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Ibn Sahula's Meshal ha-Qadmoni as restorative polemic

2011; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 3; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/17546559.2011.610175

1754-6567

Alexandra Cuffel,

Archaeology and Historical Studies

Abstract This essay explores the ways in which Isaac ibn Sahula (1244–c. 1284) drew upon philosophy, medical theory, astrology, and animal lore, both to polemicize against Christians and Muslims and to goad his Jewish readers to correct spiritual behavior in his Meshal ha-Qadmoni. Christians, Muslims, and "bad" Jews are portrayed as having degraded their intellect by following fleshly lusts or false wisdom. In losing their intellect, they have lost the quality that made them superior to animals. His use of animals to portray the "inhumanity" of most humans adds a level of irony to his work, but also becomes a part of his arsenal of symbolism, which he deftly uses to criticize the religious claims and behavior of non-Jews. In some instances loss of intellect feminizes his opponents. However, Ibn Sahula's use of gender symbolism does not fall along neat dichotomies of male-spiritual, female-material. Rather, non-Jews are often characterized by hyper-masculinity, violence, and excessive lust, whereas Ibn Sahula portrays himself as a woman giving birth, Israel as maiden or woman in need of going to purify herself in a miqvah. His manipulation of gender symbolism, like his use of animals, is part of a broad defensive polemic aimed at Christian and Muslim criticism of Jews. Keywords: Ibn Sahulamasculinityfemininityknowledgeanimals Notes 1On the genre of the frame narrative see Wacks, Framing Iberia, and Metlitzki, Matter of Araby. 2Lachter, "Spreading Secrets," 111, 114–23, 131, 135–38; Baer, "Historical Background;" and Baer, "Todros." 3Lachter, "Spreading Secrets," 111–12; Green, "Rabi Isaac," 393 onwards; Encyclopedia Judaica, s.v. "Sahula." On the composition of the Zohar, see Liebes, Studies in the Zohar. 4Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 24/25–30/31. 51 Samuel 17. 6ואקח מוסרי ושיר מהללי, ומליצת חידותי ואת משלי, ואחזיקם ואלבישם נקם, על הבוגדים ריקם. ויערכו מלחמה בכלי חרב לטושה. Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 34/35, lines 132–36. Although I am indebted to Loewe's translation, for the purposes of this article I have chosen to provide my own, slightly more literal translations of the cited passages from Meshal ha-Qadmoni, rather than Loewe's rhymed poetic one. 7Loewe translates this word as "cynic" throughout the text. 8On this group of Jews and the intellectual pursuits encouraged by Alfonso X see Hecker, "Face of Shame," 29–67; Lachter, "Spreading Secrets," 114–24, 130–34, 136–38; Wacks, Framing Iberia, 25, 86–128, 131, 168, 193; Gampel, "Letter to a Wayward Teacher," 91, 104–6; Ilan, "Jewish Community in Toledo," 65–95; Doron, "Poetry of Todros," 282–90; Assis, "Jewish Physicians," 36–37, 38–40, 43–44, 46–48; Assis, "Sexual Behavior," 26–29, 42–43; Oron, "R. Todros," 47–51; Burns, "Stupor Mundi," 1–13; Roth, "Jewish Collaborators," 59–71; Baer, History of the Jews, 1: 236–77; Baer, "Historical Background;" Baer, "Todros;" and Alfonso X, Astromagia, 9–74. My thanks to Joel Hecker for allowing me to read and cite his article before its publication. 9Loewe notes Ibn Sahula's connections and proximity to Jews in Toledo in his introduction to Meshal ha-Qadmoni (xv–xviii). 10On immorality in the Castilian Jewish community and efforts to counter it see Hecker, "Face of Shame," 29–67; Gampel, "Letter to a Wayward Teacher," 94–97; Ilan, "Jewish Community in Toledo," 69, 82–95; Oron, "R. Todros," 47–51; Assis, "Sexual Behavior," 39–47; Baer, History of the Jews, 1: 236–77; Baer, "Historical Background," 35–41; Baer, "Todros," 24–48. Similar behavior existed among Jews in Aragon. Assis, Golden Age, 285–96. 11Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 98/99, line 652; Cuffel, Gendering Disgust, 205–7; Rosen, Unveiling Eve, 17–18, 83–86, 90, 93–95. 12On the use of animal imagery in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim polemic, see Cuffel, Gendering Disgust, 51–53, 198–239; Stow, Jewish Dogs; Epstein, Dreams of Subversion; Epstein, "'Ways of Truth Are Curtailed and Hidden,'" 205–31; Epstein, "Elusive Hare," 70–86; Miyazaki, "Misericord Owls," 23–49; and Hassig, Medieval Bestiaries, 82, 97–98, 145–55, 174, 258–59 n. 35. While Jews frequently portrayed themselves as rabbits or stags, in Christian polemic Jews were not always symbolized by harmless creatures. On feminizing or disease-related polemic against the Jews see Cuffel, Gendering Disgust, 156–82; Kruger, Spectral Jew, 82–85, 92–96, 119–21; Biller, "'Scientific' View," 137–68; Resnick, "Medieval Roots," 241–63; and Johnson, "Myth of Jewish Male Menses," 273–95. 13On negative depictions of women or the feminine in medieval Iberian Hebrew literature, see Rosen, Unveiling Eve, 10–18, 68–71, 103–19; Díaz Esteban, "Elogio y vituperio de la mujer," 70–77; Roth, "Wiles of Women," 145–65. 14Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 5, 6, 7, lines 3–8. 15Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 8/9–10/11. By the term ha-sarim (השרים‎) (the lords) I suspect he means those who served at the king's court, whereas ha-'amim (העמים‎) (the people) refers to the educated public, though not those with political or communal power. We may presume his audience to have been educated, given their interest in, and capacity to study, the philosophy and literature of non-Jews, and, of course, to read Ibn Sahula's own work. On Jewish interest and reading of non-Jewish vernacular literature for entertainment and objections to such behavior see King Artus, 50–60. 16Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 10/11–12/13 especially lines 30, 34–36, 50–54. 17Keṭurah probably refers to Islam, since she was the handmaiden of the patriarch Abraham, and as such sometimes seems to be associated with Egypt in Kabbalistic texts. However, the identification is not certain. On this figure in thirteenth-century Kabbalistic sources see Idel, Kabbalah and Eros, 110–14, 120–22. On Esau and Edom see Yuval, Two Nations, 1–20, 58–59, 98–115, 139–40, 212–13, 230–32, 263, 270–71, 275, 290. 18Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 14/15, lines 81–84. On Goliath, see above. 22תריבוני עלי חמדת אמרי /ותבקשו חטאת מדברי / הלא סכל ואיש הולל תצרי / בני הבל אשר שונאי וערי / למדוני מליצה מנעורי /והשכל והבין מבחורי (Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 50/51, lines 96–98). Alternately one could translate the penultimate line as "They taught me eloquence," potentially implying that his adversaries were the ones who taught him. However, in this case, I think that an impersonal "they" is intended. 19במהלל השכל והחכמה, לתת לפתאים ערמה, ודעת ומזמה (Ibn Sahula Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 42/43). See Proverbs 1:4. 20Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 44/45–46/47, lines 21–37. The word translated for "Egypt" is Ẓo'an (צאן‎) usually translated "Tanis," drawing from Isaiah 19:11, which the protagonist will quote in full later in the story (see below, footnote 21). The entire chapter in Isaiah is about Egypt. See Loewe's comments in Ibn Sahula Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 44 n. 3. 21Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 46/47–50/51, lines 38–94. On Tanis, see above, n. 20. 23Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 52/53–54/55, lines 118–20, 126–29, 130–34. On the meaning of תשם, compare with Genesis 47:19, Ezekiel 12:19, 19:7. On the meaning of zaman (זמן‎) in this passage, see Loewe's comments in Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 11 n. 10. Loewe translates ha-ḥakhamim as "intellectuals," which may be the intended meaning, but "the wise [men]" also implies one who is religiously learned. 