kabbalah which gave to

was the to this

an extraordinary im-

portance and rapid spread amongst the numerous followers of It is related that, notwithstanding

Nachmanides,

of his teachers,

efforts

adverse to this system

most exerted himself ill

;

him on

at first

all

the

was .decidedly

and that one day the Kabbalist who

to convert

fame and condemned

to visit

Nachmanides

him was caught

to death.

in a house of

requested Nachmanides

the Sabbath, being the day fixed for his exe-

cution and when Nachmanides reproved him ;

for his sins, the

Kabbalist declared that he was innocent, and that he would

appear at his house on this very day, after the execution, and partake with him the Sabbath meal.

proved true to his

promise, as by means of the Kabbalistic mysteries he effected that,

and an ass was executed

in his stead,

and he himself was

suddenly transposed into Nachmanides' house.

From

that

time Nachmanides avowed himself a disciple of the Kabbalah,

and was initiated into an account of which 3 vil,

VUe Ibn Jaohja, 88, &c.

ils mysteries.''

will

ShaUlieleth

His numerous writings,

be found in Alexander's edition of Ha-Kdbhalah ; Onetz, GeschicMe der Juden,

191 Kitto's Oyolopsedia, under

Nachmanides,

the tenets of this system.

In the Introduction to his Com-

mentary on the Pentateuch he remarks faithful tradition that the

names

D'n?^

Thus

may be

t**U/1'

;

for the

possess

the

may be

words

in another sense, so that

as an allegory. Gein.

— " We

whole Pentateuch consists of names

of the Holy One, blessed be he into sacred

are pervaded with

words— D»n^« NIS

divided

be taken

n^tt^Nni in

redivided into other words, ex. gr. V^'^'2,

manner is the whole Pentateuch, which

consists of nothing but transpositions anji numerals of divine

names."' 5.

The Treatise on

tlie

Emanations

(ni^Jt><

nSCS), sup-

posed to have been written by R. Isaac Nasir in the

first

half

The following is an analysis of this Based upon the passage " Jaresiah and ij^iah production. and Zichri, the sons of Jeroham" (1 Chj'on. viii, 27), which names the Midrash assigns to the prophet Eliah {Shemoth of the twelfth century.

Rabba, cap.

—

prophet

xl), this

introduced as speaking and

teaching under the four names of Eliah

Joseph, Zecfaariah

stated that the secret

Josep, Jaresiah b.

Joseph and Jeroham

Having

Joseph.

and profounder views of the Deity

are

only to be communicated to the God-fearing, and that none

but the pre-eminently pious can enter into the temple of this higher gnosis, the prophet Ellas propounds the system of this secret doctrine, I.

God

which consists in the following maxims

at first created light

aud darkness, the one

for the

pious and the other for the wicked, darkness having come to pass by the divine limitation of light. destroyed sundry worlds, which,

likfi

II.

God produced and

ten trees planted

a narrow space, contend about the sap of the soil,

perish altogether.

mp^no

'irnrro n"spn

and

upon

finally

Hi. God manifested himself in four worlds, "tid

vniniD rrt»

jmro

ta 'j

now

'ronSjp

mm JIM nrinR mri* fmf ivwu-ii pwo o ^iwo T" 'n -mmn •rmw Vo

jirnTTOO*:!

pen's

late

wts

I'lto

«• iis 3

inn r:M nin«A

mmn tai

dtiSi vrar!

192 viz.

Atzilah, Beriah, Jetzira and Asiah, corresponding to

the Tetragrammaton

mn\

In the Attilatic luminous worlds

In the Briatic world are

the divine majesty, the Shechinah.

the souls of the saints, all the blessings, the throne of the

Deity, he

who

of God, the

sits

first

in the form of Achtenal (the

crown

Sephu-a), and the seven different luminous

and splendid regions. In the JeUinttic world are the sacred animals from the vision of Ezekiel, the ten. classes of angels with their princes,

who are

presided over by the fiery Metatron,

the spirits of men, and the accessory work of the divine

In the Asiatic world are the Ophanim, the angels

chariot.

who

receive the prayers,

man, who -

who

struggle against evil, and

prince Synandelphon.

who

carry on the

who

are presided over

by the angelic

IV. The world was founded in wisdom

and understanding (Prov, originated

are appointed over the will of

control the action of mortals,

fifty

iii,

0),

and God in

gates of understanding.

his

God

knowledge created the

world by means of the ten Sephiroth, which are both the agencies and qualities of the Deity. called

The

ten Sephiroth are

Crown, Wisdom, Intelligence, Mercy, Fear, Beauty,

Victory, Majesty and

Kingdom

they are ideal and stand

above the concrete world."* 6.

Jacob ben Sheshet of Gerona

a Kabbalistio Treatise in

rhymed

(flour.

1243).

wrote

prose, entitled D^Dtyn

the Gate of Heaven, after Gen. xxviii,

17.

was

"W^ first

published by Gabriel VVarshawer in his collection of eight Kabbalistio Essays, called rb:i^)^ D'lDIp'? nSD. Warsaw, 1798. It forms the third Essay in this collection, entitled 3110

now been

DÂť

and

erroneously

'Dlp^ the Collection of Shein Tob.

published under

its

proper

title,

It has

from a codex by

4 This remnrkable Trentise win Brat pnblislied byR. Abraham, Vilua, 1802; was then reprinted with all its faulti in lieinberg, 1S30. The erudite and indefatigable Dr. Jellinek has now reprinted it in his AmwalU Icabbalisluiher Myttik, part i, Leipzig, J853, and the above analysis is from the Introduction to

this excellent edition.

]93

Mordeoai Mortera, in the Hebrew Essays and Reviews, entitled Ozar Nechmad (IDTO ISIK) vol. iii, p. ]53,&o. Vienna, 1860.

The characteristic school, is that

feature of ihis school, which is the creative

for the first time established

the doctrine of the

En Soph

(S|1D

]

and developed

N) the Sephirofh (/nt'SD)

or Einanations, metempsychosis

(niayn TD) with the doctrine of retribution (^IDjn niD) belonging thereto, and a peculiar ohristology, whilst

subordinate in

II.â&#x20AC;&#x201D;THE it

the Kabbalistic

mode of

exegesis is

still

it.

SCHOOL OF SEGOVIA,

was founded by Jacob of Segovia, and

either natives of this place or lived in

it.

so called because its

disciples were

The

chief represen-

tatives of this school are 1,

Isaac,

and

Segovia, and 3,

Jacob, junior, the two

Moses

known by sundry fragments preserved 4.

circa

Todras 1305.

sons of Jacob

Simon of Burgos, who

are only

in Kabbalistic writings.

Joseph Ha-Levi Abulafia, born 1234, died

This celebrated Kabbalist occupied a distin-

guished position as physician and financier in the court of

Sancho IV, King of

Castile,

Queen Maria de Molina

;

and was a great favourite of

he formed one of the cortige when

this royal pair met Philip IV, tlie Fair, King of France in Bayonne (1290), and his advocacy of this theosophy secured His for the doctrines of the Kabbalah a kindly reception.

works on the Kabbalah are

mudio Hagadoth, Ps. xix, and (c)

{a)

Exposition of the Tal-

{b) A Commentary on Commentary on the Pentateuch, in which

entitled

IIIDH 1S1X,

he propounds the tenets of the Kabbalah. however, have not as yet been

These works,

printed.''

Shem Tob b. Abraham Ibn Gaon, born 1283, died circa 1832, who wrote many Kabbalistic works. 6. Isaac of Akko (flour. 1290) author of-the Kabbalistic 6.

5 Steinechneider, Catahgus Lihr. Hebr. in Bibliotheca Bodleiana, 2677-2680. Oraetz, Gesehichte der Juden, vU, 218, &c.

194

Commentary on

Pentateuch, entitled

the

wyy JTTKD

not

yet printed, with the exception of an extract published by Jellinek.'

The

characteristic of this

and

exegesis,

school

that it is devoted to

disciples endeavoured to interpret the Bible

its

and the Hagada in accordance with the doctrines of the Kabbalah.

III.â&#x20AC;&#x201D;THE QUASI-PHILOSOPHIC SCHOOL of Isaac Abraham IbnLatif, or AUatif. He was born about 270and 1

Believing that to view Judaism from an

died about 1390.

exclusively philosophical stand-point does not

way

shew " the right

to the sanctuary," he endeavoured to combine philosophy

with Kabbalah.

laid greater stress than his predecessors

on the close connection and intimate union between the and material world, between the Creator and the

spiritual

creation

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; God

The human

in all and everything is in him.

soul rises to the world-soul in earnest prayer, and unites itself

therewith

down

in a kiss,' operates

upon the Deity and brings But as every

a divine blessing upon the nether world.

mortal

not able to

offer

tive prayer, the prophets,

such a

spiritual

who were

the

and divinely opera-

most perfect men, had

pray for the people, for they alone knew the power of

Isaac Allalif illustrated the unfolding and self-reve-

prayer.

the world of spirits by mathematical

lation of the Deity in

The mutual

forms.

relation

thereof

the

same

as that of

the point extending and thickening into a line, the line into the

the flat into the expanded body.

flat,

Henceforth the

Kabbalists used points and lines in their mystical diagrams as

much

as they

employed the numerals and

letters

of the

alphabet.'

