Friday, March 25, 2011
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Hatavat Chalom
Master of the Universe! I am yours and my dreams are yours.
I have dreamed a dream and I do not know what it is.
May it be Your will, that all my dreams concerning myself and concerning anyone of Israel, shall be for good...
If they are good dreams, strengthen and reinforce them.
But if they require healing, heal them...
As you have transformed the curse of the wicked Bilaam from a curse to a blessing, so shall you transform all my dreams concerning myself and concerning all of Israel to good...
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
The Ten Lost Tribes
Isaiah 11:11-12
11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord will set His hand again the second time to recover the remnant of His people, that shall remain from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. 12 And He will set up an ensign for the nations, and will assemble the dispersed of Israel, and gather together the scattered of Judah from the four corners of the earth.
The Ten Lost Tribes were captured by the Asyrians. Yet there's the undying faith that they'll one day come back.
Ochildiev, D; R. Pinkhasov, I. Kalontarov. A History and Culture of the Bukharian Jews, Roshnoyi-Light, New York, 2007.
11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord will set His hand again the second time to recover the remnant of His people, that shall remain from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. 12 And He will set up an ensign for the nations, and will assemble the dispersed of Israel, and gather together the scattered of Judah from the four corners of the earth.
The Ten Lost Tribes were captured by the Asyrians. Yet there's the undying faith that they'll one day come back.
Ochildiev, D; R. Pinkhasov, I. Kalontarov. A History and Culture of the Bukharian Jews, Roshnoyi-Light, New York, 2007.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Pikuach Nefesh
Whoever destroys a soul, it is considered as if he destroyed an entire world. And whoever saves a life, it is considered as if he saved an entire world.
- Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:5; Babylonian Talmud Tractate Sanhedrin 37a
“Remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” That was the only time I ever heard Atticus say it was a sin to do something, and I asked Miss Maudie about it.
“Your father’s right,” she said. “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy . . . but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.”
- Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:5; Babylonian Talmud Tractate Sanhedrin 37a
“Remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” That was the only time I ever heard Atticus say it was a sin to do something, and I asked Miss Maudie about it.
“Your father’s right,” she said. “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy . . . but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.”
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Tehillim #121
1 A Song of Ascents.
I will lift up mine eyes unto the mountains: from whence shall my help come?
http://www.mechon-mamre.org
Tehillim #102
1 A Prayer of the afflicted, when he fainteth, and poureth out his complaint before the LORD.
2 O LORD, hear my prayer, and let my cry come unto Thee.
3 Hide not Thy face from me in the day of my distress;
incline Thine ear unto me; in the day when I call answer me speedily.
4 For my days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are burned as a hearth.
5 My heart is smitten like grass, and withered; for I forget to eat my bread.
6 By reason of the voice of my sighing my bones cleave to my flesh.
7 I am like a pelican of the wilderness; I am become as an owl of the waste places.
8 I watch, and am become like a sparrow that is alone upon the housetop.
9 Mine enemies taunt me all the day; they that are mad against me do curse by me.
10 For I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping,
11 Because of Thine indignation and Thy wrath; for Thou hast taken me up, and cast me away.
12 My days are like a lengthening shadow; and I am withered like grass.
13 But Thou, O LORD, sittest enthroned for ever; and Thy name is unto all generations.
14 Thou wilt arise, and have compassion upon Zion; for it is time to be gracious unto her, for the appointed time is come.
15 For Thy servants take pleasure in her stones, and love her dust.
16 So the nations will fear the name of the LORD, and all the kings of the earth Thy glory;
17 When the LORD hath built up Zion, when He hath appeared in His glory;
18 When He hath regarded the prayer of the destitute, and hath not despised their prayer.
19 This shall be written for the generation to come; and a people which shall be created shall praise the LORD.
20 For He hath looked down from the height of His sanctuary; from heaven did the LORD behold the earth;
21 To hear the groaning of the prisoner; to loose those that are appointed to death;
22 That men may tell of the name of the LORD in Zion, and His praise in Jerusalem;
23 When the peoples are gathered together, and the kingdoms, to serve the LORD.
24 He weakened my strength in the way; He shortened my days.
25 I say: 'O my God, take me not away in the midst of my days, Thou whose years endure throughout all generations.
26 Of old Thou didst lay the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the work of Thy hands.
27 They shall perish, but Thou shalt endure;
yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; as a vesture shalt Thou change them, and they shall pass away;
28 But Thou art the selfsame, and Thy years shall have no end.
29 The children of Thy servants shall dwell securely, and their seed shall be established before Thee.'
http://www.mechon-mamre.org
http://www.mechon-mamre.org
2 O LORD, hear my prayer, and let my cry come unto Thee.
3 Hide not Thy face from me in the day of my distress;
incline Thine ear unto me; in the day when I call answer me speedily.
