The Cover Page of the 1719 Constantinople Tikunei
haZohar
This page describes and illustrates
the cover page of the Tikunei haZohar
printed in Constantinople in 1719. The Tikunei haZohar (תקוני
הזהר, lit. Rectifications or
Repairs or Restorations or Adornments of the Zohar), also known as the Tikunim (תקונים),
is an appendix to the main text of the Zohar. In seventy commentaries and
permutations discoursing on Bereishit (בראשית), "In the
beginning" the opening word of the Torah, the Tikunei
reveals deep secret teachings of Torah, and reports stirring dialogues and
fervent prayers. The explicit theme of the Tikunei haZohar is to praise and support the Shekhinah
or Malkhut — hence its name, "Repairs of the
Zohar" — and to bring on the Redemption and conclude the Exile. The Tikunei haZohar was printed first
in Mantua in Hebrew year 5318 (1558 CE). Later editions include the ones
printed in Constantinople in 5479 (1719 CE - shown below) and 5500 (1740 CE).
Pages referred to in Tikunei haZohar
are usually referenced to the 1740 Constantinople edition. For more on the Tikunei haZohar, see Wikipedia.org/Tikunei_haZohar.
This image courtesy of the I. Edward Kiev Judaica
Collection, George Washington University Libraries.
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Written by the godly Tanna Rabbi Simeon ben (bar) Yochai Blessed are those who listen to him, watching daily at
his doors Proofread and checked, letter for
letter from the mouths of scribes AND the mouth of books [1] as explained in the introduction. The financing for this sacred work was provided by the
person mentioned in the
printer's preface, may his name be written in
the book of life From the press of the engraver
HR"R (HaRav Rabeinu =
Our Rabbi) Jonah [2] BKMH"R (Ben Kevod Moreinu HaRav = the son of his honour our teacher the
Rabbi) Jacob YZ"V In the year "Many will range far and
wide and KNOWLEDGE will
increase" LP"K [3] Printed here in Ortakoy , close to Costandina (Constantinople) under the rule of our lord the
king Sultan Ahmed, his majesty is exalted. |
NOTES:
[1] A reference to the Kuzari (2:72) by Rabbi Judah
Halevi, with the words "but not" changed to "and".
[2] Isaiah Tishby believed
that the printer, Jonah Ashkenazi, was a member of a circle of
believers in Sabbatai Zevi and
that the manuscript for this edition was brought from Egypt, by another member
of this circle..
[3] KNOWLEDGE = HE(5)
+ DALET(4) + AYIN(70)+ TAV(400) = 479
479 + 5000(implicit by LP"K) =
5479 ( i.e. 1719) .
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** Translation and
scholarly apparatus by L.P. (Ottawa, Ontario).