 In his mid-twenties, hoping to widen his knowledge of philosophy and the sciences, Maimon left his family and went to Berlin (under the pretense of attempting to study medicine there). This first visit to Berlin ended shortly and grimly. Having confided to one of the officers of the Jewish community that the purpose of his visit was to study philosophy and that he intended to publish a new commentary on Maimonides’ Guide of the Perplexed, Maimon was asked to pack his belongings and leave the shelter of the Jewish community — and thus the city — at once. The following half year Maimon spent as a wandering beggar. Eventually, he and his beggar friend decided to return to Poland. As they reached the border town of Posen, Maimon’s talent and erudition were recognized by the chief rabbi of the town, and he was offered a shelter and a position as a tutor at the house of one of the city’s Jews. During his stay in Posen Maimon wrote one of his Hebrew works, Hesheq Shelomo (“Solomon’s Desire.” See the Bibliography).