Letter to Samuel ben Ḥananiah

In this Judeo-Arabic letter addressed to Samuel ben Ḥananiah, a Fātimid court physician and head of the Jews in Egypt, Judah ha-Levi heaps effusive praise upon his addressee. Interspersed with Hebrew poems—like many letters of this period—this letter tells of ha-Levi’s journey from Spain to Egypt and emphasizes his goal of reaching Jerusalem. Ha-Levi also assures Samuel that he does not seek financial support for his pilgrimage, unlike many other Jewish travelers. Ha-Levi’s praise for the difficulty of Samuel’s earlier letter is a trope that does not speak to ha-Levi’s actual capabilities. The letter ends with his personal perspective on his visit to Palestine. The beginning of the letter and the poems were written in Hebrew. Unbracketed ellipses indicate lacunae in the manuscript.