In Praise of Baal Shem Tov (Shivhei Ha-Besht: the Earliest Collection of Legends About the Founder of Hasidism) [Hardcover]

Dan Ben-amos (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1976 | Series: Shivhei Ha-Besht : the Earliest Collection of Legends About the Founder of Hasidism

Who was the Baal Shem Tov? Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer (1700-1760), also known as the Besht, was the legendary founder of the Hasidic movement. He taught that humans must worship and cling to God, not only during the practice of religious observances, but in all aspects of life - business, social contacts, and daily affairs. One must strive for the salvation of one's individual soul in order to bring about the redemption of the world. Little historical information is known about the Baal Shem Tov. He did not put his teachings into writing, and he opposed the attempts of others to publish his teachings. The first known document about the Baal Shem Tov, Shivhei ha-Besht, was published in Hebrew in 1814, just fifty-four years after his death. This work contained 251 tales about the Baal Shem Tov. Originally circulated orally, the stories were written down by Rabbi Dov Ber, known as the Maggid of Mezhirich, who was the son-in-law of Rabbi Alexander the Shohet, the Baal Shem Tov's scribe. It is thus probable that the oral sources of the stories were from among the Baal Shem Tov's closest circle. In fact, Rabbi Dov Ber offers the source of each story wherever possible. This authenticity has made Shivhei ha-Besht the most significant work on the Baal Shem Tov. The book has been in print in many versions - Hebrew, Yiddish, Ladino - almost continuously for 180 years. It became a source for many writers, including Martin Buber, S. Y. Agnon, and Elie Wiesel. In Praise of the Baal Shem Tov: The Earliest Collection of Legends about the Founder of Hasidism is the only complete English translation of this valuable anthology. In addition to serving as a biography of the Baal Shem Tov, the tales alsoreflect the life of Jews in Eastern Europe during the eighteenth century and the emergence of the Hasidic movement. By bringing these legends of the Baal Shem Tov's life, personality, and mystical abilities to the modern English reader, Professors Dan Ben-Amos and Jerome R. Mintz have

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Hebrew

Product Details

• Hardcover: 365 pages
• Publisher: Jason Aronson, Inc. (September 1, 1976)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1568211473
• ISBN-13: 978-1568211473
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #670,846 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The real(est) BeSHT, April 27, 2001

By 

Lawrence K Clayton (Lake Villa by Chicago, Illinois) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In Praise of Baal Shem Tov (Shivhei Ha-Besht: the Earliest Collection of Legends About the Founder of Hasidism) (Hardcover)

Time and imagination have ramified and refined the body of tales associated with the Baal Shem Tov. Ben-Amos and Mintz have given us an authoritative translation of the first written redaction of that corpus. Here is much of the spirituality, vitality and immediacy, along with the rough edges of historical reality. The editors have done an excellent job of clarifying that reality in their introduction and the notes which accompany each tale. I believe this is a valuable text for those who would understand Hasidism and the powerful cross currents of the Haskalah which was arriving. I would recommend as well Mr. Mintz's later books, especially Tales of the Hasidim, for a scholarly treatment of modern American Hasidic folklore.

8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I would give it 3 1/2 stars if we could, December 17, 2002

By 

Jeff (Maryland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In Praise of Baal Shem Tov (Shivhei Ha-Besht: the Earliest Collection of Legends About the Founder of Hasidism) (Hardcover)

The book contains many important and holy stories concering the BESHT, the founder of Chassidus. Unfortunately, the translators aren't Chassids or even observant. In their attempts at a "scholarly" translation I'm afraid much of the spirituality in the tales is lost. Certainly the language is often cumbersome and the names of places and transliterations follow an odd form. Some of the footnotes are useful in identifing who the tale is speaking of for audiences that are novices, others where a topic is explained in a "scholarly" way are terrible. Still it is one of the only places to get English translations of some of these tales and so it is a good book for English speakers interested in gaining an insight into Chassidim, especially of the early days.

They do get the right idea in that one of the best ways to get a "feel" for Chassidus and Chassidim is through Chassidic stories.

Still, I think one can gain a better insight through reading some of the following books (either instead of, or in addition to "In Praise of..."):

-"Rebbes and Chassidim: What They Said-What They Meant" (I absolutely love this book, it is a small book that can easily be carried with short one or two page entries that can be easily digested on first glance yet contain much wisdom- one could finish the entire book in an hour or two on the first read or each entry could be meditated upon and studied for hours.)

"Not Just Stories: The Chassidic Spirit Through Its Classic Stories"

"Generation to Generation: Personal Recollections of a Chassidic Legacy"

"Visions of the Fathers: Pirkei Avos with an Insightful and Inspiring Commentary by Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski, M.D." (a bit more advanced, this is Perkei Avos with the commentary written from a Chassidic and psychiatric perspective)

"Twerski on Spirituality "

All by Rabbi Dr. Abraham Twerski (he is a prominant psychiatrist as well as a Chassidic rabbi who is decendent from a very important line of Chassidic rebbes- his lineage goes back to the Baal Shem Tov). There are other good books on Chassidus by him that you can't find here like "The Zeide Reb Motele" (about an extremely important Chassidic tzaddik and the great-great grandfather of Rabbi A. Twerski, M.D.). Most of his books are equally accessable to the novice or the life long Chassid.

-"The Bostoner Rebbetzin Remembers: Rebbetzin Raichel Horowitz of Boston/Har Nof recalls Jewish life in Poland, America and Israel " by Raichel Horowitz. I bet you didn't know that there was a Chassidic Dynasty that was founded in America (Boston to be exact). Here are some important stories from the Rebbe's wife (Rebbetzin is a term of respect for a rabbi's wife).

-"A Treasury Of Chassidic Tales: On The Torah" and "A Treasury of Chassidic Tales: On the Festivals" by Rabbi Shlomo Yosef Zevin

-"On the Study of Chasidus: A Trilogy of Chasidic Essays, Some Aspects of Chabad Chasidism, on the Teachings of Chasidus, on Learning Chasidus" by Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn (the previous Lubvitcher Rebbe)

-Also, look up "Breslov" for some good books on and stories from Breslov Chassidus (especially "Rabbi Nachman's Wisdom"
by Reb Nathan, and "Rabbi Nachman's Stories" by Aryeh Kaplan).

There are many more I can include but I'd like to leave this a managable size. Unfortunately, one must be careful which books on Chassidus, Chassidim and Chassidic history one picks up and many are written by those who are rather antagonistic towards Chassidim specifically and even Yiddishkeit generally and one could be influenced by their prejudices without being aware they are even there, unless you know what to look for.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The real(est) BeSHT, April 27, 2001

By 

Lawrence K Clayton (Lake Villa by Chicago, Illinois) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In Praise of Baal Shem Tov (Shivhei Ha-Besht: the Earliest Collection of Legends About the Founder of Hasidism) (Hardcover)

Time and imagination have ramified and refined the body of tales associated with the Baal Shem Tov. Ben-Amos and Mintz have given us an authoritative translation of the first written redaction of that corpus. Here is much of the spirituality, vitality and immediacy, along with the rough edges of historical reality. The editors have done an excellent job of clarifying that reality in their introduction and the notes which accompany each tale. I believe this is a valuable text for those who would understand Hasidism and the powerful cross currents of the Haskalah which was arriving. I would recommend as well Mr. Mintz's later books, especially Tales of the Hasidim, for a scholarly treatment of modern American Hasidic folklore.