Zohar
“Splendour, a collection of books on the Qabalah. See 'The Temple of Solomon the King,' Equinox V.”—Book 4, Part II
written after the Sepher Yetzirah and the Bahir, and contemporaneously with the differing approaches of Ecstatic/ Prophetic Qabalah of Abraham Abulafia, the Monastic Qabalah of the Ari aka Isaac Luria and the Speculative Qabalah of Azriel of Gerona aka Ezra Ben Solomon;
see also the Midrash de Rabban Shimon bar Yochai;
Likely written by Moses ben Shem-Ṭob de Leon aka Moses de Leon, but ascribed to Shimon bar Yochai aka The Yoshi, bought by “Joseph of Avila, and extensively commented upon by Moses ben Jacob Cordovero. Often added to the original are “Sifra di-Ẓeni'uta,”1) on Creation, “Idra Rabbah,” “Idra Zuṭa,” “Raze de Razin,” “Sefer Hekalot”, Ra'ya Mehemna, “Sitre Torah, “Midrash ha-Ne'elam, Saba, Yanuḳa, “Tosefta” , Matnitin ; seperte but similar are Zohar Ḥadash and Zohar Tiḳḳunum;
1). Introduction, authority & premise 2). The Book of Concealment aka Sifra di-Tseniutha 3). The Greater Assembly aka Idra Tabba 4). The Lesser Assembly aka Idra Zutta 5). Assembly on the Tabernacle aka Idra d-bd-Mashkana 6). The Palaces of God aka Hekhaloth 7) Secret Sanctorum aka Raza de-Razin 8) The Old Man aka Sava 8) the Child aka Yenuka 9). The Headmaster aka Rev methivtha 10). Secrets of the Torah aka Sithre Torah 11). Zohar on The Song of Songs 12). The Mystical Standard of Measure aka Kav ha-Middah 13). Secrets of the Letters aka Sithre Orthioth 14). The Chariot of Ezekiel aka the Merkabah 15). Mystical Midrash of the Torah aka Midrash ha-Neelam, which runs into the Midrash ha-Neelam, of Ruth 16). The Faithful Shepard (Moses) aka Raya Mehemna (later addition) 17). In the Beginning, a commentary on Bershirth aka Tikkune Zohar (later addition)
It was preceded by Sepher Yetzirah aka Sefer Yetzirah aka the Book of Formation, attributed to The Yoshi, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai & The Bahir, probably by Rabbi Isaac the Blind, taught by Ibn Sahula and translated into Latin by Guillaume Postel.
Authors/ Teachers: Often featuring great historical Qabalists like Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai AKA Simeon bar Yoshi AKA The Rashbi and his teacher, Rabbi Akiva aka Akibba; Most likely collected and written in forced Aramaic by Moses de Leon and published piece meal by his student Moses ben Jacob Cordovero, the RaMak; About this same time The Ari, aka Isaac Luria was developing another approach to QBLH with his student Rabbi Chaim Vital. Lurianic Kabbalah, and the Ecstatic or Prophetic Kabbala of Abraham Abulafia and his students Joseph ben Abraham Gikatilla & Rabbi Abraham Aben Ezra, were complimented by a third approach, the Speculative Qabalah of Azriel of Gerona aka Azriel Ben Menahem Ben Solomon aka Ezra; Solomon ibn Gabirol, author of Kether Malkuth aka Keter Malkut; Hamnuna the Elder;
Students/ Embellishers: Menachem Azaria AKA Menahem Azariah da Fano carried it from Southern France to Spain to Poland; Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto AKA The RaMCHaL;Rabbi Judah Loew ben Bezalel aka Yehuda Low ben Simon aka The MaHaRaL; Rabbi Moses Zinfa of Burgos, who focused on The Inverse Tree of Evil, Sitra Ahra;; Jakob Kohen (could be Jacob haCohen?); Marsilio Ficino; Giovanni Pico della Mirandola; Samuel of Medinaceli, disciple; David ben Yehudah he-Hasid; Moshe Ashkenazi (perhaps The ReMe'Z, Moses ben Mordecai Zacuto?); Jehudah Albottini, author of Ladder of Ascent; Rashba AKA Shlomo ben Aderet aka Solomon ben Abraham; Naphtali Herz ben Jacob Elhanan; Joseph Karo; Elijah de Vidas; Hirsch Phillip Flipowski, @ 1850; Todros ha-Levi Abulafia aka Ṭodros ben Yosef ha-Leṿi Abulʻafyah (aka Abulafia); Recanati aka Menahem ben Benjamin Recanati, author of Perush ʻal ha-Torah ʻal derekh ha-emet; Isaac of Acco, author of 'Ozar ha-Hayyium; Joseph ben Todros; Sabbatai Zevi; Moses ben Menahem Kunitz, author of “Ben Yoḥai” , 1815; David Luria , author of “Ḳadmut ha-Zohar” , 1855; Magicians - Guillaume Postel, 1st Latin translation; Johan Kemper; Éliphas Lévi; Dr. William Wynn Westcott; Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers; Allan Bennett; Dion Fortune;
Friends: Albertus Magnus;
Enemies: Elia del Medigo aka Elijah Delmedigo, author of “Beḥinat ha-Dat”; Leon of Modena, author of “Ari Nohem”; Jacob Emden, author of “Miṭpaḥat Sefarim” ; Jean Morin , author of “Exercitationes Biblicæ” 1669;
Resources: totally dependent upon my main source, Gershom Scholem as well as Rabbi Isaac Meyer; Moshe Idel, author of “The Mystical Experience in Abraham Abulafia”, and others. see Ancient manuscripts, Qabalist, Gnostic Qabalah; Neoplatonism; Gnostic, and Rabbi Philo for the beginning of this blend of Hebrew Religion and Greek Philosophy.
External Resources
- read Sepher D’Zeniuta aka Dzyn here - http://www.sacred-texts.com/jud/tku/tku04.htm