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 | Blogs > kabbalah69 > etz chaim > another kabbalahistic story........something given....something received |
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The tiny village of Safed, in the hills of Galilee in present-day Israel, was a wellspring of earning during the golden age of Kabbalah in the 16th century. Of all the great philosophers, Kabbalists and scholars who participated in this spiritual renaissance, it was the Kabbalist Rabbi Isaac Luria who earned the highest respect and greatest reverence of his peers. He came to be known as The Ari, or the Holy Lion. The Ari plays a minor but vital role in a remarkable series of incidents that occurred some 400 years ago... Two men, a baker and a beggar, both lived in the Old City of Jerusalem. One uneventful afternoon, the baker was feeling immense appreciation for his lot in life. Having recently arrived from Italy with his wife, he was overjoyed with his new life in Jerusalem. He suddenly felt inspired to show his gratitude. Carrying a steaming hot, extra-large loaf of bread and a warm basket of other fresh baked goods, the baker paid a visit to the local synagogue. He walked into the sanctuary and humbly approached the ark, the large cabinet that housed the biblical scroll of the Torah. The baker was neither a learned man nor an especially religious one. But with genuine joy and innocence in his heart, he asked the Creator to accept his offerings as thanks for the good fortune and blessings in his life. Opening the doors of the ark, he piled the baked goods inside. It took a bit of effort to close the ark as the basket of goods weighed heavily on the door. Once closed, the baker promptly departed. Not long thereafter a beggar was passing the synagogue. He was feeling tired and distraught. It had been a difficult week for the beggar, with no one offering any charity of substance. With a wife and a small child at home, the beggar was desperate for help -- the kind of help that came from above, since none was being granted in the streets. Inside the synagogue, the beggar respectfully approached the ark and offered a prayer to the Creator. "Not so much for myself", he said, "but please can you send me some scraps of bread for my family, for they are hungry and we will use this bread to make a blessing in your Name." For whatever reason, the beggar was absolutely certain that his prayer would be answered. Meanwhile, weight of the basket was finally too much for the doors. It was at that moment that the baked goods came tumbling out of the ark. It was piping hot as if God had just baked the bread a moment ago. There were enough baked goods to last for nearly a week! The beggar was in a state of shock. Imagine, God answering his prayer so quickly! He immediately hurried home to feed his family. But as he was leaving the synagogue, he failed to notice the baker, who was just returning. The baker wanted to place a few coins into the charity cup, which he’d forgotten to do when he dropped off the bread. On his way out, the baker peeked into the ark to see if his offering had been accepted. Half expecting it to still be there, the baker saw with amazement that the basket of baked goods had vanished! Overjoyed that the Creator would accept a gift from such a simple person as he, the baker resolved to bake an even bigger loaf of bread and a more tastier basket of baked goods for the next week. The following week, the baker returned. He again placed an overstuffed basket into the ark, and begged the Creator to accept his offering. A moment after the baker departed, the beggar also returned and prayed for another week’s worth of fresh bread for his family. Then, opening the ark, the beggar retrieved the new basket and ran home. And narrowly missing the departing beggar, the baker reentered the synagogue and danced in excitement when he saw that his basket had mysteriously disappeared once again This extraordinary scenario was repeated each week for 15 years, until one day the Rabbi of the synagogue happened to be in the sanctuary when the baker arrived with his weekly offering. The Rabbi stood quietly in the back of the room and watched closely. When the baker left, the Rabbi saw the beggar arriving to pray and retrieve his basket of breads. But when the baker returned to see that God had accepted his offering, the Rabbi could stand it no more. He confronted the baker and asked him to have a seat. The Rabbi then ran into the streets and summoned the beggar. "Fool!" the Rabbi said to the baker. "Don’t you realize what just happened? God did not accept your offering. This poor beggar came in not two minutes after you left and took the bread." Then he turned to the beggar. "God never sent you bread! It was this baker who placed the basket in the Ark. Where is your respect for the sanctity of this holy place and for the handiwork of the Creator? How could you believe that the almighty would perform such simple actions when there is a great universe that needs to be tended to." The baker and the beggar realized that they were probably very naïve, and they sadly left the synagogue. Later that evening, the holy Kabbalist known as The Ari arrived from the mystical city of Safed and called on the Rabbi. The Rabbi was thrilled that the Ari had come all the way to Jerusalem to visit him. "Tidy up all your affairs and say your good-byes to your loved ones," the Ari commanded. "You will be leaving the physical world this evening." Needless to say, the Rabbi was stunned and he pleaded for an explanation. The Ari explained that the Rabbi had been destined to die on this date 15 years ago. However, the joy that was brought to the Upper Worlds by the actions of the baker and the beggar had given the Rabbi an extension of life. The angels who dwell on high danced and sang at the happiness and faith that had been kindled in the baker and the beggar. It had indeed been a miracle that for 15 years they had not crossed paths, and only a hardened heart would deny the presence of God’s hand in this. Now that this spell was broken, the Ari concluded, it was time for the Rabbi to meet his fate. |
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6/20/2008 4:33 am |
i like ur comments... thank u..
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