Joseph Caspi
Encyclopedia
Joseph ben Abba Mari ben Joseph ben Jacob Caspi (1279 Largentière
—1340, Tarascon
), was a Provençal
exegete, grammarian, and philosopher, apparently influenced by Averroës
. He was born at Largentière, whence his Hebrew surname "Caspi" (= made of silver). His Provençal name was Don Bonafous de Largentera, or in French En Bonafoux de L'Argentière. He traveled much, visiting Arles
, Tarascon
, Aragon
, Catalonia
, Majorca (where he must have foregathered with Judah Leon ben Moses Mosconi
), and Egypt
, where, as he says in his Tzawwa'ah, he hoped to be instructed by the members of Maimonides
' family. This hope was not realized, as the descendants of Maimonides were more pious than learned. At one time Caspi intended to go to Fez
, where many renowned schools existed; but he seems to have abandoned this project and to have settled at Tarascon. He underwent much suffering at the time of the Pastoureaux persecution, and was threatened with punishment if he did not renounce his faith.
He held the position that knowledge of the future, even by the prophets and by God, was probabilistic knowledge only.
Joseph Caspi's name is also to be found attached to many liturgic poems of merit. These, however, may belong to his namesake, Joseph Caspi ben Shalom of the sixteenth century, a liturgic poet of some importance.
Caspi's works were diversely estimated. Ibn Tzartzah, Moses of Narbonne
, and Efodi
speak in praise of them. The kabbalist
Johanan Aleman recommends Caspi's commentaries on account of their mystic character. On the other hand, Isaac Abrabanel
and Simon Duran
emphatically declare him to be antireligious because, among other things, in his commentary on the Moreh
he admitted the eternity of the universe (i. 9, 70; ii. 26).
Largentière
Largentière is a commune and sub-prefecture of the Ardèche department in the Rhône-Alpes region in southern France.It is located in the narrow valley of the Ligne River, approximately ten kilometres southwest of Aubenas....
—1340, Tarascon
Tarascon
Tarascon , sometimes referred to as Tarascon-sur-Rhône, is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in southern France.-Geography:...
), was a Provençal
Provence
Provence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...
exegete, grammarian, and philosopher, apparently influenced by Averroës
Averroes
' , better known just as Ibn Rushd , and in European literature as Averroes , was a Muslim polymath; a master of Aristotelian philosophy, Islamic philosophy, Islamic theology, Maliki law and jurisprudence, logic, psychology, politics, Arabic music theory, and the sciences of medicine, astronomy,...
. He was born at Largentière, whence his Hebrew surname "Caspi" (= made of silver). His Provençal name was Don Bonafous de Largentera, or in French En Bonafoux de L'Argentière. He traveled much, visiting Arles
Arles
Arles is a city and commune in the south of France, in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, of which it is a subprefecture, in the former province of Provence....
, Tarascon
Tarascon
Tarascon , sometimes referred to as Tarascon-sur-Rhône, is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in southern France.-Geography:...
, Aragon
Aragon
Aragon is a modern autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. Located in northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces : Huesca, Zaragoza, and Teruel. Its capital is Zaragoza...
, Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
, Majorca (where he must have foregathered with Judah Leon ben Moses Mosconi
Judah Leon ben Moses Mosconi
Judah Leon ben Moses Mosconi was a Bulgarian scholar and Talmudist born at Ohrid. Owing to the wars which agitated Bulgaria in the 14th century, Mosconi left his native country about 1360. He traveled in all the three continents of the Old World...
), and Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, where, as he says in his Tzawwa'ah, he hoped to be instructed by the members of Maimonides
Maimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
' family. This hope was not realized, as the descendants of Maimonides were more pious than learned. At one time Caspi intended to go to Fez
Fes
Fes or Fez is the second largest city of Morocco, after Casablanca, with a population of approximately 1 million . It is the capital of the Fès-Boulemane region....
, where many renowned schools existed; but he seems to have abandoned this project and to have settled at Tarascon. He underwent much suffering at the time of the Pastoureaux persecution, and was threatened with punishment if he did not renounce his faith.
He held the position that knowledge of the future, even by the prophets and by God, was probabilistic knowledge only.
