Shever poshe‘im: The Court of R. Hayim Haykl of Amdur

The communal treasurer stands on guard at the entrance to the rabbi’s home to make inquiry concerning every invalid or cripple, and by what name he is called. One can hear the noise of the people as they are shouting—his own name and that of his family, the nature of his employment and from which country he hails and what religion he professes, whether he belongs to the Hasidim or to the Misnagdim. And each of them replies in a feeble tone of voice, whereupon the treasurer records it in a book, a flying roll. One says: “I come from such-and-such city, and by reason of my many sins, my throat has developed grunting sounds these past few years,” and another says: “I come from a different city, and for these past few years, I have been called ‘the blind one’”; while yet a third man declares that he has been seized by a raging fever and is now virtually at death’s door; and from all of these, their creditors come to reclaim their respective loans, their homes are empty, they are falling by the wayside, with none to set them on their feet. And the treasurer says: “Greetings to you! Have no fear!” As they set up camp, so they journey on, they flee away and wander. I have given this scroll the title “The scroll of hidden things”—to reflect the shadow of death surrounding it and its lack of ordered arrangement. And this scroll is brought in secret—in the manner of spies—to the rabbi, to the chamber of the silent, and he exclaims: “Give it! Give it!”—and the treasurer informs him of the identity of the pauper and the wayfarer in question, and of the person leaning on a stick.

When the rabbi hears this, he becomes grieved at heart, but his snare is hidden within the stitches of his garments; and when he hears of any nobleman or wealthy individual, he then sings for joy, and all the people assemble early in the morning at his door; and the rabbi says: “Now is not the time to gather in the flock, as it is a time of divine wrath—tomorrow morning the Almighty will make known who the holy ones are, and He will draw them near unto Him, and each individual will eat in accordance with the fruit of his deeds.” So the wayfarer lodges there overnight—behold, thus shall he surely be blessed! Throughout the night, the rains drip down upon them, and the fearsome ice descends upon their heads, and their knees knock one against the other—they seek death rather than life. Meanwhile, the rabbi lies stretched out upon his bed, with the attribute of divine judgment extended over his head, on a well-made bed, bereft of knowledge. Neither knowledge of Torah nor fear of the Almighty can come from boorish counsel, from such inspiration as stems from alien fire. And in the morning, he peruses the scroll and makes due investigation, carefully scrutinizing everything, and he exclaims: “Open the gates, and let the righteous nation, holding fast to the faith, enter, and I shall bestow upon them the priestly blessing!” And then he goes to the ritual bath until the time for prayer has passed, taking the scroll along with him, and there he directs the appropriate intents heavenward, and sets his eyes upon the monies and the gifts. And the treasurer says that the rabbi is creating ways and means to elicit the most propitious moments for his prayers, and meanwhile he urges: “Donate money by way of redemption for the soul, so as to secure a place of rest and repose for yourselves, and atonement monies; and he [the rabbi] will inform you of the solutions to your problems as unto one who would in ancient times make enquiry of the Urim. But give, right down to the last penny, for behold, now is the appropriate time and season when the donations pass under the shepherd’s rod, and he will number and count, weighing out the monies in the balance, and distributing them to orphans, giving them a double portion; and the money has a further outlet, namely to bring out prisoners from the dungeon into the outside world; and anyone who counts monies in abundance is truly worthy of praise, and it will be accounted unto you in the sight of heaven as a sacrificial offering, and its owners will be assured that they will go on to enjoy long life. Do not say: ‘What are we to eat?’—as the rabbi is most assuredly capable of doing all things, and he will pour out a blessing for you, and will remove from you sorrow and sighing. But if you do not donate as requested, you shall be accounted among those lacking in faith, and in lieu of gladness and exultation you shall experience mourning and lamentation; so have no concern for your monies, and thereafter, you may return to your homes.” The treasurer collects up all the monies to be found in their hands, and they are left with nothing more than the corners of their garments. The treasurer counts up the monies with deliberation, be they utensils or coins, to ensure that he does not make an error, and he then brings the monies to the rabbi, who says: “Hand them over!”

The rabbi then begins to pray, and his heart is hollow; and his custom in prayer is that he shoots out the words like arrows, as the words of the King are pressing; and between each section of the prayers he sings lengthy chants, which can make the hair of a man stand on end. Now after he has recited the silent Amidah prayer in a state of trembling, he flees from the synagogue to relieve himself by urinating and emptying his bowels, whereafter he recites the benedictions Asher yatsar and Rofe’ Ḥolim. The congregation is seated, and acknowledges the divine justice in respect of whatever misfortunes have befallen them before the pious, heretical rabbi, and the ears of the people are directed toward hearing the Kedushah—woe on account of the shame and reproach thereby generated! In the middle of the prayers he rubs wax on his fingers, and with his other hand he displays his wonders. These are but some of the matters in relation to him: at prayer times the flying roll is laid in front of him, a slip of paper containing a request for him to have in mind a certain beautiful woman who has turned aside from discretion, while praying for her in a thunderous voice; and at the moment when Keter [the first word of the sanctification prayer] is recited, they have already “made their arrow ready upon the string”—to have in mind one Moses, son of Gittel, who is in a state of nakedness and want. And at the moment of recital of “He who hearkens unto prayer,” he focuses his mind, while shaking and trembling, yet in exultation and joy, upon one Samuel, son of Adah and Zillah; and at the time of the supplicatory prayers, he spreads his wings aloft, whereby the successful conclusion of the matter becomes doubly assured, wafted upon a pure wind on the bare heights. They draw near to the ark to pray for the women, either for the married ones or for the virgins, their eyes are bent upon obtaining redemption and ransom for their souls—to provide holiday clothes for their womenfolk, to be perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, so as to facilitate performance of the precept of giving one’s wife her conjugal rights. After dealing with all the cases of sickness, he will, at the time of the morning prayer, endeavor to produce a compress and medicine for a betrothed maidservant; and they then expound Vahev besufah [the rabbinic notion that, where teachers and their students initially refuse to accept one another’s halakhic interpretations and conclusions, their mutual hostility will ultimately melt away and turn into a close friendship]. And at eventide, the treasurer collects the donated gold and silver, equal to the booty seized by the Israelites at the Red Sea; and at prayer times, his wings are spread forth toward heaven, and there he will sing a new melody, and will ascend on high with joyful exultation.