The Taste of the Garden of Eden

Posted on Thursday, 12, May, 2022 by Rabbi

Tam and Chacham were old friends and would frequently travel together to perform various mitzvos and to collect tzedakah for special causes. They both had many students and were repected everywhere they journeyed.

Once, Chacham went to the home of Tam to begin their journey to a faraway village, Tam, wanting everything to begin with a blessing, told his wife,Chana to prepare something to eat quickly so he and Tam could set out on their holy mission.

Now, Tam and his wife were very poor. They had nothing in the house, not even wood for the stove! All Chana had in the way of food was a little bit of flour. How could she prepare a meal for her husband’s holy friend who was coming to their home for a meal? So she went out into the field to gather some wood chips for the stove and brought them home. Chana then mixed the flour with some water, without any fat or spices, and served this meager meal to her husband and their guest. After the meal, the two set out on their journey.

When Chacham returned home from their successful trip collecting to marry off an orphan girl, he told his wife that Tam’s wife made the most delicious dish he had ever eaten. In fact it actually had the taste of the Garden of Eden.

Chacham’s wife, Ita Shaidel, knew how far her holy husband was from relishing simple earthly pleasures, heard that, she hurried to see Chana to learn the secret of her cooking. When she arrived at the home of Tam and Chana she asked her, “With what did you season the food you served my husband? He said that it was the most delicious food he had ever eaten, that it had a taste like the Garden of Eden!”

Chana told Ita Shaindel that she really had nothing to serve or anything with which to season the food. But while she was preparing her simple meal, she was praying, “Ribbono Shel Olam – Master of the world, You know that if I had something to serve, I wouldn’t spare a thing to give to this holy rabbi! But what can I do? We don’t have anything in the house! So I’m pleading to You to add savoury spices to this dish I’m making so that Chacham will enjoy my food.” And she continued to pray this way until the food was prepared. “So it seems that the Holy One, blessed be He answered my prayer,” she said. “And your husband tasted the flavor of the Garden of Eden in my food.”‘

What gives food its taste is not its physical appearance alone but its spiritual elements. So many people praise their religious leaders by saying that they were so holy, so ascetic, they did not even taste their food. What is true is that many religious leaders are the only ones who really taste the food they eat! Why? Because they don’t just taste the food itself; they taste the holiness in the food, or as this tale puts it, they taste the Garden of Eden. Food served and offered with love tastes of love. Chana put her devotion to the Holy One, blessed be He and His servants into the dish she prepared, and Tam and Chacham were on a spiritual level to taste it.

latkes

Matzo Meal Pancakes Chremslach

INGREDIENTS

1 cup matzo meal		6 eggs
2 teaspoons salt		1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons sugar		3/4 cup grated onion (optional)
3/4 cup corn oil for frying

DIRECTIONS

Step 1

In a large bowl, combine matzo meal, salt, and sugar. Set aside.

Step 2

Separate egg whites and yolks. Beat egg yolks, and combine with water. Add the yolk mixture to the matzo meal mixture, and let it stand for 30 minutes.

Step 3

Beat egg whites until they are stiff, and fold them into the matzo meal mixture. Add grated onion.

Step 4

Heat corn oil until it sizzles in a deep skillet. Lower heat, and, using a cooking spoon, spoon batter into the pan, creating thin pancakes 3 to 4 inches in diameter. Fry for several minutes, turning when the pancake is firm and the bottom side is golden brown. Fry for another few minutes until the other side is done. Drain on paper towel.

Serve with cinnamon-sugar, applesauce and/or sour cream.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Click here for more storytelling resources

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

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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All Jewish People Have a Share in the World to Come

Posted on Saturday, 27, October, 2018Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

A man perished in one of the many attacks on the Jewish community and when his neshamah (soul) ascended, the Heavenly Court asked him, “What do you hope to receive here?”

