AI English Translation, Pages 76-100
⟦illegible⟧
50
50
And he who wrote
has now gone from me and from your sister's house, and other things
and not a single thing of his was broken ⟦illegible⟧ all of it was delivered to your sister -
And you wrote to me ⟦illegible⟧ about you, so may God grant peace to you and to what
is in your hand, and you wrote about Hayyin, who was at your sister's, rings and a large bowl
of copper in the aforementioned house before, and into the aforementioned house there was brought
rings and a large bowl that were at your sister's in the aforementioned house, and a large bowl
from the side that is in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house, and in the house
aforementioned, in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house, which was at
your sister's, and do not fear anything from them, and give peace to whoever asks about us in the house -
And you wrote about the safety of your uncle's house in the aforementioned house, and in the house
aforementioned ⟦illegible⟧ which is with me, and now all of it is in the aforementioned house
and I delivered to you the aforementioned in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house
brought to it in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house
which is in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house
and I am in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house
I delivered to you the aforementioned in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house
which is in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house
and I delivered to you the aforementioned in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house
and I delivered to you the aforementioned in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house
and I delivered to you the aforementioned in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house
and I delivered to you the aforementioned in the aforementioned house, in the aforementioned house
And also the service and those of the synagogue and Mansur delivered to him who was in my building
two rings ⟦...⟧ the Mansuriyya, service of the women on the first day of Sukkot
And Set-Sikhl responded and said to them: You did not go except to the synagogue, you were the herald
except to the synagogue in the past date, he said (May God preserve you), he said: Correct
And you were in the synagogue and you have the herald and the broker over it
And he said to him: and you delivered dinars, and he said: No, on the first day, and he said to them
And he said: You are in the service of the synagogue and in the time that is in the house
And he said: Two boots happened to me and you said likewise, the synagogue, and he said
If you were at the herald's, you take trousers from him, and Set-Sikhl said to them
(May God preserve you) she said: Trousers in the synagogue, and Set-Sikhl said to them
And he said to them: and the broker delivered dinars, and he said to them: Trousers, and he said
I delivered on the Sabbath day in the house in and he said to them in
in the synagogue and he said to them in the house and he said to them and he said likewise
we ask them
And he said: So-and-so delivers the synagogue in on the Sabbath and Set-Sikhl said and he said to them
Likewise he said to them likewise on the Sabbath and he said to them and he said to them
He said to them (May God preserve you) he said to them in the house and he said to them and he said to them
The Sabbath, he said to them in the house, in the house, in the synagogue and he said to them
to them in the synagogue (and he said to them in the house) and he said to them in the house
And he said to them likewise and you delivered in the house and he said to them and he said to them
And he said to them <del>⟦illegible⟧</del> in the house and he said to them and he said to them
in the house and he said to them in the house and he said to them in the house and he said to them
in the house and he said to them in the house and he said to them in the house - and no
71
Also, if it was as if it ascended to its cycle, that was the end of the day
like the time that is in the lowest of the solitudes of God ⟦may He be blessed⟧ and the end of the year
the color would be yellow with signs of the world, the face of the day always being
lower, where there is no difference between this year and the one after it; therefore in this
year, the messenger who brings us the hated grave will be with
the solitudes of the world, but it was as if it was on a good face with signs of the
all on the rising of the cycle of the world, like that also will be the messenger
who brings, it was as if he always brings us good news, and likewise with
the solitudes, and such is the state it will be in, and likewise the one who brings us the news is
a base messenger, and likewise that is what agrees with him
And news brings us the rising of the world; therefore that was correct, for it
will mean <del>⟦illegible⟧</del> the year will be wherever it will be
And so be with you in your spirit, and in us it was as if that base messenger always
brings us good news from that cycle; that day, the 3rd of Iyar, he brings
And because that messenger has with him the solitudes of the year, he was bringing to us
good news, and from that it was as if on the rising of the cycle he brings
that, bringing with him the news of the solitudes of the world, he always brings that
good news
My God of Fez, who was in the service of the woman as I had hoped for her
from the beauty of the face and its ink, we approached like wine among the people of the house of Fez
The hand of the owner of the house says to him, O eater of flesh and drinker of blood, what is
greater than the service of its masters? You have insulted him many times like others
To say, whoever took part in his service, his status shall not decrease, but rather his rank shall rise
If you have emerged safe from this predicament, then do not ever see him again
The servant returned to scheme and ask by God Almighty to let him go his way
I was saying, O Savior of God, You know what is hidden
And he went out to the Monastery of the Mountain Top, remaining at the gate of the monastery for a day
One looked outside the monastery, looked toward the heaven and said: O Lord
of Lords, O Creator of everything and Provider for every living thing, You know what is in
the hearts, nothing hidden is concealed from You. You have known what happened to me from
this injustice which they committed against me, and I have no guilt in it, O Lord
If there is a sin upon me, then You forgive me, and if the injustice is against me, then You
take my right from them, O Lord of the Worlds. When he finished his prayer
he went down to the monastery, and there were many monks in it. When he entered upon them
one of them came out saying to him: O my brother, you are a stranger, do you want something?
