Early Jewish Magic: Research, Method, Sources (review)

It seems nothing short of miraculous that in the last two years no less than two major books on Jewish magic in antiquity appeared, both by Israeli scholars, and both aspiring to replace the century-old masterpiece of Ludwig (Lajos) Blau (Das altjüdische Zauberwesen 1898Das altjüdische Zauberwesen 1914). One is by Gideon Bohak (Ancient Jewish Magic: A History, 2008); the other, reviewed here, by Yuval Harari, is in Hebrew with a brief table of contents in English. Harari sets out to explore major puzzles—What is “magic”? Where does “religion” end and where does “magic” begin? What language did “magic” and “magicians” employ? How Jewish was Jewish magic? How was it formed, formulated and transmitted? How was it realized, executed, and for what purposes? To what extent were magic and gnosticism synonymous in ancient Judaism?

The book is divided into two parts, one devoted primarily to theories (pp. 17–155); the other focusing on primary texts. The first chapter (“Magic and the Study of Religion”) provides a survey of influential theories of “religion” and “magic” with the obligatory nod to Tyler, Spencer, Frazer, Freud and others; a brief “sociology of magic” (Durkheim, Weber, Mauss et al.); and a section on “magic, religion and rationality in anthropological research” (Malinowski, Evans-Prichard, Tambiah, Leach, Douglas et al.), highlighting the new critical trends that explore magic within, rather than on the margins of, mainstream “religion”. The second chapter (“Magic, Mysticism, Religion, and Society: The Study of Early Jewish Magic”) begins with another theoretical survey of developments in the study of Greco-Roman magic, noting the contribution of Peter Brown, whose work linked magic and social behavior through an examination of accusations and imputation of magic. Turning to Jewish magic, Harari surveys research trends in that realm, specifically scholarly perceptions of magic and its place in Jewish culture. This part is further divided into three sub-sections: rabbinic magic, magic and Jewish mysticism, and magic literature.

The third chapter (“‘Religion,’ ‘Magic,’ ‘Adjuration,’ and the Definition of Early Jewish Magic”), likewise theoryladen, begins with pairs, “magic-mageia” and magic and religion (references to Graf, Wittgenstein, Versnel et al.), and ends with a brief overview of definitions of Jewish magical texts. Harari proposes several criteria of identifying spells as Jewish, including the linguistic habit, namely the use of specific languages such as Hebrew and Aramaic; specific vocabulary borrowed from the Hebrew Bible; and the employment of typically Jewish divine names and demons

In the fourth chapter (“How to Do Things with Words: Speech Acts and the Function of Spells”), Harari applies Austin’s theory of performativity to a presentation of Jewish spells. Four texts are analyzed, each representing a domain of the spells: harming enemies, healing, love, and knowledge. The latter may be of interest to us, perennial seekers of illumination:

Fast for three days, on the third night don new clothes, remove yourself from female company, and say seven times: “‘The Lord is my shepherd,’ I hereby abjure you [heavenly powers?] to show me what I seek and to respond to my questions.” Go then to bed and you will experience a marvel—they will come and tell you all that you desired to know

(Schäfer and Shaked, Magische Texte aus der Kairoer Geniza I, 136; my translation).

If, as Harari maintains (p.149), the power of the verbal adjuration was deemed limitless, the conditions of its application/ performance required an inordinate degree of precision of elocution and execution. It seems that the composers of spells exhibited exemplary caution by building into the text an excuse for failure.

The bulk of the book, its second part (pp.159–352), is devoted to an examination of magical texts of established Jewish (Palestinian, Babylonian, Cairo Genizah) provenance. Chapter five (“Jewish Magic Literature: Magical Texts and Objects”) insists on a useful distinction between texts and objects meant for magical practices (internal evidence), and texts that contain information affiliated with magic (external evidence...