Bidspirit auction | Letter of Rabbi Yeshayahu Bassan,

Letter of Rabbi Yeshayahu Bassan, Master Rebbi of the Ramchal, to the Kabbalist Rabbi Yosef Ergas, Author of Shomer Emunim – Padua, 1719 * A letter from the gaon and kabbalist Rabbi Yeshayahu Bassan, Av Beis Din of Reggio, addressed to the renowned kabbalist Rabbi Yosef Ergas, author of Shomer Emunim and Mavo Petachim. In his letter, Rabbi Yeshayahu apologizes for not having responded until now to Rabbi Yosef’s earlier correspondence, explaining that he had been burdened with many preoccupations and hardships. He writes that he is presently on his way to greet his father-in-law, the Rabach, “and there I will have a measure of rest and free time, and from there I will write properly to his honor and fulfill my obligation.” Rabbi Yeshayahu Bassan (c. 1673–1739) was one of the leading sages of Italy at the end of the seventeenth century and the beginning of the eighteenth, and served as Rosh Yeshiva in Padua and Av Beis Din of Reggio. In his youth, he studied in Mantua under Rabbi Moshe Zacuto — the Ramaz, one of Italy's greatest kabbalists. In 1701, he married the daughter of the kabbalist Rabbi Binyamin HaKohen — the Rabach, Av Beis Din of Reggio and the primary disciple of the Ramaz. After the death of his father-in-law, the Rabach, in 1730, he succeeded him as rabbi of Reggio. His teshuvos were printed in Shu”t Lichmei Todah (Venice 1741), along with additional teshuvos included in the sefarim of his contemporaries. His distinguished and impressive seal was featured in Genazym catalog 19, no. 72. Rabbi Yeshayahu and His Illustrious Student the Ramchal While Rabbi Yeshayahu Bassan was Rav and Rosh Yeshiva in Padua, Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto, the Ramchal, studied under him, and Rabbi Yeshayahu became his primary rebbi. The closeness between them was akin to that of father and son. Rabbi Yeshayahu himself writes to the Ramchal, “From your youth, I raised you as a father [raises his son]” (Iggros Ramchal, letter 65), and the Ramchal in turn refers to him as “my father” (ibid., letters 66, 118). The rabbanim of Venice likewise wrote to Rabbi Yeshayahu concerning the Ramchal that they agreed not to write directly to the Ramchal, but rather to his primary teacher, “R’ Bassan, who raised him like a father raises a son… and in your wisdom you will do as you see fit — whether to write to your student, rebuke him as a father does his son, guide him with faithful counsel, or act as you deem proper — for this matter rests in your hands, and we remove ourselves from involvement, granting you, Rabbi Bassan, the honor that is rightfully yours.” Likewise, they described him as “his primary teacher, who desires him as a father does a son.” The Ramchal was deeply bound to his teacher and maintained a close relationship with him throughout his life, corresponding frequently. During the period of controversy surrounding the Ramchal, Rabbi Yeshayahu stood staunchly in his defense and engaged in extensive correspondence with the rabbanim of his generation. The recipient, the holy kabbalist Rabbi Yosef Ergas of Livorno (1685–1730) , was a great Italian sage, a posek and renowned kabbalist. He became widely known through his sefer Shomer Emunim – Mavo Petachim (Amsterdam 1736), one of the sifrei yesod of Kabbalah, and he fought fiercely against the Sabbatean Nechemiah Chayun. After his passing, his student, Rabbi Malachi HaKohen, author of Yad Malachi, published his teshuvos under the title Divrei Yosef. In the collection Iggros Ramchal, several letters from Rabbi Yosef Ergas to Rabbi Yeshayahu Bassan have been preserved, dealing with matters concerning the Ramchal. Padua, 1719. Entirely in Rabbi Yeshayahu Bassan’s handwriting and with his signature. Page Count: 1 leaf. Size : 14 × 20 cm. Condition : Good. Link to a transcription of the letter