Sefer ha-bahir

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Bahir or Bahir סֵפֶר הַבָּהִיר ( Hebrew , "Book of (bright) gloss") is an anonymous work of Jewish mysticism ( Kabbalah ), the pseudepigraphical the Tannaites Nehunya Ben Hakanah , a contemporary of Jochanan ben Sakkai , is ascribed . This attribution is based on the opening words of the book: “R. Nechunja ben ha-Qana said “. It is also known as the Midrash of Rabbi Nekhunja ben ha-Qana מִדְרָשׁ רַבִּי נְחוּנְיָא בֶּן הַקָּנָה.

The book Bahir was first published in the south of France in the 12th century. Historians suspect the author was Rabbi Jitzchaq Saggi Nehor, also known as Isaac the Blind . The fact that the expression Ein Sof ("the infinite") does not appear in the Bahir as a designation for God , although this designation can be found in the work of Isaac the blind, speaks against its authorship .

title

Nachmanides is one of the first to quote in his commentary on the Torah (Genesis 1) the Sefer ha-Bahir under the title Midrash R. Nechunja ben ha-Qana with the opening sentence “R. Nechunja ben ha-Qana said “.

The work became known among medieval Kabbalists as Sefer ha-Bahir . This expression was taken from the opening part: A verse says: "And now one does not see the light that shines (" bahir ") in the sky" Hi 37.21  EU .

Authorship

Kabbalists see in R. Nechunja, a rabbi from the time of the Mishnah who lived around the year 100, the author of the Sefer ha-Bahir . Medieval Kabbalists report that the Sefer ha-Bahir was not available to them as a uniform book, but in individual parts, which they found scattered in scrolls and little books. The fragmented and broken character of the Sefer ha-Bahir texts supports this assumption. Sometimes a discussion is broken off in the middle of a sentence or suddenly skipped from one topic to the next.

The historical-critical research advocates a later dating with regard to the composition of the Sefer ha-Bahir . Some researchers believe that it was written by Isaac the Blind in the 13th century, or that it comes from his school. Since, in their opinion, the first sentence, "And now one does not see the light that shines (" bahir ") in heaven" ( Hi 37.21  EU ) stands on its own without any connection to the following, they see in it an allusion on the author's blindness . Modern researchers of Kabbalah suspect that at least parts of the Sefer ha-Bahir are a recording of the older work Sefer Raza Rabba . This older book is mentioned in some works by the Geonim , but there is no complete copy of the Sefer Raza Rabba . However, quotations from this work can be found in some ancient scriptures.

Many Kabbalah scholars believe that the Sefer ha-Bahir added gnostic elements to its previous work. One of the most important points of discussion in modern research is how much Gnostic thought has influenced Kabbalah. More on this discussion can be found in the works of Gershom Scholem and Moshe Idel . There is a certain affinity between the symbolic language of the Sefer ha-Bahir on the one hand and the Gnostic speculations about the aeons on the other. A fundamental question in researching this work is whether this affinity goes back to a hitherto unknown historical connection between Gnosticism from the time of the Mishnah and Talmud and the sources used for the Sefer ha-Bahir .

Publication history

  • Kabbalists believe that the oral tradition of Sefer ha-Bahir goes back to the 1st century and consider it possible that there were secret manuscripts even before the first publication in the 12th century.
  • 1174 - Sefer ha-Bahir is published as a manuscript in a Kabbalist school in Provence and made available to a restricted readership.
  • 1331 - The earliest commentary on Sefer ha-Bahir is written by Rabbi Meir ben Shalom Abi-Sahula , a disciple of Rabbi Shlomo ben Avraham Aderet (Rashba), this commentary is published anonymously under the title Or ha-Ganus .
  • At the end of the 15th century - The Sefer ha-Bahir is translated into Latin by Flavius ​​Mitridates , his translation is verbose, but not particularly precise.
  • 1651 - The Sefer ha-Bahir is published for the first time in print together with Majin ha-Hochma in Amsterdam .
  • 1706 - The Sefer ha-Bahir is published in Berlin together with Majin ha-Hochma .
  • 1784 - The Sefer ha-Bahir is published in Sklav and Korets .
  • 1800 - The Sefer ha-Bahir is published in Lviv .
  • 1830 - The Sefer ha-Bahir is published in Lviv.
  • 1849 - The Sefer ha-Bahir is published in an undisclosed location as part of the Chamisha Chumsche Kabbalah .
  • 1865 - The Sefer ha-Bahir is published in Lviv.
  • 1883 - The Sefer ha-Bahir is published in Vilnius .
  • 1913 - The Sefer ha-Bahir is published in Vilnius.
  • 1923 - A German translation is published by Gershom Scholem , who received his doctorate on the subject in 1922.
  • 1951 - The Sefer ha-Bahir is published in Jerusalem .
  • 1979 - An English translation is published.
  • 1980 - A Latin translation ( Guillaume Postels ) is published by Francois Secret .
  • 1983 - A French translation ( Joseph Gottfarstein ) is published.
  • 1994 - The Hebrew text is published from the manuscripts of Daniel Abrams .
  • 2005 - The Latin translation by Flavius ​​Mithridates is published together with a critical edition of the Hebrew text by Saverio Campanini .

