The Executioner: Avodah Zarah 18a

Our Rabbis taught: When Rabbi Yosi ben Kisma was ill, Rabbi Chanina ben Teradion visited him.  Rabbi Yosi said to Rabbi Channina, 'My brother, don't you know that the Romans have been given rule over us by Heaven?  The Romans destroyed G-d's house (the temple), burned G-d's palace, killed G-d's pious ones and destroyed all of G-ds good, and yet they endure.  I've heard that you are still sitting studying Torah and gathering assemblies to learn, with a Torah scroll in your bosom (which is against the Roman's decree)!

Rabbi Chanina replied to Rabbi Yosi, 'May you receive mercy from Heaven.'

Rabbi Yosi said, 'I'm giving you sound advice, and you say to me, 'May you receive mercy from Heaven?!'  I'm afraied that the Romans will burn you and your Torah scroll.'

Rabbi Chanina asked, 'Rabbi, do I have a share in Heaven?'

Rabbi Yosi replied, 'Tell me of your actions.'

Rabbi Chanina said, 'I confused the money I had set aside for a Purim feast with my charity box, and distributed half of the money to the poor.'

Rabbi Yosi said, 'In such a case, may my portion be like yours, and my lot like yours!'

It was taught, that not many days passed until Rabbi Yosi ben Kisma died.  All of the great Romans came to bury Rabbi Yosi and eulogize him.  When the Romans were returning from the grave, they found Rabbi Chanina ben Teradion sitting, teaching Torah in public assemblies with a Torah Scroll in his bosom.

The Romans folded the Torah scroll around Rabbi Chanina, wrapped him in ropes, lit a fire, and brought wet wool sponges, placing them on Rabbi Chanina's body so the Rabbi would not die swiftly.

Rabbi Chanina's daughter said, 'Father, how can I see you thus?'

Rabbi Chanina said to his daughter, 'If I alone was burned, it would have been hard for me.  Now that I am burning with a Torah scroll, I know the One who will respond to the disgrace of a Torah scroll will also see after my disgrace.'

Rabbi  Chanina's students asked, 'Rabbi, what do you see?'

Rabbi Chanina replied, 'I see paper burning and [the Torah's] letters flying.'

His students said, 'You should open your mouth and let the fire enter [thus ending your suffering]!'

Rabbi Chanina replied, 'I would prefer the One who gave me my soul should take it rather than my harming myself.'

The executioner said, 'Rabbi, if I take the sponges away and fan the flames, will you bring me to heaven?'

Rabbi Chanina said, 'Yes.'

The executioner said, 'Swear it.'  Rabbi Chanina swore.

The executioner immediately increased the flames and took the sponges away.  Rabbi Chanina died quickly, and the executioner jumped, falling into the flames.

A heavenly voice proclaimed 'Rabbi Chanina ben Teradion and the executioner are accepted into Heaven!'

Rabbi Meir cried [when he heard the story] and said, 'There are those who acquire their share in Heaven in one moment, and other who acquire it over many years.'

Awe: Zohar 1:11B

[Proverbs 1:7] Awe of G-d is the beginning of knowledge.  This entity is named beginning; it is the gate through which one enters faith.  The entire world is based on this commandment.

Awe branches in three directions, two of which are not fittingly rooted, one of which is the essence of awe.

There is the person who fears the blessed Holy One so that his children may live and not die, or who fears physical or material punishment.  Because of this the person fears G-d constantly, but that person's awe is not focused on the blessed Holy One.

There is the person who fears the blessed Holy One because the person is afraid of punishment in the next world, or hell.  Neither of these is the essential root of awe.

The essence of awe is that a person be in awe of his G-d because G-d is immense and sovereign, the essence and root of all worlds, before whom everything is considered as nothing.

[Translation by Daniel Matt]

Opposites: Attributed to the Kotzker Rebbe

This quotation is from Rabbi Steinsaltz's commentary on the Tanya.

There is nothing straighter than a bent staircase, nothing blacker than a white kittel [a robe worn on ceremonial occasions such as Yom Kippur and the Passover Seder, and also for marriage and burial], and nothing more complete than a broken heart.

What a Way to Get to Heaven! Avodah Zarah 10b

Here is a rare kind of Talmudic story, a tale of a noble Roman who interprets the Bible like a Rabbi. It also has a painful twist [pun intended.]  

