Saturn's Jews

«To a certain extent, my reading of the Kabbalistic and magical materials found in many of the manuscripts was carried out through the prism of the Warburg school of research, both its German and British avatars, but especially on account of the famous monograph of Klibansky, Panofsky and Saxl, Saturn and Melancholy» — Idel declara el prisma con que leyó los manuscritos cabalísticos y mágicos: la escuela de Warburg en sus dos avatares y, sobre todo, la monografía de Klibansky, Panofsky y Saxl.

«The first two chapters of this book were written on separate occasions, though they are linked to each other by the dominant leitmotif of the conflicting features of the planet Saturn in Jewish sources and its various relationships to Jews» — Idel consigna la procedencia dispar de los dos primeros capítulos y el motivo que declara común a los dos: los rasgos en conflicto del planeta en las fuentes judías.

«These chapters serve as another example of the dramatic enrichment of Jewish thought, when what I call a new type of order, the astral one, was adopted; an adoption that had profound repercussions in the way some Jews thought of themselves, or how they were perceived by others» — Idel enuncia lo que a su juicio muestran los capítulos: la adopción de lo que llama un nuevo tipo de orden, el astral, y sus repercusiones en cómo algunos judíos se pensaron y fueron pensados.

«This means that some authors identified Saturn as the planetary genius of the Jews, notwithstanding the more sinister attributes of this planet, especially sorcery» — Idel describe el polo negativo de esa dualidad: hubo autores que dieron a Saturno por genio planetario de los judíos pese a los atributos más siniestros del planeta, la hechicería entre ellos.

«while for others this planet is associated with a positive conceptual structure related to hope and redemption» — y el polo positivo, donde Idel sitúa la estructura conceptual ligada a la esperanza y a la redención.

«‘Saturnine’ stands for some qualities of a person under the alleged impact of Saturn, while ‘Saturnian7 are different qualities that are attributed to the planet and the divinity related to it» — Idel separa por escrito *saturnine* —cualidades de una persona bajo el supuesto influjo del planeta— de *Saturnian* —cualidades atribuidas al planeta y a la divinidad—.

«Moreover, I refer by the term ‘Saturn7 to the planet and sometimes to the name of the Latin god, but never to the name of a person, while ‘Sabbatai’ may refer both to a person and a planet» — Idel reserva *Saturn* para el planeta y para el dios latino y nunca para una persona, mientras que *Sabbatai* le sirve para las dos cosas; el troceo rinde la comilla de cierre como un 7.

«There are many definitions of Judaism: they vary with the passage of time, from an elected people, to a people that keeps the commandments of God (what is called halakhocentric Judaism), to a people of the book (basically a Muslim understanding of the Jews), to the assumption that Jews are the portents of monotheism, or according to other views, portents of ethical monotheism in the world, to Jews as the sons of God» — Idel abre el primer capítulo enumerando las definiciones sucesivas de judaísmo —pueblo elegido, pueblo que guarda los mandamientos, pueblo del libro, portador del monoteísmo, hijos de Dios— y advierte que en cada una se releva un elemento distinto.

«Attempting to resonate with the cultural standards of the majority, or in other cases universal values, Jewish elites sometimes adopted new forms of thought that were validated by the imprint of the general order of reality en vogue in their times and in the places they lived» — la razón que Idel da para la adopción de formas nuevas de pensamiento por las élites judías: sintonizar con los estándares de la mayoría o con valores universales, validados por el orden general de la realidad en boga.

«Their systems might be philosophical, adopting an ontology of astrological or cosmic intellects (assuming the paramount impact of the astral bodies and their conjunctions), or theosophical (presuming the existence of divine powers, sefirot, or configurations, partzufim, which inform developments on earth below» — Idel clasifica en tres esos órdenes superiores: el filosófico, el astrológico o cósmico y el teosófico de las sefirot y los partzufim.

«In these three cases, it is appropriate to speak of different forms as constellating the biblical-rabbinic forms of Judaism, which did not operate with ‘constellated’ universes, but allowed the intervention of the Divine Will to be the decisive religious event» — y llama *constelar* a lo que esos órdenes hacen con el judaísmo bíblico-rabínico, que no operaba con universos constelados sino con la intervención de la voluntad divina como acontecimiento religioso decisivo.

«Though the inspiring sources for these new forms of Jewish identity are unquestionably astrological, they spread beyond the modest Jewish astrological literature and found their expressions in books dealing with commentaries on the Torah, supercommentaries, Kabbalistic treatise, and even some forms of philosophical writing which combined astrology, philosophy and Kabbalah to varying degrees» — Idel sitúa la fuente de esas formas nuevas de identidad en lo astrológico y su difusión fuera de la literatura astrológica judía: comentarios a la Torá, supercomentarios, tratados cabalísticos y escritura filosófica.

«However, the theosophical-Kabbalistic system, which appeared later than the other two, not only solely displaced» — según Idel, el sistema teosófico-cabalístico llegó después de los otros dos y no se limitó a desplazar sus constelaciones; la frase se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *the respective constellations but in some cases also created a constellation that informed what the kabbalists believed to be the lower constellation* en la plana 18.

«The nexus is attested to as early as in the Histories of Tacitus and reverberated in late antiquity» — la genealogía que Idel traza del nexo Saturno-sábado-judíos: las *Historias* de Tácito y su eco en la Antigüedad tardía, de donde salen —dice a continuación, ya en el segmento siguiente de la misma plana— las discusiones astrológicas medievales.

«An example of this approach is found, for example, in Augustine’s answer to Faustus the Manichean, who probably regarded the keeping of the Sabbath as related to Saturn» — Idel presenta la respuesta de Agustín a Fausto el maniqueo como ejemplo de esa pervivencia, y consigna la conjetura de que Fausto tuviera la guarda del sábado por cosa de Saturno.

«Augustine is less concerned with defending the Jews’ celebration of Sabbath than in undermining its performance de facto, by assuming that the observance in the past is merely a prefiguration for the future, more spiritual, Christian celebration» — la lectura que Idel hace de ese pasaje: a Agustín le importaría menos defender el sábado judío que vaciarlo de facto tratándolo como prefiguración de una celebración cristiana posterior.

«In fact, the very reference to such a nexus between Sabbath and Saturn in Augustine’s book shows that long after Tacitus this association remained a vital topic in the pagan world, whose resurgence in the Middle Ages in different guises will preoccupy us below» — Idel señala qué prueba a su juicio esa mención: que mucho después de Tácito la asociación seguía viva en el mundo pagano.

«In the spirit of Warburgian scholarship, I shall attempt to show how ancient motifs, even when they stem from pagan sources, could recur to play a significant role in quite different contexts as they were reconceptualized and recontextualized by several leading figures in the Jewish elite, first in Europe and then in several other parts of the Jewish world» — Idel declara el programa que toma de la erudición warburgiana: mostrar cómo motivos antiguos de origen pagano reaparecen reconceptualizados y recontextualizados por figuras de la élite judía.

«Thus, in astrology we have a historical channel, which can be documented in quite a detailed manner, transmitting much earlier Greek mythologoumena into medieval Europe» — Idel define la astrología como canal histórico documentable por el que mitologúmenos griegos muy anteriores pasan a la Europa medieval.

«We are not afraid to encounter your scoffing at the Sabbath, when you call it the fetters of Saturn. It is a silly and meaningless expression, which occurred to you only because you are in the habit of worshipping the sun on what you call Sunday. What you call Sunday we call the Lord’s day, and on it we do not worship the sun, but the Lord’s resurrection. And in the same way, the fathers observed the Sabbath day of rest, not because they worshipped Saturn, but because it was incumbent at that time, for it was a shadow of things to come, as the apostle testifies» — según Idel, así responde Agustín a Fausto: llama expresión necia la de las cadenas de Saturno, contrapone el día del Señor al culto del sol y declara que los padres guardaban el sábado no por adorar a Saturno sino por ser sombra de lo por venir. El pasaje va sangrado en el impreso y el troceo lo aplana.

«On the other hand, there is ample evidence as to the alleged affinities between Saturn and sorcery or magic, and this issue has also caught the attention of scholars» — Idel consigna que la afinidad entre Saturno y la hechicería está ampliamente documentada y ya estudiada, aparte del nexo con el sábado.

«However, these two distinct forms of describing the properties of the taciturn planet stem from different traditions, and they rarely occur together in the same text» — el dato que Idel pone en el centro del capítulo: las dos maneras de describir al planeta taciturno vienen de tradiciones distintas y casi nunca coinciden en un mismo texto.

«Moreover, the association of Saturn and sorcery has been assumed by scholars to have emerged relatively late in the fifteenth century» — Idel recoge la datación tardía que los estudiosos dan a esa asociación —el siglo XV— como el supuesto contra el que trabaja el capítulo.

«In some cases, a mention of the Plague can also be detected in texts where these four factors are clustered as one unit» — Idel añade la peste como quinto elemento que aparece en algunos de los textos donde los otros cuatro se agrupan.

«Dealing with syntheses more than with astrology as a distinct and separate type of knowledge, I am concerned with the nebula of themes and mythologoumena that surround the concept of Saturn, defining it while changing it all the time» — Idel acota su objeto: no la astrología como saber separado, sino la nebulosa de temas y mitologúmenos que rodean a Saturno y que lo definen cambiándolo sin cesar.

«By pointing out the affinities between the four issues mentioned above, I hope to be able to draw the attention of scholars to a complex of affinities or what may be called, following the example of the Warburgian scholars, a conceptual structure, which in this chapter we shall survey in its negative dimensions» — Idel nombra su unidad de análisis con el término de los warburgianos, *conceptual structure*, y anuncia que este capítulo la recorre por su lado negativo.

«Before embarking upon more detailed analyses, I would like to emphasize that the material presented here does not amount to an attempt to offer a historical picture: I will not be offering a description of some Jews throughout the course of history performing acts of magic on the Sabbath day by resorting to the powers of Saturn» — la abstención con que Idel acota todo el capítulo: el material no compone un cuadro histórico y no va a describir a judíos haciendo magia en sábado con los poderes de Saturno.

«I doubt very much the possible historicity of such a hypothetical event, which, to the best of my knowledge, has never been reported» — Idel declara dudar de la historicidad de ese suceso hipotético, que dice no haber visto reportado nunca.

«In this book I will be looking at the convergence of basically disparate motifs which coalesced in the passages I analysed and created a more complex conceptual picture» — lo que dice hacer en su lugar: seguir la convergencia de motivos dispares que coalescen en los pasajes analizados.

«This said, I have no intention of claiming what would be patently absurd - that there were no Jewish magicians or sorcerers in the Middle Ages, though their existence or activities may scarcely be deduced from the fact that we have so many texts of the aforementioned complex of affinities» — Idel separa su tesis de la negativa absurda: no niega que hubiera magos o hechiceros judíos medievales, pero niega que su existencia se deduzca del número de textos del complejo.

«It is a cultural image that will be described here, though such an image does not preclude the possible impact of such imaginary Jewish magicians on the perception of Jews and magic in their immediate environments and even far beyond» — Idel define su objeto como imagen cultural, y admite que tal imagen no excluye el efecto de esos magos judíos imaginarios sobre cómo se percibía a los judíos y a la magia.

«As in many other cases, cultural images may be as influential as historical events, and the emergence and the dissemination of various constellations of ideas may shape historical events, even to a dramatic extent» — la tesis general que Idel enuncia sobre ese punto: las imágenes culturales pueden pesar tanto como los sucesos históricos, y las constelaciones de ideas pueden dar forma a los sucesos.

«In chapter 2, I suggest the possible impact of a nexus between a Kabbalistic view of the third sejirah, Binah, designated as playing an eschatological role (which has been combined with Saturn/Sabbatai), on the consciousness of the most prominent Messiah in early modern Judaism, Sabbatai Tzevi» — Idel adelanta la tesis del segundo capítulo: el nexo entre la tercera sefirá, Binah, con papel escatológico y combinada con Saturno/Sabbatai, y la conciencia de Sabbatai Tzevi.

«many of the discussions below are part of the much broader and more profound process of the ‘naturalization’ of Judaism which took place in the Middle Ages under the strong impact of Greek philosophies in Muslim garb» — Idel encuadra el material en un proceso mayor, la *naturalización* del judaísmo medieval bajo el impacto de las filosofías griegas en ropaje musulmán.

«The adoption of the astral order, one of the many adopted and adapted by Jewish elites in the Middle Ages, amounted to an explanation of some elements of Judaism in terms that are related to forms already well known, and the astronomical aspect was certainly one of the most widespread theories in the Middle Ages» — según Idel, adoptar el orden astral equivalía a explicar elementos del judaísmo en términos ya conocidos, y lo astronómico era de las teorías más difundidas de la época.

«Let me point out that I am not trying to repeat or summarize the vast literature that deals with Saturn and the Jews, or Saturn and witchcraft, or even less Saturn and melancholy, when only two of the concepts are concatenated. The ensuing pages will reveal my concern with broader concatenations, most of which are to be found in texts that have not been discussed at all, and certainly not together» — Idel deslinda su trabajo del de la bibliografía existente, que ata los conceptos de dos en dos: él dice ocuparse de concatenaciones más amplias y de textos no discutidos, y menos aún discutidos juntos.

«During the twelfth century, the impact of astrology, especially that dictated by conjunction, on the Jewish elite in the Iberian Peninsula was particularly marked» — Idel data en el siglo XII el impacto marcado de la astrología de conjunciones sobre la élite judía de la península ibérica.

«The most prominent among them was Abraham bar Hiyya, from Barcelona, who wrote an influential treatise entitled Megillat ha-Megalleh (‘the Scroll of the Revealer’) in Hebrew, well known to Jews and Christian authors alike» — según Idel, Abraham bar Hiyya, de Barcelona, es el más prominente de esa élite y su *Megillat ha-Megalleh* circuló entre autores judíos y cristianos.

«Bar Hiyya was less concerned with what will be called the ‘negative conceptual structure’ of Saturn and preferred the more positive one that will be addressed in the next chapter» — según Idel, bar Hiyya se ocupó menos de la estructura conceptual negativa de Saturno y prefirió la positiva.

«His contribution to our study lies in introducing the theory of Abu Ma‘shar, which was not concerned with the magical aspects of Saturn that showed the historical importance of the great conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter and its religious implications» — lo que Idel le adjudica: introducir la teoría de Abu Ma'shar, ajena a los aspectos mágicos de Saturno, sobre la importancia histórica de la gran conjunción de Saturno y Júpiter.

«Thus, while certain Jewish astrologers used aspects of historical astrology, specifically the explanation astrologers offered of events in history on the grounds of astrological conjunctions, they could at the same time ignore the magical aspects of astrology» — la consecuencia que Idel saca: se podía usar la astrología histórica para explicar sucesos y a la vez desatender lo mágico.

«They constitute a major departure from the prevailing patterns of thought dominant in earlier layers of Jewish literature, since he claims it is not only history (including sacredjewish history) that can be explained astrologically, but also other important Jewish fields of interest» — según Idel, los escritos de Abraham ibn Ezra rompen con los patrones previos al sostener que no solo la historia, incluida la sagrada, se explica astrológicamente, sino también otros campos judíos.

«Especially important therefore are both the astrological interpretations ibn Ezra offered of some crucial topics in biblical history, and a new understanding of the nature of some of the commandments (mitzvoth» — lo que Idel destaca en ibn Ezra: las lecturas astrológicas de temas cruciales de la historia bíblica y una comprensión nueva de la naturaleza de algunos mandamientos.

«The main topics in Judaism may be described according to astrological principles as a striking case of what I propose to call an intercorporal reading, namely an interpretation of one body of literature, the biblical one, in accordance with another, the astrological corpus of literature, whose basic concepts are independent from the former» — Idel propone el término *intercorporal reading* para lo que ahí ocurre: interpretar un cuerpo de literatura, el bíblico, según otro, el astrológico, cuyos conceptos básicos son independientes del primero.

«This meant that the inflexible rules of astrology were imposed upon the more flexible and performative approaches (not only in the form of carrying out one’s own sense of self-perfection, but ideally in public and imagined as having an impact) of biblical and rabbinic literature and the looser types of theological reflection» — la consecuencia que Idel señala: las reglas inflexibles de la astrología se imponen a los enfoques más flexibles y performativos de la literatura bíblica y rabínica.

«This development is part of the infiltration of astrological forms of thought, as formulated in Arabic, which drew on much earlier sources (Greek, Hellenistic and Hindu) as well as reverberations of Babylonian astronomy» — Idel sitúa el origen de esas formas astrológicas formuladas en árabe en fuentes griegas, helenísticas e hindúes y en ecos de la astronomía babilonia.

«While the latter is basically particularist, astrology is overridingly universal in its nature» — el contraste que Idel pone en el centro: la literatura rabínica es particularista y la astrología, universal por su naturaleza.

«These two philosophers, unlike Yehudah ha-Levi or Hasdai Crescas, introduced different forms of a natural understanding of religious lore: Maimonides was much more interested in psychology, physics and metaphysics, while ibn Ezra was far more taken with the astrological understanding of the Bible» — según Idel, Maimónides e ibn Ezra introducen dos formas distintas de entendimiento natural de la doctrina religiosa —psicología, física y metafísica el primero; lectura astrológica de la Biblia el segundo—, a diferencia de Yehudah ha-Levi y Hasdai Crescas.

«was destined, especially in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, to be taken seriously in many» — Idel llama parteaguas a esa lectura astrológica de ibn Ezra y la data en los siglos XIV y XV, tras el rechazo de algunos filósofos judíos de finales del XII y principios del XIII; la frase se corta en el cambio de plana y cierra con *circles* en la plana 22. La cita arranca ahí porque el renglón anterior parte *late-twelfth- and early-thirteenth-century* con guion suspendido de fin de renglón, que el extractor uniría fabricando una palabra.

«In Spain as well as outside the country, it attracted the attention of numerous commentators on ibn Ezra’s Commentary on the Pentateuch» — según Idel, el comentario de ibn Ezra al Pentateuco atrajo a numerosos comentaristas dentro y fuera de España.

«As was the case in most forms of Jewish philosophy, astrology was the result of an acculturation of a section of the Jewish elite to some of the trends dominant in Arabic thought and literature, even though some of their most fundamental reverberations were felt in Christian European areas long after the direct impact of Arabs on Judaism had declined» — Idel lee la astrología judía como resultado de la aculturación de un sector de la élite a corrientes dominantes del pensamiento árabe, con ecos que siguieron sintiéndose en zonas cristianas mucho después.

«where the astrological elements conjoin with some magical ones, both strongly influenced by Arabic sources, a view accepted by ibn Ezra but sharply criticized by Maimonides» — el detalle que Idel dice perseguir: donde lo astrológico se junta con lo mágico, ambos de fuerte influjo árabe; consigna que ibn Ezra lo acepta y Maimónides lo critica con dureza. El tramo arranca tras el corte de segmento que el troceo deja a media plana.

«This tension between the two streams of thought, of the Sefardi Jewish heritage as well as between Maimonides and his followers on the one hand, and Ashkenazi culture on the other hand» — Idel nombra la tensión de fondo: la herencia sefardí y los maimonideanos de un lado, la cultura askenazí del otro.

«A major aspect of the theme that will be discussed below — namely the nexus between Saturn and sorcery - is already to be found in some Greek and Arabic treatises on astrology which preceded ibn Ezra by several centuries» — Idel data el nexo entre Saturno y la hechicería en tratados astrológicos griegos y árabes anteriores en siglos a ibn Ezra.

«It is clear in Ptolemy of Alexandria’s (c. 90-168 CE) highly influential Tetrabiblo£ and it is mentioned by the famous ninth-century Persian astrologer Abu Ma'shar al-Balkhi,9 but for our purpose, it is the formulation of his follower Al-Kabi‘si, a tenth-century Arab astrologer known in the West as Alcabitius, that is much more pertinent» — Idel recorre la cadena —Ptolomeo, Abu Ma'shar, Al-Kabi'si— y declara pertinente para su asunto la formulación del último, conocido en Occidente como Alcabitius; el troceo rinde *Tetrabiblos* con una libra final del OCR.

«The latter seems to be the first author to add Judaism to a whole list of qualities that constitute the negative conceptual structure that will concern us here» — la adjudicación que Idel hace a Alcabitius, con su reserva: parece ser el primero en añadir el judaísmo a la lista de cualidades que forman la estructura conceptual negativa.

«Saturn ... presides over ... the dead, magicians, demons, devils and people of ill-fame ... the right ear ... He has the faith of Judaism, black clothing; of days Saturday, and the night of Wednesday ... and goats and bullocks, waterfowl, black snakes and mountains» — según Idel, así reparte Alcabitius el dominio de Saturno: muertos, magos, demonios, diablos y gente de mala fama, la oreja derecha, la fe del judaísmo, la ropa negra, el sábado entre los días y la noche del miércoles, más cabras, novillos, aves acuáticas, serpientes negras y montañas.

«Here all the four topics we shall investigate below are found together in what can be called a negative conceptual structure: Saturn, Jews, Sabbath and magic» — Idel señala ese pasaje como el sitio donde sus cuatro asuntos aparecen juntos por primera vez en una estructura conceptual negativa.

«For apparently the first time in an astrological treatise, the ancient theme of the nexus between the Jews, Sabbath and Saturn, has been taken a step further by adding the topic of sorcery and magic» — y precisa el paso que se da ahí: al tema antiguo de judíos, sábado y Saturno se le añade la hechicería y la magia.

«This means that though Jews, the Sabbath, and sorcery, among other matters, are each related directly to Saturn, there can be no doubt that they were also considered to have a strong affinity for each other» — la inferencia que Idel saca: los cuatro asuntos no solo se ligan cada uno a Saturno sino que se tuvieron por afines entre sí.

«In the instructions of the eleventh-century ‘Ali bin Rijal [known in Latin as Abenrejal] regarding Saturn, it is said that the 'conjunction of Mercury with Saturn foretells [those] men will deal with matters of sorcery» — según Idel, 'Ali bin Rijal —el Abenrejal latino— liga la hechicería no a Saturno solo sino a su conjunción con Mercurio.

«For this reason, in some of the most influential non-Jewish astrological treatises circulating in the Middle Ages, Saturn and sorcery are frequently linked to one other, in one case even implicating an affinity for Jews, thus creating a conceptual structure that will be analysed below» — Idel resume el estado de los tratados astrológicos no judíos: Saturno y la hechicería ligados con frecuencia, y en un caso con afinidad añadida por los judíos.

«This is one of the most influential passages on the perception of Saturn in Jewish circles and its impact is evident even in some of the passages dealt with below» — Idel califica ese pasaje de los más influyentes sobre la percepción de Saturno en círculos judíos.

«This excerpt poses a major problem, crucial to our discussion, as to what extent the phrase dealing with incantation and sorcery is authentic ibn Ezra, or whether it is a later addition by his fourteenth-century commentator Joseph Bonfils» — el problema de autenticidad que Idel deja abierto: si la frase sobre encantamiento y hechicería es de ibn Ezra o añadido posterior de su comentarista Joseph Bonfils.

«Sorcery is indeed mentioned in Reshit Hokhmah, in the same chapter that contains the passage on the path of Saturn, but in connection to lunar characteristics, in a description that is somehow reminiscent of the passage on Saturn» — el dato con que Idel complica la atribución: en el *Reshit Hokhmah*, en el mismo capítulo, la hechicería aparece ligada a rasgos lunares.

«Its human traits are excessive introspection, meditation in a mind lacking knowledge, amnesia, phobia, indifference, revelation of secrets,19 love of pleasure, victory, knowledge of sorcery» — según Idel, así describe el *Reshit Hokhmah* los rasgos humanos del otro pasaje: introspección excesiva, meditación en mente sin conocimiento, amnesia, fobia, indiferencia, revelación de secretos, amor al placer, victoria y conocimiento de la hechicería.

«Could someone have compounded the two discussions into one and so created a characterization of Saturn that also includes sorcery? I find such a hypothesis quite implausible since sorcery had already been mentioned in connection with Saturn quite a long time before, in Abu Ma‘shar and bin Rijal, both plausible sources for ibn Ezra’s astrology, and in some Hebrew sources which predate Joseph Bonfils» — Idel objeta la hipótesis de la fusión de los dos pasajes: la hechicería ya se ligaba a Saturno mucho antes, en Abu Ma'shar y en bin Rijal, y en fuentes hebreas anteriores a Bonfils.

«Unlike bin Rijal, ibn Ezra’s passage - if indeed authentic insofar as the sentence on incantation and sorcery is concerned - attributes sorcery to Saturn alone, rather than to its conjunction with Mercury» — la diferencia que Idel marca, con su condicional: de ser auténtica la frase, ibn Ezra atribuye la hechicería a Saturno solo y no a su conjunción con Mercurio.

«Among the nations, the Jews are presided over by Saturn, the thought and the scarcity of speech and fraud, and the isolation from men12 and [the power to] overcome them ... and every tree which produces the poison of death13 ... and the greatness of thought14 and the knowledge of secrets and the worship of God» — según Idel, así enumera ibn Ezra los atributos de Saturno: los judíos entre las naciones, el pensamiento, la parquedad de habla, el fraude, el aislamiento de los hombres y el poder de vencerlos, todo árbol que produce el veneno de la muerte, la grandeza del pensamiento, el conocimiento de los secretos y el culto de Dios. Las cifras sueltas son llamadas a nota que el troceo pega a la palabra; la lista continúa en la plana siguiente.

«And the Jewish nation is the lot of Saturn, among the sciences are the sorceries and the incantations15 and the science of ethics and metaphysics and philosophy and the science of the dreams, and foretelling the future.] ... hemiplegia16 and leprosy17 ... and the day of Sabbath» — la continuación de esa lista, entre corchetes en el impreso: la nación judía por lote de Saturno, y entre las ciencias las hechicerías y los encantamientos, la ética, la metafísica, la filosofía, la ciencia de los sueños y la predicción del futuro, más la hemiplejía, la lepra y el día del sábado.

«According to this commentator, Saturn presides over the Jews, and their nature thus includes an inclination to isolation, as it also extends to the contemplative and ruling powers» — según Idel, para ese comentarista Saturno preside a los judíos, y de ahí una inclinación al aislamiento que se extiende a las potencias contemplativa y rectora.

«What is important in this passage is the assumption that Jews are inclined to states of solitude not on account of their spiritual exertions, but on account of their natural constitution» — lo que Idel subraya del pasaje: que la soledad de los judíos se explique por constitución natural y no por esfuerzo espiritual.

«However, an inclination to isolation can be associated with other spiritual qualities, and should not necessarily be conceived of as a religious achievement, as in the passage just cited» — la reserva que Idel pone: la inclinación al aislamiento puede ir con otras cualidades espirituales y no ha de tomarse por logro religioso.

«Even more explicit is the relationship between hitbodedut, religious perfection and miraculous powers, as expressed in ibn Ezra’s commentary on Exodus 6.3, where he avers that he is disclosing a secret» — según Idel, el comentario de ibn Ezra a Éxodo 6.3 hace más explícita la relación entre *hitbodedut*, perfección religiosa y poderes milagrosos, y ahí el propio ibn Ezra declara revelar un secreto.

«God created three worlds ... and the mundane world receives power from the intermediary world,22 each individual in» — según Idel, así abre ibn Ezra ese secreto: tres mundos creados y el mundano recibiendo poder del intermedio. La cita se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *accordance to the supernal constellation* en la plana 25.

«accordance to the supernal constellation.25 And because the intellectual soul is more exalted than the intermediary world, if she will be wise and will know the deeds of God, those done without any intermediary and those done by the means of an intermediary, and [if] she will leave the desires of the world, and [if] she will isolate herself, in order to cleave to the Exalted God. And if there is the constellation of the stars during pregnancy a bad time destined to come in a certain day, by his cleaving to God, will change the course of the causes in order save him from evil ... and this is the secret of the entire Torah ... this is why Moses was able to change the course of the mundane world and perform miracles and wonders» — la continuación del pasaje: el alma intelectual, más alta que el mundo intermedio, que si se hace sabia, deja los deseos del mundo y se aísla para adherirse a Dios, cambia el curso de las causas fijado por la constelación del nacimiento; según Idel, ahí está el secreto de toda la Torá y la razón de que Moisés obrara milagros.

«Hitbodedut, a mental activity that means ‘concentration’ in this context, is described elsewhere in ibn Ezra as related to Saturn, and it functions here as a link in the sequel of acts that culminates in the experience of devequt, or ‘soul-cleaving’» — la lectura de Idel: *hitbodedut* como concentración, ligada en ibn Ezra a Saturno, y eslabón de la secuencia que culmina en *devequt*.

«Therefore, the practice of isolation is conceived of as leading not only to supernatural knowledge, but also as ensuring a much more mystical experience in life - which assists people to avoid bad or unsavoury experiences, and even to perform miracles» — Idel saca de ahí lo que la práctica del aislamiento promete: conocimiento sobrenatural, experiencia mística, evitación de lo aciago y aun milagros.

«Thus isolation and cleaving enable someone to circumvent the evil predetermined by the ordinary course of nature, as dictated by astrological constellations» — Idel formula el giro que eso supone: el aislamiento y la adhesión permiten sortear el mal predeterminado por las constelaciones.

«Hitbodedut is therefore related to a path conductive to miraculous deeds, or to what we might call ‘natural magic’» — y el nombre que le da a esa vía: lo que podría llamarse magia natural.

«Moreover, as some statements attributed to ibn Ezra from an apparently lost Commentary on Lamentations imply, the Torah was revealed when Saturn was in the ascent» — según Idel, unas declaraciones atribuidas a ibn Ezra desde un *Comentario a Lamentaciones* al parecer perdido implican que la Torá se reveló con Saturno en ascenso.

«Such a view would be consonant with the more general astrological principle that changes in matters of religion are related to the conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter» — Idel liga esa posibilidad al principio astrológico general de que los cambios de religión dependen de la conjunción de Saturno y Júpiter.

«Saturn. I have already mentioned the reason why this planet is cold and dry. The essence of death is cold and dryness, so it indicates death and sadness and mourning: it indicates primordial things ... and of the Jews because their sign is Aquarius, which is its house, and of the elderly because it is uppermost, and of the farmers because the ground is in its portion. So its portion in» — según Idel, así trata ibn Ezra en otro de sus libros la naturaleza de Saturno: frío y seco como la esencia de la muerte, y por eso señalador de muerte, tristeza y duelo, de las cosas primordiales, de los judíos por ser Acuario su signo y su casa, de los ancianos por estar el planeta en lo más alto y de los labradores por tocarle la tierra. El tramo se corta en el cambio de plana.

«the human body is the spleen and its portions include tanners and privy-cleaners, because the [black] bile, which is its nature, indicates filth ... Its portion of the earth is caves and dark places, because it suits a melancholic nature to be in solitude ... The galloak is in its portion on account of its nature, as well as anything that contains a deadly poison, because it indicates death. It indicates frost because it has retention of fluids [i.e. freezing], and of garments, any garment that is thick, because the nature of black bile is thick and it loves only what is thick. Thought is in its portion, because it is uppermost, and so is the knowledge of the arcane, violence, anger, and seduction, because it is malefic; and also all crafts that are exhausting. It indicates long journeys because it is uppermost. The bones are in its portion, because they are cold and dry and they are the mainstay of the body ... It indicates madness27 because it stems mostly from the black bile, and also hemiplegia and leprosy. It indicates pain that lingers many days because of its sluggish motion. It indicates old age, as expounded by Ptolemy ... Proceeding with this method, the diurnal part of Saturday is in the portion of Saturn, and of the nights, Wednesday night is in its portion» — la continuación del reparto saturnino: el bazo, los curtidores y limpiadores de letrinas por la bilis negra, las cuevas y lugares oscuros por convenirle la soledad a lo melancólico, el roble agallero y todo veneno mortal, la escarcha, los paños gruesos, el pensamiento, el conocimiento de lo arcano, la violencia, la ira y la seducción por maléfico, los oficios agotadores, los viajes largos, los huesos, la locura por la bilis negra, la hemiplejía y la lepra, el dolor que dura por su movimiento lento, la vejez según Ptolomeo, la parte diurna del sábado y la noche del miércoles. El impreso parte *gall-oak* con guion de fin de renglón y el extractor lo devuelve unido como *galloak*: la lectura es *gall-oak*, roble agallero.

«No doubt this is an example of the strong influence of Ptolemy’s Tetrabiblos on ibn Ezra. What is important is the fact that we may discern the precise transition of ancient astrological elements not only into Hebrew, but also as associated with the Jews» — Idel lee ese pasaje como transición precisa de elementos astrológicos antiguos al hebreo y a su asociación con los judíos, bajo influjo del *Tetrabiblos*.

«All this despite the fact that Ptolemy does not mention the Jews, but ibn Ezra is ready to adopt the Arabic inclusion of thejews, which incontrovertibly also follows some traditions that predate the Muslim era, as mentioned earlier» — el matiz que Idel introduce: Ptolomeo no menciona a los judíos, y es la inclusión árabe la que ibn Ezra adopta, siguiendo a su vez tradiciones anteriores al islam. El troceo imprime *thejews* pegado.

«The fourth commandment, concerning the Sabbath, corresponds to Sabbatai/Saturn, since the sages of experiments [Hakhmei ha-nisayyon, which in fact means astrologers] said that each of the serving planets presides over a certain day of the week when its power will be manifested and it [Saturn] presides every first hour of the day, and every last one of the night. And they say that Saturn and Mars are maleficent planets,29 and whoever will commence a certain labour, or start a journey during one of the two, will be damaged, and this is why our ancient sages said: ‘the permission has been given to wreak damage during every night on Tuesday and Friday.’30 Behold, you will not find in any of the» — según Idel, así explica ibn Ezra en uno de sus comentarios al Éxodo el cuarto mandamiento: corresponde a Sabbatai/Saturno porque cada planeta servidor preside un día, Saturno la primera hora del día y la última de la noche; Saturno y Marte son maléficos y quien empiece labor o viaje bajo uno de los dos sufrirá daño, de donde el dicho de los antiguos sabios sobre el permiso de dañar las noches de martes y viernes. La cita se corta en el cambio de plana.

«days of the week a consecutive night and day when these two maleficent planets are presiding, but during this day [alone] this being the reason why it is not worthwhile to be preoccupied by things relating to this world, but by things related to the fear of God» — la continuación del pasaje: ningún otro día de la semana junta noche y día consecutivos bajo los dos maléficos, y de ahí que no convenga ocuparse de lo mundano sino del temor de Dios.

«The whole day of Sabbath, as understood by the Jews, is compounded by the night of Friday and the day of Saturday. These two units had been dominated respectively by Mars and Saturn» — Idel desglosa el sábado judío en dos unidades —la noche del viernes y el día del sábado— regidas por Marte y Saturno.

«in lieu of the biblical explanation of the cessation of work during the Sabbath as an imitatio dei, the astrological explanation of this cessation has to do with the negative nature of the two presiding planets» — el desplazamiento que Idel señala: en lugar de la *imitatio dei* bíblica, la explicación astrológica hace descansar la cesación del trabajo en la naturaleza negativa de los dos planetas.

«Sabbath regulations, or at least part of them, become apotropaic techniques which prevent the malign impact of the planet on those who keep them, and this is a leitmotif that recurs in many Jewish writings throughout history» — y el nombre que Idel le da al resultado: las reglas del sábado, o parte de ellas, vueltas técnicas apotropaicas, motivo que dice recurrente en la escritura judía posterior.

«In the seventh realm33 there are men of wisdom and shrewdness and understanding and cleverness, difficult in their deeds and slow-going. They maintain and are vigilant of mercy and they revenge felony and guard it ... It34 is the ‘responsible over fifty, honourable and expert in magic35 who understand incantations» — según Idel, así describe a Saturno la paráfrasis hebrea de ibn Ezra al relato árabe de Hay ibn Yoqtan, el *Hai ben Meqitz*: en el séptimo ámbito, hombres de sabiduría, sagacidad y astucia, difíciles y lentos, que guardan la misericordia y vengan el delito, con el responsable de cincuenta, honorable y experto en magia, que entienden encantamientos.

«My translation of the terms related to magic is tentative, taking into consideration the possible biblical meanings of these words, though I cannot state definitively that ibn Ezra himself subscribed to this understanding of these words» — la abstención de Idel sobre su propia versión: la traducción de los términos mágicos es tentativa y no afirma que ibn Ezra suscribiera esa lectura.

«Therefore, we may assume that ibn Ezra, an influential, prolific and prodigious writer who flourished in the mid twelfth century, had introduced a long series of thinkers in Judaism, and apparently also in the Christian world, to a conception of Judaism as related to the most nefarious planet» — la conclusión con que Idel cierra el apartado, en grado de suposición: ibn Ezra habría introducido a una larga serie de pensadores judíos, y al parecer también cristianos, en una concepción del judaísmo ligada al planeta más nefasto.

«This instance of adopting some elements from ‘scientific’ sources as to the nature of the Jews, even when it includes explicitly negative treats, is revealing as to the new situation of some of the Jewish elite figures in the Middle Ages» — lo que Idel lee en ese gesto: adoptar de fuentes tenidas por científicas rasgos explícitamente negativos revela la situación nueva de algunas figuras de la élite judía medieval.

«The Arabic sources are the trident of these worldviews, which dramatically shifted the way» — Idel adjudica a las fuentes árabes el papel de sostén de esas visiones del mundo; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana.

«some of the Jewish elite perceived themselves by adopting a series of new categories understood as relevant to their self-definition» — el cierre del apartado sobre ibn Ezra: parte de la élite judía se percibió a sí misma adoptando categorías nuevas tenidas por pertinentes para su autodefinición.

«In addition to the schematic presentations of Saturn and its corresponding qualities in classical astrological contexts, this planet was also associated with forms of magic and sorcery that were not initially connected to Hellenistic astro-magic and its medieval reverberations» — Idel señala que Saturno se asoció además a formas de magia y hechicería que al principio no venían de la astro-magia helenística.

«I would venture that no later than the end of the first half of the thirteenth century, a combination of linguistic magic (based on the Hebrew letters and on the use of divine names, and characteristic of Jewish ancient magic) on the one hand, and of astro-magic (including a discussion of Saturn) on the other can be demonstrated» — la datación que Idel arriesga, en grado de conjetura: a más tardar a mediados del siglo XIII se puede mostrar la combinación de magia lingüística de letras y nombres divinos con astro-magia.

«Some of the discussions below belong to various interpretations of a sentence in the Sefer Yetzirah, a text widespread in many manuscripts and printed for the first time in 1562» — según Idel, buena parte de lo que sigue son interpretaciones de una frase del *Sefer Yetzirah*, difundido en manuscrito e impreso por primera vez en 1562.

«The date of the composition of this seminal book is still a matter of debate among scholars. The range of views is quite broad and includes datings like that of Yehuda Liebes, in the first century cii, to other scholars, arguing that it is a post-Muslim Jewish composition, written as late as the ninth century» — Idel consigna el desacuerdo sobre la fecha del *Sefer Yetzirah* sin arbitrarlo: del siglo I que propone Yehuda Liebes al siglo IX de quienes lo tienen por composición posterior al islam.

«Made Bet a king, and bound to it a crown, and combined them one with another, and formed with it Saturn in [the dimension of] the universe, the Sabbath in [the dimension of] the year, and the mouth in [the dimension of] the person» — según Idel, así reparte el *Sefer Yetzirah* la letra Bet: hecha rey y coronada, forma con ella Saturno en la dimensión del universo, el sábado en la del año y la boca en la de la persona.

«Though Saturn, Sabbath and the mouth are created by the same combinations of the second letter of the Hebrew alphabet, Bet, with all the other letters, it is not clear whether, according to the Sefer Yetzirah, the three created entities are subordinate to each other, though they stem from a higher common denominator» — la reserva de Idel sobre ese pasaje: no queda claro si las tres entidades creadas se subordinan entre sí, aunque vengan de un denominador común más alto.

«In other words, despite the rather ancient traditions adduced above from non-Jewish circles about the subordination of Sabbath to Saturn, here such subordination is not evident at all» — Idel marca la diferencia con las tradiciones no judías citadas antes: aquí no se ve la subordinación del sábado a Saturno.

«In other words, though the planets have been integrated within a more comprehensive vision of reality, according to the Sefer Yetzirah all creatures are subordinate to language, namely its letters and letter combinations, not to the planets» — y el orden que el libro impone en su lugar: según el *Sefer Yetzirah*, todas las criaturas se subordinan al lenguaje, a sus letras y combinaciones, no a los planetas.

«In any case, except for the fact that Saturn is the first of the seven double letters, Saturn’s relation to Bet does not confer on the planet a special, privileged status according to this book» — la conclusión de Idel sobre el estatuto de Saturno ahí: salvo por ser el primero de los siete dobles, su relación con Bet no le confiere privilegio.

«Sefer Yetzirah became a canonical book in many elite Jewish circles, which included philosophers, kabbalists, and both Spanish and» — Idel consigna la canonización del *Sefer Yetzirah* en círculos judíos de élite; la frase se corta en el cambio de plana y cierra con *Ashkenazi authors who wrote some two dozen commentaries on the book* en la plana 29.

«Though many kabbalists interpreted this book, not all of them expatiated on the nature of Saturn and its affinity to other aspects of reality, as found in the above passage» — la acotación de Idel: no todos los cabalistas que comentaron el libro se extendieron sobre la naturaleza de Saturno.

«In 1271, a young kabbalist, Abraham ben Shmuel Abulafia (1240-c. 1291), who had been initiated into a special brand of this lore a year or two earlier, wrote a short treatise entitled Get ha-Shemot (‘The Divorce of the Names’), which sharply attacks the magical use of the divine names» — según Idel, Abraham ben Shmuel Abulafia escribió en 1271 el *Get ha-Shemot*, *el divorcio de los Nombres*, contra el uso mágico de los nombres divinos.

«This divorce is the background to what Abulafia wrote some few years later, when he fiercely attacked popular magic» — Idel usa ese divorcio como fondo del ataque posterior de Abulafia a la magia popular.

«I have found in one of the books, whose title I would like not to mention [explicitly]: ‘whoever wants to bring a woman to him so that she will love him, let him pronounce the name of whw yly syt ‘lm, backwards and forwards seven times, in the night of Wednesday, during the first hour of night, which is the time of Saturn, and let him conjure Qaftziel, who is the angel presiding over that planet, by that name. At that time let him write four names40 on a parchment of a deer, without interrupting the writing by any speech.41 Then, let him put the writing on his neck as an amulet and then the woman, whose name and the name of her father he has pronounced, will love him with a great love, by the virtue of that name» — según Idel, esto es lo que Abulafia cita de un libro cuyo título calla: para atraer el amor de una mujer, pronunciar siete veces hacia atrás y hacia adelante el nombre whw yly syt 'lm en la noche del miércoles, primera hora, que es la de Saturno, conjurar a Qaftziel, ángel que preside ese planeta, escribir cuatro nombres en pergamino de ciervo sin interrumpir con palabra y llevarlo al cuello como amuleto.

«I have found similar things in great number, and they are almost infinite; and these things have been spread and reached the hands of great Rabbis, but they hide them in a scrupulous manner and they think that their archives are replete with pearls. And they are very reverent [awesome] while studying the names when they need them. And these things may cause [even] good-tempered people to become crazy or others like them, as the great Rabbi [Maimonides] has said» — y así juzga Abulafia esos materiales, según Idel: incontables, difundidos hasta llegar a grandes rabinos que los esconden con escrúpulo y creen sus archivos llenos de perlas, y capaces de volver locos aun a los de buen temperamento, como dijo Maimónides.

«While I have had the opportunity to analyse some of the aspects of magic in this passage and its context elsewhere,43 here I would like to point out the hybrid nature of the passage, quoted by Abulafia from an existing book whose name he unfortunately decided not to disclose» — Idel remite a su propio análisis anterior y señala aquí la naturaleza híbrida del pasaje que Abulafia toma de un libro que no nombra.

«In that book - which I would suspect it is a lost version of SeferRaziel or Sefer ha-Razim44 - the name of God’s name in seventy-two letters, represented in the text by its first four combinations of three letters, is described as effective in bringing the beloved to the person reciting the incantation» — la conjetura que Idel declara como sospecha: que ese libro sea una versión perdida del *Sefer Raziel* o del *Sefer ha-Razim*, donde el nombre de setenta y dos letras sirve para traer al amado.

«However, the introduction of Saturn into the linguistic contexts of the divine and the angelic names is rare before the thirteenth century» — lo que Idel señala como nuevo en ese material: la entrada de Saturno en los contextos lingüísticos de los nombres divinos y angélicos, rara antes del siglo XIII.

«It occurs in an older tradition preserved in the twelfth-century Yehudah Barceloni’s Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah.46 The affinity between the planet and the angelic name Qaftziel, sometimes presupposes a sort of astro-magic, which assumes that each planet is presided over by an angel» — Idel localiza el antecedente en el *Comentario al Sefer Yetzirah* de Yehudah Barceloni y describe la astro-magia que supone un ángel al frente de cada planeta.

«Qaftziel, right ear,48 and the day of Sabbath, and its angel49 is Sabbatai» — según Idel, así reza un *Comentario cabalístico a la liturgia* anónimo de mediados del siglo XIII, cercano a la cábala extática; las cifras son llamadas a nota pegadas por el troceo.

«Therefore, at least one piece of evidence as to the existence of an affinity between Qaftziel and Sabbatai in Abulafia’s lifetime has been found» — lo que Idel da por establecido con ese testimonio: una afinidad entre Qaftziel y Sabbatai ya en vida de Abulafia.

«This statement points to a nexus between the astrological approach and the angelic one, from as far back as the middle of the thirteenth century» — y lo que ese enunciado indica a su juicio: un nexo entre el enfoque astrológico y el angélico desde mediados del siglo XIII.

«The text quoted from this book is the butt of Abulafia’s derision. While it does represent a positive attitude to magic in circles which had previously produced a book of magic quoted by Abulafia, the above passage does not reflect Abulafia’s own position» — Idel separa las voces con cuidado: el texto citado es blanco de la burla de Abulafia y no expresa su posición.

«However, the ecstatic kabbalist was aware of and accorded the possibility of linguistic magic related to Saturn: in his Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah, probably composed after the book cited above, he wrote» — el matiz que Idel introduce: el cabalista extático admitía sin embargo la posibilidad de una magia lingüística ligada a Saturno, en su *Comentario al Sefer Yetzirah*.

«The secret of seventy and of seventy-two is an important introduction to the knowledge of the essence of [all] the languages. Behold, seven, seventy and seven hundred and those similar to them, all belong to the principle of seven, the simple and the complex [heptads], are topics which indicate the plurality of the incantations of the Jewish powers52 as is testified by Sabbath, because there is a supplementary [soul]53 for those who rest and recreate in this [day]. And the powers of the planet of Saturn testify together with the Shemittin and Yovelin» — según Idel, así escribe Abulafia: el secreto del setenta y del setenta y dos como introducción al conocimiento de la esencia de las lenguas; siete, setenta y setecientos pertenecen al principio del siete e indican la pluralidad de los encantamientos de las potencias judías, como atestigua el sábado con su alma suplementaria, y los poderes del planeta Saturno atestiguan junto con los *Shemittin* y *Yovelin*.

«The main term that interests me in this context is hashbba'ot, which we have translated as ‘incantations’» — Idel nombra el término que le interesa, *hashbba'ot*, y declara su propia traducción por encantamientos.

«However, the editor of the text, Israel We instock, has suggested reading shive‘at in lieu of hashbba‘ot as part of the expression Shive‘at ha-kohot ha-Yehudiyyot, namely the ‘seven Jewish powers’» — Idel consigna la enmienda del editor —el troceo parte el apellido como *We instock*— que propone leer *shive'at* en lugar de *hashbba'ot*.

«He does not explain what the meaning of this phrase is and I myself cannot make sense of it and thus I do not see a real improvement in his proposal as it does not clarify the text» — y la objeta sin sentenciar: el editor no explica el sentido de la frase, Idel dice no hallárselo y no ve mejora real en la propuesta.

«However, if we retain the term hashbba‘ot, found in the manuscripts, we may understand the passage better when we compare it to a passage written in another Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah, one composed by Barukh Togarmi, which was well known to Abraham Abulafia» — la vía que Idel prefiere: conservar el término de los manuscritos y comparar con el *Comentario al Sefer Yetzirah* de Barukh Togarmi.

«The incantation of the language is the secret of the Garden of Eden, known from the three meals, 26, 65, and 86, that are incumbent upon the individual to eat on Sabbath» — según Idel, así reza el pasaje de Togarmi: el encantamiento de la lengua como secreto del Jardín del Edén, conocido por las tres comidas —26, 65 y 86— que hay que comer en sábado, día y noche.

«This compact passage is based upon gematria, namely the affinity between the numerical values of the different phrases constituting this quotation» — Idel explica el procedimiento del pasaje: gematría, la afinidad entre los valores numéricos de las frases.

«The basic figure is 177, which is the gematria of Gan ‘Eden on the one hand and the three divine names, the Tetragrammaton, Adonai and Elohim, on the other» — según Idel, la cifra base es 177, gematría de *Gan 'Eden* y de los tres nombres divinos —Tetragrámaton, Adonai y Elohim—.

«a magical procedure, and if the word does not appear in the text, my whole discussion is mistaken. In all the manuscripts of this text that I have studied carefully, the word appears» — la condición que Idel pone a su propio argumento: solo esa palabra apunta ahí a un procedimiento mágico, y si no estuviera en el texto toda su discusión sería errada; declara que en todos los manuscritos que estudió con cuidado la palabra aparece. El tramo arranca al comienzo de la plana, donde continúa la frase que la 30 deja cortada.

«Moreover, according to a certain way of calculation, the phrase ‘three meals’, shalosh se‘udot, amounts to 1176, which was understood as 176 + 1 = 177, while the phrase hashbbaat ha-lashon is 1178» — según Idel, la frase *shalosh se'udot* suma 1176, leído 176 + 1 = 177, y *hashbbaat ha-lashon* suma 1178; la cita se corta en el límite de segmento a media plana.

«when understood as follows: 1178 = 178 — 1 = 117. The ‘incantation of language’ is related to the three divine names, this figure, 117, indicating the three meals the rabbis claimed should be ritualistically eaten during the Sabbath day» — la continuación del cómputo: 1178 = 178 − 1 = 117, cifra que liga el encantamiento de la lengua a los tres nombres divinos y a las tres comidas rituales del sábado. El troceo rinde el segundo signo menos como guion largo.

«These three names are available to the kabbalists, as they are found in the Bible, just as is the possibility of eating the three meals» — Idel señala la simetría que el pasaje supone: los tres nombres están al alcance de los cabalistas en la Biblia igual que las tres comidas.

«The Garden of Eden has to do with an experience which is on the one hand magical, on the other ritualistic. In other words, according to Togarmi’s passage, the term Gan Eden, Paradise, is connected to linguistic activities, the incantation of language and the three divine names, on the one hand, and to the performative ritual of ‘keeping’ the Sabbath on the other» — la lectura de Idel: en Togarmi el Jardín del Edén nombra una experiencia a la vez mágica y ritual, ligada a las actividades lingüísticas y al guardar el sábado.

«Incantation, exactly the same term occurring in Abulafia’s text, also occurs in the work of his teacher Barukh Togarmi, again in the context of language and Sabbath, just as in Abulafia» — el paralelo que Idel traza: el mismo término aparece en el maestro Barukh Togarmi y en el discípulo, y en los dos en contexto de lengua y sábado.

«Moreover, the nexus between the name of seventy-two letters and Saturn, found in the anonymous book quoted in Abulafia's Sefer ha-Melammed adduced above, is obviously part of a book dealing with incantations» — Idel añade que el nexo entre el nombre de setenta y dos letras y Saturno, en el libro anónimo que Abulafia cita, pertenece a una obra de encantamientos.

«Thus, there is no good reason to deny the existence of the word hashbba ot, either from the palaeographical point of view or from the conceptual one» — la conclusión de Idel sobre la lectura disputada: ni la paleografía ni el concepto dan razón para negar la palabra.

«However, it should be pointed out that, in the manner Abulafia uses it, this term does not have a negative connotation» — el límite que añade: en el uso de Abulafia el término no tiene connotación negativa.

«Let me summarize Abulafia’s text: in a discussion circling around the propitious nature of the number seven, several issues related to this number are put together - the Sabbath, Sabbatai, Shemittin and Yovelin» — Idel resume el texto de Abulafia como una discusión en torno a la naturaleza propicia del número siete que reúne sábado, Sabbatai, *Shemittin* y *Yovelin*.

«I assume that the term hashbba‘ot, ‘incantations’, stems from a root very similar to Sheva, seven, and should be introduced in this series particularly because it occurs, as we have seen above, in the quotation from Abraham ibn Ezra’s Reshit Hokhmah» — la conjetura etimológica que Idel declara como suposición: que *hashbba'ot* venga de una raíz muy cercana a *sheva*, siete.

«On the basis of several hints in the text, the answer seems to be positive: for the Jews, the Sabbath day carries with it a certain additional spiritual power, which may allow, so I conjecture, the possibility of conjuring using the divine name of the seventy-two letters while Saturn is the presiding planet» — la respuesta que Idel da, marcada como conjetura propia: el sábado llevaría consigo un poder espiritual añadido que permitiría conjurar con el nombre de setenta y dos letras mientras Saturno preside.

«Before turning to the views of another influential kabbalist, it should be emphasized that according to Abulafia’s Kabbalistic system, there was a shift from external magic (found in earlier sources, especially Ashkenazi ones) towards a mystical technique, which uses many devices characteristic of magic, but is here directed to attain an inner experience that Abulafia often described as prophecy» — la advertencia que Idel intercala sobre el sistema de Abulafia: un desplazamiento de la magia externa de las fuentes askenazíes hacia una técnica mística que usa recursos mágicos para una experiencia interior llamada profecía.

«However, by mentioning the above elements together, he plausibly reflects a tradition (already enigmatically hinted at by Barukh Togarmi) which brought the Sabbath day and some form of linguistic magic into the same context» — y lo que aun así refleja, en grado de plausibilidad: una tradición ya insinuada por Togarmi que junta el sábado con alguna forma de magia lingüística.

«A contemporary of Abulafia’s, and a thinker who might have been influenced by him, or alternatively had an influence upon him,61 was Joseph ben Shalom Ashkenazi, sometime referred also as ha-’Arokh, the tall» — Idel presenta a Joseph ben Shalom Ashkenazi como contemporáneo de Abulafia y deja abierta la dirección de la influencia entre ambos.