4 For my days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are burned as a hearth.
5 My heart is smitten like grass, and withered; for I forget to eat my bread.
6 By reason of the voice of my sighing my bones cleave to my flesh.
7 I am like a pelican of the wilderness; I am become as an owl of the waste places.
8 I watch, and am become like a sparrow that is alone upon the housetop.
9 Mine enemies taunt me all the day; they that are mad against me do curse by me.
10 For I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping,
11 Because of Thine indignation and Thy wrath; for Thou hast taken me up, and cast me away.
12 My days are like a lengthening shadow; and I am withered like grass.
13 But Thou, O LORD, sittest enthroned for ever; and Thy name is unto all generations.
14 Thou wilt arise, and have compassion upon Zion; for it is time to be gracious unto her, for the appointed time is come.
15 For Thy servants take pleasure in her stones, and love her dust.
16 So the nations will fear the name of the LORD, and all the kings of the earth Thy glory;
17 When the LORD hath built up Zion, when He hath appeared in His glory;
18 When He hath regarded the prayer of the destitute, and hath not despised their prayer.
19 This shall be written for the generation to come; and a people which shall be created shall praise the LORD.
20 For He hath looked down from the height of His sanctuary; from heaven did the LORD behold the earth;
21 To hear the groaning of the prisoner; to loose those that are appointed to death;
22 That men may tell of the name of the LORD in Zion, and His praise in Jerusalem;
23 When the peoples are gathered together, and the kingdoms, to serve the LORD.
24 He weakened my strength in the way; He shortened my days.
25 I say: 'O my God, take me not away in the midst of my days, Thou whose years endure throughout all generations.
26 Of old Thou didst lay the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the work of Thy hands.
27 They shall perish, but Thou shalt endure;
yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; as a vesture shalt Thou change them, and they shall pass away;
28 But Thou art the selfsame, and Thy years shall have no end.
29 The children of Thy servants shall dwell securely, and their seed shall be established before Thee.'
http://www.mechon-mamre.org
http://www.mechon-mamre.org
Book Review (For School): The Lost Princess and Other Kabbalistic Tales of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov
Rabbi Nachman of Breslov (1772-1810) was the great grandson of the Baal Shem Tov, and the founder of the Breslov Hassidic dynasty (Breslov History, 2011 ). He was recognized for his philosophy based on hisbodedus, building a strong spiritual relationship by directly and constantly communicating with G-d. His noteworthy ability to tell stories emerged through the use of meaningful allusions, which can be understood in light of the Torah heritage and various Kabbalistic teachings. Storytelling has a traditional lineage that can be traced to sages like Rabbi Akiva and Rabbi Yehuda the Prince. In “The Lost Princess and Other Kabbalistic Tales” of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, twelve stories are presented, whose actual storyline is accompanied by footnotes that provide the reader with a commentary into Rabbi Nachman’s allusions. As Rambam remarks in “The Guide to the Perplexed”, wise men record their insights through the use of metaphor, parables, analogies, and stories. Several versions of these stories have appeared both in Yiddish and in Hebrew. According to Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, these stories follow two planes, the human condition and the realm of the mysterious (The lost Princess, Introduction, xi ).
In order to understand the folkloric dimension of these stories, one must explore the prism through which Rabbi Nachman told stories. The background of Rabbi Nachman starts to provide us with this framework. Rabbi Nachman was born in the town of Medzhybizh, Ukraine (Breslov History, 2011). His mother, Feiga, was the daughter of Adil, who was the daughter of the Baal Shem Tov, the founder of Hasidic Judaism. His father Simcha was the son of Rabbi Nachman of Horodenka one of the Baal Shem Tov's disciples. Since an early age, he focused on spirituality, and shunned away the ephemeral worldly pleasures. He is quoted to have said that, "If you believe that it is possible to break, believe it is also possible to fix." and "know that a person needs to traverse a very, very narrow bridge, but the fundamental and most important principle is to have no hesitation or fear at all…" During his lifetime he traveled to the land of Israel. Later in life, he moved to the town of Breslov and then to the town of Uman. He attracted a considerable following, and his disciples took care in recording his stories along with possible explanations. The twelve stories were recorded by Rabbi Nathan Sternhartz of Nemerov, also known as Reb Nosson, his leading disciple and editor of most of Rabbi Nachman’s works.
