Abraham ben David

Abraham ben David (c. 1125 – 27 November 1198), also known as Abraham ben David of Posquières and by the abbreviations RABaD (for Rabbeinu Abraham ben David), Ravad or RABaD III, was a wealthy Provençal ḥakham and French Jewish Talmudist, noted as an important commentator on the Talmud, the Sefer Halachot of Isaac Alfasi and the Mishneh Torah of Maimonides. He is also regarded as a father of Kabbalah and as one of the principal links in the chain of Jewish mystics. A man of considerable wealth, Abraham founded a yeshiva in Posquières, where scholars such as Meir ben Isaac and Abraham's own son, Isaac the Blind, were educated. Nachmanides remarked upon his piety and erudition. His reputation was particularly established by his criticism of Maimonides' Mishneh Torah, which he faulted especially for failing to provide sources or explanations and for its very tendency to codify the law. He also wrote commentaries on the Mishnah and Talmud, as well as hassagot, or critical glosses, on the works of several contemporary scholars. His best-known work was Baʿalei ha-Nefesh ("Masters of the Soul"), which discusses laws relating to women.