Monkey Tales

Everybody knows and loves that good old children's classic Caps for Sale. In this ironic tale, the protagonist, a cap salesman who has the peculiar habit of wearing his wares in a towering pile on his head, takes a nap beneath a tree. When he awakes, he finds his hats missing and discovers that a band of monkeys hanging about the tree above him have all adorned themselves with his caps. He coaxes them to return them to him with a wave of his finger, his fists, and with stamping feet, but his attempts are only met with the monkeys mirroring and mimicking his every move. Finally, he angrily throws his hat to the floor in disgusted defeat, and of course, the monkeys do the same, and the man has his hats back. Caps for Sale was published in 1938, yet, I discovered, its plot is based on a tale quite a bit older.

The Talmud (Megilah 3A) imparts the following wisdom (comments in parenthes

is are my own):

"Ravina said: ...If someone becomes frightened, even though he does not see (the source of his fright), his guardian angel does see it. (I.e. A person will become subconsciously aware of a spiritual danger although he cannot consciously detect it.) What can one do to rectify the situation? One should recite the Shema. (The recitation of the Shema has the ability to ward off spiritual dangers.) But if one is standing in a filthy place (not suitable for the recitation of the holy words of the Shema), one should leap four cubits from one's place. If one cannot [leap from one's place], one should say this: 'The goat at the slaughterhouse is fatter than me' (to ward off the spiritual attacker by directing it to a more tempting target)."

Rabbi Yoseph Chayim of Baghdad (a.k.a. Ben Ish Chay), in his classic commentary to the aggadic portions of the Talmud, Ben Yehoyada, explains:

"The reason [the sages of the Talmud] said one should leap, and did not say one should 'distance oneself' four cubits, is because they devised a wise [strategy] to save one from the demons (i.e. the spiritual predators) through leaping from one's place. It is known what our master, the Arizal, taught, that the entire desire of the evil inclination is to make itself appear similar to that which is holy, like a monkey vis-a-vis a man, that is, that the nature of a monkey is that it acts as the man who is before it. Therefore, the demons, who are rooted in the evil inclination, also have this nature of the monkey, to performs acts like the acts of men, in order to make themselves similar to them. Therefore, it seems that the guardian angel of this person who becomes frightened sees that there are demons standing there next to him, and if he would distance himself from that place via walking, [the demons] too would walk with him, so what good would distancing himself do? Therefore they gave him the advice to leap four cubits, for then his leaping would be great and strong according to his ability, for he would be compelled to leap with all his strength, and the demons, whose way is to mimic the action that the man performs before them, like the way of the monkey, would certainly also perform a great leaping with all their strength after seeing that this person strengthened himself to leap with all his might. Then the leaping of the demon, commensurate with its level of strength, would be to a very distant place, possibly several hours distant, for in accordance with the strength of the demon who leaps with all its strength, certainly its leaping will be a very great measure, and once it is uprooted (from its attachment to the person), it is uprooted (and will no longer follow the person). The result is that this man is separate and distant from them a great and awesome measure."

And here comes the kicker, as the Ben Yehoyada continues (emphasis added):

"And I heard people telling that a certain seaman did such a stratagem to monkeys that wore the hats that were spread out on the shore before the boat, and through such a stratagem he took all the hats that the monkeys had taken, since the nature of monkeys is to do that which the man before them does, for they desire to be similar to men."

And while Caps for Sale was published in 1938, the earliest edition of Ben Yehoyada of which I am aware was printed in 1904.

Deep Stuff

It is a basic tenet of Jewish belief upon which a Jew's spiritual eternity rests that Ha-Shem (G-d) has no form, physical or otherwise, that we may conceive. Because man is so immeasurably removed from the essence of Ha-Shem by virtue of man being a creation of Ha-Shem and therefore intrinsically and qualitatively distinct from Him, Ha-Shem's Infinity, therefore, lies impossibly beyond the realm of man's comprehension.

What is the meaning, then, that man is created "in the image of G-d"?

