The Living Symbol explores one of the Zohar’s most distinctive literary and theological features: the symbolic connection between its stories and its teachings about the divine realm. A young woman holding a lamp in a remote inn, travelers crossing dark mountain ranges, a doe crying out in distress, an old man emerging from the desert, all become symbols of processes unfolding within the hidden life of God. The lamp signifies divine love, the doe the suffering Shekhinah, the mountains divine judgment, and the desert the realm of metaphysical evil. Focusing on a wide range of Zoharic narratives, this book examines how everyday realities are transformed into symbols of the divine and how earthly stories intertwine with mystical interpretation. Through close readings of the Zohar’s tales, it reveals the intricate ways in which narrative and theosophy are woven together, linking the human world and the divine, the visible and the hidden. At the heart of the study stands the kabbalistic symbol. The book argues that the symbolic relationship between story and exposition reflects fundamental Zoharic conceptions of reality and offers a fresh perspective on one of the Zohar’s most important literary and religious innovations.

De Nobilitate et Praecellentia Foeminei Sexus is a revolutionary proto-feminist treatise written by Cornelius Agrippa in 1509. The book boldly argues that women are morally, spiritually, and physically superior to men. Reinterpreting biblical stories, Agrippa notes that Eve was created in Paradise from refined substance, unlike Adam who was made from crude dust. He systematically attacks historical misogyny rooted in Roman law and theology, blaming women's subjection on patriarchal tyranny and restricted education. By emphasizing that God granted both sexes identical souls, this radical Renaissance declamation delivered a profound critique of male authority and gender inequality.

Purchase of the subscription online includes domestic shipping to a pickup location. Other delivery options are available in the online form . International subscriptions are shipped via Fedex. The current subscription includes a double volume (77-78). Iyyun was established in 1945 as a Hebrew philosophical periodical by Martin Buber, S. H. Bergman and Julius Guttmann and is published by the S. H. Bergman Center for Philosophical Studies of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Iyyun has been rebranded, and as part of this renewal a number of thematic issues are published, aiming to advance contemporary philosophical discourse, primarily in Hebrew, to indicate new paths of thought and lines of original research, and to build bridges between academia and the broader public.‍ Iyyun seeks to give expression to a wide spectrum of writers, and is committed to cultural and ideological pluralism, scholarly excellence, high quality writing, and vitality of thought. This in the belief that philosophical thought has a formative role in local culture, and could be influential in shaping the sociopolitical sphere.

The Roman philosopher Seneca wrote the treatise on anger for his brother Novatus, who was not a philosopher but a statesman. The brother, governor of the province of Asia during the time of Emperor Nero, asked his philosopher brother to help him with practical advice on how to govern better and improve his relationship with his subjects, and in particular how to moderate and restrain anger, a disturbing emotion and sometimes even frightening in its outbursts. Seneca, as is evident from the treatise he wrote, thought that the best way was to prevent the outbreak of anger and the impulse that always accompanies it – to take revenge. The work sheds new light on the universal human emotion that dominates people of all times and generations, describes anger and its consequences, offers suggestions for controlling this harmful emotion with reason, and gives advice for preventing circumstances that may arouse anger and the urge for revenge that stems from it. To illustrate his points, Seneca brings a selection of historical events about the behavior of rulers who can take revenge on their subjects as they please, and about the subjects' methods of survival.

In this issue we sought to give expression to the historical dimensions of the philosophical debate on the concept of "identity" as well as to discuss philosophical questions about identity related to this time: What is the place of "selfhood" in an era of rapid change? What is the relationship between personal identity and the consciousness of identity? What is the relationship between psychoanalytic conceptions of identity and the decomposition of the concept of identity in postmodern thought? What role should personal, national, and religious identity play in a multicultural and global world? How should the place of individuation processes – private, social, technological, and environmental – in the establishment of identity be understood? And can philosophical identities be characterized in the struggle for peace, justice, and human rights?

Selected articles from current issue: Amir Banbaji | More Figurative than all Other Songs. A Study of the Pre-Maskilic History of the Hebrew Melitsah Nurit Barnea-Bernheim | ‘Total Love’: The Story of Miriam in ‘The Tale of the Scribe’ by S.Y. Agnon Neta Stahl | ‘How Come I Love the Ugav?’: The Ugav in Uri Zvi Grinberg’s Poetry Roy Greenwald | Kin of Dust: On Al Hakhmot Derakhim by Avot Yeshurun

The Politics is a foundational work of Greek philosophy and a cornerstone of Western political thought. It is an investigation into the nature of the polis (the city-state), which Aristotle defines as a partnership of a certain kind among similar people for the sake of the best attainable life. In this inquiry, Aristotle seeks to determine how a virtuous and flourishing city is constructed and sustained. In Books VII–VIII - presented here for the first time in Hebrew - Aristotle depicts a vivid portrait of the ideal Greek city, and formulates a guide for the establishment of a flourishing city.

