Satan in Goray

longer kept shop, artisans suspended their labors. It seemed useless to complete anything. Now the people ate only food that did not need preparation and was easy to obtain. Since they were too slothful to gather firewood in the forest, they acquired the habit of heating their ovens with the lumber they had available. By winter they would be settled in Jerusalem. And so they tore down fences and outhouses for kindling. Some even ripped the shingles from their roofs. Many refused to undress when they retired at night. The awaited cloud might come when they were asleep, and they did not wish to be forced to dress in a hurry. In Reb Godel Chasid's house the books had been wrapped in a sheet, as after a fire, and thrice daily their owner stepped outside to look toward the east for some sign of the cloud. He would cover his eyes, as though to protect them from too strong a light, and cry: "Father in Heaven, save us now. We have not the strength to wait longer."
    Late at night Reb Gedaliya would come to visit Rechele in her room. She would be lying in her canopy bed, asleep. Since becoming a prophetess, Rechele had almost ceased eating entirely; no longer did she attend to her physical needs. Her body had become white and semi-transparent, like mother-of- pearl, and it seemed to her that she was exuding a leafy fragrance. Each night angels visited her in her dreams, and Rabbi Simeon ben Yohai and the prophet Elijah came, and angels and prophets studied with her until daybreak. Often when she awoke in the morning she would be able to recite entire sections from the Zohar and its Emendations by heart. At times she spoke to Reb Gedaliya in Targum Aramaic. As she read the pages turned of their own accord. Sometimes she would put out her hand to take some object, and it would fly to her fingers, as though drawn by magic. Her body shone in the darkness like a precious stone, and her skin emitted sparks. She would lie in her canopy bed wearing a silk kerchief on her head, which rested on three pillows, one of her eyes half open, her nose white, her breathing so faint it could not be heard. Reb Gedaliya would enter naked, a thick growth of hair covering his body like a fur coat, wearing only a skull cap, and with a wax candle in his left hand. He would lift the white silk gown that, covered Rechele's body, kiss her feet, and waken her.
    "Rechele, it is midnight. The heavens are parting. The Divine Parents are coupling face to face. Rechele, be of good cheer. This is the hour of union."

    8

    Golden Jackets and Marzipan Candy

    The month of Elul. Each morning crowds of women descended to the cemetery to bid the dead farewell; the dead would not reach the holy land as soon as the living; when the Messiah came they would pass to the Land of Israel by way of underground caverns. For days the women lay prostrate on the graves, screaming and wailing, begging the forgiveness of the dead for deserting them, explaining that the day of resurrection was near, calling upon them to intercede for their living kin and neighbors in the Hereafter. The wealthy cut wicks the length of the graves of their beloved, to make candles for the study house. The poor could only weep, and the graves were wet with their tears. Even the children were brought, and they played among the tombstones. It seemed as if the living and the dead dwelt together in the cemetery, and the gypsies who had pitched their tents close by marveled at the sight. As for the gentiles, they were delighted, believing that they would inherit all that the Jews abandoned. In the study house the ram's horn was sounded, and Reb Godel Chasid trembled at each blast, for each might be the one that announced the Messiah. Too anxious to remain at home, he paced restlessly outside. For several days a cloud had hovered in the sky to the east of Goray. Evenings, it elongated, taking on the shape of an enormous fish; mornings it was aflame, a burning red, and afternoons it seemed a ship with silver sails, drawing nearer and nearer. Reb Godel and the other members of the sect were certain this was the pillar of cloud mentioned in the holy scriptures; but they spoke of this only among themselves in hushed tones, so that the people might not become excited. The women shook their heads piously, unable to keep their eyes away from that part of the sky; all seemed to feel that at such a moment silence was best.
    But the days came and went, and still there was no miracle.
    As the High Holy Day grew nearer,