The King in His Palace: Ibn Gabirol and Maimonides
Both Ibn Gabirol and Maimonides use the metaphor of a king and his palace to symbolize the relationship between God and humanity. While there is nothing surprising in that, the details of the relationship, as it is characterized by both authors are unusual. Both treatments, while in the tradition of...
| Published in: | The Jewish quarterly review |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Penn Press
2001
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| In: |
The Jewish quarterly review
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| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | Both Ibn Gabirol and Maimonides use the metaphor of a king and his palace to symbolize the relationship between God and humanity. While there is nothing surprising in that, the details of the relationship, as it is characterized by both authors are unusual. Both treatments, while in the tradition of medieval rationalism, are controversial. One appears quite tolerant while the other appears equally intolerant. An examination of the respective literary contexts of the metaphor, the authors' anthropological and epistemological views, and the Neoplatonic / Aristotelian currents that may have influenced both thinkers contextualizes the authors' treatment of the metaphor. The philosophical sources stressed divine knowledge as the key to both creation and the human knowledge of that creation, which might ultimately ascend to some sort of knowledge or apprehension of God. That human knowledge, for both authors, constitutes a kind of human perfection. But the details of their respective views vary considerably. Maimonides is unusually suspicious of the imagination, viewing it and the false opinions that flow from it as the roots of evil. Ibn Gabirol shows much less concern for literal truth but believes in a perfection of the will that is somewhat unique in medieval Jewish thought. These respective views regarding human virtue determine their view of the relationship between humanity and God. |
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| ISSN: | 1553-0604 |
| Reference: | Errata "An Early Passover Haggadah: Corrigenda (2001)"
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| Contains: | Enthalten in: The Jewish quarterly review
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.2307/1455550 |