«We do not know exactly the dates that he was active - scholars refer to the temporal parameters from 1270 to 1325» — la abstención cronológica: no se sabe cuándo estuvo activo, y los estudiosos manejan el arco de 1270 a 1325.

«Ashkenazi was a respected kabbalist who was active in several places in Europe and perhaps even in Northern Africa, as well as presumably in Barcelona, where Abulafia started his Kabbalistic career» — según Idel, Ashkenazi fue un cabalista respetado activo en varios lugares de Europa, quizá en el norte de África y presumiblemente en Barcelona.

«This uncertainty is heightened by the fact that was not duly recognized in scholarship, that his name, his writings or his specific terminology are neither quoted nor referred to by any of the Spanish kabbalists in the Iberian Peninsula until the expulsion of the Jews from Spain» — el dato que Idel dice no reconocido en la erudición: ningún cabalista español lo cita ni menciona su terminología hasta la expulsión.

«However, Ashkenazi is quoted in the Byzantine Empire; vestiges of his terminology were found in Central Europe in the mid fourteenth century, and later on in Northern Africa and Italy» — y dónde sí deja rastro: el Imperio bizantino, Europa central a mediados del XIV, luego el norte de África e Italia.

«Joseph Ashkenazi contributed a very influential passage on the nexus between the three religious factors that is our focus here. It is found in his commentary on Sefer Yetzirah, a text widespread in many manuscripts and printed for the first time in 1562» — Idel localiza el pasaje decisivo en el comentario de Ashkenazi al *Sefer Yetzirah*, difundido en manuscrito e impreso por primera vez en 1562.

«Here is my translation of the passage that was also adduced verbatim by the anonymous Sefer ha-Peliy’ah in the late fourteenth or early fifteenth centuries, as well as by several other kabbalists» — Idel declara que la versión que da es traducción suya, y que el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah* anónimo reproduce el pasaje literalmente.

«Sabbatai in the [dimension of the] world,62 and Sunday in the year [i.e. in the dimension of time], and the right eye in a person [the third dimension of reality]; namely He elevated the letter Bet so that it is the head of ‘the power of Keter ElyorC - ‘the highest crown’. And He put it in the power of Hokhmah and formed in it the planet Sabbatai, which is beneath the [divine name] ’ABG YTTz,m and the latter gave wisdom to Sabbatai, despite the fact that Sabbatai is the planet of destruction, by the [dint of the] Shemittot, it possesses the power of Hokhmah, and the reason why it is appointed over destruction is that it is not concerned with any corporeal issues, and this is the reason why it destroys them and has no mind for them or their adornments, but is concerned with the separated intelligences, and the comprehension of God, blessed be He, and the comprehension of the heptads» — según Idel, así abre el pasaje de Ashkenazi: Sabbatai en el mundo, el domingo en el año y el ojo derecho en la persona; la letra Bet elevada a cabeza del poder de *Keter Elyon*, puesta en el poder de *Hokhmah* y formando en él el planeta Sabbatai bajo el nombre 'ABG YTTz, que le da sabiduría pese a ser planeta de destrucción, y que destruye lo corpóreo por no ocuparse de ello sino de las inteligencias separadas, de la comprensión de Dios y de las héptadas.

«and the prophetic power was added to them [the mindless] ... and it is responsible for maladies and death ... and it is responsible for the Jews and this is the reason they are in trouble in this world ... and on the science of sorcery64 and the knowledge of the future ... And it is responsible for bad rumours65 and despair ... And because it is appointed on weight, it is responsible for lead, and darkness and everything that is black, and the black bile66 ... And because [the planet of Sabbatai] is responsible for the perpetuity, when it will reach the ascent, it will not decline forever, as it is said that67 ‘the spirit of God dwells upon him, the spirit of Hokhmah and of BinaK and it is the secret of ‘Mashiyah YHWH» — la continuación del pasaje: el poder profético añadido, la responsabilidad sobre enfermedades y muerte, sobre los judíos —y de ahí sus apuros en este mundo—, sobre la ciencia de la hechicería y el conocimiento del futuro, sobre los malos rumores y la desesperación, sobre el peso y por ello el plomo, la oscuridad, lo negro y la bilis negra, y sobre la perpetuidad: llegado al ascenso no declinará jamás, con el versículo del espíritu de Dios, de *Hokhmah* y de *Binah*, y el secreto de *Mashiyah YHWH*.

«This seminal passage, part of a much longer text, ushers in a motif that will become more explicit in the fourteenth century. According to this new motif, there is a strong relationship between Saturn and demonic powers, which is presented here independently of the theme of sorcery addressed later in the same text» — lo que Idel ve inaugurarse ahí: la relación fuerte entre Saturno y los poderes demoníacos, presentada con independencia del tema de la hechicería.

«for example, it is not acknowledged by the erudite authors of the monograph on Saturn and Melancholy. In fact, Ashkenazi’s passage reverberates in the work of many authors, some of whom will be mentioned in this chapter» — el ejemplo que Idel da de esa desatención: los autores de *Saturn and Melancholy* no lo registran, mientras el pasaje resuena en muchos otros autores.

«To a greater extent than Abulafia, the Ashkenazi passage translated above was instrumental in disseminating a very important (in fact, possibly the most important) elaboration of Saturn in kabbalistic circles» — la adjudicación que Idel hace: más que Abulafia, ese pasaje difundió la elaboración de Saturno acaso más importante en los círculos cabalísticos.

«What is crucial to an understanding of this passage is the phenomenon of a synthesis between two types of order, a conceptual structure that may be designated theo-astrology» — Idel nombra lo decisivo del pasaje con un término propio: la síntesis de dos tipos de orden en una estructura conceptual que llama teo-astrología.

«This presupposes that the astral order, governed by the rhythm of the motion and nature of the celestial bodies, especially the seven planets, is in alignment with the theosophical order, based on ten divine powers, known as the ten sefirot, which have their own specific features and interact in accordance with rules that differ from the astrological ones» — y desglosa qué supone esa síntesis: el orden astral de los siete planetas alineado con el orden teosófico de las diez sefirot, que se rigen por reglas distintas.

«Thus, it is not only a matter of different levels of reality involved in this theo-astrological synthesis, but also of different numbers of entities - seven versus ten - with different characteristics of factors in each order and different rules of interaction between them» — la asimetría que Idel subraya: no solo niveles distintos de realidad, sino números distintos de entidades —siete contra diez— y reglas distintas de interacción.

«It should be stressed that the two different forms of order, the astral and the theosophical, have related forms of worship or cults. Astro-magic instructs people how to capture or even to draw down the celestial influx by certain rituals, while theosophical systems are related to rabbinic rituals» — Idel añade que cada orden trae su culto: la astro-magia enseña a capturar o atraer el influjo celeste, los sistemas teosóficos se ligan al ritual rabínico.

«These two forms of worship are totally different, though in some cases the astro-magical rituals were also translated into Hebrew and have had an impact on the manner in which the rabbinic rituals have been understood, as we shall see below in the context of Sabbat» — la salvedad: aun siendo cultos del todo distintos, los rituales astro-mágicos se tradujeron al hebreo y afectaron a cómo se entendieron los rabínicos.

«Nevertheless, the theo-astrological synthesis strove to build correspondences that brought together the two systems while subordinating the astrological to the theosophical order» — la jerarquía que Idel atribuye a la síntesis: correspondencias que juntan los dos sistemas subordinando el astrológico al teosófico. El impreso parte *correspondences* con guion blando de fin de renglón y el extractor lo restituye unido.

«next chapter, one of the most influential discussions related to the nature of Saturn, but one that has been steadfastly ignored in the vast scholarly literature concerning the medieval metamorphoses of this planet-god» — Idel llama al pasaje de Ashkenazi uno de los más influyentes sobre la naturaleza de Saturno y señala que la bibliografía sobre las metamorfosis medievales del planeta-dios lo ha desatendido; el tramo arranca en la plana 34 porque el renglón anterior, en la 33, arrastra el encabezado corrido.

«Joseph Ashkenazi’s work is an early and extremely important example of such a synthesis, which affected some of the characteristics of the theosophical order, which has its own logic, also impacted upon by astrological ways of thought» — Idel sitúa a Ashkenazi como ejemplo temprano de esa síntesis, que afectó a rasgos del propio orden teosófico.

«It may well be that he had an impact on the Zoharic discussions of the planet Sabbatai, as subordinated to the supernal realm» — la conjetura, dicha como posibilidad: que Ashkenazi haya influido en las discusiones zoháricas sobre Sabbatai subordinado al reino supernal.

«This is a hierarchical organization, or a theosophical constellation of the astrological constellation, which would have parallels later on in Spain among other figures such as ibn Waqar, ibn Motot and ibn Zarza» — y la llama constelación teosófica de la constelación astrológica, con paralelos posteriores en ibn Waqar, ibn Motot e ibn Zarza.

«Whether Joseph Ashkenazi in fact did have an impact on those thinkers, who wrote somewhat later than Ashkenazi, is extremely uncertain, as I have pointed out above, since his name was never mentioned in this context» — la abstención con que lo acota: que haya influido en esos pensadores es sumamente incierto, porque su nombre nunca se menciona ahí.

«It should perhaps be pointed out that one more ontological level is mentioned in the compact passage cited above: that of the letters of the divine name of forty-two letters, whose first unit ABG YTTz is mentioned as being placed, ontologically, between the sefirotic and the astral levels» — Idel señala un nivel ontológico más en el pasaje: las letras del nombre divino de cuarenta y dos letras, cuya primera unidad ABG YTTz queda entre lo sefirótico y lo astral.

«Whether this level of discussion (in addition to the relationship of the topics mentioned in the passage, such as the limbs of the body) also carries a magical valence, as is the case in some Ashkenazi traditions, is an issue that should not concern us here» — y declara fuera de su asunto la pregunta por el valor mágico de ese nivel.

«Jewish circles in Spain since the second half of the thirteenth century: a more complex theosophy and greater openness toward astrology» — Idel encuadra la síntesis en la reorganización del saber acumulado en los círculos judíos de España desde la segunda mitad del siglo XIII: teosofía más compleja y mayor apertura a la astrología. El tramo arranca en la plana 35 porque la 34 cierra con el folio y el encabezado corrido a media frase.

«However, what is important here is to emphasize the richness of the fields that are related to each other, in principle though not always in practice, to Saturn» — lo que Idel subraya del conjunto: la riqueza de campos que se relacionan con Saturno, en principio aunque no siempre en la práctica.

«The astrological traditions that entered Saturnism have been enriched by their reconceptualization within theosophical modes of thinking» — según Idel, las tradiciones astrológicas que entran en el saturnismo se enriquecen al reconceptualizarse en modos teosóficos.

«This complex concatenation emerges out of affinities created between the astral order, the theosophical order, the linguistic order and the anatomical one, which have been in alignment in a rather succinct but systematic manner» — y enumera los cuatro órdenes cuya alineación produce esa concatenación: el astral, el teosófico, el lingüístico y el anatómico.

«It should be pointed out that while astral order is understood as belonging to the celestial world, and as presiding over events and entities in the lower world, it is conceived of as relatively low on the Great Chain of Being: it is subordinate to both the theosophical and the linguistic forms of order» — el lugar que Idel asigna al orden astral en la cadena del ser: relativamente bajo, subordinado al teosófico y al lingüístico pese a presidir el mundo inferior.

«It should also be mentioned that following the lead of a certain version of Sefer Yetzirah, R. Joseph identifies Saturn with Sunday and not with the Sabbath, as the astrologers did» — la divergencia que Idel consigna sin armonizar: R. Joseph, siguiendo cierta versión del *Sefer Yetzirah*, identifica a Saturno con el domingo y no con el sábado.

«In away, the two modes strengthen each other since the qualities of the higher are projected on to the lower depending on the manner in which the kabbalist writes» — el mecanismo que describe: los dos modos se refuerzan porque las cualidades del superior se proyectan sobre el inferior según escriba el cabalista; el troceo imprime *In away* por *In a way*.

«When compared to astrological discourse, it is historically later and indubitably part of the cultural panorama of the early kabbalists» — la filiación histórica que Idel deriva de esa yuxtaposición: el discurso teosófico es posterior al astrológico y parte del panorama cultural de los primeros cabalistas.

«In other words, listing the qualities of each of the seven planets, which is widespread in astrological literature, may be a paradigm for symbols belonging to the enumeration of each of the ten sefirot» — y la hipótesis que saca de ahí: la lista de cualidades de los siete planetas como paradigma de los símbolos de las diez sefirot.

«of the two modes of discourse, the theosophical and the astrological, is fascinating in terms of the complexity it generates» — Idel califica de fascinante la complejidad que genera la combinación de los dos discursos, el teosófico y el astrológico; el tramo arranca tras el corte de segmento que el troceo deja a media plana.

«I would assume that, at least in our specific case, the qualities of the astrological body have been projected upon the higher hierarchical level, the corresponding sejirah» — la suposición que Idel declara sobre el sentido de la proyección: las cualidades del cuerpo astrológico se proyectan sobre el nivel jerárquico superior, la sefirá correspondiente. El troceo rinde *sefirah* como *sejirah*.

«Furthermore, in my opinion, another type of comparison is called for: a comparison of the discourses of Joseph Ashkenazi and Abraham Abulafia. In the former, there is an ontological centre, whose qualities are enumerated without necessarily assuming a strong relation between the words expressing those qualities. In Abulafia, the importance of the ontological centre is less evident, but the affinities that are established stem from the numerical relations between the words, namely the gematria» — la comparación que Idel propone entre los dos cabalistas: en Ashkenazi hay un centro ontológico cuyas cualidades se enumeran sin relación fuerte entre las palabras; en Abulafia el centro pesa menos y las afinidades salen de la gematría.

«In other words, while the astrological-theosophical discourse is more vertical, with each word related to the supernal power that presides over it, in the discourse of ecstatic Kabbalah the horizontal relations are more evident, with each of the words related much more intimately to other words that express the same idea or, in some cases, the opposite» — y la figura con que la resume: el discurso astrológico-teosófico es vertical, cada palabra bajo el poder supernal que la preside; el de la cábala extática es horizontal, cada palabra ligada a otras que dicen lo mismo o lo contrario.

«Moreover, astrological discourse is much less concerned with biblical exegesis (or that of another specific book) on its textual level, but is much more concerned, with events; whereas theosophical discourse is more concerned with new theosophical insights into the meaning of the verses and words of the Bible (and other classical Jewish texts) as carrying what may be described as symbolic valence» — la otra diferencia que Idel marca: el discurso astrológico atiende a los sucesos más que a la exégesis bíblica, y el teosófico a la valencia simbólica de versículos y palabras.

«The description of the relation between Saturn and the sejirah of Hokhmah and Binah that is to be found in Joseph Ashkenazi’s passage in terms used earlier in relation to Saturn is quite characteristic of the new theological modality that was to flourish later, during the mid fourteenth century, in Castile» — Idel liga el tratamiento de Saturno, Hokhmah y Binah en Ashkenazi con la modalidad teológica que florecería en Castilla a mediados del siglo XIV.

«It was also to appear, in the late fifteenth or early sixteenth centuries, in Yohanan Alemanno’s work in Florence, who would also opt for the subordination of Saturn to the third sejirah, Binah» — y con Yohanan Alemanno en Florencia, que también subordinaría Saturno a la tercera sefirá.

«Neither subordination works so neatly, since the seven planets correspond more neatly to the seven lower sejirot, which are often described in theosophical Kabbalistic writings as operating in this world» — la objeción que Idel pone a las dos subordinaciones: los siete planetas corresponden con más limpieza a las siete sefirot inferiores.

«On the other hand, the planet Saturn was understood to be the third of the ten celestial spheres, found beneath the sphere of the intellect or the Empireum and that of the twelve signs of the zodiac, and from this perspective, more appropriately from the formal point of view, was thought to correspond to the third sejirah, Binah» — y la razón formal en contra: Saturno era la tercera de las diez esferas celestes, bajo la del intelecto y la del zodiaco, lo que lo hacía corresponder a la tercera sefirá.

«second or mainly to the third in fact complicated the relations between the seven planets and the sefirotic system: the seven lower sefirot and a higher one now correspond together to only seven planets» — el precio que Idel señala de esa elevación de Saturno: las siete sefirot inferiores más una superior quedan correspondiendo a solo siete planetas. El tramo arranca en la plana 37, donde continúa la frase que la 36 deja cortada.

«Such an elevation has to do with the Kabbalistic perception that this is indeed a high astral body, appointed for prophecy and mental concentration, and probably for contemplation» — la razón que Idel da para la elevación: en la percepción cabalística es un cuerpo astral alto, destinado a la profecía y a la concentración mental.

«From the astrological stance, Saturn has religious characteristics: it is worshiped according to certain rituals, it presides over some qualities of temperament, but at the same time, together with Jupiter when they are in alignment, as in conjuntio major, it presides over the changes in religion here below» — los rasgos religiosos que Idel atribuye a Saturno desde la astrología: se le da culto con ritos, preside temperamentos y, junto a Júpiter en gran conjunción, los cambios de religión.

«This vision is not only a matter of astrology, but also reflects some elements found in Greek mythology, where Kronos was ousted by his son Zeus/Jupiter» — y su raíz mitológica: Crono destronado por su hijo Zeus/Júpiter.

«Given the status of Binah as higher than the seven sefirot, this sefirah is responsible, according to some of the texts discussed in this chapter and in the next one, for the change of religions, the dinim, while in the theosophical systems it is based on the cosmic cycles, and not a religious system of its own» — la diferencia que Idel consigna entre los dos sistemas: en los textos que discute, Binah responde del cambio de religiones, los *dinim*, pero en los sistemas teosóficos eso se apoya en los ciclos cósmicos.

«This change in religion, whose source is, as mentioned above, part of the astrological system, is consonant with the vision of Saturn as destroyer, or with the myth of Kronos/Saturn, who devoured his own children» — y con qué lo hace consonante: la visión de Saturno destructor y el mito de Crono devorando a sus hijos.

«In the Kabbalistic systems, however, Binah is related much more to the secret of Yovel, ‘Jubilee’, which means the cessation of all forms of existence in the fiftieth millennium or, according to other versions, for two millennia, while the Shemittot are related to the lower seven sefirot» — el reparto cabalístico que Idel describe: Binah ligada al secreto del *Yovel*, cese de toda existencia en el milenio quincuagésimo o por dos milenios, y los *Shemittot* a las siete sefirot inferiores.

«Each of these sefirot is perceived of as presiding over a cycle of seven thousand years, and in some versions, each of these cycles has a religious law of its own, which assumes that these changes are taking place in the cosmic Jubilee» — y su mecánica: cada sefirá preside un ciclo de siete mil años, y en algunas versiones cada ciclo tiene ley religiosa propia.

«The theosophical power now supervising changes is not astral, and the change is not part of a constellation of planetary powers, but an entity that transcends the seven sefirot, and one which does not possesses a law of its own» — el desplazamiento que Idel señala: el poder que supervisa los cambios deja de ser astral y pasa a una entidad que trasciende las siete sefirot y no tiene ley propia.

«Nevertheless, as seen in the text of Joseph Ashkenazi, Binah is described as governing both the cosmic Jubilee and the Shemittot, as part of the common denominator, that of the heptad, a combined or a simple one, respectively» — la salvedad que toma del propio Ashkenazi: ahí Binah gobierna a la vez el Jubileo cósmico y los *Shemittot*, por el denominador común de la héptada.

«Higher than and appointed on the seven sefirot, Binah is conceived of as the building, the binyan, as mentioned in Joseph Ashkenazi’s text, or the seven sons in other discussions in the same book, and is not considered part of that complex and dynamic system» — la figura con que Ashkenazi la nombra, según Idel: Binah como el edificio, *binyan*, o los siete hijos, fuera del sistema dinámico que rige.

«While the latter type of thought is anchored in the neo-Aristotelian thought (which presumes the existence of a final type of truth, part of a more static universe), both the astral and the theosophical orders are much more flexible. They deal much more with dynamic situations created by movements and intersections, unions and separations, rather than radiation or emanation alone, as are the philosophical systems» — y la razón: el pensamiento neoaristotélico supone una verdad final en un universo estático, mientras los otros dos tratan de situaciones dinámicas de movimiento, unión y separación.

«This is why there is a possibility, in both astrology and in some Kabbalistic writings, such as in Tiqqunei Zohar and Ra ‘aya ’ Meheimna ’, of a change of law, while Maimonides, who adopted the Aristotelian view of truth, did not allow for any change in the Torah» — la consecuencia que Idel saca para la ley: la astrología y escritos como *Tiqqunei Zohar* y *Ra'aya' Meheimna'* dejan lugar a un cambio de ley, y Maimónides no.

«have dwelt on the two Kabbalistic discussions, that of Abulafia’s and that of Joseph Ashkenazi, in order to show that astrological views on Saturn and the Jews were already known in the second part of the thirteenth century beyond the small circles of expert philosophers and astrologers, and were already making their impact on ways of thinking in circles which were not closely related to these» — el propósito que Idel declara al detenerse en Abulafia y Ashkenazi: mostrar que las visiones astrológicas sobre Saturno y los judíos ya circulaban en la segunda mitad del siglo XIII fuera de los círculos de filósofos y astrólogos. El troceo deja el *I* inicial solo en su renglón.

«I would venture to locate the place from which the concepts expressed in the two discussions stem as Barcelona, a place where Abulafia started his Kabbalistic career and where Joseph Ashkenazi probably lived, at least for a while» — la localización que Idel arriesga, en grado de conjetura: Barcelona, donde Abulafia empezó y donde probablemente vivió Ashkenazi.

«Similarly, the critique of the preoccupation with Saturn by Bahya ben Asher (to be discussed immediately below), an author who lived in the same city sometime later, may be related to developments connected to this centre of Jewish culture» — y el indicio que suma: la crítica de Bahya ben Asher, autor de la misma ciudad algo después.

«If Abulafia’s testimony as to the spread of magic indeed reflects the types of magic and sorcery included in the passage he quoted, then the impact of Saturnine magic was greater in the thirteenth century than may be possible to document today» — la hipótesis condicional con que cierra el apartado: de reflejar el testimonio de Abulafia los tipos de magia del pasaje citado, el peso de la magia saturnina en el siglo XIII sería mayor que lo documentable hoy.

«It should be pointed out that the two types of order discussed here, the astrological and the theosophical, different as they are, are much closer to each other than to the philosophical order as formulated in» — la distancia que Idel mide: el orden astrológico y el teosófico, distintos entre sí, están más cerca uno de otro que del orden filosófico; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y cierra con *the writings of R. Moshe ben Maimon* en la 38.

«Moreover, these two kabbalists, and those anonymous circles criticized by a third kabbalist - the anonymous author of Sefer Tiqqunei Zohar, whose views will be addressed later on in this study - bear witness to the dissemination of views whose deeper impact may be discerned in the fourteenth century» — el testimonio que Idel suma: los dos cabalistas y los círculos anónimos que critica el autor del *Sefer Tiqqunei Zohar* atestiguan una difusión cuyo calado se ve en el siglo XIV.

«In Jewish culture, the fourteenth century hosted what Alexander Altmann has cogently designated ‘a Renaissance of ibn Ezra’, something that is more evident in the second half of that century» — Idel toma de Alexander Altmann la fórmula *renacimiento de ibn Ezra* para el siglo XIV judío.

«Given the staggering amount of manuscript material still awaiting detailed analysis and publication, the following survey is very tentative» — la reserva con que Idel presenta el recorrido: es muy tentativo por la cantidad de manuscritos sin analizar ni publicar.

«Crucial for some of the renewed interest in ibn Ezra was a mid-fourteenth-century Castilian kabbalist named Joseph ibn Waqar, who offered interesting syntheses between philosophy, Kabbalah and astrology» — según Idel, Joseph ibn Waqar, cabalista castellano de mediados del XIV, es decisivo en ese interés renovado por sus síntesis de filosofía, cábala y astrología.

«The same view is echoed by his contemporary, Shmuel ibn Motot, though he does not mention ibn Waqar’s name» — Idel consigna que Shmuel ibn Motot repite la misma visión sin nombrar a ibn Waqar.

«Know that according to the truth there is a very great advantage to Sabbath over all the days because the force of the soul will be enhanced by the [faculties of] knowledge and intellect and it is from the power of Saturn to which it has been attributed the presidency over the first hour and it is a superior power and all the planets give power to it. When we shall retain the power of the intellect, and its lot is the rational soul, and the power of thought and understanding and cleverness and the knowledge of secrets and the worship of God and it is the star of Israel and its lot are the Temple,73 the Hebrew language and the Torah of Israel74 and this is the reason why the power of the soul will be enhanced in Israel during this day more than during the others» — según Idel, así reza el pasaje de ibn Motot: el sábado aventaja a los demás días porque la fuerza del alma crece por el conocimiento y el intelecto, y eso viene del poder de Saturno, que preside la primera hora y al que todos los planetas dan poder; suyos son el pensamiento, el entendimiento, la astucia, el conocimiento de los secretos y el culto de Dios, y es la estrella de Israel, con el Templo, la lengua hebrea y la Torá de Israel por lote.

«Insofar as the topic of Saturn is concerned, he was explicitly quoted by Samuel ibn Zarza, one of the main commentators on ibn Ezra» — el rastro de ibn Waqar que Idel sigue: Samuel ibn Zarza lo cita expresamente en materia de Saturno; el tramo se corta antes del folio y el encabezado corrido que la plana arrastra a media frase.

«way that shows the deep impact of the citation previously given from ibn Ezra’s Sefer Reshit Hokhmah. Ibn Zarza brings ibn Waqar’s view together with what the ‘sages of the zodiac signs’ have to say about Saturn» — la continuación en la plana 39: ibn Zarza junta la visión de ibn Waqar con lo que dicen los *sabios de los signos del zodiaco*, con el pasaje del *Sefer Reshit Hokhmah* de fondo.

«More than in ibn Ezra’s astrological worldview, this quotation expands the presidency of Saturn over more specific and very important areas of Judaism. It adds to the general view of ibn Ezra concerning Sabbath and the Jews, as well as the Torah, the Temple and the Hebrew language» — lo que Idel ve de nuevo en ese pasaje: la presidencia de Saturno se extiende a la Torá, el Templo y la lengua hebrea.

«This passage, which reflects ibn Waqar’s somewhat earlier stance, amounts to a fairly comprehensive Satumization of Judaism as it was disseminated in verbatim citations just a generation after his death by the two other Castilian thinkers, ibn Zarza and ibn Motot» — y cómo lo llama: una saturnización del judaísmo bastante completa, difundida en citas literales una generación después por los dos castellanos.

«However, the most powerful discussions of the relation between Saturn and maleficent powers are found in the mid fourteenth century, in the supercommentary on ibn Ezra by Shlomo Franco, who describes this planet as the ‘great Satan', and the ‘great maleficent power’, all this in contexts that clearly mention Sabbath and the Jews» — según Idel, las discusiones más fuertes sobre Saturno y los poderes maléficos están en el supercomentario de Shlomo Franco a ibn Ezra, que llama al planeta *el gran Satán* y *el gran poder maléfico*.

«Demonic powers are mentioned explicitly in connection with Saturn in another fourteenth-century follower of ibn Ezra’s thought, Shem Tov ibn Major» — Idel señala a Shem Tov ibn Major, otro seguidor de ibn Ezra del siglo XIV, como testimonio explícito de poderes demoníacos ligados a Saturno; el tramo se corta en el límite de segmento que el troceo deja a media plana.

«because the matters of the demons had been attributed to Saturn ... Capricorn was the house of Saturn77 and behold the demons had been called goats» — según Idel, así reza ese testimonio: los asuntos de los demonios atribuidos a Saturno, Capricornio por casa suya y los demonios llamados cabras.

«nexus between demons and Saturn is already found in the second half of Ashkenazi’s thirteenth-century Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah, discussed above, which reflects much earlier traditions, as was obvious from the passage of Alcabitius also discussed above» — Idel remonta el nexo entre demonios y Saturno al comentario de Ashkenazi del siglo XIII y, por él, a tradiciones muy anteriores como la de Alcabitius.

«On Jericho the influx of Saturn is found, which is the seventh of the planets and this is the reason they circumambulated it seven times and the wall fell on the day of Sabbath, which is Sabbatai/ Saturn’s day and there was destruction, because the nature of Saturn is to emanate destruction» — según Idel, así lee un tratado anónimo de mediados del siglo XV, al parecer italiano, la caída de Jericó: el influjo de Saturno, séptimo planeta, las siete vueltas, el muro caído en sábado —día de Sabbatai— y la destrucción por naturaleza del planeta.

«Here the magical ritual of the Israelites is not performed during the Sabbath, but its repercussions are intended to occur then - all this in the context of the influx of Saturn» — la distinción que Idel introduce: el rito no se hace en sábado, pero sus efectos se buscan para ese día, bajo el influjo de Saturno.

«Drawing mainly on ibn Ezra and his fourteenth-century commentators, as well as on Kabbalistic writings, especially Joseph Ashkenazi, Yohanan ben Isaac Alemanno, an older companion of Giovanni Pico della Mirandola, mentions Saturn several times in his writings» — Idel presenta a Yohanan ben Isaac Alemanno, compañero mayor de Giovanni Pico della Mirandola, como deudor de ibn Ezra, de sus comentaristas y de Joseph Ashkenazi.

«Some of these expressions suggest a rather assimilationist religious attitude to Saturn, as we shall see immediately below, though some other discussions found in his writings betray a more confrontational attitude towards the planet» — la divergencia interna que Idel consigna sin armonizar: en Alemanno hay pasajes de actitud asimilacionista hacia Saturno y otros de actitud confrontativa.

«It is interesting to point out that Alemanno, a prolific and erudite thinker who lived for many years in Florence and was linked to the principal contributors to the Florentine Renaissance, including Giovanni Pico della Mirandola, was not attracted (as far as I could inspect the relevant sources analysed by scholars) by the Hermetical formulations used by Marsilio Ficino in this context» — el hallazgo negativo que Idel declara, con su límite —hasta donde pudo inspeccionar—: Alemanno, ligado a los protagonistas del Renacimiento florentino, no se dejó atraer por las formulaciones herméticas de Ficino en este asunto.

«since the Binah is the property of Israel ... the Binah is the zodiac sign of all the zodiac signs ... Yovel, which is the fiftieth year ... and to this sefirah was [attributed] the revelation of the Torah ... and to it the counting of the seven Sabbaths, years, and all the heptads, and the redemptions» — según Idel, así describe Alemanno la tercera sefirá en su comentario manuscrito de París: Binah propiedad de Israel, signo de todos los signos, el *Yovel* del año cincuenta, la revelación de la Torá, la cuenta de los siete sábados, años y héptadas, y las redenciones.

«Saturn, which is the first under the sphere of the zodiacal signs, and forty-eight forms [of the Moon] ... and it is a supreme and noble, higher than all the other planets, which is the reason that the ancient sages said of it that it generated all the other planets ... And they say that Saturn is the true judge [dayyan emmet] and the planet of Moses, peace be with him» — la continuación del pasaje de Alemanno en la plana 41: la tercera esfera es la de Saturno, primera bajo la del zodiaco, supremo y noble sobre los demás planetas, del que los antiguos sabios decían que engendró a los otros, y al que llaman juez verdadero y planeta de Moisés.

«The angel of Saturn is Michael,88 the great minister, so called because of his great power in divine matters and He is the ministering angel of Israel» — según Idel, Alemanno da a Miguel por ángel de Saturno y ángel ministrante de Israel.

«And the astrologers who described Saturn say that it endows man with profound thought, laws85 and the spiritual sciences,86 prophecy, sorcery87 and prognostication and the Shemittot and Yovelot,88 The Jewish people and the Hebrew language and the Temple are under its jurisdiction» — y lo que Alemanno atribuye al planeta siguiendo a los astrólogos: pensamiento profundo, leyes, ciencias espirituales, profecía, hechicería y prognosis, los *Shemittot* y *Yovelot*, y bajo su jurisdicción el pueblo judío, la lengua hebrea y el Templo.

«Saturn's major conjunction is with Jupiter in the dominion of Pisces89 occurred to assist the nation, and the Torah and its prophets. This planet endows the people with perfection in sciences and divine matters such as the Torah and its commandments, out of its sublimity, because it is spiritual» — la gran conjunción con Júpiter en Piscis, que según el pasaje asistió a la nación, la Torá y sus profetas, y la perfección en ciencias y cosas divinas que el planeta otorga por su sublimidad.

«It is concerned only with thought, understanding and design, esoteric knowledge and divine worship and His Torah, and the Sabbath day is under its sway, because its nature causes material existence to cease ... and all the operations that are not corresponding to it are forbidden [during Sabbath] because it corrupts and destroys all [kinds of] destructions. And lightening [fire] should not be done in its lot because it is cold» — y la explicación saturnina del sábado: el planeta hace cesar la existencia material, de donde la prohibición de toda operación que no le corresponda y la de encender fuego, por ser frío.

«and if they will keep its spiritual rules and laws it will impart a spiritual influx abundantly. But if they will not keep the way of God, it will spew out everything which is bad, prophecy will occur to the fools and to babies in an insufficient manner, and to women and to melancholics [ba‘alei ha-shehorah] and those possessed by an evil spirit, and maleficent demons that obliterate the limbs90 and bad counsels and sorceries91 and anxieties and erroneous beliefs and hypocrisies and cheatings and destruction and famine and poverty» — el condicional con que cierra el pasaje: guardadas sus reglas espirituales, influjo abundante; no guardado el camino de Dios, profecía defectuosa a necios, niños, mujeres, melancólicos y poseídos, demonios maléficos, malos consejos, hechicerías, ansiedades, creencias erróneas, hipocresías, engaños, destrucción, hambre y pobreza.

«This passage, deeply influenced by Joseph Ashkenazi’s Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah, is also inspired by various commentators on ibn Ezra, who were mentioned above, as well as by theosophical kabbalists, probably even Sefer ha-Peliy ’ah» — la filiación que Idel adjudica a ese pasaje: Ashkenazi de fondo, los comentaristas de ibn Ezra y cabalistas teosóficos, quizá el propio *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*.

«This style of writing is certainly eclectic, bringing together, as it does, more theosophical and astrological themes than any other author before Alemanno» — y su carácter: ecléctico, con más temas teosóficos y astrológicos juntos que en cualquier autor anterior.

«On a larger scale than previously, it attempts to contrive an organization of symbols and objects, thus creating a more unified understanding of reality as a whole, as governed» — lo que Idel ve intentar a ese estilo: una organización de símbolos y objetos que dé una comprensión más unificada de la realidad; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *by a series of distinct supernal powers, sefirot and the planets, which are related to each other in hierarchical structures* en la 42.

«It constitutes the more comprehensive and radical Saturnization of Jewish practices, since keeping Saturn’s regulations is implicitly understood as keeping to the path of God» — y cómo lo califica: la saturnización más completa y radical de las prácticas judías, porque guardar las reglas de Saturno se entiende implícitamente como guardar el camino de Dios.

«Interestingly enough, the biblical interdiction on kindling light during Sabbath is explained as corresponding to the cold nature of Saturn» — el detalle que Idel destaca: la prohibición bíblica de encender luz en sábado explicada por la naturaleza fría del planeta.

«This passage represents the culmination of a process that began with ibn Ezra and fanned out with his followers, but was also joined by kabbalists» — Idel lee ese pasaje como culminación del proceso que arranca en ibn Ezra y se extiende con sus seguidores y con los cabalistas.

«It is significant that during the Renaissance period this process became more pronounced in a Jewish author at a period when some Christian intellectuals were discovering salient Greek texts which, though recently translated into Latin by Ficino, had not been integrated into Alemanno’s synthesis» — la asimetría que Idel señala: el proceso se agudiza en un autor judío justo cuando intelectuales cristianos descubrían textos griegos que Ficino traducía y que no entraron en la síntesis de Alemanno.

«in Sefer ha-Atzamirn13 he expatiated on Saturn because it presides over the Israelite nation and their activities in general and in particular the Holy Language, and among the places, the Temple, and the conjunction of Sabbatai and Jupiter is conjunctio maxima which is known as being in the ascent for to the nation of Israel» — según Idel, así resume Alemanno el *Sefer ha-Atzamim*: Saturno preside la nación israelita, sus actividades en general y en particular la Lengua Santa, entre los lugares el Templo, y la conjunción de Sabbatai y Júpiter es *conjunctio maxima*, tenida por ascendente para Israel. El troceo corrompe el título como *ha-Atzamirn13*.

«The resort to the phrase ‘their activities in general’ points to Alemanno’s extension of the role of Saturn in a greater variety of topics then had been specified by earlier authors» — lo que Idel lee en esa fórmula: la extensión del papel de Saturno a más asuntos de los que los autores anteriores especificaban.

«In other words, Alemanno’s Saturnization of Judaism was based on astro-magical sources available in Hebrew in Spain since the fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries, though he was active in a cultural environment that fostered similar astro-magical views based on the Hermetic corpus translated by Marsilio Ficino, which was unrelated to Jews» — la precisión de fuentes: la saturnización de Alemanno se apoya en material astro-mágico hebreo de España, no en el corpus hermético que Ficino traducía en su mismo entorno.

«Fascinatingly enough, the Hellenistic literary corpus arriving from the Byzantine Empire and written in Greek, thus stemming from the east of Italy, encountered the astrological concepts arriving from Spain, extant in Hebrew texts, coming from the West, and they all met in the same city: Florence, during the last third of the fifteenth century» — el encuentro que Idel describe en Florencia del último tercio del siglo XV: el corpus helenístico llegado en griego desde el este y los conceptos astrológicos en hebreo llegados de España por el oeste.

«In some cases it is hard to discover the precise source of a discussion written in Florence in this period: the Eastern trajectory, represented mainly by Ficino’s translations from Greek, or the Western - Hebrew material stemming from Provenge and Spain» — la dificultad que declara: no siempre se puede decidir si una discusión florentina de ese periodo viene de las traducciones de Ficino o del material hebreo; el troceo rinde *Provence* como *Provenge*.

«In the first part of the sixteenth century, we find an explicit association of Saturn with sorcery in two books of a little known kabbalist who was active in Jerusalem and Damascus, Joseph ibn Tzayyah» — Idel sitúa en la primera mitad del siglo XVI la asociación explícita de Saturno con la hechicería en dos libros de Joseph ibn Tzayyah, cabalista poco conocido activo en Jerusalén y Damasco.

«His voluminous writings display an unprecedented mixture of theosophical speculations with detailed astrological theories» — y califica su obra de mezcla sin precedentes de especulación teosófica y teoría astrológica detallada.

«cold and dry and it is destruction, and bareness, and death and plague96 and things that are corrupting by the power of judgement of Binah ... and if you wish to use it by means of the path of demoniacs, be careful and guard your soul very much lest you do so ... but its [magical] use should be studied only in order to teach and understand the secrets of the chambers of the attribute of the power of Binah and behold its use [magical] involves the aspect of sorcery97 which denies and changes the supernal Family» — según Idel, así describe ibn Tzayyah al planeta: frío y seco, destrucción, esterilidad, muerte y peste por el poder de juicio de Binah, con la advertencia de guardarse mucho de usarlo por la vía de los demoníacos y de estudiar su uso solo para entender los secretos de las cámaras de Binah, pues ese uso implica el aspecto de la hechicería, que niega y cambia la Familia supernal.

«Ibn Tzayyah’s influence on the history of Kabbalah seems to be limited to few Kabbalists living in the Land of Israel and Syria» — el alcance que Idel le adjudica, en grado de apariencia: influencia limitada a unos pocos cabalistas de la Tierra de Israel y Siria.

«However, Isaac ben Joseph Karo (1458-1525), the uncle of the more famous Rabbi Joseph Karo, author of a widespread commentary on the Pentateuch, Toledot Yitzhaq, a title printed three times in the sixteenth century, elaborated on Saturn and Sabbath in two different discussions» — Idel presenta a Isaac ben Joseph Karo, tío del más famoso Joseph Karo, y su *Toledot Yitzhaq*, impreso tres veces en el siglo XVI.

«In my opinion, which will hopefully be expanded elsewhere, Alemanno’s family played a role in bringing» — la conjetura que Idel declara como opinión propia, pendiente de desarrollo: la familia de Alemanno habría llevado manuscritos de España a Italia; la frase se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *manuscripts from Spain to Italy, thus contributing to the strengthening of the Western vector in Italy* en la 43.

«Some authors, like Yohanan Alemanno, Isaac Abravanel and his son Leone Ebreo, were acquainted with both vectors» — Idel nombra a quienes conocían los dos vectores: Alemanno, Isaac Abravanel y su hijo León Hebreo.

«In one, he conceived of the planet designated over Israel, on the Temple, the Hebrew language and, last but not least, the Torah of Moses» — según Idel, en una de esas discusiones Karo da el planeta por designado sobre Israel, el Templo, la lengua hebrea y la Torá de Moisés.

«However, in his discussion, in which he explicitly mentions the astrologers and ibn Ezra, there is no trace of a negative conceptual structure» — la ausencia que Idel consigna como dato: en Karo, que nombra a los astrólogos y a ibn Ezra, no hay rastro de estructura conceptual negativa.

«His various discussions do testify, however, to the process of Saturnization of Judaism in the sixteenth century» — y lo que sí atestiguan: el proceso de saturnización del judaísmo en el siglo XVI.

«Moreover, in 1562 the first printing ofjoseph ben Shalom Ashkenazi’s Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah in Mantua had made its content available to much wider audiences, as we learn from the fact that the passage on Saturn discussed above influenced, for example, Abraham ibn Migash in the second half of the sixteenth century in the Ottoman Empire» — el efecto que Idel adjudica a la primera impresión del comentario de Ashkenazi en Mantua en 1562: acceso de públicos más amplios, con Abraham ibn Migash en el Imperio otomano por muestra. El troceo pega *of Joseph* como *ofjoseph*.

«The impact of Joseph Ashkenazi’s text (as discussed above) was also formative for Abraham Yagel in Italy in the late sixteenth century» — y su otro rastro: Abraham Yagel en Italia a finales del siglo XVI.

«You should know that Capricorn and Aquarius are the constellations of Israel;101 their planet is Saturn, since these constellations are its102 houses, as [Abraham] ibn Ezra explains in Sefer ha-‘Atzamim,103 and R. Abraham ben David in his Commentary on the Sefer Yetzirah. Because of these constellations, they [the Jews] are liable to plunder and destruction,104 to toil and to burdens, like those of our ancestors in Egypt. None of the heavenly hosts are as devastating as these two in summoning evil and suffering to this world. Accordingly, the astrologers assigned as its105 lot the [black] plague, illness, slaves, graves, the prison, and a place of corpses» — según Idel, así escribe Yagel: Capricornio y Acuario son las constelaciones de Israel y su planeta es Saturno por ser casas suyas, según explican ibn Ezra en el *Sefer ha-'Atzamim* y R. Abraham ben David en su comentario al *Sefer Yetzirah*; por ellas los judíos quedan expuestos al saqueo y la destrucción, al trabajo y las cargas como los antepasados en Egipto, y los astrólogos le asignan por lote la peste, la enfermedad, los esclavos, las tumbas, la prisión y el lugar de los cadáveres. El troceo desordena en renglones sueltos el arranque del pasaje.

«Mention of the plague here is one of the clearest instances Saturn being linked to this much-feared disease in Hebrew texts» — Idel destaca ese pasaje como de los casos más claros en que un texto hebreo liga Saturno con la peste.

«Since there is no reason to assume that he was aware of ibn Tzayyah’s passage quoted above, directly or indirectly, we should better surmise the existence of a common source which predated the composition of both ’Even ha-Shoham and Yagel’s Gei Hizzayon, where a nexus between the plague and Saturn is made explicit in a Jewish source» — la inferencia que Idel propone en grado de conjetura: no habiendo razón para suponer que Yagel conociera a ibn Tzayyah, mejor suponer una fuente común anterior a los dos.

«In this writer’s opinion, in his Saturnization of Judaism Yagel reflects the peak already established by Alemanno, an author whose writings he was acquainted with and quotes» — la adjudicación que Idel declara como opinión propia: Yagel refleja el punto alto ya fijado por Alemanno, a quien conocía y cita.

«always anonymously, from time to time. However, the last quote is far from being the most important Hebrew astrological discussion of the plague that I could detect in the sixteenth century» — el modo de esa cita —siempre anónima— y la reserva de Idel: no es la discusión astrológica hebrea más importante sobre la peste que él pudo detectar en el siglo XVI. El tramo arranca tras el corte de segmento a media plana.

«In a treatise dedicated to the nature and treatment of the plague, also written by Abraham Yagel, an astrological explanation is offered for this disease, which is fascinating from several points of view» — Idel anuncia el otro tratado de Yagel, sobre la naturaleza y el tratamiento de la peste, con su explicación astrológica.

«We had already mentioned in Ch. V,107 how the ancients brought about the descent of the supernal powers on the lower [entities] by means of smoke and incense, and how it is the special quality of Saturn and Mars and other bad conjunctions to cause a bad quality and property to the air, which becomes corrupted and there they create the evil animal [Hayyah ra‘ah] ... and how by the variety of smokes that are contrary to that bad nature we can purify it and kill the ‘horned viper on the path’108 as you know because the nature of Saturn and Mars is related to those things that create a bad smell» — según Idel, así explica Yagel la peste: los antiguos hacían descender los poderes supernales con humo e incienso, y es propio de Saturno y Marte y de otras malas conjunciones corromper el aire y crear en él el animal maligno, que se purifica con humos contrarios y se mata la *víbora cornuda del camino*, porque la naturaleza de los dos planetas se liga a lo que produce mal olor.

«As was pointed out several times in this treatise, the corrupted or adulterated air, ha-avir ha-me‘uppash, is the cause of the plague,110 and this deterioration of the air depends upon ‘the bad conjunctions that cause plague, whose vast majority are those of Saturn and Mars’, which cause ‘the corrupted air’ - namely the pestilential air» — según Idel, Yagel hace del aire corrompido, *ha-avir ha-me'uppash*, la causa de la peste, y hace depender esa corrupción de las malas conjunciones, en su gran mayoría de Saturno y Marte.

«This explanation was known centuries before Yagel, and adduced as one of the reasons for the Black Death,112 though I did not find a significant discussion which connects plague and Saturn in the medical discussions in the astrological books mentioned above» — el límite que Idel pone a su propio hallazgo: la explicación circulaba siglos antes como razón de la Peste Negra, pero dice no haber encontrado en los libros astrológicos citados una discusión médica de peso que ate peste y Saturno.

«Therefore, the descent of the influences depending upon the two planets creates an entity described in negative terms: serpent, evil animal, horned viper - instrumental in killing people. The plague is therefore personified in an entity described in serpentine terms, with lethal influences» — la lectura de Idel: la peste queda personificada en una entidad serpentina de influencias letales.

«Though there is discussion of the emergence of the maleficent animals in the context of the conjunction of Saturn and Mars, no direct connection is made between either of the two planets and the serpentine animals» — la reserva que añade: no se traza conexión directa entre ninguno de los dos planetas y los animales serpentinos.

«However, such a nexus did occur previously in a discussion of the anonymous kabbalist who composed Sefer Tiqqunei Zohar, where the serpent is mentioned together with Saturn, as we shall see below. As far back as in the passage by Alcabitius, Saturn is described as appointed upon black serpents» — el antecedente que Idel sí encuentra: el *Sefer Tiqqunei Zohar*, donde la serpiente aparece junto a Saturno, y ya en Alcabitius el planeta como señor de las serpientes negras.

«A short catalogue of the animals mentioned above will bring out the resemblance between them and the main Satanic figures of the Sabbat of the witches, but this issue will be addressed later in this study» — la conexión que Idel anuncia sin desarrollarla aún: el parecido entre esos animales y las figuras satánicas del sabbat de las brujas.

«It is therefore possible to speak about a constellation of negative features attributed to Saturn in texts written by astrologers before it was accepted by the Jews. This negative conceptual structure is fairly stable and migrated from century to century with only minor changes and additions» — la conclusión del apartado: una constelación de rasgos negativos atribuidos a Saturno por los astrólogos antes de que los judíos la aceptaran, estable y migrante de siglo en siglo con cambios menores.

«I have attempted to describe an astrological tradition concerning Judaism, shared by some important Jewish authors between the period from the middle of the twelfth to the end of the sixteenth centuries» — Idel resume lo hecho hasta aquí: describir una tradición astrológica sobre el judaísmo compartida por autores judíos de importancia entre mediados del siglo XII y finales del XVI.

«The texts are representative of various small scholarly circles — which may be designated ‘secondary elites’116 - and their views on the above topics were» — la acotación sociológica que Idel pone al corpus: son círculos eruditos pequeños, que llama élites secundarias; la frase se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *not circulated widely* en la 46.

«not circulated widely. Most of the texts mentioned above were written in Spain and they reflect a trend in Jewish Sefardi culture, which adopted it in a significant manner after Maimonides had directed criticism towards astrology and astral magic» — Idel sitúa el grueso de esos textos en España y en una corriente sefardí que los adopta tras la crítica de Maimónides a la astrología y a la magia astral.

«There can be no doubt that the dark and pessimistic character of Saturn did not attract too many Jews, and that the vast Jewish speculative literature produced since the twelfth century, when astrology made its first substantial inroads, was less receptive to Saturnian images of the Jew» — el contrapeso que Idel consigna: el carácter oscuro y pesimista del planeta no atrajo a muchos judíos, y la vasta literatura especulativa fue poco receptiva a esas imágenes.

«However, silence was only one way to react to the process of Saturnization as described above. In other cases, resistance proved far more explicit and provoked a polar comparison between Saturnism and Judaism» — y la otra reacción, que da nombre al apartado: una resistencia explícita que opone saturnismo y judaísmo.

«Bahya ben Asher, writing some time at the end of the thirteenth century, adduces two quotations concerning Saturn from an Epistle of Galenud11 dealing with the knowledge of the stars and their spiritual forces, in Hebrew ruhaniyyut ha-kokhavim, preserved most probably in Arabic, one of them describing an ascetic discipline intended to draw down those astral spiritualities» — según Idel, Bahya ben Asher aduce dos citas sobre Saturno de una *Epístola de Galeno* sobre la *ruhaniyyut ha-kokhavim*, una de ellas con una disciplina ascética para atraer esas espiritualidades astrales.

«Immediately afterwards he claims that the Torah is a science higher than the astrological one, and this is the reason for the Sabbath regulations which are inverted practices of those prescribed by the astrologers for Saturnian astro-magic» — y lo que Bahya sostiene a continuación: la Torá es ciencia más alta que la astrológica, y las reglas del sábado invierten las prácticas que los astrólogos prescriben para la astro-magia saturnina.

«In one of the two quotations Galens, or perhaps Balinus/Apollonius, prescribes the sacrifice of a black cat when Saturn is in the house of Capricorn, apparently on the Sabbath day» — la atribución que Idel deja abierta: Galeno, o quizá Balinus/Apolonio, prescribe el sacrificio de un gato negro con Saturno en Capricornio.

«whoever wants to draw down upon himself the spirituality of Saturn, that is the start [= planet] which presides in the day of Sabbath, he should reduce his eating of meat and any other food and avoid sexual intercourse and clothe in black garb, and prepare a form [temunah = talisman] of a lion of copper, at the hour of Saturn, and in the zodiac sign of Capricorn, and they should slaughter a black cat on the form and then he should come close to it and worship it and it will tell him future things. This is the language of that epistle that I translated from Arabic to Hebrew» — según Idel, así reza el pasaje que Bahya declara traducido por él del árabe: quien quiera atraer sobre sí la espiritualidad de Saturno, planeta que preside el sábado, reduzca la carne y el resto de alimento, evite el trato sexual, vista de negro, prepare una forma de león de cobre en la hora de Saturno y en Capricornio, degüelle sobre ella un gato negro, se acerque, la adore, y ella le dirá cosas futuras.

«What is not specified in the text is the precise time of the event, but from the context it is obvious that it is sometime during the Sabbath day» — la lectura que Idel propone del dato que falta: el texto no fija la hora, pero del contexto se sigue que es en sábado.

«To be sure, R. Bahya, a fairly conservative figure, rejects this view, claiming immediately afterwards that the wisdom of the Torah is higher than that of the stars, namely the planets, and of zodiac signs, this being the reason why the commandments related to the Sabbath in fact contradict the ritual mentioned in the epistle» — y el rechazo con que Bahya cierra: la sabiduría de la Torá es más alta que la de los planetas y signos, y de ahí que los mandamientos del sábado contradigan el rito de la epístola.

«Thus, we have here a third description of an astro-magical ritual related to Saturn in Spain, in addition to the Picatrix and» — Idel cuenta ese pasaje como tercera descripción de un rito astro-mágico saturnino en España, junto al *Picatrix*; la frase se corta en el cambio de plana y cierra con *Sefer ha-Atzamim* en la 47.

«In fact, in the same generation we have three different titles, in addition to another booklet translated into Hebrew by Sefer ha-Levanah, namely The Book of the Moon, which deals with astral magic» — y suma un cuarto título de la misma generación, el *Sefer ha-Levanah* o *Libro de la Luna*, vertido al hebreo.

«However, the most explicit rejection of magic and sorcery as related to Saturn is to be found in some texts which belong to the later layer of Zoharic literature, written in the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries» — Idel sitúa el rechazo más explícito en textos del estrato tardío de la literatura zohárica.

«Some discussions found in this canonical book of Kabbalah, in which Sabbatai is subordinate to higher forms of celestial order, entities called palaces, do not draw undue attention if we remind ourselves that the book was written in Castile in the last decades of the thirteenth century, a period when the Arabic original of Picatrix was being translated into Castilian, and later into Hebrew» — el encuadre cronológico que propone: el libro se escribe en Castilla en las últimas décadas del XIII, cuando el original árabe del *Picatrix* se traducía al castellano y luego al hebreo.

«However, though the Picatrix, and perhaps its Hebrew translation, might have determined the negative reaction of the anonymous kabbalist, it is quite plausible that he might also have been responding to developments in Kabbalah in Barcelona, specifically some form of the syntheses mentioned above, including the work of Joseph ben Shalom Ashkenazi» — la alternativa que Idel deja abierta: el cabalista anónimo pudo reaccionar al *Picatrix* o a los desarrollos cabalísticos de Barcelona, Ashkenazi incluido.

