Path of Life Rabbi Judah Loew ben Bezalel (1525-1609)

This prestigious publication has been published by the Jewish Museum in Prague and Academia Publishing House for the exhibition Path of Life. It is not just an exhibition catalogue, however, although it features a substantial selection of the items on view at the exhibition.

For it also is a work that provides insights into the authentic legacy of Rabbi Loew (the Maharal), which so far has remained concealed from the Jewish and non-Jewish public. In his introductory reflections, the Chief Rabbi of Prague and the Czech Republic Efraim Karol Sidon shows how powerfulan impulse the Maharal’s ideas are for contemporary Jewish exegesis. An entire section of the book, comprising eight essays by prominent Czech and foreign Judaists, historians and art historians, provides basic information on the Maharal on the basis of the latest research and of previously unpublished details. After the introductory study which charts the Maharal’s genealogy and biography, there is an exploration of this scholar’s way of thinking, followed by a look at his legacy as recorded in manuscripts and in printed editions. The next study places the Maharal’s legacy in the broader context of Jewish Prague in the period of Emperor Rudolf II. Other Jewish scholars also became famous here during this time, esotericism and mysticism thrived as a result of the emperor’s interest, and the Prague Jewish Town also transformed. Little is known not only of the Maharal’s life and work, but also of the circumstances surrounding the emergence of the golem legend, which pushed the Maharal’s personality into the background. This is why the legend is the focus of the second part of the publication. In five various studies by local and foreign experts, one can find out how the golem came to be historically connected with this acclaimed scholar and learn about the golem’s place in German and Czech literature and, finally, about the legacy of the golem and the Maharal in art. In Czech and English. 520 pp, 402 colour illustrations. Exhibition concept and catalogue editor: Alexandr Putík Specialist editors: Olga Sixtová, Alexandr Putík Authors of the essays: Peter Demetz, Ivan Klimeš, Arno Pařík, Daniel Polakovič, Ivo Purš, Alexandr Putík, Benjamin Richler, Byron L. Sherwin, Efraim Karol Sidon, Pavel Sládek, Jindřich Toman, Vít Vlnas, Petr Wittlich, Isaac Yudlov Preface: Leo Pavlát Translations: Robin Cassling, Barbara Day, Adrian Dean, Kathleen Hayes, Sean Mark Miller, Kateřina Millerová, Howard Sidenberg, Olga Sixtová, Jeffrey Young