Rachel Elior demonstrates convincingly how the Jewish mystical tradition crystallized in its early stages. She attributes its origins to priests prevented by circumstance from serving in the Temple: replacing the earthly Temple liturgically and ritually with a heavenly Merkavah and heavenly sanctuaries known as Heikhalot, they created a mystical world in which ministering angels replaced Temple priests, thereby giving Judaism a new spiritual focus. Professor Elior was awarded the 2006 Gershom Scholem Prize for the Study of Kabbalah and Jewish Mysticism by the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities.

This book presents Piyyutim (liturgical poetry) written by one of the most important poets in the land of Israel, Rabbi Pinhas Hacohen birabi Yaacov, who lived in the area of Tiberias in the 8th century. The Piyyutim are taken from manuscripts of the Cairo Genizah, and are published for the first time. R' Pinhas seals the classic period of early Paytanim (authors of liturgical poetry) in the land of Israel. His work preserves the variety of genres typical for classic Piyyutim, yet shows early signs of developments characteristic to late Eastern liturgical poetry. R' Pinhas' Piyyutim reveal a great poet with impressive compositional durability. In some of them he reaches unique climaxes, especially through dramatic developments in the Piyut. The Piyyutim presented in the book are accompanied by textual variants and detailed commentary. Comprehensive introductions to the poems discuss the poet and his works, their designations and references, patterns, their literary language, content, literary sources, as well as early customs that can be learned from them. The discussion brings up Hebrew words that have not been written before. Many long-forgotten Midrashim are exposed and authentic Halakhic customs from the Land of Israel are revealed, such as the calculation of the Hebrew calendar and early fasting traditions. First and foremost, this collection of Rabbi Pinhas' Piyyutim brings back one of the greatest poets of Israel to Hebrew literature and allows the readers to enjoy his rich poetry again. Edited and commented by Shulamit Elizur

This work illuminates the intricate connections between the mythical-mystical and ritual concepts that formed the chariot tradition through three distinct stages 1) The vision of Ezekiel, the priestly prophet, in the wake of the destruction of the First Temple 2) the Qumran literature of priestly-angelic traditions of Chariot mysticism dating from the middle of the second temple period 3)the mystical hymns of the hekhalot and the Merkavah literature written after the destruction of the Second Temple. These three stages of priestly- angelis lore came together to form the earliest known forms of Jewish mysticism.

This book represents a first attempt to assemble liturgical poems in a scientific edition according to their genre rather than according to authorship. All the Shiv‛atot cycles (liturgical poems for shabbat Amidah prayer) composed according to the order of the weekly Torah portion have been collected from the Genizah manuscripts. The book presents three main cycles, representing three stages in the history of liturgical poems: The remnants of an ancient Shiv‛atot cycle (composed around the sixth century) which was dedicated to the reading order of the Eretz-Israel triennial cycle, and two Shiv‛atot cycles for the annual cycle’s tractates – one of which was probably composed around the ninth or tenth century and remains loyal to the classical traditions of the genre, and the second, probably composed at the end of the tenth century or the beginning of the eleventh, which reflects a stage in which the later poets abandoned the ancient patterns or restricted them. Alongside these cycles, sections of other Shiv‛atot cycles whose remnants were found in the Genizah are included. The poems are printed in their entirety, with variant manuscripts readings and detailed notes. The book opens with an introduction that describes each cycle in detail and examines the development of the genre over the generations.

This book contains a selection of piyyutim in the Land of Israel and the East, from their first appearance and until the eleventh century, including poems by Rabbi Eleazar ben Killir , Saadia Gaon, Yanai, and others.

The illustrious payyetan who signs his name Eleazar be-rabbi Qillir (ha-Qilliri) in the acrostics of his poems has been known over the course of many generations. His compositions have been incorporated into the Ashkenazic mahzor and are recited to this day. The Cairo Genizah has surprised us with a cycle of yotzerot (piyyutim for the benedictions of the Shema) for the weekly Sabbath lections in whose acrostics the payyetan has signed a similar name: Eleazar be-rabbi Qilar [ קילר ]. In the book, these yotzerot have been gathered together and edited on the basis of the manuscripts in a scientific edition that includes variant readings, a commentary, and an extensive introduction containing a discussion of their various aspects. An analysis of these piyyutim makes it clear that their author is not Eleazar be-rabbi Qillir. Eleazar be-rabbi Qilar, the author of the yotzerot, postdates the Qilliri by several hundred years, and the style of the yotzerot is entirely different from that of the ancient Qillirian piyyutim. The book contains detailed explanations of this style, which characterizes a central layer of the period of Late Eastern piyyut. In addition, inter-textual connections between Eleazar be-rabbi Qilar and other payyetanim are discussed. It is shown that he took over entire stanzas from R. Yosef be-rabbi Nisan (a Classical, post-Qillirian payyeatan) and incorporated them in his own piyyutim. On the other hand, R. Shemuel Ha-Shelishi, an important payyetan who was active at the end of the tenth century, took the piyyutim of Eleazar be-rabbi Qilar as a model when he came to compose of his own cycle of yotzerot for the weekly Sabbath lections.