He said to him: O my master, Your sufficiency is my sufficiency
And he went out, his tears flowing down his cheeks, looking toward the heaven saying:
O Lord, You know what is in the hearts, so You know what is in my heart
of anxiety and grief. When he settled in the place, they brought him to it
He was about to eat in his service what he eats of food
except bread and salt
73
<del>B.H.</del>
Likewise, Thursday 2nd of Menachem Av, the year 5663, portion of Va'etchanan
We went out for a walk, I and Mr. Yehezkel may his Rock protect him, to the countryside
And we sat under the large mulberry tree that is in the garden of Khawaja
Meir Eliyahu, and we read a bit from the book Ben Ish Hai and from the book
Kaf HaHayim, and Mr. Yosef the Shamash from the Talmud Torah brought us
four glasses of Arak and we drank and blessed the Creator of the fruit of the vine
and finally we ate fruits and blessed over each and every one the appropriate blessing
Day five
2nd of Menachem Av
<del>Likewise the Holy Sabbath day 11th of Menachem Av, year 5663, portion of Eikev</del>
<del>We went out for a walk, I and Mr. Yehezkel may his Rock protect him, to the countryside and we read a bit from the book Ben Ish Hai</del>
<del>and from the book Hukkei Hayim and Mr. Yosef the Shamash brought us Arak and we drank cups</del>
Likewise, Thursday 23rd of Menachem Av, the year 5663, portion of Re'eh
We were invited to the garden of Khawaja Meir Yehezkel Eliyahu
The honorable Mr. Yosef the Shamash of the Talmud Torah and Mr. Yosef Hayim may his Rock protect him and Mr. Yosef
son of Khawaja David and Mr. Eliyahu ⟦...⟧ and Mr. Avraham Hayim and Mr. Yosef the Shamash
and Mr. Yehezkel may his Rock protect him and Mr. Salman may his Rock protect him and Mr. Yitzhak may his Rock protect him and Mr. Menashe may his Rock protect him
and we drank Arak and read a bit from the book Ben Ish Hai and from the book
Hukkei Hayim
Likewise the Holy Sabbath day 7th of Elul, year 5663, portion of Shoftim
We went out for a walk, I and Mr. Yehezkel may his Rock protect him, to the countryside and we read a bit
from the book Ben Ish Hai and from the book Hukkei Hayim and Mr. Yosef the Shamash
brought us Arak and we drank and blessed the appropriate blessing
And so may it be His will
Amen, forever, eternally
M'
May he rest in peace
And these are the names of the children of Israel
coming to Egypt with Jacob, each man and his household they came: Reuben, Simeon, Levi,
and Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin, Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher. And all the souls
descended from Jacob were seventy souls, and Joseph was in Egypt. And Joseph died, and all
his brothers and all that generation. And the children of Israel were fruitful and swarmed and multiplied and became mighty
exceedingly, and the land was filled with them. And a new king arose over Egypt who
did not know Joseph. And he said to his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel are more numerous and mightier
than we. Come, let us deal wisely with them, lest they multiply, and it happen that when war occurs, they also join
our enemies and fight against us and go up from the land. And they set over them taskmasters
to afflict them with their burdens, and they built store cities for Pharaoh: Pithom
and Raamses. But as they afflicted them, so they multiplied and so they spread out, and they were weary because of
the children of Israel. And the Egyptians made the children of Israel serve with rigor. And they embittered
their lives with hard labor, with mortar and bricks and all labor in the field, all
their labor which they made them serve with rigor. And the king of Egypt spoke to the midwives
of the Hebrews, of whom the name of one was Shiphrah and the name of the second Puah. And he said,
When you deliver the Hebrew women and see them upon the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall kill
him, but if it is a daughter, she shall live. But the midwives feared God and
did not do as the king of Egypt spoke to them, and they kept the boys alive.
And the king of Egypt called for the midwives and said to them, Why have you done
this thing and kept the boys alive? And the midwives said to Pharaoh, Because
the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are lively; before
the midwife comes to them, they have given birth. And God dealt well with the midwives, and the people multiplied and became
very mighty. And it was, because the midwives feared God, that He made them households.
And Pharaoh commanded all his people, saying, Every son that is born you shall cast into the Nile,
and every daughter you shall let live.
P
P
P
P
P
To you, the dear one and the brother Surur, may God, in whose hand is the management of affairs (?), bless you.
The service of the brother's letter, etc. From the arrival of this paper, the arrival from
It arrived that from the service of the tail of the army (?) neither their path nor was gone from
You were not a servant except that I did not have a sign from
With them I was, for that reason I was taking money and you from
the boy from that
(?)
