R. Joseph Karo was not the first Jewish rabbi to act in the interface between halakhic expertise and immersion in mystical life. But he was certainly the most prominent and effective example of this phenomenon. His deep commitment to a mystical vita activa was documented in his mystical diary Magid Meisharim, a remarkable and exceptional document in Kabbalistic and rabbinical tradition until the sixteenth century. The interface between a highly professional occupation with law and mystical activity is a rarity in Western or European tradition, yet it is a common and native occurrence in Islamicate tradition. In this sense, the life course of R. Karo integrates smoothly with the Muslim tradition of his surroundings. Further, it corresponds with the Ottoman culture of the time, within which he prospered, and which was well-known to him and his generation. Law and mysticism are not two distinct hats worn by the same person, but two complementary occupations. Law and legal traditions were key aspects in the political ethos of Ottoman and Eurasian rulers in the early modern period, as fundamental legitimizing factors. These rulers were also often regarded as providers of law and justice and as people of saintly and mystical character.

The Mystical Course of R. Karo

By the time R. Karo arrived in Safed, he was already an adult and an established halakhic scholar. Over the coming years, he would gradually reinforce his position and come to be recognized as a major figure in early modern Jewish culture. The publication of his double codes of law—Beit Yosef and Shulchan ‘Arukh—during his lifetime, and while he was living in Safed, placed him at the top of this dense scholarly environment. No less noteworthy is that R. Karo was involved in deep mystical experiences that intensely affected his concrete activities and life course. It is impossible to reconstruct exactly when and under what circumstances R. Karo embarked on his Kabbalistic path, but it is apparent that one of the constitutive moments along his mystical course occurred during the Pentecost festivities in Salonica in 1533. Pentecost (Shavu‘ot) is celebrated as the moment of the Granting of the Torah at Mount Sinai.