content

The Sefer ha-Bahir consists of five sections, which are divided into 200 short paragraphs. It has the form of an exegetical midrash in the typical question-and-answer style as a dialogue between student and master. The main characters are R. Amora (or Amorai ), and R. Rahamai (or Rehumai ). Some statements in the book are attributed to R. Calciah, R. Johanan, R. Bun, rabbis mentioned in later Midrashim.

The Sefer ha-Bahir includes commentaries that explain the mystical meaning of biblical verses. The main focus is on the first chapters of the book of Bereshith (1st Book of Moses), i.e. the basic relationship between God and the world. This is also illuminated by many other quotations from the Torah and their interpretation. The shape of the Hebrew letters and their vocalization are also explained. Statements from Sefer Jezirah ('Book of Creation') are also taken up and interpreted.

The Sefer ha-Bahir is rich in parables in which the figure of a king is the focus, with the help of which the nature and actions of God are illustrated.

Departments

Section 1 (§ 1–16) contains comments on the first verses of the Book of Bereshith (Genesis) and general information on the creation story.

Section 2 (§ 17-44) talks about the Aleph-Beth (the Hebrew alphabet) and gets its inspiration from the Sefer Jezirah , which connects the letters of creation with the mysticism present everywhere in the Torah.

Section 3 (§ 45-122) contains the seven voices and the Sefirot .

Section 4 (§ 124-193) is grouped by the titles of the ten Sefirot.

Section 5 (§ 193-200) concludes the argument and names the mysteries of the soul.

Sefirot

The Hebrew word Sefirot was first mentioned in the Sefer Jezirah combined with the digits from 1 to 10 and there did not yet have the meaning that later Kabbalists gave it. It is only in the Sefer ha-Bahir that one finds the first discussion about the Kabbalistic concept of the Sefirot as divine attributes or powers of the emanated God.

The creation

According to the Sefer ha-Bahir , the world is not the product of an act of creation. Like God, this book has existed for all eternity, not only in potency, but also in actuality. The creation mostly consists of the appearance that emerges from the first Sefira, Or ha-Ganus or, as it is also called: Keter Eljon , from God.

This Sefira gave birth to Hochma (wisdom), from which Bina (intelligence) emanated. Of these three, the uppermost Sefirot , and from the first principles of the universe, the seven lower Sefirot emanated, one after the other . From these in turn all material being is formed. The ten Sefirot are connected to each other, and each one has an active and a passive part in the process of receiving and passing on the emanations. The outflow of one Sefira into the other is symbolized by the shape of the letters of the Hebrew alphabet. The Gimel (ג), shaped like a tube with openings at each end, represents the Sefira , which receives strength from one side and transfers it to the other. The ten Sefirot are the energy of God, the form in which his being manifests.

reincarnation

The Sefer ha-Bahir adopts the idea of reincarnation to solve the theodicy : "The righteous may have been evil in their previous life and the wicked righteous."

Issues and comments

  • One of the best-preserved manuscripts of the original form of Sefer ha-Bahir was written in 1331 by Meir ben Solomon Abi-Sahula; his commentary on Sefer ha-Bahir was published anonymously under the name Or ha-Ganus ('The Hidden Light').
  • Sefer ha-Bahir was translated into German by Gershom Scholem in 1923 as part of his dissertation. Scholem used Pico della Mirandola's edition of 1486. ​​The translation was reprinted in 1969: The Book of Bahir. A written memorial from the early days of Kabbalah based on the critical new edition by Gerhard Scholem. Series 'Sources and Research on the History of Jewish Mysticism', ed. by Robert Eisler , Drugulin-Vlg., Leipzig 1923. New edition Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 1969; 4th edition 1989, ISBN 3-534-05049-5
  • Saverio Campanini has published a critical edition: The Book of Bahir. Flavius ​​Mithridates' Latin Translation, the Hebrew Text, and an English Version , edited by Saverio Campanini with a Foreword by Giulio Busi, Torino, Nino Aragno Editore 2005, ISBN 88-8419-239-0 .

See also:

  • G. Busi, SM Bondoni, S. Campanini (eds.): The Great Parchment: Flavius ​​Mithridates' Latin Translation, the Hebrew Text, and an English Version ; Biblioteca cabbalistica di GP della Mirandola, 1; Turin: Nino Aragno, 2004; ISBN 88-8419-189-0 .

Web links and references

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Betty Scholem, Gershom Scholem: Mother and Son in Correspondence 1917–1946 . Munich: CH Beck'sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, p. 539.