Nine Gates to the Chasidic Mysteries.
Northvale, New Jersey / London: Jason Aronson Inc., 1993. First Edition Thus. Hardcover. Large octavo. xxxiv + 274pp. Black cloth with gilt title, etc. to spine and front cover. From the publisher: "Part autobiography, part anthology of tales and anecdotes, Nine Gates to the Chasidic Mysteries is Jiri Langer's lyrical, exquisitely written memoir and exploration of the world of mystical faith that he encountered during his experiences among the chasidim of eastern Galicia. A remarkable piece of self-revelation and self-analysis, Nine Gates was almost instantly praised as a literary masterpiece upon its publication in 1937. Part of the special quality of Nine Gates is that despite its being deeply rooted in the world of mystical Judaism, the sketches of chasidic life and the folktales that Langer learned during his life among the chasidim are written for the reader who is not familiar with the esoteric theology of Kabbalah. Langer was a friend of Franz Kafka (he taught Kafka Hebrew) and Max Brod (who writes in his own autobiography that some of his work would never have been written without Langer's help), he was also one of Sigmund Freud's earliest admirers, and he wrote a number of studies of Jewish ritual and literature, applying Freud's ideas along the way." A bright clean near Fine copy in mylar protected near Fine dust jacket. Item #66568
ISBN: 0876682492
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