Rabbi Yitzhak Luria Ashkenazi, known as the Holy Ari and considered one of the most important and influential Kabbalists in Jewish history, did not leave direct written evidence of his Kabbalistic system. To understand his worldview, one must rely on his students such as Rabbi Chaim Vital, Israel Saruk, and others, who summarized his ideas.
The newspaper 'Israel Hayom' reported that the National Library has uncovered new first-hand testimony about the Ari's life in Israel and Egypt, and that he corresponded with his contemporaries.
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Years after letters and documents preserved in the Cairo Genizah were published, a torn and partial letter sent to the Holy Ari during the time he lived in Egypt in the 16th century has now been revealed.
In contrast to the field of activity attributed to the Ari in the worlds of Kabbalah, the letter refers to the affairs of this world. The writer, a man named David, writes to the Ari to enlist the rabbi to support the Shadar (a rabbinical envoy), who was sent to Safed to raise funds for the Jews of the Land of Israel from the Jewish communities in the Diaspora. Although the Ari was known for his simple and perhaps even ascetic life, he was a significant figure to whom Jews also turned for economic and secular matters.
The letter, which is in the National Library, is uniquely preserved despite being written in the 16th century - it was used as raw material to create a cover for another book. In the past, before the invention of cardboard, bookbinders, both Jewish and non-Jewish, would take worn leaves and books, made of paper or parchment, and glue together layers upon layers to create a stiffer material for bookbinding.
The National Library is publishing the letter for the first time in memory of the late Jerusalem collector Ezra Gordetsky, who spent his life engaged in the painstaking work of dismantling ancient bindings and revealing the treasures within. He would often come to the library to donate the pages of the collections.
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Gordetsky died a year ago after contracting the coronavirus. The document is one of the important and rare relics he contributed.
Dr. Yoel Finkelman, Curator of the Jewish Collection at the National Library: "This letter, whose value is priceless, is part of the valuable collections and the rich treasures held by the National Library, which constitutes a national source of knowledge for the Jewish history of the State of Israel.
""The letter, which has been uniquely preserved among the covers of old books, is a significant revelation about the influence of the late Ari, not only in the field of Kabbalah but also in the affairs of this world.".
