Satan in Goray

Prayer after his soul and he solaced the dybbuk and lifted the ban: But at once the evil spirit denied himself and he cried: No, Here it is better for me and I shall not depart: Then Reb Mordecai Joseph laid him under a ban again and threatened the dybbuk and adjured him and this went on hour after hour for the dybbuk did nought but lie and perjure himself with his crooked tongue: And he boasted that the holy names held no terror for him and he denied the blessed God: And when they asked him Why then art thou punished he replied It is all chance and an event of nature: And thus he continued in his rebelliousness: Oh if we were to undertake to tell but one thousandth part of all that the fiend did and his ribaldry and his lewdness this tongue would be too brief to recount it and this sheet to record it: But the whole congregation saw with perfect clearness the wonders of God and set their hearts on returning to their Father in Heaven: And the name of the Almighty was consecrated that day:

    AND IT CAME TO PASS toward evening that the spirit cried Look after yourselves For I am about to forsake the body of this woman, seeing that the blasts of the ram's horn and the adjurations have left me no place here: And he began to weep with a man's tears and he said Pray that He show me compassion for I am in dire straits: And dusk fell on the study house for it was wintertime and the days were short: And the congregation all recited the verse beginning And let there be contentment and various psalms and other prayers to drive the spirit away: When suddenly the spirit cried: Move off for I come: And there was such a press for very terror that many folk were trampled: The next instant the congregation beheld a flash of fire from that same place and it flew through the window burning a round hole in the pane: And no man opened his mouth for all were struck dumb with shock: BUT RECHELE LAY on the earth like dead for her strength had come from the spirit (vid. sup.): And the women hastened and covered her and they bore her to her house to revive her and to bring her back to life:

    AND MANY NIGHTS thereafter the evil spirit visited her and rapped on her window and spoke to her sweetly: And he said, But see As long as I dwelt in thee thou were in good health: And now art thou sickly and poorly: But let me return to thy body and remove the amulets from thy throat and I shall do thy pleasure: And the spirit spoke in this manner smooth words and pleasant but the woman would not heed him: And then he warned her that she would be repayed for this and that he would have his revenge: And so it came to pass (because of our transgressions that are great): For on the morning of the third day when the women came to Rechele to tend her they found her dead and her body was already cold: And they did what was proper with her: And Reb Itche Mates her first husband mourned her and recited the Mourner's Prayer over her grave: And in his love for her that knew no bounds he took the thing to heart and he sickened: And before he died he bade that he be buried near her: And thus that righteous man passed away with a kiss: May his merit be our shield:

    AND THE WICKED GEDALIYA persuaded the watch man and the latter removed his chains and they fled together: And Gedaliya became an apostate (God save us) and rose to high position among the idolators and a troubler of Jews: And some folk say that Gedaliya was none other than Samael himself and that all his deeds were nought but seduction: And the moral of this tale is: LET NONE ATTEMPT TO FORCE THE LORD: TO END OUR PAIN WITHIN THE WORLD: THE MESSIAH WILL COME IN GODS OWN TIME: AND FREE MEN OF DESPAIR AND CRIME: THEN DEATH WILL PUT AWAY HIS SWORD: AND SATAN DIE ABJURED, ABHORRED: LILITH WILL VANISH WITH THE NIGHT: THE EXILE END AND ALL BE LIGHT: AMEN SELAH: CONCLUDED AND DONE