Dialogue on Kabbalah by Samuel David Luzzatto

“Shadal's marvelously informative Dialogue portrays a vivid literary debate over the origins and authority of Jewish mystical writings, presenting a well-balanced, dynamic, and compelling argument in which historical and philosophical methods are pitted against ardent traditionalism. Kimche's magnificent translation of this work, paired with an illuminating introduction and filled with an impressive number of helpful annotations, opens Luzzatto's Dialogue to an English readership for the first time. This book is a must-read for… anyone interested in the modern Jewish experience."

—Ariel Evan Mayse, Assistant Professor of Religious Studies, Stanford University

This is the first complete translation of Vikuaḥ 'al Ḥokhmat ha-Kabbalah, a literary-philosophical dialogue composed by the great Italian Jewish scholar Samuel David Luzzatto (1800-1865), also known as Shadal. Originally published in Hebrew in 1852, the Dialogue depicts a multi-faceted and acrimonious disputation between two scholars, who debate the authority and authenticity of Jewish mystical traditions. This work subjects Kabbalah, along with its textual centerpiece the Zohar, to both a rigorous critique and an impassioned defense, thereby inviting the reader to critically examine this centuries-old debate.

Shadal’s Dialogue is a classic text of the Jewish enlightenment (Haskalah), in which trends of modern scholarship and historical criticism are brought into confrontation with rabbinic tradition and Kabbalistic mysteries. This translation has been augmented by over a thousand footnotes, extensive glossaries, and a lengthy introduction outlining the place of Shadal’s Dialogue within the history of Kabbalah criticism and the rise of modern Jewish scholarship. 

J.J. Kimche is a PhD candidate at Harvard University, specializing in Jewish intellectual history. He has taught courses in Jewish and Western thought at Harvard, Brandeis, MIT, Gratz College, and the Hartman Institute. He also hosts the Podcast of Jewish Ideas. 

Menachem Kellner is the Wolfson Professor Emeritus of Jewish Thought at the University of Haifa, and founding chair of the Department of Philosophy and Jewish Thought at Shalem College.