Ramchal's Zohar: The Zohar That Is Not the Zohar

When the poet and Kabbalist composed a continuation of the Zohar

ספריית הקבלה

The Zohar is considered one of the most complex works, and among the most difficult to decipher, ever produced by Jewish culture. Written in an artificial dialect of Aramaic — a dialect created exclusively for it — this work inspired Jewish writers not only to interpret the Zohar, but also to compose Zoharic discourses of their own.

The Ramchal and 'Zohar Tinyana'

One of the most important post-Zoharic works was 'discovered' (and in fact composed) by none other than the poet and Kabbalist Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto, known as Ramchal. The work, called 'Zohar Tinyana' (Second Zohar), was written in the Zohar's distinctive language.

הקב"ה חפץ בך – הרמח"ל – להאיר אליך אור עליון... אמנם כמה חשוכים עיני כמה חכמים שאינם רואים. אבל למעלה הקב"ה מסדר הדברים בפנים עד שיגיע הזמן שיתגלו דבריך בעולם

In other words, Ramchal wrote his book as a result of the prophetic revelations he received when he was only 22 years old. Ramchal's manuscript was discovered in the Schocken Library in Jerusalem by Rabbi Yosef Avivi, who published it in print in 1997.

The Fate of the Work

Most of the work has been lost, with only a few sections and quotations cited in 'Iggerot Ramchal' surviving. This adds to the mystery surrounding Ramchal and the controversy his mystical writings stirred among the rabbis of Italy.