24See for example Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 92/93–98/99; 2: 336/37. Compare with 1: 22/23. Maimonides, Guide of the Perplexed, 1: 73, tenth proposition, 209–12. 25Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 44/45, lines 22–23. Loewe translates this passage "A man, who, shrewd enough in his affairs—not modest, nor one given much to prayers—." 26 Babylonian Talmud (henceforth abbreviated BT), tractate Berakhot 6b. Also compare with BT Sanhedrin 11a, BT Bava Batra 91a–b, Semahot 1: 9. On this genre see Feldman, "Rabbinic Lament," 51–75. For the meanings of אי (translated here as "alas" or "woe") and related terms such as הי, הוי and ויי see the entry in Jastrow, Dictionary. My thanks to the anonymous reader who pointed out the rabbinic origins of this phrase, and the necessity to interpret this section of Meshal ha-Qadmoni in light of the phrase's Talmudic meaning. All interpretation and errors are my own. 27Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 44/45, line 32. 28Others also criticized courtier Jews for their lack of religious learning. Todros b. Judah Halevi Abulafia, Gan ha-meshalim, vol. 2, poem #570, lines 19–21; Gampel, "Letter to a Wayward Teacher," 98–101, 105–7; Baer, "Todros," 29, 47–49. On Ibn Sahula's view of the limitations of scientific and philosophical knowledge in comparison with that of the Torah and the secrets of the Kabbalah, see Lachter, "Spreading Secrets," 111–38. 29Scholars working on visual polemic have been inclined to interpret Egypt as symbolizing Christians, not Muslims. See Harris, "Polemical Images," 105–22; Narkiss, Golden Haggadah, 46. However, see David Qimḥi's commentary on Joel 4:19, Isaiah 24:5, 13; 34:1; 44:5; 52:1; 63:1; Jeremiah 9:23; 49:7; Obadiah 2; Psalms 125:3, in which Egypt and Ishmael are identified with Islam, and Edom with Christendom. 30Sanders, Ritual, Politics, 23–24, 28–30; Sanders, "Robes of Honor in Fatimid Egypt," 225–39; Petry, "Robing Ceremonials in Late Mamluk Egypt," 353–77. Egyptian rulers were not the only ones to confer robes on their favored advisors. See Sourdel, "Robes of Honor," 137–45; Allsen, "Robing in the Mongolian Empire," 305–13. To the best of my knowledge, no one has studied whether this practice was common among Andalusi rulers. 31Recall that Ibn Sahula had traveled in the Muslim world. 32Gampel, "Letter to a Wayward Teacher," 90–95; Shatzmiller, Jews, Medicine and Medieval Society, 39–42; Septimus, Hispano-Jewish Culture, 14–20. 33Maimonides, Epistle to Yemen, section 4; Daniel, Islam and the West, 27–31, 69–70, 246, 280. 34Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 42/43, lines 11–14. 35Hecker, "Face of Shame," 29–67; Wolfson, Venturing Beyond, 22–23 n. 31, 27, 90–91 n. 296, 130–35, 155–66; Kiener, "Image of Islam in the Zohar," 43–65; Cuffel, "Matter of Others," 249–84; Cuffel, "Call and Response," 88–89, 92–94. On Ibn Sahula's use of and connection with the Kabbalah, see Lachter, "Spreading Secrets," 111–38. 36Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 54/55–114/115, 130/131–150/151. 37Cuffel, Gendering Disgust, 43–44, 51–53, 198–99, 210–11, 220–25, 233; Epstein, Dreams of Subversion, 16–38, 51–54, 104–12; Eilberg-Schwartz, Savage, 120–28. 38Epstein, Dreams of Subversion, 1, 49–50, 55–58, 104, 107–12; Hassig, Medieval Bestiaries, 50, 135; Cuffel, Gendering Disgust, 51–52, 203, 205–9, 220. See the story in Berechiah ha-Naqdan, Mishle, 55–56, fable #47, and Berechiah ha-Naqdan, Fables, 87–88, fable #47. 39Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 114/115–130/131; Epstein, Dreams of Subversion, 25, 29, 133–34 n. 56; Cuffel, Gendering Disgust, 42, 44, 76, 152, 203, 204, 210, 216–20, 223, 230, 232, 239; Stow, Jewish Dogs, 14, 25–36, 54, 67, 75, 122, 141–44; Hobgood-Oster, Holy Dogs and Asses, 104–6. When dogs were portrayed negatively, their violence, devouring, barking, or dirtiness was usually emphasized. In this case, the dog is condemnable primarily because of his deceitfulness, which results in the cow's death, but indirectly, not because the dog attacked her. The fable of the dog and the cow is a story told within the fable of the lion, the fox, and the stag, and is thus part of Gate One. 40Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 2: 556/557–560/561, 598/599–610/611. Compare with Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 280/281, lines 1404–8 in which the stork is an innocent victim, rather than a predator. On storks see Epstein, Dreams of Subversion, 56–58; Hassig, Medieval Bestiaries, 102. On frogs and toads, Cuffel, Gendering Disgust, 140–41, 342 n. 81, 343 n. 91; Lipton, Images, 43–45. 41For positive images of dogs see Hobgood-Oster, Holy Dogs and Asses, 89–104; Judah b. Samuel, Sefer Ḥasidim, #1146. On dogs as "dangerous" (precisely because they are close companions to humans but may turn against their masters), see Cuffel, Gendering Disgust, 216–17. 42Ilan, "Jewish Community in Toledo," 82; Oron, "R. Todros," 48; Baer, History of the Jews, 1: 129–30; Baer, "Todros," 27–31, 34–36; O'Callaghan, Alfonso X and the Cantigas, 163–65; O'Callaghan, Learned King, 247–56. Loewe also argues for seeing this fable in this context. See his comments in Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: lxxxviii–xciv. On shifting tax laws as a source of conflict under Alfonso X and the economic and political background to the struggles between Alfonso and Sancho see Doubleday, Lara Family, 68, 75–92. 43The dog betrays the cow because he is jealous of the human farmer's care of the cow, in contrast to his quasi-abusive treatment of the dog, which goes as far as refusing to feed him. Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 114/115. 44Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 82/83, lines 459–67. Gampel, "Letter to a Wayward Teacher," 92–94; Baer, History of the Jews, 1: 120–21; Doubleday, Lara Family, 70–72. I think this kind of rivalry, rather than some kind of precursor to limpieza de sangre, as Loewe suggests, is the background for this passage. For Loewe's discussion see Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: ci–cv. 45On these events see O'Callaghan, Alfonso X and the Cantigas, 163–65; O'Callaghan, Learned King, 247–56. 46Of course, identifying the fox with Moses also potentially places him in a positive light, or at least a more sympathetic one. 47Baer, History of the Jews, 1: 123–30, 250–53; and Baer, "Todros," 27–31, 33–37, 48. For contemporary criticisms of members of the Jewish community along the same lines see Jonah Gerondi, Sha'arei Teshuvah, Gate Three, #43. Compare with #60, 67, 70. 48Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 58/59–64/65. 49Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 60/61, 62/63, lines 197–203, 220–30. 50On Jewish desire for vengeance against Christians see Yuval, Two Nations, 92–130, 143. Yuval focuses on Ashkenaz, however, the existence of similar sentiments in Iberia is not surprising despite the lack of martyrological ideology there. Yuval characterizes Mediterranean Jews as "more restrained." Two Nations, 172–73. 51Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 90/91, lines 552–53, 563–70, 96/97–98/99, lines 624–63; Cuffel, Gendering Disgust, 206–7. 52Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 84/85–92/93, 100/101, lines 490–507, 525–70, 686–93. 53On the lioness incident, see Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 148/149–150/151. On her possible identity, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: xciv. 54Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 146/147–150/151. 55Cuffel, Gendering Disgust, 146–49, 198–200. 