The man answered, “I heard from many people in the Jewish community that there is a special place called Gan Eden (Garden of Eden – Paradise/Heaven) and that “All Jewish people have a share in the World to Come” (Mishnah Sanhedrin 10:1). That’s what I would like to receive.”)

“We must first ask you a some of questions before we allow you entry. Did you keep Shabbos?” inquired the voice.

The man answered truthfully. “No, I did not.”

“Did you pray regularly?”

“No, I did not.”

“Did you study Torah (Scriptures)?”

The man sadly answered, “No I did not.”

“Did you keep kosher?”

Once again, the man “No I did not.”

“Did you fast on Yom Kippur?” asked the voice.

“No.”

“Did you eat matzah on Pesach?”

“No,” answered the man once again. “I did not practice any part of Judaism at all because I came from an assimilated family and did not learn anything from the Torah or any of the holy books. Still, I request to be admitted into Gan Eden.”

“Gan Eden is reserved for those people who practice and follow the ways of Judaism” explained the voice. “What makes you think that you are deserving of Gan Eden?”

“Because I’m Jewish!” he insisted.

“But how do you expect to go to Gan Eden if you didn’t learn Torah or keep any of the traditions of the Jewish people?” argued the voice.

“It’s true that I didn’t learn Torah or keep the any of the traditions of the Jewish people,” stated the man firmly. “But if it was good enough for leaders throughout history that I was Jewish. For that reason and that reason alone they have brutally attacked us and killed countless Jewish people. So I ask why isn’t it good enough for You?”

Sounds of debate followed as the Heavenly Court convened and deliberated the departed man’s status.

After a few moments, a decision was finally reached. Rabban Yoḥanan ben Zakkai said, “I cry in fear of heavenly judgment, as the judgment of the heavenly court is unlike the judgment of man… I have two paths before me, one of the Garden of Eden and one of Gehenna, and I do not know on which they are leading me; and will I not cry?” (Berachos 28b) The gavel of the Heavenly Court fell and announced the verdict: “Halachah k’Kedoshim! — The law follows the Holy Ones” The nonobservant Jewish man who had died at the hands of those who followed the voice of hatred was permitted entry into Gan Eden.

The Gemara teaches that a Jewish person who is killed prejudice and hatred — even if he was wicked during his lifetime — is worthy of the exalted title “Servant of Hashem (G-d)” (Sanhedrin 47a). We can understand from this that each Jewish person who died a violent death at the hands of prejudice and hatred is considered to be in the lofty category of “Servants of Hashem,” and therefore merited Gan Eden.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Grief and Mourning resources for adults and children including thoughts and meditations, stories, and crafts

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

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Sharing Gan Eden With a Cook

Posted on Sunday, 24, June, 2018Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

The most important thing is not study but action. (Pirke Avos 1:17)

It is told that a holy rabbi prayed that the Holy One, blessed be He show him his place in Gan Eden (Heaven). One night in a dream he saw that he would be seated next to a cook. This surprised him, and he thought to himself, “I have studied Torah day and night, yet my place is beside a cook.” After the dream, he decided: “I shall go and find him and ask him what he has done so special.”

He went and found that the cook was a very wealthy man. He became a guest of the cook and stayed with him for eight days, and the cook showed him great honor and respect. The holy rabbi requested the cook meet him in a field outside of the city and asked him: “Please tell me what you have been doing that is so special.”

The cook thought for a moment and then slowly answered, “By reason of my many sins I have studied very little Torah. All my life I have been a cook. At first I was poor but I have grown wealthy. Every Shabbos (Sabbath) eve since I began cooking, I have distributed meat to the poor at my expense and I give a great deal in charity.” The holy rabbi listened and then asked, “Please tell me whether you have done anything more than that.”

