Isaac ben Samuel of Acre
Encyclopedia
Isaac ben Samuel of Acre (fl.
13th-14th century) (Hebrew: יצחק בן שמואל דמן עכו, Yitzhak ben Shmuel d'min Akko) was a Jewish kabbalist
who fled to Spain.
According to Abraham Azulai
, Isaac ben Samuel was a pupil of Nahmanides
.
when that town was taken
by Al-Ashraf Khalil, and was thrown into prison with many of his coreligionists, but escaped the massacre, and in 1305 went to Spain
. Abraham Zacuto
states in his Yuḥasin, that Moses de Leon
discovered the Zohar
in the time of Isaac of Acre.
However, Isaac doubted the authenticity of the Zohar, not having heard of it in the Holy Land
, and made inquiries about it of Naḥmanides' pupils, without, however, any satisfactory result. When Isaac met Moses of Leon at Valladolid
, the latter took an oath that he had a copy of the Zohar written by Shimon bar Yochai himself in his house at Ávila. However, de Leon died before he could return to Ávila, and Isaac, more than ever desirous of obtaining the truth, consulted at Ávila a man named David Rafan.
Rafan told Isaac that Moses of Leon's wife and daughter had revealed to the wife of a certain R. Joseph the fact that Moses of Leon had written the book himself. Historian Heinrich Graetz
takes this story as historical, but Landauer shows it to be apocryphal and demonstrates that the Zohar was discovered much later.
; Ketem Paz, a kabbalistic work mentioned by Moses Botarel
in his commentary to the Sefer Yezirah, and the author of which he calls "Isaac ben Samuel," identified by Michael (Or ha-Ḥayyim, No. 1088) with Isaac ben Samuel of Acre; Liḳḳuṭe Shoshanim, possibly a compendium of the Sefer ha-Sodot. It appears from the Reshit Ḥokmah that Isaac of Acre wrote also a book on ethics. A specimen of the Me'irat 'Enayim was published by Adolf Jellinek
in his Beiträge; the remainder of Isaac's works are still in manuscript.
, which states that "A thousand years in Your sight are but as yesterday" (Psalm 90:4). If each day of a divine year is equal to a thousand earthly "solar years," then a divine year would be 365,250 years long. Isaac then makes some other calculations based on the Talmud
and the Biblical sabbatical year, and arrives at the said number. The scientific estimation places the occurrence of the Big Bang
at 13.7 ± 0.2 billion years ago.
Floruit
Floruit , abbreviated fl. , is a Latin verb meaning "flourished", denoting the period of time during which something was active...
13th-14th century) (Hebrew: יצחק בן שמואל דמן עכו, Yitzhak ben Shmuel d'min Akko) was a Jewish kabbalist
Kabbalah
Kabbalah/Kabala is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the esoteric aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It was systematized in 11th-13th century Hachmei Provence and Spain, and again after the Expulsion from Spain, in 16th century Ottoman Palestine...
who fled to Spain.
According to Abraham Azulai
Abraham Azulai
Abraham ben Mordecai Azulai was a Kabbalistic author and commentator born in Fes, Morocco. In 1599 he moved to Palestine and settled in Hebron....
, Isaac ben Samuel was a pupil of Nahmanides
Nahmanides
Nahmanides, also known as Rabbi Moses ben Naḥman Girondi, Bonastruc ça Porta and by his acronym Ramban, , was a leading medieval Jewish scholar, Catalan rabbi, philosopher, physician, kabbalist, and biblical commentator.-Name:"Nahmanides" is a Greek-influenced formation meaning "son of Naḥman"...
.
View of the Zohar
Isaac ben Samuel was at AcreAcre, Israel
Acre , is a city in the Western Galilee region of northern Israel at the northern extremity of Haifa Bay. Acre is one of the oldest continuously inhabited sites in the country....
when that town was taken
Siege of Acre (1291)
The Siege of Acre took place in 1291 and resulted in the loss of the Crusader-controlled city of Acre to the Muslims. It is considered one of the most important battles of the time period. Although the crusading movement continued for several more centuries, the capture of the city marked the end...
by Al-Ashraf Khalil, and was thrown into prison with many of his coreligionists, but escaped the massacre, and in 1305 went to Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. Abraham Zacuto
Abraham Zacuto
Abraham Zacuto was a Sephardi Jewish astronomer, astrologer, mathematician and historian who served as Royal Astronomer in the 15th century to King John II of Portugal. The crater Zagut on the Moon is named after him....
states in his Yuḥasin, that Moses de Leon
Moses de Leon
Moses de León , known in Hebrew as Moshe ben Shem-Tov , was a Spanish rabbi and Kabbalist who is thought of as the composer or redactor of the Zohar. It is a matter of controversy if the Zohar is his own work, or that he committed traditions going back to Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai in writing...
discovered the Zohar
Zohar
The Zohar is the foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material on Mysticism, mythical cosmogony, and mystical psychology...
in the time of Isaac of Acre.