Rabbi Yishayah ha-Levi Horowitz, of blessed memory, in his magnum opus, Sheney Luchoth ha-Berith ("The Two Tablets of the Covenant"), writes in the section "Torah she-biKhthav" ("The Written Torah," a commentary on the Five Books of Moses), according to Kabbalistic tradition, that in creating the physical world, the process known as "Atziluth" or "Emanation" gave way to a substance heretofore nonexistent. However, this "substance" inasmuch as its existence straddled the boundary between existence and nonexistence, was so "spiritual" in nature, that is, as non-physical as possible, that its intangibility would be impossible for the human mind to conceive. Notwithstanding, the "hishtalsheluth" or "unfolding" of the world meant the crystallization of this substance into a final physical form, with all the intervening forms remaining intact and forming a sort of bridge between the Almighty, whose Infinity, again, totally transcends the existence of the universe, and the physical realm which we inhabit.

Now, inasmuch as this initial Creation was an Emanation from the Almighty, while we cannot grasp His form, for He has none, in any sense meant in human terms, we can contemplate the "form" of this initial Emanation, this first stage of existence. This initial Emanation is also termed "Adam," or "Man," and is the point of contact, as it were, between the created world and Ha-Shem. Therefore, this Emanation is sometimes termed the "Image" of Ha-Shem. This is the highest vision a prophet can see and is described as "the Man sitting upon the Throne."

The human being is the final end result of all the "unfolding" that begins at this interface between Ha-Shem and the universe and is seen as its final imprint. Therefore, the creation of Man is described as creation in the Image of G-d.

The purpose of this creation and of all creation is to make Ha-Shem known. For this reason the universe begins as an "imprint" of Ha-Shem and unfolds in this pattern until it reaches its final form as Man, the "image of G-d."

Just as Ha-Shem created a world and a creature reflective of Himself in order to increase awareness of Him, likewise, He desires that Man continue to this end, increasing the awareness of Him, through procreating in his own likeness that is the Likeness of the Creator. It follows then, that just as Ha-Shem's way is to create in His Likeness, then emulation of Ha-Shem is to create in one's likeness. Therefore, one who engages in procreation indeed takes on G-d's likeness while one who does not has not fulfilled the purpose of his own creation that is to be a G-d-like creature.

"R' Eliezer said: Any man that does not have a wife is not a man, as it states: 'Male and female He created them, and He called their name Man.'"

-Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Yevamoth

Be Fruitful and Multiply

"The reason for this commandment ('Be fruitful and multiply') is in order that the world be inhabited, for Ha-Shem (G-d), be He blessed, desires its inhabitance... This is a great commandment that is the cause of the fulfillment of all the other commandments in the world, for the Torah was given to mankind and not to the ministering angels. Therefore, [a man] must leave after him someone that will fulfill the Torah and the commandments and will recognize that there is an omnipotent watchful Creator, and [ensure] that this matter not cease to be among Israel. This is the intent of our Sages of blessed memory in that which they said, 'The principal offspring of the righteous is their good deeds.' This means that the principal intent of the righteous in siring [future] generations is to bring beings into existence that will fulfill the commandments and engage in good deeds."

-Rabbi Yeshayah ha-Levi Horowitz, Sheney Luchoth ha-Berith, "Torah she-biKhthav," B'Reshith

Jealousy Incarnate

“All of the assembly in its entirety are holy and Ha-Shem is among them!” shouted Korach, poised at the head of the mob of rebels who had gathered to challenge Moshe and Aharon. “Why do you exalt yourselves over the congregation of Ha-Shem!” (B’Midbar 16:3).

The Talmud records that Korach’s attacks against Moshe were not merely political, but far sharper and more personal. According the Talmudic account, among other criticisms, Korach actually accused Moshe of the crime of adultery!

While attacking Moshe on the basis of his position of authority seems understandable, to malign a man of Moshe’s inimitable character and reputation with intimations that he had committed adultery enters the realm of the ridiculous! What is the meaning of this strange Talmudic teaching?

The answer to this mystery, as with many mysteries of the Torah, lies at the core of the history of Man.