Then the cook slowly began, “I’ll tell you about something I was once the local tax collector for this city. When a ship arrived, I collected any goods I thought proper as a tax. Once a ship came here, and I collected the dues. After my collec¬tion the captain came to me and said: ‘If you wish to purchase what is in the hold on my ship, I’ll sell it to you.’ ‘Tell me what it is,’ said I requested. ‘I shall not tell you,’ the captain answered, ‘until you have bought it and paid for it. And if you do not buy it, I shall not sell it at all.’ ‘In that case,’ I agin requested, ‘tell me how much it is, and I shall decide.’ “Ten thousand in gold,’ the captain told me; and I told him: ‘Show me the goods, and I shall pay it.’ ‘I shall only give it,’ he answered ‘if you give me twenty thousand in gold.’ ‘Show it to me,’ said I, ‘and I shall pay.’ ‘I shall not give it to you,’ he said then, ‘unless I receive forty thousand in gold.’

“When I saw that he was raising the price all the time, I decided that it must be something very valuable, so I agreed to pay him the gold. ‘Give it to me,’ said he, ‘before I show you.’ And I gave him forty thousand in gold.

“Immediately he brought out from the ship’s lower hold two hundred Jewish souls whom he had captured, and said to me: `If you had not purchased them today, I would have slain them and flung them into the sea. “Now he handed them over to me, and I brought them home. I fed them and gave them to drink and anointed them with oil and clothed them. I also enabled those who were unwedded to wed one another.

Among the refugees was an exceedingly beautiful maiden, and I took pity on her and gave her to my son, and he wedded her. Then I invited all my townsfolk to the wedding feast. When the guests sat down to eat, I stood among them and saw that a young man who had been among the cap¬tives was weeping. ‘Why are you weeping?’ said I to him; but he did not wish to tell me. Finally, I led him to a room, and there he told me that the day they had been taken captive was the very day on which he should have wedded that maiden. ‘If you are prepared to divorce her,’ said I to him, ‘I shall pay you a hundred pieces of silver.’ ‘My lord,’ said he to me, ‘I desire her more than all the silver and gold in the world, but what can I do if your son has stood under the bridal canopy with her.’

“At this, I went to my son and told him: ‘Divorce her.’ And I gave her to that young man and made them wealthy. This is the thing I have done.”

Then the holy rabbi said to him: “Blessed be the Ever Present who has privileged me to be seated beside you in Gan Eden!”

So let a man engage in Torah and good deeds at all times, and practice charity. For money is not his but belongs to the Holy One, blessed be He, as the Prophet Haggai said: “The silver is Mine, the gold is Mine, says the Lord” (2:8). And it is also written in the Book of Psalms: “For God judges; this one He brings down, and that one He lifts up” (75:8).

(based on Tanchuma, Mavo 68)

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Click here for more storytelling resources

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

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Love and Leaves from the Garden of Eden

Posted on Tuesday, 29, May, 2018Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

The largest stable in the village was owned by Ephraim Dov Ber. From morning until nightfall coaches and carriages of all sorts would arrive, wanting to rest or exchange their tired horses for fresh ones. Ephraim Dov Ber was helped in his work by the boy Chaim, an orphan who made his home with Ephraim Dov Ber and his family. Chaim’s parents died while he was very young, and he lived on the streets until Ephraim Dov Ber took him in. In a very short time, they all regarded him as a member of the family. Chaim was especially close to Ephraim Dov Ber’s daughter, Shaina Leah. They were like brother and sister.

Now Chaim worked hard in the stables, side by side with Ephraim Dov Ber. They worked from early in the morning till way after sundown. One day Chaim left the stable early because he was not feeling well. The next day he could not get out of bead, and each day he seemed to grow weaker. Leah stayed by his bed and cared for him, As he slept, she would hold his hand and pray:

Loving and compassionate Healer of All send a complete healing to Chaim ben Sara. Take away his pain and strengthen his body and soul. Please help me help him and may we find peace together,

One day Chaim opened his eyes and saw Leah, He smiled at her and took his last breath. Leah was torn by grief, as was Ephraim Dov Ber and the rest of the family.

