Al-Harizi’s Translation of Guide of the Perplexed II,25 and the Philosophical Implications for the Question of Creation

Abstract

This article focuses on the various translations of an important chapter regarding the question of creation in Maimonides’s Guide II,25. I will try to explain the differences between the original Judeo-Arabic text and the R. Ibn Tibbon translation on the one hand, and the Al-Harizi translation and the Latin translation on the other hand, and account for some of the differences of interpretation. The first part of the article will describe the original meaning of the chapter and the internal tension between the different arguments that Maimonides explores. These internal tensions and contradictions can be interpreted as an indication that Maimonides was hiding his true esoteric eternalist opinion. In the second part of the article, I will analyze Al-Harizi’s translation and show that he made the text more coherent and more supportive of the creationist interpretation of Maimonides.