“Let Us make Man…” (B’Reshis 1:26). Ha-Shem consulted with his council of spiritual ministers before creating Mankind. Our tradition teaches that these heavenly ministers objected to the Almighty’s plan, explaining that Man, as a being with physical elements, may succumb to material temptation, polluting the universe with sin. Man, therefore, deserves not any place in the kingdom of the Almighty. Ha-Shem overrides the opinion of his ministers and proceeds with the creation of Adam. Thenceforth, throughout history, as mankind failed to live up to the course of holiness prescribed for them by the Almighty, the angels would continually remind the Lord of their initial objection and His failure to heed their counsel.

Subsequent to Adam’s fall from grace, the Torah describes how Adam’s sons Kayin (Cain) and Hevel (Abel) vie for the Almighty’s favor. While Hevel brings an offering from the fattest of his flock, Kayin offers only the cheapest of his crop. The Almighty favors Hevel’s offering, and in a fit of jealousy, Kayin murders his brother Hevel.

“Ha-Shem said to Kayin, ‘Where is Hevel, your brother?’ [Kayin] said, ‘I don’t know. Am I my brother’s keeper?’ [Ha-Shem] said, ‘What have you done! The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to me from the earth! And now you are accursed from the earth that opened its mouth to take your brother’s blood from your hand!’” (ibid 4:9-11).

Our tradition further teaches that Kayin’s jealousy of Hevel stemmed not only from Ha-Shem’s reaction to their offerings, but from a number of other factors as well. Among them, Kayin was born together with a twin sister who would become his wife, while Hevel was born with two twin sisters who would become his wives. Kayin thought, “Should the younger have two while the elder has but one?”

Subsequent to Hevel’s murder, the Almighty’s heavenly ministers seize the opportunity to brag that they were right once again about mankind. “Look how this one murdered because of jealousy over such material desires!” Ha-Shem replies to them that so long as they, as spiritual beings, cannot be tempted by physical desire, they have no right to criticize those who suffer from such temptation. The Lord’s ministers, disgusted at the suggestion that something so lowly as the material could offer any allure to beings so pure as themselves, urge Ha-Shem to offer them the opportunity to prove themselves. Ha-Shem obliges, sending two of these spiritual beings to earth in physical form.

What follows? “The Sons of Eloh-im saw that the daughters of Man were good, and they took for themselves wives from whomever they chose” (ibid 6:2). According to Rashi, these “Sons of Eloh-im” were, “the ministers who act in the agency of the Lord,” i.e. Ha-Shem’s spiritual ministers who had been sent to the earthly realm. According to mystical tradition, the “daughters of Man,” here mean not merely women of the human persuasion, but the actual daughters of Adam, i.e. the two sisters of Hevel. Ha-Shem tests those spiritual ministers who criticized Kayin’s actions with the exact same stimulus that led Kayin himself to commit his jealous murder. These spiritual beings too, now susceptible to material temptation, succumb to their newfound urge to take these woman as wives.

The visitors from the spiritual realm solicit the daughters of Adam for marriage. These holy women, not wanting to enter such an ill-conceived relationship, but knowing these beings hold the power to force the issue, concede, but on condition. The daughters of Adam stipulate that as these spiritual visitors hold the option to return to the heavenly realm at any time, they must teach these women the Name of G-d that would allow them to do the same in such an eventuality. The spiritual beings comply, teach them the Name, and immediately the daughters of Adam use the Name to ascend to the heavenly realm before any union can be realized. While the spiritual ministers remain below, wreaking the havoc that the Almighty predicted, these holy women remain above, seeking asylum from these destructive creatures.

According to mystical tradition, many generations later, during the ascendance of the Pharaohs of Egypt, these two women are brought back into the earthly realm, one as Bisyah, daughter of Pharoah, the other as Tziporah, daughter of Yisro. At that time as well, the souls of Kayin and Hevel are brought back into the world as Korach and Moshe, respectively. The daughter of Pharoah, one of Hevel’s former wives, rescues Hevel, now Moshe, from the Nile River and raises him as a son. Moshe later marries Tziporah, also his wife during his previous incarnation.