55
50
This which was
And he wrote to them, you serve and I will give you your wages from me
I was taking that from the government, how much their agreement with him, so
I was arriving with him to that, we went in them at night, a little, at 5:00 at night
I was opening such and such, I was seeing them returning to me on
the road they entered a house at night, they entered quickly, God, an hour of the night from
It was 5:00 at night, I was from that day, I had a doubt from I was
Seeing they entered a day they did not enter from that day, no good I was saying
And it was Thursday, so we went to the judge, so I was
Seeing them returning to me, they entered inside, so I was with them
I and they entered a house, we went to the house of the judge, he stood behind them
How I was saying, there is a right for them, they return to me, they return, and how they entered
Indeed, well, as I was saying, they did not enter, he says you have nothing to do with it
And so you serve and I will give you your wages from me
49
On this, it is as if three-halves of the people of this time
that is, if the intended goal is as is known to every one of the children of ⟦mankind⟧
to worship God and to remember the Exalted always and thank Him for His blessings which cannot be numbered
nor counted, and the Bestower of blessings upon all is the Truth, Blessed and Exalted – and that is because
it was in the nature of every one of the children of Adam to love whoever treats him well
and he sees that he should reward him with thanks; and souls have been predisposed to the love of whoever
is good to them, and that is by being always thankful to him and acknowledging his
kindness, and that is not completed except by knowing the Bestower of blessings in truth, for whoever does not know
the Bestower of blessings cannot thank Him, and that would not be valid from him. Therefore, the first duty upon every
individual is the knowledge of God, Blessed and Exalted.
And as we mentioned previously, the primary existing things are of three large
categories and many particulars: among them are lower bodies, which are the elements
the four, which are fire, air, water, and earth, and their compounds, which are minerals,
plants, non-speaking animals, and the speaking [animal], which is man; and all fall under
generation and corruption. And among them are higher bodies, which are the spheres and the stars, and they
are not under generation and corruption.
The Fifteenth Article
If people were constantly at war, it would be as it is
between them, they would not take anything from it, nor would there be
one among them cooperating with him in evil. And if it were so, then
nothing of it would remain; the world would not remain with it, and destruction would be through evil,
just as also the body becomes ill, or if one limb of it is corrupted, some actions are abandoned
which that limb was capable of; and when the whole is corrupted, the function of that body ceases.
One says that if the wicked cooperate among themselves in evil, then that is
by way of the good existing in them, such as justice and other things that exist in them.
And also, they are not called a group unless they have a leader and management by which they are organized.
So this is for them like the throne of the King, who is God, Glory be to Him. These are the meanings.
This is a refutation of those who believe in transmigration: that is, if souls were punished in bodies
that are non-rational in this world, would they remember what they were in before that or not?
If they say that they remember that, then why do we not witness anyone who remembers anything of that?
And if they say that they do not remember that, then what is the benefit in punishing one who is not aware of his sin?
And this is a very strong argument against those who believe in transmigration, as we have mentioned that
in another place.
Mirror
55
O you seeker, know that the Truth, Exalted be He, is alone without partner
and without offspring, but He does what He wills and judges as He desires.
Nothing is hidden from Him, neither in the heavens nor on the earth, and He is the All-Hearing, All-Seeing,
the Great Knower. Aside from that, everything is fleeting and perishing
except His Noble Face. So if you know that, then know yourself, for
whoever knows himself has known his Lord, and whoever knows his Lord has
attained the greatest victory and achieved happiness with no misery after it
ever. This is a gift from me to you, O my brother in God and His Messenger,
from some of what occurred to me with some of the scholars who claim knowledge
yet deny the truth and reject the text through analogy. When I saw that from them,
a discussion took place between me and them in that session, and I demanded from them
proof for their claims, but they brought nothing acceptable to reason or tradition.
When I saw that from them, I shouted at them and said to them: O people,
until when will you deny the truth, incline toward falsehood, and disbelieve in God's grace
upon you, and reject what God sent down in His books through the tongues of His prophets
and His messengers? Does it stand to reason that the servant should command his master
and forbid him? Or is it permissible for the owned to judge over his owner?
This is what is not permissible in reason nor in law. So how can that be permitted
against God the Exalted, He alone without partner, who created everything without
toil or hardship, and He is Capable of what He wills? So how can the speaker say
that the celestial spheres are the influencers of lower matters and they are the governors
of them, and they are what give, withhold, harm, and benefit? This is a great
disbelief in God, the Most High, the Magnificent, and association with God, the One, the Subduer,
who created the heavens and the earth and what is in them, and He is the one who moves them
as He wills and disposes of them as He desires. None can repel His decree and none
can delay His judgment, and He is the Wise, the Great. So reflect, O people of insight,
and take heed, O people of thought and vision, in this discourse that took place
between me and these deniers of God's blessings, who are deceived by the delusions
of the accursed Satan, for they are profligate disbelievers. A great discussion took place
between me and them whose explanation would be long, but I will summarize from it
some of what the intelligent and sane person needs to use as evidence for
the corruption of their view, the ugliness of their belief, and their straying from the path leading
to the Truth, Glorified and Exalted be He...