These twelve stories were preserved as handwritten manuscripts, copied by scribes (xv). The Rebbe himself considered these stories to contain original concepts (chidushim) that are endowed with hidden deep meanings. They are appropriate for being recounted both in public and in synagogue (xvii). According to Rabbi Nathan Breslov, an understanding of these allusions requires knowledge of Zohar and the writings of Rabbi Yitzchak Luria, one of the greatest Kabbalists of all time (xix). Although they are preserved in handwritten form, it should be noted that their presentation by the Rebbe himself in front of an audience contained additional insights, which were revealed through gestures, motions of the head and hand, winks of the eye, or the tone of his voice.
Rabbi Nachman of Breslov’s allusions encompass references to the Bible, Midrash, Talmud, and Kabbalah. Each of the twelve stories deals with a dimension of life, presenting challenges that we all may encounter in one way or another in daily life, and through their allegorical message, these stories present for us a morale from which we can learn to overcome moral pitfalls.
As such, in the story of “The Lost Princess”, the king’s daughter is symbolic for the Shekhinah and the people of Israel. The origins of the allegorical expressions used here can be found in the Zohar, Tikkuney Zohar (Rectifications of the Zohar), the writings of the Ari, in the words of King David and Solomon, the Song of Songs, and even in the Sabbath, which is compared to a bride or a queen. The loss of the king’s daughter is a reference to the exile of the Shekhinah and the people of Israel. The search for the King’s daughter becomes the mission of every Israelite, in order to engage in tikkun olam. In this story, the king’s daughter appears to the viceroy who must free her. Similarly, there are steps that one must take in order to live a moral life, such as repentance, fasting, building a relationship with G-d, and overcoming Yetzer hara just like the viceroy who on the last day when he was about to free the princess, fell prey to temptation and drank and ate instead of fasting, which lead him to fall asleep. The seventy years he fell asleep are an allusion to the “seventy faces of the Torah” (xxxiv), that is the multitude of ways in which Torah can be interpreted. In spite of the challenges he underwent, the viceroy continued to search for the lost princess, without being discouraged, and he eventually freed her.
In “The King and The Emperor” the story starts with the affliction of an emperor and a king who do not have children. From the mystical point of view, the emperor symbolizes wisdom, while the king symbolizes understanding. They both go out into the world to find a way to have children and they meet each other. They recognized they royal heritage through their manners, and they promise each other if they will have a boy and a daughter, they will marry each other. They both have children. This aspect is interpreted in terms of the creation of the world, and how all things and the Torah came into being. Both son and daughter went to study to the same tutor, and they fell in love and married each other. Yet, the father of the daughter forgets his promise and when he is reminded of the promised match, he puts the prince to test. Before finally getting to live together, the two are separated and each undergo trials and tribulations, through which the daughter proves her wisdom. At the end of the story, they are reunited and get to acquire their rightful place.
“The Cripple” relates of the rectification of the world and the destruction of the forces of evil. Here, the story relates how a father dies after advising their sons to water trees. Both water and trees are symbols—water is the wisdom through which one understands Torah while the tree can refer to a person or to Torah itself, “it is a tree of life to all who grasp on to it” (Proverbs 3:18) (53). The brothers support the cripple until he decides it is time to earn his own living by learning a trade. While on his way, he is attacked and robbed, after which he struggles to survive by eating grass. He learns from the sun and the moon how to cure his illness and he finds a diamond. He cures himself and later meets the robbers who repent for their crimes and die. He continues his journey and learns about the destructive power of the forces of evil and how evil can be overcome with wisdom and learning. This story alludes to “Happy is the man who does not walk…does not stand, and in the place of jokers does not sit. He shall be like a tree planted on steams of water” (Psalm 1:1,2) (74, 75).
