The Stone Demon

Posted on Monday, 28, February, 2022Tuesday, 20, September, 2022 by Rabbi

Once there was a religious man who while clearing his field found a hidden underground room which was closed by a fine and handsome piece of marble. He took the stone and brought it into his house in order to use it.

One day the stone said to him: “If you take me from this place and clean me and polish me and place me in a clean spot within your house, I shall tell you how you can get a lot of money.” So what did the man do? He took the stone and placed it in a clean spot within his house. Then the stone said to him: “Go to the place that I tell you and there you will find your friend who is bringing his donkeys with him loaded with gold and silver. On the way there is a big pit into which he will fall. If you go out to meet him and help him, and he will give you a handsome amount of money.”

The man went to the place of which the stone had told him. There he found his friend in the pit, he helped him out, and his friend gave him a lot money, and the man returned home very cheerfully with the money. On the third day the stone called the man and said to him: “If you light one candle before me, I shall give you much more money than that.”

When the man heard this, he realized that the stone must be a demon that wished to lead him astray. He took his hammer and was about to smash the stone, but a demon came out of it and said to him: “If you do not smash this stone, I shall give you wealth beyond measure.” “Even if you were to give me all the money in the world,” answered the man, “I shall not rest until I smash this stone.”

When the demon saw that the man was G-d-fearing and would not accept his offer, he fled, and the man smashed the stone. And the Holy One, blessed be He gave him his reward. When he dug in his field a year later, he found a great treasure there.

When the sages heard this, they said: “He fulfills the wishes of those who fear Him” (Psalm 145:19).

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

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The Haunted Lyra: A Jewish Tale from Greece

Posted on Wednesday, 15, December, 2021Tuesday, 20, September, 2022 by Rabbi

There was a carpenter in the city of Salonika who was called upon by the chevra kadisha to make a coffin for a man who had died. When the coffin was finished, there was one board left over. The carpenter decided that the wood was so fine and beautiful that he would use it to carve a lyra. That night, however, he had a dream in which the dead man for whom he had made the coffin came to him and warned him not to fashion the wood into a musical instrument. The carpenter recalled this dream when he awoke, but paid no attention to it, as he did all dreams.

That day he started to carve the lyra. He worked very slowly, perfecting it over a period of weeks. When he was finished, he saw that the lyra was very well made indeed, and he was proud of himself. He polished the wood and strung the lyra and looked forward to the time that he might play it once he had made a bow. That night the dead man came back to him in a dream and again warned him not to play the lyra. But upon waking, the carpenter again ignored the dream.

That day he carved the bow and polished its wood until it shone like that the lyra. It was late at night when the bow was finished, so he decided not to try it out until the next day. That night the dead man came back to him once again, and said he was warning him for the last time not to play the lyra. But when the carpenter awoke, the first thing he did was to pick up the lyra and run the bow across its strings.

A haunting melody rose up, as if on its own, and no sooner had he played but a single song than the room grew dark, “and there was a thick darkness” (Exodus 10:22). The darkness was twice and twice again thicker than the darkness of any other night. The carpenter ran to the window, opened it in confusion, and peered outside, “”And lo, and dread, a darkness, a great one, fell upon him” (Genesis 15:12).

Suddenly a great force from behind, like invisible hands, shoved him out the window. Before he knew it, the carpenter found himself tumbling down, and an instant later he plunged into something soft and treacherous, like mud. With horror he realized it was quicksand, relentlessly sucking him under the earth. It had already reached his arms when he understood how imminent his danger was, and he thrashed about wildly, but it was too late. The quicksand dragged him under as he drew his last breath.

The son of the carpenter found his father’s body lying on the floor of his workshop, a lyra in his hands. That night the same dead man who had warned his father came to the son in a dream and revealed all that had happened and told him “He that mocks the poor insults his Maker” (Proverbs 17:5).

The very next day the son burned the lyra, and as it went up in flames, he heard the voice of the carpenter crying out as if from a great distance. Then he knew that somewhere his soul was no longer tortured.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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The Groom Who Was Destined to Die on His Wedding Day: A tale from the Beta Yisrael

Posted on Wednesday, 17, November, 2021Tuesday, 20, September, 2022 by Rabbi

It is well known that babies cry from the moment they are born. Why? Because the angel in charge of birth tells them when they are destined to die. For a person’s fate is sealed from the time of his birth, and the circumstances of his death are already known.

Now one night, just as a baby was born, the angel told him, “You will die from a snake bite on the day of your wedding.” As soon as the baby heard this, he broke into loud cries. While most babies quickly forget what the angel told them, this baby remembered. As he began to speak, he told his parents what the angel had said. After that, his parents were afraid to let him marry, out of fear that he would die on the day of his wedding.

