SECRET GARDEN: An Anthology in the Kabbalah

by David Meltzer (Editor)

The Secret Garden is a re-issue of a long out of print collection of Jewish Kabbalistic writings from Hellenistic times through the seventeenth century. Since its publication in the '70s much scholarly and popular writing has whetted the appetite for authentic Kabbalistic texts, but few have been forthcoming. In addition to well-known works such as The Sephir Yetzirah, the anthology includes texts by Moses Cordovero, Isaac Luria, and Chaim Vital, Luria's well-known disciple. David Meltzer's anthology was gathered for and by important poets of the San Francisco Renaissance: Meltzer himself, Robert Duncan, Diane DiPrima, Jack Hirschman et al-for whom the Kabbalistic tradition has been an abiding inspiration. It is an important document of the period.

233 pages, Paperback

Published October 9, 1997

About the author

David Meltzer was a poet associated with both the Beat Generation and the San Francisco Renaissance. A pioneer of jazz poetry readings, Meltzer also formed a psychedelic folk-rock group. He performed with the music and poetry review, "Rockpile." He edited many anthologies, including San Francisco Beat: Talking with the Poets (City Lights, 2001), and published 11 erotic novels. He taught for many years in the poetics program at New College of California.