With God's help, Thursday, 20th of Adar II, the year 5689, Baghdad.
To our dear and pleasant friend, Mr. Eliyahu Yitzhak, may his Rock and Redeemer protect him.
After seeking your welfare with love and prayer, we received your precious letter with the enclosure of twenty-five dinars
on account of the principal and interest of the bill in your name, and we sent you the receipt with the previous
letter that we sent to you last Thursday, which surely reached you.
And today we received from Mr. David S. Yehezkel the sum of one hundred and fifty dinars
on account of the bill we hold in his name, and we gave him a temporary receipt
until we send him the official receipt from the ledger, and he requested of us
to inform you that we received the aforementioned sum and that you should record it in his account.
Aside from this, we have no news to inform you of, only health and life.
With us, everything is in peace, and so may there be peace with you.
Inquiring of your good welfare and awaiting your prompt reply.
Your faithful friend,
⟦signature⟧
P.S.
We saw in the account you sent us that there is an error in the amount of interest
of the bill of Mr. Menashe, and it should be the sum of seven and a half
dinars and not six dinars as you wrote. Please check the account
and inform us of the truth because we checked the ledger and found
that the sum is seven and a half dinars, and also the date of payment
is on the day of Rosh Chodesh Nisan and not on the 15th of it as you wrote.
Please correct the error and inform us as soon as possible.
And also regarding the goods you sent us last Tuesday,
they arrived safely and we sold them at a good profit, and here we are
sending you the account separately so that you may see the details
and inform us if you have more such goods to send us,
as there is a great demand for them here in the market and a good price.
Please hurry with the shipment because time is short and the holiday is approaching.
And enough for the wise.
45
And if you asked how the intellect is in itself while it is occupied with the five senses
which penetrate it at all times in its essence, and it does not perceive what is in them,
and how it manages all the organs that are in the rest of the body while it
is neither inside them nor outside them, but rather it governs them since ⟦since⟧ it
is in the essence, meaning not in place, but rather it is in the essence like the essence of God
in the world. The intellect in the body is like the essence of God in the world; no
place is void of it, and no place contains it. Likewise is the intellect in the body.
And if it were in one place and not another, it would not perceive what happens in the limbs that
are in other than its essence; but rather it perceives what happens in the limbs
<del>distant</del> distant from the essence just as it perceives what happens in the essence.
So this intellect is the one addressed, and to it belong reward and punishment, and it is the one that
<del>perceives</del> perceives the intelligibles which are not sensible, just as it perceives
the sensibles, and it is the one that perceives the Universal Intellect and the Universal Soul
and the rational soul which is in it, and it is the one that perceives what happens in the upper
world and in the lower world, and it is the one that perceives what happens in the lower
world, and it is the one that perceives what happens in the upper world of the angels
and the spheres and the stars and the lights and the secrets, and it is the one that perceives
<del>what happens</del> what happens in the lower world of animals and plants
and minerals, and everything with it is defined in its essence, nothing of them
<del>thing</del> is hidden from it, but rather it perceives all of that by the light of God
which is in it and in its essence.
And if the intellect were other than that
10:15 at night ⟦which⟧ <del>⟦illegible⟧</del> their entry into this house in which we are
of them their entry <del>⟦illegible⟧</del> and others who were in it and they have paid it
and when they finished <del>⟦illegible⟧</del> and they all finished and it all came into our hands
a year and three years Avi handed them over and all were present to hand over
to Mari Yitzhak Baazini and he signs for him, meaning at the end
50
The Nineteenth Chapter
Mentioning the death of Samuel the Prophet, peace be upon him, and mentioning Saul's going to the mistress of the familiar spirit
after his death to inquire of him about the matter of the war and what would happen to him.
And the Sheikh, may God have mercy on him, said: It is necessary to believe that the spirit which she saw
David, peace be upon him, for he knew that God Almighty forbade that and prohibited it, and whoever
did that ... because of that, deserved killing and fire, so how could
it be thought that this would be so for Saul? Rather, that which
raised the Prophet, peace be upon him, and I have already mentioned this issue in the commentary of the book
Likewise, what happened to Saul with the mistress of the familiar spirit was a lie, a trick, and a delusion.
(Likewise the speech regarding that is very relevant)
A question: If it is said, why did ⟦...⟧ the Prophet, peace be upon him, say to him, O Saul, why
⟦...⟧ that it was the spirit of Samuel, peace be upon him, because God Almighty has informed us
because he was a righteous man and a lover of God Almighty, and how could he be dominated by one
who is that, and be created and return to this world and speak to him and inform him of what will be?
Can anyone do that except God Almighty, who gives life and death, and He is the one who
is capable of everything, and none of the created beings can do any of that.
