Review of ‘Tract on Ecstasy’ in World Jewry

Originally published in World Jewry 45:6, January 1964.

Tract on Ecstasy. By Dobh Baer of Lubavitch. Translated from the Hebrew by Louis Jacobs. Vallentine, Mitchell. London. 25s.

This remarkable Sefer by the son and disciple the founder of the Habad Movement, written at the beginning of the nineteenth century, is about as difficult to render into English as anything you can think of. The problem is to convey the mood and not only the meaning. Dr. Louis Jacobs must, therefore, be credited with a great achievement. He undertook a challenging task and came out triumphant. He conveys both the mystery and the elevation of the spirit bestowed by the sage to his own and succeeding generations.

S. J. Goldsmith