Reading list

Jewish Paths of the Heart

Philo, Baḥya and Naḥman of Bratslav: the soul’s ascent, the duties of the heart, and prayer from the depths.

Intermediate. 5 steps

Alexandria

Text
Philo
Philo of Alexandria, tr. F. H. Colson, G. H. Whitaker, 1929
Philo on the contemplative life and the soul’s ascent through scripture.

Text
Duties of the Heart
Baḥya ibn Paquda, tr. Moses Hyamson, 1925
Baḥya’s ten gates, from God’s unity to the love of God for his own sake.

Text
Tormented Master
Arthur Green, 1979
The life of Naḥman, read with his teaching on faith and doubt.
Text
Rabbi Nachman’s Stories
Naḥman of Bratslav, tr. Aryeh Kaplan, 1983
The tales: begin with “The Lost Princess”, the first and simplest.

Concept
Devekut
Cleaving to God, the aim these three paths share in different ways.

Cite this entry

Chicago (bibliography): “Jewish Paths of the Heart.” Reading list. The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society. Last modified November 7, 2026. https://www.unitiveknowledge.org/reading-lists/jewish-paths-of-the-heart.
Chicago (note): “Jewish Paths of the Heart,” reading list, The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society, last modified November 7, 2026, https://www.unitiveknowledge.org/reading-lists/jewish-paths-of-the-heart.
MLA: “Jewish Paths of the Heart.” The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society, 7 Nov. 2026, www.unitiveknowledge.org/reading-lists/jewish-paths-of-the-heart.
BibTeX: @misc{reading-lists-jewish-paths-of-the-heart, title = {{Jewish Paths of the Heart}}, howpublished = {The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society}, note = {Reading list. Last modified November 7, 2026}, year = {2026}, url = {https://www.unitiveknowledge.org/reading-lists/jewish-paths-of-the-heart} }