''Berit Menuchah'' (Hebrew: ''ספר ברית מנוחה'') (also ''Berit Menuḥah'', ''Berith Menuḥa'', or ''Brit Menucha'') is a
practical Kabbalah
Practical Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה מַעֲשִׂית ''Kabbalah Ma'asit'') in historical Judaism, is a branch of the Jewish mystical tradition that concerns the use of magic. It was considered permitted white magic by its practitioners, ...
work written in the 14th century, by Rabbi
Abraham ben Isaac of Granada
Abraham ben Isaac of Granada also Abraham Merimon was a Kabbalist of the thirteenth century.
Works
Abraham wrote:
*A work on the Kabbala, under the title of ''Sefer ha-Berit.'' This is quoted by Moses Botarel in the introduction to his comment ...
. It consists of a system of
theurgy
Theurgy (; ) describes the practice of rituals, sometimes seen as magical in nature, performed with the intention of invoking the action or evoking the presence of one or more deities, especially with the goal of achieving henosis (uniting w ...
which uses secret names of
God
In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
and his emanations for spiritual and magical purposes. An English translation thereof was published in 2007.
Contents
The ''Berit Menuḥah'' focuses on a complex system describing the various hypostases of the divine world and God, and associating them with the vowel points (''Nikudim'') of the
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
language. Especially central is the role of the divine, angelic, and magical names associated with the various emanations described. They are often given magical uses, and the text often specifies whether the practitioner needs to be pure or not in order to use them. Some of the names are typical Kabbalistic names of God, but the majority are derived by
Notarikon
Notarikon ( he, נוטריקון ''Noṭriqōn'') is a Talmudic and Kabbalistic method of deriving a word, by using each of its initial (Hebrew: ) or final letters () to stand for another, to form a sentence or idea out of the words. Another var ...
from biblical verses:
And it was discovered that the Malachim were created from the wind and the fine and enlightening air, and that the name of their origin עַמַרֻמְאֵליוְהָ was derived from the verse (Psalms 104:4): ‘Who makest the winds thy messengers, fire and flame thy ministers’ (.....) And when the lights reach this Sefira, they unite and receive a name that is derived from the central letters of the following verse (Genesis 6:2): ‘The sons of God saw that the daughters of men were fair; and they took to wife such of them as they chose.’ And this valiant name, which is drawn in the Gevura, is רְנֵלבֺנקְהֵכשְיִהְ.
Angels
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles incl ...
and their names also feature prominently in the text, and one section lists dozens of them and their areas of dominion, such as animals, trees, elements, etc.:
The angel רוחיאל (Rohiel) is in charge of the winds; he is the captain of three angels: חזקיה , עוזיאל and עזאל (Uziel, Hezekiah and Azael). The angel גבריאל (Gabriel) is in charge of the thunders. The angel נוריאל (Nuriel) is in charge of the hailstones. The angel מקטוניאל (Miktoniel?) is in charge of the rocks. The angel טלפיאל (Talpiel) is in charge of the trees that bear fruits. The prince שרואל (S'ruel/Sh'ruel?) is in charge of the fruitless trees. And the angel סנדלפון (Sandalphon) is in charge of human beings.[''Brit Menucha'', pg. 188]
External links
Full text of ''Berit Menuchah''at ''hebrewbooks.org'', ''PDF'' file
References
Kabbalah
{{Kabbalah-stub