Las puertas de la luz

These two short treatises by the renowned Kabbalist Yosef Gikatilla (1248-1325) focus on two of the most fundamental Kabbalistic secrets: the serpent of Genesis and the Hashmal of the book of Ezekiel. Gikatilla was a student of the mythical Abraham Abulafia, and was in close relationship with Moisés de León, the presumed author/compiler of the Sefer haZohar, as well as other great Kabbalists of his time. As scholar Charles Mopsik writes, "The abundance of his writings, which touch on all important topics, testifies that in his time Kabbalah was already capable of offering a total interpretation of Judaism and of presenting itself as a credible alternative, not only to the philosophy, but also to the literal exegesis and legalistic formalism of classical rabbinical teaching".