When the period of mourning had ended, Leah did not seem to recover from her grief. She had loved the Chaim deeply, and she could not bear the loss. Ephraim Dov Ber and his wife sat at her bedside every day, praying for her recovery. One day, while Ephraim Dov Ber was sitting at her bedside, he fell dozed off and began to dream. In the dream, Chaim appeared before him, his face glowing with peace and happiness.

“Where did you come from?” asked Ephraim Dov Ber, who remembered, even in the dream, that the boy was no longer in this world. “And why are you so happy?”

The boy replied, “Let me tell you all that has happened to me. When I left this world, I was brought before the Heavenly Court. I explained that I did not feel as religious as all the people around me because I only knew a few prayers, for that is all I had been taught. I told the Heavenly Court that I had served you with love, respect and honour as faithfully as I could. So too did I tend the horses with gentleness and care. And I always tried to be honest.

“The court ruled that I had earned a place in the Garden of Eden, and that is where I make my home. It was decreed that because I had tended horses in my earthly life, I was put in charge of the heavenly horses that pull the golden coaches of the tzaddikim (holy ones).”

Then Chaim asked Ephraim Dov Ber about his family. And Ephraim Dov Ber broke into tears and told him how much Leah had grieved over his death, and now she too was in grave danger. Chaim gently said: “Don’t worry. There are leaves growing in the Garden of Eden that can heal any illness. Wait, and I will bring some to you.” A short time later, the Chaim brought Ephraim Dov Ber a handful of leaves and instructed him “Boil these in a pot of water and give the tea to Leah to drink.” Ephraim Dov Ber accepted the leaves. No sooner than the leaves were in his hand, he woke up.

Scattered all over the bed were leaves that had blown in from the open window. Ephraim Dov Ber picked them up and saw that those leaves did not grow anywhere in he knew of. So too did they bear a wonderful fragrance, like that in his dream.

Ephraim Dov Ber hurried to boil some of those leaves in water, and he gave it to his daughter to drink. As he did, he told her about his dream, and about the leaves that Chaim had brought her from the Garden of Eden. And when Leah drank that water and learned of that miracle, she began to recover at once—by the third day she was out of bed and walking around.

Soon after that, Leah was betrothed and wed. And she named her first son Chaim, after the stable boy. And it is said that she loved her child as much as she had loved her adopted brother.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Click here for more resources for addressing death, mourning and grieving, visit The Chevra Ed Project

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

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If the stories are not shared they will be lost.

Please share this story with others

Tam and Chacham were old friends and would frequently travel together to perform various mitzvos and to collect tzedakah for special causes. They both had many students and were repected everywhere they journeyed.

Once, Chacham went to the home of Tam to begin their journey to a faraway village, Tam, wanting everything to begin with a blessing, told his wife,Chana to prepare some­thing to eat quickly so he and Tam could set out on their holy mission.

When Chacham returned home from their successful trip collecting to marry off an orphan girl, he told his wife that Tam’s wife made the most delicious dish he had ever eaten. In fact it actu­ally had the taste of the Garden of Eden.

Matzo Meal Pancakes Chremslach

INGREDIENTS

1 cup matzo meal

6 eggs

2 teaspoons salt

1 1/2 cups water

2 tablespoons sugar

3/4 cup grated onion (optional)

3/4 cup corn oil for frying

DIRECTIONS

Step 1

In a large bowl, combine matzo meal, salt, and sugar. Set aside.

Step 2

Separate egg whites and yolks. Beat egg yolks, and combine with water. Add the yolk mixture to the matzo meal mixture, and let it stand for 30 minutes.

Step 3

Beat egg whites until they are stiff, and fold them into the matzo meal mixture. Add grated onion.

Step 4

Serve with cinnamon-sugar, applesauce and/or sour cream.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

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

Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two. Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

If the stories are not shared they will be lost.