Works
Caspi was one of the most prolific writers of his time, being the author of twenty-nine works, the greater part of which are still extant in manuscript and the titles of the remainder being known from the list which he had the precaution to make. He began his literary career at the age of seventeen. At thirty he devoted himself to the study of logic and philosophy, which he eagerly cultivated until his death. The following is a list of his writings in their chronological order, some of them being no longer in existence:- Perush, commentary on ibn Janah's grammatical work
- Supercommentaries on Abraham ibn EzraAbraham ibn EzraRabbi Abraham ben Meir Ibn Ezra was born at Tudela, Navarre in 1089, and died c. 1167, apparently in Calahorra....
's commentary on the Pentateuch. (One of these commentaries is purely grammatical, bearing the title "Porashat Kesef" (Sum of Money), and is still extant in manuscript (Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris, MS. No. 184, and elsewhere) - Terumat Kesef (Oblation of Silver), summary of AverroesAverroes' , better known just as Ibn Rushd , and in European literature as Averroes , was a Muslim polymath; a master of Aristotelian philosophy, Islamic philosophy, Islamic theology, Maliki law and jurisprudence, logic, psychology, politics, Arabic music theory, and the sciences of medicine, astronomy,...
's commentaries on AristotleAristotleAristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, linguistics, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology...
's Ethics and PlatoPlatoPlato , was a Classical Greek philosopher, mathematician, student of Socrates, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world. Along with his mentor, Socrates, and his student, Aristotle, Plato helped to lay the...
's Republic, according to the Hebrew translation of Samuel of Marseilles (Parma MS. No. 442; Neubauer, "Cat. Bodl. Hebr. MSS." No. 1427) - Tzawwa'at Kaspi (Testament of Caspi), or Yoreh De'ah, moral sentences dedicated to the author's son, and published by Eliezer Ashkenazi, Leipzig, 1844
- Mattot Kesef (Staves of Silver), commentaries on the Bible, with the exception of the Pentateuch
- Matzref le-Kesef (Crucible for Silver), commentary on the Bible
- Kefore Kesef (Cups of Silver), giving the author's reasons for the rejection of various explanations of Ibn Ezra and Maimonides
- Kesef Siggim (Silver Dross), questions and answers on the seeming contradictions in the Bible
- Tzeror ha-Kesef (Bundle of Silver), or Qitztzur Higgayon, a compendium of logic (Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris, MS. No. 986)
- Retuqot Kesef (Chains of Silver), or Pirqe Yosef (Chapters of Joseph), treatise on grammar
- Shulchan Kesef (Table of Silver), divided into four chapters called "regel" (foot), treating of prophets and miracles ("Cat. Peyron," p. 209)
- Tirat Kesef (Palace of Silver), or Sefer ha-Sod (Book of Mystery), mystic commentary on the Pentateuch (Vatican MSS. Nos. 36, 46)
- Adne Kesef (Thresholds of Silver), forming the second part of the preceding work and containing mystical explanations of the Biblical books other than the Pentateuch
- Mizreqe Kesef (Basins of Silver), explanations of Biblical passages respecting the creation
- Mazmerot Kesef (Sickles of Silver), commentary on Job (Munich MS. No. 265)
- Menorat Kesef (Candelabra of Silver), commentary on the MerkabahMerkabahMerkabah is the throne-chariot of God, the four-wheeled vehicle driven by four "chayot" , each of which has four wings and the four faces of a man, lion, ox, and eagle...
(Heavenly Chariot) (Neubauer, "Cat. Bodl. Hebr. MSS." No. 1631) - Chagorat Kesef (Girdle of Silver), commentary on Ezra and Chronicles (ibid. No. 362)
- Kappot Kesef (Spoons of Silver), commentary on Ruth and Lamentations (Munich MS. No. 265; Cambridge MS. No. 64)
- Gelile Kesef (Scrolls of Silver), commentary on Esther (Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris, MS. No. 1092; Munich MS. No. 2653)
- Chatzotzerot Kesef (Trumpets of Silver), commentaries on Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs (Neubauer, "Cat. Bodl. Hebr. MSS." Nos. 362, 1349; Parma MS. No. 461)
- Qa'arot Kesef (Bowls of Silver), in which Caspi endeavored to prove that the Law contains the idea of spiritual happiness and immortality, to explain the Biblical doctrine that God visits the iniquities of the fathers upon the children, and to explain the relation of wickedness to prosperity
- Ammude Kesef (Pillars of Silver) and Maskiyyot Kesef (Images of Silver), commentaries on Maimonides' Guide of the Perplexed, published by Werbluner, with notes and corrections by R. Kirchheim, Frankfort-on-the-Main, 1848
- Shasherot Kesef (Chains of Silver), or Sefer ha-Shorashim (Book of Roots), on Biblical lexicography (Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris, MS. No. 1244)
- Kappot Kesef (Spoons of Silver), in which Caspi explains some Biblical problems concerning the history of the Jews
- Mezamrot Kesef (Songs of Silver; in other lists, Shulchan Kesef), a commentary on the Psalms
- Tam ha-Kesef (The Silver Is Finished), on the destruction of both temples, JeremiahJeremiahJeremiah Hebrew：יִרְמְיָה , Modern Hebrew:Yirməyāhū, IPA: jirməˈjaːhu, Tiberian:Yirmĭyahu, Greek:Ἰερεμίας), meaning "Yahweh exalts", or called the "Weeping prophet" was one of the main prophets of the Hebrew Bible...
