Maarechet HaElohut with the Minchat Yehuda Commentary – Ferrara, 1557 – First Edition – Glosses

Maarechet HaElohut with the Minchat Yehuda Commentary – Ferrara, 1557 – First Edition – Glosses
Maarechet HaElohut, kabbalistic principles, attributed to Rabbenu Peretz, a Tosaphist, with the Minchat Yehuda commentary, by R. Yehuda Chayat. Ferrara: R. Abraham ibn Usque, [1557]. First edition.
Maarechet HaElohut is a a classic Kabbalistic book. The identity of the author is subject to various conjectures, but it is clear that the book was composed after the passing of the Rashba (d. 1310), whom the author refers to as deceased – "zatzal".
Two commentaries accompany the work, one by an unidentified author, and the second – Minchat Yehuda, a famous and classic kabbalistic commentary, by the kabbalist R. Yehuda Chayat (a Spanish exile), known as "HaChayat". The publisher of this book was R. Yitzchak de Lattes, who inserted his notes in the Minchat Yehuda commentary (some are signed "A.Y.L."). The commentary also contains glosses by R. Chaim Ben Hassun of Ancona.
In his foreword, R. Yehuda Chayat describes the trials and tribulations he experienced during the Spanish expulsion, and his troubles in the following years, until he reached Italy. At the end of his foreword, he lists kabbalistic books, noting which books should be studied and which are not suitable (amongst others, he fiercely condemns the kabbalist R. Avraham Abulafia and his books).
This book was printed the same year the Zohar was printed in Mantua, and its publication even preceded that of the Zohar. Both books were printed amidst a great polemic between the leaders of the generation, regarding whether the generation was worthy of the printing of these books. R. Yitzchak de Lattes, publisher of the present work, issued a reasoned ruling in which he approves the printing of these books. In this ruling, which was printed in most editions of the Zohar at the beginning of the first volume, he refers the reader to R. Yehuda Chayat's foreword to this work.
Faded ownership inscriptions in Italian script on the title page. Kabbalistic glosses in Italian script in various places. Signature in Sephardic script on the title page: "Servant of G-d, Eliyahu Zerach".
[6], 286 leaves. Misfoliation. 22 cm. Good-fair condition. Stains and wear. Worming, slightly affecting text in several places. Inscriptions. Censorship inscription on final page. Early leather binding, damaged.