Abraham ben Mordecai Azulai (c. 1570–1643) ( he, אברהם בן מרדכי אזולאי) was a
Kabbalistic
Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and Jewish theology, school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "rece ...
author and commentator born in
Fez, Morocco
Fez or Fes (; ar, فاس, fās; zgh, ⴼⵉⵣⴰⵣ, fizaz; french: Fès) is a city in northern inland Morocco and the capital of the Fès-Meknès, Fès-Meknès administrative region. It is the List of cities in Morocco, second largest city i ...
. In 1599 he moved to
Ottoman Palestine
Ottoman Syria ( ar, سوريا العثمانية) refers to divisions of the Ottoman Empire within the region of Syria, usually defined as being east of the Mediterranean Sea, west of the Euphrates River, north of the Arabian Desert and south ...
and settled in
Hebron
Hebron ( ar, الخليل or ; he, חֶבְרוֹן ) is a Palestinian. city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judaean Mountains, it lies above sea level. The second-largest city in the West Bank (after East J ...
.
Biography
In
Hebron
Hebron ( ar, الخليل or ; he, חֶבְרוֹן ) is a Palestinian. city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judaean Mountains, it lies above sea level. The second-largest city in the West Bank (after East J ...
, Azulai wrote a commentary on the ''
Zohar
The ''Zohar'' ( he, , ''Zōhar'', lit. "Splendor" or "Radiance") is a foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah (the five ...
'' under the title ''Kiryat Arba'' (City of Arba (in Hebrew four);
Gen
Gen may refer to:
* ''Gen'' (film), 2006 Turkish horror film directed by Togan Gökbakar
* Gen (Street Fighter), a video game character from the ''Street Fighter'' series
* Gen Fu, a video game character from the ''Dead or Alive'' series
* Gen l ...
. xxiii.2). The plague of 1619 drove him from his new home, and while in
Gaza, where he found refuge, he wrote his Kabalistic work ''Chesed le-Abraham'' (Mercy to Abraham;
Book of Micah
The Book of Micah is the sixth of the Twelve Minor Prophets, twelve minor prophets in the Hebrew Bible. Ostensibly, it records the sayings of Micah (prophet), Micah, whose name is ''Mikayahu'' ( he, מִיכָיָ֫הוּ), meaning "Who is like Y ...
vii.20). It was published after the author's death by Meshullam Zalman ben Abraham Berak of Gorice, in Amsterdam, 1685. The work is a treatise with an introduction, (''The Cornerstone''; see Talmud
Yoma
Yoma (Aramaic: יומא, lit. "The Day") is the fifth tractate of ''Seder Moed'' ("Order of Festivals") of the ''Mishnah'' and of the ''Talmud''. It is concerned mainly with the laws of the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur, on which Jews atone for their ...
53b), and is divided into seven "fountains" (
Book of Zechariah
The Book of Zechariah, attributed to the Hebrew prophet Zechariah, is included in the Twelve Minor Prophets in the Hebrew Bible.
Historical context
Zechariah's prophecies took place during the reign of Darius the Great and were contempora ...
iii.9), each fountain being subdivided into a number of "streams." A specimen of the work Chesed Le-Avraham, taken from the fifth fountain, twenty-fourth stream, p. 57d, of the Amsterdam edition:
A popular story about Rabbi Azulai is that of how he retrieved the sultan's sword. When the Ottoman sultan visited Hebron, his precious sword fell into the
Cave of Machpela
, alternate_name = Tomb of the Patriarchs, Cave of Machpelah, Sanctuary of Abraham, Ibrahimi Mosque (Mosque of Abraham in Islam, Abraham)
, image = Palestine Hebron Cave of the Patriarchs.jpg
, alt =
, caption = Southern view of the com ...
. Anyone sent down to retrieve it disappeared. Only Rabbi Azulai was able to descend into the cave and retrieve the sword.
He died in
Hebron
Hebron ( ar, الخليل or ; he, חֶבְרוֹן ) is a Palestinian. city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judaean Mountains, it lies above sea level. The second-largest city in the West Bank (after East J ...
on November 6, 1643 and is buried in the
Old Jewish Cemetery in Hebron.
[Michael Laitman, ''Gems of Wisdom: Words of the Great Kabbalists from All Generations'', Laitman Kabbalah Publishers, 2011, p. 413-414]
One of the manuscripts that he left to his descendant,
Chaim Yosef David Azulai
Haim Yosef David Azulai ben Yitzhak Zerachia (1724 – 1 March 1806) (), commonly known as the Hida (the acronym of his name, ), was a Jerusalem born rabbinical scholar, a noted bibliophile, and a pioneer in the publication of Jewish religious ...
, is also published. It is a Kabalistic commentary on the
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;["Tanach"](_blank)
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. Hebrew: ''Tān ...
, ''Ba'ale Berit Abraham'' (Abraham's Confederates; see
Book of Genesis
The Book of Genesis (from Greek ; Hebrew: בְּרֵאשִׁית ''Bəreʾšīt'', "In hebeginning") is the first book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its Hebrew name is the same as its first word, ( "In the beginning") ...
xiv.13), Vilna, 1873.
Pirkei Avot– a selection from Chesed le-Abraham
References
Jewish Encyclopedia
*
Azoulay Azoulay, sometimes spelled Azoulai, Azulai or Azulay ( he, אזולאי), etc. is a Sephardi Jewish surname, common among Jews of Moroccan descent.
People
Azoulay family of Fes
Azoulay, is the name of a notable Jewish family descended from Spani ...
, ''Shem ha-Gedolim,'' s.v.;
*
Isaac ben Jacob Benjacob
Isaac ben Jacob Benjacob (January 10, 1801, Ramygala – July 2, 1863, Vilnius) was a Lithuanian Jewish Maskil, best known as a bibliographer, author, and publisher. His 17-volume Hebrew Bible included Rashi, Mendelssohn, as well as his own ''M ...
, ''Oẓar ha-Sefarim,'' p. 196;
*
Julius Fürst
Julius Fürst (; 12 May 1805, Żerków, South Prussia – 9 February 1873, Leipzig), born Joseph Alsari, was a Jewish German orientalist and the son of noted maggid, teacher, and Hebrew grammarian Jacob Alsari. Fürst was a distinguished schola ...
, ''Bibliotheca Judaica,'' i.67;
*
Heimann Joseph Michael
Heimann (Hayyim) Michael (April 12, 1792 – June 10, 1846) was a Hebrew bibliographer born at Hamburg. He showed great acuteness of mind in early childhood, had a phenomenal memory, and was an indefatigable student. He studied Talmudics and rec ...
, ''Or ha-Ḥayyim,'' p. 12.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Azulai, Abraham
1570s births
1643 deaths
People from Fez, Morocco
Kabbalists
Sephardi rabbis in Ottoman Palestine
Rabbis in Hebron
Moroccan writers
16th-century Moroccan rabbis
17th-century rabbis from the Ottoman Empire