«A similar reaction to that expressed by R. Bahya to the Saturnian ritual can be found in an addition to one of the volumes of the Zohar that may belong to its later stratum. This part is constituted of two main compositions, the Tiqqunim, or the amendments to the Zohar, and the so-called Faithful Shepherd, Ra‘aya’ Meheimna’» — Idel localiza una reacción semejante en una adición zohárica compuesta por los *Tiqqunim* y el *Ra'aya' Meheimna'*.

«This nexus is indeed significant, but it is not so tight as to make us decide that we actually have a fragment from the later corpus of the Zohar, and perhaps we should allow for the possibility of a kabbalist who differs both from Zoharic thought and from that of the later layer though he was close to both» — la abstención con que lo acota: el nexo no basta para decidir que sea fragmento del corpus tardío, y cabe un cabalista distinto de ambos y cercano a los dos.

«In fact, a substantial rise in interest in astro-magical information among Jewish authors contributed as much as did an acquaintance with it - there was an awareness of the divergence between the Jewish rituals of Sabbath (based on joy, the consumption of food and sometimes also wearing white clothes) and rituals which concentrated on being sad and donning black garb, something that was to become a topos in Jewish literature to which we will be referring in chapter 3» — la divergencia que Idel dice haberse hecho consciente con el interés creciente por lo astro-mágico: el rito judío del sábado con alegría, comida y a veces ropa blanca frente a ritos de tristeza y ropa negra, que se volvería tópico en la literatura judía.

«At the hour that the planet Saturn presides over the world, and one of his branches emanates to descend on low and it exits by a barren head, and it strikes him by the means of Qorqefani and Shamriron, two spirits that preside over that branch. And when it strikes that person, they design two red traces, and that branch that the black trace [which is a third one] is designed on» — según Idel, así abre el pasaje de esa adición zohárica: en la hora en que Saturno preside el mundo, una de sus ramas desciende, sale por una cabeza estéril y golpea mediante Qorqefani y Shamriron, dos espíritus que presiden esa rama, dejando dos trazas rojas. El tramo se corta en el cambio de plana.

«it, behold the completion of Saturn is using the black [trace]. And this secret presides during the day of Sabbath but not on the holy nation, since the holy nation does not inherit the heritage of planets and zodiacal signs, but the Holy One, blessed be He, alone. And they [the Jews] should evince joy, with eating and beverage, and (fine) garments, and prepare the house and the table during that day, unlike those who seize the planet of Saturn, upon which it is incumbent to fast, and show sorrow and worry and anger, and have black garments, and black covers, and not to consume meat and wine and oil, and not to delight in the delights of the world, but seat in their houses in sorrow, and separate themselves from people. And the two spirits, Qorqefani and Shamriron, emanate upon him and disclose to him things of this world, by the emanation of Saturn. We have seen in the Book of King Solomon that there are persons that were born when this branch was presiding, and they are full of sorrow all the time, and are not joyous ever, but when they study the Torah and then they grasp on to the Holy One Blessed-be-He, and despite this there is in this person elements and roots of the Right of the Forefathers» — la continuación del pasaje: el secreto preside en sábado pero no sobre la nación santa, que no hereda planetas ni signos sino solo al Santo, bendito sea, y debe mostrar alegría con comida, bebida, buenas ropas y casa y mesa dispuestas, al revés de quienes se aferran a Saturno y deben ayunar, mostrar pena, ira y preocupación, vestir de negro, abstenerse de carne, vino y aceite y apartarse de la gente; los dos espíritus revelan al adepto cosas de este mundo, y el *Libro del Rey Salomón* dice de quienes nacen bajo esa rama que viven en tristeza y solo se asen al Santo estudiando la Torá.

«The author describes some instances of inscribing on his face - in the case of Saturn by means of three lines: two black and one red» — la lectura de Idel del rasgo fisiognómico: tres líneas inscritas en el rostro, dos negras y una roja.

«The resort to the image of a branch leaves us with the impression that we have here some ritual in which Saturn plays the role of a king, perhaps in the investiture of a vassal, a verbal picture that describes a gesture deserving further attention» — y la impresión que declara sobre la imagen de la rama: un rito donde Saturno haría de rey, quizá en la investidura de un vasallo, gesto que dice merecedor de más atención.

«Its attribution to an ancient book written by King Solomon is part of the image of Solomon as skilled in the arts of magic, which was a topos in the Middle Ages» — la adjudicación al *Libro del Rey Salomón* la encuadra Idel en el tópico medieval de Salomón diestro en las artes mágicas.

«This juxtaposition of Saturnian qualities and the Jews forms a strong parallel to R. Bahya’s passage, formulated on the grounds of a translation that he rendered from the Arabic. Thus, if the latter Zoharic text is indeed similar to that of R. Bahya, it depends on it, not vice versa» — la dirección de dependencia que Idel traza: de ser el texto zohárico semejante al de Bahya, depende de él y no al revés.

«However, the Zoharic text avoids the description of the ritual of witchcraft found in Bahya, and instead gives the theme of the branch and the physiognomical traces or lines that reflect the subordination of the person to the planet, in order to describe the effect that Saturn has upon people in this world» — la diferencia que Idel marca entre los dos: el texto zohárico evita el rito de brujería de Bahya y pone en su lugar la rama y las trazas fisiognómicas de subordinación al planeta. El tramo arranca tras el corte de segmento a media plana.

«This means that the anonymous Zoharic author reacted to the vision of the Epistle of Galenus, not to the rather similar view found in Picatrix, especially in Book III, chapter 8, which was influenced by the prayers to Saturn already» — la consecuencia que Idel saca: el autor zohárico anónimo habría reaccionado a la *Epístola de Galeno* y no a la visión parecida del *Picatrix*, libro III capítulo 8; el tramo se corta en el límite de segmento y sigue *found in ibn Wahshiya's Nabbatean Agriculture* en la misma plana.

«treatises, it is plausible that the critique is addressed not to that of the basically unknown Saturnians, but rather more to the contemporary Christian monks» — la conjetura de destinatario que Idel propone: la crítica no iría contra saturnianos desconocidos sino contra los monjes cristianos contemporáneos. El tramo arranca en la plana 49, donde continúa la frase que la 48 deja cortada.

«Thus, the Saturnization of Judaism created a reaction, which culminated in a Saturnization of Christianity among the Jews who could not accept the astrological domination of the Jews by the malign planet» — la vuelta de tuerca que Idel describe: la saturnización del judaísmo provoca una saturnización del cristianismo entre los judíos que no aceptaban el dominio del planeta maligno.

«One of these critiques formulated in a piece belonging to later Zoharic literature distinguishes between the good Sabbatai - which is related to Sabbath and to the sefirah of Yesod - and the pernicious Sabbatai - which depends on the ‘other side’, namely on the demonic powers, and ‘when it is dominant on the world the Sabbath departs, and the supplementary souls exclaim» — según Idel, un pasaje zohárico tardío separa el Sabbatai bueno, ligado al sábado y a Yesod, del pernicioso, que depende del *otro lado*; al dominar este, el sábado se va.

«The discussion is based upon a pun: the Hebrew spelling of Sabbata’ywas deconstructed into two Hebrew words Y Sabbath which means ‘there is no Sabbath’» — el juego de palabras en que se apoya, según Idel: *Sabbatai* descompuesto en *Y Sabbath*, *no hay sábado*. El troceo pega *Sabbata'yw* por *Sabbata'y was*.

«We may assume that this is one of the very rare approaches to the possibility of the existence of the concept of a pernicious Sabbath, apparently cultivated by a Jewish magician or sorcerer, since the ‘supplementary souls’, destined to descend only upon Jews, are described as not descending, on account of nefarious activities» — la suposición que Idel declara: sería uno de los poquísimos acercamientos a un sábado pernicioso cultivado por un mago o hechicero judío, ya que las almas suplementarias no descienden.

«Moreover, several lines before the mention of Saturn, the anonymous kabbalist carefully distinguishes between those figures who reflect the splendour of the primordial light, and the others, ‘preoccupied as they are all the day in sorcery123 and they are successful with kings and governors, and they are Me‘onen, and Menahesh, and Sorcerer» — y el contraste previo en el mismo texto: unos reflejan el esplendor de la luz primordial y otros se ocupan todo el día en hechicería, prosperan con reyes y gobernadores y son *Me'onen*, *Menahesh* y hechicero.

«Moreover, the positive figures are emphatically described as white. It would be logical to assume that the blackness of Saturn, a well-known attribute of this planet, is the background for creating a stark contrast between the two types» — la inferencia que Idel propone como lógica: las figuras positivas van dichas en blanco, y la negrura de Saturno estaría al fondo del contraste.

«Given the strong polarities that govern the whole discussion in this passage, I see no reason not to correlate the pernicious Saturn with the preoccupation with sorcery mentioned earlier in the text, just as those people described as ‘good people’ are plausibly related to the study of the Torah» — la correlación que Idel dice no ver razón para no hacer: el Saturno pernicioso con la ocupación en la hechicería, y la gente buena con el estudio de la Torá.

«It seems that the author was aware of the religious dangers involved in immersion in astral magic and astrology, which could prove detrimental to the more particularistic propensity of the Jews to be under the sway of Saturn, here related to the study of the Torah» — lo que Idel atribuye al autor, en grado de apariencia: conciencia del peligro religioso de sumergirse en magia astral y astrología.

«The very fact that the magicians are described as being in contact with kings and governors may demonstrate that their magical preoccupation involves some form of cooperation» — el indicio social que saca del texto: los magos en contacto con reyes y gobernadores apuntarían a alguna forma de cooperación.

«aware of and antagonistic to the interest in astro-magic at the court of King Alfonso Sabio, the King of Castile (c. 1280), and the involvement of Jews in translations of magical treatises like the Picatrix, which are replete with astro-magic in general and discussions on Saturn in particular» — la hipótesis de destinatario que Idel propone: el autor conocería y rechazaría el interés astro-mágico de la corte de Alfonso el Sabio hacia 1280 y la participación judía en la traducción del *Picatrix*.

«As I have suggested elsewhere, there was a negative affinity between the interest in astro-magic in the last third of thirteenth-century Castile and the attitude to astro-magic in the Zoharic literature» — y remite a una propuesta suya anterior sobre esa afinidad negativa entre el interés astro-mágico de la Castilla del último tercio del XIII y la actitud zohárica.

«In other words, Sabbath and Torah, two topics that loom so conspicuously in the Satumization of Judaism mentioned above, are described here as forms of resistance to the maleficent influences of Saturn» — el giro que Idel señala: sábado y Torá, los dos temas de la saturnización, se vuelven aquí formas de resistencia al influjo maléfico del planeta.

«In the literature of the later Zoharic layer, entitled Tiqqunei Zohar, the affinity between Saturn and Saturnine persons on the one hand and sorcery on the other is expressed even more explicitly» — según Idel, el *Tiqqunei Zohar* hace más explícita la afinidad entre Saturno y las personas saturninas por un lado y la hechicería por otro.

«If he is a sinner, he is from the side of Saturn, he is a gullible person,129 a black one, from the side of the female of the Qelippah, where all the magic of the black ravens130 and black birds, from the side of impurity, upon which there are some presiding powers named leilotm ... and they descend under the wings of the ravens and show to them,132 by means of the [ir] movements, some evil decrees133 that descend upon the world. And there are others134 which preside over their voices, and they cry voice after voice ... and the serpent is riding over the voice of the raven, the Other God, to his spouse, magic,135 the poison of death,136 in which Samael, the Other God, becomes complete» — según Idel, así describe el color negro ese cabalista anónimo: el pecador viene del lado de Saturno, negro, del lado de la hembra de la *Qelippah*, donde está toda la magia de los cuervos negros y las aves negras, del lado de la impureza, con potencias llamadas *leilot* que descienden bajo las alas de los cuervos y muestran con sus movimientos decretos malignos, y otras que presiden sus voces; la serpiente cabalga sobre la voz del cuervo, el Otro Dios, hacia su esposa, la magia, el veneno de la muerte, en que Samael se completa.

«The entire passage is replete with images related to black - night, ravens, black birds - and thus they are symbols of impurity, namely the demonic dimension of reality» — la lectura de Idel: todo el pasaje va tejido de imágenes negras que funcionan como símbolos de impureza, la dimensión demoníaca de lo real.

«The demonology espoused here is not so clear: is Saturn different from Samael, or does the latter represent, as in many other cases, the planet Mars; and does their cooperation point to the particularly nefarious impact of the astral power during the Sabbath, as already hinted at in ibn Ezra» — las preguntas que Idel deja sin responder: si Saturno se distingue de Samael, si este representa a Marte, y si su cooperación apunta al influjo especialmente nefasto del poder astral en sábado.

«It would be redundant to emphasize the importance of the addition of the theme of poison as part of sorcery. This connection seems to reflect the» — Idel subraya la entrada del veneno como parte de la hechicería; la frase se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *existence of a conception that connects saturnine sorcery with poison* en la 51.

«In the vein of the theurgical Kabbalah, which emphasized the need to unify the male and female aspects of the divine powers, the anonymous kabbalist resorts to the pun Sam plus ’El in order to invoke the completion of the demonic counterpart by sorcery» — el juego de palabras que Idel describe: *Sam* más *'El* para invocar la completud de la contraparte demoníaca por la hechicería.

«In other words, sorcery is the inverse operation, or a counter-ritual when compared to theurgical Kabbalah» — y la fórmula con que lo resume: la hechicería como operación inversa o contra-rito de la cábala teúrgica.

«Here I should point out that though a clearly masculine noun, Sabbatai as a planet is related in several instances in this layer of the Zoharic literature to a female demonic power» — el dato gramatical que Idel destaca: aunque sustantivo masculino, Sabbatai se liga varias veces en esa capa zohárica a un poder demoníaco femenino.

«Interestingly enough, the figure of Melancholy in the famous etching of Durer’s Melencolia I is also a feminine entity, as is an angel imagined to be related to Saturn and Walter Benjamin, as we shall see in chapter 3» — el paralelo que anuncia: la Melancolía del grabado de Durero es también entidad femenina, como el ángel que se imaginará ligado a Saturno y a Walter Benjamin.

«Elohim Aherim, Sabbatai, ’Y Sabbath, [since] Sabbatai is composed of the letters Y Sabbath, and Israel should change place and name and deed ... so that the enemy, which is Samael, will not know them ... If someone keeps Sabbath he has to change the clothes, in comparison to other days, as well as the foods, which are the delight of Sabbath. If he is accustomed to eat two meals in the week days, during Sabbath he should eat three meals» — según Idel, así reúne el *Tiqqunei Zohar* los motivos: *Sabbatai* compuesto de *Y Sabbath*, e Israel que ha de cambiar lugar, nombre y obra para que el enemigo, Samael, no lo reconozca, cambiando en sábado ropas y comidas y pasando de dos comidas a tres.

«Keeping the commandments related to Sabbath became, therefore, an attempt to escape the attention of Samael, a power which is either identical to, or at least closely associated with, Sabbatai» — la lectura de Idel: guardar los mandamientos del sábado se vuelve intento de escapar a la atención de Samael, poder idéntico o al menos muy próximo a Sabbatai.

«Apparently, the assumption is that during Sabbath the power of Saturn is even greater than during the week, and hence the need for disguise is more conspicuous in order to escape its nefarious influence» — y el supuesto que lee detrás, en grado de apariencia: en sábado el poder de Saturno es mayor, y por eso hace más falta el disfraz.

«This confrontational understanding of Jewish ritual, reminiscent of the manner in which Maimonides explained some of the commandments, may point to a struggle that is not a mere matter of theoretical dispute, though unfortunately material on historical events related to Jews practising magic and sorcery is very scant» — la lectura confrontativa que Idel propone del rito judío, con su límite declarado: el material sobre sucesos históricos de judíos practicando magia es muy escaso.

«When promulgating the rituals of Sabbath, Moses (i.e. a Jewish Everyman ?) was therefore fighting against the practices of the Saturnines, as we shall see below in a more explicit statement found in a much later author» — la figura con que lo dice, con su propia interrogación: al promulgar los ritos del sábado, Moisés —o un judío cualquiera— combatiría las prácticas de los saturninos.

«Interestingly enough, the explanation of the Jewish rituals as an attempt to counteract astro-magic is not an innovation of the anonymous kabbalist but an explication of a principle formulated by Maimonides» — la filiación que Idel traza: explicar los ritos judíos como contrapeso de la astro-magia no es invención del cabalista anónimo sino explicitación de un principio de Maimónides.

«who explained some Jewish religious practices as attempts to eradicate what he construed to be ancient pagan forms of worship» — y en qué consistía ese principio: prácticas religiosas judías entendidas como intentos de erradicar formas antiguas de culto pagano.

«It is quite interesting to see how this classical text of Kabbalah is much closer to the ‘Great Eagle’ than to ibn Ezra: philosophy and Kabbalistic mythology may sometimes cooperate against some forms of astrological worship» — la alianza inesperada que Idel señala: ese texto clásico de la cábala queda más cerca del *Gran Águila* que de ibn Ezra, con filosofía y mitología cabalística cooperando contra el culto astrológico.

«Most of the discussions dealing with Saturn are mainly lists attempting to arrange some of the objects and occurrences in the world, as well as human qualities and behaviour, under the aegis of this malign planet» — la forma que Idel adjudica a la mayoría de esas discusiones: listas que ordenan objetos, sucesos, cualidades y conductas bajo el planeta maligno.

«The schematic structure of the discourse and the staccato style of texts like ibn Ezra’s and those of his commentators, or those of other astrologers such as Ptolemy and Abu Ma‘shar, are conspicuous» — y el estilo que les atribuye: estructura esquemática y dicción entrecortada en ibn Ezra, sus comentaristas y los astrólogos.

«In the Kabbalistic texts, however, an attempt has been made to correlate the different entities, predominantly words, arranged under this rubric, though they may belong to different ontological levels: sefirotic, i.e. divine, and astral» — lo que cambia en los textos cabalísticos según Idel: el intento de correlacionar entidades, sobre todo palabras, de niveles ontológicos distintos, sefirótico y astral.

«Here I would like to deal with another aspect of organizing the discourse: the creation of a dynamic that conjugates the different elements into a broader narrative with obvious mythical qualities» — el aspecto que Idel elige tratar: la creación de una dinámica que conjuga los elementos en un relato más amplio de cualidades míticas.

«The astrologers were concerned predominantly with organizing a map of reality - the kabbalists sometimes following the astrologers were far more concerned to discover types of interaction between the catalogued entities, and they did so by introducing sexual polarity» — el contraste que Idel traza: los astrólogos ordenaban un mapa de lo real y los cabalistas buscaban interacciones entre lo catalogado, introduciendo polaridad sexual.

«In contrast with the work of the astrologers in the later Zoharic material adduced above, there are much shorter sentences to similar effect, and feminine entities are introduced, creating forms of mythical interaction which are very rare in the more scientifically oriented texts» — y lo que aparece en el material zohárico tardío: frases más cortas y entidades femeninas que crean interacciones míticas raras en los textos de orientación científica.

«In fact, the anonymous kabbalist created a myth which is designed to counteract the astrological discourse which he has construed as negative» — la tesis de Idel sobre ese cabalista: crea un mito para contrarrestar el discurso astrológico que él mismo construye como negativo.

«However, the main raw material for this new myth is less an activation of the astral bodies as personifications and more a resort to complex linguistic speculations» — y de qué está hecho ese mito: menos de personificar cuerpos astrales que de especulación lingüística compleja.

«While the astrologers were concerned with a description of things and processes, the kabbalists were much more concerned with symbolic interpretations and allegorical words in canonical books and in manipulating their letters» — el reparto de tareas que Idel formula: los astrólogos describen cosas y procesos, los cabalistas interpretan símbolos y manipulan letras de libros canónicos.

«The Greek myths that nourished some of the Hellenistic and medieval astrological speculations were less oriented towards linguistics, whereas the kabbalists capitalized on the linguistic material that designated the basic elements which had already been organized along more ‘objective’ lines by the astrologers» — y la asimetría de fondo: los mitos griegos que nutrían la especulación astrológica no eran lingüísticos, y los cabalistas capitalizaron el material lingüístico de elementos ya ordenados por los astrólogos.

«As has been pointed out by Dov Schwartz,141 there are reservations to be found concerning the extreme and comprehensive processes of» — Idel toma de Dov Schwartz las reservas frente a los procesos extremos de saturnización; la frase se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *Saturnization of Judaism in Abraham ibn Al-Tabib's explicit critique of Shlomo Franco's stand* en la 53.

«Saturnization of Judaism in Abraham ibn Al-Tabib’s explicit critique of Shlomo Franco’s stand142 and in the reticence of some of the students of a group of interpreters of ha-Levi’s Kuzari» — dónde localiza Schwartz esas reservas, según Idel: la crítica explícita de Abraham ibn Al-Tabib a la postura de Shlomo Franco y la reticencia de intérpretes del *Kuzari*.

«Some of those Provencal masters were also inclined to accept an astrological understanding of Judaism, describing Moses as aligned with the benevolent and intellectual» — el matiz que Idel añade: algunos de esos maestros provenzales aceptaban una lectura astrológica del judaísmo y alineaban a Moisés con Mercurio; la frase se corta en el límite de segmento y cierra con *influence of Mercury* en la misma plana.

«However, of particular importance is a passage by Rabbi Menahem ben Zerah, an important figure who was active in the second half of the fourteenth century in Castile» — Idel destaca a Rabbi Menahem ben Zerah, activo en la segunda mitad del siglo XIV en Castilla.

«I seal the discussion of the matters of stars and the deeds of sorcery,145 so that the mouth of the astrologers will be filled with rubble and their premolars will be broken, because in our generation there are many ignoramuses, belonging to the monotheists146 who follow their own opinion and counsel ... and they do not know the decrees of the Lord of the Earth ... and their opinion and view is that the deeds of all men, without any exception, have been delivered to the motions of the spheres and the aspects of the seven planets ... and they say that God has left the world since the six days of Creation» — según Idel, así protesta Menahem ben Zerah: sella la discusión de los astros y las obras de hechicería para que la boca de los astrólogos se llene de escombro y se les rompan las muelas, porque en su generación hay muchos ignorantes entre los monoteístas que siguen su propio parecer, desconocen los decretos del Señor de la Tierra, entregan las obras de todos los hombres a los movimientos de las esferas y los aspectos de los siete planetas y dicen que Dios dejó el mundo desde los seis días de la Creación.

«The Castilian master claims that he is protesting against a more substantial group, whose adherence to astrology and magic amounted to a vision of a universe that was totally governed by astral bodies without any intervention on the part of God» — la lectura de Idel: el maestro castellano dice protestar contra un grupo de peso cuya adhesión a la astrología suponía un universo gobernado por los astros sin intervención de Dios.

«Even if his claim is an exaggeration, the social implications of this passage should not be overlooked, provided that a number of Jewish authors became followers of ibn Ezra in the fourteenth century» — y la reserva con que lo acota: aun siendo exageración, las implicaciones sociales del pasaje no deben pasarse por alto.

«In Sha‘ar ha-FIesheq, the printed introduction to his manuscript commentary on the Song of Songs, entitled Hesheq Shlomo, even Yohanan Alemanno, the author who so warmly espoused a positive attitude to the fourteenth-century Jewish commentators on ibn Ezra, nevertheless claims in a manner especially reminiscent of Bahya ben Asher’s attitude» — Idel señala que aun Alemanno, defensor de los comentaristas de ibn Ezra, sostiene en el *Sha'ar ha-Hesheq* algo cercano a la postura de Bahya; el troceo corrompe el título como *ha-FIesheq*.

«Since Saturn is the cause of sorcery148 and of pagan worship ... our master Moses, of blessed memory, had to stand in the breach and guard Israel in the matter of the Torah and commandments which issue from the sefirah of Tiferet and from all kinds of pagan worship. All kinds of sorcery issue from Saturn» — según Idel, así lo dice Alemanno: siendo Saturno causa de la hechicería y del culto pagano, Moisés tuvo que ponerse en la brecha y guardar a Israel con la Torá y los mandamientos que salen de Tiferet; toda clase de hechicería sale de Saturno.

«Unlike the passage adduced above from an untitled treatise preserved in MS. Paris BN 849, where Saturn is described as the planet of Moses, here Moses is described as striving against the maleficent Saturn and its influence, and as offering a religious system based on the Torah which, according to the kabbalists, was related to the sixth sefirah, Tiferet» — la divergencia que Idel consigna sin armonizar: en el tratado sin título del MS. Paris BN 849 Saturno es el planeta de Moisés, y aquí Moisés lucha contra el Saturno maléfico.

«In a passage to be analysed below in the Appendix, Alemanno, in a manner perhaps influenced by Sefer ha-Peliy’ah, emphasizes the sharp distinction (and separation) between spirituality and corporeality as the main purpose of Moses» — el propósito que Alemanno adjudica a Moisés, según Idel: la distinción y separación tajantes entre espiritualidad y corporalidad, acaso bajo influjo del *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*.

«However, I would like to emphasize that following the tradition of ibn Ezra neither the Saturnian religion nor Judaism were described by Alemanno by creating a mythical narrative, as found in the Zoharic literature, or later on in Sabbatean thought» — la ausencia que Idel subraya: siguiendo a ibn Ezra, Alemanno no construye un relato mítico ni para la religión saturnina ni para el judaísmo.

«The ‘list type’ of discourse remained the backbone of Kabbalistic treatments, and a modest change in the direction of a more sustained narrative may be discerned when Sabbatai Tzevi becomes involved, as we shall see in the next chapter» — y lo que cambia después: el discurso de lista sigue siendo la columna de los tratamientos cabalísticos, con un giro modesto hacia el relato cuando entra Sabbatai Tzevi.

«The above passages do not exhaust the discussions on the nexus between magic and sorcery, Saturn, Sabbath and Jews found in Jewish texts. I hope that I have detected the more important ones» — la reserva con que Idel cierra el recorrido: los pasajes no agotan las discusiones, y solo espera haber dado con los más importantes.

«However, the vast literature which is pertinent to our topic - especially the thousands of folios dealing with the various ‘supercommentaries’ on Abraham ibn Ezra - and still in manuscript has to be perused before a more accurate picture may be offered» — y la deuda que declara: miles de folios de supercomentarios a ibn Ezra siguen en manuscrito y habría que recorrerlos antes de dar un cuadro más exacto.

«Nevertheless, I assume that the passages analysed above will suffice to conclude that in somejewish intellectual circles, of philosophers and kabbalists alike, the affinities between these topics were conceived of as part of the ordered astrological universe pertaining to the more comprehensive ‘scientific’ worldview of some of their contemporaries» — la conclusión que Idel declara como suposición: en algunos círculos judíos, de filósofos y cabalistas, esas afinidades se tuvieron por parte del universo astrológico ordenado.

«The different attributes and qualities found in relation to Saturn stem from a variety of realms: nations, times, places, spiritual qualities or domains of knowledge. They do indeed reflect unconnected entities which were assembled because of the belief that they were under the aegis of Saturn» — la operación semiótica que Idel describe: atributos de reinos dispares —naciones, tiempos, lugares, cualidades espirituales, saberes— reunidos por creerlos bajo el mismo planeta.

«The above discussions reveal a great amount of what I have called ‘vertical selective affinities’ between some of the entities in the mundane world and Saturn and to a certain extent also the sefirah related to it. In most cases that sefirah is Binah» — el término que Idel acuña para eso: afinidades selectivas verticales entre entidades del mundo y Saturno, y en buena parte también la sefirá ligada a él, casi siempre Binah.

«those matters which were individually related to Saturn are rare, they nevertheless exist, as the descriptions of the Jews as suffering, as sorcerers or as intelligent, show» — el contrapeso que Idel consigna: las afinidades horizontales entre esas materias son raras pero existen, como muestran las descripciones de los judíos como sufrientes, hechiceros o inteligentes. El tramo arranca en la plana 55, donde continúa la frase que la 54 deja cortada ante el folio.

«However, a possible and, in my opinion, plausible reading of those texts may emphasize the horizontal affinities beyond what was explicitly specified in the various different passages. They create a greater coherence between the discrete entities found in the mundane realm, or what may be described as a mutual contamination» — la lectura que Idel declara posible y plausible a su juicio: acentuar las afinidades horizontales más allá de lo explícito, con lo que las entidades discretas ganan coherencia o se contaminan mutuamente.

«Hence, the Jews, or the Hebrew language, were to become more ‘melancholic’ or prophetic’ or ‘magical’ or involved in sorcery, as the Sabbath may attract these and other ‘relevant’ positive or negative qualities» — la consecuencia que deriva: judíos y lengua hebrea vueltos más melancólicos, proféticos o mágicos según el sábado atraiga esas cualidades.

«In other words, the reception of the texts discussed above may have taken a path already analysed by Brian Vickers and described as assimilation’ or ‘symphysis’» — el término que Idel toma de Brian Vickers para nombrar esa recepción: asimilación o *symphysis*.

«The “symphysical’ process could produce a stronger association, or assimilation, of sorcery and Jewishness, or of Sabbath and sorcery and Jewishness, and each of these and Saturn, even including in some way the theme of Jews as portents of the plague» — y lo que ese proceso podría producir: asociación más fuerte de hechicería y judeidad, o de sábado, hechicería y judeidad, y de cada uno con Saturno, incluso los judíos como portadores de la peste; las comillas desparejas son del troceo.

«Both Jews and the plague are ‘vertically’ related to Saturn, but their horizontal affinity is only rarely made explicit in classical astrological texts» — la asimetría que Idel señala: judíos y peste se ligan verticalmente a Saturno, pero su afinidad horizontal casi nunca se hace explícita en los textos astrológicos clásicos.

«However, this nexus may be activated in special social and religious circumstances based on reading (and frequently misunderstanding) texts and oral discussions» — y cuándo se activaría: en circunstancias sociales y religiosas especiales, a partir de lecturas y discusiones orales, con frecuencia mal entendidas.

«One such example, though a late one, consists in descriptions of the Jews as having a Saturnine temperament and as miserable in the fifteenth, sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.152 Even the expression Lex Satuma has been coined in order to point to Judaism» — el ejemplo tardío que da: los judíos descritos con temperamento saturnino y miserables entre los siglos XV y XVII, y la acuñación de *Lex Saturna* para el judaísmo; el troceo rinde *Saturna* como *Satuma*.

«The question that I would like to address now is whether the existence of this complex of affinities could have contributed to the emergence of the much more widespread notion of the ‘Sabbat of the witches’» — la pregunta con que Idel abre el último apartado del capítulo: si ese complejo de afinidades pudo contribuir a la noción del sabbat de las brujas.

«To the best of my knowledge, the possible nexus between the Hebrew term for Saturday, the Sabbath and the ‘Sabbat of the witches’ has not been unanimously accepted in very recent scholarship» — el estado de la cuestión que consigna: hasta donde sabe, la erudición reciente no acepta unánimemente el nexo entre el sábado hebreo y el sabbat de las brujas.

«Even Carlo Ginzburg does not commit himself when identifying an earlier suggestion to this effect, and considers the witches’ Sabbat to be “of obscure etymology’,155 though he does not reject it altogether» — la posición que adjudica a Carlo Ginzburg: no se compromete y llama al sabbat de las brujas de etimología oscura, sin rechazar del todo la propuesta.

«It seems that among recent scholars only Baroja and Cohn commit themselves, without however adducing detailed analysis, to the nexus of Sabbath-Sabbat» — y quiénes sí se comprometen, según él: solo Baroja y Cohn, aunque sin análisis detallado.

«Carlo Ginzburg has proposed viewing the dreadful Sabbat persecutions as the result of a transposition of xenophobic sentiments from one marginal group, the lepers, to another, the Jews, and then to the wider and much vaguer category, the witches» — la tesis que Idel atribuye a Ginzburg: la persecución del sabbat como transposición de sentimientos xenófobos de los leprosos a los judíos y de ahí a las brujas.

«Thus, just before the contamination of the rituals of the so-called witches with the concept of Sabbat, at the end of the fourteenth and the beginning of the fifteenth centuries, the Jews played a similar role as a persecuted group, especially during the social trauma throughout Europe created by the Black Death» — y el momento en que la sitúa: finales del XIV y principios del XV, con los judíos en papel de grupo perseguido durante el trauma de la Peste Negra.

«This occurred in the mid fourteenth century, a period when the nexus between the entities mentioned above had already been in existence in some Jewish circles for more than a century and a half and, in the views of Alcabitius (found in Arabic and Latin), even earlier» — la cronología que Idel contrapone: para entonces el nexo llevaba siglo y medio en círculos judíos, y en Alcabitius, aún antes.

«This etymological affinity when adjoined to the more conceptual one - meaning the view that magic can be better performed during the Sabbath because of the extra-soul and the» — la explicación que Idel propone en grado de sugerencia: la afinidad etimológica junto a la conceptual —la magia mejor obrada en sábado por el alma añadida—; el tramo se corta antes del encabezado corrido que la plana arrastra, y sigue *presidency of Saturn — may suggest an explanation for the otherwise unexplained and bizarre usage of the term 'Sabbat' to refer to a general assembly of witches* en la plana 56.

«However, this conceptual-terminological explanation of the origin of the Sabbat is somehow corroborated by the way the genesis of ‘Sabbat’ is described in recent scholarship» — Idel declara corroborada de algún modo su explicación conceptual y terminológica por cómo la erudición reciente describe la génesis del sabbat.

«Prior to the sixteenth century, I have not been able to find connections between Saturn, Sabbath, the plague and the Jews all occurring in one text, and I wonder if the existence of such an earlier, and rather rare, view has been assimilated into the complex of affinities that we have discussed above and whether these provoked a wider nexus between Jews and the Black Death» — la búsqueda negativa que Idel consigna como dato: antes del siglo XVI no encontró un solo texto donde coincidan Saturno, sábado, peste y judíos, y se pregunta si una visión así, rara y anterior, se asimiló al complejo.

«If further material demonstrates the more widespread persistence of such a multi-faceted complex, then Jews might have been conceived of by Christians, even before the time of the Black Death, not only as Saturn’s Planetenkinderbxit also as people who spread the plague - and not only for social reasons but also on the grounds of more ‘scientific’ astrological speculations» — la hipótesis condicional que formula: de aparecer más material, los judíos habrían sido vistos por los cristianos, ya antes de la Peste Negra, no solo como *Planetenkinder* de Saturno sino como propagadores de la peste por especulación astrológica. La capa de texto del troceo corrompe *Planetenkinderbxit*; se cita tal cual y se declara.

«Indeed, as Guerschberg has correctly pointed out, the astrological explanation for the plague was the most widespread one: ‘Aussi de toutes les theories etiologiques concernant la Peste Noire, c’est la theorie astrologique qui a triomphe» — Idel se apoya en Guerschberg para el predominio de la explicación astrológica de la Peste Negra, y cita en francés sin traducir.

«Needless to say, this is not what actually happened in history, as the Jews never had anything to do with spreading the plague» — la aclaración que Idel intercala sin rodeos: los judíos nunca tuvieron nada que ver con propagar la peste.

«But as we know, people’s imagination, when it was founded upon negative attitudes towards Jews and then stoked by great fear, was a powerful historical factor in the religious history of Christian Europe» — y lo que sí adjudica a la imaginación: fundada en actitudes negativas hacia los judíos y atizada por el miedo, fue factor histórico poderoso en la historia religiosa de la Europa cristiana.

«However, even now, on the basis of two influential texts, ibn Ezra’s Reshit Hokhmah and Ashkenazi’s Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah, both of which mention various contagious diseases in connection with Saturn, this possibility should be taken seriously» — el apoyo textual con que Idel sostiene que la posibilidad merece tomarse en serio: el *Reshit Hokhmah* y el comentario de Ashkenazi, que ligan enfermedades contagiosas a Saturno.

«Indeed, if we follow Ginzburg’s research, we may hypothesize a phase when the conception of the cult of demonic powers was posited as being on Friday night, in connection either with concepts found in Judaism or - though this is less plausible - with actions carried out by Jews and misunderstood by Christians that were later transferred to witches» — la fase que Idel propone como hipótesis siguiendo a Ginzburg: un culto de poderes demoníacos situado la noche del viernes, ligado a conceptos judaicos o —dice que menos plausiblemente— a actos de judíos mal entendidos por cristianos.

«Indeed, it seems that the very fact that the Sabbat meeting often took place on Friday night may point to a connection with Jewish rituals, because, as discussed above, since ibn Ezra this moment in time had been understood as the conjunction of the two most maleficent planets» — y el indicio que lo apoya: que el encuentro del sabbat cayera a menudo la noche del viernes, momento entendido desde ibn Ezra como conjunción de los dos planetas más maléficos.

«Persuasive as some of these points may be for understanding some details of the Sabbat, no claim has been made that the astro-magical themes previously addressed may solve the complexity of the Sabbat mythology» — el límite que Idel pone a su propia propuesta: en ningún momento afirma que los temas astro-mágicos resuelvan la complejidad de la mitología del sabbat.

«Nevertheless, there is one important detail that should be pointed out in the context of the Saturnian explanation: the famous ‘fact’ that in Greek mythology Kronos devoured his children, and that during the Sabbat imaginary children were consumed by imaginary witches» — el detalle que sí destaca: Crono devorando a sus hijos en el mito griego y los niños imaginarios consumidos por brujas imaginarias en el sabbat; entrecomilla *fact* como cita del propio texto.

«If the Saturnine explanation is correct, we have an additional affinity, which, for the time being, cannot be explained by resorting to the astrological sources» — la condición y el límite: de ser correcta la explicación saturnina habría una afinidad más, que por ahora no se explica por las fuentes astrológicas judías discutidas.

«I would like to emphasize that though this theme may point to astrological or mythical traditions regarding Saturn, which are only vaguely represented in Jewish literature, and were transmitted by channels that differ from those discussed above, their existence does not preclude the influence of other astrological traditions mediated by Jewish texts which, so far, I have not detected» — la abstención con que cierra ese punto: el tema puede apuntar a tradiciones sobre Saturno apenas representadas en la literatura judía y transmitidas por otros canales, sin que eso excluya influencias mediadas por textos judíos que él no ha detectado. El tramo arranca tras el corte de segmento a media plana.

«Meanwhile, it should be emphasized that one of the explanations for the Black Death in 1348, in Western» — la coincidencia que Idel destaca sobre la Peste Negra de 1348 en Europa occidental; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *Europe, based on earlier sources, is indeed identical to that presented by Yagel almost two centuries later: the conjunction between Saturn and Mars* en la plana 57.

«Another major motif of the Sabbat cult is the central role of the goat, which becomes a recurrent protagonist as an embodiment of Satanic power» — el otro motivo mayor del culto del sabbat según Idel: el papel central de la cabra como encarnación del poder satánico.

«It is important to stress that all three first visual representations of Satan used the image of a goat» — y el dato que suma: las tres primeras representaciones visuales de Satán usaron la imagen de una cabra.

«A he-goat may have something to do with the relation between Saturn and Capricorn mentioned above in the text by ibn Major» — la conexión que propone en grado de posibilidad: el macho cabrío y la relación entre Saturno y Capricornio del texto de ibn Major.

«Even if further research is definitively to explain the emergence of the goat cult as non-astrological, the possibility may nevertheless remain that an archaic cult of this kind could have attracted motifs found in the astrological relation between Saturn, Capricorn and goats» — y la salvedad: aunque se explicara el culto de la cabra como no astrológico, un culto arcaico así pudo atraer los motivos de esa relación.

«Moreover, the occurrence of the term ‘synagoga’ in order to point to the Sabbat is further proof of the existence of a Jewish context of the Sabbat» — el indicio léxico que añade: el uso del término *synagoga* para el sabbat como prueba más de su contexto judío.

«Last but not least: the substantial renaissance of ibn Ezra’s thought occurred during the period when the Sabbat ritual was formulated by its ecclesiastic opponents, mainly Inquisitors at the end of the fourteenth century» — la coincidencia cronológica con que cierra: el renacimiento del pensamiento de ibn Ezra cae en el periodo en que los inquisidores formulan el rito del sabbat.

«the role played by Saturn and its impact on corresponding notions (including the Sabbath and sorcery) is discernible among the Jewish elite within certain geographical parameters, while the beginning of the use of the term ‘Sabbat’ in Western Christian circles as related to sorcery or witchcraft is contemporaneous» — la coincidencia que Idel plantea como pregunta: el papel de Saturno entre la élite judía y el arranque del uso cristiano occidental del término *Sabbat* para la hechicería son contemporáneos. El tramo arranca en la plana 58, donde continúa la interrogación que la 57 deja cortada.

«The above explanation, I would like to emphasize, does not attempt to exhaust the more complex social phenomena of the emergence and dissemination of the ‘Sabbat of the witches’, especially its possible origins, pagan European or Asian» — el límite que Idel repite: su explicación no pretende agotar el fenómeno social de la aparición y difusión del sabbat de las brujas ni sus posibles orígenes paganos.

«Neither does the proposed explanation disqualify the modern explanations of the emergence of many of the elements of the magical rituals as imagined in medieval Europe as stemming from Eurasian ancient mythologies, as has been proposed by Carlo Ginzburg and others» — y su compatibilidad declarada: no descalifica las explicaciones modernas que hacen venir esos elementos de mitologías euroasiáticas antiguas, como propone Ginzburg.

«However, if accepted, this explanation is a further indication of the need to explore medieval European material as pertinent to the emergence of medieval socialcultural phenomena» — lo que su propuesta indicaría de aceptarse: la necesidad de explorar el material europeo medieval para esos fenómenos. El impreso parte *social-cultural* con guion de fin de renglón y el extractor lo devuelve unido como *socialcultural*.

«If Ginzburg is right in suggesting the importance of much earlier sources, transmitted orally over the course of centuries and perhaps even millennia from another continent - a claim that it is certainly hard to prove conclusively but, in my opinion, not implausible - then the imagery that inspires the concept of the Sabbat of the witches constitutes a conjugation of Eurasian traditions on the one hand and of ancient Greek and medieval Jewish ones on the other, the latter mediated basically by Arabic texts» — la síntesis condicional que Idel arma: de acertar Ginzburg sobre las fuentes remotas transmitidas oralmente, la imaginería del sabbat sería conjugación de tradiciones euroasiáticas con otras griegas antiguas y judías medievales mediadas por textos árabes.

«This conjugation can be described as the application of notions (found in the high culture of Jews in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, which do not refer to specific forms of rituals) to various rituals that had emigrated from Asia and were conceived of as witchcraft or sorcery, and had been unknown earlier to the ecclesiastic authorities» — y cómo describe esa conjugación: nociones de la alta cultura judía de los siglos XIII y XIV, que no remiten a ritos concretos, aplicadas a ritos llegados de Asia.

«Indeed, the most widespread conceptualization of the rituals concerning various forms of sorcery in Western Europe began to be articulated during the period of the Black Death. This went together with a fervent persecution of the Jews, later designated by a term related to a central Jewish ritual» — la coincidencia histórica que Idel consigna: la conceptualización de la hechicería en Europa occidental se articula en el periodo de la Peste Negra, junto a una persecución fervorosa de los judíos.

«Here I propose not to differentiate too sharply between the targets of these persecutions, namely the Jews, and some of their conceptions, but concentrate mainly on their misconception by the Christians» — el enfoque que Idel propone: no separar demasiado a los judíos de sus concepciones y atender sobre todo a cómo los malentendieron los cristianos.

«The manner in which the Christians understood both Jews and witches is a misconstruction. However, this misunderstanding is related to some conceptions of the rituals that provoked a misunderstanding in interpretation» — la tesis de Idel sobre ese punto: el modo cristiano de entender a judíos y brujas es una construcción errada, ligada a concepciones de los ritos que provocaron el malentendido.

«In the same way it would not be wise to ignore the possible contribution of the beliefs and rituals of the persecuted women declared to be witches» — y lo que no quiere dejar fuera: la contribución posible de las creencias y ritos de las mujeres perseguidas como brujas.

«I basically accept his explanation, which is based on the crucial role of misunderstanding» — Idel declara aceptar en lo esencial la explicación de Ginzburg, que descansa en el papel decisivo del malentendido.

«As Israel J. Yuval has proposed recently in a study, the fact that some Ashkenazi Jews killed members of their own families, and then themselves, in order to escape forced conversion to Christianity or to avoid being murdered by the Crusaders has been misunderstood in ways that have contributed to the formulation of the blood libels» — el paralelo que Idel toma de Israel J. Yuval: los judíos askenazíes que mataban a los suyos y a sí mismos ante la conversión forzada o los cruzados, malentendidos de un modo que contribuyó a los libelos de sangre.

«In our case, some Provencal and Spanishjews developed astro-magical understandings of Judaism that might have contributed to the emergence of several mythological themes concerning the witches’ Sabbat, a fantastic ritual whose more substantial sources might nevertheless be found in cultural environments other than in these astrological writings and practices» — la formulación medida de su propia tesis: judíos provenzales y españoles desarrollaron lecturas astro-mágicas del judaísmo que pudieron contribuir a temas del sabbat de las brujas, cuyas fuentes de fondo estarían en otros ambientes. El troceo pega *Spanish Jews* como *Spanishjews*.

«It should be emphasized, nevertheless, that unlike the eleventh-century pogroms in Germany, which are, historically speaking, well-documented, and had been sometimes seen by Christians, though their significance has been misinterpreted, in our case I doubt whether there were Jewish magicians or sorcerers who performed some specifically astro-magical rituals during Sabbath in the manner stipulated by the astro-magical texts» — la duda que Idel declara sobre los hechos: a diferencia de los pogromos alemanes del siglo XI, bien documentados, duda de que hubiera magos judíos ejecutando ritos astro-mágicos en sábado.

«Nevertheless, I would assume that it is possible that some regular Jewish rituals concerning Sabbath have been understood by kabbalists as having astro-magical valences» — y lo que sí supone posible: que cabalistas entendieran ritos judíos corrientes del sábado como portadores de valencias astro-mágicas.

«On the other hand, the above discussions should be seen in a broader context, one that assumes the existence of indoctrination with deep anti-Jewish attitudes for many centuries in medieval Europe, theories that are totally independent of the astrological sources that we have discussed above» — el contexto mayor en que lo encuadra: siglos de adoctrinamiento antijudío en la Europa medieval, del todo independientes de las fuentes astrológicas.

«What I have attempted to explain here is just the reason for the adoption of the term ‘Sabbat’ in its specific meaning as related to witchcraft. In the history of European discourse, it is related to nocturnal magic, a development that could then be grafted upon more profound anti-Jewish religious sentiments, whose historical origins differ dramatically from the astro-magical traditions» — el alcance exacto que Idel reclama para su capítulo: explicar solo por qué se adoptó el término *Sabbat* en su sentido de brujería, ligado en el discurso europeo a la magia nocturna e injertado luego en sentimientos antijudíos de origen muy distinto.

«It seems that even a very comprehensive approach to medieval magic in Europe, as proposed by Ginzburg — one attempting to reach back through hoary antiquity to the pre-axial age - should be further expanded in order to include the possible contribution of traditions that permeated some intellectual circles in Europe - elite circles of axial conceptions» — la ampliación que Idel pide al enfoque de Ginzburg: incluir la contribución de tradiciones que permearon círculos intelectuales de élite en Europa.

«While there is no reason to dismiss the ‘folkloristic roots of Sabbat’,173 there is a need for a better understanding of the themes mediated by elite traditions, in our case Jewish ones, that were influenced by Arabic sources and ultimately derived from Hellenistic extraction, but differed from the circles of the Inquisitors» — y su reparto: sin descartar las raíces folclóricas del sabbat, hace falta entender mejor los temas mediados por tradiciones de élite, aquí judías, con fondo árabe y último origen helenístico.

«These elites passed on traditions regarding the nature of the ancient Greek gods via their astrological transformations, and, on the basis of Jewish material unknown to Seznec, our study above confirms his theory on the role of astrology in this context» — lo que Idel adjudica al material judío que aporta: sostiene la teoría de Seznec sobre el papel de la astrología en la transmisión de los dioses griegos antiguos, con material que Seznec no conocía.

«Likewise, it is consonant with Zafran’s explanation of some anti-Semitic descriptions of Jews based on certain Saturnian themes through the Middle Ages» — y su consonancia con la explicación de Zafran sobre descripciones antisemitas de los judíos a partir de temas saturninos.

«However, in his important study, Zafran restricted his discussions to Arabic astrological material and its plausible impact on mainly Christian depictions of Jews in the pre-Modern period, but did not address the possible impact of the abundant Jewish astrological descriptions available in Hebrew» — el límite que Idel señala en Zafran: se restringió al material astrológico árabe y a su impacto en representaciones cristianas, y no abordó las descripciones astrológicas judías en hebreo.

«The self-perception of some Jewish authors, and of quite influential ones in some Christian circles, such as bar Hiyya and Abraham ibn Ezra, should also be taken into serious consideration» — y lo que pide añadir: la autopercepción de autores judíos influyentes en círculos cristianos, como bar Hiyya e ibn Ezra.

«In other words, I propose an additional explanation, which does not necessarily displace the possibility» — Idel insiste en que su explicación es adicional y no desplaza otras posibilidades; el tramo se corta antes del encabezado corrido que la plana arrastra, y sigue en la 60 con *that elements related to the Sabbat rituals are either autochthonic in Europe, or stemmed from Asian sources, as proposed by Ginzburg*.

«Complex situations and constellations of ideas based on the synthesis of concepts from different sources, and concerning perceptions of the 'other', should be approached by allowing, scholarly speaking, the interaction of a variety of sources and social layers» — el método que Idel pide para las constelaciones de ideas sobre la percepción del otro: dejar interactuar fuentes y capas sociales diversas.

«When such a complex approach is applied, the astro-magical sources of Greek and Hellenistic origin (in the forms in which they have been transmitted, mainly by Arabic authors, translated into Hebrew and then appropriated by other Jews in the high Middle Ages) are seen to play a greater role in the way some Christians perceived Jews in Western Europe» — y lo que ese enfoque haría ver: las fuentes astro-mágicas de origen griego y helenístico, llegadas por autores árabes, traducidas al hebreo y apropiadas por judíos, con más peso en cómo los cristianos vieron a los judíos.

«In fact, this process, among numerous other instances, exemplifies the role of Jews as mediators of scientific and theological traditions from Arabic culture to Western Europe» — el papel que Idel adjudica a los judíos en ese proceso: mediadores de tradiciones científicas y teológicas del árabe a Europa occidental.

«This integration necessitates greater openness on the part of scholars in Jewish studies in matters of astrology,176 magic and sorcery» — lo que pide a la erudición en estudios judíos: mayor apertura en materia de astrología, magia y hechicería.

«It also suggests that these literary fields might have contributed to the shaping of life and thought just as much as the more ‘sublime’, ‘spiritual’ worldviews inspired by Jewish philosophy or Kabbalah» — y lo que sugiere sobre esos campos: pudieron dar forma a la vida y al pensamiento tanto como las visiones tenidas por más sublimes o espirituales.

«In medieval Christian Europe, when magic included so many astrological elements and when such elements were also part of magically oriented Jewish branches of philosophy, this type of order attracted some kabbalists, who then integrated it into their systems in varying proportions, though always first subordinating it to the theosophical order» — la condición que Idel repite para la adopción cabalística: el orden astral entra en sus sistemas en proporciones variables, pero siempre subordinado al teosófico.

«Following my approach, the more interesting question as to how exactly the constellation of ideas connected to the sinister aspects of Saturn (which included the association of the Jews, of Sabbath and of sorcery, as if inseparably linked) has produced the Sabbat complex of themes in the eyes of some Christian authorities is an issue that still» — la pregunta que Idel deja abierta: cómo exactamente la constelación saturnina produjo el complejo del sabbat a ojos de autoridades cristianas; la frase se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *calls for special research to bridge the gap between the approaches of the 'history of ideas' and the 'history of culture'* en la 61.

«I hope I have supplied at least a conceptual matrix for this development; it is based upon a possible deep misreading of the textual sources and a possible misunderstanding of the practices of the Jews» — y lo que dice haber aportado: al menos una matriz conceptual, apoyada en una posible lectura errada de las fuentes y en un malentendido de las prácticas judías.

«In any case, it is worth pointing out that the development described above is a significant one from a statistical point of view and is, in my opinion, as representative of developments in Jewish culture in Spain as Maimonides’ so-called rationalism» — la ponderación que Idel declara como opinión propia: el desarrollo descrito es tan representativo de la cultura judía en España como el llamado racionalismo de Maimónides.

«Indeed, both the writings of those dealing with Saturnian astro-magic and the writing of Maimonides continue two different trends in Islamic culture, present in the medieval period but relatively unknown in the early Middle Ages in Europe» — y su raíz común: las dos corrientes continúan tendencias distintas de la cultura islámica medieval, poco conocidas en la Europa altomedieval.

«Different as they are conceptually, they were cultivated by Spanish Jews as revealing the esoteric aspects of Judaism, part of the process of a more comprehensive phenomenon I have described as the arcanization of Judaism» — el término propio que Idel usa para el proceso que las abarca: la arcanización del judaísmo, con las dos corrientes cultivadas como aspectos esotéricos.

«These two different intellectual orientations, sharply divergent as they are, in addition to the various Kabbalistic schools, are part and parcel of the Sefardi heritage, which can only be conceptually reduced to one orientation with the loss of much of its creativity as a historical phenomenon» — la advertencia que saca de ahí: reducir conceptualmente la herencia sefardí a una sola orientación cuesta buena parte de su creatividad histórica.

«To what extent the vigorous rejection of magic by Maimonides contributed to the emphasis on magical views in Judaism is still an issue that requires investigation» — la pregunta que deja abierta: hasta qué punto el rechazo vigoroso de la magia por Maimónides contribuyó al énfasis en lo mágico dentro del judaísmo.

«According to Daniel L. O’Keefe, magic may surface in places where there is too little religion, i.e. where there are rationalistic visions of religion» — la tesis que toma de Daniel L. O'Keefe: la magia aflora donde hay demasiado poca religión, es decir, donde hay visiones racionalistas de la religión.

«As regards the texts discussed in this chapter, we have seen the willingness of some Jews to assert that magic or sorcery is indeed related to the Jews, at least by symphysis» — lo que Idel dice haber mostrado: la disposición de algunos judíos a afirmar que la magia o la hechicería sí se relacionan con los judíos, al menos por *symphysis*.

«Though we may assume the existence of some practices related to astro-magic as expressed by the authors mentioned above, we may also assume that when they used the term kishshuf, translated as ‘sorcery’, they were repeating a term they had found in their sources» — la suposición con que lo acota: al usar el término *kishshuf* podían estar repitiendo una palabra hallada en sus fuentes.