As Moshe achieves ascendency over Israel, the soul of Kayin, now Korach, undergoes the same trial of spirit to overcome his jealousy that he failed during his first incarnation. Ha-Shem has granted Korach the opportunity to achieve rectification for his tainted soul, yet Korach tragically allows his millennia-old jealousy to overwhelm him, mounting a rebellion against the man that Ha-Shem has favored once again.

But how does this help us understand Korach’s shocking accusation against the humblest of all men?

According to Torah law, if a man dies childless, his brother should marry the widow in order to grant continuity to the deceased brother’s legacy. In the case of Kayin and Hevel, since Hevel died childless, the rights to marry Hevel’s wives belonged to Kayin. This was the substance of Korach’s accusation. As the reincarnation of Kayin, these rights now belonged to him! Tziporah, then, formerly the wife of Hevel, should be the rightful wife of Korach, not Moshe. Ergo, Moshe’s marriage to Tziporah constituted an adulterous relationship!

Korach erred in his calculation, however, his raging jealousy blinding him to the elementary precept that, “one cannot fulfill a commandment through transgression of another commandment.” Since Kayin’s obligation to marry Hevel’s wives only came about through the murder of Hevel, no such obligation actually took effect! In this case, Kayin had no legitimate claim to Hevel’s wives, nor did Korach have any legitimate right to marry Tziporah. Moshe escapes any calumny laid upon him by Korach, while Korach must face the consequences of his missteps once again.

We can now gain a deeper appreciation of Korach’s bizarre demise. “The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them” (B’Midbar 16:32). Why was this the form of Korach’s destruction? Remember the words of the Almighty to Kayin after the murder of Hevel: “The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the earth! And now you are accursed from the earth that opened its mouth to take your brother’s blood from your hand!” Just as the earth opened its mouth to absorb Kayin’s original sin, so would the earth open its mouth again to claim the perpetrator of that sin. And indeed, according to mystical tradition, the place where the earth “opened its mouth” to swallow Korach was the same exact spot where Kayin had murdered Hevel millennia earlier.

The Torah instructs us not to be like Korach and his assembly. Korach’s character flaws plagued him not only through two lifetimes, but for all eternity. Our Sages teach us that Korach remains forever suspended in the endless chasm born of his reticence to accept reproof for his recalcitrance, eternally declaring his regret. Learning not from his errors, he doomed himself to repeat them. Let us not be like Korach. Let us assert ourselves in a genuine effort to perfect our character, and instead of the legacy of strife left behind by Korach, may we merit to bring a legacy of everlasting peace to our world, to our posterity, and to all Israel.

Chizkiyah was a Vegetarian!

We read in Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 38:1-5:

"In those days, Chizkiyahu (Hezekiah) became deathly ill. Yeshayahu ben Amotz the prophet came to him and said to him, 'Thus said Ha-Shem, 'Command your household, for you shall die and you shall not live.'' Chizkiyahu turned his face to the wall ('el ha-kir') and prayed to Ha-Shem. He said, 'Please, Ha-Shem, remember, please, that I walked before You truthfully and wholeheartedly, and I did that which was good in Your eyes!' Chizkiyahu cried a great cry. The word of Ha-Shem came to Yishayahu saying, 'Go and say to Chizkiyahu, 'Thus said Ha-Shem, the G-d of David your father, 'I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears. I hereby add to your days fifteen years.'''"

The Talmud (Berachoth 10B) discusses the relevance of Scripture relating that Chizkiyahu turned "to the wall" in prayer. Would it not have been sufficient to relate simply the nature of his prayer and not his orientation? The Talmud offers a number of explanations, including that the meaning is that he prayed "from the walls (i.e. depths) of his heart." Rabbi Yoseph Chayim of Baghdad (1832-1909), in his classic commentary Ben Yehoyada, adds an additional explanation:

"The word 'kir,' meaning 'wall,' is comprised of the same Hebrew letters as the word 'yerek,' meaning, 'vegetables.' King Chizkiyah (may he rest in peace) ate vegetables every day instead of meat. He therefore turned himself to the wall and prayed for himself so that the Holy One Blessed is He would remember this pious act of eating vegetables ('yerek'), which has the same letters as 'kir' ('wall') and He would answer his prayer."