's prophecies, and the arrival of the MessiahMessiahA messiah is a redeemer figure expected or foretold in one form or another by a religion. Slightly more widely, a messiah is any redeemer figure. Messianic beliefs or theories generally relate to eschatological improvement of the state of humanity or the world, in other words the World to... - Qebutzat Kesef (Collection of Silver), containing a list of Caspi's works, published by Isaac ben Jacob BenjacobIsaac ben Jacob BenjacobIsaac ben Jacob Benjacob was a Russian bibliographer, author, and publisher. His parents moved to Vilnius when he was still a child, and there he received instruction in Hebrew grammar and rabbinical lore....
in the Debarim 'Attiqim, Leipzig, 1844 - Gebi'a Kesef (Mug of Silver), or Yoreh De'ah (Teacher of Science), supplement to the mystical commentaries on the Bible ("Cat. Peyron." p. 208; Munich MS. No. 267). The initial chapters may have been written as refutation of the apostate Abner of BurgosAbner of BurgosAbner of Burgos was a Jewish philosopher, a convert to Christianity and polemical writer against his former religion. Known after his conversion as Alfonso of Valladolid.-Life:...
. Kaspi finds great theological significance in the number 3 (Chap.V), and he speaks in this work about the origins of the concept of The Trinity found in Christian philosophyChristian philosophyChristian philosophy may refer to any development in philosophy that is characterised by coming from a Christian tradition.- Origins of Christian philosophy :...
, attributing it to an earlier ternary division made among the Separate Intelligences by Aristotelian thinkers (e.g., Abu-Nasr). He also expounds the different philosophical implications of the diverse names of God in the Bible.
Joseph Caspi's name is also to be found attached to many liturgic poems of merit. These, however, may belong to his namesake, Joseph Caspi ben Shalom of the sixteenth century, a liturgic poet of some importance.
Caspi's works were diversely estimated. Ibn Tzartzah, Moses of Narbonne
Moses ben Joshua
Moses ben Joshua, also known as Moses of Narbonne, Maestro Vidal Blasom, and Moses Narboni, was a medieval Catalonian philosopher and physician. He was born at Perpignan at the end of the thirteenth century and died sometime after 1362. He began studying philosophy with his father when he was...
, and Efodi
Profiat Duran
Profiat Duran , also known as Efodi ; also known as Isaac ben Moses ha-Levi; was a physician, philosopher, grammarian, and controversialist in the 14th century. It is not known whether he was born at Perpignan, where he lived for some years, or in another Catalonian town...
speak in praise of them. The kabbalist
Kabbalah
Kabbalah/Kabala is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the esoteric aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It was systematized in 11th-13th century Hachmei Provence and Spain, and again after the Expulsion from Spain, in 16th century Ottoman Palestine...
Johanan Aleman recommends Caspi's commentaries on account of their mystic character. On the other hand, Isaac Abrabanel
Isaac Abrabanel
Isaac ben Judah Abrabanel, , commonly referred to just as Abarbanel, was a Portuguese Jewish statesman, philosopher, Bible commentator, and financier.-Biography:...
and Simon Duran
Simeon ben Zemah Duran
Simeon ben Zemah Duran , known as Rashbatz or Tashbatz was a Rabbinical authority, student of philosophy, astronomy, mathematics, and especially of medicine, which he practised for a number of years at Palma...
emphatically declare him to be antireligious because, among other things, in his commentary on the Moreh
Moreh
Moreh is a name of a location, commonly used in the Genesis.-Torah locality:Translators who consider the obscure elon moreh of Genesis 12:6 to be the name of a locality, render it as "the plains of Moreh". Translators who consider the term to be a sacred tree or grove, often render it "terebinth",...
he admitted the eternity of the universe (i. 9, 70; ii. 26).