And if that were from the actions of the devils, they would be capable of it. And the answer is
that we have already mentioned that all of that was a lie, a delusion, and a trick from the mistress of the spirit, and what
his saying "Why have you disturbed me?" was from the words of the mistress of the spirit on the tongue of Samuel.
⟦...⟧ the spirit and the body together to the lower world, as people believe
regarding spiritualism and what they attribute to them of these meanings.
B"H Tuesday 28th Tammuz
Year 5668
168
S S
S S
My dear brother Mr. Saleh, may God protect him, sent me a letter, it reached me, I read it and underst⟦oo⟧d
what is in it and I rejoiced in its health, and regarding the news that I heard
denial, may God help everyone with that, and regarding Mr. Yosef <del>⟦illegible⟧</del> and the talk
about his lowliness, and after that, be it known that M. Yosef mentioned to us that
thus regarding the H. Yosef, he was with us in the house and told me that
I should write to him a letter directly without anyone knowing, so I told him it shall not b⟦e⟧
that, and after that he told me write to him even a card that he does not want anyone to know
and I sat with M. Yehezkel and he told me write him a letter, it will reach me and I
will give it to him by his hand, so I wrote a letter, it reached me and I will give it to him by his hand
and he told me that M. Yehezkel wants to travel to Baghdad after two or three days
and M. Yosef mentioned to us that M. Yehezkel does not want to travel until
Mr. Yehezkel comes from Baghdad, so we remained confused about their matter, may God help
everyone and let us hear every good thing about them, and peace be upon you and all who ask of you
from us, the brother who prays for you with a sound heart and soul, Isaac Yosef Cohen
and likewise I wrote a letter to the dear father Mr. Yehezkel, may God protect him, and sent it
to you inside your letter
and today Tuesday 29th Tammuz, a letter reached us from Mr. David, may God protect him, and he mentioned in it that there reached them
a letter from you and he mentioned that to us and we rejoiced exceedingly, and regarding
M. Yosef, he mentioned to us that on Thursday he wants to travel to Baghdad with M. Yehezkel
and M. Yehezkel mentioned to us in a letter that he wants to travel on Sunday
so we remained confused about their matter, may God help everyone and gather our gathering
with you soon, and regarding H. Murad Eliyahu, he mentioned to us that a letter reached him
from Baghdad and it mentioned in it that M. Yehezkel wants to travel to Baghdad
after two or three days, and regarding H. Murad Eliyahu, he mentioned to us that
a letter reached him from Baghdad and it mentioned in it that M. Yehezkel wants to travel
to Baghdad after two or three days, and regarding H. Murad Eliyahu
he mentioned to us that a letter reached him from Baghdad and it mentioned in it that M. Yehezkel
wants to travel to Baghdad after two or three days, and regarding H. Murad
Eliyahu, he mentioned to us that a letter reached him from Baghdad and it mentioned in it that M.
Yehezkel wants to travel to Baghdad after two or three days, and regarding
H. Murad Eliyahu, he mentioned to us that a letter reached him from Baghdad and mentioned
in it that M. Yehezkel wants to travel to Baghdad after two or three days
From
May He reward, bless, and have mercy
And may the Compassionate One of Heaven pray for you and rest His Presence within you
And may He pity and have compassion for you and open for you the gates of Torah and the gates
of wisdom and the gates of good livelihood, and may you merit to see the consolation of
Zion in the rebuilding of Jerusalem Amen. And after asking of your good welfare
may it be accepted like the moon in its brightness and like the sun in its radiance and like a watered garden
when the rain descends upon it, so may you be enriched with delight and satisfied with favor
and full of the blessing of the Lord according to your good soul and the soul of your uncle who seeks your welfare
the good one, the honorable Rabbi David, may his Rock and Redeemer protect him. After good and pleasant greetings, we have come to tell
that all the rumors which you heard of the plague, may the Merciful One protect us, which
was here in our city, are all a lie and a falsehood; there was nothing but
a very small amount, and now, praises to God may He be blessed, it has ceased completely and there is
no bad thing and no breach and no going out and no cry in our streets
only joy and gladness shall be heard in our streets and the voice of a groom and the voice of a bride
and all the people, blessed be the Lord, are in the line of health and life and peace.
And regarding the mirror that you wrote about, behold it is kept in our hand
until the Lord shall expand our borders and we shall send it to you, for now
no caravan is available to go to you and also the roads are a bit
disrupted, and God willing, soon we shall send it to you either by a faithful messenger or
by a caravan that will go to you. And peace.