So not only did Chizkiyahu's "piety" of vegetarianism save him from deathly illness, it added fifteen years to his life! This is one point I have not yet seen the in the literature of the vegetarian lobby.

Pesach: A New Beginning

The prophet Yechezkel (Ezekiel) declared:

“And as for you birth, on the day you were born your umbilical cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water to smooth [your skin], nor were you salted, nor were you swaddled… Then I passed you and saw you wallowing in your bloods, and I said to you, ‘By your bloods shall you live;’ I said to you, ‘By your bloods shall you live.”[1]

Rashi explains “the day you were born” to refer to “when I (Ha-Shem) chose you in Egypt,” when Israel had yet no merits to warrant their redemption, like a new-born child not yet groomed. However, “by your bloods shall you live” – by two acts of shedding blood was Israel redeemed from Egypt, the blood of the Pesach sacrifice and the blood of circumcision.[2]

Why did the prophet choose the metaphor of birth to describe the events of the Exodus from Egypt? Was the choice merely poetic, or do the prophet’s words reveal a deeper reality? Furthermore, why specifically do these two merits form the impetus for the Redemption?

R. Shimshon Pincus z”l,[3] explains that the order of Jewish holidays forms a spiritual ladder that the Jew climbs over the cycle of the year from lowest to highest level of spiritual growth and closeness to the Almighty. This ladder parallels the lifecycle of the human being. Each successive festival, or rung on the ladder, corresponds to a different stage of life, from the earliest and least developed, to a stage of full maturity that is the climax of spiritual development.

Pesach, then, as the first rung on the ladder,[4] corresponds to the birth of the human being. Shavuos, the time our people received the Torah and became bound by its commandments, corresponds to the time of the bar mitzvah, when the individual becomes bound by the commandments. Sukos, the time we remember the Almighty’s act of surrounding our people with protective clouds, corresponds to the time of one’s marriage, when a bride comes under the chupah, the protective canopy of her groom. Purim, the final festival of the Jewish year, corresponds to the apex of one’s spiritual development and closeness with the Almighty.

Let us examine how Pesach parallels the birth of a human being:

• Yaakov (Jacob) and his sons descend to Egypt as a small nomadic group of a mere “seventy souls.”[5] There this seeding of Israelites takes root and begins a rapid multiplication until it reaches the critical mass of a whole nation.[6] Similarly, an introduction of human seed into the nurturing environment of the womb catalyzes a process of rapid cellular reproduction resulting in the formation of a new and independent life. In fact, the Torah describes Egypt as “the private part of the earth,”[7] the place the seed must enter to produce new life.
• Shir ha-Shirim (the Song of Songs) describes Egypt as the “mother” of Israel.[8]
• Prior to the Exodus, Egypt experiences its own set of “birthpangs” as ten devastating plagues rack the mighty empire, each bringing the fledgling nation of Israel closer to its ultimate freedom, when the new nation would burst forth from its “mother” country.
• The Ten Plagues take place over the course of nine months, as each plague lasts one week, with Moshe warning Pharaoh for three weeks before the onset of the next plague. The tenth plague, the Slaying of the First-born, takes place in a single night, hence from the onset of the plague of Blood to the ultimate Exodus, the day following the midnight slaying of the first-born, nine months transpire, the same as the gestation period of a human child!
• The final plague itself, the final contraction that ejected the nation of Israel from its host mother, revolves around the birth event - the Plague of the First-born!
• Just as a new-born Jewish child undergoes circumcision, the new-born Jewish nation underwent a mass circumcision upon their Exodus from Egypt.[9]

Indeed Jewish ritual law also reflects this new-born quality of Israel. The Almighty issues to the Children of Israel their first national commandment with the onset of Nisan, the month of the Exodus. “This month is for you the first of months; it is first for you for the months of the year.”[10] With the Exodus, we mark the beginning of a new national clock. Like a new-born child, time for us begins now.