Years passed, the child grew, and his older brothers had all been married, and the young man also wanted to marry. He too wanted to marry, but every time he spoke to his parents, they discouraged him, reminding him of what the angel had said. The young man wanted the happiness of his married brothers and when his parents saw that he would not give up the idea of marriage, they approached a wise elder and asked for his advice. He told them: “Your son can marry on condition that you wrap him from head to foot in five sheep skins on the day of his wedding. And as you travel to the wedding be sure that his feet don’t touch the ground. Have his brothers carry him on a chair to his bride.”

So, it was that on the day of the wedding his parents wrapped the groom in five sheep skins, and his brothers carried him in a chair, so that his feet didn’t touch the ground. Then, as they traveled to the house of the bride, a huge poisonous snake, hidden in a tree, suddenly dropped down and bit the foot of the groom, but it couldn’t bite through the thick sheep skins that covered him. His brothers quickly killed the snake and buried it under a large stone. After that they took the groom down from the chair, unwrapped the sheep skins, and he continued to the house of the bride by foot. The wedding ceremony took place in peace, and the bride and groom returned to his village, and everyone was greatly relieved that he had survived.

Many years passed. The groom’s brothers aged and died, his own children grew old and died, and even his grandchildren died of old age, but he kept on living. He was so old he couldn’t speak, and he could barely stand. His descendants saw that he was suffering, but they didn’t know what they could do for him. So, they went to one of the wise men of that generation and told him the story of how he had escaped death on his wedding day.

The sage said to them: “I heard this story from my father. Because he escaped death when he was fated to die, he cannot die at all.”

His descendants said, “What are we going to do? He is so old and is suffering so much.”

The sage told them: “You must find the place where the snake was buried and take the dust from there and mix it with water and let the old man drink it. Only then will he be able to die.”

The groom’s descendants went back to the big stone where the snake was buried, and they took dust from beneath it and mixed it with water and let the old man drink it. And right after that, he died.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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The Finger: An old Jewish Horror Tale

Posted on Sunday, 22, August, 2021Tuesday, 20, September, 2022 by Rabbi

The Jewish story that the movie, The Corpse Bride, was based on

One night long ago, in the ancient city of Safed, three young men went out for a walk. Reuven, the eldest, was to be married the next day to a beautiful and wealthy maiden, and his companions laughed and joked and teased their friend. The moon was full that night, and the young men decided to leave the beaten path and walk in the thick forest that surrounded the city.

The moonlight cast its light into the darkest parts of the forest, and they passed through it fearlessly. At last they reached the riverbank and rested on large rocks near the shore, while they watched the river below. Here they continued to make merry for they very light hearted.

It was during this time that one of them noticed something strange nearby. It was an object the size of a finger that stuck out of the earth. They got up to examine it, assuming it was a root. But when they came closer, they saw to their amazement that is was indeed a finger that emerged there.

Now on a different night the young men might have felt pity for one buried so near the surface. But filled with high spirits, they joked about it instead. One of them said who among us will put a wedding ring on this finger?” And Reuven, the groom-to-be, quickly replied that it must be he, because he was to be the first one to marry. Then, as his friends looked on in amusement, Reuven took off his ring and slipped it on that finger, pronouncing as he did the words Harai at m’kudeshes li-“You are betrothed to me”-three times, as the law requires. But no sooner did he finish speaking than the finger began to twitch, much to the horror of the young men, who jumped back at the sight.

Suddenly the whole hand reached out from the earth, twitching and grasping. And as they stared at it in horror, frozen in place, the ground began to rumble, as if the earth were about to open. Suddenly the body of a woman, wearing a tattered shroud, rose out of the earth, her dead eyes staring directly into those of Reuven, her arms open as she cried out, “My husband!” in a terrible and terrifying voice. Hearing this, the three friends screamed in horror and took to their heels, running through the forest as fast they could go. But this time the way was dark, for the moon had slipped behind a cloud, and as they ran they tore their clothes on thorns and branches, but never did they stop running or even dare to look back until they had reached their homes in the city. For all the time they ran they heard the unearthly wail of the dead woman close behind. Only when they were safely in their own homes, with the doors locked and the windows shuttered, did they dare breathe a sigh of relief and tend to the many cuts they had acquired in their wild dash through the forest.

The next morning the three friends met together, still pale and shaken. And they agreed to keep the horrible events of the night a secret, for they were deeply ashamed of their jest and its terrible consequences. Then Reuven went to the ritual bath to prepare for the wedding and left his friends alone with their confused thoughts.

