Aryeh Krawczyk
Ph.D. thesis "Inner speech in r. Abraham Abulafia's (1240-1292) 'Sefer ha-Ot', Book of the Sign - critical edition, translation and interpretation" - published March 2018, Jewish Historical Institute Publishing House, Warsaw Poland
Supervisors: prof. Jan Doktór, Jewish History Institute, and Warsaw Poland
Address: Hamburg, Rabbinical Kollel Or Yonatan, Rothenbaumchaussee 19 20148
Supervisors: prof. Jan Doktór, Jewish History Institute, and Warsaw Poland
Address: Hamburg, Rabbinical Kollel Or Yonatan, Rothenbaumchaussee 19 20148
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Papers by Aryeh Krawczyk
The Secret of the Serpent, His Law and His Deed
- Translation of the Treatise by R. Yosef Gikatilla (1248-1325)
Presented paper consists of the first complete translation of the XIII c. kabbalistic treatise. Annotations, foreword and appendix are added. The main theme of this booklet is the figure of the serpent, which - according to the interpretation of the translator - represents the notion of life. Therefore, the biological perspective is proposed to understand the content of the text.
Keywords: life, death, serpent, Gikatilla, kabbalah, biology, sexuality,
PERITEXTUAL ENCODING FOR THE METATRON / YAHOEL THEME IN THE KABBALISTIC SEFER HA-OT , OR “BOOK OF THE SIGN,” BY R. ABRAHAM ABULAFIA (1240–1292)
1) Serpent in the Middle of the Torah
2) Serpent as The Life Itself
3) Serpent and Serpentess
4) Letter nun and Sexuality
5) Nachash and Satan
6) סוד הנחש ומשפטו ע"י ר' יוסף גיקטילה ז"צל “The Secret of the Serpent and Judgment upon Him” by r. Yosef Gikatilla
The paper encompasses a review of selected themes and textological analysis of “Book of the
Sign”, Sefer ha-Ot, by 13th century kabbalist, r. Abraham Abulafia. Part one includes a depiction
of eight extant source manuscripts with an analysis of the structure and possible path of
development of each copy and eventually – an explanation on the choice of the main sources
applied for the synopsis. Part two sketches on the themes from Sefer ha-Ot that have not yet been
the subject of detailed research or were just initially hinted without delving into minutiae. These
are supported by scans of respective folios from one of the manuscripts. Some schemes and
illustrations were added, too, where applicable.
Removing the Veil of Language. Moses’ Prophetic Torah and Abulafia’s Prophesying through Torah
The article discusses several possible ways of interpreting Ex 34:29-35 with reference to Moses’ veil covering his face after the encounter with God. Rethinking the idea of prophesying as an act that precedes linguistic comprehension and – consequently – precedes the prophecy itself, the author seeks affinities between this renowned Torah passage and the output of the 13th-century Kabbalist, Abraham Abulafia z”tzl. Abulafia’s Sheva Netivot ha-Tora (“Seven Paths of Torah”) and Chaje ha-Olam ha-Ba, (“Life of the World to Come”) emphasize the importance of delving into the state of “prophesying” in order to enter the realm of a pre-linguistic insight on divine Torah. Treated as a valuable ecstatic practice in itself, such act is supposed to transform the human mind into the angelic one.
Blessing, being one of the most important rituals in Jewish religious life, is usually treated as an homage to God for some particular good allegedly received by the believer. However, among kabbalistic interpretations there are some pointing to the reverse flow of theurgic energy, where blessing is an act of establishing hierarchy and putting man in the position of the blessed. This short article deals with several observations related to aforementioned assumption and focusing on the analysis of the Hebrew root barach and the semiotic potential of gematrical value of 222. Finally, data collected from the structural analysis of a typical Jewish blessing is combined with the context of the Jewish sources on this subject.
