''Reshit Chochmah'' is an important book of

Kabbalah Kabbalah or Qabalah ( ; , ; ) is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. It forms the foundation of Mysticism, mystical religious interpretations within Judaism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ...

(

Jewish mysticism Academic study of Jewish mysticism, especially since Gershom Scholem's ''Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism'' (1941), draws distinctions between different forms of mysticism which were practiced in different eras of Jewish history. Of these, Kabbal ...

ethics Ethics is the philosophy, philosophical study of Morality, moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates Normativity, normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches inclu ...

and

morality Morality () is the categorization of intentions, Decision-making, decisions and Social actions, actions into those that are ''proper'', or ''right'', and those that are ''improper'', or ''wrong''. Morality can be a body of standards or principle ...

(''

Musar literature Musar literature is didactic Jewish ethical literature which describes virtues and vices and the path towards character improvement. This literature gives the name to the Musar movement, in 19th century Lithuania, but this article considers such ...

''), written by the 16th century scholar Rabbi

Eliyahu de Vidas Eliyahu de Vidas (; 1518–1587, Hebron) was a 16th-century rabbi in Ottoman Palestine. He was primarily a disciple of Moses ben Jacob Cordovero and Isaac Luria. Fine 2003, pp81 "Cordovero was the teacher of what appears to have been a relative ...

. It is based largely on the

Zohar The ''Zohar'' (, ''Zōhar'', lit. "Splendor" or "Radiance") is a foundational work of Kabbalistic literature. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material o ...

. Its name literally translates into “the beginning of Wisdom”, in allusion to the Biblical verse "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom".

Overview

''Reshit Chochmah'' describes a method of meditation that combines visualization and permutation of Hebrew letters, and is intended to inspire the reader with a sense of purity and holiness, if studied on a regular basis. The book presents a combination of ethical and moral teaching with Kabbalah. The book shows the path to the uninitiated to enter the world and wisdom of Kabbalah. In a very easy and understandable style, the book explains to the reader the ways to attain the higher level of Divine awareness which the Holy One wishes for His beloved people,

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

. One of the last chapters of the book deals with '' Derekh Eretz'' (Etiquette), in which the author expands on its importance, writing that "Whosoever is careful in what concerns proper manners and interacts with his fellow man, he is destined to prolong his life pon earth" The book has continued to be popular ever since its publication.

References

Kabbalah texts Kabbalistic words and phrases Sifrei Kodesh {{Hebrew-lang-stub