There he passed the first five decades of his life, apparently eking out his living as a poet. He then placed the tens to the left of the digits in the usual way. The book of nativities by avraham ben meir ibn ezra, abraham. The beginning of wisdom is a one of the most important of the basic medieval texts of astrology.
Ibn ezra, avraham article about ibn ezra, avraham by the. Abraham ben meir ibn ezra, poet, grammarian, traveller, neoplatonic philosopher, and astronomer, best known as a biblical exegete whose commentaries contributed to the golden age of spanish judaism. He drew upon himself the usual thunderous cursesmay his name be forgotten, may his bones be worn to nothingalong with detailed refutations and. His chief claim to fame, however, is his commentary on the bible. The beginning of wisdom by avraham ibn ezra, abraham ben. Things got worse for jews in muslim spain a few years after ibn ezra left, due to the invasion of the almohades, a fanatical islamic sect. Abu iaq avraham ben meir ibn ezra 10891164, known simply as ibn ezra, was born in tudela, spain. A translation of abraham ibn ezras commentary to the book of job. Brief overview of the life and works of rabbi avraham ibn ezra, andalusian poet, european wanderer, biblical commentator and noted scientist. Thereafter, he lived the rest of his life in ashkenazic lands.
Mdival etudes sur le judaisme medieval bilingual by shlomo sela isbn. Proceedings of the american academy for jewish research. Hebrew text, edited according to manuscripts, and a glossary. For i did not compose this book to show that i mastered the sciences or to glorify myself by showing that secrets have been revealed to me. Library of congress cataloginginpublication data is available on. For that reason, ibn ezras authorship has been called into question. At the time, the town was under the muslim rule of the emirs of zaragoza. Abraham ibn ezra the book of reasons tudes sur le judasme mdival by sela 20070829. Ibn ezras book of lights sefer hameorot was edited by yehuda leib fleischer in 1932. One of his liturgical compositions is printed at the beginning of many prayer books. Catalan version of ibn ezras book of nativities, and another.
Some of the books were twice a short version and a long version, as is the case with the book of reasons both are edited and published. Abraham ibn ezra the book of reasons tudes sur le judasme. Abraham ibn ezra the book of reasons etudes sur le judaisme medieval english and hebrew edition hebrew bilingual edition by sela author, s. With this volume he begins the publication of ibn ezras complete works on astrology. Religion and science in abraham ibn ezras sefer haolam. With this volume he begins the publication of ibn ezra s complete works on astrology. This includes the introduction to the book of nativities, a fragment of the long commentary on exodus 33. In his youth, he studied all the branches of knowledge that arabic and jewish gifted and well to do youngsters could master, and was mainly known. In his youth, he studied all the branches of knowledge that arabic and jewish gifted and well to do youngsters could master, and. The two commentaries of abraham ibn ezra on the book of.
Abraham ibn ezra stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. Linked bibliography for the sep article abraham ibn ezra by tzvi. It is taken to mean the book of the upright and is the title of a work that is cited in the bible. Ibn ezra also introduced the decimal system to jews living in the christian world. Olyan reasons, it must aim at a variet y of pragmatic results. Essays on the writings of abraham ibn ezra internet archive. A parallel hebrew english critical edition of the two versions of the text abraham ibn eras. He used the hebrew alef to tet for 19, but added a special sign to indicate zero. Improve yourself, find your inspiration, share with friends. A parallel hebrewenglish critical edition of the two versions of the text etudes sur le judaisme medieval by abraham ben meir ibn ezra 3 editions first published in 2009.
A parallel hebrewenglish critical edition of the two versions of the text by author shlomo sela published on. Ultimately, most scholars agree that his place of birth was tudela. The book of the secrets of the law, the mystery of the form of the letters, the enigma of the quiescent letters, the book of the name, the book of the balance of the sacred language, the book of purity of the language are perhaps the most important of his works of this kind. Abraham ibn ezras commentary on the first book of psalms. Abraham ibn ezra the book of reasons a parallel hebrewenglish critical edition of the two versions of the text edited, translated, and annotated by shlomo sela leiden boston 2007. The latter is printed in all major editions of the. A parallel hebrewenglish crirical edition of the two versions of the text, leiden. A translation of abraham ibn ezras commentary to the book of. Oct 24, 2017 brief overview of the life and works of rabbi avraham ibn ezra, andalusian poet, european wanderer, biblical commentator and noted scientist. For reasons unknown and that we can only guess at, ibn ezra left spain in 1140. Buy abraham ibn ezras sefer haolam book of the world.