IV.

THE SCHOOL OF ABULAFIA,

Abraham ben Samuel

founded

Abulnfia, is represented

6 Comp. Beitrage ziir Gexchichte der Kahbnln, von Adolph JelUnek, j)art Leipzig, ISS'J, p. xiii, &e. 7 Comp. Oraelz, Ot$cMchle drr Judeit, vol, m, p. S21, &c.

ii,

195 1.

Abulafia, the founder of

in 1240,

it,

and died circa 1293.

"who was boin at Saragossa

For

thirty years he devoted

himself to the study of the Bible, the Talmud, philology, philosophy, and medicine, making himself master of the philosophical writings of Saadia, Bachja b. Joseph, Maimonides,

and Antoli, as well as of the Kabbalistic. works which were then in existence.

Finding no comfort in philosophy, he

gave himself entirely to the mysteries of the Kabbalah in their

most

fantastic extremes,

The

of the Sephiroth he simply regarded as

Through

the Christian three unity.

doctrine of

the, ordinary

the Sephiroth did not satisfy him.

ordinary doctrine

ten unity instead of

divine inspiration, he

discovered a higher Kabbalah, by means of which the soul

can not only hold the most intimate communion with the world-soul, but obtain the prophetic faculty. intercourse with the world of spirits, which

The simple effected by

separating the words of Holy Writ, and especially those of the divine name, into letters, and by regarding each letter as a distinct

word

(11p'"l!013),

or by transposing the compo-

nent parts of words in every possible way to obtain thereby peculiar expressions (*Y1TS), or

word

by taking the

letters of

as numerals. (S'lIOOJ), is not sufficient

each

To have

the

prophetic faculty and to see visions ought to be the chief aim,

and these are secured by leading an ascetic all

life,

by banishing

worldly feelings, by retiring into a quiet closet, by dressing

oneself in white apparel, by putting on the fringed garment

and the phylacteries; by

sanctifj'ing the soul so as to be

hold converse with the Deity

;

by pronouncing the

fit

letters

composing the divine name with certain modulations of the voice and divine pauses

;

by exhibiting

the divine

names

various diagrams under divers energetic movements, turaings,

and bendings of the body, heart

filled

till

with fervour.

the voice gets confused and the

When

one bus gone through

these practices and is in such a condition, the fulness of the

196

Godhead

human

shed abroad in the

soul

the soul then

unites itself with the divine soul in a kiss, and prophetic revelations follow as a matter of coarse.

He in

went

which

to Italy, published, in

records

his

Urbino (1279), a prophecy, with

conversations

the

Deity,

himself Baziel and Zechariah, because these name?

calling*

are numerically the

preached

had a

the

call

same as of

doctrines

from

God

own name, Abraham,^ and

his

Kabbalah.

the

to convert the

1281

Pope, Martin IV,

.to

Judaism, for which he was thrown into prison, and narrowly escaped a martyr's death by refused to embrace Sicily,

Seeing that his Holiness

fire.

the Jewish

accompanied by several of his

God was

another revelation from

nouncing 1284.

him

Abulafia went to

religon,

disciples.

In Messina

vouchsafed to him,

an-

was the Messiah, which he published'

that he

This apocalypse also announced that the restoration

of Israel would take place in 1296; and so great was the faith

which the people reposed in

it,

that thousands prepared

themselves for returning to Palestine.

Those, however,

did not believe in the Messiahship and in the

who

Kabbalah of

Abulafia, raised such a violent storm of opposition against

him, that he had to escape to the island of Comino, near

Malta (circa 1288), where he remained

for

some

time,

and

wrote sundry Kabbalistic works.

His Kabbalistic system may be gathered from the following analysis of his Rejoinder to B.

Solomon ben Abraham ben

Adereth, who attacked his doctrines and Messianic as well as " There are,'' says Abulafia, " four prophetic pretensions. sources of knowledge

maxims

;

generally

—

The

five senses,

or experimental

maxims III, The acknowledged maxims, or consensus communis

II,

Abstract numbers or a priori

;

8 Thia will be seen from the reduction of the respectiTe names to their numerical ' 10 value by the rule Geraairia, viz. M 1 b 30 1 7 T 200 := 248

—

+ + + + 10 + 1 800 + 3 SO + 7 andD40 + n6 + I 800+ 1i + »»1 :

=: 248

248.

i07

The

and rv. Transmitted doctrines or traditional maxims. Kabbalistio tradition, -which goes back to Moses,

is divisible

into two parts, the first of which is superior to the second in value, but subordinate to

part

in the order of study.

The

first

occupied with the knowledge of the Deity, obtained by

means of the doctrine of the Sephiroth, as propounded in the Book JeUira. The followers of this part are related to those philosophers

who

strive to

know God from

his works,

and the

Deity stands before them objectively as a light beaming into These, moreover, give to the Sephiroth

their understanding.

sundry names to serve as signs for recognition this class diifer

but

little

and some of

;

from Christians, inasmuch as they

substitute a' decade for the triad, which they identify with

God, and which they learned in the school of Isaac the Blind.

The second and more important part strives to know God by means of the twenty-two letters of the alphabet, from which, the vowel points and accents, those sundry

together with

names

divine

are combined, which elevate the Kabbalists to

the degree of prophecy, drawing out their spirit, it

be united with

This

God and

gradually effected in

and causing

become one with the Deity. The ten the following manner. to

Sephiroth sublimate gradually to the upper Sephira, called thought, crown, or primordial air, which

the root of

the other Sephiroth, and reposes in the creative

In the same manner one, and

all

Soph.

the numerals are to be traced back to

the trees, together with their roots

and branches,

are converted into their original earth as soon as they are

thrown into the

fire.

the ten Sephiroth, consisting of

upper, middle and lower, correspond the letters of the alphabet,

which are divided into three rows of ten

letters

each,

the final letters inclusive, beginning and ending with Aleph as well as the loins,

human

body, with

testicles, liver, heart, brain,

higher unity and become

its all

;

head, the two arms, of which unite into

one in the active vove, which in its

198 turn again unites itself with God, as the unity to which every-

thing must return.

The

ten Sephiroth are after a higher conception, to he

traced to a higher triad, which correspond to the letters

Akph,

Beth, Gimmel, and the three principles combined in man, the vital in the heart, the vegetable in the liver,

and the pleasurable

in the brain, and also form themselves in a higher unity. is in

this

way

thAt the Kabbalist

prophetic Kabbalah

may

who

gradually concentrate

which piirpose the ideas developed

from the permutations

upon which

as steps

all

into the

his powers

God, and unite himself with the Deity,

direct to one point to

for

is initiated

numbers and

of.

unbroken sequence,

letters, will serve

him

to ascend to God."Â°

Abulafia wrote no less than twenty-six grammatical, exegetimystical and Kabbalistic works, and twenty-two prophetic

cal,

treatises.

And though

these productions are of great im-

portance to the history of the literature and development of the Kabbalah, yet only two of them, viz., the above-named

Epistle to R. Solomon and the Epistle to R. Abraham, entitled the Seven Paths

Law (imnn

of the

myni

y^lO), have as

yet been published. 2.

Joseph Gikatilla

Abulafia.

the

He wrote in

following

works

Abraham

(flour.

1260), disciple of

the interests and defence of this school

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Kabbalistic work

entitled

the

Garden of Nuts (tUM DOJ), consisting of three parts, and treating respectively on the import of the divine names, on the mysteries of It

the

Hebrew

letters,

was published at Hanau,

and on the vowel

1015.

ii.

points.

The import of

the

vowel points entitled the Book on Voicels (llp'jn 130), or the Gate to the Points (Tlp'jn "^VVf), published in lection

'.)

seven

treatises,

called

the

col-

Cedars of Lebanon

This Epistle of Abularui has beeu published by Jellinek in his Aiiaivahl Mystik, yait i, p. 13, ke., Leipzig, 1853, who also gives the imalysiia, which vl Lave translated as literally as possible.

kahtalislincliir

nboTe

190

VIK), Venice, 1601, and Cracow, 1648, of which

(pan'?

the

third

treatise,

iii.

The

Mtjstery of the Shining

Metal (^Dt£?nn 11D), being a Kabbalistio exposition of the first

chapter of Ezekiel, also published in the preceding seven

which it (mii* nyc;), being a treatises, of

the ten

Sephiroth,

first

iv. The Gate of Light on the names of the Deity and

the fourth,

treatise

published in Mantua, 1561;

Riva de Treuto, 1561 ; Cracow, 1600. Knorr von Kosenroth is given in the Solzbach, 1077-78.

D(?««<rfa/a,

ness (pljt nyE'), on the ten divine

A Latin version first

(nmo)

part of the Cabbala

The Galen of Righteousnames answering to the

ten Sephiroth, published at Riva de Trento, 1501. teries

then

vi.

Mys-

connected with sundry Pentateuchal ordinances,

published by Jechiel Ashkenazi in bis Temjile of the Lord (nin» byrt), Venice and Dantzic, 1596- 1006. ">

From

the above description

teristic features

lay

will

be seen that the charac-

of this school are the stress which

its

followers

on the extensive use of the exegetical rules called Gematria

(NnJ3DJ), Notaricon (lIpnBIJ), and Ziruph {^r\%, in the exposition of the divine the claim to prophetic that in this

names and Holy Writ,

gifts,

as well as in

It must, however, be

remarked

employment of commutations, permutations and

reduction of each letter in every word to

its

numerical value,

Abulafia and his followers are not original.

