Aryeh Kaplan

For the comic-book writer, see Arie Kaplan.
Aryeh Moshe Eliyahu Kaplan (Hebrew: ‫אריה משה‬
‫ ;אליהו קפלן‬October 23, 1934 – January 28, 1983)[16][17]
was an American Orthodox rabbi and author known for
his knowledge of physics and kabbalah.[18] He was lauded
as an original thinker and prolific writer and is most
well known for his translations of the Torah, writings
on Kabbalah, and introductory pamphlets on Jewish be-
liefs and philosophy.[19] His works are often regarded
as a significant factor in the growth of the baal teshuva
movement.[20]
1 Biography
Kaplan was described by Rabbi Pinchas Stolper, his orig-
inal sponsor, as never fearing to speak his mind. “He
saw harmony between science and Judaism, where many
others saw otherwise. He put forward creative and origi-
nal ideas and hypotheses, all the time anchoring them in
classical works of rabbinic literature.” His works reflect
his physicist training—concise, systematic, and detail-
oriented.[19] His works continue to attract a wide reader-
ship, and are studied by both novices and the newly reli-
gious, as well as by scholars where the extensive footnotes
provide a unique resource.
Kaplan died of a heart attack on January 28, 1983, at the
age of 48.[4] He was buried on the Mount of Olives, in
Jerusalem, Israel, off Aweiss street, in the part known as
“Agudas Achim Anshei America” “Chelek Alef” (Portion
1).

Kaplan was born in the Bronx, New York City to Samuel

and Fannie Kaplan[21] of the Sefardi Recanati family from 2 Professional life
Salonika, Greece.[17] He studied at Yeshiva Torah Vo-
daas and the Mir yeshiva in Brooklyn. Kaplan received Before becoming well known as an author, Kaplan held
semicha from some of Israel’s foremost rabbinic author- rabbinic and leadership positions in many states. He be-
ities, including Rabbi Eliezer Yehuda Finkel, at the Mir gan his first professional position after completing his
Yeshiva in Jerusalem in 1956. He earned his bachelor’s bachelor’s degree, as a research scientist at the Fluid Me-
degree in physics - with highest honors - at the Universitychanics Division of the National Bureau of Standards,
of Louisville in 1961[3] and a M.S. degree in physics at where he was in charge of Magnetohydrodynamics re-
the University of Maryland in 1963.[2] search. During this time, he received a cooperative
graduate fellowship from the National Science Founda-
His major influence was Rabbi Zvi Aryeh Rosenfeld
tion[5] and the US Air Force for his graduate work at the
(1922–1978), who single-handedly introduced the teach-
University of Maryland.[6][7]
ings of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov to American shores
beginning in the 1950s, inspiring many students at Kaplan then changed career paths, becoming the Rabbi
Brooklyn yeshivas, especially Torah Vodaas. Working of Adas Israel in Mason City, Iowa (1965),[8][9] B'nai
together, Kaplan and Rosenfeld translated and annotated Sholom, in Blountville, Tennessee (1966), Adath Israel
Rabbi Nachman’s Tikkun (based on the Tikkun HaKlali). (now known as Adath Shalom a Conservative synagogue
At Rosenfeld’s suggestion, Kaplan also produced the first- in Dover, New Jersey (1967)), and Ohav Shalom, a syna-
ever English translation of Sichot HaRan (“Rabbi Nach- gogue in Albany, New York (1969). While in Albany,
man’s Wisdom”), which Rosenfeld edited. He also trans- Kaplan also functioned as the president of the AJCC
lated and annotated Until the Mashiach: The Life of Rabbi (Albany Jewish Community Center) and the Hillel Coun-
Nachman, a day-to-day account of Rebbe Nachman’s selor to the B'nai B'rith Hillel Counselorship at University
life, for the newly established Breslov Research Institute at Albany, SUNY.[13][14][15] In 1971, Kaplan moved to
founded by Rosenfeld’s son-in-law, Chaim Kramer. Ka- Brooklyn, New York, where he lived until the end of his
plan’s later writings further explored Hasidut, Kabbalah life.[2] In Brooklyn, he held many positions, all of which
and Jewish meditation. (Kaplan himself utilized the med- involved religious leadership or writing and editing reli-
itative form of Kabbalah on a daily basis.[22] ) From 1976 gious publications:
onward, Kaplan’s major activity was the translation into
English of the recently translated (Ladino into Hebrew, • Chaplain at Hunter and Baruch colleges (New
1967) anthology, Me'am Lo'ez. He also completed The York), from 1971 to 1972,
Living Torah, a new translation of the Five Books of
Moses and the Haftarot, shortly before his death. • Associate editor of Intercom, and Orthodox Jewish