«a term more representative of a cultural cliche than a specific type of practice. This assumption may be beneficial to scholars of religion, such as Peterson181 and John G. Gager,182 who suggest not using the term ‘magic’ because it reflects an image rather than a real fact» — y a qué apunta esa suposición: un cliché cultural más que un tipo concreto de práctica, lo que favorecería a estudiosos como Peterson y John G. Gager, que proponen no usar el término *magia*. El tramo arranca tras el corte de segmento a media plana.

«However, even if the Jewish authors we have mentioned would have rejected sorcery, their astro-magical practice may sometimes have amounted to more than a theoretical worldview» — la reserva que Idel pone a esa lectura: aun rechazando la hechicería, su práctica astro-mágica pudo ser más que una visión teórica.

«Nevertheless, the role played by astro-magic in ancient Jewish magic is quite marginal» — el contrapeso que Idel consigna: el papel de la astro-magia en la magia judía antigua es bastante marginal.

«For this reason scholars should distinguish between different practices, and their explanations as expressed by practitioners or others, in order to do justice to the variety and complexity of what were imagined to be powerful performances» — y lo que pide en consecuencia: distinguir entre prácticas y entre las explicaciones que dan practicantes y terceros.

«depicted as magicians resorting to kishshuf, but they would at the same time have embraced some more elite form of magic» — la distinción que Idel les atribuye: protestarían contra ser pintados como magos de *kishshuf* y a la vez abrazarían una forma de magia más de élite. El tramo arranca en la plana 62, donde continúa la frase que la 61 deja cortada ante el encabezado corrido.

«As we have seen above, there are two different contexts that connect Saturn and sorcery or witchcraft. One is the specific claim related to Saturn that it presides over sorcery or witchcraft - unlike the other planets to which such a view is not attributed» — el primero de los dos contextos que Idel distingue: la afirmación de que Saturno preside la hechicería, que no se atribuye a los demás planetas.

«The second is the specific form of worship addressed to Saturn, which while it differs in detail from that addressed to other planets is nevertheless part of a more comprehensive astro-magical view that each of the planets should be worshiped according to its special nature» — y el segundo: la forma de culto dirigida a Saturno dentro de la visión astro-mágica de que cada planeta se venera según su naturaleza.

«This view is expressed in several of the astro-magical books mentioned above, as well as in the book entitled Religions of the Prophets, which I will discuss in chapter 3» — dónde lo localiza: en varios de los libros astro-mágicos citados y en las *Religions of the Prophets*.

«The former is a general attribution without specific content; the latter is much more detailed. Nevertheless, both forms of imaginaire corroborate one another, strengthening the conceptual affinities that some authors assume to exist between Saturn and witchcraft» — la relación que traza entre los dos: atribución general sin contenido uno, detallada el otro, y los dos *imaginaire* corroborándose mutuamente.

«It should be mentioned that the basically negative conceptual structure has not always been associated with the Saturn-Sabbath theme» — la salvedad con que Idel cierra el capítulo: la estructura conceptual negativa no siempre se asoció al tema Saturno-sábado.

«Though this is rare, Saturn’s presence is sometimes conceived in more positive terms influenced by the short formulation of the Sefer Yetzirah» — y la excepción: a veces, aunque rara vez, Saturno se concibe en términos más positivos por influjo de la formulación breve del *Sefer Yetzirah*.

«This was much more the case from the late fifteenth-century Renaissance in Italy. Another example is the early sixteenth-century discussion of Isaac Karo mentioned above. These are exceptions» — dónde se da esa lectura positiva: sobre todo desde el Renacimiento italiano de finales del XV, y en Isaac Karo a principios del XVI; Idel las llama excepciones.

«However, we shall turn to one of the major examples of such an exception, which integrates the positive aspects, Saturnian and Saturnine, in relation to a new understanding of the image of the Messiah, in the next chapter» — y el puente al capítulo siguiente: una de las excepciones mayores, que integra los aspectos positivos saturnianos y saturninos en una comprensión nueva de la imagen del Mesías.

«In this chapter we shall deal mostly with the positive conceptual structure related to Saturn and its 'materialization’ in history, and in the personality of a certain individual, Sabbatai Tzevi (1626-76» — Idel anuncia el asunto del segundo capítulo: la estructura conceptual positiva de Saturno y su materialización en la historia y en la persona de Sabbatai Tzevi.

«This development is based on the wider impact of astrological themes on this messianic figure, and in the following pages I will be proposing a broader spectrum of influences than I have done in my earlier studies» — y en qué se aparta de sus trabajos anteriores: propone un espectro de influencias más amplio.

«One of the most interesting characteristics of the various forms of Jewish culture is their continuous undulation and oscillation between the two poles of the 'particularistic’ and the ‘universalistic’» — el marco con que Idel encuadra el capítulo: la oscilación continua de las formas de la cultura judía entre lo particularista y lo universalista.

«In other words, and this does not represent a value judgement, the particularistic approach is much more centripetal, while the universalistic one has more centrifugal propensities» — la figura con que los describe, aclarando que no emite juicio de valor: lo particularista es centrípeto y lo universalista, centrífugo.

«Even today ‘universalism7 does not represent more than a reification of values accepted by cultures that constitute small minorities in the global population, but which are nevertheless powerful enough to impose their specific values as generally worthwhile» — y su lectura del presente: el universalismo no pasaría de reificar valores de culturas que son minorías pequeñas pero con fuerza bastante para imponerlos como valiosos en general.

«This was the case with astrology, originally a more universalistic ‘scientific’ approach that imposed a vision of Saturn as the planet dominating the Jews and various aspects of their culture, especially in its effects on the self-perception of some circles of the Jewish elite, as we have seen» — el caso que le interesa: la astrología como enfoque universalista que impuso la visión de Saturno como planeta dominante de los judíos.

«The particularistic self-perception of rabbinic Judaism has generally been understood by resorting to relatively universalistic clues, an approach that is also evident in many other cases in Jewish medieval philosophy» — la paradoja que Idel señala: la autopercepción particularista del judaísmo rabínico se entendió con claves relativamente universalistas.

«By using the term ‘universalism7, we should be well aware of the specific and often limited nature of the forms of culture that hosted the Jewish ones» — la reserva que Idel pone al término *universalismo*: hay que tener presente la naturaleza específica y a menudo limitada de las culturas que hospedaron a la judía; el troceo rinde la comilla de cierre como un 7.

«However, in the case of the astrological themes discussed above, the universal approach is quite problematic since its interpretations use many terms applied to religions and nations that are not only biased but cannot be controlled in a practical manner» — la objeción que Idel opone a ese enfoque universal en materia astrológica: usa términos sobre religiones y naciones que no solo van sesgados sino que no se pueden controlar en la práctica.

«The two poles have attracted two main attitudes among historians of Judaism: while the integrative aspects were more emphasized by nineteenth-century Jewish historiosophy, in the twentieth century the opposite approach become more dominant» — el reparto que Idel hace entre los historiadores del judaísmo: lo integrativo pesó más en la historiosofía judía del siglo XIX y lo contrario en el XX.

«Nineteenth-century Jewish historians, who were active in various European diasporas, especially Germany, at a time when acculturation to the culture of the Christian Enlightenment was still conceived of as an ideal (a phenomenon related to Jewish emancipation), wrote about Judaism from a more universalistic perspective, emphasizing the ‘rational’ and ethical aspects of the culture, and the concept of a mission of the Jews in the Diaspora» — y cómo escribían los del XIX, según él: desde una perspectiva universalista, con énfasis en lo racional y lo ético y en la idea de una misión de los judíos en la diáspora.

«Latter historians, on the other hand, attempted to create a dichotomy between the ‘centrifugal’ elements, described as negative, and the ‘centripetal’ ones, described as positive» — frente a los posteriores, que separaron lo centrífugo como negativo de lo centrípeto como positivo.

«So, for example, the distinguished historian Heinrich Graetz conceived of Kabbalah as the bete noire of the Jewish Middle Ages, while Maimonides was portrayed as the paragon of Jewish culture; in the historiography of another distinguished scholar, Yitzhaq Baer, the most important Israeli historian, the situation is precisely the inverse: Jewish medieval philosophy was conceived of as a major cause of the conversion of Jews» — el desacuerdo que Idel consigna sin arbitrar: Heinrich Graetz tuvo la cábala por la bestia negra del medievo judío y a Maimónides por dechado, y Yitzhaq Baer justamente al revés, con la filosofía medieval como causa mayor de conversiones.

«The positive attitude to Kabbalah as a centripetal type of religiosity is to a very great extent dependent upon the pivotal change in the nature and role of Jewish mysticism produced by the magisterial studies of Gershom Scholem» — la adjudicación que Idel hace a Gershom Scholem: el cambio decisivo en la naturaleza y el papel del misticismo judío.

«His positive and sympathetic approach to this body of Jewish knowledge and practice opened the way, and the hearts, of some historians to integrating mysticism as an active factor in shaping Jewish history» — y su efecto: abrió el camino a integrar el misticismo como factor activo en la historia judía.

«Most outstanding in this context was Scholem’s chef d’oeuvre, his monograph on the seventeenth-century messianic figure Sabbatai Tzevi» — Idel destaca la monografía de Scholem sobre Sabbatai Tzevi como su obra mayor.

«This thesis, which may be described as a ‘hyperthesis’ (my own term), has been repeated so many times that a list of those scholars who have reiterated it, without adducing any additional material to strengthen it, would amount to a short booklet» — el término propio con que Idel la nombra, *hyperthesis*, y su medida de la repetición: la lista de quienes la reiteran sin aportar material nuevo llenaría un folleto.

«Although this theory is related to one single type of explanation, Scholem's Sabbateanism is profoundly inscribed within a particularistic framework of historiography» — la objeción que Idel formula: el sabbateanismo de Scholem queda inscrito en un marco historiográfico particularista.

«This more particularistic approach differs from the way Scholem has described the emergence of Kabbalah as a synthesis between neoplatonism and Gnosticism, or Jewish Gnosticism - namely, that a body of knowledge was generated by the confluence of two spiritual trends that were different from or even antagonistic to rabbinic Judaism» — la tensión interna que Idel señala en Scholem sin armonizarla: su cábala nace como síntesis de neoplatonismo y gnosticismo, ajenos o aun antagónicos al judaísmo rabínico.

«With the development of Kabbalah as it is envisioned in Scholem’s historiography, and by many scholars who followed him, it became more and more of an internal Jewish affair» — y hacia dónde deriva esa historiografía: la cábala vuelta cada vez más asunto judío interno.

«The various debates between scholars as to whether Hasidism is a continuation of the neutralization of Sabbatean Messianism are played out on grounds that I explain by negative ‘proximism’ in time (my term) — taking into consideration only the most immediate context as the single relevant starting point for an analytical approach» — el defecto que Idel nombra con término propio en esos debates: un *proximismo* negativo en el tiempo, que toma solo el contexto inmediato como punto de partida.

«Does Kabbalah represent such a definitive movement, turning away from an initially greater openness towards external factors to a much more inward-facing and “purely’ Jewish story? The answer seems to be rather complex» — la pregunta que Idel se plantea sobre ese giro de la cábala hacia lo puramente judío, y su respuesta: la cosa es compleja.

«In my opinion, the sources of the nascent Kabbalah should more appropriately be sought within the various Jewish traditions, though not exclusively» — su posición declarada como opinión: las fuentes de la cábala naciente se buscan mejor dentro de las tradiciones judías, aunque no solo ahí.

«This was the case with the Zoharic Kabbalah, which absorbed more Christian elements than the earlier theosophical Kabbalah;5 with the ecstatic Kabbalah, which was initially strongly influenced by neo-Aristotelianism but absorbed more neo-Platonic and Sufic elements in the second phase of its development;6 and with the Kabbalah in Italy, which was understood in a much more philosophical manner from the end of the fifteenth century to the first third of the seventeenth century» — los tres casos con que lo ilustra: la cábala zohárica con más elementos cristianos, la extática con neoaristotelismo y luego neoplatonismo y sufismo, y la italiana entendida en clave filosófica.

«Even the Lurianic Kabbalah, which originally emerged from particularistic thought, was interpreted only one generation after its inception in strong Italian Renaissance terms» — y el caso que toca de cerca a la tesis de Scholem: la propia cábala luriánica, de origen particularista, interpretada una generación después en términos del Renacimiento italiano.

«Does Sabbateanism, a basically messianic mass movement, represent an exception to this turning of the major forms of Kabbalah towards external forms of thought? The messianic nature of this movement may point in this direction» — la pregunta que Idel deja en el aire sobre si el sabbateanismo es la excepción a ese giro hacia lo externo.

«However, it seems that a much more variegated type of explanation of the emergence of the messianic movement of Tzevi than that offered by Scholem is in order; recently, the importance of the Marranos to the reception of this messianic theory has been reiterated, as well as the contribution of the pogroms of 1648-9» — lo que Idel reclama: una explicación más variada que la de Scholem, y consigna que se han reiterado la importancia de los marranos y los pogromos de 1648-9.

«These two explanations are of a more sociological nature, as they deal with conditions of the dissemination of this type of messianism rather more than with processes related to its inception» — el límite que les pone: son de índole sociológica y tocan la difusión más que los procesos de gestación.

«This body of knowledge, in all its different forms, became gradually more and more open to the cultural ambiances that hosted the various centres of Kabbalah, either by responding to the» — lo que Idel sostiene sobre el desarrollo de la cábala: cada vez más abierta a los ambientes culturales que hospedaron sus centros; la frase se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *challenges of these centres or by being influenced by the conceptual views found there* en la 66.

«Here I would like to address the possible contribution of an additional factor in both the emergence of Sabbateanism and in its reception. This factor is the interpretation of Saturn as the planet related to a change of religion, as found in Arabic, Christian and Jewish astrology, its reinterpretation in Kabbalistic sources as dealing with the Messiah, and, finally, the Sabbatean interpretation of Saturn, Shabbatai in Hebrew, to Sabbatai Tzevi» — el factor que Idel añade: la lectura de Saturno como planeta del cambio de religión en la astrología árabe, cristiana y judía, su reinterpretación cabalística en clave mesiánica y la lectura sabbateana que lo lleva a Sabbatai Tzevi.

«In chapter 1, in the passages from Joseph Ashkenazi and Yohanan Alemanno, we noted the view that Saturn is appointed over dinim, which I translate as ‘religion’, on the assumption that it reflects the Arabic meaning of din» — la traducción que Idel propone y declara supuesto: los *dinim* que Saturno preside, traducidos por *religión* sobre el supuesto de que reflejan el sentido árabe de *din*.

«Thus, though they were active in Europe, Spain and Italy, it is not only the general concepts, drawn basically from earlier Hellenistic sources that were mediated by Muslim authors, but also some more specific linguistic details that depended on the Arabic language» — y la consecuencia: no solo conceptos generales de fondo helenístico mediados por autores musulmanes, sino detalles lingüísticos que dependen del árabe.

«Let me be clear from the outset: by stressing the importance of the astrological factor, I do not intend to reduce the emergence, the evolution or the reception of Sabbateanism to this factor alone, thereby creating a new unilinear explanation of this mass movement» — la reserva con que Idel abre su propia propuesta: subrayar el factor astrológico no busca reducir a él la aparición, la evolución ni la recepción del sabbateanismo.

«Nevertheless, it is my claim that while the explanations currently accepted in scholarship deal much more with the reception of Sabbateanism allegedly facilitated by a prior dissemination of Lurianism, in the following argument I shall be concerned more with its emergence and less with its reception» — el deslinde que Idel declara como su reclamo: las explicaciones al uso tratan la recepción del sabbateanismo, y él se ocupa de su gestación.

«Rather, I would like to propose the presence of a multiplicity of causes of different natures, some of them already mentioned above, as well as to allow the astrological factor a more modest role than the main, or» — lo que Idel reclama en su lugar: una multiplicidad de causas de naturaleza distinta y un papel más modesto para el factor astrológico; el tramo se corta antes del folio y el encabezado corrido, y sigue *a main, cause* en la plana 67.

«Astrology, like other corpora of knowledge that reached medieval Europe through the mediation of Arab authors, turned into a branch of knowledge accepted by both intellectual and popular circles. As a science accepted by so many in both the East and West, it offered a common basis of knowledge» — el estatuto que Idel da a la astrología medieval: rama de saber aceptada por círculos intelectuales y populares, base común de conocimiento en Oriente y Occidente.

«Arguments based on the ‘book of heaven’ were as decisive in some circles as those based on that other widely accepted book, the Sacred Scriptures» — y su peso argumentativo: los argumentos del *libro del cielo* tan decisivos en algunos círculos como los de la Escritura.

«Unlike the various forms of Jewish mysticism, astrological terminology was far more understandable to and acceptable in broader Jewish circles. Ostensibly, it also facilitated communication between different intellectuals who did not share the same religious assumptions» — la ventaja comunicativa que le atribuye: terminología más comprensible y aceptable en círculos judíos amplios y, en apariencia, entre intelectuales de supuestos religiosos distintos.

«If Jewish mysticism, for some of the first centuries of its existence, resorted to particularistic language and symbolism, astrological language could at least be described as far more universalistic» — el contraste que Idel formula: lenguaje y simbolismo particularistas en el misticismo judío frente a un lenguaje astrológico más universalista.

«Nevertheless, not unlike Sigmund Freud’s renowned interpretation of the Oedipus complex, in the case of Saturn, Greek mythological sources were paramount, and it was the Greek mythologoumena that formed the bedrock of the ‘universal’ interpretations» — la reserva con que lo acota, por analogía con la interpretación freudiana de Edipo: en el caso de Saturno el lecho de esas lecturas universales son los mitologúmenos griegos.

«On the one hand, there was the ambivalent nature of Kronos in Greek mythology; on the other, there was the more positive nature of Saturn in Roman lore. In any case, the complex figure emerging from this synthesis was cloaked in the negative characteristic of the melancholic» — y sus dos polos: el Crono ambivalente del mito griego y el Saturno más positivo de la tradición romana, con la síntesis revestida del rasgo negativo del melancólico.

«This earlier Saturn was designated over the Golden Age and the Islands of the Happy. Saturn is also the paramount planet of the solitary and numerous spiritual qualities are enumerated as falling under its aegis, not to mention some fairly unpleasant occupations, as we saw in chapter 1» — los dominios de ese Saturno anterior: la Edad de Oro y las Islas de los Felices, el planeta por excelencia del solitario, con cualidades espirituales y oficios poco gratos bajo su égida.

«chapter), the astrological character of Saturn in the Middle Ages was a composite one, reflecting different, sometimes even conflicting, traditions» — la composición que Idel adjudica al Saturno medieval, siguiendo a varios estudiosos: figura compuesta de tradiciones distintas y a veces en conflicto. El tramo arranca en el segundo segmento de la plana, donde continúa la frase que el primero deja cortada.

«This is not the place to address the rich literature concerning this quite complex planet about the ‘influences’ that have been attributed to it. Let me just note some basic facts that are pertinent to the point I would like to make» — la acotación con que Idel limita el apartado: no es lugar para la literatura sobre el planeta y solo anota los datos pertinentes a su punto.

«In ancient texts, and much more in the Middle Ages, the nexus between Jews and Saturn was suggested on the grounds that this planet dominates the seventh day, which was conceived of as a time that was holy to the Jews.12 This is the reason why this planet has been designated in Hebrew as Sabbatai, a derivative noun of the name Sabbath, the Hebrew term for Saturday» — el fundamento del nexo según Idel: Saturno domina el séptimo día, tenido por santo entre los judíos, y de ahí el nombre hebreo Sabbatai, derivado de *Sabbath*.

«I would like to emphasize that in the few cases of astrological discussions where Sabbatai is mentioned by Jewish authors before the impact of Arabic astrology is discernible, all the descriptions of Saturn are negative» — el dato que Idel subraya sobre la capa anterior: en las pocas discusiones astrológicas judías previas al influjo árabe, todas las descripciones de Saturno son negativas.

«Positive qualities may be added to the negative ones only after the twelfth century, and it seems to me that only this positive addition may explain the subsequent developments in Judaism insofar as messianism is concerned» — y la tesis que sostiene sobre esa adición: las cualidades positivas se suman después del siglo XII, y solo eso explicaría los desarrollos mesiánicos posteriores.

«Of special importance in this context is Abraham bar Hiyya’s historical astrology, which adopts Abu Ma‘ashar s theory about the ‘Great Conjunction’ and the changes in religion both in the past and in the future» — la pieza que destaca: la astrología histórica de bar Hiyya, que adopta de Abu Ma'shar la gran conjunción y los cambios de religión.

«Towards the end of the thirteenth century, Abraham ben Samuel Abulafia, the founder of ecstatic Kabbalah and someone who believed he was a prophet and a Messiah (and acted accordingly), writes about Saturn in a passage different from the one analysed in the first chapter» — Idel presenta a Abulafia como fundador de la cábala extática y como alguien que se creyó profeta y Mesías y obró en consecuencia.

«The Land of Israel is higher than all the lands ... the known land, whose sign is one thousand two hundred and ninety, and this is the Land of Israel , which was the land of Cana‘an ... And it is known that among the stars, the power of Sabbatai corresponds to it15 because it [Saturn] is the highest among its companions, and behold, the supernal entity appointed upon another supernal entity, and the nation of Israel is superior to all the nations, ‘for there is one on high who watches over him that is high, and that there are yet higher ones’.16 And the high is the dust17 of the Land of Israel, and higher than it, which is appointed on it, is Sabbatai, and Israel are higher than them» — según Idel, así escribe Abulafia: la Tierra de Israel es más alta que todas las tierras, su signo es mil doscientos noventa, y entre los astros le corresponde el poder de Sabbatai por ser el más alto de sus compañeros; alto es el polvo de la Tierra de Israel, más alto Sabbatai, que la preside, y más altos que ambos, Israel.

«Unfortunately, Abulafia did not elaborate upon the significance of the relation between Israel and Saturn, the former being conceived of as superior to the latter. This is an unusual hierarchy, as the much more common assumption is that Saturn is presiding over the nation of Israel» — la rareza que Idel señala: la jerarquía queda invertida respecto del supuesto común, que hace a Saturno presidir la nación de Israel.

«I have no good explanation for Abulafia’s passage, but in any case, the nexus between the two entities is quite explicit» — la abstención declarada sin rodeos: Idel dice no tener buena explicación para ese pasaje, aunque el nexo entre las dos entidades sea explícito.

«nexus Sabbatai-Israel-Land of Israel, as well as the heptads, constitutes what may be called the positive conceptual structure related to this planet since only a relatively insignificant negative aspect is associated with Saturn» — lo que Idel llama estructura conceptual positiva en Abulafia: el nexo Sabbatai-Israel-Tierra de Israel con las héptadas, y solo un aspecto negativo menor. El tramo arranca en la plana 69, donde continúa la frase que la 68 deja cortada.

«But what seems to be important for our discussion is the fact that the term Eretz, mentioned in the extract above, has been interpreted in our context as indicating the year 1290 as the date of redemption: the consonant ’Aleph stands for a thousand; the consonant Reish for two hundred; and finally Tzade for ninety» — la gematría que Idel lee en el pasaje: *Eretz* interpretado como el año 1290 de la redención, por 'Aleph mil, Reish doscientos y Tzade noventa.

«Abulafia changed the reference to a place, the Promised Land, into a hint at a special time, that of redemption» — y la operación que le atribuye: convertir la referencia a un lugar en indicio de un tiempo, el de la redención.

«Thus, at least implicitly (below, in another passage from this book, we shall see this stated in a rather more explicit manner), Saturn/Sabbatai is related to redemption, a fact that is even more remarkable if we remember that Abulafia considered himself to be a Messiah» — la conclusión que Idel saca, marcada como implícita: Saturno/Sabbatai queda ligado a la redención, y Abulafia se tenía por Mesías.

«However, what is much more important and widespread is the existence of the concept that the greatest conjunction between Saturn and Jupiter, the so-called conjunctio maxima, in Hebrew ha-dibbuq ha-gadol, is the moment of the emergence of new religions» — el concepto que Idel da por más importante y difundido: la *conjunctio maxima* de Saturno y Júpiter, en hebreo *ha-dibbuq ha-gadol*, como momento de aparición de religiones nuevas.

«This view had been well known amongjewish writers since the twelfth century and sometimes even explicitly associated with messianic expectations» — y su circulación: conocida entre escritores judíos desde el siglo XII y a veces ligada de modo explícito a expectativas mesiánicas. El troceo pega *among Jewish* como *amongjewish*.

«So, for example, in the short, widespread manuscript treatise by the mid-thirteenth-century author Moses ben Yehudah entitled Commentary on the Hebrew Alphabet, we see several references to Sabbatai/Saturn in quite positive terms as designated over the Jews, as related to the letter Lamed, whose form in Hebrew points upward to ‘divine wisdom’, namely to metaphysics, as being connected to the revelation of the Torah, appointed upon the true religion, and finally related to redemption» — según Idel, el *Comentario al alfabeto hebreo* de Moses ben Yehudah presenta a Sabbatai en términos positivos: designado sobre los judíos, ligado a la letra Lamed que apunta hacia arriba, a la sabiduría divina, a la revelación de la Torá, a la religión verdadera y a la redención.

«all [the data] amount to five thousand and twenty years,22 and [then] the rule of Saturn23 will commence and our redemption will be during it, with the help of God, Blessed be His Name» — según Idel, así cierra ese comentario: los datos suman cinco mil veinte años, comenzará el reinado de Saturno y en él vendrá la redención.

«This author is indubitably expressing a version of the positive conceptual structure related to Saturn. His is by no means an exceptional stand» — Idel da a ese autor por expresión de la estructura conceptual positiva y niega que sea postura excepcional.

«The conjunction between the two planets was also conceived of as indicative of the arrival of a messianic figure by a contemporary of R. Moshe, Yehudah ben Nissim ibn Malka» — y suma un contemporáneo: Yehudah ben Nissim ibn Malka, que tiene la conjunción por indicio de la llegada de una figura mesiánica.

«At the close of the fifttenth and the beginning of the sixteenth centuries we learn (from several sources) in a text written by the famous astronomer Abraham Zacuto, who was active in Spain and Northern Africa,26 about the importance of the conjunctio maxima for the emergence of an important Jewish figure, a prophet or Messiah» — otro testimonio: el astrónomo Abraham Zacuto, activo en España y el norte de África, sobre la importancia de la *conjunctio maxima* para la aparición de una figura judía, profeta o Mesías; el troceo rinde *fifteenth* como *fifttenth*.

«A contemporary of Abraham Zacuto, Yohanan Alemanno, describes Saturn as appointed over the Torah of Israel, the Temple in Jerusalem, Moses and the Hebrew language, as we have seen» — y el paralelo con Alemanno: Saturno designado sobre la Torá de Israel, el Templo, Moisés y la lengua hebrea.

«As we shall see in the next paragraph, Saturn played a more conspicuous role in the descriptions ofjudaism at the end of the fifteenth century in Italy» — Idel anuncia el papel más visible de Saturno en las descripciones del judaísmo a finales del XV en Italia; el troceo pega *of Judaism* como *ofjudaism*.

«In some Kabbalistic writings, the planet Saturn has been connected to the third sejirah, Binah, whose affinity to concepts of redemption is understood from several types of Kabbalistic source» — el enlace que Idel rastrea: Saturno ligado a la tercera sefirá, Binah, cuya afinidad con la redención se ve en varias clases de fuente cabalística.

«Though the origins of this view may be inherent in the very beginning of Kabbalah, bearing in mind the great importance of this sejirah in the theosophy of Isaac Sagi-Nahor and his school where it is often designated as Teshuvah, repentance or return,29 it seems that both the book of the Zohar and Joseph Gikatilla approached the role of this sejirah in much more redemptive terms than the earlier kabbalists» — la datación que propone con reserva: el *Zohar* y Joseph Gikatilla trataron esa sefirá en términos mucho más redentores que los cabalistas anteriores, aun si el origen está en los comienzos de la cábala con Isaac Sagi-Nahor.

«In the main part of the book of the Zohar, for example, the fifty gates of Binah mentioned in the Talmud are described as opened by God at the time of the Exodus from Egypt, ‘in order to take out the people of Israel ... as will He do also in the days of the Messiah» — según Idel, así lo dice el cuerpo del *Zohar*: las cincuenta puertas de Binah abiertas por Dios en el Éxodo para sacar al pueblo de Israel, como hará también en los días del Mesías.

«In a manner quite similar to that of Gikatilla, the author of the Zoharic text says that this sejirah is the source from where the redemption of Israel will come» — y la coincidencia con Gikatilla: esa sefirá como fuente de donde vendrá la redención de Israel.

«However, these two forms of Kabbalah, unlike the later layers of Zoharic literature (as seen in the previous chapter), did not introduce the planet Saturn in their discussions of Binah» — la ausencia que Idel consigna: ni el *Zohar* ni Gikatilla meten a Saturno en sus discusiones sobre Binah.

«For the time being, on the basis of the dating of the Kabbalistic books as available in scholarship, the first instance when the third sejirah was plausibly identified with Saturn in a clearly eschatological discussion is found in a book by Abraham Abulafia which addresses the topics in Sefer Yetzirah, Sefer Gan Na‘ul that were mentioned above» — la primera identificación de Binah con Saturno en clave escatológica, con la reserva de la datación disponible: el *Sefer Gan Na'ul* de Abulafia.

«This does not mean that he invented it, and I assume that he gave expression to an earlier view, but its first explicit written articulation is found in this book, at least as far as we know for the time being» — y la cautela con que lo formula: no afirma que Abulafia lo inventara, supone que dio voz a una visión anterior y solo le adjudica la primera articulación escrita conocida.

«There can be doubt that for Abulafia, the terms Binah and Sabbatai/ Saturn and the secrets of redemption are related to one another» — la conclusión de Idel sobre ese pasaje, con una errata del impreso donde debía decir *no*: para Abulafia, Binah, Sabbatai/Saturno y los secretos de la redención se relacionan entre sí.

«For him, as a person who pretended to be the Messiah, redemption would start soon after writing the book - no more than two years. In other instances, he claimed that the time of redemption was the year 1290, which is the fiftieth year of the new millennium according to the Jewish calendar, while Sefer Gan Na‘ul was composed c. 1289» — la cronología que Idel reconstruye: la redención empezaría no más de dos años después de escrito el libro, y en otros pasajes Abulafia fija 1290, año cincuenta del nuevo milenio.

«The nexus between mahshavti, namely ‘thoughtful’, and Saturn, is well known in astrological texts, where this planet is conceived of as appointed over ‘the power of thought’ - koah ha-rnahashevet - according to Abraham ibn Ezra for example, who claims that the power of foretelling the future is also connected to this planet» — el nexo que Idel documenta en la astrología: Saturno designado sobre el *koah ha-mahashevet*, poder del pensamiento, según ibn Ezra, que también le liga la predicción del futuro.

«The nexus between thought or understanding and Saturn is, however, much older. It is implied in the alleged etymology of Chronos/Kronos, the Greek partial correspondent of Saturn, which has been understood as pointing to conros, plenitude, and nous, intellect,55 and the nexus between the planet and the virtus intellectiva is conspicuous in the Middle Ages» — y su raíz más antigua: la etimología alegada de Crono como *coros*, plenitud, y *nous*, intelecto, y el vínculo medieval del planeta con la *virtus intellectiva*. El troceo rinde *coros* como *conros*.

«Leil Shmarini33 whose secret is ‘Et Qetz,34 and by combination of letters is haker ha-nefesh,35 ‘and His throne shall be like the sun30 before me [negdi)’37 ... The secret of Negdi is Binah,38 which comprises Gedz39 and Deli40 which are the servants41 of the star42 Sabbatai,43 whose secret is mahshavti and everything is Binah mahshavti, and whoever comprehends it, he has comprehended [the meaning of] mahshavti. And see that Levanah [moon] is Ke-Binah [like Binah]44 and also Hokhmah is KeHammah [like Hammah, namely like sun]45 and know them and when you will understand» — según Idel, así escribe Abulafia comentando el versículo sobre el trono de David: el secreto de *Negdi* es Binah, que comprende Gedi y Deli, servidores de la estrella Sabbatai, cuyo secreto es *mahshavti*; Levanah es *ke-Binah* y Hokhmah es *ke-Hammah*. Las cifras pegadas a las palabras son llamadas a nota que el troceo adhiere; el tramo se corta antes del folio y el encabezado corrido de la plana.

«them and recognize the linkage of Moladot [nativities], during the periods of equinox and solipses,46 you will understand from them the influx that emanates from the emanator to its recipient. And know that the paths of the sefirof1 that I wrote to you are - according to their secret - Binah,4S whose meaning is twelve [times fifty five amounts to ‘the time of]49 Qetz ,50 and all is Seter» — la continuación del pasaje en la plana 71: reconocida la trabazón de las *Moladot* en equinoccios y eclipses se entiende el influjo que va del emanador a su receptor, y las sendas de las sefirot son, por su secreto, Binah, cuyo sentido es doce veces cincuenta y cinco, el tiempo del *Qetz*, y todo es *Seter*.

«This nexus is related by Abulafia to the reception of the influx from above, apparently by the actualized human intellect» — lo que Abulafia hace con ese nexo, según Idel: ligarlo a la recepción del influjo de lo alto, al parecer por el intelecto humano actualizado.

«Whether or not this reception of intellectual influx in Abulafia is related in this specific text to the knowledge of the future, contemplation or prophecy, as in other cases when Saturn was mentioned, is a matter of interpretation; though from my reading of his writings this is quite a plausible assumption» — la abstención con que Idel lo acota: si esa recepción se liga al conocimiento del futuro, a la contemplación o a la profecía es cuestión de interpretación, aunque su lectura lo dé por plausible.

«In any case, the above passage not only deals with secrets of the immediate future, but also interprets a biblical verse that has obvious ‘messianic’ implications» — lo que Idel da por seguro del pasaje: trata secretos del futuro inmediato e interpreta un versículo bíblico de implicaciones mesiánicas evidentes.

«The meaning of the phrase Binah mahshavti, apparently ‘understand my thought’, may point to plumbing the secret of redemption found in divine thought» — la lectura que propone de *Binah mahshavti*: sondear el secreto de la redención alojado en el pensamiento divino.

«Moreover, the occurrence of the discussions on Hammah and Binah may well point to the verse in» — el versículo al que Idel remite a propósito de Hammah y Binah; el tramo se corta en el límite de segmento y sigue *Isaiah 11.2, where the spirit of Hammah and Binah is described as dwelling upon the messianic figure* en la misma plana.

«the passage would therefore emphasize the eschatological dimension of the above passage, as it deals with the ‘Time of the End’, though a more audacious one would insist upon its messianic cargo» — la gradación de lecturas que Idel propone: una evaluación cautelosa subraya la dimensión escatológica del pasaje y una más audaz insistiría en su carga mesiánica.

«Let me speculate on the significance of the term Binah: it means understanding, and in some cases deep understanding, and it therefore also makes sense in a non-sefirotic framework» — Idel declara especulativa su lectura de *Binah* como entendimiento, que tendría sentido aun fuera del marco sefirótico.

«However, an attempt to disregard a certain type of sefirotic reading is mistaken, because Abulafia explicitly mentions ‘the paths of the sefirof» — y la razón para no descartar la lectura sefirótica: Abulafia menciona expresamente las sendas de las sefirot.

«If this is a plausible explanation, then Binah points also to the third sejirah, and is connected to Sabbatai. If this guess is correct, the above text represents the first nexus between the planet Sabbatai, Binah and redemption» — el condicional con que Idel formula su hallazgo: de ser correcta la conjetura, ese texto sería el primer nexo entre el planeta Sabbatai, Binah y la redención.

«Whether or not Abulafia’s text had any influence on an even much more influential quote by Joseph Ashkenazi, to be discussed immediately below, is a difficult question to answer, for this is an issue that cannot be decided here» — la abstención sobre la dependencia: si el texto de Abulafia influyó en la cita de Joseph Ashkenazi es cuestión difícil que Idel no decide.

«Joseph ben Shalom Ashkenazi offered one of the most important and influential descriptions of the connection between the Messiah and the third sejirah in a passage of his Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah that was discussed in the first chapter» — Idel presenta el pasaje de Ashkenazi sobre la conexión entre el Mesías y la tercera sefirá como de los más importantes e influyentes.

«And since it is higher than all the seven planets it is appointed upon religions [dinirn] and buildings ... And because [the planet of Sabbatai] is appointed over the perpetuation, when it will arrive to the ascent, it will not decline forever, as it is said that58 ‘the spirit of God dwells upon him, the spirit of Hokhmah and of Binah'. See and understand that this is the secret of ‘Mashiyah YHWtT ... This is the reason why every ascent of Israel is but by the means of commandments, when they draw upon themselves the power of the Binah ... See and understand that the planet Sabbatai has the crown of Binah» — según Idel, así reza ese pasaje: por ser más alto que los siete planetas, Sabbatai queda designado sobre las religiones y los edificios, y por presidir la perpetuación no declinará jamás una vez en el ascenso, con el versículo del espíritu de Dios, Hokhmah y Binah; ahí está el secreto de *Mashiyah YHWH*, y todo ascenso de Israel se hace por los mandamientos, atrayendo sobre sí el poder de Binah, cuya corona tiene el planeta Sabbatai.

«In this case we have the central role of a redemptive sefirotic power, the third sejirah of Binah, which is understood as identical with the Messiah» — lo que Idel lee ahí: la tercera sefirá, Binah, como poder sefirótico redentor entendido como idéntico al Mesías.

«In a way, the path of the commandments is conceived of as bringing down the supernal power, which is understood as a redemptive moment» — y el papel de los mandamientos: hacer descender el poder supernal, lo que se entiende como momento redentor.

«From this point of view prophecy and Messianism are understood to be related to a change in religion, just as Binah is related to changes in the seven lower sefirot that are explicitly related to the commandments, namely the specific regulations of a certain religion» — la equivalencia que Idel traza: profecía y mesianismo entendidos como cambio de religión, igual que Binah cambia las siete sefirot inferiores ligadas a los mandamientos.

«Implied here, and less clear, is the fact that in a certain cosmic cycle dominated by one of the lower sefirot, those specific precepts are imperatives, but this changes when the religion change, under the impact of the Binah» — y lo que queda implícito: en cada ciclo cósmico regido por una sefirá inferior esos preceptos obligan, y eso cambia al cambiar la religión bajo el efecto de Binah.

«Unlike Abulafia, however, who did not connect Sabbatai to the human Messiah but to redemption in more general terms, Joseph ben Shalom Ashkenazi did so rather explicitly, and his mention of the “secret of Mashiyah YHWFT represents the most positive description of the planet in Hebrew literature from the Middle Ages» — la diferencia que Idel marca entre los dos: Abulafia liga Sabbatai a la redención en general y Ashkenazi al Mesías humano, con la descripción más positiva del planeta en la literatura hebrea medieval.

«Thus, we have three different forms of redemptive entity mentioned here: Binah, a divine (feminine) power, which is regarded as presiding over the seven lower sefirot, which return cyclically to it as the source from which they emanated, since she emanates in each cycle of fifty thousand years, the cosmic Jubilee or what is called the macrochronoi - the seven lower sefirot, then the planetary entity, Saturn, which operates in corporeal events, following the same macrochronic rhythm as Binah; and finally, what is called the Messiah of God, which I read as a human entity, who is active basically on the national level as a redeemer» — las tres entidades redentoras que Idel distingue en el pasaje: Binah como poder divino femenino que preside las siete sefirot inferiores y las reabsorbe en el Jubileo cósmico; Saturno, que obra en lo corpóreo con el mismo ritmo macrocrónico; y el Mesías de Dios, que él lee como entidad humana activa en el plano nacional.

«This reading of the passage assumes a hierarchy, which starts with the divine and descends, reaching the level of the human saviour. We may assume that the two lower levels depend upon the higher one, and indeed Saturn is subordinated, via the first letters of the name of forty-two, to the sefirotic level, which impacts on wisdom» — la jerarquía que su lectura supone: de lo divino hacia abajo hasta el salvador humano, con Saturno subordinado al nivel sefirótico por las primeras letras del nombre de cuarenta y dos.

«This hierarchy, which also assumes a descent and also, according to the last part of the quotation, some form of ascent, is very important in the Kabbalistic worldview of Joseph Ashkenazi, who emphasizes the ascent/descent motions by resorting to a recurring expression that he presumably invented, Din Benei Halof, ‘the law or rule of the changing entities, either by ascent or descent on the great Chain of Being, transforming themselves as part of these processes» — la expresión que Idel atribuye a Ashkenazi y supone invención suya: *Din Benei Halof*, la ley de las entidades que cambian al ascender o descender por la cadena del ser.

«As formulated explicitly, not only does Binah emanate upon the lower worlds, but Saturn also does, as the assumption that it impacts upon the demons appointed over people’s limbs shows» — lo que se afirma expresamente: no solo Binah emana sobre los mundos inferiores, también Saturno, como muestra su efecto sobre los demonios de los miembros.

«This strongly unified universe, built on strict correspondences between different levels on the one hand, and on strong interactions between them and changes they undergo on the other, is characteristic of Ashkenazi s commentary» — el rasgo que Idel da por característico de ese comentario: un universo fuertemente unificado, de correspondencias estrictas e interacciones intensas entre niveles.

«Let me reflect on this crucial statement related to the Messiah of God. In principle, one may regard this term as related to either the sefirah or the planet. As we shall see below, such a reading is non-existent in Kabbalah» — la alternativa que Idel plantea y descarta: en principio el Mesías de Dios podría leerse como la sefirá o como el planeta, pero esa lectura no existe en la cábala.

«However, my assumption, as formulated above, is that we may better understand it in this context as also referring to the human Messiah, since it occurs in a context concerning the things that Saturn is appointed over» — y su propia suposición: entenderlo también como el Mesías humano, por el contexto de las cosas que Saturno preside.

«Ashkenazi mentions the affinity between things that alternate as related to the planet, like boats, which go and return. However, given the fact that the planet is also appointed over inertia, the time of redemption will be long-lasting» — el detalle que Idel destaca: las cosas que alternan, como los barcos que van y vuelven, y la inercia del planeta, que haría duradero el tiempo de la redención.

«Indeed, within the framework of the cosmic cycles known as Shemittot and Yovelin, the problem of national redemption related to the human Messiah is quite obvious: each cosmic cycle of seven thousand years has its moment of redemption, but it is not going to remain forever since the sum of corporeal reality, terrestrial and astral, as well as the seven lower sejirot, will be absorbed within the sefirah of Binah» — el problema que Idel señala para la redención nacional: cada ciclo de siete mil años tiene su momento redentor, pero no perdura, porque todo lo corpóreo y las siete sefirot inferiores se reabsorben en Binah.

«Though an ascent to what may be called the Great Mother, this event is, at the same time, also a period of destruction, which may last for a millennium, before the lower sejirot will emanate again, and then the cosmological process will be restarted, with a new world, religion and commandments» — y lo que ese ascenso a la que llama Gran Madre implica a la vez: un periodo de destrucción de hasta un milenio antes de que el proceso se reinicie con mundo, religión y mandamientos nuevos.

«The precarious status of the historical/national Messiah is evident when the scope of religion is extended to cosmic cycles in such a broad manner. This is the reason for the succinct reference to the Messiah when understood in national terms. National redemption, though not neutralized, is nevertheless marginalized» — la consecuencia que saca: extendido el alcance de la religión a los ciclos cósmicos, el Mesías histórico y nacional queda precario y la redención nacional, marginada aunque no neutralizada.

«However, according to such logic, the Messiah is not a unique personality, whose advent means a final redemption, butjust one such occurrence, which will recur in other cosmic cycles» — y el precio doctrinal: el Mesías deja de ser personalidad única de redención final y pasa a ser una ocurrencia que se repetirá en otros ciclos.

«However, the manner in which Joseph Ashkenazi formulated his thought is rather ambiguous, since it allows for an understanding of the term ‘Messiah’, and ‘Israel’, on more than one ontological level, conceived of as parallel» — la ambigüedad que Idel consigna sin resolver: la formulación permite entender *Mesías* e *Israel* en más de un nivel ontológico, tenidos por paralelos.

«This is the reason why it is unnecessary to determine in a conclusive manner that terms such as ‘Messiah’ or ‘Israel’ refer to either the supernal sefirotic level or to the mundane one. In principle, according to the law of BeneiHalof they may function on both» — y su abstención declarada: no hace falta decidir si esos términos remiten al nivel sefirótico o al mundano, porque por la ley de *Benei Halof* pueden funcionar en los dos.

«The first of these is authored by the very eclectic Spanish kabbalist David ben Yehudah he-Hasid, whose Kabbalah is haunted by a variety of Kabbalistic ideas, of which a few are also present in Joseph Ashkenazi’s though. This is not an example of copying from his writings, though David does do so in many other cases, drawing from a variety of Kabbalistic sources» — Idel presenta a David ben Yehudah he-Hasid como cabalista muy ecléctico y niega que en este punto copie de Ashkenazi, aunque lo haga en otros casos.

«The King Messiah is the secret of Binak, and when the time for the Redemption of Israel will arrive, the Holy One, Blessed be He, who is A[eter]- ‘E[ lyon] will cause him to smell all those fine smells and perfumes ... that attribute called Messiah as it is written60 ‘and the spirit of Elohim is hovering over the face of the water this is the spirit of the Messiah ... Then, the Binah which is Messiah, judges the poor in a right manner, namely Knesset Yisrael, because she arouses stern judgement and justice onto the nations of the world» — según Idel, así lo dice David ben Yehudah he-Hasid: el Rey Mesías es el secreto de Binah, y llegado el tiempo de la redención el Santo, que es Keter Elyon, le hará oler todos esos aromas y perfumes; el espíritu de Elohim que se cierne sobre las aguas es el espíritu del Mesías, y entonces Binah, que es Mesías, juzga rectamente al pobre, es decir a *Knesset Yisrael*, porque despierta juicio severo sobre las naciones. El troceo rinde *Binah* como *Binak*.

«The mythology of redemption is construed here in terms of an emanative drama in the higher realm of the first group of three sefirot; the first sefirah arouses the third one by means of smells and perfumes, symbols of the divine influx» — la lectura de Idel: una mitología de la redención como drama emanativo en las tres primeras sefirot, con la primera despertando a la tercera por olores y perfumes.

«Then, by this arousal, and apparently this power received from the higher realms, the third sefirah distributes its influx onto the last sefirah, symbolized by the Knesset Yisrael, the ‘Assembly of Israel’, while preserving that influx from the demonic powers, symbolized by the nations» — y el reparto del influjo: la tercera sefirá lo distribuye a la última, *Knesset Yisrael*, preservándolo de los poderes demoníacos que las naciones simbolizan.

«This description is characteristic of a whole series of symbolic readings of the meaning of redemption: this is not an extraordinary moment, a rupture with the past or an upheaval. In fact, it is simply conceived of as the distribution of the divine forces from the first to the last sefirah» — lo que Idel señala como rasgo de esas lecturas simbólicas: la redención no es momento extraordinario ni ruptura, sino distribución de las fuerzas divinas de la primera a la última sefirá.

«The Messiah as a supernal entity is an agent active in differentiating the distribution of influx, which is perceived of as descending from the first sefirah» — el papel que el Mesías supernal cumple ahí: agente que diferencia la distribución del influjo que desciende de la primera sefirá.

«The apocalyptic judgement which takes place in history is only implicitly referred to - not negated but also not explicated» — la ausencia que Idel consigna con cuidado: el juicio apocalíptico en la historia queda solo implícito, ni negado ni explicitado.

«However, while Ashkenazi’s thought is theo-astrological and refers to the human Messiah, David ben Yehudah he-Hasid’s approach is not, and the name of Saturn is absent in this work as well as in other Kabbalistic books by him. This fact complicates the assumption that he was influenced by Ashkenazi’s thought» — la objeción que Idel opone a la filiación: David ben Yehudah he-Hasid no es teo-astrológico y el nombre de Saturno falta en sus libros, lo que complica suponerlo influido por Ashkenazi.

«What is more important for this kabbalist is an understanding of the supernal, divine processes rather than lower history» — lo que a ese cabalista le importa, según Idel: entender los procesos divinos supernales más que la historia de abajo.

«The anonymous Sefer ha-Temunah, a mid-fourteenth-century Kabbalist classic most probably written in the Byzantine Empire,62 also envisions a link between the third sefirah and the Messiah, apparently under the influence of the views surveyed above» — Idel data el *Sefer ha-Temunah* a mediados del siglo XIV y lo sitúa con probabilidad en el Imperio bizantino, con el mismo enlace entre la tercera sefirá y el Mesías.

«Redemption here stands not for national or individual salvation but for a cosmic process, which involves both the corporeal and the spiritual components of reality» — y qué significa ahí redención: no salvación nacional ni individual sino proceso cósmico que abarca lo corpóreo y lo espiritual.

«This is a deterministic process, deeply influenced by astrological concepts, which resorts to eschatological concepts in order to make its points in more traditional terms» — el carácter que le atribuye: proceso determinista, hondamente influido por conceptos astrológicos, que usa lo escatológico para decirse en términos tradicionales.

«Thus, we find in the emphasis on the redemptive nature of the third sejirah, designated as the Redeemer and higher Messiah, a clear tendency to depict the return of the emanative process to the source, a restoration of the primordial, a circular concept of what I propose to call a ‘cosmic macrochronos’, and not a historical rectilinear vision of history which ends, or culminates in, the messianic era» — el término propio con que Idel lo nombra: un *macrocronos cósmico* circular, retorno del proceso emanativo a su fuente y restauración de lo primordial, frente a una visión rectilínea de la historia que culmine en la era mesiánica.

«However, the most important repercussion of the views from the circle of Joseph Ashkenazi is to be found in the late-fourteenth or early-fifteenth-century anonymous Sefer ha-Peliy’ah. This vast compilation of various Kabbalistic sources, which includes excerpts from Joseph Ashkenazi and Abraham Abulafia’s writings, was composed within the realms of the Byzantine Empire» — dónde localiza Idel la repercusión mayor: el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah* anónimo de finales del XIV o principios del XV, compilación bizantina con extractos de Ashkenazi y de Abulafia.

«The Son of David will not come until the souls will be exhausted from the Body’63 and then the supernal and lower redemptions will be united to the supernal light» — según Idel, así reza el *Sefer ha-Temunah*: el Hijo de David no vendrá hasta que se agoten las almas del Cuerpo, y entonces las redenciones supernal e inferior se unirán a la luz supernal; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *because everything will return to the first redeemer, who has safely redeemed everything* en la 76.

«From the context, as well from some parallels found in the writings of Joseph Gikatilla on terms pointing to redemption66 and in earlier writers, it stands to reason that the first redeemer, who is identical to the ‘supernal Messiah’, referred to the third sefirah, which is conceived of as pointing to both the redemption of the higher entities, namely the last seven sefirot» — la identificación que Idel propone como razonable: el primer redentor, idéntico al Mesías supernal, sería la tercera sefirá; el tramo se corta en el límite de segmento y sigue *and the lower, mundane world* en la misma plana.

«The author was also well acquainted with the literature of the circle of Sefer ha-Temunah, which means all the important Kabbalistic sources where Sabbatai/Saturn plays an important role» — lo que Idel adjudica al compilador: conocía también la literatura del círculo del *Sefer ha-Temunah*, es decir, todas las fuentes cabalísticas donde Sabbatai pesa.

«However, as we shall see in the Appendix, the compilator also added the phrase ‘planet Sabbatai’, which occurs another three times in sources where it was mentioned only twice, as well as once more immediately afterwards» — y la intervención que le atribuye: añadir la frase *planeta Sabbatai*, que pasa de dos a tres apariciones más otra inmediatamente después.

«The very fact that the anonymous kabbalist brought together all these Kabbalistic sources in one book is in itself a significant development, since any reader of Kabbalistic literature who was interested in topics related to Saturn could now find them together in clear eschatological contexts» — lo que Idel llama desarrollo significativo: reunir en un solo libro esas fuentes, de modo que el lector interesado en Saturno las encontrara juntas y en contextos escatológicos claros.

«The anonymous Byzantine kabbalist also includes the passage from Joseph Ashkenazi’s Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah quoted above, which he reshaped as if it is part of a conversation between two ancient sages» — y la reelaboración formal que le adjudica: el pasaje de Ashkenazi rehecho como conversación entre dos sabios antiguos.

«He said: ‘Our Master, tell us why Sabbatai is the planet of destruction, and it is nevertheless informed by the wisdom» — según Idel, así abre el diálogo con que el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah* rehace el pasaje: la pregunta al maestro por qué Sabbatai, planeta de destrucción, está informado por la sabiduría del nombre 'ABG YTTz; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana.

«Despite the fact that Sabbatai is the power of destruction, by the [dint of the] Shemittot, it possesses the power of Harnmah, and the reason it is appointed over destruction is that it is not concerned with any corporeal issues, and this is the reason why it destroys them and does not mind them, neither their adornments, but is concerned with the separated intelligences, that are the sefirot, and the comprehension of God, blessed be He ... and from the power of Saturn ... the power of prophecy» — la respuesta del maestro en esa versión: pese a ser poder de destrucción, Sabbatai posee por los *Shemittot* el poder de *Hammah*, y destruye lo corpóreo por no atender a ello sino a las inteligencias separadas, que son las sefirot, y a la comprensión de Dios, y de su poder viene el de la profecía. El troceo rinde *Hammah* como *Harnmah*.

«As formulated in Sefer ha-Peliy ’ah, this passage should be understood as the continuation of the school of the kabbalists mentioned above, which means that the Messiah was again understood as connected to the third sefirah, as we learn from the occurrence of the term Binah, the mentions of the Shemittot and the heptad, which are related to the third sefirah, as seen above» — la lectura de Idel: ese pasaje continúa la escuela de los cabalistas citados, con el Mesías otra vez ligado a la tercera sefirá.

«However, what is especially significant in this latter text is the recurrence of the name of the planet Sabbatai, which corresponds to the well-known Latin deity and to the planet Saturn, more than in the original passage of Joseph Ashkenazi, as we shall see in the Appendix. Here the theo-astrological moment that is seminal for my discussions below is preserved intact» — lo que Idel da por especialmente significativo: el nombre del planeta Sabbatai vuelve más veces que en el original de Ashkenazi, con el momento teo-astrológico intacto.