THE SOHAR SCHOOL,

which

a combination and

absorption of the different features and doctrines of

all

the

previous schools, without any plan or method.

Less than a century after its birth the Kah known among Christians through the restless Eaymond Lully, the celebrated scholastic meta-

1236-1315.

balah became efforts

physician and experimental chemist. This Doctor illuminatus, as

he was

styled, in

consequence of his great learning and

10 Cotnp. Jellinek, Beitmge zur Ge$chicMe der Kahhala, part ii, p. 60, &c, Steinschaeiiler, CatalogufLibr. Hebr. in Bibliotlieca Bodle'mna, Col. 146I-I470,

200 piety,

was boru about 1236

Pulma, in the island of Majorca.

relinquished the military service and writing erotic poetry

when about

thirty,

and devoted himself

the

Being inspired with an ardent zeal

theology.

version of the

Mohammedans and

study of

for the con-

the Jews to Christianity,

he acquired a knowledge of Arabic and Hebrew for this In pursuing his Hebrew studies Lully became

purpose.

acquainted with the mysteries of the Kabbalah, and, instead of converting his Kabbalistic teachers, he embraced the doctrine of " the identity of the Deity is

very

their

little

and nature

;""

and there

doubt that the Kabbalistic method of palming

notions on the text of Scripture, by means of

the

Gemalria, Noluricoii and Ziruph, suggested to him the invention of th? Great Art (Aes Magna). to

be wondered at that he had the

Kabbalaji, that he regarded

genuine revelation whose light

loftiest

Africa

tcr

for after

conception of the

as a divine science is

and as a

revealed to a rational soul.'^

It cannot be said that Lully derived as

Mohammedans,

It is therefore not

making

much

benefit from the

three perilous journeys to

bring the sons of Ishmael to the truth of Christianity,

he was stoned to death by them, June 30, 1316.

The new

era in the development of the Kabbalah, created

by the appearance of the

So/tar, has continued to the present

day, for nearly all those

who have

trines of this theosophy

since espoused the doc-

have made the Sohar their text-book,

and the principal writers have contented themselves more or less with writing commentaries on this gigantic pseudonym.

1290-1350. Foremost among these

Menahem

di Becanti,

who was bom in Eecanti (Latin Becinetum) .about 1290. He wrote, when about forty years of age (1330), a commentary 11 Cooip. Tennemann, GeachichU der PlUloiophie, vol. viii. p. H37. 12 Bicitur haec doctriua Kabbala quod idem est secundam Hebraeos ut receptio veritatis cujuslibet rei diviuitus revelatae animae rationali Est igitur Kabbala habitus anima rationalis ex rectSl ratione divinatum rerum cognitivus propter quod est de maximo etiam diidno cons quntive diviila scieutia vocari debet. Comp. J7e Audita Kabbalittico, live ad amna tcientUa introdutorium. Strasburg, 1051.. ,

201

on the Pentateuch, which Jacob

—which was

Chajim

than a commentary on

is little else

This commentary

the Sohar.

first

published by

Bomberg's celebrated printing

establish-

ment, Venice, 1523, then again, ibid, 1645, and in Luhlin,

1696

— has been translated into Latin by the famous Pico della

Mirandola.'^

At the beginning of the fourteenth century Joseph Abraham Ibn Wakkar (flour. 1290-1340) endeavoured to

1320. b.

reconcile this theosophy with philosophy, and to

end

this

wrote a Treatise on the cardinal doctrines of the Kabbalah,

which

regarded as one of the best

and a MS. of which

not the best intro-

This production, which

ductory compendium.

unpublished,

exists in the Bodleian Library

(Codex

Land. 119; described by Uri No. 384), consists of four parts or Gales, subdivided into chapters, as follows

Gate

which

is entitled,

the views of the Kahhalists

respecting the Primari/ Cause, blessed be he, roth, as

names and

well as their

chapters, treating respectively

and

the Sephi-

order, consists of eight

on the fundamental doctrines

of the emanations of the Sephiroth from the First Cause, as transmitted from Abraham and indicated in the Bible and the

Eabbinic writings in Gematrias (cap. Sephiroth (cap.

ii)

;

on the unity of the

the relation of the Sephiroth to each other,

the First Cause itself being a trinity consisting of a threefold liirht, tiie

number of

the Sephiroth being from 10, 20, 30 and

of opinion so on up to 310, stating that there is a difference amongst the Kabbalists whether the Primary Cause is within or without the Sephiroth (cap. the Sephiroth (cap. iv)

and necessary to

how many

first

;

iii)

;

on the three worlds of

on the beginninglessness of the

first

Emanation, investigating the question as on

Sephiroth this property extends (cap. v)

;

published and unpublished, as well 13 For the other works of Recanti, both Uboura, we must refer to Steinschneider, .0 for the exnct cUte of his literary 1733-1737 ; and to Furst, Ca^logm iifrr. Hcbr. in BMioUuca Bodkiana. Col. 138. Bihliotheca Judaica, vol. iii, pp. 13»,

202 the subordination and order of the Sejthiroth and the dia-

grams, mentioning, in addition to

(cap. vi)

;

known

three

ones, the

on the names of the Deity and the angels derived

from the Sephiroth

(cap.

vii)

Sephiroth or Hells (DIBvp ones (cap.

Gate

tile

bridegroom and bride under the nuptial canopy

figure' of

)

on the unclean (demon)

;

and

their relation to the-

pure

viii).

II,

which

is entitled.

the iirfl.uence of the Sephi-

roth on the ffoverninent of the world (Providence J , consists of six chapters, treating respectively on the relation of the

Sephiroth

fundamental characteristics of Providence,

the

such as mercy, justice, &C; (nap.

;

on the corresponding

relations of the imclenn Sephiroth (cap.

ii)

their vicissitudes (cups,

iii

and

iv)

on the influence

;

of the Sephiroth on men, especially on the

Hebrew

Sephiroth wilhliolding this influence (cop. v) relation of the Sephiroth to the diiys of the

Gate III; which is entitled. On among the 'Kahhalintn, nnd which

race,

and

on the possibility of the

;

the is

and on the

;

week

(cap. vi).

names of the Sephiroth the most extensive part

of the work, consists of seven chapters, treating respectively

on the names of

tlie

^^^^* ntyX rrnhi (cap. 1); is

Peity, giving the sundry explanations of

current

among

on the names of the

the

Jewish philosophers

/*)<?/;//iVo//<,'sfating

no uniforin principle among the Kabbalists

lations are derived literati

;

the Kabbalists ns to the are to be interpreted, :

the

that there

that the appel-

from the Bible, the Talmud and

that the greatest diffcsrence

reliable guides

;

mode

of opinion prevails

later

among

which these ancient sources

recommending the following works

Talmud, Midrash Rabboth, Siphra, Siphri,

Bahir, Perakim of R. Kliezer, the opinions of Nachmanidcs

and Todros Hn-Levi Abulafia of honoured memory, but guarding against the Sohar, because " tlierein (cap. ii)

;

many

blunders occur

on the import of the names of the Sephi-

roth, with examples of interpretation of the Bible

and Talmud

203 to serve as aids for the student -who is to prosecute the

work

according to these examples, meutioning three exphtnatiuns of the word Sephira (cap.

iii)

in the Pentateuch (cap. iv)

;

on the divine names occurring

;

tlie

masculine and feminine

nature of the Sephiroth (cap. v) ;.this

by an alphabetical dictionary

of the

followed (cap. vi)

names of the Sephiroth,

giving under each letter the Biblical and the corresponding

Talmudio appellation appropriated by the Kabbalists to the Sephiroth

;

and

(cap. vii)

by an index of the names of each

Sephira in alphabetical order without any explanation.

Gate IV, which

entitled

the jJositive proofs of the

existence of the Kabbalah, describes the author's

own views

of the Kabbalistic system, and submits that the Kabbalist has a preference over the philosopher and astronomer by virtue of

maxim that he has a thorough knowledge who knows most details about it. Now the Kabba-

the acknowledged

of a thing lists

build their system upon the distinction of words, letters,

&c., &c., in the sacred writings

formularies

among

end they also explain certain

;

the Rabbins, which have undoubtedly a

recondite sense.'*

1370-1500.

During the fourteenth and

fifteenth centuries Its followers,

who

were chiefly occupied with the study of the Sohar, with

edit-

the

Kabbalah took deep root

in Spain.

ing some older works, and with writing Kabbalistic commentaries on the Bible, became more and more aggressive,

denouncing in unmeasured terms

their co-religionists

could not see the advantages of this secret doctrine.

Abraham

Isaac of Granada

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;who

who Thus

wrote (1391-1409) a

Kabbalistic work entitled T/te Covenant of Peace, discussing 14 The MS. of Ibn Wakknr's Treatise

minutely described by Uri (No 884J.

It is written in a character resembling the later G srmnn Hebrew, is furnished wilh references to the passages in the Bible and verbal translations in Latin, and

contains such clerical blunders as no Hebrew copyist \vould commit. The above analysis of it is taken from the article in Ersek iind Oriiber's Allgemeine Encyklopdd'u, section ii, vol. xxxi, p. 100, &c., written by the emdite Steinschneider. For the other Knbbalistic works of Ibn Wakkar we must refer lo the same elaborate article.

