Many contemporary Jews might recognize, and feel comfortable in, medieval Spain. It was a milieu where Jews were allowed to participate in the surrounding culture, and many did. Ruled over and influenced by relatively tolerant Islamic culture, Jews studied science and philosophy, practiced medicine, and engaged in commerce. Like the Jews of contemporary western society, many felt free to assimilate into their surroundings. Some abandoned the Jewish way of life altogether. Others began to pick and choose from among the mitzvoth that they would keep or not.

It was in this setting that Rabbi Yonah ben Abraham (the Pious) of Gerona wrote his code of law, Sefer ha-Yirah, the Book of Reverence. Perhaps “wrote” is too much of a claim; the book is more an edited pastiche of laws culled from the Talmud and the Hebrew Bible than it is an original work. Rabbi Yonah’s work is deeply pietistic and it sometimes does not comport with contemporary political sensibilities. Laws he cites such as “a man should be completely dressed before getting out of bed so as not to be naked before his creator,”¹ or “and if a thing of nakedness strikes his eye such as a woman, whether Jewish or Aramean (Gentile), whether married or available, whether large or small, let him close his eyes or turn his face to the side so that he shall not see her -- and so says the sage, ‘you have no such buffer in the face of desire as the eye itself’”² will be off-putting to many modern and egalitarian-minded Jews of today. But Rabbi Yonah’s motivation for writing the book was in significant part what would today be called social justice. He was concerned about the effects of the abandonment of the commandments of Judaism by assimilating Jews on poorer and less powerful Jews, and about the ability of wealthier Jews to assert power over their less fortunate coreligionists:

One implication of the assimilation of Jews is that they would no longer be giving tzedakah. Therefore poorer Jews would be in an even more serious situation, despite the relatively affluent setting in which they lived.⁴ Prof. Israel Ta-Shma mentions “candid demonstration of a deep social sensitivity and concern about the welfare of the poor and weak; honest and outspoken abhorrence of greed, avarice, and addiction to luxury” as key elements of the values of R. Yonah and his colleagues.⁵ In fact, R. Yonah’s ethical works including Sefer ha-Yirah were widely read and influential in their time, and his repeated emphasis on social justice and ethics probably even contributed to their popularity across the Jewish world, even influencing the sociological and religious thinking of generations to come.⁶

The halakhah cited above on closing one’s eye to women brings up an issue that hangs over the entire work: gender and piety. This particular law is not going to be popular among a contemporary, liberal audience, nor even a modern Orthodox one. There really is no "such as" because given the list of attributes that follows, it is clear he means a woman. It is hard to think what else he might consider "a thing of nakedness." By way of explication, R. Yonah took the values of modesty and sexual discipline very seriously, and that he was well aware of women's power to arouse. Notice also in the coming halachah that it is assumed that the man is still wearing his tefillin, and thus has to be in a heightened state of piety. Modern liberal Jews might consider how such a halachah might apply at prayer in a mixed-gender setting. It is obvious that R. Yonah is addressing his work to men. As we shall see below, he even goes into great detail on how a man should handle his penis when using the toilet. I therefore have not attempted to write a gender-neutral, nor even a gender-sensitive translation because it would approach absurdity in too many situations. I think, however, that it would be a mistake to write off R. Yonah and Sefer ha-Yirah as an outmoded expression of the patriarchal power in Judaism. First, characteristically, many of his laws concerning women and modesty would act as safeguards for the less powerful for their time and place – we have already seen his ban on concubines and his inclusion of women in his call for volunteers for action. Second, many of his laws assume that women engage in commerce and are actors in society in their own right. Finally, be sure to see R. Yonah’s explanation of the notorious mishnah in tractate Pirkei Avot (1:5) advising against increasing conversation with a woman. I am grateful to R. Yonah for this; I shall never again cringe when teaching this mishnah.

The reader will notice that R. Yonah frequently admonishes his reader to carry out a commandment to the best of his ability, implying that perfection is not expected, but only the best effort. Like R. Bachya Ibn Pakuda, his Babylonian colleague of two centuries earlier, R. Yonah often points out that it is not sufficient merely to carry out a commandment; rather, a person’s intention in doing the act is equally important. For both of these Torah sages, a frequent trap of ritual observance is doing things by rote and by memory, without giving them proper kavvanah. R. Yonah returns to this theme again and again.