However, Isaac doubted the authenticity of the Zohar, not having heard of it in the Holy Land
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, and made inquiries about it of Naḥmanides' pupils, without, however, any satisfactory result. When Isaac met Moses of Leon at Valladolid
Valladolid
Valladolid is a historic city and municipality in north-central Spain, situated at the confluence of the Pisuerga and Esgueva rivers, and located within three wine-making regions: Ribera del Duero, Rueda and Cigales...
, the latter took an oath that he had a copy of the Zohar written by Shimon bar Yochai himself in his house at Ávila. However, de Leon died before he could return to Ávila, and Isaac, more than ever desirous of obtaining the truth, consulted at Ávila a man named David Rafan.
Rafan told Isaac that Moses of Leon's wife and daughter had revealed to the wife of a certain R. Joseph the fact that Moses of Leon had written the book himself. Historian Heinrich Graetz
Heinrich Graetz
Heinrich Graetz was amongst the first historians to write a comprehensive history of the Jewish people from a Jewish perspective....
takes this story as historical, but Landauer shows it to be apocryphal and demonstrates that the Zohar was discovered much later.
Quotations and works in Kabbalah
Isaac of Acre is frequently quoted by Elijah de Vidas in his Reshit Ḥokmah, and by R. Hayyim Vital in his Megillat Setarim. He was an expert in composing the sacred names ("ẓerufim"), by the power of which angels were forced to reveal to him the great mysteries (Azulai, l.c.). According to Azulai he wrote many kabbalistic works. Those that are known are: Meirat Enayim, a kabbalistic commentary on Naḥmanides' commentary to the Pentateuch; Sefer ha-Sodot, mentioned in the Nobelot Ḥokmah of Joseph Solomon DelmedigoJoseph Solomon Delmedigo
Joseph Solomon Qandia Delmedigo was a rabbi, author, physician, mathematician, and music theorist....
; Ketem Paz, a kabbalistic work mentioned by Moses Botarel
Moses Botarel
Moses Botarel was a Spanish scholar who lived in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. He was a pupil of Jacob Sefardi , who instructed him in the Kabbala....
in his commentary to the Sefer Yezirah, and the author of which he calls "Isaac ben Samuel," identified by Michael (Or ha-Ḥayyim, No. 1088) with Isaac ben Samuel of Acre; Liḳḳuṭe Shoshanim, possibly a compendium of the Sefer ha-Sodot. It appears from the Reshit Ḥokmah that Isaac of Acre wrote also a book on ethics. A specimen of the Me'irat 'Enayim was published by Adolf Jellinek
Adolf Jellinek
----Adolf Jellinek |Drslavice]], nearby Uherské Hradiště, Moravia - December 28, 1893, Vienna) was an Austrian rabbi and scholar...
in his Beiträge; the remainder of Isaac's works are still in manuscript.
Theory of age of the Universe
Isaac states that the universe is actually 15,340,500,000 years old. Isaac arrived at this conclusion by distinguishing between earthly "solar years" and "divine years," based on a verse from PsalmsPsalms
The Book of Psalms , commonly referred to simply as Psalms, is a book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Bible...
, which states that "A thousand years in Your sight are but as yesterday" (Psalm 90:4). If each day of a divine year is equal to a thousand earthly "solar years," then a divine year would be 365,250 years long. Isaac then makes some other calculations based on the Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
and the Biblical sabbatical year, and arrives at the said number. The scientific estimation places the occurrence of the Big Bang
Big Bang
The Big Bang theory is the prevailing cosmological model that explains the early development of the Universe. According to the Big Bang theory, the Universe was once in an extremely hot and dense state which expanded rapidly. This rapid expansion caused the young Universe to cool and resulted in...
at 13.7 ± 0.2 billion years ago.
Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography
- Grätz, Gesch. 3d ed., vii. 186, 211, 427-428;
- Abraham ZacutoAbraham ZacutoAbraham Zacuto was a Sephardi Jewish astronomer, astrologer, mathematician and historian who served as Royal Astronomer in the 15th century to King John II of Portugal. The crater Zagut on the Moon is named after him....
, Yuḥasin, ed. Filipowski, pp. 95, 96, London, 1857; - AzulaiChaim Joseph David AzulaiChaim Joseph David Azulai ben Isaac Zerachia , commonly known as the Chida , was a Jerusalem born rabbinical scholar, a noted bibliophile, and a pioneer in the publication of Jewish religious writings.- Biography :Azulai was born in Jerusalem, where he received his education...
, Shem ha-Gedolim, p. 54; - Jellinek, Beiträge, ii., xiii.;
- Steinschneider, Cat. Bodl. col. 2523;
- M. H. LandauerM. H. LandauerM. H. Landauer was a writer on Jewish mysticism, born at Kappel, near Buchau, Württemberg. He was a son of the cantor Elias Landauer, and at the age of 18 entered the yeshivah and lyceum in Carlsruhe; later he studied at the universities of Munich and Tübingen...
, in Litteraturblatt des Orients, vi. 182, 224, 509 - Michael, Or ha-Ḥayyim, p. 513, No. 1088.