In “The Bull and the Ram”, the story reveals the impact of religious persecution and punishment for persecutors. On a simple level, this story also reveals the value of respecting G-d’s commandments. The king and his successors decree religious persecution and forbid Jews from practicing Judaism. The current king has a dream that a bull and a ram were laughing at him. He wants to maintain his ruthless domination and persecution and seeks to be invincible. Having his dream interpreted, he fears losing his power. Therefore, the king leaves in search for a rod that will dispel all his fears and help him understand everything he needs to know. He arrives at a place where he walks through fire and dies as punishment because he did not let the Jews put on tallis and teffilin in his kingdom. Since the tzis-tzis and tallis are made from the wool of the ram and tefillin is made from the skin of the bull (87), this was the reason for which in his dream, the ram and the bull were laughing at him.
“The Prince of Gems” relates the story of a king who did not have any children. He requires Jews to pray for him, and he obligates the Jews to seek the help of a tzaddik who helps the king have a daughter. Then the king wants to have a son as well and he again has a child with the help of another tzaddik who creates for him a son using precious stones. Yet, the king does not believe in the power of the tzaddik and instead thinks the son is made of simple flesh. The queen’s daughter is jealous on her brother and uses sorcery to try to get rid of the son. The son is stricken with leprosy, and this will reveal the son’s true nature. At the end of the story, everyone can see clearly that the prince has the power of every precious stone like the tzaddik had said and he is not made of flesh and blood. This story teaches about the pointlessness of jealousy and sorcery. One interpretation of the story is that the king’s son made of precious stones represents the Jewish people, and through the daughter’s deeds his true nature is revealed. In a similar way, the Jewish people had to undergo exile and suffering in order to reach a higher spiritual level.
In “The Humble King”, a king kept portraits of all other kings, except of one. He sends his advisor to find out the true nature of this king whose portrait he does not have. The advisor explores first the kingdom and his subjects, and finds that corruption and injustice are prevalent. He learns this from the humor and jokes that are told about this people, and from the way justice is carried out in the various courts of the kingdom until he finally gets to meet the king. Yet, he remarks that the king is righteous and wise because he distances himself from falsehood. This story is symbolic for the rectification of the world and the rebuilding of the Third Temple, as well as for finding greatness in modesty, as when the king is praised, he humbles himself.
In “The Spider and The Fly”, a king, after having conquered many nations, studies a book that contains all the customs and traditions of other people, including those of Israel. He looks at how a spider wants to catch a fly that is protected by the pages of this book, but the spider is caught between the pages. He understands there is much wisdom in this, as the spider represents evil and this happening is a symbol of the battle between good and evil. Then the king falls asleep and he has a dream in which people are trying to kill him and the only thing protecting him is a page of the book he is reading. When he wakes up, he finds that this page contains the customs of Israel. He leaves to meet a sage that would explain to him his dream, and as such, he gets to see how his soul went down into the world and how the Evil One devised a plot against his soul. This story is an allusion to finding protection in Torah studying and in returning to G-d.
In “The Rabbi’s son”, a wealthy rabbi has a son. After he gets married, the son studies Torah and through a good deed he becomes an aspect of the Lesser Light, that is the Moon (125). Yet, he finds that something is lacking in his studies, and he wishes to visit a tzaddik who might help him. The father and his son journey several times to visit the tzaddik, but they return because the father does not think it is a good idea to go to the tzaddik as they have encountered many challenges on their way and a merchant fools the rabbi so as not to continue with this journey. Eventually, the son dies and the father goes alone to visit the tzaddik. On his way, he meets the evil one disguised again and the merchant informs him that he was preventing the son from visiting the tzaddik because if the two had met, then Messiah would’ve come. The story is a message for those lost in evil ways to return to G-d.
In “The Sophisticate and the Simpleton”, two wealthy homeowners are presented. Each one of them has a son who is simple in his ways and another son who is sophisticate in his thinking. The simple son learns a trade, that of a shoemaker, in order to earn a living, and although he is simple in his ways, he is happy. The Sophisticate learns several trades, but he is not content with any of them, as he considers them too simple. When the king sends to see them, the Simpleton in his simple ways becomes a governor while the Sophisticates continues to philosophize to the extent he does not believe the King exists. Later, he is forced to acknowledge the king’s existence. The morale of the story is that the aim of religious practice is not sophistication, but simplicity and straightforwardness (165).