«The ambiguity of the qualities related to this planet is well known to scholars, as has been thrown so well into relief in the monograph by Klibansky, Panovsky and Saxl (1989), and it reflects a combination of much older and independent traditions, psychological, mythical and astrological» — Idel remite la ambigüedad de las cualidades del planeta a la monografía de Klibansky, Panofsky y Saxl y la atribuye a una combinación de tradiciones antiguas e independientes. El troceo rinde *Panofsky* como *Panovsky* y data el volumen en 1989.

«In any case, in numerous astrological texts, the planet Saturn has been attributed with both the quality of presiding over wisdom (as understood by a number of authors and artists, especially since the Renaissance) and of being the source of genius, but at the same time with being the celestial power responsible for destruction, for the passive, for fools and for those of a melancholic temperament» — las cualidades contrapuestas que Idel enumera: preside la sabiduría y es fuente del genio, y a la vez responde de la destrucción, de lo pasivo, de los necios y de los melancólicos.

«I do not see these contradictory qualities as part of an original conceptual structure whose inner logic should be explored in depth, but as the result of a contiguous process of combination» — y cómo las explica: no como estructura conceptual original con lógica interna, sino como resultado de un proceso contiguo de combinación.

«This is the reason why I refrain from attempting to speculate about the possible deeper structure of the discourse of the kabbalists mentioned above, since they reflect earlier, sometimes randomly assembled, astrological traditions» — la abstención que declara en consecuencia: no especula sobre una estructura profunda del discurso de esos cabalistas, que reflejan tradiciones astrológicas a veces reunidas al azar.

«The speculation of James Hillman, in his essay ‘Senex and Puer', following the erudite study of the Warburgians’ Saturn and Melancholy, in the vein of Jung s psychology of the archetype, is groundless; there is no ‘puer’ in the texts to which he refers» — la objeción de Idel a James Hillman: su especulación junguiana sobre *senex* y *puer*, apoyada en el estudio warburgiano, carece de base porque no hay *puer* en los textos que invoca.

«This refusal to engage with the issue of the positive qualities reflects an original pattern that is important for my study here, since the assumption that the opposites should be understood together is, in my opinion, highly problematic» — la posición que Idel declara como opinión propia: suponer que los opuestos han de entenderse juntos es muy problemático.

«This is the reason why I assume that the Messiah should not be understood as embodying the opposite features of both wise man and fool» — y la consecuencia: no entender al Mesías como encarnación de los rasgos opuestos del sabio y el necio.

«I assume that the phenomenon of the Messiah is part of the positive conceptual structure and should not collide with the negative conceptual structure, even when they occur together, if there is no specific indication for such a ‘symphisical’ reading articulated by the author» — la regla de lectura que Idel se da: el fenómeno del Mesías pertenece a la estructura positiva y no ha de colisionar con la negativa salvo indicación del autor para una lectura *symphisical*.

«The awareness of the nexus between Sabbatai and Saturn is already to be found in the extremely influential book by the sixteenth-century Christian kabbalist, Francesco Giorgio of Venice, De Harmonia Mundi, I, 4» — el testimonio cristiano que Idel aduce: Francesco Giorgio de Venecia y su *De Harmonia Mundi*, libro muy influyente del siglo XVI.

«The impact of Joseph ben Shalom Ashkenazi’s passage is formative on the passage by Abraham Yagel, adduced in chapter 1, where the latter wrote that» — la filiación que Idel traza: el pasaje de Ashkenazi es formativo para el de Yagel citado en el primer capítulo.

«However, the sinister plight of the Jews in the present would find compensation in their success in the future. Speaking of the six lower planets, Yagel wrote that ‘all of them will give strength to Saturn, although the later will not give strength to any of them» — la compensación futura que Yagel promete, según Idel: todos los planetas inferiores darán fuerza a Saturno y él a ninguno.

«Since Saturn signifies the Jews, all the Gentiles will acknowledge their Torah and bow down to them while they [the Jews] will not acknowledge them [the Gentiles], as the prophet stated:74 ‘For then I will make the peoples a pure speech so that they all will invoke the Lord by name» — según Idel, así cita Yagel a un sabio indio: significando Saturno a los judíos, todos los gentiles reconocerán su Torá y se inclinarán ante ellos sin que ellos los reconozcan, con el versículo del habla pura que hará invocar al Señor por su nombre.

«Like Joseph Ashkenazi, in his Sefer ha-Peliy’ah, or Alemanno’s passages, here we also have the combination of positive and negative qualities, of despair and hope» — el rasgo común que señala: la combinación de cualidades positivas y negativas, de desesperanza y esperanza.

«No less than the great philosopher Aristotle - in fact a pseudo-Aristotelian source circulated in the Middle Ages76 - has been adduced from something written by the famous Jewish thinker Joseph Albo, to the effect that in the golden future ‘everyone will accept Israel’s Torah» — la autoridad que Yagel invoca, con la salvedad que Idel introduce entre guiones: no Aristóteles sino una fuente pseudoaristotélica medieval, aducida desde Joseph Albo, para el futuro dorado en que todos aceptarán la Torá de Israel.

«Binah, the supernal mother, nourishes these constellations and their planets. In the language of the rabbis she is called ‘the constellation of Israel’ and also ‘repentance’, by which all repent. [She also is called] ‘Jubilee’, and through [her power] the slaves were liberated and Israel [came] forth from Egypt» — según Idel, así formula Yagel la visión cabalística: Binah, la madre supernal, nutre esas constelaciones y sus planetas, y los rabinos la llaman constelación de Israel, arrepentimiento y Jubileo, por cuyo poder se liberaron los esclavos y salió Israel de Egipto.

«It is after this passage that Yagel introduces a lengthy verbatim citation from Joseph Ashkenazi’s Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah, part of it quoted above. Thus, the astrological view related to the messianic character of Saturn and the higher power that rules over it, the third sefirah, are in alignment with different eschatological views and some messianic verses and Talmudic discussions» — y lo que viene después: una cita literal extensa del comentario de Ashkenazi, con la visión astrológica del carácter mesiánico de Saturno alineada con versículos mesiánicos y discusiones talmúdicas.

«Taking into account this weakness, he claims that the image of the» — lo que Hillman sostiene pese a esa debilidad, según Idel; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *positive and negative senex subsumed an earlier puer/senex archetype* en la 78.

«These two quotations address the two extremes in the situation of the Jews. Their subordination and humiliation in the present is reminiscent of the negative qualities of the Greek god Kronos» — la lectura de Idel de esos dos extremos: la subordinación y la humillación presentes recuerdan las cualidades negativas del Crono griego; el tramo se corta antes del folio y el encabezado corrido, y la promesa de futuro se lee en la plana 79 como carácter del Saturnus latino anterior a la fusión.

«After invoking the authority of the Indian astrologer and that of the great Greek philosopher, Yagel approaches the opinion of the kabbalists» — el orden de autoridades que Idel describe en Yagel: el astrólogo indio, el gran filósofo griego y luego los cabalistas.

«However, interesting as Yagel’s views may be in themselves, they remain on the sidelines of Jewish culture» — el límite que Idel pone a Yagel: por interesantes que sean sus visiones, quedan al margen de la cultura judía.

«Nevertheless, the fact that a similar view was expressed by an older contemporary of Yagel, the Christian kabbalist Francesco Giorgio Veneto, who speaks about the nexus between Sabbatai, Saturn and Binah in his very influential book De Harmonia Mundi, seems to be quite significant since it assumes that there is a Saturnian religion, conceived in quite a positive conceptual structure» — lo que sí da por significativo: que un contemporáneo mayor, el cabalista cristiano Francesco Giorgio Veneto, ligara Sabbatai, Saturno y Binah y supusiera una religión saturnina en clave positiva.

«It points to the impact of Kabbalah on the cultural mood in Italy, and to a certain extent in Europe - as is demonstrated by the French translation and the printing of the book in Paris in 1556» — y lo que eso indica: el efecto de la cábala en el clima cultural italiano y europeo, con la traducción francesa y la impresión parisina de 1556 por prueba.

«However, I assume that an inverse statement might also be correct, namely that the strong Renaissance culture would have had an impact on some Jewish audiences in Italy at the close of the sixteenth century and later, including some of the kabbalists» — la reciprocidad que Idel declara como suposición: la cultura renacentista habría influido a su vez en públicos judíos de Italia a finales del XVI.

«Finally, a renowned Lurianic kabbalist, who flourished in the mid seventeenth century, Nathan Neta Shapira of Jerusalem, has attributed a commentary on Sefer Yetzirah to a medieval author, Rav Hai Gaon, otherwise unknown, except in pseudo-epigraphic sources» — la atribución que Idel consigna como pseudoepígrafe: Nathan Neta Shapira de Jerusalén adjudica a Rav Hai Gaón un comentario al *Sefer Yetzirah* que no se conoce por otra vía.

«Israel’s sign of the zodiac is Deli [Aquarius], and the planet of Israel is Sabbatai, and if Israel will join to them it will amount [by acronym] to ShaDaY, Sabbatai, Deli, Yisrael ... and the brethren will come, which are the ten tribes» — según Idel, así reza ese texto: el signo de Israel es Deli y su planeta Sabbatai, y unido Israel a ellos dan por acrónimo ShaDaY, con la llegada de los hermanos, que son las diez tribus.

«This mention of the ten tribes, described in that context as coming to the Land of Israel, is indubitably adding the eschatological touch to the nexus between Sabbatai, Israel and Aquarius, and when united they are described as forming the divine name Shadday, one of the divine names often used by Sabbatai Tzevi, the famous Messiah, in his speculations about his own special status, and its plene spelling as identical in gematria to his name» — lo que Idel lee en esa mención de las diez tribus: el toque escatológico al nexo Sabbatai-Israel-Acuario, cuya unión forma el nombre Shadday, que Sabbatai Tzevi usaría al especular sobre su estatuto.

«Sabbatai Tzevi, the most famous and for some Jews also the most notorious of the Jewish messiahs, was called by the name Sabbatai, like some other Jewish infants, because he was bom on the day of the Sabbath» — el dato con que Idel abre el apartado: a Sabbatai Tzevi se le puso ese nombre, como a otros niños judíos, por haber nacido en sábado.

«This is an ancient custom, which does not have any eschatological meaning in itself. Nevertheless, this means that a certain affinity between his proper name and a fact that may be interpreted in an astrological manner has been present in potentia from the very moment of his birth» — y la cautela con que lo acota: la costumbre no tiene por sí sentido escatológico, aunque la afinidad quedara en potencia desde el nacimiento.

«What seems to be much more pertinent, however, is the fact that in his youth he had been a student of Sefer ha-Peliy’ah and, as Scholem has pointed out, he was influenced by it» — lo que Idel da por más pertinente: que de joven estudiara el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*, con Scholem por autoridad de esa influencia.

«Three passages from this book, analysed above - two from Abulafia and the third from Joseph Ashkenazi - were quoted in this large compendium of early Kabbalah, all of them anonymously» — el dato que Idel subraya: los tres pasajes —dos de Abulafia y uno de Ashkenazi— se citan ahí de forma anónima.

«The fact that the three main passages on the planet Saturn/Sabbatai found in this book have eschatological and messianic implications, and the more general impact of Sefer ha-Temunah’s kabbalistic worldview, could not, in my opinion, escape» — y lo que concluye, marcándolo como opinión: implicaciones escatológicas y mesiánicas que no podrían escapar a un lector atento; el tramo se corta antes del límite de segmento y sigue *the attention of a careful reader* en la misma plana.

«Indeed, a Sabbatean ideologue has quoted Joseph Ashkenazi’s passage from Sefer ha-Peliy’ah framed as follows» — Idel consigna que un ideólogo sabbateano cita el pasaje de Ashkenazi desde el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah* con un marco propio.

«These are the words of Metatron to the holy Qanah called Sefer ha-Peliy’ah who is a wondrous man and it is found in our hands in a manuscript, and his words were copied by Rabad [Joseph Ashkenazi’s] in his Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah ... and these are the words of Metatron to the holy Qanah, and these are his [ Qanah’s] words» — según Idel, así lo enmarca ese ideólogo: palabras de Metatrón al santo Qanah llamado *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*, varón portentoso, con el manuscrito en sus manos y las palabras copiadas por Rabad en su comentario al *Sefer Yetzirah*.

«Sefer ha-Peliy’ah, in which the student of Nathan of Gaza is quoted, is attributed in the book itself to a second-century Tannaitic figure, a revered mystic named Nehuniah ben ha-Qanah, who is described as engaging in various mystical dialogues with Metatron, the highest of the angels» — la atribución interna que Idel consigna sin corregirla: el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah* se adjudica a sí mismo a Nehuniah ben ha-Qanah, tanaíta del siglo II, en diálogo místico con Metatrón.

«In fact, Nathan was convinced that it was the medieval kabbalist who was quoted from the ‘ancient’ Sefer ha-Peliy ’ah, and not vice versa, but this minor historical error does not affect his conviction» — y el error que Idel consigna en Nathan de Gaza: creía que el cabalista medieval citaba del *antiguo* *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah* y no al revés, sin que eso mermara su convicción.

«Both the occurrence of the name of this mystic and the fact that this book is conceived of as being revealed from above were bound to bolster the authority of the affinity between Sabbatai/Saturn and the Messiah» — el efecto que Idel atribuye a esa atribución: reforzar la autoridad del vínculo entre Sabbatai/Saturno y el Mesías.

«Actually the name of the planet, as linked to the quotation above is Sabbatai, but at the same time it ‘is the secret of the Mashyiah YHWH’, and in Hebrew identical with the proper name of Sabbatai Tzevi» — la coincidencia que Idel pone en el centro: el nombre del planeta es Sabbatai, es secreto del *Mashiyah YHWH* y coincide en hebreo con el nombre propio de Sabbatai Tzevi.

«This may be much more than sheer coincidence. Sabbatai Tzevi studied this book in his youth and might well have been influenced by this passage. In any case, his prophet used it explicitly to prove Tzevi’s messianism» — la lectura de Idel: acaso más que coincidencia, porque Tzevi estudió el libro de joven y su profeta lo usó explícitamente para probar su mesianismo.

«I am inclined to attribute to this passage, which has also left other conspicuous traces in Sabbatean literature,83 a much greater role than a belated and retrospective proof text» — la inclinación que declara: dar a ese pasaje un papel mayor que el de prueba tardía y retrospectiva.

«I assume that Tzevi conceived of himself as Messiah, at least in part because of the content of the passage that has just been cited, in which the planet Saturn, alias Sabbatai, was described as the ‘secret of the Messiah’» — y la suposición central del capítulo: que Tzevi se concibiera Mesías en parte por ese pasaje, donde Saturno, alias Sabbatai, es el secreto del Mesías.

«The manner of reference is rather ambiguous because it is not altogether clear whether the reference to Sabbatai is to a planet or to a human individual. Thus, someone could plausibly enough understand the passage to refer to the expected Messiah who is conceived of as being related to Sabbatai, or understand it to mean that he is called Sabbatai» — la ambigüedad que Idel consigna sin resolver: no queda claro si Sabbatai remite al planeta o a una persona, y caben las dos lecturas.

«If this hypothesis is correct, then the late thirteenth-century Kabbalah of the circle of Joseph Ashkenazi might have contributed more to Tzevi s self-consciousness as Messiah than anything in the Lurianic Kabbalah could possibly have done» — la hipótesis con que Idel se aparta de Scholem: de ser correcta, la cábala del círculo de Ashkenazi habría pesado más en la autoconciencia mesiánica de Tzevi que nada de la cábala luriánica.

«Attempts to restrict the impact of Ashkenazi’s Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah to Nathan, and diminish its influence on Sabbatai Tzevi, seem rather bizarre to this writer, since the latter was described as studying the book, not the former» — y la objeción que opone a quienes limitan ese influjo a Nathan: le parecen extraños, porque al que se describe estudiando el libro es a Tzevi.

«Two different topics are explicated in this passage. Let me start with the most obvious one: in 1670 a high revelation is to take place, when the highest divine hypostasis, ‘Attiqa’ Qaddisha’, will illuminate the lower configuration within the intra-divine world.87 Then those who merit it will gain ‘rest’, menuhah» — el desglose de Idel: en 1670 una revelación alta, con la hipóstasis divina suprema iluminando la configuración inferior, y el descanso, *menuhah*, para quienes lo merezcan.

«Though ‘rest’ is explicitly related to redemption, it must also have something to do with the concept of the Sabbath» — y el enlace que propone: el descanso, ligado explícitamente a la redención, tendría que ver también con el concepto del sábado.

«However, an earlier phase of the salvific drama is already emerging ‘in this time’, referred to by the secret of the Jubilee’. I assume that this secret designates a lower form of deliverance - but one already present in 1665» — la fase anterior que Idel distingue: una forma menor de liberación presente ya en 1665, designada por el secreto del Jubileo.

«In almost unanimous agreement on Kabbalistic symbolism, and on the basis of the above discussions, the Jubilee is a symbol of the third sejirah. This symbolism points to the current presiding power, namely the sejirah of Binah» — la identificación que sostiene: el Jubileo es símbolo de la tercera sefirá, y apunta al poder que preside en el presente, Binah.

«This distinction between the two phases was overlooked in Scholem’s analysis; nevertheless he did quite correctly point out the salvific meaning of Binah in this context. However, he did not pay attention to its possible implications, leaving the reader with the feeling that one global redemptive event is mentioned here» — el reparo que Idel opone a Scholem: pasó por alto la distinción entre las dos fases, aunque señalara bien el sentido salvífico de Binah, y dejó al lector con la impresión de un solo evento redentor global.

«the inheritance of the Lord’85 which is the mystery of the Jubilee Year that will become manifest at this time» — según Idel, así escribe Nathan de Gaza en una de sus epístolas sobre lo que asegura la fe en Sabbatai Tzevi: la heredad del Señor, misterio del año del Jubileo que se manifestará en este tiempo; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *and the rest, which is the mystery of the manifestation of 'Attiqa' Qaddisha', within the configuration of Ze'ir 'Anppin, in the year 1670* en la 82.

«the year of the next Shemittah89 And in the seventh [year] ben David will come90 and in the seventh year is Sabbath, which is the King Sabbatai, and at that time the abovementioned rabbi, [namely Sabbatai Tzevi] will come from the river of Sambatiyon together with his spouse, the daughter of Moses, our master» — según Idel, así escribe Nathan sobre los siete años siguientes: hasta el año de la próxima *Shemittah*, y en el séptimo vendrá ben David, y en el séptimo año es sábado, que es el Rey Sabbatai, y entonces el rabino vendrá del río Sambatiyon con su esposa, la hija de Moisés.

«The emphasis on the seventh is obvious; it is quite reminiscent of the secret of the Jubilee and, at the same time, of the description cited above from Sefer ha-Peliy ’ah, where Sabbatai/Saturn was described as connected to ‘the secret of Shemittot’» — lo que Idel lee en el énfasis en el séptimo: eco del secreto del Jubileo y del pasaje del *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah* donde Sabbatai se liga al secreto de los *Shemittot*.

«However, even more explicit is the mention of King Sabbatai in the last passage quoted. The reign of this king should not, in my opinion, be confused with that of Tzevi himself, because immediately after mentioning Sabbatai/Saturn, Nathan introduces the ‘Rabbi’, namely Tzevi himself - thus preventing a possible confusion between the two» — la distinción que Idel defiende: el reinado del Rey Sabbatai no debe confundirse con el de Tzevi, porque Nathan introduce al *Rabino* justo después.

«We may assume that, while studying Sefer ha-Peliy 'ah in his youth, Tzevi was attracted by the text cited above and may have been influenced by the nexus between Sabbatai, namely the planet Saturn (but also his proper name), and the Messiah and thus led to a sense of his own connection to the concept of Messiah» — la reconstrucción que Idel declara como suposición: Tzevi atraído de joven por ese texto y llevado por el nexo entre el planeta —que es también su nombre— y el Mesías a un sentido de su propia conexión con el Mesías.

«His vision was passed on to Nathan, his prophet, who integrated both the man and the planet in the same discussion, as both have the same name» — y el paso siguiente: Nathan, su profeta, integrando al hombre y al planeta en la misma discusión por llevar el mismo nombre.

«Provided that all these suppositions are correct, we are presented with an interesting example of how the contents of some Kabbalistic books may have infused their ideas in certain personalities, and may perhaps have constituted the starting point for far-reaching personal developments, even more than historical events» — la condición con que Idel enmarca todo el argumento: de ser correctas las suposiciones, se tendría un ejemplo de cómo el contenido de libros cabalísticos infunde ideas en ciertas personalidades, quizá más que los sucesos históricos.

«In other words, from this passage we can discern that the importance of the reign of Sabbatai-Saturn, which is indeed the seventh» — lo que Idel lee en ese pasaje: la importancia del reinado de Sabbatai-Saturno, séptimo planeta, dentro del drama redentor; el tramo se corta antes del encabezado corrido y sigue en la 83 con *planet, as part of the redemptive drama, was utilized beyond the direct quotation of the thirteenth and fourteenth-century Kabbalistic writings*.

«Indeed, on the basis of the texts above, it would be plausible to suggest another clue to the inner spiritual life of Tzevi. Gershom Scholem has proposed a diagnosis of mental illness that may explain Tzevi’s emotional up and downs: manic depression,92 or what in present-day parlance is known as bipolar personality disorder» — el diagnóstico que Idel atribuye a Scholem: una enfermedad mental que explicaría los altibajos de Tzevi, la depresión maníaca, hoy trastorno bipolar.

«It is not my aim here, or in general, to dispute the accuracy of this modern diagnosis of the mental malady of a patient who died a few centuries ago» — la abstención declarada de Idel: no se propone disputar la exactitud de ese diagnóstico moderno sobre un paciente muerto hace siglos.

«It will be sufficient to mention here the possibility that, due to the Kabbalistic passage triggering a personal affinity to Binah and Saturn, Tzevi also internalized the peculiar emotional characteristic connected to this planet: marah shehorah, ‘black humour’ or “melancholy’» — y lo que propone en su lugar, en grado de posibilidad: que Tzevi internalizara el rasgo emocional propio del planeta, la *marah shehorah*.

«Indeed, Scholem, following the Hebrew sources, refers to Tzevi’s melancholy on several occasions» — el apoyo que toma del propio Scholem: siguiendo las fuentes hebreas, se refiere varias veces a la melancolía de Tzevi.

«As is better understood today, since the Renaissance, more and more historical personalities born under the aegis of Saturn have been haunted by the idea of having a troubled fate» — el contexto más amplio que Idel invoca: desde el Renacimiento, cada vez más personalidades nacidas bajo Saturno se vieron perseguidas por la idea de un destino atribulado.

«hope that this clue will help to give a better understanding of various facets of Tzevi’s behaviour, but the psychological aspects of absorbing the melancholic side of Saturn are an issue that still awaits fuller discussion» — la deuda que declara: los aspectos psicológicos de absorber el lado melancólico de Saturno esperan una discusión más completa. El troceo pega la llamada a nota con el *I* inicial de la frase.

«Here I am concerned with the more explicit material that sustains, in my opinion in a clearer manner, the astrological dimensions of the Sabbatean movement» — y a qué se atiene él: el material más explícito que a su juicio sostiene con más claridad las dimensiones astrológicas del movimiento sabbateano.

«In addition to the possible contamination of the young Tzevi by ideas concerning Sabbatai-Saturn as related to a future Messiah, from the point of view of our discussion here it would be pertinent to examine one major issue related to the status of the myth: the deity Saturn metamorphosed into a planet» — el asunto que Idel abre a continuación: el estatuto del mito, con la deidad Saturno metamorfoseada en planeta.

«Despite the astral role of Saturn, some qualities of the ancient Graeco-Latin god remained alive. As pointed out by Seznec, astral concepts in the Middle Ages bore mythical» — el dato que Idel toma de Seznec: los conceptos astrales medievales llevaban dentro conceptos míticos sobre los dioses antiguos; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana.

«Is it at all possible that we will discover an even greater revival of this ancient myth in Tzevi’s thought and self-perception? Or, to pose the question even more bluntly: would Sabbatai conceive of himself not only as a Messiah, perhaps a person ruled by the highest planet or by the third sefirah, but also as someone who would achieve, at least for a while, divine status - through some experience of apotheosis or theosis» — la pregunta que Idel formula sin rodeos: si Sabbatai se concibió no solo como Mesías regido por el planeta más alto o por la tercera sefirá, sino como alguien que alcanzaría por un tiempo estatuto divino.

«In a fairly explicit passage, the ascent of Tzevi to the sefirah of Binah (a sefirah related in many texts to Saturn as has been demonstrated above) is quite conspicuous. In what is called the Yemenite Sabbatean apocalypse, which is a fragment from a lost treatise stemming from a rather early period of the Sabbatean movement, the Messiah is described as ascending from ‘one degree to another, [all] the degrees of the seven sefirot from Gedullah to Malkhut... after two years he ascends to the degree that his mother is there» — según Idel, el llamado apocalipsis sabbateano yemenita, fragmento de un tratado perdido de época temprana del movimiento, describe al Mesías ascendiendo de grado en grado por las siete sefirot, de Gedullah a Malkhut, y a los dos años al grado donde está su madre.

«Gershom Scholem correctly interpreted this text as pointing to the third sefirah, which is commonly symbolized in the theosophical Kabbalah by the symbol of the Great Mother, and he even proposed, on the basis of this passage, the presupposition of a mystical event occurring in the spiritual life of Tzevi in 1650» — la lectura de Scholem que Idel hace suya: el texto apunta a la tercera sefirá, simbolizada como Gran Madre, y de ahí supuso un suceso místico en la vida de Tzevi en 1650.

«Moreover, Scholem correctly intuited that the meaning of this attainment would be an understanding of the ‘secret of divinity’.96 However, what Scholem did not specify or even conjecture was the possible nature of that ‘secret of the divinity’» — y lo que Idel señala que Scholem dejó sin precisar: la naturaleza posible de ese secreto de la divinidad.

«On the basis of these extracts and some others dealt with above, I suggest that this secret was not only understood by reaching the third sefirah, but may indeed be the very secret of the divinity itself, namely the most intimate secret of Sabbatean theology as proposed by Tzevi himself» — la sugerencia de Idel: que ese secreto no se agote en alcanzar la tercera sefirá y sea el secreto mismo de la divinidad, lo más íntimo de la teología sabbateana propuesta por el propio Tzevi.

«This would invite a more detailed investigation, which may find that the Sabbatean secret of the divinity changed as it developed in relation to the vector of time and the ontic hierarchy of the sefirot, meaning that the closer the messianic drama comes to the final stage, the higher the divine power that is appointed upon or related to Sabbatai, which ultimately constitutes the ‘secret of divinity’» — y la dinámica que propone investigar: cuanto más cerca del estadio final del drama mesiánico, más alto el poder divino ligado a Sabbatai.

«In any case, elsewhere in the same epistle, the nest of the bird, the mystical place of the Messiah according to the book of the Zohar, is described as none other than the third sefirah» — el dato que Idel suma de la misma epístola: el nido del pájaro, lugar místico del Mesías según el *Zohar*, identificado con la tercera sefirá.

«Thus, the return to the third sefirah, understood in many texts as redemption, in the symbolism dominant in the Yemenite Sabbatean Apocalypse, is tantamount to a return to the bosom of the Mother, as part of some form of what Erich Neuman called uroboric mysticism» — y cómo lo lee: el retorno a la tercera sefirá como vuelta al seno de la Madre, dentro de lo que Erich Neuman llamó misticismo uróbico.

«way or another. Of the many discussions dealing with the nexus between Messiah and Binah, it is only the Messiah named Sabbatai to whom this specific form of apotheosis is attributed; none of the others mention the ascent of a historical Messiah to that sefirah» — la singularidad que Idel traza: de todas las discusiones sobre el nexo Mesías-Binah, solo al Mesías llamado Sabbatai se le atribuye esa apoteosis.

«Unlike Marsilio Ficino, Girolamo Cardano or (to a certain extent) Robert Burton, among many others whose mood has been profoundly affected by their belief that they were born under Saturn," Sabbatai Tzevi attempted, or has at least been portrayed as attempting, to ascend to the celestial source presiding over his character» — el contraste con que lo mide: Ficino, Cardano y en parte Robert Burton tuvieron el ánimo marcado por creerse nacidos bajo Saturno, y Tzevi intentó —o fue retratado intentando— ascender a esa fuente celeste.

«Much as King Solomon was turned into a divinity in a fourteenth-century Kabbalistic text by Isaac of Acre,100 the divinization of the Messiah in Sabbateanism restores the mythical traits of some Greek themes lost over the centuries» — el paralelo que Idel trae: la divinización de Salomón en un texto cabalístico del siglo XIV de Isaac de Acre, y la divinización del Mesías sabbateano como restitución de rasgos míticos griegos perdidos.

«It is a plausible assumption that the seventeenth-century Messiah, or the authors who invented the passage cited above, did not know about the original Greek mythological material about Saturn, and I very much doubt that Sabbatai Tzevi intended to restore the status of Saturn as the father of the gods» — la abstención que lo acota: Idel supone plausible que ni el Mesías ni los autores del pasaje conocieran el material mítico griego original, y duda mucho de que Tzevi quisiera restituir a Saturno como padre de los dioses.

«However, what does seem pertinent to our discussion is that using the hermeneutical apparatus of the median line of the divine powers some vestiges of ancient myths were given a certain dramatic colouring that made it appear as if they were closer to the ancient sources than the medieval versions of these myths» — y lo que sí da por pertinente: que el aparato hermenéutico de la línea media de los poderes divinos diera a vestigios de mitos antiguos un color dramático que los acercaba en apariencia a las fuentes antiguas.

«However, whatever the details of Sabbatai’s own ‘secret of divinity’ might have been, and this secret is far from being clear, the apotheosis described in the above text presupposes a conception that the Messiah» — la cautela con que Idel lo enmarca: sea cual sea el secreto, que dice lejos de estar claro, la apoteosis del texto supone una concepción del Mesías; el tramo se corta antes del folio y el encabezado corrido, y sigue en la 85 con *ascending to the third sefirah, has been turned into a divine power in one way or another*.

«According to some accounts, Sabbatai Tzevi, and Sabbateanism in a broader sense, has been accused of indulging in sexual relations prohibited by Jewish laws.101 This is conceived of as a major breach in Judaism and is perhaps the most controversial aspect of Sabbateanism and its offspring, Frankism» — la acusación que Idel consigna como reporte: a Tzevi y al sabbateanismo se les acusó de relaciones sexuales prohibidas por la ley judía, tenidas por brecha mayor.

«To the best of my knowledge, no serious attempt has been made to explain this drastic development in terms related to astrology and more specifically to Saturnian features. However, such an explanation, even if it is only partial, seems fairly pertinent to me» — el hueco que Idel declara: nadie habría intentado en serio explicar ese desarrollo por la astrología y por los rasgos saturninos, y a él le parece pertinente aunque sea parcial.

«It should be noted that here I am referring to discussions found in a variety of texts, but not reverberated in Sefer ha-Peliy ’ah. This would imply that Tzevi was also acquainted with additional sources concerning Saturn» — y la implicación que saca: estos materiales no resuenan en el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*, lo que supondría que Tzevi conocía otras fuentes sobre Saturno.

«Here we have an interesting example of complexity, in which Saturn’s impact is different in accordance with whether it is in the ascendant or not - in this case, indifferent towards women or prone to lewd sexuality, a topic that is characteristic of Sabbatai Tzevi» — la complejidad que Idel destaca: el efecto del planeta cambia según esté o no en el ascendente, y los dos extremos —indiferencia hacia las mujeres y sexualidad lasciva— tocan a Tzevi.

«In some of their writings we find the assumption that incestuous relations are forbidden in the Land of Israel, since it is governed by Saturn, which is understood as a cold and frigid planet» — el supuesto que Idel encuentra entre los seguidores de ibn Ezra: el incesto prohibido en la Tierra de Israel por regirla Saturno, planeta frío y frígido.

«Though this theory may stem from a correct implicit interpretation of ibn Ezra,105 his followers have made it quite explicit» — y la atribución matizada: la teoría podría venir de una lectura implícita correcta de ibn Ezra, pero fueron sus seguidores quienes la hicieron explícita.

«One of the rationales of the ‘Arayyoti s that since sexual intercourse corresponds to the Land of Israel, since Sabbatai/Saturn rules over it and this is the reason why Balaam advised Balaq to abandon the daughters of Midian to them so that Israel could prostitute with them, and because of it they will fail, since they will act against their constellation, which is Saturn, which hates lewdness. And because Saturn is the planet of Israel it is cold and dry, while sexual intercourse needs warmth and humidity. And this is the reason, in my opinion, that lighting fire during Sabbath is prohibited ... since it corresponds to the planet of the day that is Saturn» — según Idel, así lo escribe Shlomo Gatigno: el trato sexual corresponde a la Tierra de Israel porque Sabbatai la rige, y por eso Balaam aconsejó a Balaq soltarles las hijas de Madián, para que Israel cayera obrando contra su constelación, que odia la lascivia; Saturno, planeta de Israel, es frío y seco y el trato sexual pide calor y humedad, y de ahí, dice, la prohibición de encender fuego en sábado.

«Saturn makes men averse to women and renders them fond of governing, prone to solitude ... indifferent to beauty ... but if he be thus conciliated, and not posited in glory, he makes men» — según Idel, así reza el *Tetrabiblos* sobre Saturno alineado con Venus: hace a los hombres aversos a las mujeres, amigos de gobernar, dados a la soledad e indiferentes a la belleza; el tramo se corta antes del folio y el encabezado corrido, y sigue en la 86 con la serie contraria, *licentious and libidinous… adulterous and impious*.

«licentious and libidinous, practitioners of lewdness, careless, and impure in sexual intercourse, obscene, treacherous to women, especially of their families, wanton ... adulterous and impious» — la otra mitad del pasaje de Ptolomeo: licenciosos, libidinosos, dados a la lascivia, descuidados, impuros en el trato sexual, obscenos, traicioneros con las mujeres de su familia, lascivos, adúlteros e impíos.

«This is an application of Ptolemy’s view, as discussed above, of the Land of Israel and of a specific form of sexual relationships - incestual ones» — la lectura de Idel: una aplicación de la visión ptolemaica a la Tierra de Israel y a una forma concreta de relación sexual, la incestuosa.

«According to another anonymous text copied by Yohanan Alemanno in his Collectanea, this planet is explicitly associated with incestuous relationships» — otro testimonio: un texto anónimo copiado por Alemanno en sus *Collectanea* que asocia el planeta al incesto.

«Alemanno quotes from a source (which so far I have not been able to identify precisely) as follows» — y la abstención sobre su origen: Idel declara no haber podido identificar con precisión la fuente.

«This is most probably a Jewish text, since it regards as the lot of Saturn those who respect the interdictions of incest» — la adjudicación que Idel propone con reserva: sería un texto judío, porque da por lote de Saturno a quienes respetan la prohibición del incesto.

«It is based on the contradictory nature of Saturn, whose influxes may be either spiritual, when it turns to the spiritual world, or material, when it turns to the material world» — y el mecanismo que lo sostiene: la naturaleza contradictoria del planeta, cuyos influjos son espirituales o materiales según hacia dónde se vuelva.

«The astrologers said that Sabbatai/Saturn, when in alignment with Nogah/Venus, points to ugly and repulsive intercourse, especially with relatives, like a mother, a sister or a daughter. And despite the fact that this is true, this is the reason for the interdiction of relatives, since Sabbatai/Saturn, on account of being spiritual, and because its influxes are spiritual, to whomever merited them, who are pure and holy, because of» — según Idel, así reza el anónimo que copia Alemanno: los astrólogos dicen que Sabbatai alineado con Nogah/Venus apunta a trato feo y repulsivo, sobre todo con parientes, y de ahí la prohibición, porque siendo el planeta espiritual sus influjos son espirituales para quienes los merecen; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana.

«its coming close to the holy spiritual world; and its material influxes, because of its coming close to the material world, are inferior and repulsive. This is the reason why the nation that is its lot should prepare itself toward to its pure influxes and keep themselves apart from preparing itself to repulsive influxes such as incestuous [relations], which [are related] to relatives» — la continuación del pasaje: los influjos materiales, por acercarse al mundo material, son inferiores y repulsivos, y la nación que le toca por lote ha de disponerse a los puros y apartarse de los repulsivos, como el incesto con parientes.

«This oscillation of Saturn is quite interesting since it has some parallels in the passages from Joseph Ashkenazi and Sefer ha-Peliy’ah discussed in the Appendix» — el paralelo que Idel señala para esa oscilación: los pasajes de Ashkenazi y del *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah* que discute en el Apéndice.

«However, what is crucial for our discussion here is the direct nexus between Saturn and illicit sexual relations - incest, which in Jewish texts is called ‘Arayyot» — lo que da por crucial: el nexo directo entre Saturno y las relaciones sexuales ilícitas, el incesto, llamado *'Arayyot* en los textos judíos.

«Sabbatai/Saturn is the secret of spleen108 which is permanently immersed in sadness109 ... Idolatry, incestuous relations, and bloodshed depend on the liver, the spleen, and black bile; idolatry on liver, that is angry because of black bile, bloodshed on black bile, which is called Geheinna ... and the incestuous relationship on the spleen, which is Lilith, the mother of ‘Erev Rav, who commits adultery against her husband and is called incest in the Shekhinah» — según Idel, así reza un pasaje teosófico anónimo de manuscrito tardío, con visiones de la capa zohárica tardía: Sabbatai es el secreto del bazo, inmerso en la tristeza; idolatría, incesto y derramamiento de sangre dependen del hígado, el bazo y la bilis negra, y el incesto del bazo, que es Lilith, madre del 'Erev Rav, que adultera contra su marido y se llama incesto en la Shekhinah.

«What is crucial to my point here is the relationship between Saturn, the spleen and incestuous relations, which parallels Ptolemy’s book or the astrological anonymous text quoted by Alemanno, which may be the source of the Kabbalistic passage» — la filiación que Idel propone con reserva: el anónimo astrológico que copia Alemanno podría ser la fuente del pasaje cabalístico.

«The astrological explanation for incest, which was also integrated in theosophical Kabbalah, reached the attention of Tzevi and inspired his deviant behaviour of spending time with married women, his former wives and virgins, a practice against rabbinic regulations» — la tesis de Idel sobre la conducta de Tzevi: la explicación astrológica del incesto, integrada en la cábala teosófica, llegó a él e inspiró su trato con mujeres casadas, sus antiguas esposas y vírgenes.

«Sabbatai/Saturn points to the bodies. Idolatry — from the power of Sabbatai/Saturn. It is found that idolatry, incest and bloodshed emanate from Sabbatai/Saturn, and from Mars and Venus. Abraham has obliterated the incest from his son and given it to Ishmael, Isaac obliterated bloodshed from his son» — según Idel, así reza el *Aron ha-'Edut* de Shlomo Al-Qonstantin que Alemanno copia: idolatría, incesto y derramamiento de sangre emanan de Sabbatai, de Marte y de Venus; Abraham quitó el incesto a su hijo y lo dio a Ismael, e Isaac quitó la sangre a su hijo; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana.

«and gave it to Esau, Jacob obliterated idolatry from his sons and gave it to the nations. This [was done] by Abraham with the sacrifice of a calf, as against Venus, whose house is Taurus, Isaac sacrificed a lamb instead of him, which is the ram that was sacrificed in correspondence to the zodiac sign of Aries, which is the house of Mars, and Jacob brought two kids corresponding to Sabbatai/Saturn, whose house is Capricorn, and this is because the quintessence of idolatry is rumination of the heart, and Sabbatai/Saturn’s power is thought and rumination» — la continuación del pasaje: Jacob quitó la idolatría a sus hijos y la dio a las naciones, con el becerro frente a Venus en Tauro, el cordero frente a Marte en Aries y los dos cabritos frente a Sabbatai en Capricornio, porque la quintaesencia de la idolatría es la rumia del corazón y el poder de Sabbatai es pensamiento y rumia.

«By proposing to identify the astrological sources as one of the important springboards for Tzevi’s deviant behaviour, I do not aim to restrict the solution of Sabbatai’s behaviour, or its interpretation by others, to just one source» — la reserva con que Idel presenta su propuesta: no busca reducir a una sola fuente la conducta de Tzevi ni su interpretación.

«Scholem was undoubtedly right when he pointed to another important source, Tiqqunei Zohar, which inspired Nathan of Gaza as to the permissiveness of incestuous relations within the divine sphere, implicitly condoning this kind of behaviour for his Messiah» — la fuente que Idel concede a Scholem: el *Tiqqunei Zohar*, que inspiró a Nathan de Gaza la permisividad del incesto dentro de la esfera divina.

«In fact, permissiveness of this kind is not such a novelty in Kabbalah, as it had been part of its development since its inception» — y el matiz que añade: esa permisividad no es novedad en la cábala, sino parte de su desarrollo desde el principio.

«In any case, it is hard to minimize the affinity between the astrological concatenation of Saturn and lewdness and improper sexual relationships and Sabbatai’s behaviour, which has no antecedent in Judaism» — la afinidad que Idel dice difícil de minimizar: la concatenación astrológica de Saturno con la lascivia y la conducta de Tzevi, sin antecedente en el judaísmo.

«Come together like brethren - all the planets, in order to praise To Thee, the supernal Sabbatai, the head of the seven - Greatness and dominion is appropriate. This is why God put thou broad knowledge - Your name was called by his name on the day of circumcision» — según Idel, así reza el poema que un rabino contemporáneo dedica a Tzevi: júntense como hermanos todos los planetas para alabar al supernal Sabbatai, cabeza de los siete, a quien convienen grandeza y dominio; por eso Dios le dio ancho conocimiento y su nombre fue llamado por el nombre de aquel el día de la circuncisión.

«I propose to interpret these verses as dealing with the Sabbatai the Messiah in terms of the status of the first among the seven planets» — la lectura que Idel propone de esos versos: tratan al Mesías Sabbatai según el estatuto del primero de los siete planetas. El tramo se corta antes del folio y el encabezado corrido, y cierra en la 89 con *namely Saturn, which also offers the reason for the name given to Sabbatai the infant at the moment of circumcision*.

«Let me adduce some examples of an awareness of the nexus between Sabbatai Tzevi and the planet. In an explicit statement as to the affinity between the Messiah and the planet, written by a contemporary Rabbi of Tzevi, who dedicated a poem to him, we read» — Idel anuncia ejemplos de la conciencia del nexo entre Tzevi y el planeta, empezando por el poema de un rabino contemporáneo suyo.

«In other words, the relatively young Tzevi, who studied a classic of Kabbalistic literature in the specific geographical area in which he was born, the Ottoman Empire, was shaped by a statement that connected his proper name to the homonymous planet and the Messiah» — la formulación que Idel da a su tesis: el joven Tzevi quedó formado, en el Imperio otomano, por un enunciado que ataba su nombre propio al planeta homónimo y al Mesías.

«Another very important nexus between Sabbatai, the Messiah and the planet, in a conspicuously astrological context, is found in a debate related to the epistle of the Italian Rabbi Raphael Supino: ‘Even more so the fostering of his messianism by the sages of the nations and their astrologers, as you said that they have seen the light of the star of Saturn that shines and is brilliant, and this is a sign of the Redemption» — otro testimonio que Idel aduce, del debate en torno a la epístola del rabino italiano Raphael Supino: que los sabios de las naciones y sus astrólogos alimentaban su mesianismo porque habrían visto brillar la luz de la estrella de Saturno como señal de la redención.

«Sabbatean propaganda had a very conspicuous astrological dimension, and also involved non-Jews and astrologers as well as claims about the significance of recent astronomical phenomena» — lo que Idel adjudica a la propaganda sabbateana: una dimensión astrológica muy visible, con no judíos y astrólogos implicados y con apelaciones a fenómenos astronómicos recientes.

«The Master [Tzevi] put upon him his spirit of prophecy. Thereupon something resembling a brilliant star grew on his forehead - and it seems to me that it was the planet Saturn - and it is said that he [ha-Yakhini] too then prophesied» — según Idel, así lo preserva Sasportas: el maestro puso sobre Abraham ha-Yakhini su espíritu de profecía y le creció en la frente algo semejante a una estrella brillante —*y me parece que era el planeta Saturno*, dice el testimonio—, y se dice que también él profetizó.

«Both the spirit of prophecy and the mention of the star - even without the explicit nexus with Saturn - in my opinion point to Saturn, which was linked with the faculty of prophecy» — la lectura que Idel declara como opinión: tanto el espíritu de profecía como la mención de la estrella apuntan a Saturno, ligado a la facultad profética.

«Again, I would like not to deduce the development of Tzevi’s self-awareness from the reception of Sabbatai Tzevi as a planet, but at least we may argue that the nexus between the very high status of the planet Sabbatai and the Messiah Sabbatai could not have escaped the notice of many of his followers, as it could not have escaped the notice of» — la cautela que Idel repite: no deduce la autoconciencia de Tzevi de su recepción como planeta, pero sostiene que el nexo no pudo escapar a muchos de sus seguidores; el tramo se corta antes del límite de segmento y sigue *Tzevi himself* en la misma plana.

«We have very reliable testimony for an astral understanding of Tzevi emanating from the most intimate circle of the Messiah, but independently of the testimonies of Nathan of Gaza and his followers, who merely reiterated the views of Sefer ha-Peliy ’ah» — el valor probatorio que Idel reclama: un testimonio fiable de lectura astral de Tzevi desde su círculo más íntimo, independiente de Nathan de Gaza y sus seguidores.

«other words, in circles closest to Sabbatai Tzevi, statements were made that establish a relation between him and the planet bearing a similar name» — y lo que traza: en los círculos más próximos se hicieron enunciados que relacionan a Tzevi con el planeta de nombre semejante. El tramo arranca en el segundo segmento de la plana, donde continúa la frase que el primero deja cortada.

«If this assumption is correct, we are witness to a classical situation in which a specific type of personality interacted with pre-existent thought forms, in this case an astrological model capable of influencing not only an abstract messianic claim but also other aspects of his inner life and external deeds» — la figura con que Idel resume su tesis: una personalidad concreta interactuando con formas de pensamiento preexistentes, un modelo astrológico capaz de moldear no solo el reclamo mesiánico sino su vida interior y sus actos.

«In any case, it is quite possible that Tzevi’s “melancholy’ is not only part of the Messiah’s personal spiritual constitution and the result of his having read and internalized the content of the passage from Sefer ha-Peliy ’ah, but also an aspect of the more general attitude towards melancholy in his period» — y la reserva final del apartado: la melancolía de Tzevi no vendría solo de su constitución y de la lectura del *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*, sino también de la actitud general hacia la melancolía en su época.

«The first is the discussion of conjunctio maxima, an argument in all likelihood used by propagandists of Sabbateanism, but countered by Sasportas in these words» — el argumento que Idel adjudica en grado de probabilidad a los propagandistas sabbateanos: la *conjunctio maxima*, replicada por Sasportas.

«Would we come to behave in accordance with their119 calculations, they maintain that at the time of Sabbatai/Saturn found in the zodiac sign of Scorpio, there will be an innovation of religion [hiddush ha-dat], as it was at the time when the Israelites prepared the [Golden] calf and when they prostrated themselves to the image of Nebuchadnezzar. Because of their words120 would you install his rule over the land, so that he will be the policeman and governor, the king of Israel and their redeemer» — según Idel, así replica Sasportas: sostienen que con Sabbatai en Escorpio habrá renovación de religión, como cuando Israel preparó el becerro y cuando se postraron ante la imagen de Nabucodonosor, y pregunta si por esas palabras se le instalaría el gobierno de la tierra como rey de Israel y redentor.

«This is no doubt a critical response to a claim made by Raphael Supino, on the basis of the views of astrologers, on the renovation of religion under the jurisdiction of Saturn» — Idel identifica el blanco de esa réplica: la afirmación de Raphael Supino sobre la renovación de la religión bajo jurisdicción de Saturno, apoyada en los astrólogos.

«In this explicit astrological context, let me adduce the view of Joseph Eskapha, Sabbatai Tzevi’s teacher in his youth and one of the most important rabbinic authorities in Smyrna, who excommunicated Sabbatai because he had a propensity to change the law, declaring that ‘he [will] make a new religion» — el testimonio que Idel aduce: Joseph Eskapha, maestro de Tzevi en su juventud y autoridad rabínica en Esmirna, lo excomulgó por su propensión a cambiar la ley, declarando que haría una religión nueva.

«This is quite an important piece of evidence, stemming, as it does, from an early period of Tzevi’s life, given that Eskapha died in 1661, long before the return of his former student to Smyrna as a messiah; it may reflect a conversation with Tzevi himself, who probably confessed to him in his youth that the Messiah would change the law» — el peso que Idel le da y su conjetura: Eskapha murió en 1661, mucho antes del regreso de su antiguo alumno como mesías, y el dicho podría reflejar una conversación en que Tzevi le confesara que el Mesías cambiaría la ley.

«If proven, my conjecture would give scope to the assumption that Tzevi planned his messianic career much earlier in his life and that it was ‘premeditated’ in a much more careful manner than assumed by scholars, allowing theo-astrological elements a more significant part in the development of his thought» — y lo que esa conjetura permitiría suponer, de probarse: una carrera mesiánica premeditada mucho antes de lo que la erudición asume, con más peso de lo teo-astrológico.

«My assumption is that it was not only manic elation that informed his ‘strange deeds’, as Scholem suggests, but that the existence of a more conceptual structure also sometimes nourished them» — la suposición con que Idel matiza a Scholem: los *actos extraños* no vendrían solo de exaltación maníaca, sino también de una estructura conceptual.

«Sabbatai Tzevi, our king, our redeemer, the teacher of justice, crowned with the supernal crown, you will rule over the entire» — según Idel, así reza la revelación de un hombre sencillo en el puerto del Pireo que Sasportas preserva: Sabbatai Tzevi, rey y redentor, maestro de justicia, coronado con la corona supernal; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *world, and the host of heaven, and Nathan the prophet is teaching the redemptions of Israel* en la 91.

«I assume that the crown reflects a vestige of theosophical symbolism, while the mention of the host of heaven points to the superiority of Sabbatai over the celestial bodies just as Saturn is the highest planet» — la lectura que Idel declara como suposición: la corona como vestigio de simbolismo teosófico y el ejército del cielo como señal de superioridad de Sabbatai sobre los cuerpos celestes.

«The occurrence of the supernal crown is not a void epithet. In the seminal passage by Joseph Ashkenazi, and following him in the anonymous Sefer ha-Peliy’ah (translated in chapter 1), there is a reference to ‘the power of the supernal Keter, i.e. the power of the crown, that is characteristic of Ashkenazi’s style» — y su procedencia: la fórmula del poder de la *Keter* supernal, característica del estilo de Ashkenazi y recogida en el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*.

«In gematria the consonants of the phrase Koah Keter ‘Elyon amount to 814, like the consonants of the words Sabbatai Tzevi, and this is indubitably one of the reasons why this phrase recurs so many times in Sabbatean literature» — la gematría que Idel da por razón de esa recurrencia: *Koah Keter 'Elyon* suma 814, como *Sabbatai Tzevi*.

«The question remains as to whether this gematria was itself part of Ashkenazi’s passage. Though he refers to gematria in his writings, it is not clear that this is the case here» — la abstención sobre su origen: Idel deja abierto si la gematría venía ya en el pasaje de Ashkenazi.

«It is important to note, as Scholem has done, that Nathan applied the phrase ‘the power of the supernal Keter to Sabbatai Tzevi himself» — el dato que Idel toma de Scholem: Nathan aplicó la fórmula del poder de la *Keter* supernal al propio Tzevi.

«This suggests that both Nathan and I have made the same assumption: that the Messiah pored over Joseph Ashkenazi’s passage and used it» — y lo que Idel deduce: Nathan y él comparten la suposición de que el Mesías estudió y usó el pasaje de Ashkenazi.

«Moreover, it is worth mentioning that in the famous magical book Picatrix, as well as in some other illustrations, Saturn is described as a king who has a crown on his head» — el paralelo iconográfico que añade: en el *Picatrix* y en otras ilustraciones Saturno aparece como rey con corona.

«Thus the coronation of Sabbatai Tzevi, as illustrated in some Hebrew books, may be better understood if we acknowledge the possibility that this is a reiteration of various pictorial versions of the image of Saturn as bearing a crown, something that is widespread in many manuscripts and found to a certain extent in the passage on Sabbatai discussed above» — y lo que eso permitiría entender: la coronación de Tzevi en libros hebreos como reiteración de las versiones pictóricas de Saturno coronado.

«Other discussions in Sasportas that address the presence of the form of Tzevi, or that of his name, in the seventh firmament are relevant to the possibility that there is a connection between Sabbatai Tzevi and the astral order.129 In Jewish texts, the seventh firmament is sometimes related to the planet Saturn» — otro indicio que Idel recoge de Sasportas: la forma o el nombre de Tzevi en el séptimo firmamento, que en textos judíos se liga a veces a Saturno.

«In this context, Nathan’s statement that he saw Sabbatai in his seminal vision as a figure ensconced in the Merkavah130 is reminiscent of the view that Sabbatai’s form is to be found in the seventh firmament» — y el eco que le encuentra: la visión seminal de Nathan con Sabbatai entronizado en la Merkavah.

«We should mention the connection between Saturn and snakes that is also found in Tzevi’s documents, a connection that was already familiar from astrological texts» — la conexión que Idel añade: Saturno y las serpientes en los documentos de Tzevi, ya conocida por los textos astrológicos.

«It may be relevant both to Sabbatai Tzevi’s self-perception, and certainly to the reception of his act of apostasy, that his conversion has been understood by leading Sabbatean figures as being related to the planet Saturn» — el punto con que Idel abre el apartado: figuras sabbateanas de peso entendieron la apostasía de Tzevi como cosa ligada a Saturno.

«Nathan of Gaza, Tzevi’s prophet, capitalizes on an interesting discussion found in the latter layer of the Zohar, Ra‘aya’ Meheimna’, where the negative conceptual structure is evident, in order to describe the suffering related to this act and the ‘alien deeds’ he did or would do» — y de dónde la saca Nathan, según Idel: el *Ra'aya' Meheimna'*, capa tardía del *Zohar* con la estructura conceptual negativa a la vista.