Now a great many people had gathered, for Reuven and his bride belonged to two of the most distinguished families in Safed. But just as the ceremony was about to begin, a bloodcurdling shriek came from the back of the crowd, followed by the screams of many others, provoking a panic. For there stood the corpse of a woman wearing only a worm-eaten shroud. Most of the crowd-including the bride and the families of the bride and groom-ran away when they saw her, until none were left there except for Reuven and the rabbi, who had been about to pronounce the wedding vows.

The rabbi, alone among all of those present, retained his composure. He addressed himself to the corpse and said, “Why is it, woman, that you have left your final resting place and returned to the living?” And the corpse replied, in her unearthly voice:

And she held up her hand, on which the ring of the bridegroom could be seen, with his initials engraved on it. Then the rabbi turned to the bridegroom, who was crouched in terror behind him, and asked if what the woman said was true. In a trembling voice the young man told of his walk through the forest with his friends and of the jest they had played when they had found the finger sticking out of the earth. And the rabbi asked, “Did you pronounce the sacred vow three times?” The young man meekly nodded. And the rabbi asked, “Was it done in the presence of two witnesses?” Again Reuven nodded. Then the rabbi looked very grave and said that the rabbinic court would have to be convened to discuss the matter, for in the eyes of the law it appeared that the young man had indeed bound himself to that corpse in matrimony. When the bridegroom heard these terrible words, he fainted dead away and had to be carried off to his home.

In the days that followed, the city of Safed was in an uproar, for who had ever heard of a living man marrying a corpse? And the parents of Reuven begged the rabbi to find a way to free their son from the terrible curse. As for the rabbi, he immersed himself in meditation and in the study of response, searching for a precedent. But there was none; instead one would have to be set. On the day the court was convened, the rabbi called upon the corpse to appear, and she did so, still wearing the worm-eaten shroud in which she had been buried. Under oath she told what young Reuven had done in the forest. Then the rabbi called upon the two friends, who reluctantly confirmed what she said. At last the rabbi called upon the bridegroom, who also confessed that the vow had been made, but pleaded with the court to annul the marriage, for he had never intended for it to happen.

Then the court addressed the dead woman and asked her if she would relinquish her claim, but the corpse was adamant that the marriage must be consummated. For while she had lived she had never married and had thus been denied her hour of joy. And she was determined to receive after death what she had been denied in life.

Then the rabbi called upon the parents of the bridegroom, who testified that the betrothal of their son to the daughter of the wealthy man had been made even before the birth of the children. The two couples had vowed that if one had a boy child and one a girl, then they were to be wed. And the parents of the bride confirmed this vow.

Finally, when all the testimony had been taken, the court gathered together to discuss the case, while young Reuven trembled, his eyes avoiding the terrible corpse that also stood waiting among them. At last the court reached a decision, which the rabbi announced. He said, “It is true that in the presence of two witnesses, Reuven unwittingly made a vow of marriage that appears to be valid.” Here the rabbi paused, and the young man and his parents were filled with terror. Then the rabbi continued, “There are, however, other factors that must be considered. First, the wedding vow would deny the betrothal, and it is widely known that one vow may not be permitted to negate an earlier one. Second, the vow of the bridegroom was not made with intention. Finally, there is no precedent for a claim on the living by the dead. Therefore the vows cannot be accepted as valid, because the bride is not from among the living. The marriage is thus declared null and void!”

Now when the rabbi uttered these words, young Reuven fainted again, this time from relief. But the corpse, having lost her chance to wed either in life or in death let forth an ear-shattering shriek which pierced the souls of all those assembled there and filled their hearts with horror. Then she collapsed upon the ground and became again as one of the dead.

When those assembled had at last calmed down, the rabbi gave orders to have the corpse reburied, with proper ritual and at a greater depth, so that such a tragedy would never happen again. And after her burial the rabbi called upon the parents of the true bride to fulfill the vow they had made before their daughter had been born and to complete the wedding ceremony, which had been so terribly interrupted. This was done and at last the wedding of Reuven and his true bride took place.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

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The Groom and the Beast – A Jewish Tale from old Cairo

Posted on Tuesday, 10, August, 2021Tuesday, 20, September, 2022 by Rabbi

There once was a wealthy man and wife who longed, more than anything else, to have a child of their own. Over the years they had tried every known remedy in order to conceive, including potions of every kind, but still the couple was without children. Now the man, who was a merchant, heard from others that there was a wise old man among the Jews, whose name was Elijah, who could help them have a child. And when they had exhausted every other means, the merchant and his wife went to the Jewish Quarter of Cairo and sought out the old man.