In “The Burger and the Pauper”, the main theme is redemption and the coming of the Messiah. A burgher has a dream that people will come and take away all his wealth and give it to the pauper and his family. Although the burgher takes care of the pauper, he is very worried he will lose his fortune. One day he recounts this to the pauper and the pauper tells him he also had a dream in which they switched destinies. The burgher believes that this means he will lose everything that he has and be given what the pauper has, while the pauper will receive what he owns instead. One day, thieves kidnap the pauper’s wife. The burgher pities the pauper and he seeks to rescue the pauper’s wife who was locked in the governor’s house. Through confusion and commotion, he rescues her. After he hides with her and returns her to her husband, the wife of the pauper has a daughter and the wife of the burgher has a son. The daughter is very beautiful and receives many gifts. The pauper becomes wealthy and eventually emperor. The pauper’s wife had taken vows to marry her daughter with the burgher’s son, but her husband, who had become the emperor, considered this to be degrading and tried to get rid of the burgher’s son. The son runs away, and the daughter listens to her mother’s plea, considering the burgher’s son to be her destined husband and continuously waits for him to be his suitor. The burgher’s son attempts to show his identity to the daughter but she does not recognize him because he must show signs to prove himself. After many challenges, in which the daughter proves her wisdom, the two are reunited. They get married, and the son becomes the new emperor. The kabbalistic interpretation of this story is that in the same way, the Messiah must know what happened to Israel and bring signs of his identity and redemption to the people.
In “The Exchanged Children”, the son of a slave woman and the son of the king are switched at birth. The child of the slave, even though grows up as a prince, does not show royal qualities, like the real son of the king, even though this one is raised as a slave. The king dies, and his son ascends to power. He persecutes the true son of the king, who leaves the land. After this, he is remorseful and seeks to repair his misdeed. Both end up wandering through a dark forest where they meet with another man who does not seem to be a human being. The real son of the king buys the son of the slave as a slave in exchange for bread. Through his audacity and astuteness, the real son of the king becomes the king in a kingdom and gains his proper place. This story is symbolic for the rectification of the world and how souls that have fallen into an unclean realm should be rectified.
In “The Master of Prayer”, the story becomes a symbol for the last of the ten commandments, “Do Not Covet” (Exodus 20:14). On a deeper level, the characters are also symbolic of the ten sefiroth while the baal tefilah is seen as the model of the tzaddik (248). The Baal Tefilah achieves spiritual heights by removing himself from the physical aspects of the world and through hisbodedus. The two characters in the story, The Mighty Warrior who represents the yesod and the Master of Prayer who represents the malkhuth, are symbols for the beginning of rectification. The Mighty Warrior is a character in the story who is a friend of the Master of Prayer, but feared by the people who worship money and who believe that according to the amount of money a person has, that person can be considered anything from animal to god. The Master of Prayer attempts to bring people to follow in G-d’s ways. He meets people who are accustomed to worship the material, not the spiritual aspects.
Rabbi Nathan of Breslov remarks that the twelve stories presented in this book are “totally new and original” (xx) and only one or two may be a modified version of folk tales. Rabbi Nachman would sometimes recount a modified version of folk tales, but their value is embellished and enhanced through their interpretation in light of the Torah. Overall, these stories can be considered works of mussar. Moreover, Rabbi Nachman recognized the power of stories to awaken the spirit of the people subjugated to challenging circumstances and sought to awaken and revive them. Since the storylines can be interpreted on multiple levels, from simple to advanced according to the knowledge of the reader, it is noteworthy to remark that even the simple meaning of these stories has value, and the goal is to motivate the individuals to awaken themselves from “slumber” and direct them towards G-d.
The publishing of these stories encountered opposition from some people. Rabbi Nathan of Breslov remarks that the Rebbe once said, “I would like to print the book of stories. It should have the Hebrew written on top, and the Yiddish vernacular on the bottom. (…) What can people find to complain about this? After all, they are nice stories to tell….” (xv).
In order to understand the folkloric dimension of these stories, one must explore the prism through which Rabbi Nachman told stories. The background of Rabbi Nachman starts to provide us with this framework. Rabbi Nachman was born in the town of Medzhybizh, Ukraine (Breslov History, 2011). His mother, Feiga, was the daughter of Adil, who was the daughter of the Baal Shem Tov, the founder of Hasidic Judaism. His father Simcha was the son of Rabbi Nachman of Horodenka one of the Baal Shem Tov's disciples. Since an early age, he focused on spirituality, and shunned away the ephemeral worldly pleasures. He is quoted to have said that, "If you believe that it is possible to break, believe it is also possible to fix." and "know that a person needs to traverse a very, very narrow bridge, but the fundamental and most important principle is to have no hesitation or fear at all…" During his lifetime he traveled to the land of Israel. Later in life, he moved to the town of Breslov and then to the town of Uman. He attracted a considerable following, and his disciples took care in recording his stories along with possible explanations. The twelve stories were recorded by Rabbi Nathan Sternhartz of Nemerov, also known as Reb Nosson, his leading disciple and editor of most of Rabbi Nachman’s works.
These twelve stories were preserved as handwritten manuscripts, copied by scribes (xv). The Rebbe himself considered these stories to contain original concepts (chidushim) that are endowed with hidden deep meanings. They are appropriate for being recounted both in public and in synagogue (xvii). According to Rabbi Nathan Breslov, an understanding of these allusions requires knowledge of Zohar and the writings of Rabbi Yitzchak Luria, one of the greatest Kabbalists of all time (xix). Although they are preserved in handwritten form, it should be noted that their presentation by the Rebbe himself in front of an audience contained additional insights, which were revealed through gestures, motions of the head and hand, winks of the eye, or the tone of his voice.
Rabbi Nachman of Breslov’s allusions encompass references to the Bible, Midrash, Talmud, and Kabbalah. Each of the twelve stories deals with a dimension of life, presenting challenges that we all may encounter in one way or another in daily life, and through their allegorical message, these stories present for us a morale from which we can learn to overcome moral pitfalls.
As such, in the story of “The Lost Princess”, the king’s daughter is symbolic for the Shekhinah and the people of Israel. The origins of the allegorical expressions used here can be found in the Zohar, Tikkuney Zohar (Rectifications of the Zohar), the writings of the Ari, in the words of King David and Solomon, the Song of Songs, and even in the Sabbath, which is compared to a bride or a queen. The loss of the king’s daughter is a reference to the exile of the Shekhinah and the people of Israel. The search for the King’s daughter becomes the mission of every Israelite, in order to engage in tikkun olam. In this story, the king’s daughter appears to the viceroy who must free her. Similarly, there are steps that one must take in order to live a moral life, such as repentance, fasting, building a relationship with G-d, and overcoming Yetzer hara just like the viceroy who on the last day when he was about to free the princess, fell prey to temptation and drank and ate instead of fasting, which lead him to fall asleep. The seventy years he fell asleep are an allusion to the “seventy faces of the Torah” (xxxiv), that is the multitude of ways in which Torah can be interpreted. In spite of the challenges he underwent, the viceroy continued to search for the lost princess, without being discouraged, and he eventually freed her.
In “The King and The Emperor” the story starts with the affliction of an emperor and a king who do not have children. From the mystical point of view, the emperor symbolizes wisdom, while the king symbolizes understanding. They both go out into the world to find a way to have children and they meet each other. They recognized they royal heritage through their manners, and they promise each other if they will have a boy and a daughter, they will marry each other. They both have children. This aspect is interpreted in terms of the creation of the world, and how all things and the Torah came into being. Both son and daughter went to study to the same tutor, and they fell in love and married each other. Yet, the father of the daughter forgets his promise and when he is reminded of the promised match, he puts the prince to test. Before finally getting to live together, the two are separated and each undergo trials and tribulations, through which the daughter proves her wisdom. At the end of the story, they are reunited and get to acquire their rightful place.
“The Cripple” relates of the rectification of the world and the destruction of the forces of evil. Here, the story relates how a father dies after advising their sons to water trees. Both water and trees are symbols—water is the wisdom through which one understands Torah while the tree can refer to a person or to Torah itself, “it is a tree of life to all who grasp on to it” (Proverbs 3:18) (53). The brothers support the cripple until he decides it is time to earn his own living by learning a trade. While on his way, he is attacked and robbed, after which he struggles to survive by eating grass. He learns from the sun and the moon how to cure his illness and he finds a diamond. He cures himself and later meets the robbers who repent for their crimes and die. He continues his journey and learns about the destructive power of the forces of evil and how evil can be overcome with wisdom and learning. This story alludes to “Happy is the man who does not walk…does not stand, and in the place of jokers does not sit. He shall be like a tree planted on steams of water” (Psalm 1:1,2) (74, 75).