«We may suggest that while the passages from Joseph Ashkenazi’s Commentary on the Sefer Yetzirah/ Sefer ha-Peliy’ah were important for the emergence of Tzevi’s self-perception as Messiah, his apostasy is more easily explained in terms of the later layer of the Zoharic literature’s anti-Saturnian attitude, though understood in an original manner by applying it to the converted Messiah» — el reparto que Idel propone: Ashkenazi y el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah* para la autopercepción mesiánica, y la actitud antisaturnina de la capa zohárica tardía para la apostasía.

«It is an interesting case of turning the earlier inversion of Judaism as Saturnism on its head» — y cómo lo nombra: una inversión puesta del revés, la del judaísmo como saturnismo.

«However, more explicit than Nathan’s view, though simultaneously rather intriguing, is a short passage by Moshe Hayyim Luzzatto, known by the acronym Ramhal (1707-46), a prolific and original kabbalist who had messianic aspirations of his own, as reflecting a complex attitude toward Sabbatai Tzevi» — Idel presenta a Moshe Hayyim Luzzatto, el Ramhal, como cabalista prolífico con aspiraciones mesiánicas propias y actitud compleja hacia Tzevi.

«And the wicked maidservant is the burial, and within her the lady is [found] etc.’133 It seems from this passage that it is incumbent on the Messiah - who is [found] in the secret of the Shekhinahm - to clothe himself in the shell,135 in the secret of Sabbatai, that is the shell of Ishm'a’el, in the secret of the diminution of the moon,136 as it is explained there» — según Idel, así escribe Luzzatto: la sierva perversa es la sepultura y dentro de ella está la señora, de donde parece seguirse que al Mesías, que está en el secreto de la Shekhinah, le incumbe revestirse de la cáscara, en el secreto de Sabbatai, que es la cáscara de Ismael, en el secreto de la disminución de la luna.

«There can be no doubt that the Messiah who was entering the shell of Ishm‘a’el and the secret of Sabbatai is no other than Sabbatai Tzevi» — la identificación que Idel da por segura: el Mesías que entra en la cáscara de Ismael y en el secreto de Sabbatai es Sabbatai Tzevi.

«Here the name Sabbatai has a double entendre, since it stands both for the planet, which is described in the later layer of the Zohar in quite negative terms as part of the negative conceptual structure, and for the fallen seventeenth-century Messiah Sabbatai Tzevi, who is introduced here by adding the topic of messianism to the Zoharic passage» — el doble sentido que señala: Sabbatai por el planeta, en términos negativos de la capa zohárica tardía, y por el Mesías caído del siglo XVII.

«Tzevi’s controversial conversion to Islam was considered by Luzzatto and his predecessors to be a necessary move, to find within the planet (conceived here under the influence of the Zohar as a demonic feminine power, and described elsewhere in the same context as Lilith) the divine presence of the Shekhinah, which is connected to the Messiah» — la lectura que Idel adjudica a Luzzatto y sus predecesores: la conversión al islam como paso necesario para hallar dentro del planeta —potencia femenina demoníaca, Lilith en el mismo contexto— la presencia divina de la Shekhinah.

«In the same context, Luzzatto describes Ishnrfa’el and Esau as corresponding to Saturn and Mars, the two negative planets corresponding to Islam and Christianity, respectively» — la correspondencia que Luzzatto traza, según Idel: Ismael y Esaú con Saturno y Marte, y estos con el islam y el cristianismo; el troceo corrompe *Ishma'el* como *Ishnrfa'el*.

«This entry into the sphere of Ishm’a’el, referring in my opinion to Tzevi’s conversion to Islam, is conceived of as less pernicious than apostasy to Christianity; in fact, we have here an interesting example of Luzzatto’s theodicy in relation to Tzevi’s religious conversion» — y cómo la lee Idel: la entrada en la esfera de Ismael como conversión al islam, tenida por menos perniciosa que la apostasía al cristianismo, en una teodicea de Luzzatto.

«Whether this entrance into the maidservant, in other words into Saturn, also entails the consummation of sexual relations with a Muslim woman, conceived of as a shell, namely a demonic power, remains a theoretical question based on the available historical material» — la abstención declarada: si esa entrada implica además trato sexual con una mujer musulmana concebida como cáscara queda como cuestión teórica según el material histórico disponible.

«However, it should be pointed out that Barukh of Arezzo, an Italian kabbalist who followed Nathan of Gaza’s lead on this important point, wrote in Tzevi’s lifetime that his apostasy was understood in terms of such a relationship long before Luzzatto, as it was considered comparable to the patriarchs’ relation to non-Israelite women - for example, Abraham and Hagar, or Jacob and the daughters of Laban - who were also compared to shells» — el antecedente que Idel aporta: Barukh de Arezzo, en vida de Tzevi, entendía la apostasía en esos términos, comparable al trato de los patriarcas con mujeres no israelitas, Abraham y Agar o Jacob y las hijas de Labán.

«Thus it seems that the mid-eighteenth-century Italian kabbalist had been influenced by an interpretation of Tzevi’s apostasy which had been formulated in the Ottoman Empire and in Italy a generation before him» — la filiación que Idel propone en grado de apariencia: Luzzatto influido por una lectura de la apostasía formulada una generación antes en el Imperio otomano y en Italia.

«In fact, the theory that the marriage of some biblical figures with gentile women was an act of entering the powers of evil had been a leitmotif since the late thirteenth-century Kabbalah in Castile; it has been neglected in scholarship and I hope to explore it elsewhere» — y la deuda que declara: la teoría del matrimonio de figuras bíblicas con gentiles como entrada en las potencias del mal es leitmotiv desde la cábala castellana de finales del XIII, desatendida por la erudición.

«Thus a major argument advanced by both Nathan of Gaza and Barukh of Arezzo — explaining the apostasy as an intentional confrontation with evil by entering a feminine demonic power designated as Saturn — is not necessarily a Lurianic theme, as scholars claim» — la objeción que Idel opone a la erudición: el argumento de la apostasía como confrontación intencional con el mal entrando en una potencia femenina demoníaca llamada Saturno no sería necesariamente luriánico.

«Surprisingly enough, the demonic aspects of Saturn, thrown into relief by Aby Warburg s studies, became evident in the late layer of the Zohar but were more pronounced in some instances in Sabbatean Kabbalah, which resort to the Zoharic discussions as proof texts» — el trayecto que Idel traza: los aspectos demoníacos de Saturno, relevados por los estudios de Aby Warburg, se hacen patentes en la capa zohárica tardía y más aún en la cábala sabbateana.

«Let me distinguish between two main proposals advanced above as they relate to Sabbateanism: one deals with what seems to me to be a demonstrated claim, namely that the astrological background of the messianic and melancholic nature of Sabbatai/Saturn was instrumental in the reception of Sabbatai Tzevi as a melancholic messiah by people already acquainted with the constellation of ideas related to Saturn» — la primera de sus dos propuestas, que Idel da por demostrada: el fondo astrológico del carácter mesiánico y melancólico de Sabbatai/Saturno fue instrumental en la recepción de Tzevi como mesías melancólico.

«Indeed, as I have suggested elsewhere, it would be less reasonable to look for one basic and universally valid explanation for the emergence of Sabbateanism that allegedly unified all the Jewish communities than to allow that there may be different explanations that fit different communities» — la posición metodológica que Idel repite: es menos razonable buscar una explicación única y universal del sabbateanismo que admitir explicaciones distintas para comunidades distintas.

«Indeed, even in the criticism of the movement the astrological element was adduced. So, for example, Isaac Cardozo, the brother of a major» — Idel señala que el elemento astrológico entró también en la crítica del movimiento, y nombra a Isaac Cardozo; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *Sabbatean believer, Abraham Michael Cardozo* en la 94.

«Sabbatean believer, Abraham Michael Cardozo, writes quite critically about Tzevi: ‘What save sadness did Sabbatai, who was born on a funeral day, predict? He was unfortunate in his very name, since, in the Hebrew language, Saturn is called Sabbatai, a sad and malignant star, regarded as a rather great misfortune by the astrologers» — según Idel, así escribe Isaac Cardozo contra Tzevi: qué sino tristeza podía predecir el nacido en día de funeral, desdichado en su mismo nombre, porque en hebreo Saturno se llama Sabbatai, estrella triste y maligna tenida por gran infortunio entre los astrólogos.

«Given the fact that both the supporters and opponen ts of Sabbateanism» — el argumento que Idel saca de que partidarios y opositores metieran a Saturno en su discurso; el troceo separa *opponents* como *opponen ts* y el tramo se corta en el límite de segmento, siguiendo en la misma plana con *introduced astrological concepts of Saturn into their discourse*.

«In our case, the Renaissance concern with Saturn as the star of melancholics but also of creative geniuses may have influenced some Jews in Italy or Western Europe, and may have had a more minor effect on those who lived in the East» — y el reparto geográfico que propone: la preocupación renacentista por Saturno como estrella de melancólicos y genios pudo pesar en judíos de Italia y Europa occidental y menos en los del Este.

«The second proposal consists in the plausibility of the impact of Kabbalistic discussions about Saturn, as found in Abraham Abulafia and Joseph Ashkenazi and especially as elaborated in Sefer ha-Peliy’ah, on the emergence of Tzevi’s self-perception as the Messiah and on some of his specific acts afterwards» — la segunda propuesta, enunciada como plausibilidad: el efecto de las discusiones cabalísticas sobre Saturno —Abulafia, Ashkenazi y sobre todo el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*— en la autopercepción mesiánica de Tzevi y en algunos de sus actos.

«So far, no attempt has been made to explain what conceptual structure influenced the young kabbalist Sabbatai to claim for himself the role of the Messiah» — el hueco que Idel declara: nadie ha intentado explicar qué estructura conceptual llevó al joven cabalista a reclamar para sí el papel de Mesías.

«That his messianic mission was revealed to him in a dream, or according to another version in a revelation while roaming one night, does not explain why such a dream or revelation occurred at all» — y su objeción a las versiones al uso: decir que la misión se le reveló en sueño o en una revelación nocturna no explica por qué ocurrió ese sueño.

«introduced astrological concepts of Saturn into their discourse, as we have seen above, there is reason to give significance to this type of speculation in the reception and diffusion of Sabbateanism, at least in some cultural areas in Europe» — la continuación del argumento: habiendo entrado esos conceptos en los dos bandos, hay razón para dar peso a esa especulación en la recepción y difusión del sabbateanismo, al menos en algunas zonas de Europa.

«My proposal is based upon what seems a plausible inference and combines the undisputed testimony of Tzevi’s early study of the book Peliy’ah with how it casts the aspects of the planet in a positive light, one aspect being an explicit mention of the Messiah of God as related to -fimaA/Sabbatai/Saturn» — la inferencia en que Idel apoya su propuesta: el testimonio indisputado del estudio temprano del *Peliy'ah* y la luz positiva en que ese libro pone al planeta, con la mención expresa del Mesías de Dios ligado a Binah/Sabbatai/Saturno; el troceo corrompe *Binah* como *-fimaA*.

«Though such an explanation includes an imponderable factor, namely the psychological absorption of the content of these discussions by the young Sabbatai, it seems to me, at least for the time being, that this is the only significant proposal that explains the emergence of the messianic consciousness in him» — la reserva con que la acota: incluye un factor imponderable, la absorción psicológica de esos contenidos por el joven Sabbatai, y aun así le parece la única propuesta significativa por ahora.

«I would like to emphasize that in principle one may accept the validity of the ’reception’ theory without accepting the second proposal. However, given the fact that Nathan of Gaza himself used imagery related to expressions in Sefer ha-Peliy’ah to describe the Messiah as Koah Keter ‘Elyon, such a sceptical attitude, though possible, is less plausible» — la independencia que Idel declara entre sus dos propuestas, con su límite: cabe aceptar la teoría de la recepción sin la segunda, pero el uso que Nathan hace de imágenes del *Peliy'ah* vuelve menos plausible ese escepticismo.

«Unlike other forms of comprehensive speculation (such the philosophical or the Kabbalistic), the astrological approaches were much more widespread in the Middle Ages, including in non-Jewish circles, and were an inherent component of the beliefs of many people for long after. This deterministic worldview was accepted by a wider segment of the general population than both Kabbalah and philosophy, and crossed the borders of religions and nations» — la razón que da para atender a lo astrológico: fue mucho más difundido que la filosofía y la cábala, cruzó fronteras de religiones y naciones y llegó a un segmento más amplio de la población.

«It is therefore much easier to understand how specific astrological mythologoumena were grafted onto the more generally accepted beliefs shared by elite and popular audiences alike» — y la consecuencia: se entiende mejor cómo se injertaron mitologúmenos astrológicos en creencias compartidas por públicos de élite y populares.

«In lieu of scholarly over-emphasis of the impact and role of Lurianic Kabbalah - which was rejected, or at least neglected, by Tzevi and only barely recognized by Nathan of Gaza in the early stages of his activity - in order to create a unilinear explanation of the history of Kabbalah as it allegedly culminated in Sabbateanism, I propose a picture that is far less developmental» — el cuadro que Idel propone frente al de la erudición: menos evolutivo, sin culminación unilineal de la historia de la cábala en el sabbateanismo, y con un lurianismo que Tzevi rechazó o desatendió.

«My approach emphasizes the importance of several cross-currents143 and particularly the continuous importance of pre-Lurianic forms of Kabbalah, as well as in our specific instance the continuing relevance of fairly heterogeneous Kabbalistic elements preserved in Sefer ha-Peliy’ah» — y qué subraya en su lugar: corrientes cruzadas, la importancia continuada de formas prelurianas de cábala y los elementos heterogéneos conservados en el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*.

«A variety of distinct schools, in our case ecstatic Kabbalah, and strongly astrologically oriented treatments survived mainly in manuscript (of which important excerpts were incorporated in Kabbalistic classics), so their views were able to inspire later forms of Jewish mysticism even after the emergence and the canonization of later forms of Kabbalah such as the various forms of Lurianism» — el mecanismo de supervivencia que describe: escuelas distintas sobrevivieron sobre todo en manuscrito, con extractos incorporados a clásicos, y pudieron inspirar formas posteriores aun tras la canonización del lurianismo.

«My further assumption is that astrological concepts served as a conduit for messianic perception related to the nexus between Saturn/Sabbatai much more than Lurianic concepts, considered by scholars to be pregnant with acute messianic cargo, and that astrological concepts could have prepared the ground for Sabbatean ideas and effervescence» — la suposición que Idel añade: los conceptos astrológicos, más que los luriánicos, sirvieron de conducto a la percepción mesiánica y prepararon el terreno del sabbateanismo.

«The proper understanding of the phenomenon of Sabbateanism as proposed above assumes the need to transcend the often artificial distinctions between literary genres and the literature that belongs to certain types of religion» — lo que su enfoque exige: trascender las distinciones a menudo artificiales entre géneros literarios y entre literaturas adscritas a tipos de religión.

«The proposals stated above are not intended substantially to mitigate the place of Sabbatean ideology as part of the history of Jewish» — el límite que Idel pone a sus dos propuestas: no buscan mermar el lugar de la ideología sabbateana en la historia del misticismo judío; el tramo se corta antes del encabezado corrido y sigue en la 95 con *mysticism by over-emphasizing the theo-astrological component nor to inscribe it forcefully in the history of the reverberations of Greek or Roman mythologies*.

«The above suggestion, of viewing the emergence and diffusion of Sabbatean messianism in broader religious and cultural contexts, may, however, be seen as necessary in a variety of topics related to Judaism and especially to Jewish mysticism. It is not my purpose here to give detailed examples of the necessity of reading Jewish topics against backgrounds of far greater scope than ordinarily imagined by scholars» — la ampliación que Idel propone como necesaria en más asuntos: leer temas judíos contra fondos de alcance mayor del que la erudición suele imaginar.

«Greek mythological themes, for example, also figure large in Heikhalot literature,145 in some views of the golem,146 some eschatological and other Rabbalistic themes in Kabbalah, and some topics in Jewish Renaissance mysticism» — los casos con que lo ilustra: temas mitológicos griegos en la literatura de los *Heikhalot*, en algunas visiones del golem, en temas escatológicos cabalísticos y en el misticismo judío renacentista.

«An overly stark, and oftentimes too artificial, separation between the content of literatures conceived of as belonging to Jewish mysticism and other forms of occult knowledge current in late antiquity and the Middle Ages148 or between Kabbalah and philosophy,149 as cultivated in the dominant scholarly forms of treating the history of this mystical lore, has hardly helped to advance the study of the field» — la separación que Idel objeta: la de la literatura tenida por mística judía y otras formas de saber oculto, o la de cábala y filosofía, que a su juicio no ha ayudado al campo.

«In any case, one of the leading kabbalists of the sixteenth-century Safed, Moshe Cordovero, offered a more complex synthesis between Kabbalah and astro-magic than most of the other kabbalists, which was influential in shaping some of the developments in the ensuing stages of Jewish mysticism - and Cordovero refers to Sabbatai as a planet several times in his writings» — el caso que Idel destaca: Moshe Cordovero ofreció una síntesis más compleja de cábala y astro-magia que casi todos y menciona varias veces a Sabbatai como planeta.

«This synthesis has not been taken sufficiently into consideration in the extant accounts of the thought of this towering kabbalist» — y la deuda que declara: esa síntesis no se ha tomado bastante en cuenta en los relatos disponibles del pensamiento de Cordovero.

«Only by gradually liberating the analyses of the Jewish material from the intellectual ghettoes invented by scholars, who have portrayed Jewish thinkers as reflecting narrow concerns dealing dominantly with ritual or history, and by scrupulous examination of new Jewish texts, beyond the often artificial walls of literary genres or historical circumstances, may we open gates that have remained closed until now» — lo que Idel reclama para abrir el campo: liberar el análisis de los guetos intelectuales inventados por los estudiosos y examinar textos judíos nuevos más allá de los muros de género o de circunstancia.

«On the other hand, the scholars’ acquaintance with various frameworks and backgrounds of Sabbateanism is an important imperative that should not diminish the need to master the details of earlier Jewish traditions known and studied by the kabbalists» — el contrapeso que Idel pone a su propia ampliación: el conocimiento de marcos amplios no debe mermar el dominio de las tradiciones judías anteriores que los cabalistas leían.

«Moreover, Tzevi should be understood as part of a wider development of Kabbalah in the former Byzantine Empire, which differs from both the Spanish and the Italian forms of Kabbalah, though it was deeply influenced by them» — el encuadre que reclama para Tzevi: la cábala del antiguo Imperio bizantino, distinta de la española y de la italiana aunque hondamente influida por ellas.

«To sum this up, many of the important kabbalists have been concerned with features of the planet Saturn: Abraham Abulafia, Joseph Ashkenazi, some writers of Zoharic literature, Joseph ibn Waqar, Sefer ha-Temunah, Sefer ha-Peliy’ah, Yohanan Alemanno, Moshe Cordovero, Nathan Neta‘ Shapira of Jerusalem, Sabbatai Tzevi and his followers, as well as, lastly, Moshe Hayyim Luzzatto and, as we shall see below, Israel Ba‘al Shem Tov» — el censo con que Idel cierra el capítulo: Abulafia, Joseph Ashkenazi, autores zoháricos, ibn Waqar, el *Sefer ha-Temunah*, el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*, Alemanno, Cordovero, Nathan Neta' Shapira, Tzevi y sus seguidores, Luzzatto y el Ba'al Shem Tov.

«Their brief reflections, responses, and their more rare critiques, show that the special nature of the planet Saturn and its possible redemptive qualities were topics that preoccupied numerous kabbalists, different as their approaches to this topic might be» — y lo que ese censo muestra a su juicio: que la naturaleza del planeta y sus posibles cualidades redentoras ocuparon a numerosos cabalistas de enfoques distintos.

«At any event, they reflect a specific case, part of an intellectual development that took place in Kabbalah in the last third of the thirteenth century, when astro-magic was adopted in a variety of Kabbalistic schools and among thinkers who were not kabbalists, mainly in Spain, and then disseminated in other centres of Jewish culture» — el desarrollo del que los da por caso: la adopción de la astro-magia en escuelas cabalísticas y entre no cabalistas, sobre todo en España, en el último tercio del siglo XIII.

«It is this development, coupled with the resort to qualities related to Saturn in the writings of the authors mentioned above, that contributed to the dissemination of the interest in Saturn and related topics in wider circles in Judaism, creating a nexus between the planet, melancholy and Judaism, and sometimes even messianism» — y a qué contribuyó: a difundir el interés por Saturno en círculos judíos más amplios, creando un nexo entre el planeta, la melancolía y el judaísmo, y a veces el mesianismo.

«understand religious developments of a broad impact, as in Scholem’s otherwise very impressive monograph on Sabbatai Tzevi, seems to miss other types of sources, such as the astrological ones, which may shed a different light on the emergence of certain moments in Sabbateanism» — el reparo que Idel dirige a la monografía de Scholem sobre Tzevi: apoyarse solo en la literatura cabalística dejaría fuera fuentes como las astrológicas, que podrían alumbrar de otro modo ciertos momentos del sabbateanismo. El tramo arranca en la plana 96, donde continúa la frase que la 95 deja cortada.

«It would be more advisable to start with the spadework before turning to larger frameworks. This means that a scholar of Sabbateanism should carefully peruse at least the few Kabbalistic books read by Sabbatai Tzevi himself in his formative years» — el orden de trabajo que Idel recomienda: empezar por el trabajo de base, leyendo con cuidado los pocos libros cabalísticos que Tzevi leyó en sus años formativos; el tramo se corta antes del folio y el encabezado corrido, y sigue en la 97 con *and try to assess their potential relevance to his spiritual development*.

«Thus, in the discussions adduced in this chapter, we can make out an interesting addition to what I call the constellation of messianic ideas found in medieval Judaism, and significantly different from other messianic ideas adopted in this period» — lo que Idel dice haber añadido: una pieza a lo que llama la constelación de ideas mesiánicas del judaísmo medieval, distinta de las demás del periodo.

«Moreover, the coexistence of astrological themes of messianism with the intellectual ones in Abulafia’s thought shows that it is appropriate to speak of complex constellations of messianic ideas even in the writings of the same kabbalist» — y la coexistencia que consigna sin armonizar: temas mesiánicos astrológicos junto a intelectuales en Abulafia, lo que a su juicio autoriza a hablar de constelaciones complejas en un mismo autor.

«While popular messianism is rooted in the assumption that the messianic figure is the revelation of divine will and power, and much less a manifestation of an intelligible order, in the astral order we have some significant changes in the very meaning of messianism as accepted in popular Judaist circles in a direction that is more intelligible» — el desplazamiento que Idel describe: el mesianismo popular hace del Mesías revelación de la voluntad divina, y el orden astral cambia el sentido de esa figura hacia lo inteligible.

«In a way, the popular Messiah as an expression of the divine will has been ‘chained’ to new forms of order, as this figure has been interpreted as a perfect philosopher, as the Agent Intellect or as one of the divine sefirot by different kabbalists according to their specific predilection» — y la figura con que lo dice: el Mesías popular encadenado a órdenes nuevos, interpretado como filósofo perfecto, como Intelecto Agente o como una de las sefirot. El tramo arranca en la plana 98.

«Moreover, in an intelligible manner the astrological order offered a clue as to the direction of history by resorting to types of knowledge that were au courant in the ‘science’ of medieval thinkers in Europe» — lo que el orden astrológico ofrecía además: una clave sobre la dirección de la historia en términos de la ciencia medieval europea.

«Though I am sceptical about the phenomenological understanding of Judaism as a religion, which invented the religious value of history as part of a unilinear conceptualization of time, as claimed by Mircea Eliade,158 there can be no doubt that an attempt to understand history was one of the concerns of elite forms of Judaism» — la reserva que Idel opone a Mircea Eliade: se declara escéptico sobre el judaísmo como religión que inventa el valor religioso de la historia en una conceptualización unilineal del tiempo, sin negar que entender la historia ocupara a las élites judías.

«Astrology, with its cyclical vision of time and able to make predictions according to a perception of events that lend themselves to being precisely calculated and thus understood in an intelligible manner, was one major tool used by that elite in order to do so» — el papel que Idel adjudica a la astrología entre esas élites: herramienta mayor, con su visión cíclica del tiempo y su capacidad de predecir por cálculo.

«However, independently of Judaism, astral religions are modalities to understanding the rhythms of the cosmos that were en vogue in many other instances,159 and their existence and influence call into question Eliade’s overly stark distinction between historical and non-historical forms of religion respectively dominated by linear and circular forms of time» — la objeción que Idel opone a Eliade: las religiones astrales, presentes en muchos otros casos, ponen en cuestión su distinción tajante entre formas históricas y no históricas de religión.

«In fact, there are different concatenations in Jewish theories of time, which preclude simple statements of the sort aired in Eliade’s studies» — y la razón: las teorías judías del tiempo tienen concatenaciones distintas que impiden enunciados simples como los de Eliade.

«The astrological speculations succinctly addressed here show that cyclical cosmic types of thought, which I call ‘macrochronoi’, were more influential in elite forms of Judaism than commonly considered» — lo que Idel dice mostrar: que los *macrochronoi*, pensamiento cósmico cíclico, pesaron más en las formas de élite del judaísmo de lo que se suele considerar.

«In a manner consonant with Eliade’s assertion, the longer the cosmic cycle, the more abrupt, calamitous and total is the eschatological catastrophe.161 In the case of Saturn/Sabbatai/^maA, the cosmic cycles are indeed considered to be very long, and the destruction is described as total» — la regularidad que Idel toma de Eliade y aplica a su caso: a ciclo cósmico más largo, catástrofe escatológica más abrupta y total, y los de Saturno son muy largos con destrucción total. El troceo corrompe *Binah* como *^maA*.

«However, in my opinion, the deterministic aspects of those macrochronoi, found in medieval Judaism, did not impose too significant or fatalistic an approach on Jewish messianism» — y el límite que declara como opinión: esos aspectos deterministas no impusieron un enfoque fatalista de peso al mesianismo judío.

«In any case, one of its important developments, as also exemplified by our discussions here, is the significant addition of cyclical ‘macrochronoi’, and ‘mesochronoi’, to the centrality of the ‘microchronoi’ - the cyclical performance of rituals present in all the major forms of Judaism» — el aporte que Idel señala: la adición de *macrochronoi* y *mesochronoi* cíclicos a la centralidad de los *microchronoi*, la ejecución cíclica de los ritos.

«Cyclical time as it is reflected in some Kabbalistic sources is not only» — la tensión que Idel consigna en el tiempo cíclico de esas fuentes; el tramo se corta en el límite de segmento a media plana y sigue *a matter of returning to the Golden Age but also a form of deterministic vision, something that is problematic in the framework of a religion that emphasizes the centrality of the performance of the commandments*.

«of these types of time is related to specific forms of redemption, and I assume also of exile, and of redeeming figures and entities, human, astral, intellectual or sefirotic, all of them being part of what I call the constellation of messianic ideas» — el cierre del capítulo: cada tipo de tiempo se liga a formas propias de redención y de exilio y a figuras redentoras humanas, astrales, intelectuales o sefiróticas, todas parte de la constelación de ideas mesiánicas. El tramo arranca en la plana 99.

«Part of the ongoing process of the diversification of this constellation of ideas depends on the gradual opening of some Jewish elites to the variety of Greek and Hellenistic forms of thought, especially in matters of philosophy, the sciences, psychology,164 and astrology, which facilitated new interpretations of Judaism and its forms of messianism» — de qué depende esa diversificación, según Idel: la apertura gradual de élites judías a las formas griegas y helenísticas de pensamiento.

«However, what is surprising is the fact that though the medieval philosophical, theosophical and astrological forms of order have declined in some Jewish elite circles since the eighteenth century, some aspects of these linkages continued in some discussions of Jewish authors that are extant from the eighteenth and even up to the twentieth centuries, as we shall see in chapter 3» — el dato que Idel llama sorprendente: declinados esos órdenes medievales en círculos judíos desde el siglo XVIII, algunos de esos enlaces siguen en autores judíos hasta el siglo XX.

«In any case, curiosity about what may be described as Saturnism persisted in small Christian circles, expressed as interest in a reform that would bring back the Golden Age of Saturn, also identified as the glorious time of Adam, by the Rosicrucians in the early seventeenth century in Central Europe,165 and in testimony regarding a sect active in mid-eighteenth-century England whose members were described as ‘Saturnians’» — y su rastro cristiano: los rosacruces de la Europa central de principios del XVII con el retorno de la Edad de Oro de Saturno identificada con el tiempo de Adán, y una secta inglesa de mediados del XVIII llamada de los saturnianos.

«We have surveyed some of the occurrences of the term ‘Saturn’ in its Hebrew form ‘Sabbatai' in Jewish writings since the twelfth century. The passages quoted above are a small part of much wider range of discussions regarding Saturn found in print and in manuscripts, which also deal with other issues» — Idel abre el tercer capítulo recapitulando y acotando: los pasajes citados son una parte pequeña de un campo mucho más amplio de discusiones impresas y manuscritas.

«In the first chapter, we concentrated on the negative conceptual structure, whereby Jews were described as dealing with witchcraft, and related this to a series of both positive and negative features dominated by Saturn. In chapter 2, we discussed the positive conceptual structure that related to the nexus between Saturn, redemption and messianism» — el resumen de los dos capítulos previos: la estructura negativa con los judíos descritos como dados a la brujería, y la positiva con el nexo entre Saturno, redención y mesianismo.

«The complexity of the descriptions of the nature of Saturn, which encompass so many opposite features, has facilitated the adoption of some of these features in the creation of different identities for Jews over the centuries. In a way, Saturn has become the planetary genius of the Jews» — y la tesis que Idel deriva de esa complejidad: los rasgos opuestos facilitaron identidades judías distintas a lo largo de los siglos, y Saturno vino a ser el genio planetario de los judíos.

«Three additional discussions, stemming from other eighteenth-century authors, display some acquaintance with the two conceptual structures discussed above» — lo que el capítulo añade: tres discusiones más de autores del siglo XVIII con trato de las dos estructuras conceptuales.

«They expect the Messiah, but are against losing any time in calculating his coming, believing its coming may be delayed by their sins, and by the slowness of Saturn’s periodical revolution, which is the star of the Sabbath, and of the Jewish nation. It is a question to be asked them, what relation there is between the planet of Saturn and the Messiah, and how are they sure that Saturn presides over Sabbath, or sheds its influence over the Jewish nation» — según Idel, así describe Jean-Frédéric Bernard a los caraítas en 1733: esperan al Mesías sin perder tiempo en calcular su venida, que creen demorada por sus pecados y por la lentitud de la revolución de Saturno, estrella del sábado y de la nación judía, y el autor pregunta qué relación hay entre el planeta y el Mesías.

«Indeed, it is not so much a question of why there was a belief in this conceptual structure, but why it was attributed to the Karaites» — la pregunta que Idel desplaza: no por qué se creía en esa estructura conceptual, sino por qué se atribuía a los caraítas.

«Interestingly enough, Bernard does not mention Sabbatai Tzevi or his movement. Thus we may assume that not only attentive readers of Sefer ha-Peliy’ah, such as I have argued Sabbatai Tzevi presumably was, were acquainted with the Saturn-Messiah nexus, but also people superficially interested in the details of Jewish customs» — el hallazgo negativo que Idel consigna: Bernard no menciona a Tzevi ni a su movimiento, de donde supone que el nexo Saturno-Mesías era conocido también fuera de los lectores atentos del *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*.

«Interestingly enough, none other than King David, the figure conceived of as the founder of the messianic line in both Judaism and Christianity, is described as related to the planet Sabbatai/Saturn in an eighteenth-century book by Jacob Joseph of Polonnoye. Jacob Joseph was one of the main disciples of the founder of Hasidism, Israel Ba‘al Shem Tov (c. 1698-1760), known as the Besht (the acronym of the Hebrew words that signify the ‘master of the Good Name’), and he writes as follows» — el otro testimonio dieciochesco: Jacob Joseph de Polonnoye, discípulo principal del Ba'al Shem Tov, liga al rey David con el planeta Sabbatai.

«he was [presided over by] a zodiacal constellation in which his thoughts about worship of God, blessed be He, did not emerge properly, and he was from the aspect of the zodiacal sign of Saturn, that receives from Binah» — según Idel, así reza ese pasaje: David presidido por una constelación en que sus pensamientos sobre el culto de Dios no salían bien, y del aspecto del signo de Saturno, que recibe de Binah.

«Whether this is a statement of the Besht himself or just Jacob Joseph’s interpretation of one of his master’s comments, is not totally clear from the context, but I am inclined to see it as reflecting the view of the Besht» — la atribución que Idel declara como inclinación: no queda claro si el dicho es del Besht o interpretación de su discípulo, y se inclina por lo primero.

«Either way, we have here one more reverberation of Joseph Ashkenazi’s theo-astrological system applied to a messianic figure, in this case in mystical literature that was basically uninterested in constellated types of worldview» — y lo que da por seguro en cualquier caso: un eco más del sistema teo-astrológico de Ashkenazi aplicado a una figura mesiánica, en una literatura poco interesada en visiones del mundo consteladas.

«Why King David’s improper thoughts were incompatible with the worship of God, and whether they have something to do with a melancholic vision of the famous king, is still a complex question» — la pregunta que Idel deja abierta: por qué los pensamientos impropios de David eran incompatibles con el culto, y si tienen que ver con una visión melancólica del rey.

«In any case, it is evident that the role of melancholy in Jewish experience and thought did not come to an end with the death of Sabbatai Tzevi» — lo que Idel da por evidente: el papel de la melancolía en la experiencia y el pensamiento judíos no terminó con la muerte de Tzevi.

«It is pertinent to point out that in a hagiographical collection of tales and legends about the Besht’s life and deeds, the editor wrote, ‘I heard that the Besht stems from the soul of King David, may he rest in peace» — el dato hagiográfico que Idel aduce: el editor de una colección de relatos sobre el Besht escribe haber oído que este proviene del alma del rey David.

«If this link is significant, based as it is on what I call an oblique type of connection, it may reflect yet another reverberation of Joseph Ashkenazi’s seminal passage, which, in my opinion and as discussed in the previous chapter, had such a strong influence on Sabbatai Tzevi as well as on a certain aspect of the messianic self-awareness of the Besht» — el término propio con que acota ese enlace, *oblique type of connection*, y lo que reflejaría: otro eco del pasaje de Ashkenazi.

«It should be pointed out that those short passages stem from a literature that, at least in principle, emphasized the value of joy as an important religious attitude» — la tensión que Idel consigna sin armonizar: esos pasajes vienen de una literatura que en principio subrayaba el valor religioso de la alegría.

«In a vast mid-eighteenth-century compendium of Jewish customs entitled Hemdat Yamim, which stems from a Sabbatean circle whose identity is a matter of debate among scholars, we find a description of the Sabbath as a foil for Saturnian attributes» — el tercer testimonio: el *Hemdat Yamim*, compendio de costumbres de mediados del XVIII salido de un círculo sabbateano de identidad discutida, que presenta el sábado como contrapeso de los atributos saturninos.

«Capitalizing on the critique of Saturnism formulated in a later layer of Zoharic literature, and after copying the passage on Saturn found in Bahya ben Asher (translated in chapter 1) with few variations, the anonymous author describes the custom of Isaac Luria and his student Hayyim Vital of preferring the wearing of white clothes on the Sabbath as an attempt to counteract the pernicious influx of Saturn» — y la costumbre que ese compendio explica: el uso de Isaac Luria y de Hayyim Vital de vestir de blanco en sábado, leído como contrapeso del influjo pernicioso del planeta.

«I wonder whether this explanation has any historical value in relation to the emergence of Lurianism and its customs. It certainly shows that the challenge of Saturnism had not disappeared as late as the mid eighteenth century» — la duda que Idel declara y lo que sí da por mostrado: no sabe si esa explicación tiene valor histórico para el origen del lurianismo, pero el desafío del saturnismo seguía vivo a mediados del XVIII.

«In what would, I admit, be quite a strong act of interpretation, if we read together the two traditions about King David as part of a rather chaotic web of teachings surrounding the figure of the Besht, we may conclude that he not only identified himself with the glorious king and» — la conclusión que Idel declara como acto fuerte de interpretación: leídas juntas las dos tradiciones sobre el rey David dentro de la maraña de enseñanzas en torno al Besht, este se habría identificado con el rey glorioso; el tramo se corta antes del encabezado corrido y sigue en la 103 con *thus with a messianic mission, but also with the Messiah as related to Sabbatai, namely the planet of Saturn*.

«in fact, we discern it even later in a variety of sources such as the sermons of Jonathan Eybeschutz and in some Hasidic writers» — y hasta dónde lo rastrea: los sermones de Jonathan Eybeschutz y algunos autores jasídicos.

«One of the most distinguished personalities in rabbinic and Kabbalistic eighteenth-century literature, R. Elijah, known as the Vilna Gaon, paraphrased much of the passage by Joseph Ashkenazi in his Commentary on Sifra’ de-Tzeniuta’1 another example of the persistence of the negative conceptual structure» — otro testimonio de la pervivencia de la estructura negativa: el Gaón de Vilna parafraseando el pasaje de Ashkenazi en su comentario al *Sifra' de-Tzeniuta'*.

«Likewise when a person prepares himself for that, for example to receive the power and the spiritual force of the planet Saturn, he would dress [in] black and he would wrap himself in black [clothes] and would cover the place he stood upon with black clothes and would eat things which increase the dark bile, which are under the dominion of Saturn12 and he should smell things that are attributed to it and will compose of them a perfume to burn incense from the above-mentioned things so that the incense would rise to heaven to the above-mentioned planet, and the light of another planet would not intercede. Then the power and the spiritual force of the above-mentioned planet will pour upon the person. And this is the essence of the prophecy of the Ba‘al and the prophets of Ashtoret and similar [phenomena]» — la continuación del pasaje de Maimon: quien quiera recibir la fuerza espiritual de Saturno vestirá de negro, se envolverá en negro, cubrirá de negro el suelo, comerá lo que aumenta la bilis oscura bajo el dominio del planeta, olerá lo que se le atribuye y compondrá con ello un perfume para quemar como incienso, de modo que suba al planeta sin que otro interceda; así se vierte sobre la persona su fuerza espiritual, y en eso consistiría la profecía de Baal y de los profetas de Astarté.

«To be sure, this astro-magical practice is conceived of as a negative one. It contains few original elements, if any» — el juicio de valor que Idel consigna como del texto y su propia medida: la práctica se concibe ahí como negativa y contiene pocos elementos originales.

«Nevertheless, it points to the acquaintance of a distinguished intellect such as Maimon, a Jew living in the second part of the eighteenth century who moved from Lithuania to Berlin and later became an accomplished philosopher, with descriptions of astro-magical practices that were related to Saturn» — y lo que sí muestra: que un intelecto distinguido de la segunda mitad del XVIII, ido de Lituania a Berlín, conocía descripciones de prácticas astro-mágicas ligadas a Saturno.

«early passage of Maimon reflects the impact of followers of ibn Ezra, despite his famous allegiance to Maimonides, the sharpest critique of astro-magic. Therefore, in Western, Central and Eastern Europe, the conceptual structures related to Saturn discussed above were persisting in common knowledge long after the death of Sabbatai Tzevi» — la paradoja que Idel señala: ese pasaje temprano refleja el influjo de los seguidores de ibn Ezra pese a la famosa adhesión de Maimon a Maimónides, el crítico más duro de la astro-magia. El tramo arranca tras el corte de segmento a media plana.

«It is well known in the science of the planets,8 that when someone makes a peculiar image from a peculiar matter which is connected with a peculiar planet, as they [the ancestors] said: ‘There is no [leaf of] grass on earth etc.,’9 and he will place it under the power of the above-mentioned planet, when the latter is at its ascendant, and in the house of its glory, then will the power of the star pour upon that image and it [the image] will speak and perform certain operations» — según Idel, así describe Solomon Maimon la práctica astro-mágica: hecha una imagen de materia propia de cierto planeta y puesta bajo su poder en el ascendente y en la casa de su gloria, el poder del astro se vierte sobre ella y la imagen habla y obra; la cita se corta antes de la llamada a nota que el troceo pega, y el pasaje remata nombrando los *Teraphim* de los Profetas.

«First and foremost, I should point out that many of the studies used in the previous two chapters draw on the scholarship of Jewish scholars. This is obvious not only insofar as Gershom Scholem’s outstanding monograph on Sabbatai Tzevi is concerned, but also thanks to the famous monograph on Saturn and Melancholy by the three Warburgian scholars Raymond Klibansky, Erwin Panofsky and Fritz Saxl, inspired and also sustained in their first steps in academe by Aby Warburg» — el dato que Idel pone primero al abrir el apartado: buena parte de los estudios que usa vienen de eruditos judíos, la monografía de Scholem y la de Klibansky, Panofsky y Saxl.

«A third book that belongs to the Saturnian scholarly constellation is Rudolph and Margot Wittkover’s Born Under Saturn. Rudolf Wittkover was also associated with the Warburg Institute in Hamburg and then in London» — el tercer libro de esa constelación erudita: *Born Under Saturn* de Rudolph y Margot Wittkover, él también ligado al Instituto Warburg.

«Aby Warburg himself was preoccupied by this theme» — y el propio Aby Warburg como preocupado por el tema.

«This circle was bound to raise my lively interest in the new perspectives which have been opened up there and which were to have momentous consequences. My own studies aroused great interest there from 1926 on, and after two visits to Hamburg, in 1927 and 1932, I established close scholarly contact and friendly relations with a number of scholars from this circle. For upwards of twenty-five years it consisted almost entirely ofjews whose Jewish intensity ranged from moderate sympathies to the point of zero or even below» — según Idel, así lo testimonia Scholem: el círculo le suscitó vivo interés, sus propios estudios despertaron allí gran interés desde 1926 y tras dos visitas trabó contacto y amistad con varios de ellos, un grupo que durante más de veinticinco años fue casi enteramente de judíos cuya intensidad judía iba de la simpatía moderada al cero o menos. El troceo pega *of Jews* como *ofjews*.

«Despite this rather strong declaration of mutual scholarly interest and friendship, neither Scholem nor his student Chaim Wirszubski (who was in close contact with some of the members of the Warburg Institute in London), not to mention others followers of Scholem who were much less concerned with European culture, capitalized in their studies on the new perspectives opened up by the Warburgian brand of scholarship» — el hallazgo negativo que Idel mide: pese a esa declaración, ni Scholem ni Wirszubski ni sus seguidores capitalizaron en sus estudios las perspectivas warburgianas.

«Surprisingly enough, in his academic writings Scholem ignored Aby Warburg’s intellectual interests, and those of the three Warburgian scholars who treated the theme of melancholy so extensively from the first 1923 German version of their monograph until its publication in English in 1964, when he wrote his comprehensive study on Sabbatai Tzevi, while all the Warburgians with whose writings I am acquainted ignored the figure of Sabbatai Tzevi and its possible contribution to their monograph, which was re-edited twice after its initial publication» — y la simetría del desencuentro: Scholem ignoró en sus escritos académicos los intereses de Warburg y de los tres warburgianos, y los warburgianos que Idel conoce ignoraron a Sabbatai Tzevi.

«Moreover, in 1973, on the occasion of the publication of the translation of Scholem’s monograph in English, Daniel P. Walker, a senior member of the Warburg Institute in London, wrote a fairly lengthy review of it, but again there was no hint of a connection between Sabbatai and Saturn» — la ocasión perdida que Idel documenta: la reseña extensa de Daniel P. Walker a la traducción inglesa de 1973, sin insinuar el vínculo entre Sabbatai y Saturno.

«The second possible opportunity to link these two major contributions was the publication of the magisterial French translation of Saturn and Melancholy, supervised and significantly enriched by new material from Raymond Klibansky and printed by Gallimard in 1989, an edition which contains plenty of additional sources and images in comparison with the 1964 version» — la segunda ocasión: la traducción francesa de *Saturn and Melancholy* que Klibansky supervisó y enriqueció, impresa por Gallimard en 1989 con más fuentes e imágenes que la de 1964.

«However, it does not contain a single mention of Scholem’s Sabbatai Sevi, which had meanwhile been enlarged and magnificently translated into English by R. J. Zwi Werblowsky for its publication in 1973» — y el resultado: ni una sola mención del *Sabbatai Sevi* de Scholem, ya ampliado y traducido por R. J. Zwi Werblowsky.

«Gershom Scholem, who personally knew some of those scholars and even visited the Warburg Institute in Hamburg twice» — el dato biográfico que Idel consigna: Scholem conoció personalmente a algunos de esos eruditos y visitó dos veces el Instituto Warburg de Hamburgo; el tramo se corta antes del encabezado corrido y sigue en la 105 con *has called their members one of the sects of German Jewry*.

«Nevertheless, it is not an exaggeration to say that the two monographs dealing with Saturnian and saturnine subjects are among the most» — la ponderación con que Idel reúne las dos monografías; el tramo se corta antes del encabezado corrido y del folio, y sigue en la 106 con *outstanding contributions to both Jewish and European studies on the part of scholars of Jewish extraction active in the twentieth century in this field*.

«The Warburgian scholars dealt with Saturn and melancholy, while Scholem was for several decades quite intensively preoccupied with Sabbatai Tzevi, perhaps the most influential melancholic figure in Jewish culture» — el reparto que Idel traza: los warburgianos con Saturno y la melancolía, Scholem con Tzevi, acaso la figura melancólica más influyente de la cultura judía.

«Moreover, if Saturn and Melancholy is the peak of research carried out at the Warburg Institute, Sabbatai Sevi is the peak of Scholem’s academic enterprise, and Sabbateanism constitutes the topic of almost half of Scholem’s scholarly writings» — y la medida que da de cada uno: cima de la investigación del Instituto Warburg una, cima de la empresa académica de Scholem la otra, con el sabbateanismo ocupando casi la mitad de su obra.

«Thus, though thematically unaware of each other, the authors of the two monographs dealt brilliantly, and independently, with a conceptual structure en vogue in both the European world and in Jewish culture - two cultures that have been influenced by material that was transmitted by Arab authors, who in their turn capitalized on ideas current in pagan antiquity» — lo que las dos hicieron sin saberlo, según Idel: tratar con brillo e independencia una estructura conceptual en boga en Europa y en la cultura judía, ambas deudoras de material transmitido por autores árabes.

«In Christian Europe it was passed down through a long series of images, exemplified in the pictures attached to Saturn and Melancholy, particularly its French version (1989), and culminated in Albrecht Durer’s famous engraving Melencolia I» — cómo se renovaron esos mitologúmenos en la Europa cristiana: por una larga serie de imágenes que culmina en la *Melencolia I* de Durero.

«In some trends in Judaism, the Saturn mythologoumena were brought in to serve an understanding of classical Jewish values and ideals, like Sabbath and Messiah, and they created conceptual structures that reverberated in many instances (as seen above) and the discussion of which we will be expanding in the ‘Concluding Remarks’ below» — y en el judaísmo: puestos a servir la comprensión de valores clásicos judíos como el sábado y el Mesías.

«The non-encounter between the two extensive treatments of similar topics is a fascinating example of how fields of investigation in humanities can remain separate, with no cross-fertilization even when scholars claim to be in contact for many years» — el nombre que Idel da al episodio: un no encuentro, ejemplo de cómo campos de investigación quedan separados sin fertilización cruzada aunque los estudiosos declaren trato de años.

«By neglecting so many of the medieval and Jewish Renaissance discussions of the Saturn constellation of ideas, the Warburgian scholars impoverished the more complex picture of the links between Saturn and melancholy, which they otherwise so skilfully and eruditely delineated» — el costo que Idel atribuye a esa omisión: al desatender las discusiones medievales y renacentistas judías sobre la constelación de Saturno, los warburgianos empobrecieron su propio cuadro.

«As Yates so aptly recognized, one of the main weakness of the monograph Saturn and Melancholy is the ignorance of data found in Christian Kabbalah, especially the writings of Johannes Reuchlin and Henry Cornelius Agrippa of Nettesheim» — la debilidad que Idel toma de Yates: el desconocimiento en *Saturn and Melancholy* de los datos de la cábala cristiana, sobre todo Reuchlin y Agrippa.

«I would add that much of the pertinent Jewish material discussed above was left out of this monograph» — y lo que él añade: buena parte del material judío pertinente quedó fuera de esa monografía.

«By ignoring the most important achievement of the Warburg school, the academic picture that Scholem offered of Sabbatai Tzevi lacks an interesting dimension that may explain not only his messianic and prophetic claims, but also something about the nature of his malady» — el costo simétrico: el cuadro de Tzevi que ofreció Scholem carece de una dimensión que podría explicar sus reclamos mesiánicos y proféticos y algo de su dolencia.

«Beyond the common interest in Saturn figures, the two monographs mentioned above also deal with melancholy. It is this issue that should be put in the context of the scholars who generated their books: there was a melancholy mindset among Jews, especially in Central Europe, in the period between the two world wars» — el contexto que Idel pide poner a los dos libros: un ánimo melancólico entre los judíos, sobre todo de Europa central, en el periodo de entreguerras.

«In days of old all roads somehow led To God and to his name. We are not devout. We remain in the Profane, And where ‘God’ once stood, [now] Melancholy stands» — según Idel, así reza la estrofa final del poema de Scholem de 1933 ligado a un libro de Walter Benjamin: antaño todos los caminos llevaban de algún modo a Dios y a su nombre; no somos devotos, quedamos en lo profano, y donde antes estaba *Dios* está ahora la Melancolía.

«I would suggest that we pay particular attention to the substitution of God with Scholem’s ‘Melancholy’, coming as it does from the pen of one of the most acute observers of all things to do with Judaism and its theology. Such a radical statement about melancholy as a form of hypostasis is, at the same time, a melancholic statement in itself» — la lectura que Idel propone: la sustitución de Dios por la Melancolía, dicha por un observador agudo de la teología judía, sería a la vez enunciado sobre la melancolía y enunciado melancólico.

«I hope that the above chapters are a modest contribution to bringing together the more historically philologically oriented school of research» — lo que Idel dice ofrecer con sus capítulos: una contribución modesta a juntar la escuela histórico-filológica de Scholem con el análisis de imaginería mitológica y cosmológica de la warburgiana; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue en la 107 con *presided over by Gershom Scholem and adopted by his followers with the analysis of the mythological and cosmological imagery that was dominant in the Warburgian school of research, where magic and astrology played a much more central role*.

«In contrast to the past, all roads now led - so Scholem declared in 1933 - to ‘Melancholy’ rather than to God» — la paráfrasis con que Idel lo fija: en 1933 Scholem declara que todos los caminos llevan ahora a la Melancolía y no a Dios.

«However, as towering a figure as Scholem undoubtedly was, and cogent as his formulation is, he was not alone in his sharp discernment of the reign of melancholy at that time. In fact, a variety of other creative geniuses among the Jews in that period were also interested in melancholy, or considered themselves as Saturnine and as belonging to the realm of the profane» — y el contexto que le pone: otros genios creativos judíos del periodo se interesaron por la melancolía o se tuvieron por saturninos y pertenecientes a lo profano.

«Closest to Scholem was Walter Benjamin, whose self-perception contributes to our topic. When writing of Paul Klee s famous painting Angelas Novas, which he was to describe elsewhere as the demonic and destructive angel of history» — Idel pasa a Walter Benjamin y su autopercepción, a propósito del *Angelus Novus* de Paul Klee, que en otro lugar describe como ángel demoníaco y destructor de la historia.

«Saturn now is no more subordinated to a higher power, sefirotic of otherwise. It is simply the ‘Lord’ of Benjamin’s nativity» — el cambio que Idel señala respecto de los textos medievales: en Benjamin Saturno ya no queda subordinado a un poder superior y es simplemente el señor de su natividad. El troceo rinde *or* como *of*.

«Its sending two angels, one after another, is indeed an interesting idea, which may have something to do with the assumption that each of the planets has two angels, and Saturn, according to a tradition found in Yohanan Alemanno, has the angels Qaftziel and Hodiel» — y el eco que le encuentra: el supuesto de dos ángeles por planeta, con Qaftziel y Hodiel para Saturno según una tradición que recoge Alemanno.

«I first propose to emphasize the obvious: the Angel of History, the term Benjamin gave to Klee’s Angelas Novus,28 is understood to be both Saturn (or sent by Saturn) and related to Benjamin himself» — lo que Idel propone subrayar como evidente: el Ángel de la Historia entendido a la vez como Saturno o enviado por él y como ligado al propio Benjamin.

«For in taking advantage of the circumstance that I came into the world under the sign of Saturn - the star of the slowest revolution, the planet of detours and delays25 - he sent his feminine form» — según Idel, así escribe Benjamin en 1933: aprovechando que vino al mundo bajo el signo de Saturno, la estrella de la revolución más lenta, el planeta de los rodeos y las demoras, aquel le envió su forma femenina; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *after the masculine one reproduced in the picture by way of the longest, most fatal detour even though both happened to be - only they did not know each other - most intimately adjacent to each other* en la 108.

«Hence we have an interpretive approach to the angel that deals both with a disastrous celestial power that destroys and with Saturn. From this point of view, Benjamin’s description of the angel fits with the malign vision of Saturn in some of the texts mentioned above» — la lectura que Idel arma: un ángel que trata a la vez de un poder celeste desastroso y de Saturno, encajando con la visión maligna del planeta en los textos citados.

«If the destructive aspect of the Angel of History that sees ruin is indeed indebted to Saturn, then we may attribute not only a clue as to his own identity to Benjamin’s understanding of the planet but also something of the nature of history as seen by his eyes» — y el condicional con que la extiende: de deber ese aspecto destructivo a Saturno, la lectura del planeta daría clave no solo de la identidad de Benjamin sino de su visión de la historia.

«Moreover, if the personal aspect is interpreted as referring to Benjamin’s melancholy, then we have another attribute of Saturn included in this short passage: his being appointed over melancholy» — otro rasgo saturnino que Idel encuentra ahí, también en condicional: la melancolía, sobre la que el planeta está designado.

«according to the Western medical and philosophical tradition, the physiological state of disease is stubbornly linked with the figure of woman (whether as its cause or its icon), the often vague and contradictory symptomatology of melancholia is also what allows it to be manipulated ... in the creation of an elite psychological condition implicitly or explicitly associated with the genius of ‘great men’» — según Idel, así liga Benjamin melancolía y feminidad en el *Origen del drama barroco alemán*: la tradición médica y filosófica occidental ata el estado de enfermedad a la figura de la mujer, y la sintomatología vaga y contradictoria de la melancolía permite manipularla en la creación de una condición psicológica de élite asociada al genio de los grandes hombres.