204 the mysteries of the

names of God and

the angels, of permu-

tations,

commutations, the vowel points and accents

that he

who does not acknowledge God

the Kabbalah sins unwittingly,

not regarded by God, has

abandoned and the

not his special providence, and, like the wicked,

is left

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; declares

manner of

in the

to fate."

Similar in import and^tone are the writings of

Shem Tob

Ibn Shem Tob (died 1430).

In his Treatise, entitled the

Book of

Faithfulness, which

an attack on the Jewish

philosophers Ibn Ezra, Maimonides, Levi

Gershon, &c.,

and a defence of the Kabbalah, Shem Tob denounces the students of philosophy as heretics, and maintains that the salvation of Israel depends

upon the Kabbalah.

He also wrote

Homilies on tbo Pentateuch, the Feasts and Fasts, &c., in

which the Kabbalistic doctrines are

Moses Botarel

fully propounded.'*

or Botax'elo, also a Spaniard, wrote at this

time (1409) his commentary on the famous

Booh

Jeteira, an

analysis of which is given in the foregoing part of this

(vide supra, p. 147, &c.)

Shem Tob,

his

Essay

Unlike Abraham of Granada and

two contemporary champions of the Kab-

balah, he praises philosophy, speaks of Aristotle as of a

prophet, and maintains that philosophy and the Kabbalah

propound exactly the same doctrines, and that they only diflfer

tary,

in language and in

which he wrote

technical terms.

this

Juan in the Kabbalah, Botarel shows how, by lutions, prayer,

commen-

to instruct the Christian scholar

Maestro

fasting, ab-

invocation of divine and angelic names, a

man may

have such dreams as shall disclose to him the

secrets

the future.

of.

In confirmation of his opinions he

quotes such ancient authorities as

Hai Gaon, 15 This

&c.,

whom

nmio nn3 baa been

the

Rab

Ashi, Saadia Gaon,

Kabbalah claims

as its

great

publisbed in Amsterdam, 1613.

16 The nf31?3M IDD consists of eleven parts, subdivided into- chapters,' and was published in Ferrara, 1557 the Homilies, entitled mirm bs Tmcm were first published in Venice, 1547, and then in Padua, 1567, ;

205 pillars." lived

It is almost needless to vemark that these men long before the birth of the Kabbalah, and that this

mode of palming comparatively modem opinions upon great men of remote ages, has also been adopted by advocates of other systems who were anxious to invest their views with the halo of antiquity.

As countrymen

of the foregoing writers, and as exponents

of the opinions of older Kabbalists, are

be mentioned

Jebudah Chajath who was among the large number of Jews expelled from Spain in 1493, and who wrote a commentary on the Kabbalistic work, entitled The Divine Order ;" (i)

and (ii) Abraham Ibn Sabba, who was banished with thousands of his brethren from Lisbon, 1499, and who is the author of a very extensive commentary on the Pentateuch, entitled

The Bundle of Myrrh,

which he largely

avails

himself of the Sohar and other earlier Kabbalistic works.'" 14G;J-1494.

became

partially

The Kabbalah, which soon after its birth known to Christians through Eayraond LuUy,

was now accessible

to Christian scholars

through the exertions

and influence of the famous Count John Pico (born in 1463).

Mirandola

This celebrated philosopher determined

fathom the mysteries of the Kabbalah, and

for this purpose

put himself under the tuition of a Jew, E. Jochanan Aleman,

who same

to Italy

difficulties

from Constantinople.

His extraordinary

powers soon enabled Mirandola

intellectual

and

overcome the

to unravel the secrets of this theoso'phy.

labours were greatly rewarded

;

for,

His

according to his shewing,'

17 Botarel's Comiaentary on the Book Jetzira was first published with the text of this book and other commentaries, Mantua, 1503 ; then ZoUdeT, 1745 '

and in Grodno, )806, 1820. is a Commentary on the irrtÂŤn n3"Âť0 was published in Ferrnra, 1.^08.

18 The rmrr nnjo which together with

The Commentary lion ins was

published at Constantinople, 1614; Pellican has translated this Commentary into Latin, und the MS. of this version is in the Zurich

tlieii

in Venice,

Library.

li'i'A,

1546, 1D66

;

first

and in Cracow 1595.

206 he found that*" there than Judaism

more Christianity in the Kahbalah

he discovered in

;

proof for the doctrine of

the Trinity, the Incarnation, the divinity of Christ, original the expiation thereof

sin,

the

Christ, the heavenly Jerusalem,

of the angels, the order of the angels, purgatory

fall

hell-fire

in fact the

;

same Gospel which

\f e

find in St. Paul,

Dionysius, St. Jerome and St. Augustine.

and

the result of

when

his Kabbalistic studies Mirandola published, in I486,

only twenty-four years of age, nine hundred Theses, which

were placarded in Eome, and which he undertook to defend in the presence of all

European

scholars,

whom

he invited to

the eternal city, promising to defray their travelling expenses.

Among

these Theses was the following, "

science yields

greater proof of the divinity of Christ than magic

with

and

the

Pope Sixtus IV (M7I-1484) was so delighted

Kabbalah:^^

that he greatly exerted himself to have Kabbalistic

writings translated into Latin for the use of divinity students.''

Mirandola accordingly translated the following three works 1,

Menahem

Eecanti's

Commentary on the Pentateuch,

erroneously called R. Levi de Recineto (Wolf, ibid, p. 10) 2,

Eliezer of

Worms' IfSin JIDSH de Scientia animae

Shem Tob

Falaquera's ni'?yon

1455-1522.

known

Not only did Mirandola make

to the Christians in Italy,

introducing

into

;

and

130 the Kabbalah

but he was the means of

Germany through John Eeuchlin,

the

20 Vidi in illis (testis est Dens) religionem non tnm Mosaicnm qnam CbriBtiaimm ibi Trinitiitis mysterinin ibi verbi Incarnntio, ibi Mesunc divini; ibi de pecato oi-iginnli, de illius per Cliiistum expiatione, de ccelesti Hierusalem, de casu deemonuui, de ordinihus Angeloiuni, de Purgatoriia, de Inferorum poenis; Eadem legi, quae apud Paulum et Dionysiitm, npnd Hieronyinum et Angustinnm qilotidie legimus. Coinp. Imltx a Jaeolm Gaffarello, published by at tbe end of the Toliune. Wolf, Sibliotlucn Hebraea, vol. i, p. ;

;

tates

21 Nulla est

magia

scientia,

quae uos magis

certiflcet

et Cabbala, vide Apologia, p. 13, opp, vol. 1.

de divinitate Basil, 1001.

Cliristi,

quain

22. Hie libri ( Cabbalistoram ) Sixtus IT, Pontifex maximns, qui huno, aub quo vivimns feliciter, Innocentiuni VIII, proxime antecessit, maxima cura studioque curavit, bt in publicam iidri nostras utililnrem, Latinis Uteris maudarentur, jamqne cum ille decessit, tres ex illis pervenerant ad Latino). Fide Gaffarelli in Wolf, Bibliothefa

ffebmca, appendix

to vol.

p. 0,

207

German Reformation. This eminent scholar, name Capnion {Kawiov), or Capnio, which is a translation of his German name Eeuchlin,

father of the

•who is also called by the Greek

i.e.

smoke, in accordance with the fashion of the time

Gerard,

name

signifying amiable, assumed the

;

just

of Desi-

DERiDS Erasmus, and Schwaetzerth, denoting hlack earth, took the name of Melanchthon,

December

28, 1455.

to the court of

— was

bom

Phorzheim

the age of seventeen he was called

Baden, and received among the court singers

in consequence of his beautiful voice.

ments soon attracted

His

brilliant attain-

notice,

and he was sent (1473) with the

young Margrave Frederick,

eldest son of Charles II, after-

wards bishop of Utrecht, to the celebrated high school of Paris.

Here he

Hermonymus of Sparta and who went to Paris after the

acquired, from

other fugitive Greek

literati,

taking of Constantinople (1453), that remarkable knowledge of

Greek which enabled him so largely

amass the Attic

rendered him so famous through Europe. in

went

lore

and

to Basle

1474, delivered lectures on the Latin language and the

and had among his hearers nobles of high rank both

classics,

£pom France and Germany.

where his fame

him the

the Bearded, councillor, to

Rome

secured for

who made him

and as such

Pope and

Tubingen in 1481,

friendship of Eberhard

his private secretary and privy

this prince took

in 1482; where he

before the

went

made

Eeuchlin with him

that splendid Latin oration

the cardinals, which elicited from his

Holiness the declaration that Eeuchlin deserved to be placed

among

the best orators of France and Italy.