We have before us a study of the spiritual aspect of Hasidism in the second generation, from the end of the eighteenth century to the first half of the nineteenth century, from a historical point of view of the teachings and their development and from the point of view of Hasidic sources. It allows the reader to recognize an important aspect of Hassidic thought.

Hekhalot Zutarti or 'Lesser Hekhalot' is one of the fragmentary mystical documents of the various texts comprising the Hekhalot literature and indeed has long been considered one of the earlier examples. The first reference to this text which until now has never been completely published, is found in the tenth century 'Responsum' of Rav Hai Gaon, the head of a Babylonian academy, citing the well known Talmudic fragment of the Treatise Hagigah relating to the dangers of mystical practice . Hai Gaon has written: "There are two myshnayot that the Tanaim are teaching in that matter and they are called Hekhalot Rabbati and Hekhalot Zutarti and that is well known. About these contemplations said the Tana, "four entered the orchard" it is also explained in that Baraita, Rabbi Akiva spoke to them "When you come to the place of the pure marble plates then do not say: Water, Water'. In Hekhalot Zutarti it is said: the entrance of the sixth palace looks like thousands and ten thousands of waves of water but there is not one drop of water only an air of splendor from the pure marble paving stones with an appearance like unto water". Except for this quote relating to the gate of the sixth palace which gives us our only textual touchpoint as to the indentity of the text, we possess no further positive evidence as to its contents, its beginning or its end, its character or its form. In the principal manuscripts of the Hekhalot Literature we do not find a text entitled Hekhalot Zutarti. The true identity of the text should be questioned since its existance is based on such slender evidence. A. Jellinek was the first to suggest that certain fragments of Oxford manuscript 1531 is Hekhalot Zutarti. This identification together with its parallels in other manuscripts, has been accepted in a l l subsequent research. The survey of the manuscripts containing the Hekhalot tracts does not verify this arbitrary assumption since the passages containing Hekhalot Zutarti, according to Jellinekfs suggestion , do not present a continuous composition or a textual unit but rather a conglomeration of somewhat related bits and pieces . In the Hekhalot Zutarti as identified by Jellinek there are several different strata of Merkaba tradition unrelated as to author, chronological date of writting , and of form. We find about ten non successive passages a l l beginning with the words ״Rabbi Akiva spoke:" There is no continuous plot to bind these fragments as a whole and further in the Hekhalot literature we find many other and similar paragraphs which are also attributed to Rabbi Akiva. There are other portions of Hekhaloth Zutarti which can be found in some texts comprising the Hekhalot literature such as: "Shiur Quoma", Sar Torah", "Metatron", "Ezekiel's Chariot" and the long lists of secret names of the Deity and his wardens. The editorial considerations, therefore , for including each particular passage in Hekhalot Zutarti are not readily appearent and the compilation of these fragments in to a structural whole must seriously be questioned. This author sees them as most probably representing various mystical traditions from different circles of Yordi Merkava, copied in a haphazard manner with no attempt to attain textual unity . Hekhalot Zutarti should not be considered as an unfolding narrative or book but rather different forms of literature which grew from a nucleus of idea , situation , or perhaps a true mystical experience and to which has been grafted, with the passing o f time, other similiar traditions and new material. If these passages must be seen- as a unit, then their nucleus must be the well known archtypical mystical experience of Rabbi Akiva - the four who entered the orchard - since their uniqueness is obviously founded on the visionary experience. However, it is doubtful that at any time these parts were truly compiled together in a more coherent manner than we now possess. It has been accepted in previous research that Hekhalot Zutarti is the oldest text of this literature , however, no philological analysis has ever been attempted to prove this the thesis.Taking into consideration the nonhomogeneous character o f the text as described above, no generalization as to the antiquity of the text as a whole should be made. Several negative generalizations can be infered , to wit: Hekhalot Zutarti does not reflect a specific time or historical occurance; it is lacking any eschatological orientation or apocalyptical characterizations as found in other texts of Hekhalot literature; and, it is lacking any literary framework binding its various parts. Perhaps the only true connecting link , excepting the central position of Rabbi Akiva, is the importance stressed on the mystical meaning inherent in the secret and sacred names of the Deity. This critical edition of Hekhalot Zutarti is based on the Jewish Theological Seminary manuscript 8128 and the different variations as found in the other major manuscripts, it also contains the abridged contents and detailed notes, and includes an introduction dealing with the various aspects and problems as outlined in this summary.