An exquisite ‘Ilan of the Ariza”l’ of the type historically attributed to the great 17th-century Kabbalist Rabbi Meir Poppers.
Manuscript on paper. Written for the Holy Rebbe Moshe Hager of Radevits of with his stamps ”Moshe Hager of Sereth”
Colophon: "Says the copyist, blessed be He, who has wondrously shown kindness and helped me complete the transcription of this holy tree on the 13th day of the month of Elul, 1865, here in Sereth, may it be protected… Words of the copyist, Eliyahu ben Yechiel."
Box embossed ”Ilan of the Ari”zal” & his name ”Moshe Hager”.
Great length: Approx 402 Cm, 13.18 ft.
Width: 48 Cm, 18.89 In.
Laid on cloth for preservation.
Box: 53 Cm long, 8 Cm wide.
The Holy Rebbi Moshe Hager of Radevits (Rădăuți), (1840–1902), author of Vayikach Moshe, was the son of Rebbi Yosef Alter Hager (1820–1879), the Admor of Radevits, who was the second son of Rebbi Chaim of Kosov and the son-in-law of Rebbi Moshe Tzvi of Savran. In 1873, Rebbi Yosef Alter ascended to the holy city of Safed and appointed his son, Rebbi Moshe, as his successor in the city of Radevits. However, Rebbi Moshe handed over the leadership to his own son, Rebbi Yisrael, and joined his father in Safed. Initially, he resided in Haifa but, finding himself without a suitable community, relocated to Safed a year and a half later, where he led the community at his father’s study hall. The people of Haifa sent him a heartfelt letter asking him to return, writing that since his departure, they had "neither Shabbat nor Torah."
Rebbi Moshe passed away in 1902 and was buried in the ancient Jewish cemetery in Safed, near the grave of the Ariza”l.
Rebbi Moshe recorded his teachings in the sefer Vayikach Moshe, which also includes approximately 70 teachings from his father, Rebbi Yosef Alter. He named the sefer after the verse, "And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him." The sefer was published by his son, Rebbi Yisrael of Radevits, in Munkacs in 1907.
Stamp of Rebbe Yisrael Hager [1876–1940], son of Rebbi Moshe of Radevits, author of Vayikach Moshe. He succeeded his father and served as Rebbe in Radevits. In 1913, he emigrated to the United States and established a synagogue in Manhattan, on the famous Wall Street. He founded the "Torat Chaim" yeshiva and inspired American Jews to observe mitzvot. In 1919, he established an orphanage in Safed and supported it financially. Additionally, he assisted Rebbi Yisrael Hager of Vizhnitz in raising funds to support the residents of the Land of Israel. (See also: *Encyclopedia of Chassidut*, vol. 2, p. 521).
As early as the thirteenth century, and especially from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, kabbalists fashioned pictorial representations of the structure of creation as it progressed from Ein-Sof (the limitless) downward. Such diagrams were generally called ilanot ("trees"), and the differences between them reflect divergences among the various kabbalistic doctrines and schemes of symbolism. For centuries, drawings of this kind were to be found only in manuscript scrolls such as the present copy.
This hierarchical diagram charts the order of azilut (emanation) according to Lurianic kabbalah, from zimzum (contraction) and Adam kadmon (primeval man) through beriah (creation), yezirah (formation) and assiyah (action). This intricate example of the genre devotes the larger portion of its great length to the three worlds of creation, formation and action which are diagrammatically depicted in the later sections of the scroll.
The Ilan of the Ariza”l – the Great Ilan (‘tree’)– is a long scroll that uses Kabbalistic images and texts to "map" the divine realm. These "Maps of God" were designed to actively engage their users in both contemplative study and meditative prayer. Their exceptionally-long, vertical format also engaged the user in the physical act of "scrolling", which became another central part of the ritual experience offered by these fascinating Kabbalistic works.
The Ilan: Overall in Good Condition, small flakes missing without affecting text, tears & cracks.
The box: partly disassembled, will need professional restoration.
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Lot #213