Who was Katiya Bar Shalom?  A Caesar hated the Jews.  This Caesar gathered the nobles of Rome, and asked them [to agree to slaughter the Jews through the following parable.]  'When one has gangrene one one's foot, should one cut off the foot and live, or leave the foot and suffer?'  The nobles replied, 'Cut it off and live [i.e. kill them]!'

Katiya Bar Shalom argued with Caesar, saying 'First of all, you cannot kill all of the Jews, for their G-d stated  (Zechariah 2:10) 'I have scattered you like the four winds.'  Why does the statement say, 'like the four winds'?  If it simply meant that G-d has scattered them in every direction, the statement should have read, 'I have scattered you to the four winds.'  We can learn from this statement that just as the world cannot exist without the four winds, so too it cannot exist without the Jews.  Furthermore, [if you kill the Jews] the world will consider your kingdom to be crippled.

Caesar replied to Katiya Bar Shalom, 'You have spoken well.  However, anyone who bests the king in an argument must be executed!'

As they took Katiya Bar Shalom to his execution, a woman called out, 'Woe to the ship that departs without paying its taxes!'  [Rashi explains this as saying, 'Woe to you Katiya Bar Shalom, for you are dying without having been circumcised, and thus excluded from sharing the World to Come with Israel.]  Katiya Bar Shalom tore off his foreskin, and said, 'I leave all of my property to Rabbi Akiva and his disciples!'

... A heavenly voice proclaimed, 'Katiya Bar Shalom is accepted into the World to Come!'  Rabbi Yehuda the Prince cried when he heard this story and said, 'Some people acquire their share in the World to Come in a single hour, while others acquire it over many years.'

Why Do We Shake the Lulav? Sukkah 38a

During the holiday of Sukkot, which is coming up shortly, it is traditional to take a citron fruit called an etrog, along with three plants, and shake them.  They are shaken in six directions - up, down, and the four points of the compass.  The Gemara gives three reasons why we do this.

Rabbi Yochannan taught: We shake the lulav it horizontally [to praise [G-d], the One who possesses the four winds [East, West, North, and South] and vertically [to praise G-d], the One who possesses Heaven and Earth.

In Israel they taught thus: Rabbi Hama Bar Ukva said in the name of Rabbi Yossi, who taught in the name of Rabbi Hannina:  We shake the lulav horizontally to prevent the harmful winds, and vertically to prevent the harmful dew...

Rav Acha Bar Yakov said when he would shake the lulav horizontally, 'This is a arrow in Satan's eyes!'  However, it is not appropriate to follow Rav Acha's practice, for if  you challenge Satan, Satan will challenge you.

And Now We Weep: Tanya Likutei Amorim 26

Rabbi Steinsaltz makes the following interesting statement.  I wish I had the discipline required!


There were times when prayerbooks instructed, in certain places, 'Here one cries.'  Difficult situations and bitter lives provided sufficient reason to weep, however it is not possible for a person to always cry.  Thus in certain places in the prayerbook permission was given: Here one may weep.  At that moment, people would weep, and weep prodigiously.  All people have good reasons to weep, be they sorrows or sins, for sadness and bitterness of the soul.  However one must keep this for certain appropriate times, such that these feelings do not come of themselves, whenever the Evil Inclination desires, but rather when the person himself wills it.

Conquest Through Analogy: Avodah Zarah 8b

When Rave Dimi came from Israel to Babylon, he taught:

Before the Romans allied themselves with the Jews, the Romans fought 32 battles with the Greek kings of Palestine.  The Romans made this deal with the Jews: 'If you become the kings, we'll be the mayors, and if you become the mayors, we'll be the kings.'

The Romans said to the Greeks, 'We've tried settling our dispute with war, now let's try reason.  If one has a pearl and another precious stone, which stone should be used as a setting?'  The Greeks replied, 'The pearl should be a setting for the precious stone.'

The Romans asked the Greeks, 'If one has a precious stone and a ruby, which one should be the setting for the other?'  The Greeks replied, 'The precious stone should be a setting for the ruby.'

The Romans asked the Greeks, 'If one has a ruby and a Torah scroll, which should be a setting?'  The Greeks replied, 'The ruby should be a setting for the Torah scroll.'

The Romans said, 'We are like a Torah Scroll compared to you, and Israel is on our side, so submit to us.'

The Greeks agreed and submitted.


I find this story strange on many levels.  Why would the Greeks and Romans revere a Torah scroll?  And how could such an analogy be so convincing?