18 CHAPTER ONE
The last few years of Maimonides’ life were troubled by an ongoing
controversy with the Gaon of Baghdad, Samuel ben Eli. The main issue
of the controversy was theological: the resurrection of the dead and its
meaning. Characteristically, the discussion meandered between various
bodies of texts, changing methods according to the context. On both
sides, biblical and Rabbinic quotations were brought to bear, employing
commonly used exegetical techniques. Both sides also quoted the phi los-
ophers: the Muslim Avicenna and the Jewish phi losopher Abu al- Barakat
al-Baghdadi (d. ca. 1164), the use of whose names refl ect the culture of
the educated elite. But it was mainly kalam arguments that provided the
Gaon with the necessary intellectual varnish. From the testimony of
Maimonides’ disciple Joseph Ibn Shimon we know that the Gaon also
introduced into the discussion the culture of the common people: divi-
nation techniques that were an integral and important part of their re-
ligiosity.^59 This kind of pop ular religiosity was strongly criticized by
Maimonides. He regarded it as superstitious, and his aversion to it is
expressed not only in his rejection of its practical applications, but also
in his scornful criticism of pop ular sermons. Nevertheless, this pop ular
culture, which, just like the phi losophers’ highbrow culture, crossed reli-
gious boundaries, was an integral part of Mediterranean culture, and
Maimonides’responsa testify to the fact that these practices were a fact
with which he had to contend.^60
Transformations in the Jewish WorldMaimonides’ intellectual horizons were restricted neither by his time and
place nor by his religious denomination. Nevertheless, the center of his
intellectual endeavor was undoubtedly the Jewish world. During his life-
time, the Jewish community underwent several signifi cant changes. As
mentioned above, Maimonides’ most famous controversy with the Gaon
revolved around the issue of the resurrection of the dead. Other disputed
issues regarded some of Maimonides’ rulings in his Mishneh Torah. The
subtext of the controversy, however, was neither theological nor legal, but
political. As mentioned above, twelfth- century Baghdad was no longer
the center of hegemony for Jewish communities. With Maimonides’ stat-
ure, Egypt overshadowed Baghdad, and the Gaon was fi ghting to pre-
serve his authority.^61
(^59) See chap. 6, note 62, below.
(^60) See chap. 4, below.
(^61) See chap. 6, below.