«Hence the dimension of the feminine as related to the angel, which should be understood as representing the melancholic aspect of the angel and his own» — la consecuencia que Idel saca: lo femenino del ángel representaría su aspecto melancólico y el del propio Benjamin.

«Indeed, as Scholem has argued, there is some connection between the angel and melancholy: ‘The angel, not yet sunk in melancholy as he was later to be, still speaks to both of us, joined in a common cause» — el enlace que Idel toma de Scholem: el ángel, no hundido aún en la melancolía como lo estaría después, les habla todavía a los dos unidos en causa común.

«I wonder whether this gender vision of melancholy was not influenced by the Warburgian treatment of Diirer's etching» — la conjetura que Idel deja en interrogación: si esa visión genérica de la melancolía no vendría del tratamiento warburgiano del grabado de Durero; el tramo se corta antes del encabezado corrido y sigue en la 109 con *though it is also reminiscent of the role played by Lilith, as related to Saturn, in the later layer of Zoharic literature*. El troceo rinde *Dürer's* como *Diirer's*.

«suggest that this is quite an enigmatic statement: is he intimating that the angel became melancholic after not being so? In fact, it subsequently speaks to Scholem as a melancholic angel, though this does happen later» — la pregunta que Idel deja sin responder sobre ese enunciado enigmático: si Scholem insinúa que el ángel se volvió melancólico después de no serlo. El tramo arranca tras el corte de segmento a media plana.

«We might re-read Scholem s stanza quoted above and ask ourselves whether the “melancholy’ that replaced God was not actually a reference to Saturn, since the poem is explicitly related to Benjamin» — la relectura que propone: si la Melancolía que sustituye a Dios no era en realidad una referencia a Saturno, dado que el poema se liga explícitamente a Benjamin.

«Scholem’s reification, or deification, of melancholy fits the Saturnian vision found in some of the medieval and pre-modern texts addressed in previous chapters» — y lo que concluye de ahí: la reificación o deificación de la melancolía en Scholem encaja con la visión saturnina de los textos medievales y premodernos.

«There is a third important implication related to the angel. Before mentioning Saturn, Benjamin refers to the angel in the context of a revelation that he imagines is related to the secret Jewish name that parents give to their infant but disclose to their child only when it reaches maturity» — la tercera implicación que Idel señala: antes de mencionar a Saturno, Benjamin pone al ángel en el contexto del nombre judío secreto que los padres dan al niño y le revelan al llegar a la madurez.

«wonder whether this discussion of the name does not find an inverse parallel in Scholem’s mention of the name of God in the poem cited above» — y el paralelo inverso que se pregunta: la mención del nombre de Dios en el poema de Scholem. El troceo pega la llamada a nota con el *I* inicial de la frase.

«Thus, in addition to being connected to the destructive aspect of history and to melancholy, the angel is also connected by Benjamin to Jewishness, just as Saturn was in the texts analysed above» — lo que Idel suma: el ángel queda ligado por Benjamin también a la judeidad, como Saturno en los textos analizados.

«Moreover, to follow Scholem’s argument, the secret name is no other than ‘Agesilaus Santander’, which is an anagram of the letters ‘Der Angel Satanas’ with which Benjamin presumably identified» — el dato que Idel toma de Scholem: el nombre secreto sería *Agesilaus Santander*, anagrama de *Der Angel Satanas*, con el que Benjamin presumiblemente se identificaba.

«Do the feminine and masculine angels constitute a reverberation of the themes of Satan and Lilith discussed above? This demonic understanding of the angel, who spreads ruin in history, is quite close to Scholem’s vision of a demonic power that is responsible for Jewish history» — la pregunta que Idel deja abierta: si los ángeles femenino y masculino son eco de Satán y Lilith, y la cercanía de esa lectura demoníaca con la visión de Scholem de un poder demoníaco responsable de la historia judía.

«and is perhaps related to his propensity towards catastrophic vision, as pointed out by Harold Bloom» — y la propensión que Idel recoge de Harold Bloom: la visión catastrófica de Scholem.

«In principle, Benjamin and Scholem are not so different from the medieval figures who regarded Saturn as the planetary genius of Israel» — la equiparación con que Idel cierra el punto: en principio Benjamin y Scholem no se apartan tanto de las figuras medievales que tuvieron a Saturno por genio planetario de Israel.

«Indeed, as has already been suggested, Benjamin’s concern with and propensity for melancholy should be understood in the broader context of the Warburgian scholars, his Jewish contemporaries in Germany» — el encuadre que Idel adopta: la propensión de Benjamin a la melancolía leída en el contexto amplio de los eruditos warburgianos, sus contemporáneos judíos en Alemania.

«Beatrice Hanssen has drawn attention to this background, and if she is correct in her assumption as to the influence on Benjamin of the two Warburgian scholars writing on Saturn and melancholy (as I suspect she is), this is another example of the self-perception of a figure of the Jewish» — la atribución que Idel toma de Beatrice Hanssen, con su reserva declarada —*as I suspect she is*—: la influencia sobre Benjamin de los dos warburgianos que escribieron sobre Saturno y la melancolía. El tramo se corta en el cambio de plana.

«elite, a person who was not acquainted with the earlier Jewish examples of Saturnine qualities discussed above or with Jewish material about Saturn» — el límite que Idel pone al caso de Benjamin: es autopercepción de una figura de la élite judía que no conocía los ejemplos judíos anteriores. El tramo arranca en la plana 110, donde continúa la frase que la 109 deja cortada.

«However, Benjamin, like the scholars who were the probable source of his inspiration, was less acquainted with Hebrew sources and did not know about the eschatological imagery identified with Saturn» — y lo que le faltaba: poco trato con fuentes hebreas y desconocimiento de la imaginería escatológica ligada a Saturno.

«Even though he speculated from time to time about the nature of messianism in his writings,36 he did not declare himself to be a Messiah, though his enthusiastic intellectual followers in Europe and elsewhere today would certainly be ready to proclaim his messages as near-messianic in their revelation» — la distinción que Idel marca: Benjamin especuló sobre el mesianismo pero no se declaró Mesías, aunque sus seguidores entusiastas proclamarían sus mensajes como casi mesiánicos.

«In any event, in Benjamin’s case melancholy was not just an academic topic that had attraction for him or merely a form of self-perception. His tendency to suicide, which became apparent in 1932, culminated in a final (and successful) attempt in 1940. Both these examples demonstrate that in dealing with melancholy there was something much deeper at issue than literary conventions and cliches» — y por qué el caso no es literario: la tendencia al suicidio manifiesta desde 1932 y consumada en 1940 muestra algo más hondo que convenciones y clichés.

«Before turning to other 'melancholics’ from Scholem’s circle, let me stress that my reading of Scholem’s statements and the stanza from his poem together with Benjamin’s words assumes that it is self-evident that two such close friends, who were constantly writing to each other, often dealing with similar issues (Klee’s painting, for example) and citing one another in their work, should be read together» — el supuesto metodológico que Idel declara: leer juntos a Scholem y a Benjamin, amigos en correspondencia constante que se citan y tratan los mismos asuntos.

«Hence the occurrence of themes related to Saturn and melancholy, which surfaced in the early 1930s in Scholem’s circle in basically the same manner as they were reflected in the Warburgian scholars and Benjamin» — y la coincidencia que subraya: los temas de Saturno y la melancolía afloran a principios de los treinta en el círculo de Scholem igual que en los warburgianos y en Benjamin.

«The fascination of both Benjamin and Scholem with Klee’s Angelas Novusis part of what I would like to call the ‘angelotropic turn’: the fact that some individuals, unable to accept the existence of the divinity as part of a profound personal experience or to take on a totally atheistic worldview, turned to a metaphorical flirtation with angels» — el término propio que Idel acuña para ese fenómeno: el giro angelotrópico, el recurso a un coqueteo metafórico con ángeles por quienes no podían aceptar la divinidad ni un ateísmo total. El troceo pega *Novus is* como *Novusis*.

«This angelotropic attitude is reflected in a series of books published between the world wars, such as Alter’s Necessary Angels or Stephane Moses’s Angel of History» — los libros con que lo ilustra: *Necessary Angels* de Alter y *Angel of History* de Stéphane Mosès.

«It seems that a saturnine temperament may trigger, or at least encourage, a Saturnian reading of history, but also that a Saturnian reading of history may facilitate the development of a saturnine temperament» — la reciprocidad que Idel propone en grado de apariencia: un temperamento saturnino puede alentar una lectura saturnina de la historia, y esa lectura puede a su vez facilitar el temperamento.

«S. Y. Agnon, was depicted by Scholem as living in his (Agnon’s) youth ‘in an atmosphere of loneliness, and not less of Weltschmerz, in a depression of sweet melancholy, which is fitting to sensitive young persons» — el primero de los tres casos del entorno de Scholem: S. Y. Agnon, descrito por él como viviendo en su juventud en soledad y *Weltschmerz*, en una depresión de dulce melancolía propia de los jóvenes sensibles.

«Still in Germany, the physician and writer Werner Kraft who was later to become especially close to Scholem, was described as writing “profoundly melancholy letters’ in which the possibility that he might commit suicide was mildly suggested» — el segundo: Werner Kraft, escribiendo cartas profundamente melancólicas donde insinuaba la posibilidad del suicidio.

«Even the decidedly non-melancholic Zalman Rubashov (Shazar), another good friend of Scholem, was depicted as making a ‘melancholic friendly gesture’ when he accompanied Scholem to enlist in the German army» — y el tercero: Zalman Rubashov, decididamente no melancólico, con un gesto amistoso melancólico al acompañar a Scholem a alistarse.

«This begs the question of whether Scholem considered himself to be melancholic. So far, I have not found any such self-perception, but the verses quoted above about melancholy in lieu of God hold not only for Benjamin but also, at least potentially, for what Scholem believed (at least as a poet) in 1933» — la búsqueda negativa que Idel declara: no ha hallado en Scholem una autopercepción melancólica, aunque los versos sobre la melancolía en lugar de Dios valgan al menos en potencia para lo que creía como poeta en 1933.

«More recently, the concern with melancholy has also been evident in the philosophy of another distinguished contemporary and conversant of Benjamin 's, Theodor W. Adorno» — otro nombre que suma: Theodor W. Adorno, contemporáneo e interlocutor de Benjamin.

«The figures above constitute the second generation of Jewish melancholics in Central Europe. Other melancholics who are also well known and lived slightly earlier than this period are Sigmund Freud, Marcel Proust and, last but not least, Frank Kafka, as we learn from the latter’s famous letter to his father» — la generación anterior que Idel nombra: Freud, Proust y Kafka, este por su carta al padre.

«Both Scholem and Benjamin admired Kafka greatly,46 and Benjamin also wrote about Proust’s melancholy.47 In a letter to Scholem, Benjamin even described Kafka as an angel guarding his bed when he was sick» — y los enlaces entre ellos: la admiración de Scholem y Benjamin por Kafka, el escrito de Benjamin sobre la melancolía de Proust y la carta donde describe a Kafka como ángel que guardaba su cama en la enfermedad.

«In another instance, melancholy was considered to be almost congenital with Judaism, as claimed by the gifted Jewish-Roman ian novelist and playwright Mihail Sebastian, the pen name of Joseph Hechter (190745). Writing in the late 1920s, he describes the ‘very ancient melancholy’ of the Jews,48 while in his controversial 1934 novel dealing with two millennia of persecutions and suffering he refers repeatedly to the melancholy of the Jews and even considers them as possessed by ‘a melancholy that cannot be healed» — el caso extremo que Idel aduce: Mihail Sebastian, seudónimo de Joseph Hechter, que en los años veinte habla de la melancolía muy antigua de los judíos y en su novela de 1934 los tiene por poseídos de una melancolía que no puede curarse. El troceo parte *Jewish-Romanian* como *Jewish-Roman ian*, y las fechas 1907-45, partidas por el guion de fin de renglón, vuelven unidas como *190745*.

«I have brought together the names of Jewish scholars, writers and cultural critics, and though some of them have written studies, essays or at least a poem about melancholy this does not necessarily entail that they were melancholics themselves — although some of them admittedly were» — la cautela con que Idel acota su propia lista: escribir sobre la melancolía no implica ser melancólico, aunque algunos lo fueran.

«My intention here has been to emphasize the fact that the topic of melancholy remained high on the agenda of some sectors of the Jewish intelligentsia long after medieval beliefs in the astral order had dissipated among modern Jews, though not necessarily divorced from this nexus» — y su propósito declarado: mostrar que el asunto siguió alto en la agenda de sectores de la intelectualidad judía mucho después de disiparse la creencia en el orden astral.

«Between the two world wars, Saturn, the mythological source of melancholy, was removed from the theological constellation of Jews who imagined that they might have a saturnine temperament, but whose conception of that temperament was no longer related to the Saturnian aspects of the planet» — el desplazamiento que Idel describe para el periodo de entreguerras: Saturno queda fuera de la constelación teológica de quienes se imaginaban saturninos, y el temperamento deja de remitir al planeta.

«Some, however, remained obsessed with one of the major influences this planet allegedly had on Jews. Was this, as Sebastian claimed, an incurable state of mind among some leading Jewish figures? Or had melancholy indeed taken the place of God, as Scholem so poetically claimed» — y las dos preguntas que deja abiertas: si era un estado de ánimo incurable entre figuras judías, como decía Sebastian, o si la melancolía había ocupado el lugar de Dios, como escribió Scholem.

«Being the anti-essentialist that I assume myself to be, I cannot answer those questions at all, since for me they represent a form of playful imagery» — la abstención que Idel declara desde su propia posición: antiesencialista, no puede responder esas preguntas, que tiene por imaginería lúdica.

«Presumably, more ordinary people as well as intellectuals are attracted by cultural images and may change their behaviour when they identify with cultural cliches» — y lo que sí admite: gente común e intelectuales son atraídos por imágenes culturales y pueden cambiar de conducta al identificarse con clichés.

«If I am right, the path of Tzevi’s entire life is to be understood differently if we assume that he absorbed the content of Joseph Ashkenazi’s writing as found in Sefer ha-Peliy’ah (discussed above), much as the course of Benjamin ’s life may be considered differently if we imagine that his self-perception as saturnine may have been related to the manner in which he died» — la consecuencia que saca para sus dos casos: la vida entera de Tzevi se entiende de otro modo si absorbió el escrito de Ashkenazi, y la de Benjamin si su autopercepción saturnina se liga al modo en que murió.

«As someone who has read a great deal about Saturn and melancholy over several decades and has also on occasion written on these subjects, 1 was born in the month of January, under the so-called aegis of Saturn, in a province that was considered by some Romanians as melancholic par excellence -Moldavia.52 In addition, I was Jewish» — el testimonio que Idel da de sí mismo: nacido en enero, bajo la égida de Saturno, en Moldavia, provincia tenida por algunos rumanos como melancólica por excelencia, y judío. El troceo rinde la *I* inicial como un 1.

«As such, I may add my modest testimony to the meaning of the Saturujudaism nexus: I see the above statements as no more than simple reverberations of an ancient Greek myth or a cliche that has been passed down from generation to generation or, to use a phrase that is reminiscent of the title of one of Aby Warburg’s studies, as a quite modest ‘renewal of pagan antiquity’ which may help some thinkers who need it to reflect on their existential situation in a way similar to that of medieval Jews» — y cómo lee ese nexo desde ahí: ecos de un mito griego antiguo o un cliché pasado de generación en generación, una modesta renovación de la antigüedad pagana que ayuda a algunos a pensar su situación existencial. El troceo pega *Saturn-Judaism* como *Saturujudaism*.

«The ‘existence’ and ‘co-existence’ of all the three classical ‘characteristics’ of melancholy in my biography - a special time: January, place: a melancholy province; and Jewishness - did not, however, transform me into a melancholic, either because I proved an exception to the rule or, and this seems to me to be much more plausible, because even in the past these connections never really worked in reality» — la conclusión que saca de su propio caso: las tres características clásicas no lo volvieron melancólico, sea por excepción o —lo que le parece más plausible— porque esas conexiones nunca funcionaron de veras.

«My assumption is that they are mainly cultural constructs which some people choose to believe in and even internalize as cultural inertia or fashion. Sometimes they might be linked to innate predispositions, but in my opinion these do not reflect a natural type of astral causality» — la posición que Idel declara como suposición: son sobre todo constructos culturales que algunos eligen creer e internalizar, ligados a veces a predisposiciones innatas pero sin causalidad astral natural.

«In modern times, when those rituals lost their spell, other forms of identity were gained, as in, for example, the recognition of melancholy or a saturnine temperament as signs of Jewish identity» — el desplazamiento moderno que describe: perdido el hechizo de los ritos, la melancolía o el temperamento saturnino como señales de identidad judía.

«As in the case of Sabbatai Tzevi’s behaviour, it may be described (at least in this writer’s opinion) as an internalization of saturnine features - something that also seems to be the case with other twentieth-century figures» — y cómo lo nombra, declarándolo opinión propia: una internalización de rasgos saturninos, como en el caso de Tzevi.

«In saying this I have no intention of denigrating the importance of possible innate predispositions towards melancholy or depression in some individuals, but I also assume that cultural encounters and textual impact could also play their part in modifying a person’s behaviour» — la reserva con que lo acota: no denigra las predisposiciones innatas a la melancolía o la depresión, pero supone que los encuentros culturales y el impacto textual también modifican la conducta.

«Will the more recent resurgence of interest in astrology in general, including in Israel, also trigger a return of the identification of Jews with Saturn in our present century? If one were to give credence to the warnings of an international health organization, then depression - a form of melancholia - will become the dominant malaise in the very near future, second only to illnesses related to heart disease» — la pregunta con que Idel cierra el tercer capítulo: si el interés renovado por la astrología, también en Israel, traerá de vuelta la identificación de los judíos con Saturno, y el aviso de una organización internacional de salud sobre la depresión como malestar dominante.

«For some other Jews, however, this is one more instance of imaginaire they have acquired from their cultural environment» — el caso contrario que Idel consigna: para otros judíos es un *imaginaire* adquirido del entorno cultural; el tramo se corta antes del encabezado corrido y sigue en la 113 con *in which the performance of the Jewish rituals demanded some form of rationale, as was the case in the Middle Ages*.

«Let me survey briefly the literatures and authors discussed above: Abraham bar Hiyya, Abraham ibn Ezra and his many interpreters, the kabbalists such as Joseph Ashkenazi and Abraham Abulafia, and those who took up and continued their line of thought, Bahya ben Asher, the later layer of Zoharic literature, especially Sefer ha-Temunah and Sefer ha-Peliy’ah, Yohanan Alemanno, Joseph ibn Tzayyah, Moshe Cordovero, Abraham Yagel, Sabbatai Tzevi and his followers, as well as Walter Benjamin - these are the most important names that recur in the chapters above» — el censo con que Idel abre las *Concluding Remarks*: bar Hiyya, ibn Ezra y sus intérpretes, Joseph Ashkenazi y Abulafia, Bahya ben Asher, la capa tardía del *Zohar* con el *Sefer ha-Temunah* y el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*, Alemanno, ibn Tzayyah, Cordovero, Yagel, Sabbatai Tzevi y sus seguidores, y Walter Benjamin.

«They all mentioned the planet Saturn by name, whether in Hebrew, Aramaic or German and for all of them its attributes, for better or for worse, constitute a significant challenge» — lo que Idel les encuentra en común: todos nombran el planeta, en hebreo, arameo o alemán, y sus atributos les plantean un desafío de peso, para bien o para mal.

«This is the reason why I proposed above to resort to the term ‘Saturnism’ as a dimension of medieval Judaism, either shaping the identity of some Jews or by provoking a reaction against it presented as if the rituals of Sabbath represent an anti-Saturnian form of activity» — la razón que da para su término: el *saturnismo* como dimensión del judaísmo medieval, que da forma a la identidad de algunos judíos o provoca una reacción que presenta los ritos del sábado como actividad antisaturnina.

«If my proposal, to see an implementation of the changes in religion connected to the Messiah and to the influence of Saturn in the measures introduced by Sabbatai Tzevi in rabbinic Judaism, is correct, the amplitude of Saturnism is much greater than is speculated in many books» — y la amplitud que reclama para él, en condicional: de ser correcta su lectura de las medidas de Tzevi, el saturnismo abarcaría mucho más de lo que suponen muchos libros.

«This is also the case with the great Moses Maimonides, whose crusade against astro-magic (albeit without singling out Saturn as a major target of his critique) fills many of the pages of his books. Astro-magic was indubitably a foil for his intellectualistic picture of what he conceived of as the true religion» — el caso que suma por el reverso: la cruzada de Maimónides contra la astro-magia, sin señalar a Saturno como blanco mayor, con la astro-magia como contraste de su idea de religión verdadera.

«I would include in this reaction against Saturnism even some forms of early Kabbalah, such as the book of Bahir and the Geronese Kabbalah, or the Kabbalistic writings of Joseph Gikatilla and Moshe de Leon, as well as most of the writings of Lurianic Kabbalah, as attempts to retreat from the various forms of Saturnization of Judaism» — y a quiénes más incluye en esa reacción: el *Bahir* y la cábala gerundense, Gikatilla y Moshe de León, y casi toda la escritura luriánica.

«I mention these retreats so as to lend the right proportions to the phenomena discussed above: just as early Judaism, biblical, rabbinic, Heikhalot literature and early Jewish magical literature1 may be understood without resorting to the conceptual structures related to Saturn, so we may understand other forms of Judaism, philosophical and Kabbalistic and even more so the continuation of rabbinic literature, without even mentioning the name Sabbatai/Saturn» — el sentido que Idel da a ese inventario de retiradas: dar proporción justa, porque se pueden entender formas enteras de judaísmo sin nombrar a Sabbatai.

«Though they deal with some stereotypes inherited from late antiquity appropriated and then elaborated by medieval Jews, who borrowed them» — el deslinde que Idel hace de su propio trabajo: no solo historia de ideas astrológicas que migran de libro en libro; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *from their gentile predecessors* en la 116.

«My assumptions are that the concatenations between some of these ideas and Jews, albeit imaginary connections, operated in the historical arena in a rather substantial manner» — la suposición central que Idel declara: esas concatenaciones, aun imaginarias, operaron de modo sustancial en la arena histórica.

«In fact, the transition from one period, that of Arab astrology, to the Christian territories was accompanied by an enrichment in the texture of the themes in which Jews were instrumental. The earlier, shorter, texts about Saturn became longer with time, as the passages of Joseph Ashkenazi, Yohanan Alemanno and Abraham Yagel demonstrate» — el proceso que describe: al pasar de la astrología árabe a territorio cristiano los temas se enriquecen con los judíos por instrumento, y los textos sobre Saturno se alargan con el tiempo.

«If the image of the Jews as sorcerers and the concept of the Sabbat are indebted to the Saturnian constellation of ideas, and if Sabbatai Tzevi turned saturnine due to his acquaintance with the messianic interpretation of the role of Saturn, as I have proposed above, a more wide-ranging observation as to the meaning of the writing of history is called for» — el condicional con que abre su reflexión historiográfica: de deberse a la constelación saturnina la imagen de los judíos hechiceros y el concepto de sabbat, y de volverse Tzevi saturnino por su lectura del planeta, hace falta una observación más amplia.

«None of the two connections were systemic developments, but they appeared because of the exposure of a small sector of the Jewish elite to material articulated in nonjewish environments. These connections could never have surfaced before their adoption by Jews» — y cómo caracteriza esas dos conexiones: no desarrollos sistémicos, sino fruto de la exposición de un sector pequeño de la élite judía a material formulado en ambientes no judíos.

«However, after they emerged, their dissemination and reception were related to various historical developments, the effect of the Black Death in the late fourteenth century or the changing situation of the Jews in the mid seventeenth century, as well as the proliferation of interest in melancholy among wider audiences in Europe in the twentieth century» — los hitos históricos que ligan a su difusión: la Peste Negra, el cambio de situación de los judíos a mediados del XVII y el interés por la melancolía en el siglo XX.

«If I am right, the developments mentioned above are not part of a grand narrative forged by scholars who bring together different events from periods of history, but the product of much smaller units, whose causality is related to more subjective moments that are far more intimate and rather more closely related to instances of misunderstanding» — la escala que Idel reclama para su historia: no un gran relato armado por los estudiosos, sino unidades mucho más pequeñas, de causalidad íntima y ligada al malentendido.

«Not that I assume the grand narratives are not based upon misunderstandings, but this is a topic I cannot address here» — y la reserva con que se detiene: no supone que los grandes relatos estén libres de malentendidos, pero no aborda ese asunto.

«Thus, the astrological element in Sabbateanism is both a continuation of a much older, astrological theme which did not play a significant role in rabbinic Judaism but was emphasized in some medieval elites» — el doble carácter que atribuye al elemento astrológico del sabbateanismo: continuación de un tema antiguo sin peso en el judaísmo rabínico pero subrayado en élites medievales.

«In the seventeenth century, however, there was also a new development related to the self-perception of a major figure, stemming from a misunderstanding of the planet Sabbatai referring to a human being, the Messiah, understood to be Tzevi himself» — el desarrollo nuevo del siglo XVII, que Idel nombra malentendido: el planeta Sabbatai leído como remitiendo a un ser humano, el Mesías, entendido como Tzevi.

«There is also the application of the term ‘Sabbath’, a Jewish feast, to the ‘Sabbat of the witches’, which can only be understood as a historical misunderstanding on the part of those who created the ritual of the witches’ Sabbat, whose details stem only to a small extent from material related to Saturn» — el otro malentendido: la aplicación del término *Sabbath* al sabbat de las brujas, cuyos detalles solo en pequeña parte vendrían de material saturnino.

«Indeed, I wonder if a history that assumes that people are motivated by a proper understanding of books, facts or persons is a more adequate one than a history that presupposes misunderstandings in these matters. Perhaps a history based on misunderstandings in the past is a more intelligible history than one that attributes overmuch understanding to its protagonists» — y la pregunta con que lo defiende: si una historia basada en malentendidos del pasado no es más inteligible que una que atribuye demasiada comprensión a sus protagonistas.

«Moreover, in cases when the transmission of ideas is in question, the factor of misunderstanding is inherent in the very transition of information from one cultural centre to another, and certainly from one language to another» — dónde sitúa el malentendido: inherente a la transmisión de información de un centro cultural a otro y de una lengua a otra.

«In our case, the Hellenistic sources of disdain towards Jews have been assimilated in astrological treatises by Muslim authors, and imported into Judaism by Jews who certainly did not set out to hurt other Jews» — el caso que le toca: fuentes helenísticas de desdén hacia los judíos asimiladas por autores musulmanes e importadas al judaísmo por judíos que no buscaban dañar a otros judíos.

«However, if my analysis in chapter 1 is correct, in spite of themselves, they turned out to be agents of the dissemination of anti-Jewish motifs when their views, based on cliches, were applied to a cult that had nothing to do with Judaism, namely one that practised some form of sorcery during the Sabbath» — y el resultado que declara en condicional: a su pesar, esos judíos habrían sido agentes de la difusión de motivos antijudíos al aplicarse sus visiones a un culto ajeno al judaísmo.

«In fact, cultural transmission is bound often to create misunderstandings, sometime quite ‘fertile’ ones given the decontextualization of some themes and their usage in new contexts, a process that amounts to their reconceptualization» — la generalización con que cierra el punto: la transmisión cultural crea malentendidos, a veces fértiles, por descontextualización y uso en contextos nuevos, lo que equivale a reconceptualizar.

«In other words, my approach is that of a much less historicist type of history. Though I do not» — cómo nombra Idel su propio enfoque; el tramo se corta antes del encabezado corrido y sigue en la 117 con *argue that this should always be the way to write history, I am nevertheless convinced that this is one of the most helpful ways of understanding personalities who played a major role in changing the course of history*.

«Reconceptualizations were discussed above as being the result of new concatenations that emerged within Jewish circles, though the sources of the trigger themes were external: the astrological theories about Saturn as reinterpreted in Kabbalistic contexts» — la fórmula con que Idel resume el proceso: reconceptualizaciones nacidas de concatenaciones nuevas dentro de círculos judíos, con temas disparadores externos.

«This process can also be discerned in the case of some concepts in philosophy that have been reinterpreted theosophically: for example, the Agent Intellect, the concept of ’Ayin, Nihil or in actu and in potentia» — los paralelos filosóficos que aduce: el Intelecto Agente, el *'Ayin*, el *Nihil*, lo *in actu* y lo *in potentia* reinterpretados teosóficamente.

«The import of the new form of order was significant, not only because it had been adopted, but much more because it was adapted and elaborated. Either through reinterpretation of the qualities of Saturn/Sabbath as an explanation of the significance of the details of the Sabbath commandments or by connecting Sabbatai as a Messiah to specificjewish figures, the astrological scheme was enriched by resorting to the strategy of concatenation» — la distinción que Idel subraya: el orden nuevo pesó no por adoptarse sino por adaptarse y elaborarse, con la concatenación por estrategia.

«It is the conceptual addition that is an integral part of the process of adaptation that ultimately created the developments discussed above, not the simple act of adoption alone» — y su insistencia: lo que creó los desarrollos fue la adición conceptual propia de la adaptación, no el acto de adoptar.

«Though cosmic, and to a certain extent also magical, those Graeco-Hellenistic universalistic themes were turned into indicators of particular Jewish practices and aspirations» — el giro que describe: temas universalistas grecohelenísticos vueltos indicadores de prácticas y aspiraciones judías particulares.

«Though indubitably quintessential for the emergence of those new developments, the very process of import alone would not be able to impress many Jews; neither would the themes related to Saturn be connected with central Jewish values» — el límite que Idel pone a la importación sola: no habría impresionado a muchos judíos ni habría ligado los temas de Saturno a valores judíos centrales; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *such as Sabbath and Messiah* en la 118.

«The various forms of the Judaization of Saturn are therefore among the main clues for understanding the fascinating avatars that constitute the career of this Greek mythologoumenon in the tents of Shem» — la fórmula con que Idel nombra su objeto: la judaización de Saturno como clave de los avatares de ese mitologúmeno griego en las tiendas de Sem.

«In our case, we witness an interesting example of the implicit rejection of a rabbinic statement to the effect that the nation of Israel is not presided over by any sign of the zodiac» — y lo que eso implica: un rechazo implícito del dicho rabínico de que la nación de Israel no está presidida por ningún signo del zodiaco.

«In more general terms, this is an example of the ascent of the importance of a secondary elite that is capable of introducing important innovations that do not resonate with the main gist of rabbinic culture, an issue to which we shall refer immediately below. In other words, the secondary elite introduced a strong intercorporal hermeneutics» — la lectura sociológica que añade: el ascenso de una élite secundaria capaz de introducir innovaciones que no resuenan con el grueso de la cultura rabínica, con una hermenéutica intercorporal fuerte.

«However, it is not only the Judaization of the Greek themes that constitutes the reason for the impact they had on some figures in Judaism. Concatenation is at the same time an enrichment of the earlier material, which is in alignment with new themes, and thus it has a better chance of attracting additional thinkers who are concerned with more complex forms of thought» — la otra razón del impacto: la concatenación enriquece el material anterior y atrae a pensadores de formas más complejas.

«In other words, the profound phenomenological differences between the Graeco-Hellenistic and the rabbinic cultures, which consist in the refusal of rabbinic figures to adopt and cultivate the Greek philosophical and scientific modes of writing, were attenuated by a long series of syntheses» — la diferencia de fondo que Idel mide: el rechazo rabínico de los modos griegos de escritura filosófica y científica, atenuado por una larga serie de síntesis.

«In fact this synthetic mode of discourse, which began in late antiquity with Philo of Alexandria, and subsequently assumed a variety of forms, not only shaped the religious structure of nascent Christianity, but also a long series of phenomena that constitute the main aspects of European culture, which includes both its more positive and negative aspects» — el alcance que da a ese modo sintético: iniciado con Filón de Alejandría, dio forma al cristianismo naciente y a fenómenos que son aspectos principales de la cultura europea.

«The installation of Saturn as the planet imagined as being appointed over the Jews as a nation and its various reverberations are some of the less anticipated variations of the vast range of Graeco-Jewish syntheses» — y cómo encuadra su propio caso: una de las variaciones menos previsibles del vasto repertorio de síntesis grecojudías.

«These syntheses of the worldview of the Hebrew Bible with that of Ptolemy’s Tetrabiblos created Jewish Saturnism, a mentality based on the characteristics of the planet as set out in astrological books, but coupled with a more particularistic emphasis related to values in Judaism» — la definición que Idel da de su objeto: el saturnismo judío como mentalidad basada en los rasgos del planeta según los libros astrológicos, acoplada a un énfasis particularista de valores judíos.

«In this context, misunderstanding can be among the most intellectually fertile processes, characteristic of a continent that hosted so many diverging and interacting cultures» — el valor que atribuye al malentendido: de los procesos intelectualmente más fértiles, propio de un continente con culturas divergentes que interactúan.

«However, in order to discern the nature of those misunderstandings, a correct understanding of the misunderstood passages or themes is necessary first, which means that significant philological work should be carefully invested before proclaiming the importance of a misunderstanding» — y la condición que le pone: primero hace falta entender correctamente el pasaje malentendido, con trabajo filológico invertido con cuidado.

«In this way, cultural fortuities and intellectual misunderstandings should be counted among the most powerful triggers which changed the religious and intellectual landscape of Europe and in some cases also the course of Jewish history» — la tesis con que Idel cierra ese punto: azares culturales y malentendidos intelectuales entre los disparadores más poderosos del paisaje religioso e intelectual europeo.

«Many of the above discussions are commentaries on Sefer Yetzirah, where the brief mention of Saturn attracted many treatments related to this planet that otherwise would not have occurred» — el dato formal que subraya: buena parte de lo discutido son comentarios al *Sefer Yetzirah*, donde la breve mención de Saturno atrajo tratamientos que de otro modo no habrían ocurrido.

«Who could ever have predicted that among medievaljews, some would prove ready to sacrifice themselves and their families in order to prevent baptism,3 while others would adopt motifs related to a cruel, sinister, often bloody Greek god who devours his own children as the overlord appointed on their nation without any discernible pressure coming from outside» — el contraste con que lo dramatiza: judíos medievales dispuestos a sacrificarse con sus familias antes que ser bautizados, y otros adoptando sin presión externa como señor de su nación a un dios griego cruel que devora a sus hijos. El troceo pega *medieval Jews* como *medievaljews*.

«At the same time, it is hard to ignore the persistence of the mythologoumena discussed above from late antiquity to inter-war Germany in such a great variety of sources, across different cultures and diverse cultural environments» — el contrapeso que añade: cuesta ignorar la persistencia de esos mitologúmenos desde la Antigüedad tardía hasta la Alemania de entreguerras en fuentes muy variadas.

«The type of history that I have tried to advance above is strongly contingent and related to accidents, especially when it is connected to the primacy of an internal experience as» — cómo califica Idel su propia historia: fuertemente contingente y ligada a accidentes, sobre todo al primar una experiencia interna; el tramo se corta en el límite de segmento y sigue *a major trigger for someone's decision to believe that he is a Messiah that is later transformed into becoming a Messiah publicly* en la misma plana.

«a major trigger for someone’s decision to believe that he is a Messiah that is later transformed into becoming a Messiah publicly» — la continuación de esa frase: la experiencia interna como disparador de la decisión de creerse Mesías, que luego se transforma en serlo públicamente.

«This is indubitably facilitated by the wide range of qualities attributed to the planet, which has drawn the interest of philosophers, astronomers, astrologers, kabbalists, physicians and eschatologically oriented authors as well as those interested in the events of history and the characters of men, including, later on, a variety of artists and even a distinguished critique of culture such as Walter Benjamin» — lo que Idel da por facilitador de esa persistencia: la amplitud de cualidades atribuidas al planeta, que atrajo a filósofos, astrónomos, astrólogos, cabalistas, médicos, autores escatológicos, artistas y un crítico de la cultura como Benjamin.

«Thus what I propose is to adopt a vision of history that assumes a variety of different concomitant currents, simultaneously overlapping and contending, a vision that also suggests a certain historical phenomenon may be quite complex and might be at an intersection of more than one cultural development» — la visión de la historia que Idel propone: corrientes concomitantes que se solapan y contienden, con fenómenos históricos complejos situados en el cruce de más de un desarrollo cultural.

«I would refer to the concept of ‘colligation', which means that in order to understand a certain historical event, it is necessary to locate it in its context by mentioning other events with which it is bound up» — y el término que toma para ello: *colligation*, situar un suceso en su contexto nombrando los sucesos con que va trabado.

«The multifarious nature of Saturn, more than that of other planets, therefore attracted a much wider audience and for centuries was able to persist in a more or less metaphorical manner in terms like ‘saturnine’» — lo que Idel atribuye a la naturaleza múltiple de Saturno: un público más amplio y una pervivencia metafórica de siglos en términos como *saturnine*.

«Sectors of the intellectual elite who adopted Saturnian qualities as relevant for understanding Judaism were attracted by some of the qualities they were imagined to secure: depth of wisdom and the knowledge of secrets» — y qué buscaban en él los sectores de la élite intelectual: profundidad de sabiduría y conocimiento de los secretos.

«It should be pointed out that unlike the more widespread astral myths and the rituals related to them, namely the solar, the lunar or the Mercurian mythologies, Saturnian mythology is related to a far less» — el contraste que Idel marca: frente a las mitologías solar, lunar o mercurial, la saturnina se liga a un planeta mucho menos visible; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *visible planet, and thus connected to a more elitist vision of reality* en la 120.

«In any case, it is fascinating to observe that descriptions of Jews in late antiquity as worshippers of Saturn, extant since Tacitus (though probably wrong or statistically speaking negligible, and so far certainly difficult to substantiate historically), are far more pertinent in the case of some Spanish and Italian Jews in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance period» — la ironía histórica que Idel señala: las descripciones antiguas de los judíos como adoradores de Saturno, dudosas o difíciles de sostener, resultan más pertinentes para algunos judíos españoles e italianos de la Edad Media y el Renacimiento.

«To sum up, the passages discussed above show that an understanding of developments in the metamorphoses of a theme in Europe is much richer if the Jewish materials are also taken into consideration» — la tesis con que Idel resume: entender las metamorfosis de un tema en Europa se enriquece si se toman en cuenta los materiales judíos.

«Fascinatingly enough, the cultural history of Europe, though written about since the inter-war period by several prominent Jewish authors, has been presented as if the Jews themselves were an unimportant factor, when in fact they were the opposite, not just in cultural transmission but also as independent thinkers, whose works and misunderstandings could affect some significant cultural developments in Europe» — y el defecto que consigna en esa historiografía: presentar a los judíos como factor sin importancia cuando fueron lo contrario, no solo en la transmisión sino como pensadores independientes.

«Examples include the Jewish translators at the court of Alfonso Sabio, and other Jews who served as teachers of prominent Christian authors, such as Giovanni Pico della Mirandola and Johann Reuchlin» — los ejemplos que da: los traductores judíos de la corte de Alfonso el Sabio y los judíos que enseñaron a Pico della Mirandola y a Reuchlin.

«Though this tendency to suppress the possible Jewish contribution is understandable on the part of Jewish authors writing in the inter-war period and aspiring to build their academic careers in one of the Central European universities, the approach still lingers on even in our times» — la explicación y su límite: comprensible en autores judíos de entreguerras que hacían carrera en universidades centroeuropeas, la tendencia persiste hoy.

«The passages discussed above which stem from the twelfth and thirteenth centuries seem to parallel the twelfthand thirteenth-century Renaissances» — el paralelo cronológico que traza: los pasajes de los siglos XII y XIII corren en paralelo a los renacimientos de esos mismos siglos. El impreso parte *twelfth- and thirteenth-century* con guion suspendido de fin de renglón y el extractor devuelve *twelfthand*.

«visible planet, and thus connected to a more elitist vision of reality. From many points of view it is less related to rituals,7 the Sabbath being one of the few rituals attributed to the ancient Jews as worshippers of Saturn» — la continuación de ese contraste: visión más elitista de lo real y menos ligada a rituales, con el sábado como uno de los pocos ritos atribuidos a los judíos antiguos como adoradores de Saturno.

«Last but not least, astrology, like magic, is not an isolated form of knowledge expressed in its own discrete literature, but an alternative that was open to a variety of elite figures, philosophers, kabbalists and Messiahs, who were inspired by the themes it discusses» — cómo define Idel la astrología: no un saber aislado en literatura propia, sino una alternativa abierta a filósofos, cabalistas y mesías.

«This means that a much more interdisciplinary approach that takes into consideration topics that cross different types of literatures will better reflect the dynamic of historical development than a unilinear approach that focuses on one type of literature» — y lo que eso exige: un enfoque más interdisciplinario que cruce tipos de literatura y refleje mejor la dinámica del desarrollo histórico.

«It is obvious that astrological speculations contributed to the mythopoesis of Kabbalah far more than is acknowledged by the extant studies» — lo que Idel da por evidente: la especulación astrológica contribuyó a la mitopoiesis de la cábala mucho más de lo que reconocen los estudios disponibles.

«However, this does not diminish the inner developments of rabbinic myths and their impact on Kabbalah.12 These were an important additional source of inspiration for some medieval Jewish myths, rather widespread in the Middle Ages, about the nature of the people of Israel and their practices, especially on the Sabbath, an inspiration that was nevertheless marginalized in scholarship but which had significant effects on Kabbalistic thought in either a positive or a negative way» — el contrapeso que Idel pone: eso no merma los desarrollos internos del mito rabínico, fuente adicional de inspiración marginada por la erudición.

«Last, but not least, the introduction of astral mythologoumena, with its Saturnian vision of religion, in my opinion contributed to the emergence of a variety of anomian and antinomian visions in Kabbalah» — la aportación que Idel declara como opinión: los mitologúmenos astrales con su visión saturnina de la religión contribuyeron a visiones anómicas y antinómicas en la cábala.

«Myths of the utopian-messianic Golden Ages and of changes of religion, on the one hand, and visions of predetermination, darkness, almost cursed individuals and some form of damnation of the Jews as a nation, on the other, together with assumptions about the extraordinary» — los mitos que Idel cuenta entre los más fuertes: las Edades de Oro utópico-mesiánicas y los cambios de religión de un lado, y del otro la predeterminación, la oscuridad, los individuos casi malditos y la damnación de los judíos como nación; el tramo se corta antes del encabezado corrido y sigue en la 121 con *powers of the Saturnians and Saturnines, intellectual and magical respectively*.

«Some of the authors mentioned above, such as Abraham Abulafia and the writers of the later layer of Zoharic literature, Sefer ha-Qanah and ha-Peliy’ah, who were acquainted with and resorted to astrology, can be considered to display an uneasiness with some aspects of rabbinic Judaism» — quiénes muestran ese malestar, según Idel: Abulafia y los autores de la capa zohárica tardía, del *Sefer ha-Qanah* y del *ha-Peliy'ah*.

«Though each of these kabbalists is a complex thinker, and reducing the definition of his approach to the impact of astrology would be a dramatic simplification, I see in the Saturnian elements as adopted or imposed on Judaism the seeds of further development in their thought, which also draw from other important sources» — y la reserva con que lo acota: reducirlos al influjo de la astrología sería simplificar de modo dramático, y él solo ve ahí semillas de desarrollos posteriores.

«First and foremost, we have seen that flexibility in theosophical and astrological forms of order invited the idea of change in the Torah, or what may be called Torah-mutability» — el término propio que Idel acuña: la flexibilidad de los órdenes teosófico y astrológico invitaba a la idea de cambio en la Torá, o *Torah-mutability*.

«This idea stems from the theory of conjunctio maxima, which appears many times in Jewish thought, as we have seen above. It has also been connected to another astrological concept of the cosmic cycles, the Shemittot and Yovelim, which assumes drastic changes in the law that will preside over the other cycles» — de dónde la hace venir: la teoría de la *conjunctio maxima* y los ciclos cósmicos de los *Shemittot* y *Yovelim*, que suponen cambios drásticos en la ley.

«This is implicit in Joseph Ashkenazi’s use of the term dinim, while in Sefer ha-Temunah and in Sefer ha-Qanah and Peliy ’ah the theory of dramatic change is quite explicit, and the latter books had a direct impact on Sabbateanism» — y el reparto de explicitud: implícito en el uso de *dinim* por Ashkenazi, explícito en el *Sefer ha-Temunah*, el *Sefer ha-Qanah* y el *Peliy'ah*, con impacto directo en el sabbateanismo.

«Other kabbalists, especially the ones from Safed, recognized these theories antinomian potential and restricted recourse to them, as did Moshe Cordovero;lj or rejected them outright, as did Isaac Luria and many of his followers» — la reacción que consigna en Safed: Cordovero restringió el recurso a esas teorías por su potencial antinómico, y Luria y sus seguidores las rechazaron de plano.

«powers of the Saturnians and Saturnines, intellectual and magical respectively, are the strongest expressions we may find in the better-known Kabbalistic mythologoumena» — la continuación de esa lista: los poderes extraordinarios de saturnianos y saturninos, intelectuales y mágicos respectivamente, como las expresiones más fuertes de los mitologúmenos cabalísticos más conocidos.

«From this point of view, Sabbateanism does not continue the much more cautious and conservative approach of the Safedian masters» — la discontinuidad que Idel traza: el sabbateanismo no continúa el enfoque más cauto y conservador de los maestros de Safed.

«Thus, I would say that it is hard to presuppose the existence of pure forms of antinomianism which are not in alignment with some form of positive or negative Saturnism» — la tesis con que Idel lo remata: cuesta suponer formas puras de antinomianismo que no vayan alineadas con alguna forma de saturnismo positivo o negativo.

«In the seventeenth century, when the anti-Ptolemaic ideas of Copernicus gained more and more ground in Judaism, especially in Sabbateanism, Ptolemy’s astrology, based on geocentrism, reached the height of its influence, rendering it problematic for both conservative rabbinic Judaism and the possibility of integrating Jews in the new scientific worldview» — la paradoja que Idel consigna para el siglo XVII: mientras las ideas anti-ptolemaicas de Copérnico ganaban terreno, la astrología geocéntrica de Ptolomeo llegaba a su mayor influjo.

«Or to formulate the above remarks in a different manner, the ascent of a new, secondary elite, constituted by figures such as Abraham bar Hiyya, Abraham ibn Ezra, Abraham Abulafia, Joseph Ashkenazi, the anonymous author of Tiqqunei Zohar and Sefer ha-Peliy’ah, Yohanan Alemanno and Abraham Yagel, who adopted and adapted Saturnism, created a new situation in which the rabbinic elite, or the first elite, could no longer manage to control the content and distribution of new forms of knowledge that Jews introduced into Judaism and interpreted accordingly» — la formulación sociológica que prefiere: el ascenso de una élite secundaria —bar Hiyya, ibn Ezra, Abulafia, Ashkenazi, los anónimos del *Tiqqunei Zohar* y del *Peliy'ah*, Alemanno, Yagel— que adoptó y adaptó el saturnismo, con la élite rabínica ya incapaz de controlar contenido y distribución.

«The new views differed from both the rabbinic approaches and also from Maimonides’ sharp critique of astrology» — y de qué se apartaban esas visiones nuevas: de los enfoques rabínicos y de la crítica aguda de Maimónides a la astrología.

«Therefore, Sabbatai Tzevi is only the most important representative of a much longer list of thinkers who were able to impose a new agenda that had antinomian overtones» — el lugar que Idel asigna a Tzevi: el representante más importante de una lista larga de pensadores capaces de imponer una agenda de tonos antinómicos.

«These forms of antinomianism were coupled with other tendencies, such as the intellectual antinomianism inherent in the exaltation of intellectual activity as the highest form of religious worship that was implied by Maimonides’ philosophical thought, or the vision of an ideal Torah, Torah de-’Atzilut, related to the realm of the divine world, suggested in» — con qué tendencias se acopla ese antinomianismo, según Idel: el antinomianismo intelectual implícito en Maimónides al exaltar la actividad intelectual como culto supremo, y la Torá ideal, *Torah de-'Atzilut*, del mundo divino; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y cierra con *the later Zoharic layer* en la 122.

«In the next stage, exemplified by Franz Kafka, Walter Benjamin and, to a certain extent, Scholem, the issue was less about antinomianism, but rather about indifference towards rabbinic law, the assumption that it is not a revealed type of religious instruction or the ‘interpretation of the inaudible pronunciation’, i.e. a silent revelation» — el estadio siguiente que Idel describe con Kafka, Benjamin y en parte Scholem: menos antinomianismo que indiferencia hacia la ley rabínica y el supuesto de que no es instrucción revelada, sino interpretación de la pronunciación inaudible.

«However, great as the role that I attribute to the ascent of the secondary elites in shaping and changing the content of Judaism may be,19 let me also emphasize what seems to be its corollary: the secondary elites were also dominated, perhaps even obsessed by, the forms of knowledge they imported» — el corolario que Idel subraya de su propia tesis: esas élites secundarias quedaron también dominadas, quizá obsesionadas, por el saber que importaron.

«For instance, Sabbatai Tzevi was much less of a revolutionary than he is imagined to be, but he was the most important example of Saturnism: someone who read a scenario that had been circulating for centuries in Judaism and who, because of his proper name and his innate disposition (his personality, we might call it), internalized some of its elements and played them out on the stage of history» — y el retrato de Tzevi que deriva: menos revolucionario de lo que se imagina y el ejemplo mayor del saturnismo, alguien que leyó un guion circulante desde hacía siglos y, por su nombre propio y su disposición innata, internalizó parte de él y lo representó en la escena de la historia.

«To be sure, external circumstances have their role in selecting what will or will not become more widespread and accepted» — el papel que reserva a las circunstancias externas: seleccionar qué se difunde y se acepta.

«Moreover, without the prior widespread popular belief in, and aspiration for, redemption in its personal messianic form, the secondary elite would not have been able to circulate its visions to a wide audience creating what I propose to call the ‘messianic pyramid’» — y la condición popular que pone: sin la creencia y la aspiración populares previas a una redención mesiánica personal, la élite secundaria no habría podido difundir sus visiones, en lo que llama la pirámide mesiánica.

«Thus the conjunctures of the historical scene» — el cierre de las conclusiones; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *indubitably dictate the processes of dissemination and work as a selective grid* en la 123.

«I adduce below the Hebrew versions of the seminal passage by Joseph ben Shalom Ashkenazi on the planet Saturn found in his CoTnmentavy on Sefer Yetzirah, and its reverberation in the anonymous Sefer ha-Peliy’ah» — Idel declara qué contiene el Apéndice: las versiones hebreas del pasaje de Joseph ben Shalom Ashkenazi sobre Saturno y su eco en el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*; el troceo corrompe *Commentary* como *CoTnmentavy*.

«My main purpose here is to make available the most important texts on which I have relied in my analyses and, more specifically, to point out the differences between the two versions of the passage, as well as to analyse the meaning of the changes found in Sefer ha-Peliy ’ah» — y el propósito que declara: poner a disposición los textos en que se apoya, señalar las diferencias entre las dos versiones y analizar el sentido de los cambios.

«English translations of most of the text are to be found in chapters 1 and 2, and more are offered below. Here the reader may see the original Hebrew texts of the translated passages in their wider context» — la advertencia de uso: las traducciones inglesas están en los capítulos 1 y 2, y aquí el lector ve los originales hebreos en su contexto amplio.

«From the general literature about Saturn with which I am acquainted, the two Hebrew passages that follow are among the longest discussions of the negative qualities of this planet, listing a variety of malign and malicious aspects, which in some cases appear twice, probably as part of a careless fusion of elements from two different though nevertheless similar lists that were known to Joseph Ashkenazi» — lo que Idel adjudica a esos dos pasajes: de las discusiones más largas sobre las cualidades negativas del planeta, con aspectos que a veces aparecen dos veces, probablemente por fusión descuidada de dos listas semejantes.

«I assume that one of them was related to the list of Abu Ma^har.1 The passage byjoseph Ashkenazi shows that material additional to that known in Hebrew literature until the late thirteenth century, especially from the writings of ibn Ezra, most probably stemming from Arabic sources, had an impact on his views» — su conjetura sobre esas listas: una se relacionaría con la de Abu Ma'shar, y el pasaje muestra material añadido de fuentes árabes. El troceo corrompe *Ma'shar* como *Ma^har* y pega *by Joseph* como *byjoseph*.

«Let me point out that the two books from which the excerpts below are cited are not found in critical editions, and there can be no doubt that the two passages contain some mistakes, which I have attempted to correct on the basis of manuscripts and which I discuss in the attached footnotes» — la advertencia filológica que Idel deja escrita: los dos libros no tienen edición crítica, los pasajes traen errores y él los corrigió sobre manuscritos, discutiéndolos en nota.

«My thesis as discussed above is that it is the passage as it is found in Sefer ha-Peliy’ah that should be considered Tzevi’s primary source, and I shall highlight below the differences between it and its own source. The additions to be found only in Sefer ha-Peliy’ah are in bold text» — la tesis que el Apéndice viene a sostener y su convención tipográfica: el pasaje del *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah* como fuente primaria de Tzevi, con las adiciones propias en negrita.

«The verbatim correspondence between the two texts is obvious and very substantial insofar as most of the content is concerned. Nevertheless, there are some significant changes» — la medida que Idel da del cotejo: correspondencia literal obvia y muy sustancial en el contenido, con algunos cambios significativos.

«One of the most important differences between Ashkenazi’s version and that of the anonymous Byzantine kabbalist is the recurrence of the phrase Kokhav Sabbatai, five times in the latter versus two in the former» — la diferencia que Idel mide entre las dos versiones: la frase *Kokhav Sabbatai* aparece cinco veces en el cabalista bizantino anónimo y dos en Ashkenazi. El tramo cruza el cambio de plana.

«This repetition throws into relief the planet’s name much more than is the case in Joseph Ashkenazi’s original passage, and presumably contributed to the impression that the passage made on the young Sabbatai Tzevi» — el efecto que Idel le atribuye: la repetición releva el nombre del planeta mucho más que el original, lo que habría contribuido a la impresión sobre el joven Tzevi.

«It is hard to judge whether the added passage is copied from another source, or is an elaboration made by the anonymous kabbalist, but, on the basis of the examination of other instances in which the kabbalist copied from different sources, I am inclined to the former alternative» — y la abstención con que decide: cuesta juzgar si el pasaje añadido se copia de otra fuente o es elaboración del anónimo, y él se inclina por lo primero.

