Who Was Rabenu Bahya? The Jews of Sepharad Dr. Henry Abramson

Brief lecture on the work of Rabenu Bahya, author of the Hovot ha-Levavot (Duties of the Heart, c. 1080). Reference is made in the lecture to this link: bit.ly/HebrewDespacito. Part of the Jews of Sepharad series at henryabramson.com.

[@user-ed1mj5zk6f]

I don't know if my appreciation of these classes and lectures is too excessive, but let it be. I love the graceful relationship of every and each detail of our history. Your examination of biography in its historical context is brilliant.

[@stephencharlesmayer8792]

your lectures are a great gift from a warm and good heart-- not to slight the fascinating content, elegant presentation and side splitting jokes. may all educators take a cue from this wonderfully open and joyous approach.

[@davidguindi169]

22:56 23:07

[@sarameiragootblatt1819]

Rabbi Abramson reminds me of Indiana Jone's dad, Sean Connery- Dr. Jones Sr. Thanks for such caring work you do Rabbi!

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Thanks! But not a Rabbi, just a regular guy.

[@sarameiragootblatt1819]

@@HenryAbramsonPhD btw I love your daughter Danit! My husband taught her at Machon Chana and we farbrenged together few times. ❤️ she’s a brilliant eidl woman, an amazing learner and teacher. You must be proud of her.

[@g.mariepickett]

Ordered a copy from Amazon yesterday, and am delighted to discover your lecture on it today!

[@victoriahhigman9611]

Your lectures have helped me see the immense significance of Jews in our communities. I appreciate this very much

[@ArnaGSmith]

your love of family shines through .....

[@MoosePantz]

Oh, the jokes are just my style! And your palpable joy in telling them is a large part of the pleasure! Thanks Dr. Abramson. Bless you.

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Glad you like them!

[@daniel-meir]

Regarding the language, the book is written in Arabic so that if you skip the specific Jewish pieces (quotations form the Bible etc.) the book is a typical book in Islam in the field of belief (Aqidah) and mysticism (Tasawwuf, Sufism). It uses the same style and the same terminology.

[@jesse7808]

Interesting lecture!

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

thank you!

[@markjacobi3537]

We have a shuir 4 times a week here in Melbourne Australia and before we start learning Chumash or Gemara Sotah we learn for a few mnutes Hovot Ha-Levavot

[@ArnaGSmith]

That is so moving ... God is on the look out ...

[@ArnaGSmith]

Yes, a beautiful idea .. we meet God when we seek God. I decided to study Biblical Hebrew and Greek because I very often encountered difficult passages when reading the Bible. Sometimes the difficult passage could be resolved beyond those two options by looking at the Arabic. Example: the word Grace, is used to described how God feel about us when we have strayed from him. Some how, it is related to camels. When the female is separated from her young so that she can remain strong on the caravan trip because she doesn't have to provide milk for it, she pines for her young. That is the meaning behind the root of the word Grace. Beautiful.

[@richardpage7323]

he's my Hebrew namesake! The Levot is one of the most beautiful works of Andalucian Jews.

[@m.c.fromnyc2187]

Middle Eastern Jews currently use the Maqamat system in the liturgy, mostly on Shabbat and Holy Days. This is a complex system of a number of Arabic musical scales that set the mood for the reading of the Perashat ha'shabu'a. Maqam Hijaz (Saudi Arabia) is appropriate for a sad Perasha, such as Chayeh Sarah, or perashat Achareh. The Maqamat are applied only to the prayers that are chanted before and after the reading of the Torah, which is always recited in Maqam Siga. Hazzanim are free to adapt Prayers lyrics to any existing music, mostly Arabic, from famous singers such as Mohammad Abd El Wahab, Um Kulthoum, or Farid El Atrache; also Italian, American, etc. One Hazzan has adapted the la'El Baruch Ne'imot Yitteinu of the Shabbat prayers to the tune of 'O Sole Mio'; the Kedushah in Shmone Esreh to Frank Sinatra's 'My Way', another Hazzan uses the music of 'Besame Mucho' for the same Kedushah. There is one old Arabic song that is very popular in Hazzanut, but the original lyrics are bawdy. This doesn't matter, since the words are from our Holy Prayers, the music is automatically elevated, and the original lyrics no longer matter. Great lecture, as usual!