They found that Elijah lived in an almost empty hut in the poorest part of the quarter. He possessed nothing except for the robe he wore and a prayer book. The merchant and his wife wondered to themselves how such a poor man could be of help to them. Still, they were desperate, so they told the old man how much they longed to have a child, and they offered to pay him whatever he asked if he could help them. Elijah said, “What do you want, a son or a daughter?” The merchant replied, “More than anything else in the world, I want to have a son of my own.” Then Elijah told them to bring him pen and paper, and when they did, he wrote out an amulet, using holy names. He told them to place that amulet in a cup of wine and for both of them to drink from that cup, and in nine months’ time they would have a son of their own.

Somehow the quiet confidence of Elijah soothed the pair and gave them hope. Then the merchant said, “We will always be grateful if what you have said comes true. Tell me, how can I repay you?” Elijah replied, “Do nothing for now. But when the child is born, make a donation in the charity box of the synagogue on the corner of this street, which serves the poorest Jewish people. That will suffice.” Then the merchant and his wife thanked him many times, and turned to go. But before they left, the old man said, “Wait. There is one more thing that I must tell you.” The merchant and his wife turned back, wondering what it was. And Elijah said, “The son that will be born to you is not destined to be wed. He must remain unmarried all his life. For it is written that on the night he weds, he will be devoured by a beast!”

As they heard this prophecy, the high hopes of the couple were suddenly shaken. They stood silent, but at last the merchant said, “Is there nothing we can do to spare our child this terrible fate?” And the old man answered, “No, I am sorry to say. All that you can do is avoid making any match for him, and when he is old enough to understand, explain that it is his destiny to remain unwed.” And the merchant and his wife assured Elijah that they would heed his warning, and that if indeed they were blessed with a son, they would see to it that he was never betrothed. Then they took their leave, but this time they were much more solemn.

When they returned home the merchant placed the amulet that Elijah had written into a silver goblet and filled it with his finest wine, a bottle that had been saved since he had been born. The merchant and his wife drank from the goblet, one sip at a time, until it was empty. That is when they discovered that the amulet had dissolved into the wine; not a trace of it was to be found. And when the couple saw this, they sensed that the prophecy of the old man would indeed come true, and they would become parents. But they did not think about his admonition.

To their mutual delight the merchant’s wife soon found that she was with child, and at the end of nine months she gave birth to a beautiful boy, and the merchant and his wife felt they had been greatly blessed. The merchant did not forget his promise to Elijah to give money to the synagogue for the poor. He gave them a great donation, enough to sustain them for a full year. But he did not dwell on the warning of the old man, for the time his son would think of marriage was far off.

In the years that followed, the man and his wife raised their son with loving care, for he was more precious to them than anything in the world. From time to time a marriage was proposed for him, for such early betrothals were the custom. The boy’s parents always turned down these offers, giving one excuse or another, but never, of course, the true reason. The day came, however, when the young man himself informed his parents that he wished to be wed. The parents argued long into the night about whether to tell him the prophecy of the old man. In the end they decided not to, and instead made up their minds to see to it that the boy was indeed wed, but under circumstances that would protect him from every danger. Now in his travels the merchant had once come into possession of a small island in a distant sea. That island was uninhabited by man or beast, and the merchant thought it would be the perfect place to have the wedding. Therefore, once the match had been made, the merchant saw to it that a fine mansion was built on that island, surrounded with a large stone wall that would protect his son from every kind of danger. So too did he have guards posted to guard the mansion day and night.

One year later, when the time for the wedding had arrived, the merchant was informed that the mansion was ready. Then the merchant had his finest sailing ship outfitted and brought both families on board, along with the bride and groom and many guests. (Of course the bride and groom were never permitted to glimpse each other, as was the custom.) The voyage was a time of great rejoicing, and the merchant and his wife never dwelt on the prophecy of the old man. For they felt that they had done everything possible to protect their son from danger.

When the ship docked at last on that lovely island, all expressed wonder and delight. The sand of the beaches was pure white, and there were fruit trees of every kind, as well as wild grapes and berries. So too were all the guests astonished at the extravagant mansion. It was constructed of marble, like a palace, and the chamber of the bride and groom was set at the top of a spiral tower. There, the merchant felt sure, his son would be safe.

