Mesilat Yesharim by Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (Ramchal)

Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (1707–1746), known as the Ramchal, an Italian kabbalist and author, wrote Mesilat Yesharim ("Path of the Upright"), a treatise of spiritual ethics describing the stages of moral ascent toward holiness. A standard text in yeshivot, especially in the Musar tradition, it weds ethical rigor with a kabbalistic background. The Ramchal also wrote mystical works that aroused controversy.