S. Agnon - The Parable and Its Lesson - A Novella

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Our Master continued: “Now that we have seen the grandeur of prayer and the sanctity of the Torah, let me say something about the conversations people conduct while the congregation is praying and reading from the Torah.

“Reb Zevulun the spice merchant, may he rest in peace, told me that he once heard from some far-roaming travelers about a desert that lies beyond the land of Cush. In that desert there is a certain species of monkeys that look like dogs and whose main food is ants. When one of these monkeys goes out hunting and notices an anthill, it places one of its paws over the anthill, buries itself in the sand so as to make itself invisible, and pretends to be asleep. The ants in turn see what they think is a nice soft hill in which to live, and they leave their dens in which they have stored their food. Whole armies of them crawl out and climb up the hill without knowing that an animal’s paw lies underneath. The remaining ants see this and are also drawn to the hill, and they all crawl all over the monkey’s paw, completely unaware that they stand on the very site of their destruction and that a dangerous animal lies in wait to devour them. The monkey lies there covered in sand, its paw covering the ants, the entire colony of which has by now left its den and been drawn to this hill. When the paw is completely full of ants, the monkey opens its mouth and swallows then all with one gulp.

“Like life in that desert, so is our existence in this world, and like that monkey who looks like a dog, so is Satan who bedevils Israel. And we, the remnant of Israel, the house of Jacob — how tiny are we, O Israel, how feeble our strength — we are like ants, of which Scripture says, They are a people without power, yet they prepare food for themselves in summer , and of which it is further written Go to the ant, you sluggard, study its ways and learn . And yet with all its wisdom, the ant cannot avoid falling into the hands of the monkey.

“Dearly beloved brothers, perhaps I see this matter so clearly that I have not explained it to you adequately, so let me say it another way. It is well known that Israel’s house of prayer is called a nest, as we learn from the psalm, How lovely is Your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts, I long, I yearn for the courts of the Lord, my body and soul shout for joy to the living God , after which the psalmist continues, Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself in which to set her young near Your altar, O Lord of hosts, my king and my God. Happy are they who dwell in Your house . .. Now we can understand what Job meant when he said I will die with my nest : if I will not merit to fulfill the psalmist’s prayer and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life , then I hope that when I die, I die there, my soul expiring in prayer to the living God.”

The memorial candles burned brightly as candles do when it gets dark. Our Master looked at them and said, “The sun is about to set, the day is nearly done, so I will be brief and speak only to the point here. I would only cite Rabbi Ibn Ezra on the verse I have just noted, and the swallow a nest for herself in which to set her young near Your altar, O Lord of hosts . Ibn Ezra quotes a commentator who explains that there is a certain kind of bird that flies away from settled areas where people live and makes its nest near the special place where sacrifices are offered to the blessed God, so that it might merit seeing its young near the altar. Now we know that no birds nested in the Holy Temple, as the Radak pointed out, and even Ibn Ezra himself disagreed with what that commentator wrote. In any case, his reference provides a fitting metaphor for Israel, who, like that bird, sets its young near Your altar, O Lord of hosts, my king and my God .

“One more thing before I return to the matter at hand. It is well known that the abode of the Messiah is called a bird’s nest. It is less well known that this nest rests upon the prayers that Israel offers. How careful, then, must one be not to talk while the congregation is praying so as not, God forbid, to topple the nest from its perch.

“The press of time and the many facets of the matter have kept me from interpreting all the lessons of the parable. Nevertheless, we can see the parallel between the monkey in the parable and Satan in its lesson. Monkey and Satan both want the same thing: to fill their bellies, the former by stretching forth its paw and ensnaring ants, the latter by sticking out his hand to grab the words of Israel’s prayers and of the Torah and stuff his belly with them.

“ Praised be the Name of the Lord who hears the prayers of His people Israel. He will not reject those who have been banished . There is not a prayer or a single word of Torah that goes to the wrong place. Still, a person should be very mindful about talking or conversing during the service and the Torah reading so that his prayers not go to a place where we do not want them to go.”

Our Master took the corners of his talit, one in each hand, and tucked them into his sash. Or maybe it was just his hands he tucked in and not the corners of his talit — I do not recall. In any case, when he was praying, his tzitzit swung around freely. I mention this because I have seen a new practice that our ancestors never imagined, that of tucking the corners of the talit into the sash the way laborers on the job fold the hem of their shirt under their belt.

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Our Master added, “Our days are as a passing shadow, but each day itself is long and drawn out, so let us temper our remaining time of mourning and fasting with another parable.

“It is common wisdom that there is no person who does not suffer, and who knows this better than the people of Israel? My parable is about such a person. There was a person to whom trouble befell, and he was unable to deliver himself from it. He looked all over for help. He heard that very near him, not far away, there lived a lord in a castle, a ruler who was as powerful as he was righteous and as righteous as he was caring. The man rose early and went to see him. When the lord of the castle saw this Jew walking about in the courtyard, he commanded that the man be brought to him. The man went in and began to tell the lord of his trouble. The lord of the castle was filled with compassion for him. Remember that this lord of the castle had many means at his disposal, and when he took pity on a person he had the ability to help him. As the Jew stood and recounted his heartaches, he began to digress about other things and brought up all sorts of irrelevant matters. Talk of one thing led to talk of another and very soon the man was uttering the most frivolous things that in any other place would not even be worth mentioning, all the more so before the lord of the castle. Whereupon the lord of the castle said to himself, Why need I bother with his trifles? If he is looking for trivial things, what is he doing here? There is verse that confirms him in this judgment, as it is written, Who has asked this of you, that you come and trample My courts .

“So now consider that the lord of the castle is the Master of all worlds who has the power to help us and deliver us at all times. When a Jew comes before Him to beseech Him for help and to plead for his life, is it not perfectly obvious and self-evident that when he opens his mouth he should be careful not to utter anything unnecessary and not to burden God, so to speak, with having to listen to things that are inappropriate and irrelevant? The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon him in truth , and not to those who talk of empty things and engage in idle conversations.

“This in regard to prayer. Now let me say something about the Torah reading. There was a certain poor man to whom the lord of the castle took a liking. He extended to him the kindness of letting him settle on his land, confirming his consent in writing so as to prevent anyone from seizing what had been granted to him or cheating him out of it. The lord then read to the poor man the document of attestation so that he would know what was his. One would assume that the poor man would listen, since his whole right to live and dwell on the land depended on that document. The poor man not only did not listen, he interrupted the lord in his reading, thus showing contempt for the one who sought to do him good and harming himself by not paying attention to what was being given to him.