Please share this story with others

A man perished in one of the many attacks on the Jewish community and when his neshamah (soul) ascended, the Heavenly Court asked him, “What do you hope to receive here?”

The man answered, “I heard from many people in the Jewish community that there is a special place called Gan Eden (Garden of Eden – Paradise/Heaven) and that “All Jewish people have a share in the World to Come” (Mishnah Sanhedrin 10:1). That’s what I would like to receive.”)

“We must first ask you a some of questions before we allow you entry. Did you keep Shabbos?” inquired the voice.

The man answered truthfully. “No, I did not.”

“Did you pray regularly?”

“No, I did not.”

“Did you study Torah (Scriptures)?”

The man sadly answered, “No I did not.”

“Did you keep kosher?”

Once again, the man “No I did not.”

“Did you fast on Yom Kippur?” asked the voice.

“No.”

“Did you eat matzah on Pesach?”

“No,” answered the man once again. “I did not practice any part of Judaism at all because I came from an assimilated family and did not learn anything from the Torah or any of the holy books. Still, I request to be admitted into Gan Eden.”

“Gan Eden is reserved for those people who practice and follow the ways of Judaism” explained the voice. “What makes you think that you are deserving of Gan Eden?”

“Because I’m Jewish!” he insisted.

“But how do you expect to go to Gan Eden if you didn’t learn Torah or keep any of the traditions of the Jewish people?” argued the voice.

Sounds of debate followed as the Heavenly Court convened and deliberated the departed man’s status.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Grief and Mourning resources for adults and children including thoughts and meditations, stories, and crafts

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two. Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

If the stories are not shared they will be lost.

Please share this story with others

The most important thing is not study but action. (Pirke Avos 1:17)

“When I saw that he was raising the price all the time, I decided that it must be something very valuable, so I agreed to pay him the gold. ‘Give it to me,’ said he, ‘before I show you.’ And I gave him forty thousand in gold.

“At this, I went to my son and told him: ‘Divorce her.’ And I gave her to that young man and made them wealthy. This is the thing I have done.”

Then the holy rabbi said to him: “Blessed be the Ever Present who has privileged me to be seated beside you in Gan Eden!”

(based on Tanchuma, Mavo 68)

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two. Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

If the stories are not shared they will be lost.

Please share this story with others

Loving and compassionate Healer of All send a complete healing to Chaim ben Sara. Take away his pain and strengthen his body and soul. Please help me help him and may we find peace together,

One day Chaim opened his eyes and saw Leah, He smiled at her and took his last breath. Leah was torn by grief, as was Ephraim Dov Ber and the rest of the family.

“Where did you come from?” asked Ephraim Dov Ber, who remembered, even in the dream, that the boy was no longer in this world. “And why are you so happy?”

“The court ruled that I had earned a place in the Garden of Eden, and that is where I make my home. It was decreed that because I had tended horses in my earthly life, I was put in charge of the heavenly horses that pull the golden coaches of the tzaddikim (holy ones).”

Scattered all over the bed were leaves that had blown in from the open window. Ephraim Dov Ber picked them up and saw that those leaves did not grow anywhere in he knew of. So too did they bear a wonderful fragrance, like that in his dream.

Soon after that, Leah was betrothed and wed. And she named her first son Chaim, after the stable boy. And it is said that she loved her child as much as she had loved her adopted brother.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

New – Listen to the stories every Wednesday evening on the Story Tour Podcast on

Google Play or ITunes

Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two. Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

If the stories are not shared they will be lost.

Please share this story with others

Once, Chacham went to the home of Tam to begin their journey to a faraway village, Tam, wanting everything to begin with a blessing, told his wife,Chana to prepare something to eat quickly so he and Tam could set out on their holy mission.

When Chacham returned home from their successful trip collecting to marry off an orphan girl, he told his wife that Tam’s wife made the most delicious dish he had ever eaten. In fact it actually had the taste of the Garden of Eden.