Menahem Azariah da Fano
Encyclopedia
Menahem Azariah da Fano (1548, Fano
– Mantua
, 1620) was an Italian rabbi
, Talmud
ist, and Kabbalist
.
, to whose widow he offered 1,000 sequin
s for her husband's manuscripts. Even as a youth Fano had some reputation for learning, as is shown by the fact that Moses Cordovero (d. 1570) sent him a copy of his Pardes Rimmonim. Another one of Fano's teachers was Ishmael Ḥanina b. Mordecai of Valmontone
.
Fano was a patron of learning. When Rabbi Joseph Caro, shortly before his death (1575), sent Kesef Mishneh, his commentary on Maimonides
' Yad ha-Ḥazaḳah, to Mantua for publication, Fano, at the suggestion of Dei Rossi, assumed part of the expense and took charge of the edition.
According to a report of Immanuel Aboab
, Fano lived for some time in Reggio Emilia
. Numerous pupils flocked to him from Italy and Germany, and he was held in general respect for his learning and character.
One of Fano's sons was Isaac Berechiah; and the same name was borne also by Fano's son-in-law and pupil (mentioned in a letter of Israel Sforno to his son Obadiah ben Israel Sforno).
("She'elot Teshubot me-Rabbi Menaḥem 'Azaryah," Dyhernfurth, 1788) containing 130 chapters on various subjects connected with religious law and ritual questions. They are distinguished by precision of style as well as by the author's independence of the later authorities. He even decides sometimes in opposition to Joseph Caro (e.g., No. 32), and holds changes in the ritual to be justifiable in certain cases (see, e.g., No. 25). In his love for precision and brevity Fano compiled a book of extracts from Alfasi's code, which itself is only a compendium of the Talmud. This book is preserved in manuscript. Azulai enumerates twenty-four cabalistic treatises by Fano, part being in manuscript. Ten of these are comprised in the work "'Asarah Ma'amarot"; five of them, under the title "Amarot Ṭehorot," were printed together with "Ḳol Yehudah," a philosophical commentary by Judah ben Simon (Frankfort-on-the-Main, 1698; Mohilev, 1810).
These treatises originated partly in addresses delivered by the author on feast-days, especially on Rosh Hashanah
. In spite of Fano's decided tendency toward scholastic and allegoric interpretation, his works are not devoid of original remarks. For example, in connection with the cabalistic interpretation of Num. xxxiii. 2, "And Moses wrote their goings out according to their journeys," he says: "The Torah speaks always of ideas when it seems to be describing concrete things: the higher meaning is the principal thing; the lower, material meaning holds the second place. Moses b. Naḥman, indeed, follows another opinion in his commentary on Genesis in holding to the principle that 'the Torah speaks according to the manner of men'; but we can justly say that men speak according to the manner of the Torah" ("Ḥiḳḳur Din," iii. 22). "The prohibitions of the Torah never appear in the imperative, but in the form of the future: 'Thou shalt have no other gods'; 'Thou shalt not bow down thyself to other gods'; 'Thou shalt not swear falsely'; etc. This means, 'I know thou wilt not be guilty of these things, since human nature does not tolerate such crimes, and if sin occurs in this life it can be only a passing episode.' On the other hand, the commandments are in the imperative: 'Kabbed,' 'zakor'; that is, 'I command thee nothing new; the good instincts in thee have always been there; they need only to be awakened and developed'" (ib. iv. 9). This last sentence is characteristic of the author's optimism as well as of his mild nature, which attracted the sympathy of all.
In 1581 Jedidiah Recanati dedicated to Fano his Italian translation ("Erudizione dei Confusi") of Maimonides' "Moreh Nebukim." Isaiah Hurwitz especially mentions Fano's treatise "Yonat Elem" as a theological work the teaching of which comes very near to the truth (Joseph Solomon Delmedigo
, introduction to "Nobelot Ḥokmah"). Fano's pupil Samuel Portaleone composed an elegy on the occasion of his death (Oxford MS. No. 988c).
Fano
Fano is a town and comune of the province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Marche region of Italy. It is a beach resort 12 km southeast of Pesaro, located where the Via Flaminia reaches the Adriatic Sea...
– Mantua
Mantua
Mantua is a city and comune in Lombardy, Italy and capital of the province of the same name. Mantua's historic power and influence under the Gonzaga family, made it one of the main artistic, cultural and notably musical hubs of Northern Italy and the country as a whole...
, 1620) was an Italian rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
, 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....
ist, and 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...
.
Life
He was a disciple of Rabbi Moses CordoveroMoses Cordovero
Moses Cordovero was a physician who lived at Leghorn , Tuscany in the seventeenth century. David Conforte praises him as a good physician, and also on account of his scholarship and philanthropy. He was always eager to secure the release of prisoners through his personal influence as well as by...