«Let me highlight the fact that an understanding of prophecy as a power added to persons who lack knowledge conflicts with the Maimonidean intellectualistic definition of prophecy, which, to a certain extent at least, affected some other discussions by Joseph Ashkenazi on this topic» — la tensión que Idel señala sin armonizar: entender la profecía como poder añadido a quienes carecen de conocimiento choca con la definición intelectualista maimonidea.

«Moreover, as we see in the last paragraph of the quotation, where the assumption is that by means of the commandments the Jews draw down the power of Binah upon themselves, Joseph Ashkenazi not only adopted an astrological view but also an astro-magical one» — lo que Idel adjudica a Ashkenazi por el último párrafo: no solo una visión astrológica sino también astro-mágica, con los mandamientos atrayendo el poder de Binah.

«Whether the power of Binah also means the power of Saturn is not clear. Either way, even drawing down the sefirotic power is, in my opinion, the result of adopting and adapting an astro-magical approach» — la abstención sobre ese punto y su conclusión: no queda claro si el poder de Binah es el de Saturno, pero atraer el poder sefirótico ya resulta de adoptar y adaptar un enfoque astro-mágico.

«As has been recognized by many scholars, although the anonymous author of Sefer ha-Peliy ’ah was a compiler on a very large scale, and in some ways a careless one, he was nevertheless intelligent. Eclecticism does not always signal a lack of originality» — el retrato que Idel hace del compilador: a gran escala y en parte descuidado, pero inteligente, y el eclecticismo no señala por fuerza falta de originalidad.

«passage in Sefer ha-Peliyah contributed two occurrences of this name, and one more reference to this planet is added within the text the author copied from R. Joseph in order to clarify the identity of the subject» — cómo se reparte esa diferencia: el pasaje insertado aporta dos apariciones del nombre y una referencia más se añade dentro del texto copiado de R. Joseph para aclarar de quién se habla. El tramo arranca tras el corte de segmento a media plana.

«In some cases, he added theosophical interpretations to texts he copied, which stem, for example, from non-Kabbalistic forms of discourse. In other cases, he appropriated Kabbalistic texts but added new eschatological computations,52 which means that he read the texts he copied carefully and adapted them to his purposes» — lo que Idel adjudica al compilador como trabajo propio: interpretaciones teosóficas añadidas a textos ajenos y cómputos escatológicos nuevos, señal de que leía con cuidado y adaptaba.

«passage by Joseph Ashkenazi. He not only edited the text he copied but also added two small passages and some additional words here and there (the original Hebrew is shown in bold above), and I translate one example below for the sake of a short analysis» — lo que Idel documenta del compilador: editó el texto copiado, añadió dos pasajes pequeños y palabras sueltas, marcados en negrita en el original hebreo. El tramo arranca en la plana 130.

«And it causes to ascend on high, and since the six extremities53 are Israel, that do not study of Torah, which is replete with wisdom, this is the reason why the star [planet] of Saturn, which is under [the name] ABG YTTz, that is connected to Bereshit,54 is appointed on Israel, and the star of Saturn repels the delights of the lower world, since they are vain, and it intends to know wisdom55 which is higher than it, and it is incumbent on Israel to do like him, but they do not do so, and this is the reason why the Binah is ascending on high, and the six extremities that are called Israel, will fall into evil which is Fear. Then woe to Israel that fell in the pit and they lose, since they preoccupied themselves with the delights of the world, and his body and soul are lost» — según Idel, así reza el pasaje E añadido en el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*: las seis extremidades son Israel, que no estudia la Torá llena de sabiduría, y por eso el planeta Sabbatai, bajo el nombre ABG YTTz ligado a *Bereshit*, queda designado sobre Israel; el planeta rechaza los deleites del mundo inferior por vanos y quiere conocer la sabiduría superior, e Israel debería imitarlo y no lo hace, de donde Binah asciende y las seis extremidades caen en el mal que es el Temor.

«This contemplative and strongly otherworldly approach is also to be found in another statement in paragraph C: ‘and since it56 contemplates the knowledge of the supernal entities, it will not feel the opprobrium and the contempt and the filth, in deeds and in speech» — el paralelo que Idel encuentra en el párrafo C: al contemplar el conocimiento de las entidades supernales no se sentirá el oprobio, el desprecio ni la inmundicia, en obra ni en palabra.

«Thus, the anonymous author of Sefer ha-Peliy ’ah throws into sharper relief a hint already found in Joseph Ashkenazi: that extreme mental concentration and contemplation are channelled towards the higher intellectual worlds, which is tantamount to a rejection of the corporeal world» — lo que el anónimo releva, según Idel: una insinuación ya presente en Ashkenazi, la concentración y contemplación extremas encauzadas a los mundos intelectuales superiores, equivalentes a rechazar lo corpóreo.

«The study of the Torah, replete as it is with wisdom, is seen therefore as an extreme contemplative activity, which dissociates the contemplator, here the sefirah of Binah and probably also Saturn, from immersion in lower, corporeal preoccupations» — y cómo queda el estudio de la Torá: actividad contemplativa extrema que disocia al contemplador —aquí Binah y probablemente Saturno— de lo corpóreo.

«As a sefirah, Binah occupies a liminal space between the two higher sefirot on the one hand, and the seven lower ones on the other, and the oscillation in its attachment is presented here either as leaning to a spiritual contemplation or, inversely, as immersion in corporeality» — el lugar liminal que Idel adjudica a Binah: entre las dos sefirot superiores y las siete inferiores, oscilando entre la contemplación espiritual y la inmersión en lo corpóreo.

«In fact, the transposition of mundane activities as symbols that refer to events within the sefirotic world is characteristic of Joseph Ashkenazi and David ben Yehudah he-Hasid, as seen above in chapter 2, and even more so of Sefer ha-Peliy ’ah» — el rasgo que Idel da por característico de Ashkenazi, de David ben Yehudah he-Hasid y más aún del *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*: transponer actividades mundanas como símbolos de sucesos del mundo sefirótico.

«Let me point out that the ascent of the Binah on high, and its negative repercussions caused by the negligence or the sins of the people of Israel» — el motivo que Idel remonta a la literatura rabínica y a la de los *Heikhalot*: el ascenso de Binah y sus repercusiones negativas por la negligencia o los pecados de Israel; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *is a theme current in rabbinic literature as well as in Heikhalot literature in the context of the retreat of the Shekhinah for similar reasons* en la 131.

«However, a similar view is found in Hermetic literature in the context of the retreat of the gods from Egypt.61 It is not clear what the precise sources that inspired the anonymous kabbalist are» — el paralelo hermético que añade, con su abstención: el retiro de los dioses de Egipto, sin que quede claro qué fuentes inspiraron al cabalista anónimo.

«However, it will be hard to read the added passage as dealing solely with an act of contemplation taking place only within the higher world without assuming at the same time that this is a paradigm for human behaviour, more precisely for the People of Israel» — la lectura que Idel defiende: el pasaje añadido no puede leerse solo como contemplación en el mundo superior sin suponerlo paradigma de conducta humana.

«Presiding over a lower entity means not only the subordination of the human to the astral and theosophical orders but, according to this kabbalist, also the imitation of the higher by the lower» — y qué implica presidir según ese cabalista: no solo subordinación de lo humano a los órdenes astral y teosófico, sino imitación de lo alto por lo bajo.

«Does this sharp emphasis in the book of Sefer ha-Peliy’ah on some form of extreme asceticism, which shuns corporeal delight in favour of a strong dedication to study and contemplation, antedate the extreme approach of Sabbatai Tzevi, who did not consummate his marriages because of his devotion and marriage to the Torah» — la pregunta que Idel plantea: si ese ascetismo extremo, que rehúye el deleite corpóreo por el estudio y la contemplación, antecede a la conducta de Tzevi, que no consumó sus matrimonios por su desposorio con la Torá.

«The ambiguous language, which allows for an understanding of human imitation of supernal behaviour, means that the behaviour of the supernal Sabbatai/Saturn that is appointed upon a person, presumably the Messiah, was most probably understood by Tzevi to constitute a paradigm whose details should be internalized by the human counterpart and implemented in his behaviour» — y la conclusión que saca, en grado de probabilidad: Tzevi habría entendido la conducta del Sabbatai supernal designado sobre una persona, presumiblemente el Mesías, como paradigma a internalizar y ejecutar.

«Let me summarize the possible implications of the correspondences between details found in our passage and Sabbatai Tzevi. The very ‘occurrence’ of his ‘proper’ name in a Kabbalistic visionary book believed to have been written in the second century of the common era, his predilection for staying in caves, his extreme devotion to the spiritual and, very significandy, his much-discussed melancholy, may reflect the impact of this passage on Tzevi’s messianism» — el inventario de correspondencias que Idel resume: la aparición de su nombre propio en un libro tenido por del siglo II, su gusto por permanecer en cuevas, su entrega a lo espiritual y su melancolía.

«Hence, not just one single passage, the one adduced above, may have been involved in triggering Tzevi’s messianic consciousness, but also Abraham Abulafia’s discussions of the topic of Saturn and messianism, which were copied quite faithfully in Sefer ha-Peliy ’ah as well» — y el reparto que propone: no un solo pasaje sino también las discusiones de Abulafia sobre Saturno y mesianismo, copiadas con fidelidad en el mismo libro.

«It seems that the anonymous Byzantine kabbalist had a particular interest in Saturn and can therefore be described as a Satumist whose impact on another, Sabbatai Tzevi, proved decisive» — el término con que Idel lo nombra: un *saturnista*, cabalista bizantino anónimo de interés particular por el planeta, cuyo efecto sobre otro Sabbatai resultó decisivo.

«It should be mentioned that the discussions on Saturn in the Zoharic texts adduced above were not known at that period in Byzantium despite the fact that some references to Tiqqunei Zohar were already to be found there in the fifteenth century» — la acotación geográfica que añade: las discusiones zoháricas sobre Saturno no se conocían entonces en Bizancio, aunque hubiera referencias al *Tiqqunei Zohar*.

«Here is not the place to offer a more detailed effort to discuss ^ this Sabbatai, who was acquainted with Sefer ha-Qanah, as he correctly refers to it in Sefer ha-Peliy ’ah, and I hope to elaborate on these tentative proposals» — la reserva con que lo acota: no es el lugar para discutir a ese Sabbatai, conocedor del *Sefer ha-Qanah*, y espera desarrollar sus propuestas tentativas en otro sitio. El troceo entrevera en esta plana una columna marginal de basura de escaneo, que aquí deja un circunflejo suelto dentro de la cita.

«Even if this is mere coincidence, the possible contribution of Pel his many glossae and the sources adduced there for a better understanding Si111111 of the genesis of the mysterious Sefer ha-Peliy’ah are worthwhile the rather tenuous effort of perusing the material found in those glossae» — y lo que declara útil aunque sea coincidencia: las glosas del manuscrito y sus fuentes para entender la génesis del misterioso *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*. Las secuencias *Pel* y *Si111111* dentro de la cita son la columna marginal de basura que el troceo entrevera en esta plana.

«To round this off, it is also worth addressing another Saturnian passage ion®( in Ashkenazi’s Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah which was not cited in Sefer hatentuiy Peliy’ah. Though it does not add too much new material to the longer passage, it again demonstrates the attempt to create lists that organize the tailed diverse material found in tradition and reality in a meaningful way» — el segundo pasaje saturnino de Ashkenazi que Idel añade, no citado en el *Peliy'ah*: no aporta mucho nuevo pero vuelve a mostrar el intento de listas que ordenan el material con sentido. Las secuencias *ion®(*, *tentuiy* y *tailed* dentro de la cita son la columna marginal de basura que el troceo entrevera; el título se lee *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*, partido por el guion de fin de renglón.

«As it is said'r> ‘and I am the last’ is hinting at the secret of Jubilees (the Binah)66 and this is why [it is written]67 ‘Thou shall count seven Sabbaths seven times’ and accordingly, the seventh is the holy of the days, like the day of Sabbath {Binah), and in the months - Nissan and Tishrei, and in the years - the Shemittah and the Yovelot,6H and in the thousands - [as it is written]69 ‘Six thousand years the world subsists and for one is devastated’ and there are [authorities who assert] ‘and for two [thousands] is devastated’. And in the firmaments - Aravot,70 and in the lands - the Land of Israel, and in the years of a human - the sixty years, behold there are six decades and a [nother] decade that is the seventh71 ‘which is holy to God’. And among the stars - Sabbatai {Binah), and the secret of the fifty days of [the counting of] ‘Omer, and fifty weeks of the year72 [namely in the dimension of time]. [In] the ten sefirot - Binah, the end of all, in all the Shemittot and Yovelim ... and the principle of all is that there,73 there is [both] ‘the beginning and the end’74 of all the beings and of all that was the innovated,75 from it they emerged and to it they will return» — según Idel, así reza ese segundo pasaje: *y yo soy el último* apunta al secreto de los Jubileos, que es Binah; de ahí la cuenta de siete sábados siete veces, y el séptimo santo entre los días, Nissan y Tishrei entre los meses, la *Shemittah* y los *Yovelot* entre los años, los seis mil años del mundo con uno o dos de devastación entre los milenios, *Aravot* entre los firmamentos, la Tierra de Israel entre las tierras, los sesenta años entre los de un hombre con la séptima década santa para Dios, Sabbatai entre las estrellas, los cincuenta días del *'Omer* y las cincuenta semanas del año, y Binah entre las diez sefirot, fin de todo en todos los *Shemittot* y *Yovelim*, porque ahí están el principio y el fin de cuanto existe: de ella salieron y a ella volverán.

«At this point I would like to speculate about the possibility of learning something about the identity of the anonymous kabbalist who wrote Sefer» — la conjetura que Idel declara especulación: aprender algo sobre la identidad del cabalista anónimo que escribió el *Sefer ha-Peliy'ah*; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana.

«If the repeated addition of the name ‘Sabbatai’ to the original passage by Joseph Ashkenazi reflects his own ^ proper name, which is (one should emphasize) by no means evident, we ^ may perhaps have a candidate: a Byzantine kabbalist active during the mid fifteenth century whose name was Sabbatai - a certain Sabbatai ben Potto» — y su candidato, con la reserva de que la premisa no es evidente: si la adición repetida del nombre Sabbatai reflejara el nombre propio del compilador, cabría pensar en Sabbatai ben Potto, cabalista bizantino de mediados del siglo XV. El troceo entrevera en esta plana una columna marginal de basura de escaneo, con circunflejos y una *M* sueltos dentro del tramo.

«This passage evinces the same strategy as in the first passage of Ashkenazi of organizing the two forms of order: the theosophical and the astral» — lo que Idel lee en ese segundo pasaje: la misma estrategia de organizar los dos órdenes, el teosófico y el astral.

«we have some additions to the longer text: the Land of Israel is added, and we have a parallel to ibn Ezra’s and Abulafia’s similar assertions» — las adiciones que señala respecto del texto largo: la Tierra de Israel, con paralelo en afirmaciones semejantes de ibn Ezra y de Abulafia. El tramo arranca en la plana 133.

«The addition of the word 'Binah', which appears beside the word in print, but actually above the term ‘Sabbatai’/ ‘Saturn' in manuscripts, constitutes a theosophical interpretation of a basically astrological text in a manner in which Joseph Ashkenazi interprets many other texts» — el gesto editorial que Idel documenta: la palabra *Binah*, al lado del término en el impreso y encima de *Sabbatai* en los manuscritos, es interpretación teosófica de un texto básicamente astrológico.

«The manner in which Binah is described as the beginning and the end of all shows that Saturn corresponds to it and is conceived of as an essential level in the divine world. Doubtless this is an example of the centrality occupied by Saturn in this Kabbalistic system» — y lo que muestra: Saturno corresponde a Binah y se concibe como nivel esencial del mundo divino, ejemplo de la centralidad del planeta en ese sistema.

«The parallels that were referred to above between the two texts and some details in Tzevi’s life79 seem to me too significant to be attributed to mere accident» — el juicio con que Idel cierra el Apéndice: los paralelos entre los dos textos y detalles de la vida de Tzevi le parecen demasiado significativos para achacarlos al azar.

«It is plausible that from his youth the seventeenth-century Messiah used the astro-kabbalistic descriptions as a blueprint for his behaviour, though his sources as to the attributes of Saturn were not limited to the texts in this Appendix» — y la formulación final, en grado de plausibilidad: desde su juventud el Mesías del siglo XVII habría usado las descripciones astro-cabalísticas como plano de su conducta, sin que sus fuentes se limitaran a estos textos.

«Selection, however, is not the most creative of the processes that organize knowledge.» — la última frase de las *Concluding Remarks*: la selección no es, para Idel, el más creativo de los procesos que organizan el saber.

«And Saturn is the first and last gate, and there everything will be united. MS. Vatican 194, fol. 67a» — el epígrafe con que el volumen se abre, atribuido por el libro a un manuscrito de la Vaticana, anuncia la lectura positiva de Saturno como puerta y punto de reunión que los capítulos desarrollan.

«E d i t o r i a l B o a r d M enachem Fisch Moshe Halbertal Donniel Hartman Moshe Idel Avi Sagi» — el consejo editorial de la serie, con Idel entre sus cinco miembros; la separación de letras es del OCR.

«Published by Continuum International Publishing Group The Tower Building, 11 York Road, London SE1 7NX 80 Maiden Lane, Suite 704, New York, NY 10038 www. con tinuumbooks. com All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. ©Moshe Idel, 2011 British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN: HB: 978-1-4411-2144-8 PB: 978-0-8264-4453-0 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress. Typeset by Free Range Book Design Production Printed and bound in Great Britain» — la página de derechos: pie editorial, reserva de derechos, año de copyright, los dos ISBN y la composición tipográfica. El troceo imprime *ISBN:* sin cifra en la línea y las da en las dos siguientes.

«From Saturn, Sabbath and Sorcery to the Jews 1 Introduction 1 On Abraham ibn Ezra’s Visions of Saturn 5 Two Thirteenth-Century Kabbalists: Abraham Abulafia and Joseph Ashkenazi on Saturn, Sorcery and Sabbath 12 Some Fourteenth-Century Texts 22 Some Fifteenth-Century Jewish Texts on Saturn 24 Saturn in the Sixteenth Century: Joseph ibn Tzayyah, Isaac Karo and Abraham Yagel 27 Jewish Resistance to and Critique of the Saturnization of Judaism 29 Some Possible Repercussions» — el índice desglosa el primer capítulo en ocho apartados, con los folios impresos intercalados por la maqueta a dos columnas que el troceo aplana en un solo renglón.

«From Saturn to Sabbatai Tzevi: A Planet that Became Messiah 47 Some Preliminary Reflections on Jewish Culture 47 Astrology, Messianism and Universalism 51 Saturn, Binah and Messiah 54 Sabbatai Tzevi and Saturn 64 Saturn, Forbidden Sexual Relations and Sabbateanism 69 More on Sabbateanism and Astrology 72 Nathan of Gaza and Moshe Hayyim Luzzatto on Saturn and Sabbatai Tzevi 76 Some Conclusions» — el desglose del segundo capítulo en el mismo índice, con el folio impreso tras cada epígrafe; el título de cubierta lleva comillas en torno a Messiah que el índice no imprime.

«AHDMLA BN HUCA JQR JSJT JWCI QS Archives d’histoire doctrinale et litteraire du Mayen Ages Bibliotheque nationale Hebreiv Union College Annual Jewish Quarterly Review Jerusalem Studies in Jewish Thought The Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes Qiryat Sefer» — la lista de abreviaturas del volumen, con las siglas en bloque y los títulos desarrollados en bloque aparte; el OCR rinde *Moyen* como *Mayen* y *Hebrew* como *Hebreiv*.

«In 1924, Felix Warburg, the Jewish German-American banker, and his wife, visited the Land of Israel and at the end of their visit, they donated a substantial sum of money. Their donation turned out to be a significant factor in the establishment of the Institute of Jewish Studies, and to a certain extent, an important step for the beginning of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem» — el prefacio abre con la donación de Felix Warburg y su esposa en 1924, que el volumen enlaza con la fundación del Institute of Jewish Studies y con el arranque de la Universidad Hebrea.

«As a doctoral student, I benefited greatly from these scholarships, particularly between 1972 and 1976. They gave me the free time to examine hundreds of Hebrew manuscripts in a variety of fields» — Idel declara en el prefacio de dónde salió el tiempo de archivo con que trabajó: las becas Warburg del Instituto entre 1972 y 1976.

«Many discussions with the late Professors Shlomo Pines, Chaim Wirszubski and Moshe Barasch of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, some discussions with Professor Daniel P. Walker in 1982 and 1983, and two written responses by the late Dame Frances A. Yates, some months before her death in 1981, to initial drafts of some of my articles about Jewish Kabbalah in the Italian Renaissance, were very encouraging» — los agradecimientos nombran uno por uno a los interlocutores del proyecto —Pines, Wirszubski, Barasch, D. P. Walker— y las dos respuestas escritas de Frances A. Yates pocos meses antes de su muerte en 1981.

«The sustained efforts of both Walker and Yates at the Warburg Institute, and of Eugenio Garin and Paola Zambelli in Italy, to re-evaluate the role of magic in the Renaissance were inspiring indeed» — el prefacio sitúa como estímulo el esfuerzo de Walker y Yates en el Warburg y el de Eugenio Garin y Paola Zambelli en Italia por revaluar el papel de la magia renacentista.

«The first chapter originates from a lecture delivered in 1998, at a conference organized by the Einstein Forum in Berlin, around the image of the Magician, and appeared in a German translation in the proceedings of the conference» — la procedencia declarada del primer capítulo: una conferencia de 1998 en el Einstein Forum de Berlín, en torno a la figura del Mago, publicada en alemán en las actas.

«Chapter 2 was written in the autumn of 1994, while I served as Stewart Professor at the Department of Religious Studies at Princeton University» — la del segundo capítulo: el otoño de 1994, durante su estancia como Stewart Professor en Princeton.

«The third chapter, ‘Concluding Remarks’ and the Appendix were written for this study» — el prefacio declara inéditos el tercer capítulo, las conclusiones y el Apéndice.

«In their present form there are substantial additions in terms of both the material and expanded perspectives to the original content of the two earlier essays. I have eliminated some overlap between them, corrected some errors and updated them, as well as elaborating on the earlier material» — la nota de edición: adiciones de material y de perspectiva, supresión de solapamientos y corrección de errores respecto de los dos ensayos previos.

«Since the first publication of the two chapters, there has been much headway in elucidating aspects of Jewish thought related to Saturn and messianism in the literature available, especially in the research of Dov Schwartz and Shlomo Sela into Abraham ibn Ezra and his commentators» — Idel consigna dónde ha avanzado la investigación desde la primera publicación de los dos ensayos, y nombra a Dov Schwartz y a Shlomo Sela sobre ibn Ezra y sus comentaristas.

«A broad description of the historical aspects of Sabbateanism and an incisive analysis of the conceptual and mystical underpinning of this movement, Scholem’s book is also the most important scholarly discussion of what he calls the ‘messianic idea’ in Judaism. It addresses in detail not only an important Messiah but also the history of messianism in Judaism - and sometimes also in Christianity - as well as the emergence of a popular messianic movement of huge dimensions» — lo que Idel dice contener ese libro: descripción histórica del sabbateanismo, análisis conceptual y místico, y la discusión erudita más importante de lo que Scholem llama la idea mesiánica.

«Scholem’s hypothesis concerning the emergence of Sabbateanism became one of the most well-known theses of modern Judaica scholarship» — Idel califica la hipótesis de Scholem sobre el origen del sabbateanismo como una de las tesis más conocidas de la erudición judaica moderna.

«Scholem’s assumption is that the diffusion of Kabbalistic messianism via the dissemination of Lurianism served as the indispensable background for the emergence of Sabbateanism as a messianic collective phenomenon» — el supuesto de Scholem según Idel: la difusión del mesianismo cabalístico por el lurianismo como fondo indispensable del sabbateanismo.

«Though affecting the lives, the beliefs and the thoughts of so many Jews, common folk as well as learned rabbis, who lived in different geographical and cultural centres, Lurianism was conceived of as a sufficient common denominator to create a more uniform cultural substratum to nourish Sabbatean messianism» — y qué papel le da esa explicación al lurianismo: denominador común bastante para un sustrato cultural más uniforme.

«As we shall see below, Alemanno was acquainted with many traditions related to Saturn, more than any other Jewish author writing previously» — una nota del prefacio que adelanta un juicio del cuerpo: Alemanno conocía más tradiciones sobre Saturno que cualquier autor judío anterior.

«‘Saturn, Schabbat, Zauberei und die Juden’, in A. Grafton and M. Idel (eds), DerMagus (Akademie Verlage, Berlin, 2001), pp. 209-49» — la nota que da la procedencia alemana del primer capítulo, en el volumen *Der Magus* que Idel coeditó con Anthony Grafton.

«I refer to this now, to show where you got your silly idea that our fathers kept the Sabbath in honor of Saturn. For as there is no connection with the worship of the Pagan deities Ceres and Bacchus in our observance of the sacrament of the bread and wine, which you approve so highly that you wish to resemble us in it, so there was no subjection to Saturn in the case of our fathers, who observed the rest of the Sabbath in a manner suitable to prophetic times» — según Idel, así sigue Agustín en otro pasaje del *Contra Faustum*: dice mostrar de dónde sale la idea necia de que los padres guardaran el sábado en honor de Saturno, y compara con la ausencia de culto a Ceres y Baco en el sacramento del pan y el vino.

«For the scholarly literature on the topic of Jews and Saturn in ancient times see the important collection of texts in Menahem Stern, Greek and Latin Authors on Jews and Judaism» — la nota que remite al corpus de Menahem Stern como colección importante de textos antiguos sobre judíos y Saturno.

«For the Rabbinic elements related to magic and astrology see Harari, Early Jewish Magic, pp. 263-5, 341-52. These sources show no connection between Jews and Saturn, as many sources deny that astral bodies preside over the nation of Israel. See also Kiener, ‘Astrology in Jewish Mysticism’» — el hallazgo negativo que Idel deja en nota: las fuentes rabínicas sobre magia y astrología que recoge Harari no muestran conexión entre judíos y Saturno, y muchas niegan que los astros presidan a Israel.

«Compare also interesting similarities found in Southern India, in the context of Sani, the Hindu counterpart of Saturn, as analysed in David M. Knipe, ‘Softening the Cruelty of God: Folklore, Ritual and the Planet Sani (Saturn) in Southern India’, in David Shulman (ed.), Syllabes of Sky: Studies in South Indian Civilization in Honor of Velchet'u Narayana Rao (Oxford University Press, Delhi, 1995), pp. 205-47. My thanks to David Shulman for drawing my attention to this study» — el paralelo extraeuropeo que una nota consigna y agradece a David Shulman: Sani, contraparte hindú de Saturno, en el folclore y el ritual del sur de la India.

«The existence of such voluminous literature demonstrates the paramount impact of ibn Ezra’s thought on late-thirteenth- and fourteenth-century Jews and thus of some of the material to be discussed below. To be sure, other Jewish thinkers mentioned Saturn before Abraham ibn Ezra, more eminently bar Hiyya» — lo que Idel deriva en nota del volumen de supercomentarios a ibn Ezra: el peso enorme de su pensamiento entre los judíos de los siglos XIII y XIV, con la salvedad de que otros, y sobre todo bar Hiyya, mencionaron a Saturno antes.

«See M. Idel, ‘Saturn and Sabbatai Tzevi: A New Approach to Sabbateanism’, in P. Schaefer and M. Cohen (eds), Toward the Millennium, Messianic» — la nota que da la procedencia del segundo capítulo, en el volumen *Toward the Millennium* de Schaefer y Cohen; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue con la versión hebrea traducida por Avriel Bar-Levav en la 136.

«It should be mentioned that though ibn Ezra’s name is mentioned casually in Klibansky, Panofsky and Saxl, Satume et la melancolie, the major passages from ibn Ezra have nevertheless been overlooked.» — la objeción que Idel deja en nota a la monografía de Klibansky, Panofsky y Saxl: el nombre de ibn Ezra aparece allí de paso y sus pasajes mayores quedaron fuera; el troceo rinde *Saturne* como *Satume*.

«who enumerated the Jewish sources that precede ibn Ezra in their description of the negative nature of Saturn.» — la nota remite a Ginsburg, *Sod ha-Shabbat*, por haber enumerado las fuentes judías anteriores a ibn Ezra que ya describían la naturaleza negativa de Saturno.

«I shall use this term in order to distinguish it from magic and even more from natural magic because of the negative overtones of the term kishshuf» — la decisión de vocabulario que Idel declara en nota: traduce *keshafim* por *sorcery* para separarlo de *magic* y más aún de *natural magic*, por los sobretonos negativos de *kishshuf*; el troceo corta ahí con una barra invertida.

«In Sefer ha-Te‘amim, p. 62: da ‘at ha-sodot, namely ‘the knowledge of the secrets’, as in the text found in the context of Saturn adduced above.» — la variante que Idel consigna: donde un texto dice *gillui ha-sod*, el *Sefer ha-Teamim* trae *daat ha-sodot*, el conocimiento de los secretos, en el mismo contexto saturnino.

«Da‘at ha-kishshuf. The English translation is not so precise: ‘skill of magic’.» — otra enmienda de traducción en nota: para *daat ha-kishshuf* Idel llama poco precisa la versión inglesa *skill of magic*.

«This expression, which draws upon a biblical expression related to a specific form of arrangement, has been used in a variety of contexts in order to point to supernal types of order, first the astral and later on the theosophical, like the title of the famous theosophical book, the anonymous SeferMaarekhet ha-’Elohutwritten early in fourteenth-century Catalunia.» — la nota sobre *ha-maarakhah ha-elyonah*: la expresión bíblica de un orden dispuesto sirvió para señalar órdenes supernales, primero el astral y luego el teosófico, como en el título del anónimo *Sefer Maarekhet ha-Elohut*; el troceo pega *SeferMaarekhet* y *Elohutwritten*.

«Thus, we have a combination of the astrological, magical and philosophical types of speculation, all of them now applied to another important Jewish value, Moses.» — lo que Idel lee en el comentario de ibn Ezra editado por Weiser: los tres tipos de especulación —astrológico, mágico y filosófico— aplicados a la vez a Moisés.

«Therefore, already in rabbinic sources, and under their influence in some medieval halakhic discussions, all enumerated by Ginzberg, the astrological view of the negative impact of Saturn on Wednesday night, and of Mars on Friday night, is discernible.» — la nota que rastrea el dato hasta el Talmud: ya en fuentes rabínicas, y tras ellas en discusiones halájicas medievales, se distingue el impacto negativo de Saturno la noche del miércoles y el de Marte la del viernes.

«This is the opinion of several ancient authors; see Klibansky, Panofsky and Saxl, Saturne et la melancolie, p. 218, and Ptolemy in Tetrabiblos, I: 5.» — la nota que atribuye la opinión a varios autores antiguos y remite al Tetrabiblos de Ptolomeo I:5 y a Klibansky, Panofsky y Saxl.

«Interestingly enough, this passage does not occur in the description of the attributes of moon in Sefer ha-Te‘amim,» — el cotejo que Idel deja en nota: el pasaje del *Reshit Hokhmah* no reaparece en la descripción de los atributos de la luna del *Sefer ha-Teamim*.

«The vision of the commandments related to Sabbath as counteracting the impact of Saturn constitutes an approach that is reminiscent of the ritualistic behaviour of Marsilio Ficino, who attempted to escape the pernicious influence of Saturn through a certain way of life.» — el paralelo que Idel señala en nota: ver los mandamientos del sábado como contrapeso del influjo de Saturno recuerda la conducta ritual de Marsilio Ficino, que buscaba escapar del planeta por cierto modo de vida.

«The mention of the sarhamishim - reminiscent of the Rabbinic concept of the fifty gates of Binah - and of navon may reflect a nexus between Saturn and Binah that will later become explicit in some Kabbalistic texts, as we shall see below.» — la conjetura que Idel formula en nota sobre ibn Ezra: la mención de los *sar hamishim* —que evoca los cincuenta portales de Biná de la literatura rabínica— y la de *navon* podrían acusar un nexo entre Saturno y Biná que después se hará explícito en textos cabalísticos.

«The book extant in two major versions, the longer, quoted above, and a shorter one, where the day upon which Saturn presides is Sunday.» — la nota que consigna las dos versiones del *Sefer Yetzirah*: la larga, que el cuerpo cita, y una breve donde el día sobre el que Saturno preside es el domingo.

«On the writing of the name of seventy-two letters on deer parchment, this can already be seen in a recipe found in a magical text stemming from Ashkenazi Hasidic circles,» — la nota que rastrea la receta: escribir el nombre de setenta y dos letras en pergamino de ciervo ya está en un texto mágico de los círculos hasídicos asquenazíes.

«On the view that each of the planets has an angel which is appointed on it, and the planet serves as its temple and talisman, see the twelfth-century Muslim mystic Shihaboddin Yahya Sohrawardi;» — la nota que abre el paralelo islámico: cada planeta tiene un ángel puesto sobre él y el planeta le sirve de templo y de talismán, doctrina que Idel remite al místico musulmán del siglo XII Shihaboddin Yahya Sohrawardi.

«However, in the French original only the issue of the tombs occurs, without any other of the attributes mentioned in the English translation.» — el cotejo de ediciones que Idel hace en nota sobre *The Key of the Mysteries* de Eliphas Levi: el original francés solo trae las tumbas, sin los demás atributos que añade la traducción inglesa de Crowley.

«The affinity between tombs and Saturn appears, for example, in Joseph Ashkenazi’s passage, printed in the Appendix.» — y adónde remite esa afinidad entre las tumbas y Saturno: al pasaje de Joseph Ashkenazi que el propio volumen imprime en el Apéndice.

«This is quite an uncommon vision of Saturn as if it is an angel appointed upon a day rather than a planet.» — lo que Idel llama poco común en una nota sobre el término *saro*: ver a Saturno como ángel puesto sobre un día y no como planeta.

«Though deeply influenced by Sefer Yetzirah, whose author relates Sabbatai to Sunday, the anonymous kabbalist nevertheless accepts the view of the astrologers.» — lo que Idel observa del cabalista anónimo del *Commentary on Prayers*: pese a su deuda con el *Sefer Yetzirah*, que ata Sabbatai al domingo, se queda con la cuenta de los astrólogos.

«Elsewhere, fol. 5a, the angel related to Saturn is Michael, considered in many sources to be the angel governing the Nation of Israel.» — lo que Idel encuentra en el *Sefer Raziel ha-Malakh* de Ámsterdam: en un folio el ángel de Saturno es Michael, tenido en muchas fuentes por ángel que gobierna a la nación de Israel.

«Once again ibid., fol. 41b, Saturn is related to the Sabbath and to an angel who, according to one variant, is called Israel!» — y en otro folio del mismo libro, con el signo de admiración de Idel: Saturno queda atado al sábado y a un ángel que una variante llama Israel.

«The nexus Qaftziel, sometimes Qatzfiel, and Saturn became standard and returned in several later sources.» — lo que Idel dice del nexo entre Qaftziel —a veces Qatzfiel— y Saturno: se volvió estándar y regresa en varias fuentes posteriores.

«Abulafia’s text is not so clear, but it seems to me that Weinstock’s suggestion to read Neshamah Yeterah here is plausible.» — la abstención con que Idel cierra una nota sobre Abulafia: el texto no es claro y la conjetura de Weinstock de leer ahí *Neshamah Yeterah* le parece plausible.

«In the Bible, these two terms stand for the cessation of agriculture respectively during the seventh and forty-ninth years.» — la nota sobre *shemitá* y *yovel*: en la Biblia nombran el cese de la agricultura en el séptimo año y en el cuadragésimo noveno.

«Though Abulafia does not explicate his use of the two terms, I assume from the» — la salvedad que Idel pone a esa lectura: Abulafia no explica cómo usa *shemitá* y *yovel*, y el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *context that he is referring to cosmic cycles, of seven thousand and forty-nine thousand years, rather than to the biblical sense of these terms* en la plana 144.

«As we shall see immediately below, this claim of an affinity between Saturn and Shemittah can also be found in Joseph Ashkenazi’s Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah.» — lo que Idel anuncia en nota: la afinidad entre Saturno y la *shemitá* que atribuye a Abulafia reaparece en el *Comentario al Sefer Yetzirah* de Joseph Ashkenazi.

«An issue that deserves a separate analysis is the possible affinity between the combination of astrological speculations with linguistic ones, including the art of combinations, in Raimond Lull and Abulafia.» — la tarea que Idel declara pendiente en nota: la posible afinidad entre la combinación de especulaciones astrológicas y lingüísticas —el arte de las combinaciones incluido— en Ramon Llull y en Abulafia.

«who attempted to show that Togarmi’s Commentary was in fact composed by Abulafia himself, a theory that I find quite implausible.» — el desacuerdo que Idel firma en nota: Weinstock quiso hacer de Abulafia el autor del *Comentario* de Togarmi y la tesis le parece bastante inverosímil.

«in which it is established in a definitive manner that he is the author of the Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah otherwise attributed to an earlier kabbalist R. Abraham ben David (Rabad).» — la atribución que Idel da por resuelta en nota apoyándose en Scholem: el *Comentario al Sefer Yetzirah* que corría a nombre del cabalista anterior Abraham ben David, el Rabad, es de Joseph ben Shalom Ashkenazi.

«This is the first unit of letters that constitute the name of forty-two letters, each of the six letters corresponding, according to Joseph Ashkenazi’s Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah, to each of the seven planets.» — la nota que explica el nombre de cuarenta y dos letras: su primera unidad tiene seis letras y, según el *Comentario al Sefer Yetzirah* de Joseph Ashkenazi, cada una corresponde a uno de los siete planetas.

«The affinity between the seven planets and the name of forty-two letters is evident in Abulafia’s Gan Xa ‘ul, p. 38, in a passage that has also been copied in Sefer ha-Peliy’ah I, fol. 76c.» — dónde ve Idel esa afinidad entre los siete planetas y el nombre de cuarenta y dos letras: en el *Gan Naul* de Abulafia —que el troceo rinde *Gan Xa ul*— y en un pasaje copiado en el *Sefer ha-Peliyah*.

«In Sefer ha-Peliy’ah the version is ‘Etzah Raah, ‘bad counsel’. On the affinity between Saturn and counsel» — la variante textual que Idel consigna para *shemuot raot*: el *Sefer ha-Peliyah* trae *Etzah Raah*, mal consejo, y remite a Edgar Wind por la afinidad entre Saturno y el consejo.

«The Hebrew phrase is Marah Shehorah, namely ‘black humour’ or melancholy.» — la nota que traduce el término: la frase hebrea *Marah Shehorah* dice humor negro, es decir melancolía.

«The nexus between Saturn and melancholy is conspicuous in many ancient, medieval and Renaissance texts, as the numerous texts found in the monograph by Klibansky, Panofsky and Saxl, Saturn et la Melancolie, amply demonstrate.» — lo que Idel concede a la monografía de Klibansky, Panofsky y Saxl: sus textos muestran de sobra que el nexo entre Saturno y la melancolía salta a la vista en fuentes antiguas, medievales y renacentistas.

«In the many Hebrew sources, which unfortunately escaped the attention of those authors, this nexus is also evident in several instances.» — y la falta que les imputa acto seguido: las muchas fuentes hebreas donde ese mismo nexo es igual de evidente escaparon por desgracia a la atención de aquellos autores.

«This quotation reverberates in the work of manyjewish authors.» — lo que Idel dice del pasaje de Ashkenazi que el cuerpo cita: resuena en la obra de muchos autores judíos; el troceo pega *manyjewish*.

«On the identification between Saturn and the third sefirah, without messianic implications however, see another book by the same R. Joseph, Kabbalistic Commentary on Genesis Rabbah, p. 236.» — el caso que Idel aparta en nota: en otro libro del mismo Joseph Ashkenazi, el *Comentario cabalístico a Génesis Rabbah*, Saturno se identifica con la tercera sefirá sin implicaciones mesiánicas.

«It should be pointed out that in the later passage, the anonymous kabbalist mentions the name Sabbatai several times, more than in the original version in Joseph Ashkenazi’s Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah.» — el recuento que Idel deja en nota y que el Apéndice desarrolla: el cabalista anónimo nombra a Sabbatai más veces que la versión original del *Comentario al Sefer Yetzirah* de Joseph Ashkenazi.

«However, it should be pointed out that syntheses between theosophy and astrology are to be found before ibn Waqar in Joseph Ashkenazi and Yehudah ben Nissim ibn Malka.» — la precedencia que Idel reclama en nota contra quienes hacen de ibn Waqar el primero: las síntesis entre teosofía y astrología ya están en Joseph Ashkenazi y en Yehudah ben Nissim ibn Malka.

«See also the claim of Shem Tov ibn Shaprut, who argues that prayer and the worship of God strengthen the influx of Saturn, so that it emanates power and intellect.» — la tesis que Idel atribuye en nota a Shem Tov ibn Shaprut: la plegaria y el culto de Dios refuerzan el influjo de Saturno, de modo que el planeta emana poder e intelecto.

«See especially ibn Zarza’s view that when someone would desire secrets to be revealed to him when he wishes or take revenge on his enemies, he should direct his prayer to Saturn.» — y la de Samuel ibn Zarza, que Idel resume en la misma nota: quien quiera que se le revelen secretos a voluntad o vengarse de sus enemigos debe dirigir su plegaria a Saturno.

«On the danger of goats, plausibly pointing to demonic powers, when encountered on a Friday evening, see previously in the Talmudic discussions and Mahzor Vitry, by R. Simhah, a student of Rashi,» — la nota que rastrea el peligro de los cabritos —que Idel da por señal plausible de potencias demoníacas— cuando se topan un viernes por la tarde: ya en las discusiones talmúdicas y en el *Mahzor Vitry* de R. Simhah, discípulo de Rashi.

«These sources discuss the term sakkanat seyirim, apparently following a biblical theme.» — el término que Idel pone a ese peligro: *sakkanat seyirim*, que dice venir en apariencia de un tema bíblico.

«For the view that the Jews worshipped Saturn, see previously in ancient texts, analysed in the bibliography referred to above, n. 1, and in ibn Ezra and David Qimhi on Amos 5.26, as well as the material collected by Ginzberg, Legends of the Jews, vol. V, p. 135, n. 6, and Sela, ‘The Appropriation of Saturn’, pp. 35-6.» — la nota que junta la bibliografía sobre el culto judío a Saturno: los textos antiguos, ibn Ezra y David Qimhi sobre Amós 5.26, Ginzberg y el artículo de Sela sobre la apropiación de Saturno.

«This angel was conceived of as presiding over the people of Israel. On the nexus between this angel and Saturn see Trachtenberg,» — lo que la nota dice del ángel Michael: se lo tenía por presidente del pueblo de Israel, y por su nexo con Saturno remite a Trachtenberg.

«Here the term datot, religions, parallels the dinim. In this context, the mention of the Torah later in this passage is quite relevant. According to such a reading, the Torah is one of those dinim he mentions.» — lo que Idel deriva de ese pasaje: *datot*, religiones, hace paralelo a *dinim*, y por esa lectura la Torá queda como uno de los *dinim* que Alemanno nombra.

«It should be mentioned that at the end of the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries, there were some definitions of Kabbalah which integrated the views of astro-magic, and conceived of it as creating a connection between the supernal and lower realms.» — la nota que sitúa un giro en la definición misma de cábala: a fines del siglo XV y comienzos del XVI hubo definiciones que integraban la astromagia y la concebían como enlace entre lo supernal y lo inferior.

«For a late Christian understanding of Kabbalah as a pact with the devil, see Trachtenberg, The Devil and the Jews,» — y la nota que remite a Trachtenberg por la comprensión cristiana tardía de la cábala como pacto con el diablo.

«Indeed in another important statement on Saturn found in Alemanno’s other book Sefer Hei ‘Olamim, MS. Mantua, Jewish Community 21, fol. 116a, we read: the sphere of Saturn and its motions and the depth of its thoughts, and the destruction and dreariness of the land that is under it, and the sorcery and the demons and the religions» — el pasaje que Idel traduce en nota del *Sefer Hei Olamim* de Alemanno: la esfera de Saturno, sus movimientos, la hondura de sus pensamientos, la destrucción y el yermo de la tierra que tiene debajo, y la hechicería, los demonios y las religiones; el impreso sigue *[ha-datot], which are under its spirituality [ruhaniyyuto]*, y se corta aquí porque el troceo parte *ha-datot* en el guion de fin de renglón.

«The nexus between these two practices and Saturn is already manifest in the passage of Abraham Abulafia and even more in Joseph ben Shalom Ashkenazi’s influential Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah. See chapter 2 below.» — dónde ve Idel ya manifiesto el nexo entre esas dos prácticas y Saturno: en el pasaje de Abraham Abulafia y más aún en el influyente *Comentario al Sefer Yetzirah* de Joseph ben Shalom Ashkenazi.

«In addition, the prophecy that is accorded to fools is found in the same passage by Ashkenazi, to be discussed below in the Appendix.» — y el detalle que remite al Apéndice: la profecía concedida a los necios está en ese mismo pasaje de Ashkenazi.

«The analogy of Binah to the planet Saturn appears in Joseph ibn Waqar and, following him, in Moses Narboni and ibn Motot.» — la cadena que Idel traza en nota para la analogía entre Biná y el planeta Saturno: Joseph ibn Waqar y, tras él, Moses Narboni e ibn Motot.

«presence may account for the parallel between Binah and Saturn found in Alemanno’s student, Giovanni Pico della Mirandola, according to Yates,» — la conjetura que Idel deja en nota sobre la presencia de Alemanno en Florencia: explicaría el paralelo entre Biná y Saturno que Yates halla en su discípulo Giovanni Pico della Mirandola; el tramo empieza cortado porque el troceo intercala basura de OCR del margen tras el *This*.

«The Hebrew phrase translated as ‘among the places’ is min ha-beqa‘ot.» — la glosa léxica que la nota da del libro de magia atribuido en falso a ibn Ezra: la frase hebrea vertida como *among the places* es *min ha-beqaot*.

«On Saturn and the two zodiacal signs see die paintings adduced in Klibansky, Panofsky and Saxl, Suturne et la melancolie, pp. 304-6, 312-13.» — la nota que remite a las pinturas reproducidas por Klibansky, Panofsky y Saxl por Saturno y sus dos signos zodiacales; el troceo rinde *the* como *die* y *Saturne* como *Suturne*.

«The assumption that the Jews are predisposed to destruction is an example of the process of assimilation, to be dealt with in para. 8.» — lo que Idel apunta en nota sobre el supuesto de que los judíos estén predispuestos a la destrucción: lo llama ejemplo del proceso de asimilación que trata el apartado 8.

«Slaves, graves and prisons occur in Ashkenazi’s Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah.» — el cotejo que la nota hace de la lista de Yagel: esclavos, tumbas y prisiones ya están en el *Comentario al Sefer Yetzirah* de Ashkenazi.

«Also very important is the discussion, ibid., pp. 303-4, where an implicit relation was established between Saturn and the Hebrew language.» — y lo que Idel destaca de otro lugar del *Valley of Vision*: ahí queda dicha de manera implícita una relación entre Saturno y la lengua hebrea.

«Let me note that the association of Kabbalah with assinity, so characteristic of Bruno’s thought, including the passage translated in this reference, may be related to the connection between an ass and Saturn, found in the later layer of the Zohar, Ra‘aya’Meheimna’, Zohar, III, fol. 282a, and in Henri Cornelius Agrippa of Netesheim, De Occulta Philosophia, I, ch.» — la conjetura que Idel firma en nota: la asociación de la cábala con lo asnal, tan propia de Giordano Bruno, podría venir del vínculo entre el asno y Saturno que trae la capa tardía del Zóhar, el *Raaya Meheimna*, y la *De occulta philosophia* de Agripa.

«For the ancient accusation that Jews worship an ass, see John G. Gager, The Origins of Antisemitism» — y adónde remite por la acusación antigua de que los judíos adoran a un asno: a *The Origins of Antisemitism* de John G. Gager.

«Cf. Genesis 49:17, where this serpentine is a parallel to Nahash, a serpent.» — la nota que identifica el *shefifon alei orah*: Génesis 49.17, donde esa serpiente hace paralelo a *nahash*.

«The connection between the tenth of the greatest conjunctions and pestilence can already be found in Abu Ma'shar.» — de dónde viene la conexión entre la décima de las grandes conjunciones y la pestilencia, según la nota: ya está en Abu Mashar.

«For more on Jewish views on the Greatest Conjunction and plague in a passage written» — adónde manda Idel por las opiniones judías sobre la Gran Conjunción y la peste escritas por un testigo de la peste; el tramo se corta en el cambio de plana y sigue *by a witness to the plague, see the important passage by Moshe Narboni printed in Gerit Bos* en la 152.

«It should be emphasized that Yagel’s interest in plague has much to do with what happened in Italy in his lifetime.» — la razón local que Idel da en nota al interés de Abraham Yagel por la peste: lo que pasaba en la Italia de su tiempo.

«None of the authors cited here reflect a positive attitude towards Saturn and its role as the overlord of Jews, and more belonged, in their lifetimes, to the Jewish Rabbinic elite, where the attitude towards astrology was slightly more circumspect.» — el balance que Idel hace en nota de los autores del primer capítulo: ninguno tiene actitud positiva hacia Saturno como señor de los judíos, y casi todos pertenecían a la élite rabínica, donde la astrología se miraba con algo más de cautela.

«It should be mentioned that some form of rejection of astro-magic may be discerned in Jewish esoteric literature in late antiquity.» — la salvedad que sigue: algún rechazo de la astromagia se distingue ya en la literatura esotérica judía de la Antigüedad tardía.

«Perhaps this is a corrupted form for Balinus, the Arabic form of the name of Apollonius, to whom some magical words, also dealing with astro-magic, have been attributed.» — la conjetura de lectura que Idel deja en nota sobre un nombre corrompido: sería *Balinus*, forma árabe de Apolonio, a quien se atribuyen obras mágicas de astromagia.

«Indeed the two books surfaced in Castile in the fourteenth century.» — y la datación que da a los dos libros que esas citas recuerdan, el *Picatrix* y el espurio *Sefer ha-Atzamim* atribuido a ibn Ezra: afloran en Castilla en el siglo XIV.

«The Pseudo-Galen passage has been copied by R. Elijah of Smyrna in his Midrash Talpiyyot» — la transmisión que Idel señala en nota: el pasaje pseudogalénico lo copió R. Elijah de Esmirna en su *Midrash Talpiyyot*.

«The negative aspects of Saturn were duly put in relief in the same commentary on Genesis 29.32,» — dónde ve Idel puestos de relieve los aspectos negativos de Saturno en el comentario de R. Bahya ben Asher: en el mismo comentario sobre Génesis 29.32.

«There can be no doubt that astro-magic was well-known in Bahya’s entourage, especially in the context of astral medicine.» — lo que Idel da por indudable en nota: la astromagia era bien conocida en el entorno de R. Bahya, sobre todo en el contexto de la medicina astral.

«Interesting discussions on Saturn are also spread in the various sermons of R. Jacob of Sicily, Torat ha-Minhah, who was another student of Shlomo ben Abraham ibn Adret - known as the Rashba’ - also the main master of our R. Bahya, and those discussions deserve separate analyses.» — otra tarea que Idel declara pendiente: las discusiones sobre Saturno repartidas por los sermones de R. Jacob de Sicilia, *Torat ha-Minhah*, otro discípulo del Rashbá y maestro principal de R. Bahya.

«It should be mentioned that in Gershom Scholem’s private copy of the Zohar, printed as Sefer ha-Zohar shel Gershom Scholem, ed. Josefof, 1873 (The Magnes Press, Jerusalem, 1992), vol. IV, fol. 274b, he noted in handwriting the affinity between the two passages, and writes that this is a reaction to Picatrix and related to R. Bahya’s passage quoted above.» — el hallazgo de archivo que Idel consigna en nota: en su ejemplar privado del Zóhar, Scholem anotó a mano la afinidad entre los dos pasajes y escribió que se trata de una reacción al *Picatrix* ligada al pasaje de R. Bahya.

«He also refers to Zohar III, fol. 272b, which indeed has a parallel with the sorrow of some people during Sabbath and the difference from the Jewish ritual, without, however, mentioning Saturn.» — el hallazgo negativo que Idel añade sobre otra remisión de Scholem: el paralelo con la tristeza de ciertas gentes durante el sábado existe, pero sin mencionar a Saturno.

«The Book of Solomon is an imagined book, like other ancient ones, which is found in Zoharic literature.» — lo que Idel dice del *Libro de Salomón* que el Zóhar cita: es un libro imaginado, como otros antiguos de la literatura zohárica.

«The composition that is quoted here differs substantially from the style of the conceptual framework of the first layers of the Zohar, and is closer to the later layers of Zoharic literature, Tiqqunei Zohar and Ra‘aya’ Meheimna’, like the former passage that was added to Zohar II, and translated above, though I am not sure that it necessarily belongs to it.» — la datación que Idel propone con reserva para el pasaje del *Zohar Hadash*: se aparta del marco conceptual de las primeras capas del Zóhar y se acerca a las tardías —*Tiqqunei Zohar* y *Raaya Meheimna*—, aunque dice no estar seguro de que pertenezca a ellas.

«This layer should be dated to the very end of the thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries in Spain.» — la datación que Idel fija para esa capa zohárica: finales del siglo XIII y comienzos del XIV, en España.

«See also the presence of detailed discussions on Saturn in ibn Wah shiyyah’s important book on magic, the famous Nabbatean Agriculture, which might have had an impact on the original Arabic of Picatrix,» — la genealogía árabe que la nota traza: las discusiones detalladas sobre Saturno de la *Agricultura nabatea* de ibn Wahshiyyah, que pudieron pesar en el original árabe del *Picatrix*; el troceo parte *Wahshiyyah* y *Ghayat al-Hakim* a media palabra.

«Some fragments from the book of Nabbatean Agriculture were known towards the end of the thirteenth century in Spain,» — cuándo llegan esos fragmentos, según Idel: hacia el final del siglo XIII ya se conocían en España algunos de la *Agricultura nabatea*, por las citas de un libro perdido de Shem Tov Falaqera.

«not transmit energy but ‘imprint it on them ... their similitudes which are the influences which they transmit to their inferiors’, cf. Yates, Lull» — la doctrina coetánea que Idel trae a nota de la mano de Yates: para Llull los cuerpos astrales no transmiten energía, sino que imprimen en sus inferiores las semejanzas que sí transmiten; la frase empieza en la plana 153 con *On the contemporary view of Lull that the astral bodies do*.