Aryeh Kaplan's Biography(Books)(Photos)

Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan (23 October 1934 – january 28, 1983)
was a noted American Orthodox Rabbi and author, known for

2, 1992, isbn 0-940118-79-3)
* "Torah Anthology," the English translation of the

his "intimate knowledge of both physics and kabbalah". He
was lauded as an original thinker and prolific writer, from

45-volume Me'am Lo'ez from Ladino (Jud?o-Spanish) into
English. Rabbi Kaplan was the primary translator.

studies of the Torah, Talmud and mysticism, to introductory
pamphlets on Jewish beliefs and philosophy aimed at

* "Tefillin: God, Man and Tefillin"; "Love Means
Reaching Out"; "Maimonides' Principles"; "The Fundamentals

of Jewish Faith"; "The Waters of Eden: The Mystery of the
Mikvah"; "Jerusalem: Eye of the Universe" — a series of

teshuva movement.

highly popular and influential booklets on aspects of Jewish
philosophy which span the entire spectrum of Jewish thought,

Rabbi Kaplan produced works on topics as varied as prayer,
Jewish marriage and meditation. In researching his books,

as well as various religious practices. Published by the
Orthodox Union/NCSY or as an anthology by Artscroll, 1991,

Kaplan once remarked: "I use my physics background to
analyze and systematize data, very much as a physicist would

Isbn 1-57819-468-7
* Five booklets of the Young Israel Intercollegiate

deal with physical reality."This ability enabled him to
undertake monumental projects, producing close to 50 books.

Hashkafa Series — "Belief in God"; "Free Will and the
Purpose of Creation"; "The Jew"; "Love and the

Commandments"; and "The Structure of Jewish Law" launched
his writing career. He was also a frequent contributor to

* "The Living Torah", Rabbi Kaplan's best-known work, is

The Jewish Observer. (These articles have been published as
a collection: Artscroll, 1986, isbn 0-89906-173-7)

a widely used, scholarly (and user friendly) translation
into English of the Torah. It is noteworthy for its detailed

* "The Real Messiah? A Jewish Response to
Missionaries"(PDF).

index, thorough cross-references, extensive footnotes with
maps and diagrams, and research on realia, flora, fauna, and

* Rabbi Kaplan translated and annotated classic works on
Jewish mysticism — "Sefer Yetzirah,", "Bahir," and "Derekh

Hashem" — as well as produced much original work on the
subject in English. His Moreh Ohr, a Hebrew-language work,

of the first translations structured around the parshiyot,
the traditional division of the Torah text. (Moznaim, 1981,

discusses the purpose of Creation, tzimtzum and free will
from a kabbalistic point of view.

Isbn 0-940118-35-1)
* Early in his career, Rabbi Kaplan produced "Handbook

of Jewish Thought," an encyclopedic and systematic treatment
of Judaism's fundamental beliefs. Because of the work's

and vocabulary relating to meditation.
* He wrote and translated several works related to

structure and detail, the references, with the index, can
serve as a research resource across almost all of rabbinic

Hasidic Judaism in general and to the teachings of Rabbi
Nachman of Breslov in particular.