Within the Babylonian Talmud are dozens of stories depicting sharp confrontations between the Amoraim, the Talmudic sages. These narratives portray the charged relationships among the sages, the emergence of conflict, and the profound emotional harm that results from it. Why do conflicts among the creators of Talmudic literature occupy such a central literary place? This book examines these stories as a distinct literary corpus. The analysis shows that the conflicts consistently center on one domain: injury to personal honor. They are also marked by a characteristic plot structure, in which conflict develops unintentionally and escalates uncontrollably, leading to a rupture between the characters. Using tools from narrative theory and comparative poetics, the book explores how these stories operate. They draw the reader into a web of misunderstandings and communicative failures, making simple moral judgment difficult. Instead, they direct attention to the inner and interpersonal worlds of the characters, and to the literary construction of the Talmudic study house as a space of mutual dependence and identity formation.

At the heart of this book’s ten chapters stands the rich, multifaceted figure of the mother. Are the Jewish mother and the Israeli mother one and the same, or does each have her own distinct identity? What are the enduring and evolving hallmarks of this maternal figure, and how are they reflected in songs in Hebrew and Yiddish? This is a guided journey through the fascinating, dizzying transformations of beloved and half-forgotten songs and melodies. The book's close readings bring these songs to life, offering a window into the worlds of their creators and shedding light on the events and processes that have shaped the Jewish people and Israeli society across the generations. Brimming with information, insights, and delightful curiosities, and accompanied by dozens of illustrations, this book is the fruit of meticulous research, written in clear, fluid, and utterly engaging prose. It is a book every mother will want to read, and that every son and daughter will want to give her as a gift of love.

Simon Bernfeld (1860–1940) was one of the most popular Jewish European writers of the early twentieth century. A prolific bestselling author in a broad range of fields of history and Jewish studies, and a pivotal figure in the renaissance of Jewish national culture. His oeuvre encompassed dozens of books, hundreds of essays, and thousands of daily columns published in Hebrew and German. Yet despite his vast influence, Bernfeld remained outside the mainstream. His prominent presence until the late 1920s stands in stark contrast to his subsequent obscurity. This gap prompts for an examination of whether his “forgetting” was deliberate and connected to the historical narrative he sought to promote. His political views, expressed in his sermons as a modern rabbi in Belgrade, in his polemic essays criticizing both the rabbinate and the Zionist Congress, were similarly marginalized. On The Margins: A Biography of Simon Bernfeld unfolds a biography woven into the history of the Jewish intelligentsia circles in Galicia, his birthplace, and Berlin, where he lived for many years until his death. His correspondence with a wide array of figures reviles the emergence of Hebrew mass media and a national canon. Through spatial and cultural analysis, exploring themes of Jewish imperial relations and intra-European migration, the book maps the Jewish intellectual networks of Galicia and the Pale of Settlement, examining their impact on the formation of Jewish cultural and intellectual power centers at the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Few texts have left a mark on history as profound as The Communist Manifesto . First ‎published in 1848, this brief yet explosive work by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels became ‎one of the most influential texts in the formation of modern society and the modern self. It ‎ignited revolutions, inspired political movements, and provoked fear, resistance, and ‎enduring controversy, while offering a powerful framework for understanding the economic ‎and social forces that continue to shape our world.‎ But The Communist Manifesto is more than a political program. It is a striking work of ‎philosophical and moral reflection, grappling with the human condition in a world defined ‎by perpetual change—a world of capitalism, restless desire, and the drive toward ceaseless ‎innovation. Read anew, the Manifesto emerges as a mirror of our present moment, ‎challenging us to rethink freedom, justice, and the transformative power of ideas.‎ This book offers a fresh introduction to The Communist Manifesto and its place in the ‎history of ideas. Through close reading and conceptual analysis, it seeks to restore the ‎text’s vitality—not as a document of the past, but as a living invitation to reflect on the ‎present and imagine our collective future.‎

The Italian commedia dell’arte troupes roamed across Europe for two hundred years, captivating wide and diverse audiences. The performances of the commedia dell’arte were improvised, as the actors executed on stage a concise outline of a play, called "scenario". This book presents, for the first time in Hebrew translation, complete scenarios written by one of the greatest men of the Italian Renaissance theater, Flaminio Scala. The scenarios are accompanied by annotations and a comprehensive essay that reviews Scala’s life and work, and presents his scenario as a perfect recipe for comic improvisation. The book will therefore be of interest to theatre enthusiasts and scholars alike, and will provide directors, actors, and acting students with new and refreshing tools for staging comedies.