The wedding festivities continued for three days and nights before the vows were finally said. It was then that the merchant’s son saw his bride for the first time. She was astonishingly beautiful, with raven hair that reached to her waist, and the young man felt himself to be the most fortunate groom in the world. At last he and his bride climbed the stairs to the tower together and stood on the threshold of the bridal chamber. The young man led his bride inside and closed the door. As he gazed at her he was filled with awe at her beauty. He admired especially her hands, with their fine, slender fingers and long nails. He smiled shyly at her, but she seemed afraid to lift her eyes from the floor. When at last she did, the young man was astonished to see a look of wild desire in them unlike anything he had ever seen. When he stepped forward to embrace her, he suddenly heard a low growl. The young man looked around in confusion, wondering where it could have come from. He turned back just in time to see the fangs of the beast as it leaped at him from the very place his bride had been.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

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The Story of the Speaking Head: Part II Trap Sprung and the Escape

Posted on Thursday, 17, June, 2021Tuesday, 20, September, 2022 by Rabbi

Part II Trap Sprung and the Escape

Now let us return to the young bridegroom in the tower. When he entered this last little room with the books he had no more than crossed the threshold when the man abandoned him; and as the door closed behind him, he heard a voice, sighing: “Alack and alas, you have also been tricked like me, you unhappy one. Now that you have come here you will never depart alive.” The boy was struck dumb with horror, wondering whose voice that could be. He raised his eyes and saw a very old head, just a head unattached to any body. It was this head that spoke to him.

The head went on: “Whom do you have here? A bride, a mother-in-law or a father-in-law? Where are they? This is the abode of Lilith of the other side, a place of impurity. All those your eyes have seen are merely snares of the soul who wish to make an end of the world, and here there is nothing but images and witchcraft.”

The head went on: “I also was a child prodigy, and in the best years of my youth they lured me into this trap and caught me in their net to serve them as a mouthpiece before God. They have unholy names from the idols that belong to Jeroboam ben Nebat, who caused Israel to sin. Once in eighty years they cut off the head of a child prodigy who is the first-born son of a first-born. They do this when he is thirteen years and a day old, then they place the unholy names under his tongue, and he declares the things that are to come hereafter (Isaiah 41:23) and forecasts the future for them. Now the years of my slavery are over, and they have taken you instead. Look around and see how they have prepared wine for a libation; and the many lights that are burning in the room are only for me.”

Terrified and trembling, the lad heard all this, then he girded up his strength and asked the head: “If you have told me all this, then please tell me now what I should do? Is there any remedy for me?” “There is nothing better for you,” answered the head, “than to flee for your soul through this window. If you do not flee for your life tonight, you will be slain tomorrow and placed at my post instead of me. I advise you, and may the Lord be your aid, that when you jump through the window you take me in your arms so that I can tell you what road to take. For otherwise you will not be safe. Understand that if I am not with you, then if one of those men comes and asks me where you are, I must tell him at once where he can find you. So if you will listen to me, you will do wisely.

The boy swore this to him. Then he opened the window and jumped out, carrying the severed head. They flew high above the castle and escaped away. The boy was frightened; from time to time the head declared, “Now we are here, at such and such a place, start running fast, for those who would trap your soul have just come to look for you.”

Let us return now to share in the grief of the townsfolk with their master and rabbi, whose soul was weeping in secret before the all-saving Lord. The day came when the rabbi proclaimed a fast for the congrega¬tion. All the townsfolk, men, women and children, came to the syna¬gogue, which is called the Altneuschul. There the rabbi ordered that they should all recite the First Book of Psalms, and they all repeated the songs of David with full devotion. After they completed the book, the rabbi said, “The boy has not yet returned, and therefore, my masters and rabbis, I shall preach a moralizing sermon and words of reproof to you.” The rabbi said everything with such spiritual force, all the people were moved and their prayers uplifted. Then he ordered the congre¬gation to recite the Second Book of Psalms. When they had ended it, he looked this way and that but the lad was not there, so he preached once again as before. Then he recited the Third Book of Psalms himself before the Holy Ark, verse by verse, as is done by the leader of the community in prayer; and he blew the shofar (ram’s horn). As the blast came to an end, the window of the synagogue opened by itself, and the boy flew in and stood before his teacher, and all the people saw this and trembled at the sight.

Then the boy told the entire congregation all that had befallen him and showed the head that was with him to the rabbi. Then the rabbi cried in a loud voice, “Yet heaven brought this about in order to take the pure out of the clutches of the impure and to save more souls of Israel for whom they have been lying in wait forever. Now I have taken all those unholy names from them.” With that, he removed the names from under the tongue of the head, and tore them into little pieces. He promised the head in the presence of the entire congregation to pray for hi holy soul, bury him and say the Kaddish prayer for his soul. And he did so.

There are some who say that on the night when the rabbi prayed for the return of the captive soul of this boy, his deceased grandfather came and bore him on his shoulders past villages and forests the great distance of a whole month’s journey, in a single night, until he came home in peace. All this came about due to the prayers of the holy rabbi.

