There was a certain man who could cast spells in order to know the future. A holy man was approached by the spell caster and he told him: “You may thank the Holy One, blessed be He for his decree regarding you, since I see that you are going to marry a beautiful wife.” “And who is she?” asked the holy man. He answered: “Yaffa.” “Why,” said the holy man, “she is a married woman!” “It is clear to me,” said the spell caster, “that she will wed you.”
“Today,” said the holy man, “is not a day of good tidings, and I shall not say a blessing because of the death of a man who will have to die on my account. For who knows whether I am better than he?” “In that case,” said the soothsayer, “how shall a man wed a widow?” “There is no comparison,” said he, “since in that case her husband has already died. But you tell me this while he is still alive—and I shall always pray that he should have a long life.”