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Glad you enjoyed the lecture!

[@ArnaGSmith]

It is me again. Still in love with you and your life, your work ...

[@tapasyatyaga4041]

This is very similar to Bhakti [Devotional] Service of Krishna Consciousness. There are the duties of the limbs [temple service, preparation of prasadam (food especially blessed, similar to kosher food] and duties of the heart, love of God, subjugation to God [meditation of the Holy Name]. Thank you for this fine lecture. I love your scholarship and sincerity. I think our tradition of Gaudiya Vaishnava Vedanta is more similar to the Hassid tradition of thinking about God [Krishna] constantly and orienting our being to God-centeredness. Your discussion of negative theology is known as apophatic theology which began with Philo [in the Jewish sampradaya] as I understand. In the Upanishads God is described as netti netti which means neither this thing not that thing. But the Bhagavad Gita specifically defines God : I am the original fragrance of the earth, and I am the heat in fire. I am the life of all that lives, and I am the penances of all ascetics The Jewish tradition has many gurus and holy men with deep insights....surely they are a gift to the world. Only critique is it took 30 minutes of preface to get into the heart of the teachings. Hare Bol All Glories to His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

[@tamarfischer283]

thank you for this interesting lecture- lovely to follow it after finishing a study of the book. may I point out the very fascinating translation and commentary by Rabbi Avigdor Miller who revived the chovos halevovos and applied it to modern Life. Rabbi Miller , it seems, built his entire life on the principles of the chovos halevovos in general and shaar habechinah in particular which he explains is about the fact that service of Hashem is dependent on gratitude (and it is to Foster this gratitude that he invokes the study of science and knowledge of the world) rabbi Miller can be said to have started a revolution in post world war 2 America with his lectures in idomatic English at a time when most learned rabbis were foreigners who spoke no english. it would be wonderful to have you present a lecture of this giant of a man. Rabbi Miller translated the book's name as Duties of the MIND- He argued that whenever "lev" is used in Hebrew writings, it is a reference to the mind, not the heart. when following rabbi miller's lectures on chovos halevovos it becomes totally clear that what rabeinu bachyeh advocates is serving Hashem, not merely by following the commandments of the Torah, but following the dictates of our logic (hence the mind). what does logic dictate? that we study the works of Hashem, whether in nature or in culture (which he argues are manifestations of G-d's will and G-d's plan) and recognize that we owe G-d service for all He has benefitted us with. hence the duties- if we study the world and life with our minds, we will be convinced that we are never "yotseh" by merely keeping the laws of the Torah and we owe G-d so much more. this was the basis of the life of Rabbi Miller who constantly spoke of a career of preparing for the glories of the after-life. worth the study.

[@markjacobi3537]

We have a shuir 4 itmes a week here in Melbourne AUstralia which begins with some of the lines from Chovos HaLevovos, DUties of The Heart by Rabbenu Bahya TZL

[@markjacobi3537]

PS The welcome mat i out for you guys, whenever you come Down Under you Dr Henry, ChaplainRodriguz and co

[@markjacobi3537]

PPS Last thing can you please post the Latin song with the Hebrew lyrics please? It reminds me of The Australian song by "Men AT work" became the important basis for the Jewish wedding song " Sason VeSimcha"

[@BuckthornStudios]

I am wondering then if the c. 1740 writing by R. Moshe Chaim Luzzato (Ramchal), Mesillas Yesharim--one of the Professor's favorites--owes some to R. Bahya's Duties of the Heart outlining 10 gates of piety written some 660 years earlier? I only just received my first Ramchal edition, and only just saw this lecture on R. Bahya. Luzzato had a brilliant education during the high Baroque era (of Italian music) living in flourishing centers of arts and literacy (same time as J.S.Bach in Germany).

