The Arizal and Nusach HaTefillah (with Rabbi Michah Markowitz and Rabbi Shaul Goldman)

July 19, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

In 1524, a Christian printer named Daniel Bomberg and his Jewish assistant Cornelio Adelkind published a siddur in Venice that would become the most influential prayer book in Jewish history. Known as Nusach Rageh Pay Dalid (the custom of the year 1524), this siddur did not contain Kabbalistic meditations or teachings from the Ari—it was simply a well-edited, legible text of the standard Spanish-Portuguese liturgy. Yet it became the baseline that Rabbi Chaim Vital, the Ari’s primary disciple, explicitly referenced when he wrote about prayer. On this episode of Seforimchatter, editors Rabbi Michah Markowitz and Rabbi Shaul Goldman explain why that 500-year-old siddur matters today, how the Ari’s teachings were transmitted through a complex chain of manuscripts and editors, and what their new siddur project aims to accomplish.

The Ari’s Teachings and the Problem of Transmission

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What you'll learn

1 (00:06) **Introduction and Host Welcome** - Host opens the episode, introduces sponsors, and sets the stage for a discussion on the Arizal and Nusach HaTefillah.
2 (01:14) **Guest Introductions: Rabbi Michah Markowitz and Rabbi Shaul Goldman** - The guests share their personal and educational backgrounds to establish their authority on the subject.
3 (16:58) **Defining the Core Topic: The Arizal and the Siddur** - The host clarifies the historical timeline, linking the Arizal (1534) to the earlier Siddur of Rabbi Yaakov bar Asher (1524) and explaining why both are central to the discussion.
4 (17:34) **Historical Background: The Life of the Arizal** - The guests provide a concise biography of the Arizal to contextualize his teachings and their transmission.
5 (22:15) **The Transmission Chain: Rabbi Chaim Vital and the "Kisvei Ari"** - The guests detail how Rabbi Chaim Vital's writings became the foundational texts for all later Kabbalistic prayer traditions.
6 (24:48) **Establishing a Canon: The Key Transmitters of the Arizal's Teachings** - Rabbi Goldman introduces a "canon" or matrix of key Kabbalists who shaped the received tradition of the Arizal's kavanos.
7 (33:53) **The "Shulchan Aruch" of Kabbalah: The Works of Rabbi Meir Poppers** - The discussion focuses on Rabbi Meir Poppers' role in systematizing the Arizal's kavanos into a usable form.

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Show Notes

#502

> To purchase the Siddur: https://refidato.gumroad.com/ OR https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FNN7KQC3 OR
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FNQX376G

> Contact: [email protected]

> This episode is sponsored by KosherKlaf.com, your trusted source for mezuzos, tefillin, Sifrei Torah, and megillos. Expert guidance, transparent pricing, and nationwide shipping. Visit https://kosherklaf.com or call 516-737-5436.

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