Abstract

Any analysis of the relation between meditation and philosophy in the Jewish tradition must begin with a distinction between ancient and modern philosophy. Thus, first noting the significance this differentiation holds for our understanding of meditation, this chapter shall then examine two of the clearest examples of a convergence between a philosophy and a meditative practice in the Jewish tradition – that found in the work of Maimonides, and that found in the lore of the Lubavitch Hasidic court (aka Chabad) – underlining the importance of meditative practice in the eyes of these thinkers for philosophical understanding. The chapter ends with a note on the contemporary Jewish meditative and philosophical scene.