Kabbalah for beginners?: Moses Cordovero’s early œuvre
This study examines the early works of Moses Cordovero (1522-1570) and their initial reception. Cordovero’s early œuvre is characterized in the article by an encyclopaedic urge to collate and classify medieval Kabbalistic knowledge, while constructing a new Kabbalistic system and clearly introducing...
Main Author: | |
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Format: | Electronic Article |
Language: | English |
Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
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Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
Published: |
Liverpool University Press
2022
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In: |
Journal of Jewish studies
Year: 2022, Volume: 73, Issue: 2, Pages: 333-354 |
Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
Summary: | This study examines the early works of Moses Cordovero (1522-1570) and their initial reception. Cordovero’s early œuvre is characterized in the article by an encyclopaedic urge to collate and classify medieval Kabbalistic knowledge, while constructing a new Kabbalistic system and clearly introducing it, thus, asserting its veracity and supremacy - especially in light of competing philosophical systems. Cordovero emphasized the value of foundational theoretical propositions, through which Kabbalistic literature must be understood. This study demonstrates that the primary aim of Cordovero’s early œuvre was to establish authoritative foundational knowledge by examining Cordovero’s self-perception of his early work and how his later disciples - actual and spiritual - understood and reshaped his teachings. This analysis shows that of Cordovero’s disciples some continued to understand his early work as foundational knowledge, while others - in light of certain Kabbalistic theoretical developments - refashioned Cordovero’s foundational knowledge into beginners’ knowledge. |
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ISSN: | 2056-6689 |
Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of Jewish studies
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Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.18647/3545/jjs-2022 |