1
2 3 BIBLIOGRAPHY
Scientists, from 1972 to 1973,
• Editor of Jewish Life and publisher of Union Ortho-
dox Jewish Congregations of America from 1973 to
1974, and
• Director of publishing at the NCSY from 1974 to
1975
Kaplan produced works on topics as varied as prayer,
Jewish marriage and meditation; his writing was also re-
markable in that it incorporated ideas from across the
spectrum of Rabbinic literature, including Kabbalah and
Hasidut. His introductory and background material con-
tain much scholarly and original research. In research-
ing his books, Kaplan once remarked: “I use my physics
background to analyze and systematize data, very much
as a physicist would deal with physical reality.”[23] This
ability enabled him to undertake large projects, produc-
ing over 60 books.[19] His works have been translated into
Czech, French, Hungarian, Modern Hebrew, Portuguese,
Russian, and Spanish.
3 Bibliography
3.1 Religious works
• The Living Torah, Rabbi Kaplan’s best-known work,
is a widely used, scholarly (and user friendly[19] )
translation into English of the Torah. It is notewor-
thy for its detailed index, thorough cross-references,
extensive footnotes with maps and diagrams, and re-
search on realia, flora, fauna, and geography (here,
drawing on sources as varied as Josephus, Dio Cas-
sius, Philostratus and Herodotus). The footnotes
also indicate differences in interpretation amongst
the commentators, classic and modern.[24] It was
one of the first translations structured around the
parshiyot, the traditional division of the Torah text.
(Moznaim, 1981, ISBN 0-940118-35-1)
• “Handbook of Jewish Thought,” produced early in
his career, is an encyclopedic and systematic treat-
ment of Judaism’s fundamental beliefs.[25] Because 3.2 Academic papers
of the work’s structure and detail, the references,
with the index, can serve as a research resource While a graduate student at the University of Maryland,
across almost all of rabbinic literature. (Moznaim, Rabbi Kaplan published the following academic papers:
Vol. 1, 1979, ISBN 0-940118-49-1; Vol. 2, 1992,
ISBN 0-940118-79-3)
• “Torah Anthology,” a 45-volume translation of
Me'am Lo'ez from Ladino (Judæo-Spanish) into En-
glish. Rabbi Kaplan was the primary translator.
• “Made in Heaven: A Jewish Wedding Guide” (Moz-
naim, ISBN 978-0940118119)
• “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 highly popular
and influential booklets on aspects of Jewish phi-
losophy which span the entire spectrum of Jewish
thought, as well as various religious practices. Pub-
lished by the Orthodox Union/NCSY[23] or as an an-
thology by Artscroll, 1991, ISBN 1-57819-468-7.
• Five booklets of the Young Israel Intercollegiate
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 Jewish Observer.
(These articles have been published as a collection:
Artscroll, 1986, ISBN 0-89906-173-7)
• “The Real Messiah? A Jewish Response to Mission-
aries” at the Wayback Machine (archived May 29,
2008).
• “If You Were God,” his final work, published
posthumously in 1983. Moving beyond superficial-
ity the slender book encourages the reader to pon-
der topics concerning the nature of being and divine
providence.[26]
• Kaplan translated and annotated classic works on
Jewish mysticism — Sefer Yetzirah, Bahir, and
Derekh Hashem — as well as produced much origi-
nal work on the subject in English. His Moreh Ohr,
a Hebrew-language work, discusses the purpose of
Creation, tzimtzum and free will from a kabbalistic
point of view.
He wrote three well-known books on Jewish meditation.
These works revive and reconstruct ancient Jewish prac-
tices and vocabulary relating to meditation. He also wrote
and translated several works related to Hasidic Judaism
in general and to the teachings of Rabbi Nachman of
Breslov in particular.
• Oneda, S.; Kim, Y.S.; Kaplan, L.M. (1964). “Final-
state interactions in η 0 → 3π decay”. Il Nuovo Ci-
mento 34 (3): 655–664. doi:10.1007/BF02750008.
• Kaplan, L.M.; Resnikoff, M. (November 1967).
“Matrix Products and the Explicit 3, 6, 9, and
12-j Coefficients of the Regular Representation
of SU(n)". Journal of Mathematical Physics
8: 2194–2205. Bibcode:1967JMP.....8.2194K.
doi:10.1063/1.1705141.

4 Personal life
Rabbi Kaplan married Tobie Goldstein on June 13, 1961,
with whom he ultimately had nine children.[2][4]
5 See also
• Modern day Orthodox Jewish views on evolution
6 References
[1] Embracing a Street Kid, Seltzer, Nachman (June 21,
2010). One Small Deed Can Change the World. Shaar
Press. pp. 252–255. ISBN 9781422609897.
[2] Who’s Who in the East, 17th edition. 1979. ISBN 978-
0837906171.
[3] "File:Aryeh Kaplan BS.JPG”. University of Louisville.
[4] “Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, 48, Dies; Wrote Books on Jewish
Topics”. The New York Times. 1983-02-02. Retrieved
2014-11-11.
[5] National Science Foundation (1963). The Thirteenth An-
nual Report of the National Science Foundation (PDF)
(Report). p. 322. Retrieved 2014-11-11. Kaplan,
Leonard M., Hyattsville, Physics
[6] “They came from Maryland”. “Mason City Globe Gazette”
(Mason City, Iowa). April 3, 1965. p. 8. Retrieved 2014-
11-11.
[7] “Physicist Is Rabbi For Area”. “Kingsport Times”
(“Kingsport, Tennessee”). July 22, 1966. p. 13. Re-
trieved 2014-11-11.
[8] “Rabbi arrives in Mason City”. “Mason City Globe
Gazette” (Mason City, Iowa). February 20, 1965. p. 26.
Retrieved 2014-11-11.
[9] “Weekend worship in Mason City’s churches”. “Mason
City Globe Gazette” (“Mason City, Iowa”). November 20,
1965. p. 5. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
[10] “B'nai Sholom To Have Installation, Reception”.
“Kingsport Times” (“Kingsport, Tennessee”). August 7,
1966. p. 21. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
[11] “CONGREGATION B'NAI SHOLOM RECORDS”.
East Tennessee State University, Archives of Appalachia.
Retrieved 2014-11-11.
[12] Baruch Frydman-Kohl. “H-net Discussion Networks -
Aryeh Kaplan”. “Humanities & Social Sciences Online”.
Retrieved 2014-11-11.
[13] “Project to Rediscover Jewish Values Launched by Stu-
dents at State University of N.Y.”. “Jewish Telegraphic
Agency” (“Albany, New York”). July 7, 1970. Retrieved
2014-11-11.
3
[14] “Albany State U Administration Refuses to Close School
for Passover; Students Vow Boycott”. “Jewish Telegraphic
Agency” (“Albany, New York”). April 17, 1970. Re-
trieved 2014-11-11.
[15] "File:Aryeh Kaplan’s Citation of Service from the B'nai
B'rith Hillel Foundations.jpg”. B'nai B'rith Hillel Foun-
dation. June 2, 1971.
[16] “Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan’s gravesite”. Briskodesh.org. Re-
trieved 2014-11-11.
[17] Kaplan, Aryeh (1983). The Aryeh Kaplan Reader: The
gift he left behind: Collected essays on Jewish themes from
the noted writer and thinker. Brooklyn, N.Y.: Mesorah
Publications, Ltd. p. 13. ISBN 0-89906-173-7.
[18] Kahn, Rabbi Ari (2005-01-27). “Age of the Universe”.
aishdas.org. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
[19] “Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan: Words to live by”. New York Jew-
ish Week. 21 September 2010. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
[20] “A Tribute To Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan”. bible.ort.org. 1983.
Retrieved 2014-11-11.
[21] Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940; Assembly
District 5, Bronx, New York City, Bronx, NY; roll T627
2476, page 10B, line 47. Retrieved on 2015-05-20.
[22] “Collectible: Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan Interview”.
JInsider.com History Preservation Project. Archived from
the original on 18 April 2010. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
[23] “Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan”. ou.org. June 14, 2006. Retrieved
2014-11-11.
[24] See for example R. Kaplan’s note concerning "Azazel"
(Lev 16:8) and his note concerning the 4th plague ‫ָערֹוב‬.
(Ex. 8:17)
[25] “Recommended Reading List—6. Philosophy”. Ohr So-
mayach Interactive. 1998. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
[26] “If You Were God?". Mesorah. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
7 External links
• Online Living Torah by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan at
ort.org
• Online Sabbath - Day of Eternity by Rabbi Aryeh
Kaplan at ou.org
• Collected Writings on aish.com
• Lecture on Jewish Mysticism by Rabbi Aryeh Ka-
plan
• Gravesite of Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan
4 8 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

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• Aryeh Kaplan Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aryeh_Kaplan?oldid=721212492 Contributors: Mav, RK, Netesq, IZAK, Rossami,
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