Noraos Anshe Ma’asseh #1

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

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The Story of the Speaking Head – Part I The Betrothal and Concern

Posted on Monday, 14, June, 2021Tuesday, 20, September, 2022 by Rabbi

Part I The Betrothal and Concern

In the days of the MaHaRaL (Rabbi Loew ben Bezalel) of Prague, a very wealthy merchant lived in that community. He had a son who was a prodigy as a student, and when he was only twelve years old, he was one of the outstanding pupils of the rabbi, who treated him like a son. Now among the foreign merchants who did business with this wealthy man there were two who always purchased large quantities of goods through him and enabled him to make much profit. When they came to do their business, they entertained themselves with this bright boy as long as they were in the city, and from time to time they gave him gifts because his answers so pleased them; and his father paid no attention to this.

Once when they were at ease with the wealthy merchant and were on very friendly terms with the boy, one of the two magnates asked the merchant whether he would be prepared to entertain a pleasant hope and would consider an excellent match for his son with the daughter of a very wealthy person. She was his only child and she was outstanding in looks, behavior and wisdom. Since her father had no other child, she would inherit all his wealth and property; and who will share all these treasures if not the son of the proud merchant if only he wedded her.

The merchant set out to make inquiries about this wealthy man with only one daughter, and people told him that indeed he had gold and riches. He also learned that the foreign longed to wed his daughter to a man who devoted himself to the Torah and holy study. Yet not all this quieted his mind; he sought the counsel of the holy MaHaRaL of Prague who taught his son. The rabbi spoke in favor of the match, saying that it would be a fit and proper one for him to make.

When he returned home, the two merchants asked him whether he had made all due inquiries. He answered what was on his mind. Then one of the merchants went on: “In that case, you should know that I myself am the very person whose praises from afar resounded in your ears.” Without any delay, the two wealthy merchants went together with the boy’s father to the great rabbi, with whom the prospective bridegroom was studying. They shook hands and agreed on a marriage, as was the custom. They wrote an engagement contract and happily wished one another “Mazal Tov! Good luck), Mazal Tov” They made a feast and there was great rejoicing. The bridegroom delivered a beautifully reasoned dvar Torah – a Torah lesson.

The two wealthy merchants agreed to stay a few days longer, entertaining themselves with the bridegroom. When their time came to depart, they requested his father to send the boy with them so that he could also be introduced to the bride and her mother. He was reluctant to do so. He was anxious to send his beloved son such a great distance away from him before the wedding. The merchants strongly encouraged him, and the bride’s father, begged him to do this for the sake of his wife and only daughter, in order that they might see this precious choice with their own eyes. He could not harden his heart any more, and he went to ask the advice of the rabbi, who also agreed that the bridegroom might be sent there and stay until he was thirteen years old. So the bridegroom’s father consented and gave them his son, and they parted in peace.

The men set out on their way and brought the boy to a distant land where there was a big tower. They conducted him through all the rooms, and each of them was more splendid than the other. He went all over the tower and could see no people, especially neither the bride nor her mother. He had imagined that the rabbi and the leaders of the city would come to meet him and debate with him in Torah, but nothing happened. The door of the castle was locked, and no one appeared except the man who said he was the father of the bride. He visited and conversed with the boy two or three times a day.

At long last, the boy could not restrain himself and asked him, “Why is it that I do not see anybody or anything in the house?” Then the man took him by the hand and led him through one room after another until they came to a small room that was very brightly lit up and was full of ancient books and the works of early and recent authorities. “What more do you want, my son?” he asked. “Here are precious books. Study whatever you wish as much as you desire.”

Now let us pause a while and turn from what befell this darling youth and tell of the distress of his father. The father his only son so greatly and found in him the desire of all his soul and the life of his spirit. Every day he would wait to receive a letter from his beloved son, but none came. Weeks turned to months and his hopes were futile, for neither letter nor message came from his son. He raised his eyes aloft and wept bitterly countless times before the rabbi, who put heart into him and gave him ample hope, saying that all was well with the child. In spite of the rabbi’s assurances, the father could not calm himself and was torn with grief. Many people who knew the father were outraged and in their hearts complained about the rabbi, because he had agreed to it all.

Indeed, the grief and heartbreak of the father and mother are beyond description. They looked miserable, they could not sleep, and they cried constantly. The rabbi could not rest either; he prayed and entreated the Holy One, blessed be He all the time and grew restless with his effort. He was very angry with himself for having made such an error, and he shook the very foundations of the heavens with fasting, weeping and prayer.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

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The Kishefmacher’s Knife

Posted on Wednesday, 28, April, 2021Tuesday, 20, September, 2022 by Rabbi

There was a man in the city of Worms whose widowed mother died without leaving a will. Now he knew very well that she had been wealthy, and he searched everywhere in the house but he could not find where her fortune was hidden. The matter became an obsession to him. He searched through everything again and again. He looked between the pages of each and every book she owned. Nothing. Then he dug up the yard to a depth of three feet. Still nothing. After that, he began to tear out the floors, in case the money was hidden there. It was not. At last he realized that he simply could not find it on his own. So he decided to go to a kishefmacher for help.

