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Nachmanides: An Unusual Thinker
Nachmanides was and still is a highly respected scholar. Yet despite his brilliance he had ideas that many modern Jews are unable to accept. He was the first person who contended that the Bible, Targum Onkelos, and the other Aramaic translations of the Bible contained mystical teachings. In this volume, Dr. Drazin reveals some unusual and generally unknown facts about the revered sage and demonstrates that his mystical notions and his stands on issues such as medicine, magic, astrology, divination, life after death, the land of Israel, women, angels, hell, demons, and even God are not the normative views of most modern Jews. This fresh look at one of Judaism's most venerated sages asks and answers provocative questions on the nature of Nachmanides's work and its role in Jewish thought.
- GenresPhilosophyJudaism
239 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 23, 2018
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12 people want to read
About the author
Israel Drazin
45 books9 followersBrigadier General (Ret.) Dr. Israel Drazin, Ph.D. (Aramaic Literature, 1981; M.A., Hebrew Literature, 1978; J.D., Law, 1974; M.Ed., Psychology, 1966; B.A., Theology, 1957), in an ordained rabbi, practicing lawyer, and retired U.S. Army chaplain. A recipient of the Legion of Merit, he completed his service in the active reserves in 1984 as Assistant Chief of Chaplains, the highest reserve officer position available in the Army Chaplaincy.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 25, 2025
A Study of Nachmanides
Nachmanides (the Ranban) (1194 -- 1270) was a Spanish-born Jewish philosopher and Kabbalist (practitioner of Jewish mysticism). He engaged in a famous disputation about the relative truth of Judaism and Christianity, moved to Israel towards the end of his life and established a synagogue, and wrote extensive Biblical commentaries and other works. As a Kabbalist, Nachmanides frequently took issue with the work of his great predecessor, the rationalist Jewish philosopher, commentator and codifier of the Law, Moses Maimonides (1138 -- 1204). Nachmanides lived before Moses De Leon (1240 -- 1305), who is generally regarded as the author of the Zohar, probably the most famous work of Jewish Kabbalism. The rise of interest in the Zohar, which continues today, probably has overshadowed Nachmanides' role as a Kabbalist.
Israel Drazin's book "Nachmanides: An Unusual Thinker" (2018) is a study of Nachmanides by a scholar who is a philosophical and religious rationalist in the model of Maimonides. Drazin has become a friend and has sent me several of his books to review, including this one. The book offers a close, critical study of Nachmanides. Drazin makes clear that his philosophical orientation differs markedly from that of the subject of this book, but he tries to offer an even-handed, fair presentation of a different approach.
Jewish mysticism has a long history that predates the Zohar and Nachmanides. Nachmanides believed that the Torah conveyed deep, hidden mystical teachings that were accessible only after sustained study and then often only to adepts. Drazin discusses Nachmanides' general approach in the early pages of his study. Drazin refers to Nachmanides' own goal of revealing or at least hinting about the mystical ideas that are in the Torah, the "hidden matters of the Torah". For Nachmanides, every detail of the Torah had significance and everything valuable was in it. Some of its teachings could only be suggested rather than stated. Mystics often regard their teachings as prior to the reasoning that people use about, say, physical objects or the incidents of daily life.
Drazin gives only a short overview of Nachmanides' mysticism and of his views on certain important matters such as the nature and unity of God, God's involvement in human affairs, the nature of miracles, the relationship between human beings and God and the like. Nachmanides sees all pervasive, continuing influence of God in everyday, immanent life, contrary to the views of Maimonides. It might have been useful to have more of a broader introduction to Nachmanides. But Drazin proceeds to a specific discussion of some of Nachmanides' commentary of the Torah (the five books of Moses). He finds some of Nachmanides' interpretations reasonable and helpful while others are tainted with mysticism and with the tendency to read into words of the Bible doctrines and stories that, to a plain reading, don't seem to be there. In other words, Nachmanides engrafts his Kabbalistic/mystical thought onto a text which arguably does not include it.