Eberhard took him

to Florence, and it

From Rome

was here that Eeuchlin

became acquainted with the celebrated Mirandola and with But as he was appointed licentiate and the. Kabbalah. assessor of the supreme court in Stuttgard, the

new

residence

of Eberhard, on his return in 1484, and as the order of Dominicans elected him as their proctor in the whole of Germany,

208 Reuohlin had not time to enter at once upon the study of He-

brew and Aramaic, which are the key

to the

Kabbalah, and he

had reluctantly to wait till 493, when he accompanied Eberbard Here he became acquainted to the imperial court at Ling. !

with E. Jacob b. Jeohiel Loanz, a learned Hebrew, and court physician of Frederick III, from

Whereupon Reuohlin

whom

he learned Hebrew.*'

once betook himself

to the

study of

the Kabbalah, and within two years of his beginning to learn

the language in which treatise, entitled Dff

This

treatise

analysis of

written, his first

Verba Mirifico

of the greatest rarity, and the following

given by Franck.

It is in the form of a

dialogue between an Epicurean philosopher a

Jew named Baruch, and

his

Kabbalistio

1494), appeared.

{'B&sle,

the author,

who

named is

Sidonius,

introduced by

Greek name Capnio, and consists of three books, accord-

ing to the number of speakers.

Book

which

the exponent of

Baruch the Jewish

Kabbalist, is occupied with a refutation of doctrines,

urged against

this

system, for which reason

further description of

Book

the Epicurean

and simply reproduces the arguments generally

we omit any

it.

II endeavours to shew that

all

wisdom and

true

philosophy are derived from the Hebrews, that Plato, Pythagoras and Zoroaster borrowed their ideas from the Bible, and that traces of the liturgies

Hebrew language

and sacred books of

all

are to be found in the

nations.

Tlien follows an

explanation of the four divine names, which are shown to have

been transplanted into the systems of Greek philosophy.

The ego

first

sum

and most distinguished of tliem T\T\^

qui

sum (Exod.

philosophy by to owjtws

translate

by NIH He,

iii,'

uiv. i.e.,

~\'^H T]''T\^

12), is translated in the Platonic

The second

divine name, which

the sign of unchangeableness and

33 " Is (Jekiel Loan?.) me, supra (luam dici queat, primus edocuit." Comp. Sudim, ffcbr. p. 3.

fideliter literos

Hebraicos

209 of the eternal idea of the Deity,

The

S'arcptiv.

name

tliird

God

(jocl

manifested himself to Moses.

first

him

as a

form

burning

opposed

used in Holy WritislCN

Fire.

tliis

among

also to be found

the Greek philosophers in the term lavruv, which

appeared in the burning bush when

The prophets

describe

and John the Baptist depicts him as

fire,

such when he says, " I baptize you with water, but he who

Cometh

after

The

Hebrew prophets is the same as the juentioned in the hymns of Orpheus. But these

fire

{ai ^i)p)

names

shall baptize

you with

fire."

are in reality only one,

calls himself

because every existence emanates from him Fire, because

it is

always

amidst the

II.)

iii,

ether threor

showing to us the divine nature

Thus God

in three different aspects.

and he

(Matt,

of the

;

MÂŤ

calls

he who ilUiminiUes and animates

Beiriff,

himself

all

things

because he always remains like himself

llii,

infinite variety of his works.

Now

just as there

are names which express tlie nature of the Deity, so there are names which refer to his iittributes, and these are the ten (f we louk away from every attribute and every Sephirolh.

which the divine subsistence may be

definite point of view in

contemplated,

we endeavour

to depict the absolute

Being

as concentraiinc himself within himself, and not aifording us

any explicable reiauon

by a name

wliicli

it is

to our intellect, he is then described

forbidden to pronounce, by the thrice

holy Tetragriinuuaton, the name Jehovah (miT) the

Ba-Mcphoru^h There is

(:VS'\-ZrS\

no doulH that ihe tetrad

an imitation of the

Shem

OV). {TiTpaxrvs) of

Pythagoras

Hebrew Tetragrammaton, and

that the

worship of the decade has simply been invented in honour of the ten Sephirolh.

'J'he

four letters composing this

represent the four fundamental constituents of the body

name {i.e.,

heat, cold, dryness and humidity), the four geometrical principal points

{i.i\,

the point, the line, flat and body), the four

notes of the musical scale, the four rivers in the earthly

210 paradise, the four symbolical figares in the vision of Ezekiel, &o.,

&c.,

Moreover

See.

separately

The

meaning.

dite

number

ten,

first

letter

and which by

God is

God

with nature

number

depicted by the

visible nature,

inasmuch as

Pythagoras under the dual. the third letter, which

three,

i.e.,

The number

is like\yise

(H)

is like

;

The

number

Moreover the

by \

three,

six is

(solida), or the world.

the imprint of

fourth and last letter of this divine

the second, represents the

here symbolizes the

and of

six, expressed

evident that the world has in

divine perfection.

name

the Trinity

revered in the Pythagorean

Symbol of the cube, the bodies it is

the second letter,

God inasmuch

represented by Plato and

it is

the symbol of all perfection.

Hence

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

by the combination of one, two, and

school, is formed

the

the beginning and end of

The number ^i;ÂŤ, expressed by il

things.

shows us the union of he

^ which also stands for the

form reminds us of the mathe-

its

matical point, teaches ua that all

we look at these four letters them has equally a recon-

shall find that each of

human and

medium between heaven and

amahei^ce, and which

rational soul,

is the

earth, just as. five is the centre

of the decade, the symbolic expression of the totality of things.

Book

exponent of which

III, the

shew that the most

be found by the same method.

method

found in the

which

Thus

suffice. first

Capnio, endeavours to

essential doctrines of Christianity are to

Let a few instances of

verse of Genesis.

If the

translated created, be examined,

three letters

composing

a separate word, Sjnrit, Father.

this

the doctrine of the Trinity is to be

this

Hebrew word ^t^3 and

word be taken

each of

tlie

as the initial of

we obtain the expressions li< Upon the same principle we

nn P

Son,

find the two

persons of the Trinity in the words, " the stone which the builders refused is (Fs. cxviii, 22),

become the head stone of the corner

inasmuch as the three

letters

composing the

211

word

atone, are to

Orpheus, in his the

New

be divided into

hymn on

p 3M Father,

Son.

the night, described the Trinity of

Testament in the words,

vwf, lApavhs,

a^p,

for night

which begets everything can only designate the Father; heaven, that olyphus which in its boundlessness embraces all things,

and which proceeded from the night,

signifies the

Son

;

whilst ether, which the ancient poet also designates^Vry breath, is

The name Jesus in Hebrew n"V'Âť"n"Âť name nin' Jeltovahs and the

the JETo/y Ghost.

the vtvraypafiitaTov yields the V)

which' in the language of the Kabbalah is the symbol of

fire

or light, which St. Jerome, in his mystical exposition

of the alphabet, has terious as it

name

shows us that Jesus

Even the

Logos. is

made

cross,

God

which

plainly indicated in the

which

the sign of the A^yoc.

This mys-

therefore contains a whole revelation, inasmuch himself, the Light or the

is the

symbol of

Christianity,

Old Testament, by the

planted in the midst of the garden

tree of life

by the pray-

;

ing attitude of Moses, when he raised his hands towards

heaven in his intercession for Israel during the combat with

Amalek

;

and by the

tree

which converted the

bitter waters

into sweet in the wilderness of Marah.''*

The

Treatise de Verho Mirifico

is,

however, only an intro-

duction to another work on the same subject which Reuchlin

published twenty-two years

Hagenau, 1516. This a dialogue

later, entitled

Treatise, like the

between a

De Arte first, is

Mohammedan named

Cabalistica.

in the

form of

Marrianus, a

Pythagorean Philosopher named Philolaus, and a Jewish doctor

named Simon. The dialogue is held in Frankfort, Jew resides, to whom the Mohainmedan and

where the

Pythagorean resort Kabbalah.

The whole

be initiated into the mysteries of the is

more matured exposition and

elaboration of the ideas hinted at in his 24 Comp. Franck, Die Kabbalah oder libertetzt

von Jellinek,

first

work.

die Seligiom Pkilotophie der

Leipzig, 1844, p. 8, tv.

Hebrier

SI2

The Kabbalah, according

reception of Divine revelation

made between

Calalici, to

tion, their disciples

The

Eeaohlin,

to ;

whom is

propound the relations of

beings which emanated from

God

them

to Moses.

the Creator of

communion with him.

to attain actual

mankind

and he implanted

liim,

In order that feeble man might attain revealed himself to

this

communion, God

in various ways, but especially

This Divine revelation

Moses contains

more than appears on the surface of the Pentateuch. is it

a recondite wisdom concealed in

tilings

many pleonasms and

far

There

which distinguishes

from other codes of morals and precepts.

Pentateuch

to be

Cahalaai, and their imitators Cahalistae.

design of the Kabbalah

aspirations in

belongs heavenly inspira-

the absolute Creator to the creature. all

a symbolical

nnd a distinction

There are in the

repetitions

of the same

and words, and as we cannot charge God with having

inserted useless and superfluous words in the

we must

believe that something

in them, to

Holy

more profound

Scriptures,

contained

which the Kabbalah gives the key.

This key consists in permutations, commutations, &c., &o.

But

this act of

exchanging and arranging

letters,

terpreting for the edification of the soul the

Holy

and of

in-

Scriptures,

which we have received from God as a divine thing not to be understood by the multitude, was not communicated by Moses to everybody, but to the elect, tradition called

came

Kabbalah.

such as Joshua, and so by

the seventy interpreters.