Now this kishefmacher was famous for the power of her spells. She said, “Yes, yes, I can find it, if you are willing to pay the price—one half of the inheritance.”

The desperate man said, “One half is better than nothing.”

Then the kishefmacher said, “Good. Now you must leave, for no one can be present when I work my magic.” When he was gone, she took out a knife and said a spell over it. Then she hid the knife beneath her pillow and went to sleep.

That night the kishefmacher dreamed that a demon came to her who had a knife in his heart. The demon cried out to the kishefmacher, “Take the knife out of my heart!”

The kishefmacher said, “No! Not until you bring me this man’s mother, and she reveals where she hid the inheritance. Until then the knife will stay exactly where it is!” It woke her up, she felt beneath the pillow—, and the knife was gone. Feeling quite satisfied, she smiled to herself.

The next night the kishefmacher dreamed that the same demon came back to her, the knife still in his heart. He was accompanied by a younger demon and the man’s mother. The young demon demanded, “Take the knife out of my father’s heart!”

“No,” the kishefmacher yelled, “Not until she reveals where she hid her fortune.”

“That I will never do!” the woman said.” Why not?” asked the kishefmacher. “After all, you are dead; what good will it do you now?” The woman replied, “If I had wanted him to know where the money was, I would have told him. I don’t want him to know.” With that, the dream came to end and the kishefmacher awoke. The knife was still gone.

The third night the demon came back, in the same company, the knife still in his heart. He looked feeble and unable to speak. His son spoke for him and begged the kishefmacher to remove the knife. The kishefmacher insisted she would not take it out until the woman revealed the secret. Then the demon’s son begged the woman to take heed of the suffering of his father and to speak, and at last she relented, saying, “To spare you any more suffering I will reveal this much, and this much only: the money is hidden in a box.” At that, the dream ended.

When the kishefmacher awoke, the first thing she did was to pronounce another spell. Then she put her hand beneath the pillow and found that the knife was there. In this way, she knew that the demon no longer had the knife in his heart. Then she hurried off to the home of the man and told him the hint she had wrenched out of his mother. This clue astonished him, because he had looked in all the boxes first, and several times thereafter, and he had found nothing. That is what he told the kishefmacher, and the kishefmacher replied, “Look in the boxes. When you find the inheritance, remember that half of it belongs to me.” She then turned and left.

Now the minute the kishefmacher went away, the man tore each and every box apart, and in this way he found one with a false bottom, with the fortune hidden beneath it.

Now that the hidden inheritance was his, the man decided to leave town at once, for he had no intention of sharing the money with the kishefmacher. This he did, and on the third day, the kishefmacher came back to his house and discovered that he was gone. She was not worried. That night she placed the knife under her pillow again.

A Jewish-German folktale from the Twelfth Century

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

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The Sin That Was Sold

Posted on Tuesday, 24, November, 2020Tuesday, 20, September, 2022 by Rabbi

There were two Jewish merchants who were good friends. They used to purchase all kinds of goods, and one of them was a very handsome man indeed. One day they heard that a certain noblewoman had many goods, which she had inherited, to sell. They went to her place to purchase whatever she had. Now she had never seen a Jewish person, and her family had told her only bad things about them. When she asked her servant about these visitors, he laughed at her, saying: “Your family were not honest with you. They are like other men and lack for nothing except that they have no homeland now.” When she heard this, she wished to see the visitors and went to the entrance. There she was very surprised seeing the handsome merchant, whose face seemed to brighten the whole room. So she sent for him and spoke to him, and she was amazed that he could speak her language. She thoroughly enjoyed talking to him, and the flame of desire for him burned within her.

Their business was concluded, the other merchant went to the neighboring villages in order to hire wagons for transporting the goods, while the handsome one with the noblewoman. That night she sent for him to dine with her. He came and enjoyed the food, wine and conversation. The noblewoman told him how she loved him, and gave him all his share of the goods as a gift. With the desires for wealth and for the noblewoman joined, and he could not resist them.

In the morning, his friend returned with the wagons, they loaded up the goods and went their way. While on the road the handsome merchant recalled what he had done and was very ashamed of himself. His friend asked him what was troubling him, but he put him off with various excuses. He wanted to ease the burden of his friend so he insisted on knowing the real reason his friend was troubled and at last, under his pressure the handsome man told the other what had happened. The friend tried to comfort him, but he was not prepared for consolation and wept for what he had done. When his friend saw that he refused to be comforted, he offered to purchase the transgressions from him. They shook hands on the sale and returned home; and the man who had purchased the transgression grew very wealthy and was prosperous in all he did.

