IF GRAVES COULD TALK

Literally, hundreds of thousands of visitors a year flock to the city of Tzefat, the city perched on top of one of the mountains north west of the Sea of Galilee. The air is clear and the view of the nearby mountains of the Meron range is magnificent. On the western slopes just below the city of Tzefat you will find the remains of the cemetery of Tzefat where the graves of many of the famous Rabbis who lived here in the 16th century are still maintained and preserved until this day.  They are visited regularly by many of the thousands for visitors to Tzefat.  A steady stream of visitors  can be found walking among the graves looking for the names of the Rabbis they have only read about in books. Rabbis who have become legends and whose books are still studied and whose stories are retold to this day throughout the Jewish world.

What makes these Rabbis and the way they lived their lives such an inspiration to so many?  Part of the answer rests in a better understanding of the history of the times and the context in which these Rabbis all settled in this one little town.  In 1492, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella delivered an ultimatum to the accomplished and well established community of Spain.  Each and every one of them must either convert to Christian Catholicism or leave the country.  Despite the economic and social upheaval most of the Jews of Spain chose to leave.  In a very short time they were forced to sell what they could and book passage at the closest port leaving behind family connections friends and property.  They had become exiles again. Many families ended up in the states of Northern Africa, some went to Italy and Holland, and some traveled to Turkey and eventually to the Holy Land which was then being conquered by arguably the most powerful army in the world, the Ottoman Empire.

In that context many well-known Rabbinic figures of the day made their way to this small mountaintop village of Tzefat.  The Ottoman Turks were using Tzefat as a way station on the road from Damascus to Egypt.  There was a thriving textile industry in Tzefat.  The isolated location and the magnificent scenery involved a feeling of spirituality and the presence of God. Famous names such as Rabbi Yosef Karo, Rabbi Yaakov Bei Rav, Rabbi Shlomo Alshich, Rabbi Moshe Cordovero, Rabbi Chaim Vital, Rabbi Shlomo Alkabatz, to name a few, arrive looking for a conducive place to study and write and support their families.  Then in 1570 a young man arrived in Tzefat from Egypt and his name was Rabbi Yitzhak Luria.  His erudition in all areas of Jewish learning was quickly recognized and he became the respected leader of many of the other personalities.  The acronym for his name was the ARi - the lion.  His followers, many of the other Rabbis of Tzefat, were called the Lion's cubs.  Not only did he teach he set the stage for a rejuvenation of the Jewish spirit. He preached that by improving and perfecting the character of the people of the city of Tzefat they could have an impact on the arrival of the Messiah.  His goal was to create a Jewish Utopia up on the peak of the mountain of Tzefat.  Though he only lived for two years in Tzefat his impact on the community was dramatic.  His dreams lives on in Tzefat to this day.
 
Something remarkable happened in 16th century in Tzefat.  All those people who today visit the cemetery are searching for a connection to what happened there just a few centuries ago.  Some find it at the painted blue grave markers of those Rabbis of Tzefat that stand to this day in the cemetery.  They visit the grave of Rabbi Shomo Alkabetz the poet who most famous poem is sung every Friday night is synagogues all across the world.  They visit the grave of Rabbi Yosef Karo who codified and summarized the mass of Jewish Law and was accepted as a world authority by communities all around the world.

And then they visit the grave of the ARi, Rabbi Yitzhak Luria  - one grave in particular that stands out from the rest if for no other reason than the unusual inscription on the head stone depicted below.  Presumably, the message inscribed on the stone is one that he requested as his epitaph and this message is the only thing that is inscribed on his head stone. The inscription says nothing about the man and describes nothing about what he did. The rough translation is mine.

It would be good to make a daily commitment before the set prayers each day to love every Jewish person, and one should say the following with a full heart: "I hereby take upon myself the fulfillment of the positive Biblical commandment  - And you will love your companion as you do yourself - and I hereby state that I love every other single Jew with all my soul and with all my being."