There is another component of Drazin's analysis. He introduces the Targum of Onkelos into the discussion. A targum is a translation of the Bible into Aramaic made, probably early in the Common Era. The Onkelos translation is the most famous of the targums and it is revered in Judaism for its simplicity and accuracy. Before Nachmanides, most students thought that Onkelos captured the plain meaning of the text and, on those occasions when he departed from the text, he did so in the interest of clarity and to downplay apparently anthropomorphic and obscure expressions. Nachmanides admired Onkelos greatly but he thought that Onkelos' text, when it departed from the Hebrew, did so for a reason that was mystical or hidden or to tell a background story more that to clarify a difficult expression.
Drazin's book thus moves from a study only of Nachmanides to focus on the many passages in Nachmanides' commentary on the Torah in which Nachmanides comments on Onkelos. The book thus shows a great deal of specificity as well as, of course, enormous erudition in Jewish sources. Drazin painstakingly goes through individual verses in the Torah in which Onkelos' translation emended or clarified the Hebrew and then discusses Nachmanides' understanding of Onkelos. The views of other Jewish commentators frequently also are brought in. In many cases, Drazin finds Nachmanides makes helpful comments on the text. In a large number of instances, Drazin finds that Nachmanides misunderstands Onkelos and imports his own ideas into the text. In many cases, Nachmanides tries to find mystical strains in the Torah and Onkelos. In other instances, the nature of Nachmanides' reading wasn't clear to me and didn't have any immediate relationship to a mystical teaching.
Overall, there is a great deal to be learned from this book about Nachmanides' thought and approach to Biblical interpretation. It might have been clearer to have a longer expository section about Jewish Kabbalism and about the outlines of Nachmanides' thought. I am not entirely sure about why the book shifts to focus to the extent it does on Nachmanides and Onkelos. Drazin is an authority on Onkelos and has written extensively about the Onkelos targum; however I often wondered in reading this book whether it would have been more useful to focus more on Nachmanides without the almost exclusive focus in this book of comparing Nachmanides to Onkelos. I worried that the book only shows part of what Nachmanides was about. The extensive discussions of individual Torah verses are informative and learned, but they may presuppose too much in their readers who do not have an in-depth knowledge of the Biblical passages or of the contexts in which they appear.
This is a fine, informative study of Nachmanides but a writer who clearly disagrees with him. The book is written at relatively sophisticated level and may be of most interest to readers with a strong background in Jewish philosophy and in Jewish scriptural interpretation.
Robin Friedman
Nachmanides (the Ranban) (1194 -- 1270) was a Spanish-born Jewish philosopher and Kabbalist (practitioner of Jewish mysticism). He engaged in a famous disputation about the relative truth of Judaism and Christianity, moved to Israel towards the end of his life and established a synagogue, and wrote extensive Biblical commentaries and other works. As a Kabbalist, Nachmanides frequently took issue with the work of his great predecessor, the rationalist Jewish philosopher, commentator and codifier of the Law, Moses Maimonides (1138 -- 1204). Nachmanides lived before Moses De Leon (1240 -- 1305), who is generally regarded as the author of the Zohar, probably the most famous work of Jewish Kabbalism. The rise of interest in the Zohar, which continues today, probably has overshadowed Nachmanides' role as a Kabbalist.
Israel Drazin's book "Nachmanides: An Unusual Thinker" (2018) is a study of Nachmanides by a scholar who is a philosophical and religious rationalist in the model of Maimonides. Drazin has become a friend and has sent me several of his books to review, including this one. The book offers a close, critical study of Nachmanides. Drazin makes clear that his philosophical orientation differs markedly from that of the subject of this book, but he tries to offer an even-handed, fair presentation of a different approach.
Jewish mysticism has a long history that predates the Zohar and Nachmanides. Nachmanides believed that the Torah conveyed deep, hidden mystical teachings that were accessible only after sustained study and then often only to adepts. Drazin discusses Nachmanides' general approach in the early pages of his study. Drazin refers to Nachmanides' own goal of revealing or at least hinting about the mystical ideas that are in the Torah, the "hidden matters of the Torah". For Nachmanides, every detail of the Torah had significance and everything valuable was in it. Some of its teachings could only be suggested rather than stated. Mystics often regard their teachings as prior to the reasoning that people use about, say, physical objects or the incidents of daily life.