God, out of love

to his people,

This

gift is

has revealed

hidden mysteries to some of them, and these have found the living spirit in the dead letter

consist of separate

Tetters,

;

that

certain relation to the angels as celestial

tions

from

are afTected.

God

;

to say, the Scriptures

visible signs

which stand in a

and

spiritual

and by pronouncing them, the a true Kabbalist,

who has an

emana-

latter also

insight into

the whole connection of the terrestrial with the celestial, these

213 signs thus put together are the

union

-with

spirits,

-who

means of placing him thereby bound

are

in close his

fulfil

wishes.'*

The

extraordinary influence which Reuohlin's Kabbalistio

upon the

Treatises exercised

upon the

early reformers

greatest thinkers of the time and

may

be judged of from the un-

measured terms of praise which they bestowed upon

The

author.

Treatises were regarded as heavenly,

cations, revealing

new

Conrad Leontarius,

divine wisdom.

Wirapheling on the subject, says

writing to

their

communi-

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;" I never saw

anything more beautiful or admirable than this work

{i.e.,

Verho MirificoJ, which easily convinces him who reads that no philosopher, whether

Jew

or Christinn,

superior to

Eeuchlin."

Aegidius, general of the Eremites, wrote to the holy Augustine " that Reuchlin had rendered hiro^ as well as the rest of mankind, happy by his works, which had

known

to all

a thing hitherto unheard of."

the younger, sent

him word "

that

Pope Leo

Pythagorean book greedily, as he did

all

wards the Cardinal de Medici had done should soon enjoy

it."-''

Such was the

newly-revealed Kabbalah created-

only learned

men but

among

made

Philip Beroaldus,

X had read his

good books so,

;

after-

and he himself

interest

which

this

Christians, that not

statesmen and warriors began to study

the oriental languages, in order to be able to fathom the

mysteries of this theosophy.

Whilst the Kabbalah was gaining such high

U50-1498.

favour amongst Christians both in Italy and Germany, through the exertions of Mirandola and Renchlin, a powerful voice was raised

among

the Jews against the Sohar, the very Bible of

this theosophy. Venetitt,

a.'5

1450,

Elia del Medigo, born at Candia, then in of

German

literary family,

Comp. The Life and Times of John ReucMin, by Fi-ancU Besham,

p. 102, &c.

professor

P'lde

Life of John Revchlin, p, 108.

214 philosophy in the University of Padua, teacher of Pico de Mirandola, and a scholar of

among

bis

the highest reputation

hoth

Jewish brethren and among Christians, impugned

In his philosophical Treatise on

the authority of the Sohar.

the nature of Judaism as a harmonizer between religion and philosophy, entitled

An Examination of the Law (/Ttn /UTTl),

December

vrhich he wrote

29, 1491, he puts into the

mouth

of an antagonist to the Eabbalah the following three argu-

ments against the genuineness of the Sohar

Neither the

1 ,

Talmud, nor the Gaonim and Rabbins knew anything of the

Sohar or of

doctrines

its

very late period

inasmuch as

and

;

The Sohar was published

Many

describes later

at a

anachronisms occur in

Amoraic

direct intercourse with the Tanaite R.

it,

authorities as having

Simon

Jochai

who

belongs to an earlier period.*^

The

1522-1670.

voice of Elia del

Medigo and

others,

however, bad no power to check the rapid progress of the E^abbalab, which had into Palestine

and

its

way from Spain and Italy all

branches of

life

Passing over the Iiost of minor advocates and

literature.

teachers,

now found

and Poland, and penetrated

shall

who formed two

mention the two great masters in Palestine,

distinct schools, distinguished

by the promi-

nence which they respectively gave to certain doctrines of the

ÂŁabbalah.

Bemak

The

first

of these

p'DT from the

R. Moses Cordovero.

Moses Cordovero,

also called

name

llWnip

acrostic

was

bom

the Kabbalah under his learned

of his

in Cordova, 1522, studied

brother-in-law,

Solomon

Aleavez, and very soon became so distinguished as a Eabbnlist

and author that his fame travelled to â&#x20AC;˘were greedily bought.

troduction to

the

Italy,

where his works

His principal works are

Kabbalah, entitled

A Sombre

In-

or Sweet

27 The niTra was first published ia a collection of diverse Treati."es, in Basle, 1620-31 ; and then iu Vienna, 1833, with an elaborate philosophical eommenlarj hj T. S, Beggio. The arguments against the Sohar are in thii edition, p. iS.

S15 Light (3iy3

IW)

published in Venice, 1687, then in

first

Cracow, 1647, and in Furth, 1701

;

Kabbalistio reflections

and comments on ninety-nine passages of the Bible,

The Book of Retirement 1543

;

and

entitled

(I'l^nj 13D), published in Venice,

work

large Kabbalistic

The Garden

entitled

of Pomegranates (D'JIST DHnS)), which consists of thirteen sections or gates (D''ny^£/) subdivided into chapters, and discusses the Sephiroih,

the

Divine names, the import and

significance of the letters, &c., &c.

Cracow, 1591.

Excerpts of

was

have been

Latin by Bartolocci, Bibliotheca

Magna

first

published in

translated

3^1, &c., and Knorr von Eosenroth, Tractatus de

libra

Pardes Rimmonim in

his

into

Rahhinica, vol.

iv,

Anima

Cabbala Denudata, Sulz-

bach, 1677.«8

The

peculiar feature of Cordovero

that he is chiefly

occupied with the scientific speculations of the Eabbalah, or

tlie

the

speculative

modem

Kabbalah (IVyfV n7Dp),

it is

called in

terminology of this esoteric doctrine, in contra-

distinction to the

wonder-working Kabbalah {rfvyo TV'Zp),

keeping aloof to a great extent from the extravagances which

shall soon have to notice.

this respect therefore

represents the Eabbalah in its primitive state, as

from

the

different

lucubrations on the " The knowledge of the Creator is

from that of the creature, since in the case of the

knowledge and the thing known are

distinct,

leading to subjects which are again separate from him. is

described by the three expressions

and the cogitated ledge,

seen

following specimen of his

nature of the Deity.

latter,

may be

object.

knowing and

the

Now known

—

thus

This

cogitation, the cogitator

the Creator is himself knowobject.

His knowledge does

not consist in the fact that he directs his thoughts to things 28 For the otber works of Cordovero, both published and unpublished, vt must refer to Fiirst, Bihliotluca Judaiea, vol. i, p. 187, &c. ; and Steinsohneider, Oatulogut Libr. Hebr. in Bibliotheca BodUiana, col. 1793, &o.

216 without him, since in comprehending and knowing himself,

he comprehends and knows everything which is

nothing which

not united with him, and which he does

not find in his own suhslanoe. things existing, and

There

exists.

all

the archetype of

all

things are in him in their purest and

most perfect form; so that the perfection of the creatures consists in the support whereby they are united to the primary

source of his existence, and they sink

down and

from

fall

that perfect and lofty position in proportion to their separation

from him."^' 1

The opposite

534- 1 572.

to this school is the

by Isaac Luria or Loria, also called Ari

was born

'1 'tjaiyNil

name pHS'

initials of his

Jerusalem

one founded

'"IN from the

E. Isaac Ashkanazi.

53i, and, having lost his father

when very young, was taken by his mother to Eahira, where he was put by his rich uncle under the tuition of the best Jewish master.

student of the

his

twenty-second year he was a diligent

Talmud and

the Babbinic lore,

and

distin-

guished himself in these departments of learning in a most

remarkable manner.

then lived in retirement for about

seven years to give free scope to his thoughts and meditations,

but he soon found that simple retirement from collegiate

studies did not satisfy him.

therefore

removed

to the

banks of the Nile, where he lived in a sequestered cottage for several years, giving himself reveries.

Elias,

who communicated

too, his soul

entirely to meditations

and

Here he had constant interviews with the prophet to

him sublime

doctrines.

ascended to heaven whenever he was

Here,

asleep,

and

the celestial regions held converse with the souls of the

great teachers of bygone days.

When

thirty-six years of age

(1570) the Prophet Elias appeared to him again and told him

Palestine, where his successor

was awaiting him.

Obedient to the command, he went to Safet, where he gathered 39 Pardet

Bimmenim= The

Garden of Pomegruiates, &9

217 round him ten disciples, visited the sepulchres of ancient teachers, and there, by prostrations and prayers, obtained from their

manner of

spirits all

perform i.e.,

all sorts

much

revelations, so

vinced he was the Messiah

of miracles.

was

the ascetic and miraculaus

this part of the

(JTÂťya

His sentiments he delivered

taught.

so that he was con-

Joseph and that he was able

which Loria

rb2.\)),

orally, as

Kabbalah,

he himself did

not write anything, except perhaps some marginal notes of a critical import in older books and MSS. His disciples treasured

his marvellous sayings,

and converted thousands 1

The

543- J 620.

system

exponent of Loria's Kabbalistio

real

his celebrated disciple

of a Calabrian family, seven.

whereby they performed miracles

to the doctrines of this theosophy.

who

Chajim

died in

]

descendant

Vital, a

620 at the age of seventy-

After the demise of his teacher, Chajim Vital

gently collected disciples

the

all

MS.

dili-

notes of the lectures which Loria's

had written down, from whicTi, together with his own produced the gigantic and famous system of the

jottings, he

Kabbalah, entitled the Tree of Life (D''^nn yv). over which Vital laboured thirty years, was at

MS.

copies,

This work,

first

and every one of the Kabbalistic

circulated

disciples

had

pledge himself, under pain of excommunication, not to

allow a copy to be all

made

for a foreign land

the Codd. remained in

Palestine.