R. Yonah was included in a mystical circle in Gerona, of which his better-known cousin and in-law Nachmanides (Ramban) was also a member.⁷ (The fact that Nachmanides is so much more famous has led some scholars to mistakenly identify R. Yonah as his pupil, when in fact he was more likely his colleague.⁸) Some of the laws he cites may therefore be related to the mystical tradition, such as his admonitions to arrange a bed from north to south,⁹ or the order in which a man should tie his shoes,¹⁰ or his strictures in how much of a man’s body he may expose when getting dressed or using the toilet,¹¹ although the book is not written with explicit Kabbalistic symbolism or Zoharic references. Hidden references would doubtless appeal to a rabbi of mystical bent. On the other hand, as we shall see, an existing mystical commentary on the work written by Rabbi Moshe Negrin in sixteenth century Safed in the land of Israel, does indeed speak and explicate the book in explicitly mystical terms.

There is a story that depicts R. Yonah as participating in the opposition to Maimonides (Rambam), particularly Maimonidean philosophy, going so far as to denounce him to the Inquisition, an act which led to the burning of the works of Maimonides including the Moreh Nevukhim. But R. Yonah supposedly repented after the later burning of the Talmud by the Inquisition, vowing to go to the grave of the Rambam in order to make complete and perfect repentance. It is a very romantic story, but scholars cast doubt upon it.¹² Israel Ta-Shma, however, would rehabilitate the historical validity of the tale.¹³ In any case, scholars are in agreement that R. Yonah reversed his opposition to Maimonides later in his life.¹⁴

The mention of the Inquisition brings up another important point. Although we have made reference to the sophisticated and multi-cultural world of Muslim Spain, where Jews were relatively free to participate in the dominant culture and assimilate into it if they so wished, the Christian environment of the re-conquered parts of Spain are also important to the story of the development of Sefer ha-Yirah. R. Yonah probably received his education not only in his native Catalonia but also in Christian northern France and Germany.¹⁵ He was strongly influenced by the severe piety of this spiritual setting, and it makes itself felt in his work. Ta-Shma argues that R. Yonah “was in effect a disciple of the Chassidei Ashkenaz, having been educated in the French Torah center of Evreaux, which was a French branch of German pietism.”¹⁶

As an aside, there have been three movements in Jewish history to be called Chasidim. The first of these was in Hasmonean times, the years after the Maccabean revolt of 167 B.C.E from which comes the story of Chanukah. The second, who were an influence upon R. Yonah, were these medieval Chasidei Ashkenaz mentioned by Prof. Ta-Shma, the German pietists who were influenced by Christian monasticism. This group, motivated by mystical speculation,¹⁷ would undertake bodily mortification rituals such as self-flagellation and rolling in the snow. The third such movement is what most people today think of when they think of Chasidism: the great eighteenth century eastern European revival led by the generation following the charismatic leader the Ba’al Shem Tov. They were and are influenced by Lurianic Kabbalah but took mysticism in their own directions. They would have been unknown to R. Yonah or to his mystical commentator Moshe Negrin. The three movements share a common emphasis on personal piety and fervent prayer.

While one frequently hears about the relative openness, inter-ethnic and inter-religious harmony of medieval Spain, much of Sefer ha-Yirah’s halachot preserve a more suspicious attitude about gentiles. The reality of medieval Spain was more complex than the idealized picture. Furthermore, R. Yonah is writing for a particular audience. The end-result of many of these laws are indeed tolerant and pluralistic: treat the non-Jews just as one would treat the Jews by being the first to say hello; incur great costs to avoid conflict with the gentiles.

As my rabbinic thesis, I am pleased to submit this work, which is to the best of our knowledge the first-ever translation into English of Sefer ha-Yirah by Rabbi Yonah b. Abraham (the Pious) of Gerona. We have already mentioned how the original cosmopolitan and multi-cultural setting of the book is not so very different from our own. But we also live with a contradictory impulse: ours is a time of increased religious observance and concern for mitzvoth across the Jewish world, perhaps in reaction to the prevalent assimilation into Western, particularly American life. A book such as this one detailing the law of personal conduct for Jews where assimilation is an easy option will have resonance in our time and place. Also despite trends toward assimilation and indifference to Jewish values and life, we are blessed to live at a time when people who are interested in Judaism are busying themselves with adult Jewish education and there is serious lay interest in traditional Jewish sources. This translation will help those who are trying to improve their own self-understanding as Jews enter into those sources and find meaning in them. It is also worth mentioning that there is renewed interest in Jewish mysticism in both Jewish and general society. This interest has unfortunately allowed for much abuse and charlatanism, so it will be valuable to have some genuine mystical work added to such works as are available for people who seek legitimate mystical insights.

Any translation of a work automatically raises multiple scholarly issues. The first of these is the provenance of the document: from where do we get it? Shrock mentions two manuscript editions of the work, one housed in the British Museum and the other at the former Jews’ College.¹⁸ But his book, originally his doctoral thesis, was written in 1948. It seems possible that they may have been moved to Israel.

Another question raised by any translation, particularly one of a code of law, is to whom was the original work addressed? It seems we already have our answer: assimilating Jews. But this may not be the entire answer, as assimilating or assimilated Jews might not be impressed by R. Yonah’s pietistic tone. Furthermore, the book continued to be studied in various editions and languages from medieval Spain to sixteenth-century Safed and Amsterdam, and published from sixteenth century Fano, Italy to early twentieth century Vilna to modern Israel. It has obviously continued to speak to generations of Jews quite far removed from its original setting. At each time and place we know from its commentaries and editions that it was studied – medieval Spain, mystical Safed, early commercial Amsterdam, pious late nineteenth and early twentieth century eastern Europe, the modern State of Israel – those who kept it alive were those who were sympathetic to R. Yonah and his brand of sometimes dour pietism ameliorated by understanding of and respect for the human condition.

Such people would not only read the original, but would naturally seek to explain it in terms that were most appealing and important to them. In classic Jewish fashion, they wrote commentaries on the work for later generations to learn side by side with the core text. There are two such commentaries on the work in existence. The first of these to be written is this explicitly mystical commentary of R. Moshe Negrin of sixteenth century Safed. Fortuitously, Negrin’s glosses begin with the phrase “Moshe Negrin Says,” which in Hebrew forms an acronym spelling the word “Amen” (Amar Moshe Negrin). The later commentary is the halakhic gloss of R. Benjamin Moshe Zilber, published in Israel in 1952 called Makor ha-Yirah, “the Source of Reverence.” The two commentaries diverge widely in their understanding of the text and the explanations they give for its laws. Negrin’s commentary AMEN speaks in terms of mysticism. For example he frequently suggests that the reason for R. Yonah’s repeated admonitions to be modest and to keep the body covered is because the limbs of the human body represent aspects of divinity (the right arm, for example, hints at the sefirah of Hesed, God’s grace, while the left arm hints at the sefirah of Gevurah, God’s strict judgment.¹⁹) On the other hand, Zilber’s commentary Makor ha-Yirah speaks in halakhic terms, even being written in pseudo-Talmudic Hebrew idiom. It gives citations to the Talmud (generally the Talmud Bavli, but occasionally the Yerushalmi as well) and often codes such as Shulchan Aruch,²⁰ the Beit Yosef, and Maimonides’ codes of law. Each commentary thus appropriates the text for its own purposes. Negrin’s glosses are probably more in line with the original pietism of the work. It should be noted that every translation is an act of interpretation, and this translation/interpretation likewise appropriates R. Yonah for the purposes of situating him in mainstream liberal Jewish thought.

The translation mainly used four editions of the source text. The first of these is the Vilna edition of 1914, which is the edition generally used by scholars. Second is the edition published with Makor ha-Yirah of 1952. This one is unusual in that it is specifically and solely an edition of Sefer ha-Yirah, and not bound with R. Yonah’s other ethical works, as is usually the case. This edition is cited as “Zilber ed.” while the commentary itself, Makor ha-Yirah is cited by that name. Third is an edition I call “Moriah” after the bookstore where I purchased it, which is a vocalized edition claiming to be based on the first edition of the work, published in Fano, Italy, ca. 1505.²¹ The publisher’s information is unclear, but it appears to be by Frank Publishing, Jerusalem. Fourth is another vocalized edition, which I also call after the place I found it, “Me’ah She’arim.” This work was also published in Jerusalem, in 1999. These four editions track one another quite closely. Wherever there are textual variances among the four I have made reference to the variance in the endnotes. In many cases, the distinction is without a difference, but in some cases the difference in meaning can be quite profound. These variances sometimes reveal differing agendas by the editors. For example, at line number 253 “if you see a naked woman drowning in a river…” the two pointed editions omit the word “naked.” This omission may be an attempt not to offend the sensibilities of the largely Orthodox, even Charedi audience which is its buying public. I have used a fifth edition which includes the Negrin gloss, which I have called “Negrin ed.” Where I cite the gloss itself, I cite it as AMEN (see above). This edition varies quite widely from the other four, with whole paragraphs that do not appear in the other editions, and deletions of phrases that do appear in all the others. I have included a few paragraphs that are unique to the Negrin ed., but a full analysis of these variations will have to await a future project, perhaps the publication of this thesis as a book. Finally, Sendero de Vidas, “Pathways of Life,” a translation of the work into sixteenth-century Spanish, published in Amsterdam.²² In a few cases, I have used the old Spanish of Senderos de Vidas to compare to the original Hebrew in formulating my own translation.