Drazin gives only a short overview of Nachmanides' mysticism and of his views on certain important matters such as the nature and unity of God, God's involvement in human affairs, the nature of miracles, the relationship between human beings and God and the like. Nachmanides sees all pervasive, continuing influence of God in everyday, immanent life, contrary to the views of Maimonides. It might have been useful to have more of a broader introduction to Nachmanides. But Drazin proceeds to a specific discussion of some of Nachmanides' commentary of the Torah (the five books of Moses). He finds some of Nachmanides' interpretations reasonable and helpful while others are tainted with mysticism and with the tendency to read into words of the Bible doctrines and stories that, to a plain reading, don't seem to be there. In other words, Nachmanides engrafts his Kabbalistic/mystical thought onto a text which arguably does not include it.
There is another component of Drazin's analysis. He introduces the Targum of Onkelos into the discussion. A targum is a translation of the Bible into Aramaic made, probably early in the Common Era. The Onkelos translation is the most famous of the targums and it is revered in Judaism for its simplicity and accuracy. Before Nachmanides, most students thought that Onkelos captured the plain meaning of the text and, on those occasions when he departed from the text, he did so in the interest of clarity and to downplay apparently anthropomorphic and obscure expressions. Nachmanides admired Onkelos greatly but he thought that Onkelos' text, when it departed from the Hebrew, did so for a reason that was mystical or hidden or to tell a background story more that to clarify a difficult expression.
Drazin's book thus moves from a study only of Nachmanides to focus on the many passages in Nachmanides' commentary on the Torah in which Nachmanides comments on Onkelos. The book thus shows a great deal of specificity as well as, of course, enormous erudition in Jewish sources. Drazin painstakingly goes through individual verses in the Torah in which Onkelos' translation emended or clarified the Hebrew and then discusses Nachmanides' understanding of Onkelos. The views of other Jewish commentators frequently also are brought in. In many cases, Drazin finds Nachmanides makes helpful comments on the text. In a large number of instances, Drazin finds that Nachmanides misunderstands Onkelos and imports his own ideas into the text. In many cases, Nachmanides tries to find mystical strains in the Torah and Onkelos. In other instances, the nature of Nachmanides' reading wasn't clear to me and didn't have any immediate relationship to a mystical teaching.
Overall, there is a great deal to be learned from this book about Nachmanides' thought and approach to Biblical interpretation. It might have been clearer to have a longer expository section about Jewish Kabbalism and about the outlines of Nachmanides' thought. I am not entirely sure about why the book shifts to focus to the extent it does on Nachmanides and Onkelos. Drazin is an authority on Onkelos and has written extensively about the Onkelos targum; however I often wondered in reading this book whether it would have been more useful to focus more on Nachmanides without the almost exclusive focus in this book of comparing Nachmanides to Onkelos. I worried that the book only shows part of what Nachmanides was about. The extensive discussions of individual Torah verses are informative and learned, but they may presuppose too much in their readers who do not have an in-depth knowledge of the Biblical passages or of the contexts in which they appear.
This is a fine, informative study of Nachmanides but a writer who clearly disagrees with him. The book is written at relatively sophisticated level and may be of most interest to readers with a strong background in Jewish philosophy and in Jewish scriptural interpretation.
Robin Friedman
September 8, 2022
I have mixed feelings on the book. On one hand, this is very thoroughly researched. On the other hand, the author clearly disagrees with Nachmanides on many topics, which is fine. Then in some instances the author will compare what Nachmanides says with what Maimonides says and will just default to Maimonides. Some parts read like a polemic, which adversely impacts the great research done on the book. It was definitely informative and will read the author’s multi-volume texts on Maimonides.
January 30, 2019
Nachmanides – An Unusual Thinker
Rabbi Nachman of Breslov (also known as Nachmanides) was a prolific commentator of the Torah, believing that every word of the Torah is true in a literal and factual sense. As a mystic, Rabbi Nachman’s views were indeed unusual as the book title suggests.
Rabbi Israel Drazin writes about what Nachmanides believed and taught and compares those beliefs to Maimonides, a contemporary of Rabbi Nachman. Maimonides and Nachmanides were complete opposites in their thought processes, beliefs, teachings, and writings. Examining these opposing views makes Rabbi Drazin’s book even more compelling and interesting.