Drafts by Aryeh Krawczyk
Books by Aryeh Krawczyk
Copyright for the English translation: Aryeh Krawczyk 2025
Final version to be published soon
Hopefully, one of the first steps to remove the odious spell cast on Goldberg's legacy by Scholem, Benjamin, Mann and other denigrators.
Excerpt from the book:
"The way the composition [in the Torah] is juxtaposed indicates to such sophistically developed numerical figures, that for the reader it instinctively resembles the ideal structure of the crystal"
The Secret of the Serpent, His Law and His Deed
- Translation of the Treatise by R. Yosef Gikatilla (1248-1325)
Presented paper consists of the first complete translation of the XIII c. kabbalistic treatise. Annotations, foreword and appendix are added. The main theme of this booklet is the figure of the serpent, which - according to the interpretation of the translator - represents the notion of life. Therefore, the biological perspective is proposed to understand the content of the text.
Keywords: life, death, serpent, Gikatilla, kabbalah, biology, sexuality,
PERITEXTUAL ENCODING FOR THE METATRON / YAHOEL THEME IN THE KABBALISTIC SEFER HA-OT , OR “BOOK OF THE SIGN,” BY R. ABRAHAM ABULAFIA (1240–1292)
1) Serpent in the Middle of the Torah
2) Serpent as The Life Itself
3) Serpent and Serpentess
4) Letter nun and Sexuality
5) Nachash and Satan
6) סוד הנחש ומשפטו ע"י ר' יוסף גיקטילה ז"צל “The Secret of the Serpent and Judgment upon Him” by r. Yosef Gikatilla
The paper encompasses a review of selected themes and textological analysis of “Book of the
Sign”, Sefer ha-Ot, by 13th century kabbalist, r. Abraham Abulafia. Part one includes a depiction
of eight extant source manuscripts with an analysis of the structure and possible path of
development of each copy and eventually – an explanation on the choice of the main sources
applied for the synopsis. Part two sketches on the themes from Sefer ha-Ot that have not yet been
the subject of detailed research or were just initially hinted without delving into minutiae. These
are supported by scans of respective folios from one of the manuscripts. Some schemes and
illustrations were added, too, where applicable.
Removing the Veil of Language. Moses’ Prophetic Torah and Abulafia’s Prophesying through Torah
The article discusses several possible ways of interpreting Ex 34:29-35 with reference to Moses’ veil covering his face after the encounter with God. Rethinking the idea of prophesying as an act that precedes linguistic comprehension and – consequently – precedes the prophecy itself, the author seeks affinities between this renowned Torah passage and the output of the 13th-century Kabbalist, Abraham Abulafia z”tzl. Abulafia’s Sheva Netivot ha-Tora (“Seven Paths of Torah”) and Chaje ha-Olam ha-Ba, (“Life of the World to Come”) emphasize the importance of delving into the state of “prophesying” in order to enter the realm of a pre-linguistic insight on divine Torah. Treated as a valuable ecstatic practice in itself, such act is supposed to transform the human mind into the angelic one.
Blessing, being one of the most important rituals in Jewish religious life, is usually treated as an homage to God for some particular good allegedly received by the believer. However, among kabbalistic interpretations there are some pointing to the reverse flow of theurgic energy, where blessing is an act of establishing hierarchy and putting man in the position of the blessed. This short article deals with several observations related to aforementioned assumption and focusing on the analysis of the Hebrew root barach and the semiotic potential of gematrical value of 222. Finally, data collected from the structural analysis of a typical Jewish blessing is combined with the context of the Jewish sources on this subject.
Copyright for the English translation: Aryeh Krawczyk 2025
Final version to be published soon
Hopefully, one of the first steps to remove the odious spell cast on Goldberg's legacy by Scholem, Benjamin, Mann and other denigrators.
Excerpt from the book:
"The way the composition [in the Torah] is juxtaposed indicates to such sophistically developed numerical figures, that for the reader it instinctively resembles the ideal structure of the crystal"