Quick Facts
Biography
Isaiah Bakish (Hebrew: ר׳ ישעיה בקיש c. 1545 – c. 1620 fl. 1580s – 1620s) was a rabbi of Spanish origin.
He was dayan (judge) in the Beth Din (rabbinical court) of Fez. His writings deal with takkanot (sing. takkanah), exegesis and kabbalah.
The Kabbalist
Kabbalistic writings of Bakish were included in manuscript compilations containing also quotes from famous Kabbalists such as: Nahmanides (Ramban, R’ Moshe ben Nahman Gerondi); Rabbi Isaac Luria (R’ Ari zal); Rabbi Hayyim ben Joseph Vital; R’ Abraham Azulai. The microfilmed collections of the National Library of Israel in Jerusalem contain several of these manuscripts or microfilm manuscripts from other libraries.
In his work on Kabbalah in North Africa since the 16th c., Moshé Hallamish mentioned Isaiah Bakish. In his Shorshei Hashemot the Italian Kabbalist Moses ben Mordecai Zacuto included long quotations of theR' Isaiah Bakish (16-17th c.).
Works
- פסקי דינים ושו״ת Piskei dinim wéchout (sheelot vé tchouvot, c. 1610).
- קטעים Fragments (1992).