Kabbalah in the renaissance

Rise of Kabbala

The spread of Kabbalah during the renaissance was brought about by many factors both from within
Judaism and externally. The persecution and eventual expulsion of jews from Spain, The rise of Islamic
Sufism in the east, The European thirst for enlightenment that was growing in Italy—then elswhere,
and the Invention of the printing press all played a role in the rise of interest in the Kabbalah.

Spanish exiles felt a new sense of diaspora after the expulsion, and the mystery of the Kabbalah gave
them a sense of enpowerment and meaning. The exile from the Iberian peninsula was seen by spanish
Kabbalists as symbolic, much the same way Kabbalists saw a symbolic meaning in the destruction of
the temples in Jerusalem. This 'justification' for the subsequent diaspora led mainstream Spanish jews
toward the ideas of the Kabbalah and so it was adopted by the larger Jewish community instead of
small 'schools' of mystics1.

Jewish exiles from Spain brought with them to Italy the Zohar, where it was largely unheard of by the
Italian Jewish community and even the Italian Kabbalists them selfs. The influx of the Spanish had
some abrasive effects on the local Italian Kabbalists—who did not recognize the Zohar as an authority2
and resulted in one kabbalist, Messer Leon, fleeing to the Ottoman empire because of the rejection of
his views on the Zohar 3.

Kabbalah was also being picked up by Christians, who saw the Kabbalah as an ancient source of
ultimate truth, possibly the only thing worth while in Judaism4. Christianity also adopted the angelic
heirachy of the Kabbalah, witch bears similarities between the pseudo-Dionysus heirachy, (a chicken
and egg debate has resulted amongst scholars of Hebrew and Greek as to who had influence on whom)5

the acceptance of Kabbalah during the renaissance could also been seen as one of ideals. The
importance of knowledge is one of the characteristics of the renaissance, its also fundamental to the
Kabbalah. The kabbalistic ideal of 'perfect man' is the essence of the renaissance.
Kabbalistic Publications of the renaissance

The HEKHALOTH books; the SEFER YETZIRA (or Book of Creation), the SEFER ZOHAR (or Book
of Splendor) and the SEFER BAHIR are considered by Kabbalists to be the core of the Kabbalah. All of
which enjoyed publication during the renaissance6.

The SEFER ZOHAR, alleged to be the works of Rabbi Simon Bar (Ben?) Yohai from the second
century C.E., most likely composed by Moses De Leon in the late 13th century. The Zohar contains
commentaries on the Torah, although the Zohar is not laid out in the same chronological order. The
first edition was Published in Italy in Mantua, in 1558 and again in Cremona in 1559-60. The Cremona
edition containing portions of text not published in the Mantua and is called the Greater Zohar7.

The Book of Formation, or SEFER YETZIRA, attributed to Rabbi Akiba (b. 50 C.E.) was first known of
in Europe, in France in 850 C.E.8, thou wasn't published until 1552 in Paris by Gulielmus Postellus. Its
first publication in Italy was in Mantua in 1565, which included five commentaries allegedly by; Moses
Nahmanides, Abraham B. David, Eleazar of Worms, Moses Bortarel and Saadia Gaon9. Also attributed
to the ancient Rabbi Akiba, is of course The alphabet of Rabbi Akiba, published in Cracovia in 159710.

In 1485, Elias Del Medigo, on request by his student Picus De Mirandula11, wrote the work “DE
SUBSTANTIA ORBIS” (the substance [of the] world?). This was published in Basel in 1629. Picus De
Mirandula went on to purchase a collection of codex from an unknown Israelite, an index of the codex
was published by Gaffarel in 1651, this codex is believed to be the Zohar.

Most important of all writings in this time, thou not exclusively about Kabbalah was the work of
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa, DE OCCULTA PHILOSOPHIA. This work combines ideas of the
Kabbalah with other ideas such as those from neo-Platonism, Hermeticism and Christianity. Its
Presented as more of practical guide than a philosophic discourse. This all encompassing approach
Agrippa took proved popular, as it had universal appeal, and was not just for a Hebrew audience.

Also published in the Renaissance was The 32 Paths of Wisdom, Translated by Joannes Stephanus
Rittangelius, supposedly from ancient sources. And the work of Moses Cordovo, Garden of
pomegranates, was published in Cracow in 1591.
Types of Kabbalah

Kabbalah is not one school of thought, there a a few different currents of it; Theosophic, Prophetic,
Philosophic and Lurianic.

Prophetic Kabbalists like Abraham Abulafia shaped there version of Kabbalah on a combination of;
Theosophic Kabbalah, German Peitism and there reaction to Maimondes Rationalist philosophy.

Lurianic Kabbalah developed in the late 16th century was based on Isaac Luria's myth of creation. It
strengthened the gnostic element within the Kabbalah by its ideas on messianism, and the concept of
the personal messiah12.
Bibliography

Ponce, Charles; Kabbalah, an introduction and illumination for the world today. 1991
Quest Books, San Francisco
ISBN: 0-8356-0510-8

Dan, Joseph; Jewish Mysticism, vols 1&4. 1998

Jason Aronson Inc., New Jersey
ISBN: 0-7657-6010-X

Scholem, Gershom; Origins of the Kabbalah. 1987 (1st English edition)

Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0-619-07314-7
ISBN: 0-619-02047-7

Waite, A. E.; The Holy Kabbalah. 1996

Oracle Publishing, Hertfordshire
ISBN: 1-86196-002-6

Refrences

1. Page 314-15, Waite

2. I will have the source for this in the final essay—it was in the Scholem book but i am unsure
what page number.
3. Page 242, Dan
4. Page 65, Dan
5. Page 254-5, Waite, see his notes also
6. Page 52, Ponce
7. Page 120, Dan
8. Page 42, Waite
9. Page 39, Ponce
10. Page 42, Waite
11. this was in Waite, again unsure of the page at this time.
12. Page 6, Dan