In the terminology of our Sages, chametz euphemistically represents the Evil Inclination.[11] With the arrival of a new-born baby, a family will thoroughly clean and sterilize its home to protect the baby from elements against which its yet undeveloped immune system remains vulnerable. Similarly, in the wake of Pesach we thoroughly clean and sterilize our homes, eliminating this spiritually harmful element, chametz, from the environs of our fledgling nation.

Likewise, a new-born eats a highly specialized type of food containing the essential nutrients for its early growth and development (mother’s milk). So too the special food of Pesach, the matzah, contains the most essential nutrient for a Jew’s early stages – as the opposite of chametz it constitutes the antithesis of the Evil Inclination – indeed a valuable spiritual vitamin to feed the Jew from his earliest days.

The commandment to Israel to redeem their first-born, issued at this time,[12] like the Plague of the First-born mentioned above, further highlights the issue of birth in a great declaration by the Almighty that, “My son, My first-born, is Israel!”[13]

But did the Exodus merely mark the birth of something “new” as in young in age, or did it bring about the creation of a nation completely unique and distinct from any nation that had come before? Indeed our tradition teaches that this birth was not merely generative but transformative, an evolution in the annals of mankind. What was the nature of this transformation?

Let us examine the commandment of the Pesach offering for a clue. In the past, such as during the time of the Patriarchs Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov, all sacrifices offered to the Almighty were burnt-offerings (olos), meaning offerings completely burned upon the altar, with no part left over for human consumption. After all, this animal, as a gift to G-d, certainly held too much sanctity for benefit by mere mortals! For a lowly human being to partake of such a lofty offering would constitute an insult to the Almighty!

However, the commandment to offer the Pesach sacrifice introduces a shocking change – the owner of the animal must eat from the sacrifice! Not only must one eat, but should one not eat, one incurs the harshest penalty offered for any crime in the Torah – spiritual excision (kares), the expurgation of one’s soul from among the Jewish people!

While many transgressions in the Torah carry this penalty, only two positive commandments carry this punishment for their non-performance – the Pesach offering and circumcision. What is the meaning of this sudden change? What is the connection between these two strict commandments?

The novel mandate to share in an offering to the Divine demonstrates that with Pesach our nature has altered. With the consumption the Pesach sacrifice and performance of circumcision the Jew undergoes a spiritual and physical transformation. We are no longer human; we are something greater. “And I said to you, ‘By your bloods shall you live;’ and I said to you, ‘By your bloods shall you live.’” Without these two merits, one has not graduated from mundane humanity to the exalted status of the Israelite, of a nation attached to the Divine.

Of course, today, in the absence of the Holy Temple in which to offer the Pesach sacrifice, we offer our Pesach Seder in its place, concluding with the words, “As we have merited to arrange it [in facsimile], so may we merit to perform it [in actuality].” Let us seize the opportunity that Pesach affords, realize our special potential as Jews, and begin anew our journey to reach the highest of spiritual heights and closeness to the Almighty.

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[1] Yechezkel 16:4-6. Translation based on Artscroll Stone Edition Tanach.

[2] Rashi ad loc. See also Rashi to Shemos (Exodus) 12:6

[3] Lecture on Purim

[4] Rosh ha-Shanah 4A explains that Pesach is the “rosh ha-shanah,” or “beginning of the year” regarding the cycle of festivals.

[5] Shemos 1:5; see also B’Reshis (Genesis) 46:27

[6] Shemos 1:7; see also B’Reshis 47:27

[7] B’Reshis 42:9, 12

[8] Shir ha-Shirim 1:6, Rashi ad loc.

[9] Rashi to Shemos 12:6, Yehoshua (Joshua) 5:2 and Yechezchel 16:6

[10] Shemos 12:2

[11] See Berachos 17A and Rashi ad loc s.v. “seor she-ba-isah"

[12] Shemos 13:2,11-15

[13] Ibid 4:22