So are the words of your uncle who seeks your welfare
So says your servant and attendant
Ezra ⟦...⟧
⟦illegible text rotated 90 degrees in margin⟧
It was the house of Kafîr
Rabbi David who traveled to the ⟦...⟧ took rice and took one hundred and seventy dinars with him. He stayed
at the house of Khawaja Menashe, and a partnership was established between him and Khawaja David and ⟦...⟧
and Khawaja Abraham examined Khawaja David's son from ⟦...⟧ - the group -
the ruin on the day they wrote the document, there was talk that everyone should go to his place, and he wrote
Khawaja David wrote a document to Abraham saying after Khawaja Menashe goes
to his family, they take from the house of Abraham, not ⟦...⟧
Sarah a dinar to Khawaja Abraham, and they give it to Khawaja David from the ruin
And Khawaja Abraham gave him his handwriting for the aforementioned amount without the ruin
The last document from ⟦...⟧ no David they seek from him, another says to them
Go to the ruin another day, another day, another day, he said to them nothing comes to you
from me ⟦...⟧ Abraham and Sarah seek from Abraham and he used to say to them
during the aforementioned period, and a document remains in Abraham's hand known to
all the people that it paid the money of Khawaja Menashe, and now he does not
want to hand it over
00
00 and imprisoned there present
To the state of the beloved Anas and after who went out from the city
Which is in it dirhams to a state and between what has arrived
And if it was on the road dirhams in who I was like that and between who is for me
At ⟦illegible⟧ to dirhams ⟦illegible⟧
In the which dirhams in that which state and between who in dirhams state
And to dirhams in that which the beloved which which beloved beloved
To state and between who dirhams in ⟦illegible⟧ and between beloved dirhams
To state and between dirhams which which in dirhams beloved state as
State and between who which which and between beloved which which in dirhams
Which which which which and between dirhams in dirhams state
Dirhams ⟦illegible⟧ and between dirhams in dirhams state and between dirhams
State 100 that and between which which which which and between dirhams
Which dirhams which in dirhams which which which which
Which which which which which which which which which which
Which dirhams beloved and between which dirhams which in dirhams
Which in dirhams which and between dirhams which which which
Which which which which states and between which which dirhams states
Which and between which dirhams in dirhams which and between dirhams
In which which in which which which in which which which
In which in which which dirhams which which in which
Which dirhams in which which which which which which which
Which which which which which which which which which which
Which which which which which which autumn which which which
Which which which which which which which which which which
And if a person is sick or insane, it is not permissible for him,
and it has been said in some books that one who is in a state of severe
drunkenness is not permitted to pray, and the prayer is invalid; and likewise for one
who does not have complete intellect, the prayer is not valid from him. But as for slight
drunkenness, where it is possible for him despite that to speak understandable words,
he is not prevented from prayer. Some people say that drunkenness,
meaning being drunk, prevents prayer until he recovers from
his drunkenness. If the drunkenness is minor, he is not prevented from prayer.
And what we have mentioned regarding the conditions of prayer, this is what must be
present in the worshiper before entering into prayer. But as for what must be
more emphasized at the time of prayer, it is humility and submission, and that is to be
fearful and humble before the Lord, Exalted is He, and to stand before Him like an abject
servant before his master, and to be looking downwards like one looking
at the ground, and not raising his sight to the sky, and casting himself toward
the wall, being like the dead. It is necessary for him to have at the time of prayer
clean clothes and a pure place, and it is necessary for him to have a partition (sutrah)
if he is praying in the desert, and it is necessary for him to be facing the Qiblah (direction).
The worshiper should have priestly garments as the Scripture said:
"Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness," and its interpretation is the sacred adornment, which is
the Tzitzit and Tefillin, for that is the adornment of the soul. As for the adornment of the body,
it is clean and new clothes, and that he be turbaned with a pure turban.
Standing before God, Exalted is He, requires fear and trembling as
David, peace be upon him, said: "Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling," and he also said:
"I will bow down toward Your holy temple in fear of You," and Solomon, peace be upon him, said: "Be not
rash with your mouth, and let not your heart be hasty to utter a word before God; for
God is in heaven, and you are on earth; therefore let your words be few."
And among the conditions of prayer is that his voice be very low, heard
only by himself, as Hannah said, and the saying "only her lips moved," and the saying
"her voice was not heard," and along with that, his heart must be with God.
⟦...⟧ no ⟦...⟧
portion
And I besought the Lord at that time, saying, O Lord God, Thou hast begun
to show Thy servant Thy greatness, and Thy mighty hand; for what God is there
in heaven or on earth, that can do according to Thy works, and according to Thy might? I pray Thee, let me go over,
and see the good land that is beyond the Jordan, that goodly mountain, and Lebanon.
But the Lord was wroth with me for your sakes, and would not hear me: and the Lord said unto me, Let it suffice thee;
speak no more unto Me of this matter. Get thee up into the top of Pisgah, and lift up thine eyes
westward, and northward, and southward, and eastward, and behold it with thine eyes: for thou shalt not go over this Jordan.
But charge Joshua, and encourage him, and strengthen him: for he shall go over before this people, and he shall cause them to inherit
the land which thou shalt see. So we abode in the valley over against Beth-peor.
Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you,
for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the Lord God of
your fathers giveth you. Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you,
neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command
you. Your eyes have seen what the Lord did because of Baal-peor: for all the men
that followed Baal-peor, the Lord thy God hath destroyed them from among you. But ye
that did cleave unto the Lord your God are alive every one of you this day. Behold, I have taught you
statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land
whither ye go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them; for this is
your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes,
and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. For what nation is there so great,
who hath God so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon Him for?
And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law,
which I set before you this day? Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul
diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart
all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons; specially the day that thou stoodest
before the Lord thy God in Horeb, when the Lord said unto me, Gather Me the people together, and I will make them hear
My words, that they may learn to fear Me all the days that they shall live
upon the earth, and that they may teach their children. And ye came near and stood under the mountain;
and the mountain burned with fire unto the midst of heaven, with darkness, clouds, and thick darkness. And the Lord spake
unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude;
only ye heard a voice. And He declared unto you His covenant, which He commanded you to perform,
even ten commandments; and He wrote them upon two tables of stone. And the Lord commanded me
at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that ye might do them
in the land whither ye go over to possess it. Take ye therefore good heed
unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of similitude on the day that the Lord spake unto you
in Horeb out of the midst of the fire: lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude
of any figure, the likeness of male or female, the likeness of any beast that is
on the earth, the likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air, the likeness of any
thing that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth:
and lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and
the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them,
which the Lord thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.
But the Lord hath taken you, and brought you forth out of the iron furnace, even out of Egypt,
to be unto Him a people of inheritance, as ye are this day.
Thursday, 18th of the month of Iyar, year 5683 in Baghdad, may G-d establish it
To my dear and pleasant brother, Mr. Ezekiel, may his Rock and Redeemer preserve him
After greetings of goodness and pleasantness. I inform you that on Sunday of last week
I received your dear letter dated 10th of Nisan this year, and I rejoiced in your good wellbeing
thanks to G-d, blessed be He. And I learned from it regarding the matter of the shipment you sent me
via Mr. Joseph Sassoon, may his Rock and Redeemer preserve him, which is a sum of 30 (thirty) pounds
English, and you wrote to me that I should take them from him and send you a receipt
Today I went to him and he handed over the aforementioned sum to me, and I gave him a receipt
as per your command, and I hereby thank you very much for your great kindness and love
that you always do with me; may G-d, blessed be He, reward you according to your righteousness
and lengthen your days in goodness and your years in pleasantness, Amen. And you also informed me
that you sent me a sum of 15 Sterling via the Ottoman Bank through
Mr. Menashe Daniel, may his Rock and Redeemer preserve him, and you wrote to me that I should go to him and take
the aforementioned sum and hand over to him the receipt which you sent me inside the letter
Immediately I went to him and handed him the receipt and received the aforementioned sum
which is fifteen English pounds, and I handed them over to my mother
may she be built and established, and she blesses you with all her heart that G-d, blessed be He, should prosper
your way in all that you turn to, and may you do valiantly for the Torah and for the commandments
and may you merit to see children and children's children engaging in Torah and commandments
Amen. And we too, all of us here, bless you with a full mouth
and with a whole heart, that G-d, blessed be He, should give you a good and long life
until one hundred and twenty years, flourishing and fresh and joyful
and all that you do shall prosper in your hand, Amen, may it be so willed.
Therefore, my dear brother, do not withhold from me your dear letters
to gladden me with your good wellbeing always. And peace to you and to all who are joined
to you, from me, your brother who seeks your peace and your welfare all the days
Ezra Reuben Dangoor
Essay
In one great path, I will seek from those words of the Holy Torah
And it was said that it justifies the words of Daniel, peace be upon him, to Nebuchadnezzar: "Redeem your sins with righteousness."
I wish it to be known that charity repels calamity, expands sustenance, and increases life.
If the rain were withheld—may God honor you—and a famine occurred—God forbid—and the people rose up,
the Muslims, praying the prayers for ⟦...⟧, they would not be answered even if they cried out
from morning until evening, and they would remain in hunger, hardship, thirst, and great distress.
But when God wills to have mercy on His creation and send down rain, He brings mercy to them
through our children, the students of the Talmud Torah. They take with them ⟦...⟧, one carries the Torah scroll,
and they go out into the wilderness and recite Psalms, and after that they recite a prayer
specifically for the cessation of rain, and they weep and cry out before God the Exalted,
and they remain asking Him for mercy and forgiveness. Then God the Exalted accepts
their prayer and has compassion on them and pities His creation, and sends down rain for them at that
moment and hour. Everyone rejoices and says: "This is the blessing of the Jewish children
who recited and prayed and asked of God the Exalted, and He answered them immediately."
