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HOME . What's New? . STORIES . ARTICLES . RESOURCES Prayers That Were Sung in the Fieldsby Micha Joseph Bin GorionA certain student went to his rabbi, Rabbi Israel of Medzhibozh, for the Day of Atonement. He traveled by day and night without stopping in order to reach the city where his master lived as soon as possible. At dawn on the eve of the holy day he was about one league from the city and proposed to pause and rest a little and pray. Meanwhile, his weary horse would also rest. When he ended his prayer, he became very drowwsy and said to himself: "What if I sleep here for an hour or two, it is still broad day." So he stretched himself out on the cart and fell fast asleep. When he woke up, it was already the twilight hour of the Day of Atonement and therefore he was forbidden to travel any further. He grieved very much to think that after all his great effort to visit his rabbi on the holy day he would now have to spend it in the fields not far from the city, and all this had come about because of this misstep. He cried out and wept bitterly all that night and all the following day.
Upon the close of the holy day he went swiftly to his rabbi, feeling bitter at heart, and when he came there his rabbi explained to him that he had had to raise up the prayers that are sung in the fields, and that he had been compelled by heaven itself to do this.
From Mimekor Yisrael: Classic Jewish Folktales (abridged and annotated edition) collected by Micha Joseph Bin Gorion, edited by Emanuel Bin Gorion, translated by I.M. Lask, prepared by Dan Ben-Amos, copyright 1990 by Indiana University Press. Reprinted with permission. To learn about this and many other books, please visit the Indiana University Press web site.
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