ISRAEL

See also:

• BEN (from Old Eng. bennan, within)

BEN

See also:

• MOSES (Gr. Mwvo c, Mcoo-i3s)
• MOSES, ASSUMPTION OF

MOSES

See also:

• ISRAEL BEN MOSES NAJARA

NAJARA  , Hebrew poet, was born in Damascus and wrote in the latter part of the 16th century (1587-1599) . He was inspired by the mystical school, and his poems are marked by their bold, sensuous images, as well as by a depth of feeling unequalled among the Jewish writers of his age . He often adapted his verses to Arabic and Turkish melodies . To tunes which had been associated with light and even ribald themes, Najara wedded words which reveal an intensity of religious emotion which often takes a form indistinguishable from love poetry . Some pietist contemporaries condemned his work for this reason; but this did not prevent many of his poems from attaining wide popularity and from winning their way into the prayer-book . In fact, Najara could claim the authority of the Biblical " Song of Songs " (mystically interpreted) for his combination of the language of human love with the expression of the relationship between God and humanity . He published during his lifetime a collection of his poems, Songs of Israel (Zerniroth Israel), in Safed in 1587; an enlarged edition appeared in Venice (1599-1600) .