SEFER HA-BAHIR The Sefer ha-Bahir is recognized as one of the oldest, most influential and important of all classical Kabbalah texts. It appeared for the first time around the end of the XII century in southern France. Scholars such as Gershom Scholem consider the Bahir being the first text of the Kabbalistic literature, namely, the first book that adopts the specific methodology and symbolic structure characterizing the Kabbalistic teaching.1 In fact, among the Spanish medieval Kabbalists, it was being known with two names: the first one was Midrash R. Nehunya ha-Kanah because the first sentence of the first section says “Rabbi Nehunya said”.2 Rabbi Nehunya was a mystic of the second century to which Yitshaq Sagi Nahor’s (Isaac the Blind) students erroneously ascribed the text.3 The name Bahir, also derives from the first section of the book, second sentences: “One verse (Job 37:21) states ‘And now they do not see light, it is brilliant (Bahir) in the skies…’”.4 Up to the present, we do not know who is the writer(s) of the Bahir. As a Midrash, it is being ascribed to a variety of Tannaim and Amoraim and the main characters are Amorai and Rahmai. In addition, there are many passages attributed to different rabbis and, at the same time, there are many paragraphs having any connection to any names. The main sources of the Bahir are represented by Heikhalot traditions, Talmudic sayings and the Sefer Yetsirah, even though usually new meanings and concepts overshadow the original ones.5 Anyway, throughout the book we can find that ideas and traditions are being presented through the exegesis of biblical verses, short discussions among different interlocutors or statements without a real scriptural base. Moreover, apparently there is no a logical order in the book and 1 S. Gershom, La Cabala, Ed. Mediterranee, Roma, 1992, p.312 2 Kaplan, A., The Bahir, Samuel Weiser Inc., York Beach, Maine, 1979, p.1 3 Eliade, M., The Encyclopedia of Religion, McMillan, New York, 1987, V.12, p.117 4 Kaplan, A., The Bahir, Samuel Weiser Inc., York Beach, Maine, 1979, p.1 5 Zwi Werblosky R. J. and Wigoder G., The Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion, Oxford University Press, New York-Oxford, 1997, p.615 1 often the meanings and general sense do not provide a logical sequence of thinking.6 Those are the main reasons why the Bahir must be considered a Midrash (written in both Hebrew and Aramaic) whose comprehension is sometimes very difficult even though some parts have a certain degree of spiritual fervor and a fascinating literally style. The sections of the book with a solid literally unit are fundamentally two: one refers to statements based on the Seref Yetsirah, statements providing a fresh content to the latter text. The second is related to the classification of the ten Sefirot (Divine Emanation), quoted in the Bahir as Ma’amarot (Sayings) through which the world has been created.7 To sum up, we can divide the book into five parts: 1. The first verses of creation (1-16) 2. The alphabet (27-44) 3. The Seven Voices and Sefirot (45-123) 4. The Ten Sefirot (123-193) 5. Mysteries of the soul (194-200)8 Through the use of a highly symbolic language, the Sefirot are a fundamental part of the Bahir. The Sefirot, mentioned for the first time in the Sefer Yetsirah, later found an important development in the Bahir and finally, in the Zohar, they reach the zenith.9 The Sefirot represent the ten divine structures that, through Emanation, bring the world into being and constitute the different levels of reality. We must look at the Sefirot as a unity rather than separate entities. The higher Sefirah is keter (crown), which is the primary divine will. The others are chokhmah (wisdom), binah (understanding), chesed (love), gevurah (power), tiferet (beauty), netzach (victory), hod (glory), yesod (foundation) and malkhut (kingdom).10 In the Bahir the Sefirot are discussed and presented as divine attributes, powers and lights. Each of them have a particular relevance in the creation process. 