Solomon Ibn Gabirol: An Andalusian Alphabet

In Memory of Henry J. Leir, A”H Pioneering International Entrepreneur and Philanthropist    16 September 2015

“An Andalusian Alphabet”  Ibn Gabirol (c.1021-c.1058) was blessed with precocious poetic talent and a keen, speculative intellect. In Cole’s essay, originally written as an introduction to his Selected Poems of Solomon Ibn Gabirol, Cole provides the background—Arab, Jewish, and personal—to Ibn Gabirol’s remarkable work. He also highlights some of the obstacles facing modern Western readers who would tap into the vitality of Andalusian poetry. One of those obstacles is the modern inclination to brush aside as trivial those pre-modern and Eastern poetic conventions that appear to us as merely ‘decorative’ or ‘ornamental.’ Consider, for instance, the custom of Andalusian poets to sample Biblical verses in their work, a process, writes Cole, “known as iqtibas, ‘the lighting of one flame from another.’” This sampling, so far from mere decoration, is actually: “a source and transfer of energy… biblical quotation and the other ornaments of this poetry act like tiny turbines to the current of the verse, thousands of finely constructed stations-of power set out along its flow.”

“An Andalusian Alphabet” 

Ibn Gabirol (c.1021-c.1058) was blessed with precocious poetic talent and a keen, speculative intellect. In Cole’s essay, originally written as an introduction to his Selected Poems of Solomon Ibn Gabirol, Cole provides the background—Arab, Jewish, and personal—to Ibn Gabirol’s remarkable work. He also highlights some of the obstacles facing modern Western readers who would tap into the vitality of Andalusian poetry. One of those obstacles is the modern inclination to brush aside as trivial those pre-modern and Eastern poetic conventions that appear to us as merely ‘decorative’ or ‘ornamental.’

Consider, for instance, the custom of Andalusian poets to sample Biblical verses in their work, a process, writes Cole, “known as iqtibas, ‘the lighting of one flame from another.’” This sampling, so far from mere decoration, is actually: “a source and transfer of energy… biblical quotation and the other ornaments of this poetry act like tiny turbines to the current of the verse, thousands of finely constructed stations-of power set out along its flow.”

Ibn Gabirol’s most famous piyyut, Keter Malkhut (“Kingdom’s Crown”) pulsates with such transfers of Biblical energy. In the original Hebrew the poem is also, to borrow a modern, American term, remarkably funky. Ibn Gabirol begins Keter Malkhut by praising his Creator, moves on to mapping a medieval vision of the universe—“lower limit world, upper limit Lord”—and concludes with a stark, personal confession. All the while, the poem surges with a pulse that would feel right at home walking the streets of Manhattan.

Ibn Gabirol’s most famous piyyut, Keter Malkhut (“Kingdom’s Crown”) pulsates with such transfers of Biblical energy. In the original Hebrew the poem is also, to borrow a modern, American term, remarkably funky. Ibn Gabirol begins Keter Malkhut by praising his Creator, moves on to mapping a medieval vision of the universe—“lower limit world, upper limit Lord”—and concludes with a stark, personal confession. All the while, the poem surges with a pulse that would feel right at home walking the streets of Manhattan. 
 

Keter Malkhut has been translated into English seven times, and translations also exist in German, French, Italian, Dutch, Yiddish, Latin, Persian, and Arabic. “A symphonic work whose primary poetic virtues are musical,” Keter Malkhut is still read today on Yom Kippur in Jewish communities around the world. But make no mistake, Ibn Gabirol’s poetry isn’t restricted to the synagogue. His work has also been a source of material and inspiration for Israel’s contemporary piyyut revival. For instance, the turbulent Andalusian was resurrected in 2009 in Barry Sakharov’s wildly popular disk, Adumey Hasefatot. Sakharov, one of the princes of Israeli rock, mostly recast Ibn Gabirol’s work in progressive rock form, but on occasion he stayed close to the way in which Ibn Gabirol’s Andalusian piyyutim are still sung in North African Jewish communities today. One example is Sakharov’s electric arrangement of Ibn Gabirol’s plea for national redemption, Sha’ar P’tach Dodi, a piyyut still beloved and regularly performed by old-school payytanim. From new English-language translations to Israeli musical interpretations, Ibn Gabirol’s work remains alive and well at the beginning of the 21st century. His continued relevance testifies to the remarkable reserves of vitality found in the world of Andalusian piyyut. Sephardi Ideas Monthly is delighted to provide our readers with an introduction to that world with Peter Cole’s wonderful essay, “Solomon Ibn Gabirol: An Andalusian Alphabet.” Sephardi Ideas Monthly would like to thank Princeton University Press for their permission to feature Peter Cole’s essay.

Keter Malkhut has been translated into English seven times, and translations also exist in German, French, Italian, Dutch, Yiddish, Latin, Persian, and Arabic. “A symphonic work whose primary poetic virtues are musical,” Keter Malkhut is still read today on Yom Kippur in Jewish communities around the world.

But make no mistake, Ibn Gabirol’s poetry isn’t restricted to the synagogue. His work has also been a source of material and inspiration for Israel’s contemporary piyyut revival. For instance, the turbulent Andalusian was resurrected in 2009 in Barry Sakharov’s wildly popular disk, Adumey Hasefatot. Sakharov, one of the princes of Israeli rock, mostly recast Ibn Gabirol’s work in progressive rock form, but on occasion he stayed close to the way in which Ibn Gabirol’s Andalusian piyyutim are still sung in North African Jewish communities today. One example is Sakharov’s electric arrangement of Ibn Gabirol’s plea for national redemption, Sha’ar P’tach Dodi, a piyyut still beloved and regularly performed by old-school payytanim.

From new English-language translations to Israeli musical interpretations, Ibn Gabirol’s work remains alive and well at the beginning of the 21st century. His continued relevance testifies to the remarkable reserves of vitality found in the world of Andalusian piyyut. Sephardi Ideas Monthly is delighted to provide our readers with an introduction to that world with Peter Cole’s wonderful essay, “Solomon Ibn Gabirol: An Andalusian Alphabet.”

Sephardi Ideas Monthly would like to thank Princeton University Press for their permission to feature Peter Cole’s essay.

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Copyright © 2015 American Sephardi Federation, All rights reserved.

Thank you for opting (on our websites, at an event, or by email) to receive American Sephardi Federation Programming Updates and Publications. We apologize if this message was sent in error.

The American Sephardi Federation is a proud partner of the Center for Jewish History (15 West 16th St., New York, NY., 10011). 

American Sephardi Federation | http://www.AmericanSephardi.org | info@Sephardi.House | (212) 548-4486


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