Guide for the Perplexed: orah classics in english edition of the Guide for the Perplexed

he Guide for the Perplexed (Arabic: دلالة الحائرين, romanized: Dalālat al-ḥā'irīn, דלאלת אלחאירין; Hebrew: מורה נבוכים, romanized: Moreh Nevukhim) is a work of theology by Maimonides. It seeks to reconcile Aristotelianism with Rabbinical Jewish theology by finding rational explanations for many events in the text.It was written in Classical Arabic using the Hebrew alphabet in the form of a three-part letter to his student, Rabbi Joseph ben Judah of Ceuta, the son of Rabbi Judah, and is the main source of Maimonides' philosophical views, as opposed to his opinions on Jewish law. A small minority believe the Guide for the Perplexed was written by an anonymous heretic and not Maimonides, most notably amongst these is the revered 18th-century scholar Jacob Emden.Since many of the philosophical concepts, such as his view of theodicy and the relationship between philosophy and religion, are relevant beyond strictly Jewish theology, it has been the work most commonly associated with Maimonides in the non-Jewish world and it is known to have influenced several major non-Jewish philosophers. Following its publication, "almost every philosophic work for the remainder of the Middle Ages cited, commented on, or criticized Maimonides' views." Within Judaism, the Guide became widely popular, many Jewish communities requesting copies of the manuscript, but also quite controversial, some communities limiting its study or banning it altogether. Read more