In due course the wealthy merchant died; and when he appeared before the Heavenly Court to give a reckoning for his deeds, they included the sin of his friend among his own. The dead man appeared to his friend in a dream and summoned him for trial before a very holy rabbi.

The man was terrified and did not know what to answer; and the dead man appeared in his dreams nightly until he became very sick. Then the sick person begged his family to carry him in his bed to the holy rabbi. They did so, and he told the rabbi of the dreams.

The rabbi said to him: “Have no fear! When he comes to you again, tell him that the Torah ‘is not in heaven’ (Deut. 30:12), and if he wishes for a trial, let him come before me together with you.” The rabbi set a special time for this trial according to the Torah.

When that time came, he sent the synagogue attendant to the grave¬yard to summon the dead merchant. The dead man came together with the living; and a minyan (a group of ten men) gathered in the synagogue.

Then both the dead man and the living stated their arguments. The holy rabbi listened to both ever mindful. The holy rabbi spoke to the living man saying,” A sin’s beginning is sweet, but its end is bitter. (Ecclesiastes Rabbah 2:2) One must always remember that ‘No sin is so light that it may be overlooked; no sin is so heavy that it may not be repented of.’ (Shiras Yisrael, 12c) The matters before us today are indeed great, for the wealthy merchant only wanted to ease his friend’s pain.”

After a moment or two the holy rabbi continued, “Those who commit sin and do wrong are their own worst enemies. (Tobit 12:10) For this reason the living man was troubled down to his very core by his sinful behavior.” After listening to the two before him, the holy rabbi found that the words of the living man to be sincere and ruled against the dead merchant.

The holy rabbi concluded that, “Happy is he who repents while still a man (Avodah Zarah 19a) for had the living man carried his own sin, he would have repented it long ago.” The holy rabbi consoled the dead merchant saying that he would perform reparation for his soul and lighten his punishment.

When the rabbi had declared his judgment, the sound of loud weeping was heard; and in the spot where the dead man had stood there now appeared a large cloud of smoke.

Based on Adas Tzadikkim 41-5

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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The Haunted Fiddle

Posted on Friday, 30, October, 2020Tuesday, 20, September, 2022 by Rabbi

There was a carpenter in the city of Worms who was called upon to make a coffin. When the coffin was finished, there was one board left over. The carpenter decided to use it to carve a fiddle. That night, however, he had a dream in which the dead man for whom he had made the coffin came to him and warned him not to do so. The carpenter recalled this dream when he awoke, but dismissed it, as he believed “dreams are of no consequence.” (Gittin 52a)

That day he started to carve the fiddle. He proceeded very slowly, per¬fecting it over a period of weeks. When he was finished, he saw that the fiddle was very well made indeed, and he was proud of himself. He polished the wood and strung the fiddle and looked forward to the time that he might play it, once he had made a bow. That night the dead man came back to him in a dream and again warned him not to play the fiddle. But upon waking, the carpenter again dismissed the dream with the thought “the wheat without chaff, a new dream without nonsense.” (Berachos 55a)

That day he carved the bow and polished its wood until it shone like that of the fiddle. It was late at night when the bow was finished, so he decided not to try it out until the next day. That night the dead man came back to him once again, and said he was warning him for the last time not to play the fiddle. When the carpenter awoke, he was reminded that “divinations, soothsayings and dreams are vain.” (Ben Sira 34.5) He quickly picked up the fiddle and ran the bow across its strings. A haunting melody rose up, as if on its own, and no sooner had he played but a single melody than the room grew dark, as if the sun had been blotted out. The carpenter ran to the window, opened it in confusion, and peered outside, but the darkness was so deep he could not see anything.

Suddenly a great force from behind, like invisible hands, shoved him out the window. Before he knew it, the carpenter found himself tumbling down, and an instant later he plunged into something soft and treacherous, like mud. With horror he realized it was quicksand, relentlessly sucking him under the earth. It had already reached his arms when he understood how imminent was his danger, and he thrashed about wildly, but it was too late. The quicksand dragged him under as he drew his last breath.

The son of the carpenter found his father’s body lying on the floor of his workshop, a fiddle in his hands. That night the same dead man who had warned his father came to the son in a dream and revealed all that had happened. The very next day the son burned the fiddle. And as it went up in flames, he heard the voice of the carpenter crying out as if from a great distance. Then he knew that somewhere his soul was still being tortured.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

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