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242 THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA

Astrology

and private life being under the influence of these pseudo-prophets, who received substantial rewards in gold. These conditions are reflected in the parables of the Talmud, which vividly illuminate the astrological belief from every point of view. Jethro advises Moses (Mek., Yitro, 'Amalek, 2) to select the men whom he wishes to cooperate with him by means of the mirror into which the kings are accustomed

astrological schools; all public

to gaze. "

A king who had no son

said to his attendants, 'Buy pen and ink tor my son ' and the people took the king to be a great astrologer ; for how could he have ordered pen and ink for his son, had lie not beheld beforehand that he was to have one ? The same applies to God, who foresaw that He would, at some future time, give Israel the Torah " (Gen. R. i. 4).

" The question is asked, Why did God proclaim His law amid Ore and darkness (Deut. v. 20), and not by the light of day ? And the answer is given in the form of a parable A king, who was a great astrologer, gave his son in marriage, and hung black curtains before the bridal chamber, saying, " I know that my son will not abide by his nuptial promises longer than forty days let not the people, in days to come, say that an astrologer such as I did not know what was to happen to his son." The astrologer is God, his son is Israel and the bride is the Torah, by which Israel abode no longer than forty days (from the revelation to the making of the golden calf) " (Pirke It. El. xli.). " A ruler sentenced a man to death by fire but when he perceived by means of astrology that the condemned would beget a daughter destined to become the king's wife, he said, This man must be saved for his daughter's sake.' Thus did God save Abraham from the fiery furnace, because of Jacob " (Lev. R. '

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xxxvi. 4). " A man to whom a son was born was met by an astrologer who, on seeing the child, declared that he was destined to become a bandit-chief (apxtA.>ja-r>js) and must be put out in the desert. The father of the child refused until the astrologer's father told him to do just as bis son had ordered. The father of the astrologer is God the astrologer is Sarah the child is Ishmael and the father of the child is Abraham " (Deut. R. iv 5, referring to Gen. xxi. 10-12).





When Pharaoh made trologers asked, "

Joseph vice-regent,

Would you elevate

his as-

this slave, pur-

chased for twenty pieces of silver, to be ruler over us?" and Pharaoh an trologers. swered, " I see the colors of rulership in him " (Sotah 366). Here, as elsewhere, colors play an important part in Astrology. In reference to a request of King Solomon for labor-

Court As-

on the Temple, Pharaoh directed his astrologers workmen who were to die within the year, and send them to the Jewish monarch, who, however, seeing the ruse through the medium of the Holy Spirit, sent them back again clad in shrouds (Pesik. ers

to select

iv. 34a).

Moab, asked his astrologers, " Why unable to vanquish the Jews?" and the}' answered, "Because of the merit of Abraham, who was ready to sacrifice his own son " whereupon the king did likewise (ib. ii. 13a). When a pagan wanted to buy a slave, he first conIt was through this art that sulted an astrologer. the wife of Potiphar learned that she was to have a son by Joseph and it Astrological was for this reason that she regarded It was an error, him with favor. Errors. ilesha, king of

am

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however; for the prognostication

re-

ferred to her daughter, who subsequently became Joseph's wife (Gen. R. lxxxv. 2, lxxxvii. 4). Pharaoh's astrologers perceived that the mother of the future redeemer of Israel was with child, and that this redeemer was destined to suffer punish-

242 Not knowing whether the

ment through water. deemer was to be an

re-

an Egyptian, and being desirous to prevent the redemption of Israel, Pharaoh ordered that all children born henceforth should be drowned but when the Egyptians remonstrated against this edict, he restricted it to Israelitish But the astrologers erred in their deducinfants. tions for the reference was to the waters of Meribah (Num. xx. 13), and not to the Nile (Ex. R. i. 18; Israelite or





Sanh. 1016; compare also Ber. 4a). The conviction that the astrologers could control the planets prevailed everywhere among the nations of antiquity. Thus Hainan regulated the time for the extinction of the Jews by means of astrological barber, who was calculations (Pirke R. El. 1.). also an astrologer, perceived that the Jews would shed his blood consequently he murdered 80 or, according to some, 300 of those who visited him professionally. But he erred for the reference was to the blood which lie was to lose at circumcision on his conversion to Judaism (Yer. 'Ab. Zarah ii. 41a). The astrologers were wont to sit at the entrance to the harbors and predict how every parcel of merchandise would be disposed of (Eccl. Special R. i. 14 Midr. Panim Aherim to Esth. Features, iii. 7, ed. Buber, p. 46). They could determine by lot under what planet and in what month and on what day a people was to be attacked (Sanh. 95a). On one occasion they prophesied to a non-Hebrew that his fortune would fall into the hand of a pious Jewish Sabbath observer. The fortune was thereupon invested in a diamond and worn by the possessor; but it fell into the water and was later found by a Jew in the stomach of a fish that he had bought for the Sabbath meal (Shab. 119a). An astrologer predicted of a new-born male infant that he was destined to become a thief; for which reason the mother always kept the head of the child covered in order that " the fear of the heaven be upon him, " and admonished him constantly to pray for divine grace. In spite of all, the covering fell from his head upon one occasion, after he had grown to manhood and had attained to the dignity of a teacher of the Law, and he fulfilled the sinister prediction by plucking and devouring the fruit of a tree which did not belong to him (Shab. Another teacher of the Law declined the 1566). proffered position of head of the school because a Chaldean had predicted that he should occupy the chair for only two years and this proved true, when he finally accepted the position twenty-two years later (Ber. 64a). Two students of the Talmud went out to fell timber, and an astrologer declared that they would never return but they were saved because of a benevolent action which they performed (Yer. Shab. vi. 8d). An astrologer became a proselyte and consequently abandoned his art; but he relied on God, and in a critical moment he was saved (ib.). To resist the influence of the "Wisdom of the Orient " was not an easy task. NeverTalmudists theless there was but one teacher of and the Talmud, Samuel of Babylonia Astrology, (about 250), who became an adept in Astrology, and even he, quoting the words (Deut. xxx. 12), "It [the Law] is not in the heavens," says, "Torah can not go together with

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