In “The Bull and the Ram”, the story reveals the impact of religious persecution and punishment for persecutors. On a simple level, this story also reveals the value of respecting G-d’s commandments. The king and his successors decree religious persecution and forbid Jews from practicing Judaism. The current king has a dream that a bull and a ram were laughing at him. He wants to maintain his ruthless domination and persecution and seeks to be invincible. Having his dream interpreted, he fears losing his power. Therefore, the king leaves in search for a rod that will dispel all his fears and help him understand everything he needs to know. He arrives at a place where he walks through fire and dies as punishment because he did not let the Jews put on tallis and teffilin in his kingdom. Since the tzis-tzis and tallis are made from the wool of the ram and tefillin is made from the skin of the bull (87), this was the reason for which in his dream, the ram and the bull were laughing at him.
“The Prince of Gems” relates the story of a king who did not have any children. He requires Jews to pray for him, and he obligates the Jews to seek the help of a tzaddik who helps the king have a daughter. Then the king wants to have a son as well and he again has a child with the help of another tzaddik who creates for him a son using precious stones. Yet, the king does not believe in the power of the tzaddik and instead thinks the son is made of simple flesh. The queen’s daughter is jealous on her brother and uses sorcery to try to get rid of the son. The son is stricken with leprosy, and this will reveal the son’s true nature. At the end of the story, everyone can see clearly that the prince has the power of every precious stone like the tzaddik had said and he is not made of flesh and blood. This story teaches about the pointlessness of jealousy and sorcery. One interpretation of the story is that the king’s son made of precious stones represents the Jewish people, and through the daughter’s deeds his true nature is revealed. In a similar way, the Jewish people had to undergo exile and suffering in order to reach a higher spiritual level.
In “The Humble King”, a king kept portraits of all other kings, except of one. He sends his advisor to find out the true nature of this king whose portrait he does not have. The advisor explores first the kingdom and his subjects, and finds that corruption and injustice are prevalent. He learns this from the humor and jokes that are told about this people, and from the way justice is carried out in the various courts of the kingdom until he finally gets to meet the king. Yet, he remarks that the king is righteous and wise because he distances himself from falsehood. This story is symbolic for the rectification of the world and the rebuilding of the Third Temple, as well as for finding greatness in modesty, as when the king is praised, he humbles himself.
In “The Spider and The Fly”, a king, after having conquered many nations, studies a book that contains all the customs and traditions of other people, including those of Israel. He looks at how a spider wants to catch a fly that is protected by the pages of this book, but the spider is caught between the pages. He understands there is much wisdom in this, as the spider represents evil and this happening is a symbol of the battle between good and evil. Then the king falls asleep and he has a dream in which people are trying to kill him and the only thing protecting him is a page of the book he is reading. When he wakes up, he finds that this page contains the customs of Israel. He leaves to meet a sage that would explain to him his dream, and as such, he gets to see how his soul went down into the world and how the Evil One devised a plot against his soul. This story is an allusion to finding protection in Torah studying and in returning to G-d.
In “The Rabbi’s son”, a wealthy rabbi has a son. After he gets married, the son studies Torah and through a good deed he becomes an aspect of the Lesser Light, that is the Moon (125). Yet, he finds that something is lacking in his studies, and he wishes to visit a tzaddik who might help him. The father and his son journey several times to visit the tzaddik, but they return because the father does not think it is a good idea to go to the tzaddik as they have encountered many challenges on their way and a merchant fools the rabbi so as not to continue with this journey. Eventually, the son dies and the father goes alone to visit the tzaddik. On his way, he meets the evil one disguised again and the merchant informs him that he was preventing the son from visiting the tzaddik because if the two had met, then Messiah would’ve come. The story is a message for those lost in evil ways to return to G-d.
