Boris Zaltsman
Our magazine has already published interviews with
Boris Zaltsman. Boris was interested in the history of the
Jewish people all his life, and eventually became a true
expert on it. Once Boris came to our office and began to
read poems that fascinated literally from the first word.
These were poems by the great Jewish poet of the 12th
century, Yehuda Halevi. We asked Boris to tell us about
this amazing poet. Yehuda Halevi, the great Jewish thinker, philosopher and poet of the 12th century, lived in Spain, which at that time was under Arab rule. He lived for 64 years, and during his life
wrote about 600 poems, half of which were devoted to the
theme of "Return to Zion" - to the Holy Land. Rabbi Yehuda received a versatile Jewish (he graduated from a yeshiva) and secular, Arabic education. In his youth,
he traveled to Granada, which was one of the largest centers
of Jewish culture of that time. It was there that the first significant poetic works of Rabbi Yehuda Halevi appeared, writing about his love of life, humanity, nature and art, as well as for his people, the Land of Israel, and the wonderful rise of the history of the Jewish people. In other words, love for the Creator. These writings made Halevi one of the brightest representatives of the
Golden Age of Jewish culture in Muslim Spain.
But two terrible catastrophes that befell our people tragically affected the work of the great poet.
The Crusaders destroyed the largest Jewish communities in Europe and captured Jerusalem. In Spain, the Muslims dealt harshly with the Jews. From that time, the poems of Halevi, who was forced to leave Granada, became permeated with longing for the lost homeland and imbued with intonations of bitter lamentation for the expulsion of the Jews. This is how the "Songs of Zion" appeared, which has no equal in Jewish poetry.
I am happy that our generation was destined to see the rebirth of Zion and the return of the
Jews to the Holy Land.
And the kingdoms of careless idols
The promised end will come
But it will be forever, it will be forever
Shine over the world your crown.
I will listen to G‑d who loves
And I see your chosen ones.
How happy is he who this earth
For life chose from others.
How happy is he who waits and believes
In your coming dawn.
How happy is he who is in this shore
Foot prints its mark
And who, led by an ancient cry,
See what was gained in battle
Your forgotten greatness
And your former youth.
Is it hard to believe that these lines were created 900 years ago? He outlined his cherished
thoughts about the coming revival of the Jewish people and their homeland in the book, Kuzari,
which from the day it was published to this day warms the hearts of Jews. The book is written
in Arabic in the form of a debate and discussion between the idolatrous Khazar king, who is
trying to find out what actions of people are most pleasing to G‑d, and between representatives
of different religions. During the discussion, the Jewish representative expresses the idea of
the chosenness of the Jewish people and their Land. The Jewish people are the people of the
prophets, and Palestine (as they called Israel then) is the Promised Land. The people and the
Land constitute a perfect and indivisible whole. The expulsion of the Jews from the Holy Land
led to the fact that the Divine integrity of human history was violated. The restoration of this
integrity is the task of future generations, but even now the Jews are spiritually connected with
their Land. Rabbi Yehuda dreamed of visiting the Land of the Fathers, which he wrote about with
such inspiration in his poems, and he once he managed to do it. There is an opinion that he died
in Egypt during his second trip to Palestine when an Arab horseman trampled him during prayer.
For the rest of my life, I have memorized the poems of the great Jewish poet, which flow directly
into the soul of every Jew. I first read them fifty years ago, and since then they have resounded
in my heart.
Zion send hello chained to you
The fetters of love and great fidelity,
The remnants of the flock that once grazed
In your pastures, many-sided people.
From the northern fields to the heat of the
southern countries,
From the far west to the very east,
From all over the earth they send for
centuries
Greetings to the native country from near
and far.
How long have I dreamed of watering with
tears
The majestic mountains of Hermon are all
peaks.
For centuries, like a jackal, I mourn
The greatness of your sad ruins.
But as soon as in a dream it seems for a
moment,
What ended the captivity of your sons,
Great joy, fun sounds
Then my grieving muse sang.
And naked and barefoot I will wander there,
Where our temple rose and the king sat on
the throne.
It is sweeter for me to wander among the
ruins there,
Than in a foreign land on the head to wear
a crown.
Blessed is he who has been deemed worthy
to see
Thy purple-new dawn dawn,
See the return to you of your chosen ones
And rejoice with you on the day of rebirth.
I am happy that our generation was destined to see the rebirth of Zion and the return of the
Jews to the Holy Land.
