Passed Away at Age 37: The Life and Work of Rabbi Shlomo Ibn Gabirol

The name "Ibn Gabirol" usually reminds us of a busy street, traffic, shops... But what is this stone? A type of diamond? A useful mineral?

"Ibn," in Arabic, means "son," the son of Gabirol. Gabirol was a respected man in Cordoba, the capital of Andalusia. In the year 1013, 1012 years ago, the Jews of Cordoba were expelled, and Gabirol went into exile in the city of Malaga, where his son Shlomo was born. Since his father was a famous man, he was named after him.

Rabbi Shlomo Ibn Gabirol was one of the famous and influential figures in Jewish history, a poet, philosopher, and Torah scholar, but his life was brief and full of suffering. He endured illness and pain, and passed away at only 37 years old.

From birth, he suffered from skin tuberculosis, and thus he sang about himself: 'My pain is great, and my wound is severe, and my strength has left and my bones are weak, and there is no escape or hiding place for my soul, and there is no place where I can rest.' Yet despite the weakness of his body, his spirit was strong and his soul deep, as expressed in his many unique poems.

The crowning glory of his poems is the hymn "Keter Malchut," recited on Yom Kippur night. The hymn contains deep philosophical ideas, but kabbalists have also interpreted it and found ideas according to Kabbalah. On the Ninth of Av, his lamentation 'Shomron Kol Titen' is recited.

Among his halachic writings are the "Azharot." For this work, Rabbi Shlomo ben Tzemach, the Rashbatz, wrote a complex commentary, detailing every word of Ibn Gabirol. In the field of ethics, he wrote the "Book of Improvement of the Qualities."

Legends of his greatness and wisdom spread throughout the Jewish world. According to Rabbi Yosef Shlomo Delmedigo, Rabbi Shlomo Ibn Gabirol built the first artificial robot in the world, as he recounts in his book "Mitztaref Lechochma": 'And it is also said about R' Shlomo Ibn Gabirol that he created a woman who served him, and when they reported him to the authorities, he showed them that she was not a creature, returning her to the pieces and wooden segments from which she was made. Many such rumors were common, especially in Ashkenaz land.'

In the Middle Ages, part of the curriculum in Christian theological orders was a book called Fons Vitae, written in Latin. The content of the book proved the existence of the Creator, divine providence, free will, prophecy, and all religious fundamentals. For many years, the book was a sacred foundation for Christianity until in the 19th century, the scholar Shlomo Munk proved that this book was "Makor Chaim," authored by Rabbi Shlomo Ibn Gabirol. The Christian scholars were outraged by the idea. How could it be that such a deep and central book was written by a Jew? They claimed Shlomo Munk was making things up, but Munk located and found the decree of the bishop Raymond of Toledo, ordering the translation into Spanish and Latin of the book by the Jew Solomon of Saragossa, Ibn Gabirol's name among the Christians, and thus this fact was recognized by all.

Rabbi Shlomo Ibn Gabirol had a sensitive and tormented soul, and his poems are exceptional in their depth and sensitivity. His famous hymn, "Shalom LeBen Dodi," sung by Sephardic communities, is full of yearning and love. The hymn "Elokim Eli Atah," recited on Yom Kippur in some communities, is filled with submission and awe: 'Hashem, You are my God, heal the crooked heart's error, see the weak bones and decaying rot, answer me when I call, let my poetic thoughts pierce through.' And in his hymn for Purim, he says: 'When my wine finishes, my eyes shed streams of water... I am bad for the frog, with him I cry out and pray, for like him my mouth knows.'

When he was young, Rabbi Yekutiel Ibn Hassan, one of the wealthy of Saragossa, took him under his protection. Rabbi Shlomo lived in his castle, where he wrote his poetry and books, and became known as "the poet of Saragossa." However, not long after, Rabbi Yekutiel was killed by an assassin. Rabbi Shlomo was then 25 years old, and he went into exile, searching for his place. He was familiar with illness and pain, but wherever he turned, he saw beauty that he immortalized in his poems. For a short time, he received support from Rabbi Shmuel Hanagid, but this too ceased, and he wandered across Spain, offering his wisdom, poems, and books to Jewish and Christian scholars.

According to legend, on one of his journeys, a Turkish immigrant living in Spain envied him. He assumed that as the Jewish traveler's wisdom was great, so too was his purse full of money... He attacked him to rob him, and to his disappointment, found that the large purse contained no money, but only scrolls with poems and Torah insights. He believed Rabbi Shlomo was hiding money from him, and in his anger killed him and buried him in the ground. Over time, a fig tree grew on the spot of the grave. The tree grew very quickly and bore fruit long before any tree in Spain did. Experts said this proved that something unusual had occurred at the place, they dug and found Rabbi Shlomo Ibn Gabirol's body, and the robber was hanged from the tree.

Today, Rabbi Shlomo Ibn Gabirol is appreciated throughout Spain, and statues of him are displayed in his birthplace and other places.