And I testify for myself that this matter happened to me several times and I saw it
with my own eyes. Even if there were no other virtue than this, it would be enough for us to love
the Talmud Torah and to strengthen those who uphold it, because through it the world is inhabited and through it
mercy and blessing descend from heaven. Were it not for the breath of the mouths of the children
of the house of our teacher, the world would not be sustained, as it is said: "Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings You have established
strength," etc. I have experienced this matter many times, and it has been proven to me that
the whole world exists through the blessing of the school children. Were it not for their prayers
and their recitation of the Torah, the world would have been destroyed long ago. And it has
misled ⟦...⟧ people who say that he who teaches his son
⟦...⟧ will turn out poor and will have no portion in
the world, and will have nothing but a crust
of dry bread.
The second day, Iyar, the father turned and called, take it for that hair-seller who took it
from Mordechai he took it, and all the shops that are at the gate of the inn and at the gate of
the big market, and all the shops that are inside the inn from the side
on the right, and born to that one from the states 1250, and the left side which is 6881
and everyone who entered the inn from the shops of the coppersmith and the papermaker and others
and that was born to the inn at the gate of the inn from the left side
from there and into the inside of the inn, he placed his hand on the shops which are
those which are inside the inn from the left side, and the shops which are
inside, unlike the shops which are on the right, and those which are inside
the inn from the right side belong to that one, and the shops which are inside the inn
from the left side belong to that one, and the shops which are inside the inn
from the right side belong to that one, and the shops which are inside the inn
from the left side belong to that one, and the shops which are inside the inn
from the right side belong to that one, and the shops which are inside the inn
from the left side belong to that one, and the shops which are inside the inn
from the right side belong to that one, and the shops which are inside the inn
from the left side belong to that one, and the shops which are inside the inn
from the right side belong to that one, and the shops which are inside the inn
from the left side belong to that one, and the shops which are inside the inn
from the right side belong to that one, and the shops which are inside the inn
from the left side belong to that one, and the shops which are inside the inn
from the right side belong to that one, and the shops which are inside the inn
from the left side belong to that one, and the shops which are inside the inn
from the right side belong to that one
Rin
On the twelfth chapter concerning the five senses and what is related
to them, and that is a total of five sections. The first section on mentioning touch.
Know that this sense is the first sense created for the animal,
and by it the animal becomes an animal, and if it ceases, its being an animal ceases.
That is because the rest of the senses were only created for the animal for benefits which
do not cause its being an animal to cease by their cessation, such as sight; for the animal,
if it goes blind, its being an animal does not cease. There are animals that do not see,
and animals that do not hear, nor smell, nor taste, such as shellfish and others.
But as for touch, it is not possible for there to be an animal lacking it, nor is it possible for
an animal to live without touch. This is so because this sense
is like the introduction to the rest of the senses and the foundation for them. That is because the animal
only needs nourishment to preserve its individual self, and nourishment is a body among
bodies. If the animal did not have a sense by which it recognizes the body suitable
to its temperament so that it may feed on it, and the body contrary to its temperament so that it may flee
from it, it would perish and cease and not remain. Therefore, this sense became
necessary in the existence of the animal. As for the rest of the senses, they are subordinate to it
and complementary to it. That is because sight is only needed by the animal to see
nourishment from a distance and seek it, or to see the harmful and flee from it; and
sight is not the cause of its being an animal, but rather a cause for its safety. Likewise,
hearing, smell, and taste; these senses were only created for the animal
to seek safety only.
May the Merciful protect us, likewise in the year 5643 the people of Baghdad (the elite) all went out to the desert
and stayed there nearly a month of the plague, all the people of Baghdad went to the desert so
thus, O Lord, protect it, O Lord, mend the servant, and we today are in great comfort
Praise be to God for the safety of <del>⟦illegible⟧</del> and what do you want from
God. I do not want the State of Israel and I do not want nor do I want idle
talk from you at all
My brother, for an oath of mine shall not pass that he would never go to the desert
And he stayed and accepted the decree of God and stayed in Baghdad and he died, he and his wife and his son
No one remained of them, thus, O Lord, protect it, O Lord, mend the servant
And let our blood not go in vain, and we today are in great comfort and we thank
God, our religion is flourishing ⟦...⟧ worldly, and let no sorrow come to us
from the ruler regarding the soldier, and by God, my brother, from the day they went to the desert
a wave occurred in the city the likes of which has never occurred in the whole world, theft
and killing and looting, even the Jews who stayed in the city took a great
beating and their property was looted and great injustice befell them that cannot be borne
Thus may God the Exalted protect it from His presence, O Lord protect it, O Lord mend the servant
from the sorrow that we are in regarding the soldier, and by God, my brother,
if you were to witness our condition, you would weep blood for us because of the
injustice that we are in regarding the soldier, may God help
From the day they went to the desert, a wave occurred in the city the likes of which has never occurred
in the whole world, theft and killing and looting, even the Jews who stayed
in the city took a great beating and their property was looted and there was upon them
great injustice that cannot be borne