;

so that for a time last,

however, this

Thesaurus of the Kabbalah, which properly consists of six works, was published by J. Satanow at Zolkiev, 1772. editions of

appeared in Korez,

browne, 1804;

Stilikow,

1818;

New

1785; Sklow, 1800; Do-

and Knorr von Eosenroth

has translated into Latin a portion of that part of the great

work which

treats

on the doctrine of the metempsychosis

(C^hj'?jn).3o

1558-1560.

The

circulation of Loria's

work which gave

30 For s description of the component parts of the D"nn yÂť IBD es well ea for an account of the sundry editions of the several ports, published at different times, we must refer to Fiirst, BiUiotheea Jadaica, vol. iii, pp. 479-4S1,

218 an extraordinary impetus to the Eabbalab, and which gave rise to the

new school and a separate congregation

in Palestine,

was not the only favonrable circumstance which had arisen to advance and promulgate the esoteric doctrine.

which since the

first

who had

its

birth

The

So/tar,

had been circulated in MS., was now

for

time printed in Mantua, and thousands of people

MS. were

hitherto been unable to procure the

enabled to possess themselves of copies."

is,

thus

however,

evident that with the increased circulation of these two Bibles

of the Eabbalah, as the Sohar and Loria's called, there

Etz Chajim

are

was an increased cry on the part of learned Jews

against the doctrines propounded in them.

Isaac b.

Immanuel

and the great champion

de Lates, the Eftbbi of Pesaro,

for the

Eabbalah, who prefixed a commendatory epistle to the Sohar, tells

us most distinctly that some Rabbins wanted to prevent

the publication of the Sohar, urging that secret or be burned, because

1571-1648.

far the

powerful.

ought

to be

kept

the numerous opponents to the Eabbalah

which the Sohar and Loria's work called

was by

tends to heretical doctrines.'*

forth,

Leo de Modena

most daring, the most outspoken and the most

This eminent scholar who

known

to the Christian

world by his celebrated History of the Rites, Customs and

Manners of

the Jews, which

published in Padua,

was originally written in

Italian,

640, and which has been translated into

Latin, English, French, Dutch, &c., attacked the Eabbalah in

two of his works.

His

first

onslaught

metempsychosis in his Treatise

composed

this Treatise in

Finzi, of Egypt, 31 of

it,

-entitled

on the doctrine of

Ben David.

and he demonstrates therein that

analysis of the Sohar, as

1635-36, at the request of David

weU

this doctrine

as a description of the different editions

are given in the second part of this Essay, p. 160, &c.

38 Comp. his Hesp., ed. Vienna, 1880, p. 2i, &e., iwpa «)» D'mn la pDB •no^nn riEna nn'mrt nrm DSian nmin noBTi art; and again, ibid. p. 20,

219 of Gentile origin, and was rejected by the great men of the Jewish faith in bygone days, refuting at the same time the is

philosophico-theological arguments advanced in It

his

its favour.''

however, his second attack on this esoteric doctrine, in

is,

work

entitled TJie

damaging

Modena composed to reclaim

Roaring Lion (DHU nX), which

to the Kabbalah.

this

Joseph Chamiz,

which propound

Treatiseâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; which Leo de

in 1639, at the advanced age of sixty-eight, ai

beloved disciple

an ardent follower of the Kabbalah

upon ancient

is so

of- his,

this esoteric doctrine,

and which are palmed

pseudonymous

authorities, are

trines themselves are mischievous

who was

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; he shows that the books ;

;

that the doc-

and that the followers of

system are inflated with proud notions, pretending to

this

know

the nature of

God

better than

anyone

else,

and

way of approaching the Deity.'* Hebraist, Joseph Solomon del Medigo

possess. the nearest and best

1623.

The

celebrated

(horn 1591, died 1637), -a contemporary of the preceding writer, also

employed his vast stores of erudition

this system.

Having been asked by B. Serach

of the Kabbalah, del Medigo, in a masterly

to expose

for his views

letter,

written in

1623, shows up the folly of this esoteric doctrine, and the

unreasonableness of the exegetical rules, whereby the followers of this system pretend to deduce 1

635.

We have

from the Bible.'*

seen that the information about the Kab-

balah, which Mirandola and Beuchlin imparted to Christians,

was

chiefly derived

Now

that .the

from the writings of Kecanti aud Gikatilla.

Sohar had been published, Joseph de Voisin

89 This Treatise is published in the collection entithd Ashkanozi, Frankfort-on-the-Maine, 1894.

dpi

D$io

by Eliezar

Leo de 3:1 The crra <-<h was published by Dr. Jalius Fiirst, Leipzig, 1 8:10. Modenu's relation to the Kabbalali, the Talmud and Christianity is shown in an See also the elaborate Introduction by Geiger in the raai yua iqho Berlin, 189(1. article

Leo de Modeha,

Literalure, vol.

ii,

in Alexander's edition of Kitto's Cyclopadia of Biblical

p. 811.

3-) This Epiiitle, together with a German translation and learned notes, has been published by Geiger in his collection of sundry treatises, entitled Meto

CiMfnajim.

Berlin,

18&.

220 determined to be the

make some portions of it accessible who did not understand the Aramaic

first to

to those Christian readers

Accordingly he translated

in which ihis Thesaurus is written.

some

human 1

Sohar which

extracts of the

treat of the nature of the

soul.'*

052- 1654.

Just at the very time when some of the most

distinguished Jews exposed the pretensions of the Kabbnlah,

and denounced the fanciful and unjustifiable rules of pretation whereby

its

advocates

tried

to evolve it

letters of the revealed law, the celebrated

most learned and elaborate

maintained

with

gradually issued

all

person than the patriarch Abraham

less a

Egypt

Athnnnsius Kircher,

treatise

this subject,

Egypt by

the Ivabbalah was introduced into

tliat

religions

all

;

and that from

over the East, and intermixed

ond systems of philosophy.

more extraordinary

What

tions

Sephiroth, this

itself afterwards, viz., the

and permutations of the

between

theosophy.^'

still

letters,

which were the

The amount

which

combinations, transposi-

and does not discriminate

and die speculations about the &c.,

that this learned Jesuit, in thus exalting

the Kabbalah, lays the greatest stress on that part of

developed

inter-

from the

original

of Eastern

which Kircher has amassed in his work

Soph, the

characteristics

will

lore,

however,

always remain

monument to the extensive learning of this Jesuit. 1643-1676. The wonder-working- or practical branch of

a noble

the Kabbalah (JTifyO H/Jp), as

called, so elaborately

propounded and defended by Kircher, -which consists in the transpositions of the letters of the sundry divine names, &c.,

and which as we have seen constituted' no part of the original Kabbalah, had now largely laid hold on the minds and fancies 36 Comp. Dispntatio Cabalisticu R. Israel cominentariis ex Zoluir. Paris, 103.').

filii

\fo3i8 dc nnim&, itrc, adjectis

37 Kii'cher's Tie-itise on the Kabbalah is contained in his stupendous vork, Borne, 163.^. entitled (Edipui ^(jtjftineus, vol. ii, pp. 209-3110.

S21 of both Jews and Christians, and was producing among the former the most mournful and cahimitous effects. The famous

Kabbalist, Sabbatai Zevi,

who was born

1641, was the chief actor in this tragedy.

was sent

to a

Smyrna, July,

When

a child he

Babbinic school, and instructed in the Law, the

Mishna, the Talmud, the Midrashim, and the whole cycle of Babbinic lore. So great were his intellectual powers, and so vast the knowledge he acquired,, that

when

fifteen

he betook

himself to the study of the Kabbalah, rapidly mastered mysteries,

became peerless in

his

its

knowledge of " those things

which were revealed and those things which were hidden

and at the age of eighteen obtained the honourable appellation sage (DDn), and delivered public lectures, expounding the divine law and the esoteric doctrine before crowded audiences.'

At the

the age of twenty-four he gave himself out as the Messiah,

Son of David, and

Eedeemer of

the

Israel,

pronouncing

publicly the Tetragrammaton, which was only allowed to the

high priests during

Though it,

the existence of

the second

Temple.

Smyrna excommunicated him for Salonica, Athens, Morea and .Terusalem,

the Jewish sages of

he travelled to

teaching the Kabbalah, proclaiming himself as the Messiah,

anointing prophets and converting thousands upon thousands.

So numerous were the

believers in him, that in

trade was entirely stopped

;

the Jews

disposed of their chattels and

wound up

many

places

their affairs,

made themselves ready

redeemed from their captivity and led by Sabbatai Zevi back to

Jerusalem.