Ibn ezras poems, both secular and religious, are among the choicest examples of hebrew poetry. Translations all of these books also contain commentary and biography carmi, t. Part of the jews of sepharad series, more information. A parallel hebrewenglish critical edition of the two versions of the text find, read and. Yesod mora vesod hatorah 1158, on the division of and reasons for the biblical commandments. Abraham ibn ezra was born in tudela, one of the oldest and most important jewish communities in the presentday spanish province of navarre. Sela and others published abraham ibn ezra the book of reasons. The book of reasons, a parallel hebrewenglish critical edition of the two versions of the text, edited. Abraham ibn ezra the book of reasons tudes sur le judasme mdival by sela 20070829 on. Quotes tagged as abrahamibnezra showing 11 of 1 one notorious apikoros named hiwa albalkhi, writing in ninthcentury persia, offered two hundred awkward questions to the faithful. Yesod mora and sefer hashem, the book of the divine name, are. Abraham ibn ezras the book of reasons edited, translated, and annotated by shlomo sela isbn. This volume is the first product of a larger enterprisea scientific edition of all twelve ibn ezra s astrological treatisesand offers a critical hebrew text of the two versions of ibn ezra s sefer hateamim, the book of reasons, accompanied by an annotated translation and commentary.
Abraham ibn ezra, the peripatetic spanishjewish scholar and poet, produced two commentaries to several biblical books, among them the book of esther. A most intriguing attempt to explain the text is provided by rabbi abraham ibn ezra. He has played an important role in the fields of biblical exegesis, poetry, grammar, astronomy, astrology, mathematics, and natural sciences. Sefer sefas yeser is a grammatical work that ibn ezra wrote as a defense of r saadiah gaon against r dunash ben labrat. Sela introduces the idea that perhaps ezra was not the translator, using. This barcode number lets you verify that youre getting exactly the right version or. Abraham ben meir ibn ezra spanishjewish scholar britannica. May 01, 1998 the beginning of wisdom is a one of the most important of the basic medieval texts of astrology. In his commentary to the passage, he addresses his readers as follows. I have been studying a new translation of abraham ibn ezras, the book of reasons sefer ha te. They were written during his life of travel, and they reflect the.
Title this original title for ibn ezras commentary on the torah is rarely used. Essays on the writings of abraham ibn ezra by friedlander, m. It serves as the backbone to an extensive textbook of astrology by ibn ezra, which also included the book of reasons, the book of nativities, and others. Abraham ibn ezra quotes meet your next favorite book. Ibn ezra was likely born in or around 1093 in tudela, at that time within the northern reaches of muslim spain. The book exodus with the commentary of abraham ibn ezra,naples 1488 at several of the abovenamed places, ibn ezra remained for some time and developed a rich literary activity. Neither did i write it in order to argue with our ancient. The commentary of abraham ibn ezra on the pentateuch. Title this original title for ibn ezra s commentary on the torah is rarely used. In his native land, he had already gained the reputation of a distinguished poet and thinker but apart from his poems, his works, which were all in the hebrew language. The book of reasons, a parallel hebrewenglish critical edition of the two versions of the text, edited, translated, and annotated by shlomo sela, leiden. Rabbi abraham ben meir ibn ezra was born and educated in the golden age of muslim. And if you were capable of grasping the mystery that emanates from the word azazel, then you would know its secret and the secret of its name, for it has equivalents elsewhere in the bible.
Ibn ezra composed his first book on astrology in italy, before his move to france. Introduction in this essay i will write about a mathematician, a rabbi, a philosopher, a poet, a linguist and an astronomer. Ibn ezra himself oncein an acrosticnames toledo as his native place monatsschrift, xlii. His chief claim to fame, however, was for his commentary on the bible. The book of nativities sefer hamoladot is meira epsteins third publication in the series of english translations of avraham ibn ezras astrological works. Media in category abraham ibn ezra the following 4 files are in this category, out of 4 total. Abraham ibn ezra was born in toledo, spain in 1089. The anglican version of the book of the prophet isaiah amended according to the commentary of ibn ezra. Originally written in hebrew by ibn ezra, the beginning of wisdom is one of the most important of the basic medieval texts of astrology.
Rabbi abraham ibn ezras commentary on the second book of. Sefer hatzchok is printed in the back and is a compilation of two poems by ibn ezra and by r menastor ibn yechiya. His theological works include sefer hashem book of the name, on the names of god, and yesod mora fountain of fear on the meaning of the precepts of the torah. Jewish virtual library, abraham ibn ezra johansson, nadja, religion and science in abraham ibn ezras sefer haolam including an english translation of the hebrew text langermann, tzvi, abraham ibn ezra, stanford encyclopedia of philosophy, 2006.
Rabbi abraham ibn ezra, poet, philosopher, and mathematician, was one of the outstanding personalities produced by medieval jewry. Abraham ibn ezra s the book of reasons edited, translated, and annotated by shlomo sela isbn. The two commentaries of abraham ibn ezra on the book of esther. Astronomy and astrology in the works of abraham ibn ezra. Ibn ezra was educated in the spanish approach, the guiding principle of which was that in order to reach the ultimate truth, it is incumbent upon a person to be familiar with and understand all areas of human knowledge. The other two are the beginning of wisdom reshit hokhma, 1998, and the book of reasons sefer hateamim, 1994. And this essay is not about a big group of people, but rather one very intriguing figure, abraham ibn ezra, who excelled in all the above listed profession.
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