Sefer Tikuney HaZohar.

Rare complete Zhytomyr edition of the Tikunim. The second leaf of the book contains a 'Haskamah' by the Admor Rabbi Aharon of Chernobyl and a prayer composed by The Ari (Rabbi Isaac Luria, 1534-1572) to be recited before studying the Kabbalah.

According to the custom followed by many of the Mekubalim, including The Ari, one ought to study the Tikunim during the month of Elul and in the 'Days of Awe' (the period from the eve of Rosh Hodesh Elul to Yom Kippur). This daily reading should repair and cleanse one's body and soul. There are 70 Tikunim in the book, with a suggested amount of reading for each day of the month mentioned.

The work was first brought to print in Mantova in 1558, with the original authorship of the 70 Tikunim attributed to Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai who lived in the Land of Israel in the second century AD and was a pupil of Rabbi Akiva, but some question this attribution.

Zhytomyr, in the North West of Ukraine, became an important centre for Jews from the Russian Empire in the 18th century, and an important city for the Hasidic Movement in the 19th century, with several important Hasidic rabbis residing in the city. The Russian government considered Zhytomyr to be the Jewish centre of the empire's South-West, therefore a Hebrew press was allowed to operate in the city.

The Shapira Press, formerly known as Slavuta Press, was established in 1791/2 in Slavuta by the city's rabbi Moshe Shapira. In the 19th century the Shapira family moved the press to Zhytomyr, where it continued to operate until it was forcefully shut by the Russian authorities. To this day the Shapira family press is considered to be one of the most important Hasidic Hebrew printers. The press' most famous publications were its beautiful editions of the Babylonian Talmud, which were also used by the Misnagdim (religious anti-Hasidic movement, literally: 'opponents') in spite of them being printed by a Hasidic establishment.

8vo, maroon modern boards cut at a slight angle, red edges, light foxing, slight worming to first 4 leaves, small marginal tear & library stamp to title; text in Aramaic with the Haskamah and The Ari prayer in Hebrew; [2], 182 ll.

Vinograd 66597.