This book took me way too long to read. Not because it was hard to read but because it was so dense with such interesting information. I would read and then think about what I read and occasionally I would re-read what I had read because it’s so fascinating.
I am truly glad I received this book in exchange for a fair review. I recommend it to any serious scholar of religious studies.
Rabbi Nachman of Breslov (also known as Nachmanides) was a prolific commentator of the Torah, believing that every word of the Torah is true in a literal and factual sense. As a mystic, Rabbi Nachman’s views were indeed unusual as the book title suggests.
Rabbi Israel Drazin writes about what Nachmanides believed and taught and compares those beliefs to Maimonides, a contemporary of Rabbi Nachman. Maimonides and Nachmanides were complete opposites in their thought processes, beliefs, teachings, and writings. Examining these opposing views makes Rabbi Drazin’s book even more compelling and interesting.
This book took me way too long to read. Not because it was hard to read but because it was so dense with such interesting information. I would read and then think about what I read and occasionally I would re-read what I had read because it’s so fascinating.
I am truly glad I received this book in exchange for a fair review. I recommend it to any serious scholar of religious studies.
January 16, 2022
I am not Jewish, nor am I an accomplished student of Judaism, Kabbalah, Talmud, or the Torah, as a religious or spiritual pursuit. My knowledge of the aforementioned is pretty random and chaotic, as it has been dictated by my research and interest in other historic stories and studies, and thus limited to the understanding or knowledge required to accomplish those pursuits. That being said, I was very interested in the chance to read Nachmanides for several reasons.
Overall, I did find the work both interesting and illuminating. The layout was not quite what I was expecting, however, that is not a critique of the writer’s successful attempt to present his research in an organized and deliberate way. While, I do feel that not being better versed in rabbinic teachings or subjects did mean that certain explanations made me feel a little in over my head, I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone with any interest in the Books ascribed to Moses whether it is for religious or historic or cultural exploration.
The primary focus of the work is on 3 things; first, Nachmanides, a 13th century Jewish scholar, second, the information, both historic and instructive, of the Torah (or The Books of the Old Testament ascribed to Moses), and last, the Targum Onkelos, as an authoritative reference and resource used by the first in his commentary on the second.
Read more here https://randomthoughtonlineblog.wordp...
Overall, I did find the work both interesting and illuminating. The layout was not quite what I was expecting, however, that is not a critique of the writer’s successful attempt to present his research in an organized and deliberate way. While, I do feel that not being better versed in rabbinic teachings or subjects did mean that certain explanations made me feel a little in over my head, I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone with any interest in the Books ascribed to Moses whether it is for religious or historic or cultural exploration.
The primary focus of the work is on 3 things; first, Nachmanides, a 13th century Jewish scholar, second, the information, both historic and instructive, of the Torah (or The Books of the Old Testament ascribed to Moses), and last, the Targum Onkelos, as an authoritative reference and resource used by the first in his commentary on the second.
Read more here https://randomthoughtonlineblog.wordp...
November 23, 2018
Perhaps the two most famous Torah commentators from the medieval period are Rashi and Maimonides (also known as Rambam). However, there were many other religious commentators during that time and, in his latest work, “Nachmanides: An Unusual Thinker” (Gefen Publishing House), Rabbi Israel Drazin, Ph.D., offers contemporary readers a look at the way one of them – Nachmanides – differed and/or agreed with his contemporaries. Drazen also notes how many modern readers may find Nachmanides’ biblical interpretations and thoughts about Judaism very different from their own.
See the rest of my review at http://www.thereportergroup.org/Artic...
See the rest of my review at http://www.thereportergroup.org/Artic...
June 30, 2022
It was ok but not great. Little boring.
September 1, 2020
I got a free copy of this book with the expectation of review. It is very well-researched, and the 3-star rating is due to the fact that I was expecting something more readable cover to cover. For me, the organization of the chapters was random and I found it hard to find connections between the sections. The writing was a bit choppy. Therefore, I recommend it as a reference book, when one wants information on a particular topic related to Nachmanides.
Also the cover title is Nachmanides: An Unusual Thinker so not sure where this Goodreads title comes from - maybe an advanced copy.
Also the cover title is Nachmanides: An Unusual Thinker so not sure where this Goodreads title comes from - maybe an advanced copy.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews