Rabbi Chaim Vital, a prominent Safed kabbalist in the 16th–17th centuries, is best known for recording and editing the teachings of Rabbi Isaac Luria, better known as the Arizal, a founder of modern Kabbalah. Chaim Vital’s youngest son, Rabbi Samuel Vital, organized a collection of his father’s writings into eight “gates,” each of which “opens” up a particular topic. The first of these is Sha’ar HaHakdamot (Gate of Introductions), which delves into theoretical Kabbalah, especially its fundamental ideas about Creation and divine emanation.