The consuls

Europe were ordered

enquire into this extraordinary movement, and the governors of the

East reported

to the Sultan the cessation of

Sabbatai Zevi was then

Mohammed

arrested

commerce.

by order of the Sultan,

IV, and taken before him at Adrianople.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

The

Sultan spoke to him as follows " I am going to test thy Messiahship. Three poisoned arrows shall be shot into thee,

and

they do not

kill thee,

I too will believe that thou art the

223

Messiah."

saved himself by embracing Islamism in the

who gave him the name Thus ended appointed him Kafidyi Bashi.

presence of the Sultan,

Effendi, and the career of

the Kabbalist Sabbatni Zevi, after having ruined thousands

upon thousands of 1

Whether

677-1 684.

roth

knew of

difficult to

Jewisli families.

the learned

Knorr Baron von Rosen-

the extravagances of Sabbatai Zevi or not

say.

Simon

Sohai; that he wrote

accomplished Christian

all events this

scholar believed that

Jochai was

tlie

author of the

under divine inspiration, and that

essential to the elucidation of the doctrines of Christi-

most

With

anity.

difficulties

this

conviction he determined to master the

connected with the Kabbalistic writings, in order to

render the principal works of this esoteric doctrine accessible to his Christian brethren.

For, although

LuUy, Mirandola,

Eeuchlin and Kircher had already done much to acquaint the Christian world with the secrets of the Kabbalah, none of these sclioliirs

had given translations of any portions of the Sohar.

Knorr Baron von Rosenroth,

therefore put himself

the tuition of R. Meier Stern, a learned Jew, assistance

was enabled

the Unveiled

volumes, the

to publish the celebrated

Kabbalah (Kabbala Denudata), first

under

and with his

work

entitled

in two large

of which was printed at Sulzbaoh, 1677-78,

and the second at Frankfort- on- the-Maine,

684, giving a Latin

translation of the Introduction to and the following portion

of the

SoAarâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; the Book of

Great Assembli/ S*:OV);.

(^*3"l

Mysteries

Kill*)

;

the

(SnW3ST nSD)

;

the

Small Assembti/ (Kni*

Joseph Gikatilla's Gate of Light

(mW

nyif)

;

the

Doctrine of Metempsychosis (3v1J7jn), and the Tree of Life

{WT] yy), of Chajim Vital; the Garden of Pomegranates (D'JID'1 0113), of Moses Cordovero the House of the Lord {arhii /lU), and the Gate of Heaven (D^Otyn "ySlVf), of ;

38 Coinp. Jost, GetchicIUe des Judenthumt nnd seiner Secten, vol. Leipzig, 1US9.

iii,

p. 153, &c.

223

Abraham Herera the Valley of the King (l^n pO^), of Naphtah b. Jacob; the Vision of the Priest (fn3 HNnQ), ;

of Issachar Beer

Naphtali Cohen, &c., &c., with elaborate

annotations, glossaries and indices.

work

this gigantic it

mixes up in one

that

The only drawback

without any system, and that

all the earlier

developments of the Kab-

balah with the later productions. Still the criticism passed upon it by Buddeus, that it is a " confused and obscure work,

which the necessary and the unnecessary, the useful and

the useless are mixed up and thrown together as

one chaos,"^^ that if the

rather too severe

it.

passages of the trines to those

also

New Testament which

were into

exhibit a regular

if furnishes

Baron von Kosenroth has

must be remembered

Kahbala Denudata does not

system of this esoteric doctrine, for

and

;

much

material

collected

all

the

contain similar doc-

propounded by the Kabbalah.

Amongst

1758-1763.

the Jews, however, the pretensions

and consequences of the Kabbalistic Pseudo-Messiah, Sabbatai

new era in the criticism of Even such a scholar and thorough Kabbalist as Jacob b. Zevi of Emden, or Jabez (VOV), as he is called from the acrostic of his name (""iS ]2 ypV''), maintains in his Zevi, and his followers, produced a

the Sohar.

work, which he wrote in 1758-17C3, and which he entitled

The Wrapper of Books, that with the exception of the Sohar all the rest is of a late origin.*" He shows that ( ) The Sohar misquotes passages of Scripture, misunderstands the Talmud, and contains some rituals kernel of the

which were ordained by (2)

later

Rabbinic authorities

Mentions the crusades against the Mohammedans.

39 Confuaam

cum

obscuram opus, in quo neoessarla onm non

(D'pDIE)). (3)

Uses

ueoesaariis, utila

unam

vnlut nhaos cot^eotu. Introductio te Halle, 1703. Buddeus gives in ttiis a detailed desoriplion of the K'abbala Denudata,

inutilibus, confuBa aunt, et in

Historiam PIdlosophiae Hehraeorum. Introduction (p. 882,

40 The critique of

A thorough nnoiots of Jabea was published at Altona, 1768. giTen by Oraetz, GeichicMt der Juden, tol, vii, p. 494, *o.

mron it is

ifcc),

2U the philoBophioal terminology of Ibn Tibbon's lation of

Hebrew TranB-

Mere NebucMm, and borrows

Maimonides'

figure of Jehudah Ha- Levi's Khosari, that " Israel

human

in the organism of the

more acutely

sufferings

221

161 a)

;

and

(Khosari,

Knows

(4)

race,

the

the heart

and therefore

feels its

ii,

36, with Sohar,

iii,

the Portuguese and North

Spanish expression Esnoga.

Whilst the Jews were thus shaken in their opinion

1767.

about the antiquity of the Sohar, learned Christians both

Simon

the Continent and in England maintained that

Jochai was the author of the Bible of the Kabbalah, and

quoted

its

Thus Dr.

sentiments in corroboration of their peculiar views.

fam&us Hebraist and commentator,

Gill, the

in his

work on the Antiquity of the Hebrew Language, adduces passages from the Sohar to shew that the Hebrew vowel 120, at which time he tells us " lived

points were

known A.D.

Simon ben

Jochai, a disciple of R. Akiba, author of the

Zohar.'"^'

1830.

Allen,

Modern Judaism, Taking

this

account of the Kabbalah in his

the

also

premises the antiquity of the Sohar.

pseudonym

as the primary source of the primitive

Kabbalah, Allen, like

all

his

predecessors, mixes .up the

early mysticism

and magic, as well as the

Hagadic

rales

Ziruph,

Notaricon,

interpretation, &c.,

later

abuse of the

denominated

Gematria,

which the Kabbalists afterwards

appropriated, with the original doctrines of this theosophy.**

1843.

Even

the erudite Professor Franck, in his excellent

work La Kabbale the

Book

(Paris, 1843),

makes no

distinction between

Jetzira and the Sohar, but regards the esoteric

doctrines of the latter as a development and continuation of

the tenets propounded in the former. 41 Gomp.

moreover main-

Dimertatwn coneeming the Antiquity of the Hebrew Language, and Accents. By Johu GiU, O.U. London, 1767.

Litters, Vowel-points

modem

Judaism, by John Allen, p. 67-96, 3nd edition.

London, 1830.

2!i5

tains

Sohar

that the

consists of anoient

modem

and

frag-

ments, that the ancient portions are the Book of Mysteries

(Mmy^iST

K-13D), the Great Assembly or Idra

Kin), and the Small Assembly or Idra Suta

Rabba (NinN Âťmi*),

(KJfllt

and actually proceeds from the school of E. Simon

b. Joohai,

while several of the other parts belong to a subsequent period,*'

but not later than the seventh century

Sohar

the

Palestine

the Kabbalah, -which

;

that the fatherland of

that the fundamental principles of

were

communicated by E. Simon

Jochai to a small number of his disciples, were at

pagated orally seventh

that they were then from the

;

century

gradually edited

and

first

pro-

to the

through

enlarged

additions and commentaries, and that the whole of this compilation,

completed in the seventh century, owing to

attacks on the Asiatic religions,

teenth century,

when

was kept

was brought

secret

obliged to

many

the thir-

Europe.

his opinions about the antiquity of the Kabbalah,

in the

its

till

fortify

Franck

palm the doctrine of the Sephirotk upon passages

Talmud

in a most unnatural manner.

this point,

howover, has been discussed in the second part of this Essay, {vide supra, p. 183, etc.) there is

the arguments here.*'

Still

the elucidation of the

Sohar

no necessity for repeating

Franok's valuable contribution to will always be a

welcome aid

the student of this difficult book.

1845.

A new era

in the study of the Kabbalah

by the researches of 8rd,

1841,

when

M. H. Landauer, who

scarcely thirty-three years of age.

learned Eabbi, whose premature death to

literature,

was created

died February

spite

This

an irreparable loss

of constitutional infirmities, which

occasioned him permanent sufierings during the short period of his earthly career, devoted himself from his youth to the

43 Franck's

Kdbbale has been translated into Oerman, with notes and Die Kabbala oder

oorrections by ihe learned and indefatigable Adolph JeUinek Leipzig, 1844. die Beligioru-Pliilofophie der Hebraer.

;

226 study of Hebrew, the Mislina, the Tnlmud, and the rich Btores lie afterwards visited the universities of

of Jewish learning.

Munich and

Tiibingen, and in addition to his other researches

in the department of Biblical criticism, determined to

the depths of

tlio

Kabbalah.

careful study of this

esoteric

was

this scholar

fathom

who, after a

doctrine, for the first time dis-

tinguished between the ancient mysticism of

Gaonim

the

period and the real Kabbalah, and shewed that " the former,

of R. Akiha (N3''py 'IT ilVJIlN), Dimensiuns of the Deity (HOp liy^iy), the Heavenly

as contained in the Alphabet tlie

and even the Book of Jetzira

Mansions

(/llbj^il),

HTS^) and