LURIA, ISAAC BEN SOLOMON Jewish mystic, was born in Jerusalem. From his German descent he was surnamed Ashkenazi (the German). In 1559 Luria was living in Cairo and trading as a spice merchant with his headquarters in Alexandria. He had come to Egypt as a boy of ter his father's death, and was brought up by his wealthy maternal uncle Mordecai Francis. At seventeen a copy of the Kabbalistic "Bible"—the Zohar of Moses de Leon (q.v.) came into his hands. In order to meditate on the mystic lore he withdrew to a hut by the Nile, returning home for the Sabbath. Elijah, who had been his god father in his babyhood, now paid him frequent visits, initiating him into sublime truths. By night Luria's soul ascended to heaven and conversed with celestial teachers who had once been men of renown on earth. In 1566 at earliest Luria removed to Safed, where there was a large circle of Talmudists. He died at Safed in 1572. But these years were momentous for Judaism. He founded a school of mystics who powerfully affected Judaism after the master's death. The Holy Spirit, we are told, rested on him, drawn to him by the usual means of the mystics—self-flogging, ablutions and penance. He had wonderful gifts of insight, and
spoke to the birds. Miracles abounded. More soberly true is the statement that he went on long walks with enthusiastic disciples, whom he taught without books. Luria himself wrote no mystical works; what we know of his doctrines and habits comes chiefly from his Boswell, Hayim Vital.
There was little of originality in Luria's doctrines; the theory of emanations, the double belief in the process of the Divine Essence as it were self-concentrating (Zimzum) and on the other hand as expanding throughout creation ; the philosophical "scepticism" which regards God as unknowable but capable of direct intuition by feeling— these were all common elements of mystical thought. Luria was an inspirer of saintly conduct rather than an innovator in theories. Not beliefs, he said, but believers need rebirth. He or his school introduced innumerable ritual customs, some of them beautiful enough.
See S. Schecher, Studies in Judaism, second series, pp. 251 seq.; Jewish Encyclopedia, viii. 21O; E. Worman in Revue des Etudes Juives, lvii. 285.