, to whose widow he offered 1,000 sequin
Sequin (coin)
The sequin is a gold coin weighing of .986 gold, minted by the Republic of Venice from the 13th century onwards.The design of the Venetian gold ducat, or zecchino, remained unchanged for over 500 years, from its introduction in 1284 to the takeover of Venice by Napoleon in 1797...
s for her husband's manuscripts. Even as a youth Fano had some reputation for learning, as is shown by the fact that Moses Cordovero (d. 1570) sent him a copy of his Pardes Rimmonim. Another one of Fano's teachers was Ishmael Ḥanina b. Mordecai of Valmontone
Valmontone
Valmontone is a comune in the Province of Rome in the Italian region Lazio, located about 45 km southeast of Rome.-Geography:...
.
Fano was a patron of learning. When Rabbi Joseph Caro, shortly before his death (1575), sent Kesef Mishneh, his commentary on Maimonides
Maimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
' Yad ha-Ḥazaḳah, to Mantua for publication, Fano, at the suggestion of Dei Rossi, assumed part of the expense and took charge of the edition.
According to a report of Immanuel Aboab
Immanuel Aboab
Immanuel Aboab was a Portuguese Jewish scholar. He was a great-grandson of Isaac Aboab of Castile .-Life:Born at Oporto, he early became an orphan and was reared by his grandfather Abraham Aboab...
, Fano lived for some time in Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia is an affluent city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has about 170,000 inhabitants and is the main comune of the Province of Reggio Emilia....
. Numerous pupils flocked to him from Italy and Germany, and he was held in general respect for his learning and character.
One of Fano's sons was Isaac Berechiah; and the same name was borne also by Fano's son-in-law and pupil (mentioned in a letter of Israel Sforno to his son Obadiah ben Israel Sforno).
Works
Fano's authority as a Talmudist is evident in a collection of responsaResponsa
Responsa comprise a body of written decisions and rulings given by legal scholars in response to questions addressed to them.-In the Roman Empire:Roman law recognised responsa prudentium, i.e...
("She'elot Teshubot me-Rabbi Menaḥem 'Azaryah," Dyhernfurth, 1788) containing 130 chapters on various subjects connected with religious law and ritual questions. They are distinguished by precision of style as well as by the author's independence of the later authorities. He even decides sometimes in opposition to Joseph Caro (e.g., No. 32), and holds changes in the ritual to be justifiable in certain cases (see, e.g., No. 25). In his love for precision and brevity Fano compiled a book of extracts from Alfasi's code, which itself is only a compendium of the Talmud. This book is preserved in manuscript. Azulai enumerates twenty-four cabalistic treatises by Fano, part being in manuscript. Ten of these are comprised in the work "'Asarah Ma'amarot"; five of them, under the title "Amarot Ṭehorot," were printed together with "Ḳol Yehudah," a philosophical commentary by Judah ben Simon (Frankfort-on-the-Main, 1698; Mohilev, 1810).
These treatises originated partly in addresses delivered by the author on feast-days, especially on Rosh Hashanah
Rosh Hashanah
Rosh Hashanah , , is the Jewish New Year. It is the first of the High Holy Days or Yamim Nora'im which occur in the autumn...
. In spite of Fano's decided tendency toward scholastic and allegoric interpretation, his works are not devoid of original remarks. For example, in connection with the cabalistic interpretation of Num. xxxiii. 2, "And Moses wrote their goings out according to their journeys," he says: "The Torah speaks always of ideas when it seems to be describing concrete things: the higher meaning is the principal thing; the lower, material meaning holds the second place. Moses b. Naḥman, indeed, follows another opinion in his commentary on Genesis in holding to the principle that 'the Torah speaks according to the manner of men'; but we can justly say that men speak according to the manner of the Torah" ("Ḥiḳḳur Din," iii. 22). "The prohibitions of the Torah never appear in the imperative, but in the form of the future: 'Thou shalt have no other gods'; 'Thou shalt not bow down thyself to other gods'; 'Thou shalt not swear falsely'; etc. This means, 'I know thou wilt not be guilty of these things, since human nature does not tolerate such crimes, and if sin occurs in this life it can be only a passing episode.' On the other hand, the commandments are in the imperative: 'Kabbed,' 'zakor'; that is, 'I command thee nothing new; the good instincts in thee have always been there; they need only to be awakened and developed'" (ib. iv. 9). This last sentence is characteristic of the author's optimism as well as of his mild nature, which attracted the sympathy of all.
In 1581 Jedidiah Recanati dedicated to Fano his Italian translation ("Erudizione dei Confusi") of Maimonides' "Moreh Nebukim." Isaiah Hurwitz especially mentions Fano's treatise "Yonat Elem" as a theological work the teaching of which comes very near to the truth (Joseph Solomon Delmedigo
Joseph Solomon Delmedigo
Joseph Solomon Qandia Delmedigo was a rabbi, author, physician, mathematician, and music theorist....
, introduction to "Nobelot Ḥokmah"). Fano's pupil Samuel Portaleone composed an elegy on the occasion of his death (Oxford MS. No. 988c).