Hanhagat HaChaim – Livro intitulado regimiento de la vida. An ethical work in Ladino, "authored by the perfect Torah scholar R. Moshe Almosnino", with a composition on the interpretation of dreams "written by the author himself upon the request of the fortunate lord Don Yosef Nasi…". [Thessaloniki]: Yosef son of Yitzchak Yaavetz, Elul 1564. Only edition. Ladino.
Evidently, this is the first original work printed in Ladino, the language spoken by Spanish Jews, prevalent throughout the Spanish emigrant communities in oriental countries. Ethics, Aggadah and counsel. The book is written entirely in Ladino with an introduction and detailed index in Hebrew. Divided into three parts, as the author writes in his introduction. The first part: "The proper conduct… for eating and drinking, sleeping… going to sleep and waking up, walking and sitting, speaking and keeping quiet…". The second part is about the ten virtues of Aristotle: "Courage, temperance, generosity, magnificence… great-heartedness, pride, patience, wit, friendliness and truthfulness". The third part discusses "justice, friendship… wisdom, intellect, understanding and craft".
Part of the title page, the introduction and contents are printed in Hebrew. The titles of chapters and subjects are printed in Hebrew on the margins. At the end of the book, a Ladino-Hebrew glossary is printed.
Another edition of the book, in Spanish, was printed in Amsterdam many years later, in 1729.

R. Moshe Almosnino (ca. 1516-1580), an extraordinary Torah scholar, was a rabbi in Thessaloniki in the 16th century. A halachic authority, orator and philosopher, he was well-versed in science, medicine and several languages, and he authored Torat Moshe, Tefillah LeMoshe and Yedei Moshe. He also wrote a supercommentary on the commentaries of Ibn Ezra and Rashi, as well as novellae, Talmud commentaries and more. As mentioned in his introduction, Rabbi Moshe Almosnino wrote this book at the request of his nephew who begged him to write his teachings in the vernacular, although this was difficult for him due to his great love of Hebrew. Apparently, the glossary at the end of the book was the first Hebrew-Ladino dictionary to have been composed.
Handwritten inscriptions to title page and other leaves (on the last leaf: "Shlomo son of R. Yeshayah…").

Complete copy, including the last leaves with the glossary, which are sometimes missing. 164, [4] leaves. Leaves 141-144 are bound out of sequence, after leaf 156. Approx. 20 cm. Varying condition of leaves; most leaves in good-fair condition; first and last leaves in fair condition. Stains, including dampstains. Worming, affecting text, repaired with paper filling. Large open tears to margins of title page, inner margin of second leaf, and margins of last four leaves, slightly affecting text on both sides of the title page and some of the last leaves, repaired with paper filling (these leaves may have been supplied from another copy). New binding, with worming and light damage.