[@BuckthornStudios]

Grateful for your thoughts on this, professor. Thank you! I will share your comment at our HaYesod torah study Tuesday night. (North Texas) Keep up the good work, it is a joy to watch these lectures!

[@ArnaGSmith]

I love the relationship you have with God and with your wife!!!!!!!

[@daniel-meir]

Regarding the translation, there is a modern translation made by Rav Yosef Qafakh (יוסף קאפח) and it is printed side by side with the original Arabic in Hebrew letters.

[@ArnaGSmith]

and there is what connects us ... because we live in and as a minority.

[@xUncleA123x]

I love the jokes so much haha!

[@solaladipoel1873]

I have another question not related to this video, but to an earlier video about "Khazarian Jews"; it's a simple one , that was not answered by your video; where are they now??

[@daniel-meir]

The Khazar leader converted and declared Judaism as the state religion but the mostly Turkic population was not forced into the strict rules of Judaism. When Kiev defeated Khazaria, the population just stayed where they were on the Volga, some may have moved further into Central Asia. There also is a story that the knyaz (duke) of Kiev brought them to Kiev as captives but they refused to be slaves and he just let them live there. This is my cumulative knowledge from the scarce scientific sources.

[@tagbarzeev3571]

@@daniel-meir About the year 1100 Casimir the great of Poland actually invited Jews to his land. Look into Doron Behar who has proven the khazar theory to be false.

[@daniel-meir]

@@tagbarzeev3571 I did not write that the Khazar theory is right. I simply answered the question where they are now: nowhere. Actually, I think that the Khazar theory is nonsense because it does not explain why the Ashkenazi Jews speak Yiddish which is closest to Bavarian German. With the Khazar theory we would have been speaking some Turkic language or even just Ukranian.

[@tagbarzeev3571]

@@daniel-meir Thank you for your comments.My grandparents spoke Yiddish and my parents to some degree. Again thanks

[@daniel-meir]

Thank you for the lecture. I have some additional info regarding the spelling of the בחיי with 2 י . The book was written in the Arabic language using the Hebrew letters that correspond to their Arab equivalents. When in Hebrew we need a standalone vowel sound, we place it under an א. In Arabic the א has 3 shapes: ا و ى that graphically correspond to the Hebrew א ו י and the Arab language has a rule which shape of א to use. Therefore a name that sounds b-a-kh-y-a was probably spelled in Arabic with one ya (ي) and one alif maqsurah (ى) that correspond in Hebrew to יי . So بحيى is transcribed as בחיי . The only issue with this explanation is that as far as I know there is no such Arab name. There is a name spelled with ה Bahya mentioned in Wikipedia but this is a female name.

[@aminaz1778]

بهية pronounced Bahia means glorious and gorgeous, I'm sure the Hebrew and aramaic synonyms must be similar phonetically

[@aminaz1778]

It's note femenin in this context because it's a noun and not an adjective,it's like the glory . Glory of Pakuda

[@ArnaGSmith]

I am a little conflicted here. If God cannot be any specific place as that is not his reality, what about in the Holy of Holiest places -- the inner most part of the sanctuary?

[@MosheShperling]

Sorry about being critical here, but what i would like to take from this lecture is why this book is so special (not only because you praise it) and not that it is similar to some muslim ideas, which i am not interested in. It especially sounds strange since this idea of similarity is an assumption after all, maybe a very based assumption, but an assumption only. And if lets it is true why the author never mentioned his sources (neither Rambam and others) isn't it a clear indication that we must focus primerely on the books content?

[@davidsavage6324]

two weeks till another lecture?! 😱😨 👳😿😭😷🔯🐝

[@danielle4831]

There’s a difference between R’ Bachya ibn Pakuda and R’ Bachya ben Asher

[@administratiekantoorj.m.ge4673]

In follow up to the joke: I will never again butter my bread...

[@SKnafo]

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[@davidsavage6324]

Viva la transvaluation!!

[@norazaki2617]

Nice presentation but the presenter’s anti Muslim bias is a turn off