Another favorite class of ethical books consisted of compilations made
direct from the Talmud and the Midrash. The oldest and most prized of
these was Isaac Aboab's "Lamp of Light" (_Menorath ha-Maor_). It was an
admirably written book, clearly arranged, and full to the brim of
ethical gems. Aboab's work was written between 1310 and 1320. It is
arranged according to subjects, differing in this respect from another
very popular compilation, Jacob Ibn Chabib's "Eye of Jacob" (_En
Yaakob_), which was completed in the sixteenth century. In this, the
Hagadic passages of the Talmud are extracted without arrangement, the
order of the Talmud itself being retained. The "Eye of Jacob" was an
extremely popular work.
Of the purely devotional literature of Judaism, it is impossible to
speak here. One other ethical book must be here noticed, for it has
attained wide and deserved popularity. This is the "Path of the Upright"
(_Messilath Yesharim_) by Moses Chayim Luzzatto, of whom more will be
said in a later chapter. But a little more space must be here devoted to
a species of ethical tract which was peculiar to Jewish moralists. These
tracts were what are known as Ethical Wills.
These Ethical Wills (_Zevaoth_) contained the express directions of
fathers to their children or of aged teachers to their disciples. They
were for the most part written calmly in old age, but not immediately
before the writers' death. Some of them were very carefully composed,
and amount to formal ethical treatises. But in the main they are
charmingly natural and unaffected. They were intended for the absolutely
private use of children and relatives, or of some beloved pupil who
held the dearest place in his master's regard. They were not designed
for publication, and thus, as the writer had no reason to expect that
his words would pass beyond a limited circle, the Ethical Will is a
clear revelation of his innermost feelings and ideals. Intellectually
some of these Ethical Wills are poor; morally, however, the general
level is very high.
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