Manuscript, Anthology of Compositions on Practical Kabbalah – Amulets and Segulot, Kabbalistic Diagrams – 19th ...

Manuscript, Anthology of Compositions on Practical Kabbalah – Amulets and Segulot, Kabbalistic Diagrams – 19th Century – Handwritten by Rabbi Yehuda son of Aharon Hoter, one of the First Immigrants from Yemen to Jerusalem
Manuscript, thick volume containing many compositions on Practical Kabbalah, segulot and Hashbaot, texts of amulets, lots, cures, and more; written by R. Yehuda son of Aharon Hoter. [Yemen, second half of 19th century]. Hebrew and Judeo-Arabic.
Neat Yemenite script, with kabbalistic diagram, Angels' seals and unusual letters, Magen David emblems, tables and sketches containing kabbalistic combinations of names and letters.
Many leaves contain texts of amulets, Hashbaot and segulot, for protection, success, recovery and salvation in various situations. To name a few: "For a place of danger", "To cause an enemy to die", "To see and not be seen", "To annul evil gossip and incline people in your favor", "A good amulet for all situations", "To bring peace between husband and wife", "So that snakes should not harm", "So that thieves should not enter the house", "To see Paradise in a dream", "For one who wishes sustenance and livelihood", "For protection on a journey", "For pregnancy", "For protection from miscarriage", "To protect a home from thieves", "To succeed in having the journey shortened", "To compel a judge or dayan to comply with one's wishes", and more.
The beginning of the manuscript contains a composition named "Sod Nikudei Shemot" – the different ways of vocalizing the name of G-d and their actions (including: "To annul sorcery so that it may have no power over him", "to be a person who is successful in his endeavors", "To protect from harm while travelling on a ship and on any body of water", "After achieving preeminence, not to lose this position", and more).
The names of the other compositions include: "Goralot Daniel", "Yichud LeAdam Meshuamam", "Sefer HaMifalot", "Kabbalah Maasit", "Sefer HaChol L'M. Shalom Shabazi", "Sefer HaPe'ulot", "Sefer HaShe'elot by R. Avraham ibn Ezra", "Chochmat HaTechuna", "Sefer HaPirkus", and others.
Leaves [8-12] contain various "secrets": "The secret of the letters of the Tetragrammaton", "Secret of the ways of G-d", "Secret of the forty luminaries", "Secret of the travels of the Jewish people leaving Egypt", "Secret of one who wishes to use Hashbaot of angels", "Secret of the names of the four rivers" and more.
On leaf [17]: "Said the author, we saw in the compilations of the sage R. Menachem Recanati a composition of the Amidah prayer regarding the request to destroy the enemies of Israel, and we decided to copy it…".
The writer's colophon appears on p. [168a]: "…Yuda son of Haron Hoter, may G-d grant me the merit of producing many books… and it was completed on Rosh Chodesh Shevat...".
Several familial inscriptions from the writer, regarding the birth of his daughter in 1881, his son in 1883, and another son in 1899. In two places, glosses signed with a calligraphic signature: "Yuda son of Haron Hoter".
Pieces of paper and handwritten leaves are interspersed between the leaves of this volume (some contain records of dreams, names of sick people requiring amulets, and more). At the end of the volume, gatherings of leaves and single leaves were inserted – some from other manuscripts on segulot and lots.
The writer, R. Yehuda son of Aharon Hoter, was one of the first immigrants from Yemen to settle in Jerusalem. He was presumably born in Sanaa. In 1876 and again ca. 1841, he travelled to Alexandria, Egypt, for commerce or some other reason, and eventually returned to Yemen. On his second trip, he first visited Jerusalem, and ca. 1884, he immigrated and settled there. In Jerusalem, he was very active as one of the Torah scholars and leaders of the Yemenite community and was also renowned as an expert scribe. Several manuscripts he wrote are extant, including his composition Ofer HaAyalim, a historic documentation of the tribulations of the first Yemenite immigrants to Jerusalem (see: Yosef Tovi, the Ofer HaAyalim Booklet by R. Yehuda son of Aharon Hoter HaKohen, Moreshet Yehudei Teiman, Jerusalem 1977, pp. 150-165). This manuscript may have been written whilst he was still in Yemen, yet it contains several glosses or additions written in Jerusalem (one of the blank leaves contains lists of names written in Jerusalem, including names of rabbis, philanthropist and lobbyists, such as: Baron Rothschild, Baron Hirsch, R. Natan Bamberger Rabbi of Würzburg, and others. On other blank leaves, texts of documents written in Jerusalem were copied: Ketubah, letter of attorney, divorce document).
Several leaves bear stamps of "R. Rachamim Chaim Katz… of Jerusalem".
[170] leaves + [67] leaves. 23 cm. Fair-good condition. Stains, tears and wear. Many detached leaves. Original leather binding, damaged.