The notion of brightness (Heb. nogah) in the Hasidic Biblical interpretation (Karlin-Stolin tradition) and its literary sources

The scope of the present study is to trace the meaning of the Hebrew term nogah „brightness”, “bright light” in the Hasidic commentary to the Book of Genesis. As a starting point we assume the work of Aharon ben Asher of Karlin, Beth Aharon. It turns out that in the center of the Creations stands the light of brightness. On the one hand, it is hidden in the middle of the darkness, i.e. non-existence interwoven into this world. On the other hand, we learn that the shells of the brightness must fall down to let the light of Creation shine. This rather complex bulk of ideas may be untied when literary sources that may shed a light on this motive are found. As in many cases the roots of the Hasidic ideas may be traced back to the Kabbalistic literature; therefore, we quote the Zoharistic interpretation of the “brightness” nogah motive, especially in Ezekiel 1: 4. Further, the interpretation of the aforementioned motive in the Lurianic Kabbalah – represented by the “Three of Life” of Haim Vital – is focused on. Finally, the same motive elaborated by the prolific Hasidic leader, Shneur Zalman of Liady will be discussed on the basis of his most popular work, Liqqute amarim Tanya.

The article presents some texts from manuscript 2284 stored at the Jagiellonian University Library in Krakow, titled Księga Kabał Królowej Sobieskiej (The Kabbalah Book of Queen Sobieska). It is a collection of unpublished texts about magic, Kabbalah, and astrology, collected by Maria Casimira Sobieska herself during her long sojourn in Italy (1699-1714). Some of the manuscript’s texts were written in Italian, most likely in Venice at the end of the 17th century, and signed by a certain Andrea Valetta, a citizen of the Most Serene Republic. Some of these texts concern natural magic, and others, Kabbalah: Acqua simpatica per scivere [sic] da lontano, Per fare l’acqua ardente, A’ far la scrittura simpatica, and Altra Acqua simpatica (104r-105v); Modo di scrivere in Zifra senza dar sospetto di Zifra and Tabella della prima scienza numerica (100r); Seconda scienza numerica (100v-101v); Trattato Per estrarre il nome del Genio (106r-113r); Regole di Cabala di Salomone Imparatale divinam[ente] da Dio (216r-222v). The work shows how, in the texts on natural magic, Valetta follows Giovanni Battista Della Porta’s theory and approach to natural magic. In the texts on Kabbalah, although he considers Kabbalah from a Christian point of view, like Pico della Mirandola, he ignores mystical and spiritual aspects—which, in Pico, are most important—focusing on practical and prophetic aspects.