In my translation, I have attempted to complete the following objectives:

First, I have rendered the work in its entirety into idiomatic English. For the most part, the original Hebrew is similar to that of the Mishnah, while less clear and grammatically correct than that of the Rambam’s Mishneh Torah. One will notice frequent switches between the third and second person. There are a few lines of Aramaic quotations. To the best of my ability, I have attempted to maintain the flavor of the original by keeping as close as possible to a literal translation without sacrificing meaning. Wherever I have felt the Hebrew to be unclear, I have included the original in an endnote.

Second, I have striven to write extensive notes denoting the source of the laws cited by R. Yonah. This should make the book more useful in order to function as a gateway into the Talmud and Tanakh for those interested in learning more. That is, the work could be a vehicle for people to teach themselves Talmud and other traditional Jewish literature.

Third, I have included paraphrases of some key passages and even a few translations from Zilber’s Makor ha-Yirah (Israel, 1952) and Negrin’s AMEN (sixteenth century Safed). As we have seen, these two commentaries serve different functions, not surprisingly since they are separated widely both from the time and place of the original work and from one another. Negrin wrote his glosses in the setting of the Kabbalah of the Ari, (the Ashkenazi Rabbi Isaac Luria) while Zilber writes in modern Israel in the idiom of mainstream halakhah. Thus:

In this passage we see several interesting issues working themselves out: piety, modesty, gender specificity, mysticism, and critical textual analysis. The first striking feature of this excerpt is the fact that R. Yonah does not even shy away from frankly discussing how a Jew should conduct him- or her-self (and here it is him- or her-self; it is not always) in the privy. Some authorities might have said, “a Jew should recite asher yatzar after attending to his bodily functions,” and left it at that. But R. Yonah discusses or at least cites laws pertaining to the mechanics of using the bathroom down to the last literal hands-breadth. One might well wonder why R. Yonah has this seeming obsession with bodily functions and with cleanliness. It should be remembered first that Christian Europe was being re-introduced to the classical learning of medicine and anatomy, which had been preserved by the Muslim civilization after the fall of the Roman Empire. Moreover, European civilization had just had a wrenching encounter with the Black Plague. People knew that hygiene was important to human health, but did not yet fully understand about germs. They were understandably anxious to protect themselves, and clearly saw a connection between physical cleanliness and God’s mercy.

Second, we see gender specificity in the book. In general, the book appears to direct itself to Jewish men whether because of the book’s intensive discussions of such time-bound positive commandments such as putting on Tallit Katan, Tallit, and Tefillin which traditionally would not apply to women, or its gender-specific rules about looking at or speaking to women. But here we have an example of a rule that applies to both sexes, and even more severely to women (a single hands-breadth? One wonders if our Rabbi thought much about the mechanics of female plumbing!). But see below.

Third, of course, is the deep piety expressed here. R. Yonah appears to be trying to teach a meta-lesson to assimilating Jews that God cares very much about the details of a person’s intimate life. If God’s purview extends to the private sphere of the bathroom, how much more so must God care about the way a person acts in public toward his fellow Jews and fellow creatures.

The commentaries add their own levels of meaning. Negrin extends the commandment not to reveal oneself overly much in the bathroom to an admonition not to reveal too much skin even when laying tefillin. He also adds directions as to which direction of the compass a person should face when relieving himself with for the first time explicitly kabbalistic references to the sefirot of Hesed and Tifereth in the system of Lurianic Kabbalah. Zilber takes the commentator’s task in a different direction, usefully setting forth the source of each law cited by R. Yonah in the Talmud or Tanakh. This has been valuable in the task of translation and will be so in making the sources accessible to contemporary Jews. But more than just limiting himself to citations Zilber here points out a scribal error and discusses how the editors chose to cite the law making the obligation more stringent upon females than males.

As the fourth and final objective of my rabbinic thesis, I hope to have included enough biographical detail and details of his time and place to make R. Yonah himself, as well as his work, understandable and meaningful for a contemporary audience. Apparently, as recently as a century ago Sefer ha-Yirah was well-known and frequently cited in Orthodox settings²⁵ but until my course in Post-Talmudic Halakhic Literature I had never heard of him. I hope to make Rabbi Yonah ben Abraham the Pious of Gerona and his work accessible and relevant again. I hope that the reader will agree that the effort has been worthwhile. 

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