6 Gershom, S., La Cabala, Ed. Mediterranee, Roma, 1992, p.313 7 Ibidem, p. 313 8 Kaplan, A., The Bahir, Samuel Weiser Inc., York Beach, Maine, 1979, p.18 9 Unterman, A., Dictionary of Jewish Lore and Legend, Thames and Hudson, London, 1997, p.175 10 Ibidem, p.175 2 The last seven Sefirot have a correspondence to the seven days of the week, quoted in the following verse of the Ancient Testament (Chronicles 29:11):” Yours Oh God are the Greatness, the Strength, the Beauty, the Victory, and the Splendor, All (Foundation) that is in heaven and earth, Yours Oh God is the Kingdom”.11 Differently, in the Bahir, the last four are being reversed. The reason for this, as explained in the book, is that Kingship or Kingdom must be put into the middle of the seven and, because they correspond to the Sabbath. In a similar way, Foundation corresponds to the sign of circumcision, thus it has to be the eighth one, since circumcision is enacted on the eighth day.12 The divine powers constitute the “secret tree” upon which the souls prosper. But these attributes are present in the inferior world, meaning, everything in our world has a connection to an element of the divine attributes, especially to everything that has holiness. Another concept discussed in the Bahir is Gilgul (reincarnation). Through it, the author(s) explains the problem of apparent injustice and why some children are suffering and are born mutilated.13 The well-known Egyptian Rabbi Saadia Gaon thoroughly rejected this idea. Gilgul is being discussed further in the Zohar and in greater detail in the Sefer Gilgulim. As above-mentioned, others topics of the Bahir are the Hebrew alphabet with regard to the interpretation of the letters, the commandments and a number of issues reported in the Sefer Yetsirah are discussed. Moreover, the names of God are addressed as they were being mentioned in the Talmud. Finally, another important concept is developed, the Tzimtzum, the self-constriction of God’s Light. The first to provide a clear explanation of Tzimtzum was Rabbi Isaac Luria (1534-1572), also known as the Ari and head of the Safed School of Kabbalah. Literally speaking, God drew a “thread” of His Light whereby all creation took place. The Kabbalists, though, state that Tzintzum is not be interpreted in a literally way, because we cannot apply a spatial concept to God and, at the same time, the Tzimtzum took place in His Light 11http://www.lachiesa.it/bibbia.php?ricerca=citazione&Citazione=1Cr%2029&Versione_CEI7 4=&Versione_CEI2008=3&Versione_TILC=&VersettoOn=1 12 Kaplan, A., The Bahir, Samuel Weiser Inc., York Beach, Maine, 1979, p.20 13 Ibidem, p.20 3 and not in His essence. The Light is the first thing that emerged representing God’s power of creation.14 To conclude, the Bahir symbolizes a great aspect of the Kabbalah’s evolution and it has a tremendous importance to understand the impact of the Kabbalah when it gained knowledge among a wider audience and its first evolutionary phases. Amongst the Spanish Kabbalists the Bahir was accepted as an authoritative, ancient and influential source. On the other side, the opponents of the Kabbalah like Meir b. Simeon of Narbonne depicted the text as a heretic book written by Nehunya b. haKanah. The first printed edition of the Bahir appeared in Amsterdam in 1651 by an anonymous Christian scholar. Today we can find translations in German and English. BIBLIOGRAPHY Eliade, M., The Encyclopedia of Religion, McMillan, New York, 1987 Gershom, S., La Cabala, Ed. Mediterranee, Roma, 1992, pp. 10-15 http://www.lachiesa.it/bibbia.php?ricerca=citazione&Citazione=1Cr%2029&Ve rsione_CEI74=&Versione_CEI2008=3&Versione_TILC=&VersettoOn=1 Kaplan, A., The Bahir, Samuel Weiser Inc., York Beach, Maine, 1979 Unterman, A., Dictionary of Jewish Lore and Legend, Thames and Hudson, London, 1997 Zwi Werblosky R. J. and Wigoder G., The Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion, Oxford University Press, New York-Oxford, 1997 14 Ibidem, pp.20-23 4 5
