Page:Ginzburg - The Legends of the Jews - Volume 5.djvu/49

Rh $undefined$  classes, each of which is under the supervision of some famous woman from biblical times.These are: Bithiah, the foster-mother of Moses, Jochebed, Miriam, Huldah the prophetess, Abigail, the four matriarchs, Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Leah.As nine women are given here as heads of seven divisions, the text must therefore be corrected in accordance with Zohar III, 167b.The distinction drawn here between the garden (=paradise) and Eden is old (comp. note 84 and Sha’are Gan ‘Eden, loc. cit., where the dwellers of Eden are divided into twelve classes), but this source expresses this distinction in a different manner.To the old mysticism belongs the conception of the 390 heavens and 18000 worlds (comp. note 30), but this source gives a different interpretation of this mystic doctrine.Quite new is the conception of the secret chamber of the Messiah in paradise which is called here, as well as in Zohar II, 8a, by the peculiar name “bird’s nest”.On the whole, the Messiah plays an important part in this description of the life of the pious in paradise.Old is the view that the pious, particularly the patriarchs and the Messiah, grieve over Israel’s suffering, and pray to God for their redemption; Berakot 18b; ShR 15.26; BaR 19.15; Tehillim 14, 115; Ekah 2, 11 (in the two last-named passages it is Jacob especially who is most concerned about Israel’s suffering); Baba Mezi’a 85b (comp. this passage in vol. IV, p. 219); Mahzor Vitry 17; Pardes 54d; Seder Rashi 22; a kabbalistic source in Yalkut Reubeni on Deut. 23.3; Tosafot on Sotah 34d (caption ), and the passages cited there from the Talmud; see further PR 12, 46b— 47a.Whereas Tehillim 30, 234 and 14 (according to the reading of Makiri, ad. loc., 79, bottom), and PR 2, 5b, state that the pious when dead continually praise God, later sources (PR 198a; BHM V, 43; Recanati on Gen. 3.24; R. Bahya on Exod. 20.8; Seder Gan ‘Eden 138) maintain that on the Sabbath, festivals, and new-moons the dead rise from their graves, behold the the Shekinah, and praise the Lord.Comp. also Zohar II, 8a (which very likely depends upon the Seder Gan ‘Eden, ''loc. cit.), Yalkut Reubeni Gen. 19.2; vol. III, p. 400.On Korah comp. vol. III, p. 300, and vol. IV, p. 234.&mdash;R. Joshua b. Levi is also the author of a description of hell which is given in vol. II, pp. 310, seq.For further details concerning the description of hell and paradise, comp. Gaster, Hebrew Version of Hell and Paradise in Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 1893, pp. 571 611; Rachlin, Bar Levoi, 70 86; Landau, Hölle und Fegfeuer (Heidelberg, 1909, passim'').A fragment of a description 