56The story of the hawk, the rooster, the grouse, and the eagle span Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 200/201–326/327 with intervening stories told by the protagonists. For the initial distress that prompted the rooster to confront the hawk see Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 200/201–202/203, lines 513–16, 532–34. 57Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 280/281, lines 1403–8, 1: 290/291, lines 1521–25; Epstein, Dreams of Subversion, 56–58; Hassig, Medieval Bestiaries, 102. 58Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 206/207–240/241. Loewe translates nazir as "monk" which is a possible meaning, given that the man studies the Mishnah and Talmud as well as the Torah (1: 222/23, lines 763–64). However, I think that Ibn Sahula intended the word to be understood in the sense described in Numbers 6:1–21, rather than giving it a Christian connotation. 59Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 240/242–242/243. 60Qimḥi, Sefer ha-Berit; Qimḥi, Book of the Covenant, 32–33; Nachmanides, Vikuaḥ, 312, para. 49; Nachmanides, Disputation, 674, para. 49. 61Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 248/249, lines 1046–47. Matthew 7:3–5 "Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye." 62Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 304/305, line 1668; Esther 8:7. For depictions of Jesus as the "hanged one" see, for example, Joseph b. Nathan Official, Sefer Yosef ha-meqane', 52, 53, 56, 86–87; Qimḥi, Book of the Covenant, 68–69; Polemic of Nestor, 1: 98–9, 119, 122 and 2: 95, 105, 106, #5, 104, 119. I have only included references to the Hebrew version of Nestor ha-Komer, since that seems to be the idiom from which Ibn Sahula was drawing the most. 63Maimonides, Epistle, chapters XIV and XVIII. Of course we have more Jewish anti-Christian polemic than anti-Muslim polemic. On this issue and on Jewish anti-Muslim polemic generally see Brann, Power in the Portrayal. 64Jonah Gerondi, Sha'arei Teshuvah, Gate Three, #60, 64, 95; Todros b. Joseph Halevi Abulafia, Zikhron Yehudah, #81, 45b–46b; Gampel, "Letter to a Wayward Teacher," 92–107; Baer, History of the Jews, 1: 250–53; Baer, "Todros," 27, 31–34, 36–44; Ilan, "Jewish Community in Toledo," 72, 74–75, 78–86. Jews in Aragon faced similar problems with some of their elite. For this aspect, see Assis, Golden Age, 238–41, 242–44, 270–73, 288–96. 65Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 248/249–250/252, 284/285–286/287, 296/297, 300/301–304/305. 66Hecker, "Face of Shame," 29–67. Also see Jonah Gerondi, Sha'arei Teshuvah, Gate Three, #72–73. Compare with Gate Three, #45, 58 where the concern seems to be with giving false testimony and rumor. 75כי יחם לבבו והחם והלחות לו \ למורשה חזות קשה. כי נסמך אל טבע \ הדם מגן גבריהו מאדם וגידי פחדו \ ועורקיו מאדימים יראה זרע יאריך ימים. \ על ען הכינותי לי נשים בטהרה, לפצירת \ תפארה וארבה בקדשה ילדי ובני הם \ זרע ברך ה" . כי לא נפתה לבי על אשה \ זרה ועם פעלי און לא ארחתי לחברה \ ואת אשת חיקי אתהלל וזרע לא אחלל. (Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 276/77, lines 1359–67). On פחדו as "testicles" see 277 n. 118. 67Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 248/249, lines 1052–56. 68Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 250/251, 260/261–262/263, 276/277, lines 1078–79, 1197–1203, 1359–72. 69Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 254/256, 260/261–262/263, lines 1111–12, 1197–1202. 70Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 260/261–262/263, lines 1190–92, 1195–97, 1201–2. 71Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 262/263–270/271. 72רתיחת הדם ותקפו/ורהבו והתגברות הטבע ויתרון הזרע/ומצותו לבער הבית ולהכינו כנוי למשגל/לקיום מינו או להקל המשא אשר עליו (Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 272/273, lines 1298–1301). 73Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 272/273, lines 1304–13. 74Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 276/77, lines 1345–48. 76Resnick, "Medieval Roots," 241–63; Johnson, "Myth of Jewish Male Menses," 273–95; Biller, "Scientific View," 138–43; Cuffel, Gendering Disgust, 156–82; Biale, Blood and Belief, 105–6; Akbari, Idols in the East, 140–54. For this weakness among Jewish men in a more military context see Jacques de Vitry, La Traduction de l'Historia Orientalis, 129; Jacques de Vitry, Libri duo, 159–60. 77Compare with the debate between the ram and the goat, where similar issues of correct sexual behavior, masculinity, and fertility are at stake. Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 156/157–198/199. 78Baer, History of Jews in Christian Spain, 1: 254–56; Assis, "Sexual Behavior," 36–40; Grossman, Pious and Rebellious, 70–77, 78–82, 84–87; Gampel, "Letter to a Wayward Teacher," 95–97. 79Jonah Gerondi, Sha'arei Teshuvah, Gate Three, #64, 94, 95; Zohar I. 131b, II. 3b; Baer, History of Jews in Christian Spain, 1: 256–57; Baer, "Todros," 31–33, 36–44; Baer, "Historical Background," 37–38; Assis, "Sexual Behavior," 36–45; Ilan, "Jewish Community in Toledo," 80, 82–84; Cuffel, "Matter of Others," 268–70, 274–76, 278–79; Hecker, "Face of Shame," 29–67; Grossman, Pious and Rebellious, 135–40; Gampel, "Letter to a Wayward Teacher," 94–97. 80Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 32/33, 34/35, lines 129–30, 149. 81Jacques de Vitry, La Traduction de l'Historia Orientalis, 129; Jacques de Vitry, Libri duo, 159–60. Vitry portrays Jews as fearful, suffering from bleeding rather than childbirth. He was among the first Christian authors to use such imagery against the Jews. On Jewish men menstruating or bleeding regularly as a form of Christian polemic, see above, note 12. 82Isaiah 21:3; Psalms 48:7; Jeremiah 2:31. 83Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 64/65, lines 234–35. Isaiah 13:8. 84Ibn Sahula, 1: 102/103, lines 696–708. 85Rosen, Unveiling Eve, 83–102. 86See, for example, the book of Hosea, where that theme predominates. 87For this aspect refer to the first section of this article. 88Cuffel, "Matter of Others," 253–62, 271–72; Cuffel, Gendering Disgust, 119–31; Deutsch, "Evidence of an Early Version of Toledot Yeshu," 177–97; Idel, Studies in Ecstatic Kabbalah, 45–62. 89Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 166/167–192/193. 90Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 174/175–178/179; Rosen, Unveiling Eve, 103–23; Díaz Esteban, "Elogio y vituperio de la mujer," 71–77; Brann, Compunctious Poet, 138–41. 91Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 2: 626/627–686/687, especially 634/635–638/639. 92Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 2: 638/639–682/683. 93Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 634/635, lines 886–88. 94For references to metaphorical use of women in biblical and medieval literary sources see Rosen, Unveiling Eve, 10–18, 68–71, 83–123; Díaz-Esteban, "Elogio y vituperio de la mujer," 67–78; Roth, "Wiles of Women," 145–65. In the Kabbalah, such symbolism is ubiquitous and commented upon by many scholars. For examples, see Wolfson, Luminal Darkness, 272–80, and Circle in the Square; Schafer, Mirror of His Beauty, 83–86, 88, 90; Idel, Kabbalah and Eros; Green, "Shekhinah," 1–52. 95Rosen, Unveiling Eve, 16–18, 84–86. 96Brann, Compunctious Poet, 18–24, 27–39, 88–99, 106, 109–12, 123–38; Ibn Sahula, Meshal ha-Qadmoni, 1: 22/23–28/29. 97Judah al-Ḥarīzī, Taḥkemoni, 63–72; Judah al-Ḥarīzī, Book of Taḥkemoni, 5–12; Drory, "Al-Ḥarīzī's Maqāmāt," 69–72. 98Brann, Compunctious Poet, 138–41; Monroe, "Misinterpreting False Dreams," 415–35; Tanenbaum, "Of a Pietist Gone Bad," 297–319; Young, "Preachers and Poets," 190–205. 99Baer, History of Jews in Christian Spain, 1: 436–37 n. 17; Baer, "Historical Background;" Lachter, "Spreading Secrets," 112, 118, 121, 130–32, 136–38. 100Lachter, "Spreading Secrets," 111–38, especially 112.