In “The Sophisticate and the Simpleton”, two wealthy homeowners are presented. Each one of them has a son who is simple in his ways and another son who is sophisticate in his thinking. The simple son learns a trade, that of a shoemaker, in order to earn a living, and although he is simple in his ways, he is happy. The Sophisticate learns several trades, but he is not content with any of them, as he considers them too simple. When the king sends to see them, the Simpleton in his simple ways becomes a governor while the Sophisticates continues to philosophize to the extent he does not believe the King exists. Later, he is forced to acknowledge the king’s existence. The morale of the story is that the aim of religious practice is not sophistication, but simplicity and straightforwardness (165).
In “The Burger and the Pauper”, the main theme is redemption and the coming of the Messiah. A burgher has a dream that people will come and take away all his wealth and give it to the pauper and his family. Although the burgher takes care of the pauper, he is very worried he will lose his fortune. One day he recounts this to the pauper and the pauper tells him he also had a dream in which they switched destinies. The burgher believes that this means he will lose everything that he has and be given what the pauper has, while the pauper will receive what he owns instead. One day, thieves kidnap the pauper’s wife. The burgher pities the pauper and he seeks to rescue the pauper’s wife who was locked in the governor’s house. Through confusion and commotion, he rescues her. After he hides with her and returns her to her husband, the wife of the pauper has a daughter and the wife of the burgher has a son. The daughter is very beautiful and receives many gifts. The pauper becomes wealthy and eventually emperor. The pauper’s wife had taken vows to marry her daughter with the burgher’s son, but her husband, who had become the emperor, considered this to be degrading and tried to get rid of the burgher’s son. The son runs away, and the daughter listens to her mother’s plea, considering the burgher’s son to be her destined husband and continuously waits for him to be his suitor. The burgher’s son attempts to show his identity to the daughter but she does not recognize him because he must show signs to prove himself. After many challenges, in which the daughter proves her wisdom, the two are reunited. They get married, and the son becomes the new emperor. The kabbalistic interpretation of this story is that in the same way, the Messiah must know what happened to Israel and bring signs of his identity and redemption to the people.
In “The Exchanged Children”, the son of a slave woman and the son of the king are switched at birth. The child of the slave, even though grows up as a prince, does not show royal qualities, like the real son of the king, even though this one is raised as a slave. The king dies, and his son ascends to power. He persecutes the true son of the king, who leaves the land. After this, he is remorseful and seeks to repair his misdeed. Both end up wandering through a dark forest where they meet with another man who does not seem to be a human being. The real son of the king buys the son of the slave as a slave in exchange for bread. Through his audacity and astuteness, the real son of the king becomes the king in a kingdom and gains his proper place. This story is symbolic for the rectification of the world and how souls that have fallen into an unclean realm should be rectified.
In “The Master of Prayer”, the story becomes a symbol for the last of the ten commandments, “Do Not Covet” (Exodus 20:14). On a deeper level, the characters are also symbolic of the ten sefiroth while the baal tefilah is seen as the model of the tzaddik (248). The Baal Tefilah achieves spiritual heights by removing himself from the physical aspects of the world and through hisbodedus. The two characters in the story, The Mighty Warrior who represents the yesod and the Master of Prayer who represents the malkhuth, are symbols for the beginning of rectification. The Mighty Warrior is a character in the story who is a friend of the Master of Prayer, but feared by the people who worship money and who believe that according to the amount of money a person has, that person can be considered anything from animal to god. The Master of Prayer attempts to bring people to follow in G-d’s ways. He meets people who are accustomed to worship the material, not the spiritual aspects.
Rabbi Nathan of Breslov remarks that the twelve stories presented in this book are “totally new and original” (xx) and only one or two may be a modified version of folk tales. Rabbi Nachman would sometimes recount a modified version of folk tales, but their value is embellished and enhanced through their interpretation in light of the Torah. Overall, these stories can be considered works of mussar. Moreover, Rabbi Nachman recognized the power of stories to awaken the spirit of the people subjugated to challenging circumstances and sought to awaken and revive them. Since the storylines can be interpreted on multiple levels, from simple to advanced according to the knowledge of the reader, it is noteworthy to remark that even the simple meaning of these stories has value, and the goal is to motivate the individuals to awaken themselves from “slumber” and direct them towards G-d.
The publishing of these stories encountered opposition from some people. Rabbi Nathan of Breslov remarks that the Rebbe once said, “I would like to print the book of stories. It should have the Hebrew written on top, and the Yiddish vernacular on the bottom. (…) What can people find to complain about this? After all, they are nice stories to tell….” (xv).
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