Menahem ben Benjamin Recanati ( he, מנחם בן בנימין ריקנטי;
1223–1290) was an Italian rabbi who was born and died in the city of
Recanati, who devoted the chief part of his writings to the
Kabbalah
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 ...
.
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Works
In addition to the halachic rulings collected in Piskei Recanati (his only halachic work), Recanati wrote a cabalistic commentary on the Torah
The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the ...
, a commentary on the siddur
A siddur ( he, סִדּוּר ; plural siddurim ) is a Jewish prayer book containing a set order of daily prayers. The word comes from the Hebrew root , meaning 'order.'
Other terms for prayer books are ''tefillot'' () among Sephardi Jews, '' ...
, and discussions of the commandments
Commandment may refer to:
* The Ten Commandments
* One of the 613 mitzvot of Judaism
* The Great Commandment
* The New Commandment
The New Commandment is a term used in Christianity to describe Jesus's commandment to "love one another" which, ac ...
. Piskei Recanati was first published in Bologna
Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different na ...
, 1538, and was published several times thereafter.
* ''Perush 'Al ha-Torah'' (Venice, 1523), a work full of mystical deductions and meanings based upon a textual interpretation of the Bible
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus ...
; it describes many visions and celestial revelations claimed to have been experienced by the author, who was influenced by cabalistic ideas, and expresses the highest respect for all cabalistical authors, even the most recent apocryphal ones. The work was republished with a commentary by Mordecai Jaffe, at Lublin in 1595 and was also translated into Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
by Pico di Mirandola.[
* ''Perush ha-Tefillot'' and ''Ṭa'ame ha-Miẓwot,'' published together (Constantinople, 1543–1544; Basel, 1581). Like the preceding work, these are strongly tinctured with German mysticism. Recanati frequently quotes Judah he-Hasid of ]Regensburg
Regensburg or is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the Danube, Naab and Regen rivers. It is capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state in the south of Germany. With more than 150,000 inhabitants, Regensburg is the ...
, Eleazar of Worms
Eleazar of Worms (אלעזר מוורמייזא - also מגרמייזא of Garmiza or Garmisa) (c. 1176–1238), or Eleazar ben Judah ben Kalonymus, also sometimes known today as Eleazar Rokeach ("Eleazar the Perfumer" אלעזר רקח) from ...
, and their disciples, and alludes also to the Spanish cabalists, Nahmanides among them. He is rarely original, quoting almost always other authorities. Although Recanati had a high reputation for sanctity, he exercised less influence on his contemporaries than upon posterity. To assist him in his cabalistic researches, he studied logic and philosophy
Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. ...
; and he endeavors to support the cabala by philosophical arguments.[
*''Pisḳe Hilkot,'' Bologna, 1538.][
Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography:
* Moritz Güdemann, Gesch. ii. 180 et seq.;
* Zunz, Literaturgesch. p. 369;
*idem, in Geiger's Jüd. Zeit. iv. 139;
* Gedaliah ibn Yaḥya, Shalshelet ha-Ḳabbalah, p. 48b]
References
* Menahem Recanati – Commentary on the Daily Prayers: Flavius Mithridates’ Latin Translation, the Hebrew Text, and an English Version, edited with introduction and notes by Giacomo Corazzol, two volumes, 860 pages. HE KABBALISTIC LIBRARY OF GIOVANNI PICO DELLA MIRANDOLA 3, Giulio Busi, general editorTorino: Nino Aragno Editore, 2008.
13th-century Italian rabbis
Kabbalists
13th-century births
13th-century deaths
Exponents of Jewish law
Recanati family
People from Recanati
Authors of books on Jewish law
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