JUDAICA - Wisdom In Torah

In Jewish Folklore
Many of the legends and stories in written and oral Jewish folk
literature are spun around biblical and post-biblical (historical)
figures and legendary characters. Among these Elijah is
a favorite hero and overshadows other popular folklore protagonists:
e.g., Moses, King David, King Solomon, Maimonides,
and such local sages as R. Shalom *Shabbazi of Yemen,
R. Ḥayyim b. Moses *Attar of Morocco, R. Israel b. Eliezer Baal
Shem Tov of the ḥasidic legend, and others. The redemptive
motif associated with Elijah in rabbinic literature as the herald
of the future redemption of Israel and of the messianic era is
not stressed in folklore; he is rather portrayed as the heavenly
emissary sent on earth to combat social injustice. He rewards
the poor who are hospitable and punishes the greedy rich.
In his attempts to right wrongs, he seeks to bridge the gap of
social inequality and does not hesitate to punish the unjust,
regardless of their status even if they be rabbis or respected
communal leaders. In Joseph Shabbethai Farḥi’s collection
of folktales, Oseh Pele (vol. 2 (1954), 114), Elijah strangles the
local rabbi while the latter rests after the *seder. The prophet
admonishes the rabbi: “You collected all the money as charity,
but you distributed it according to your own will. The cries
[of the needy] reached heaven and came before God, the Almighty…”
Many of the stories about Elijah are outcries of the
wretched and unfortunate against the proud and oppressive
elements in the Jewish community and were used by the authors
as a vehicle for social protest. At the same time, these
legends are a type of comfort and solace to the poor. Elijah appears
especially on the eve of *Passover when he punishes the
misers and provides the despairing poor with the necessaries
to prepare the seder. His activities continue late into the seder
night; the Cup of Elijah is placed in the center of the festive
table and the prophet is expected to announce the redeemer.
Elijah also alleviates the burdens of Jewish communities suffering
from religious and national persecution, and exposes
*blood libels – mainly occurring on Passover – as absurd and
perfidious calumnies.
Elijah’s benign acts and the miracles he performs extend
beyond the specifically Jewish sphere and have their parallel
in other folklore. A recurrent theme in the Elijah legends is
the prophet’s ability to ward off the *Angel of Death from the
young fated to die (a motif rooted in the biblical revival story);
this he usually does by advising them to study the Torah. A
healing agent, he also blesses the barren with fertility and is
able to interpret occult events and visions described in cryptic
passages in the Torah and in the Talmud. Another prevalent
Elijah motif is the prophet’s task to act as provider, based
on his biblical endowment to make rain. He confers an inexhaustible
barrel of oil on Mayer Amschel Rothschild, distributes
magic money-making boxes to the poor but deprives
them of this heavenly gift when they become uncharitable
and stop giving alms. In the Yiddish song “God of Abraham,”
chanted by East European Jewish women at the termination of
the Sabbath, Elijah is heralded as Israel’s redeemer, but since
the song is chanted at the beginning of the new week, it also
elijah
stresses his role as provider. Since Elijah did not die, and is
thought to wander the earth, usually disguised as a poor man,
a beggar, or a gentile peasant, there are those who are eager
to meet him, or at least to see him in a dream (Gillui Eliyahu,
“Elijah’s revelation”). The practical Kabbalah and Jewish folk
beliefs describe ways to bring this about. His name is, therefore,
also inscribed on many amulets, especially in the areas
influenced by Islamic culture.
The stories and beliefs revolving around Elijah were the
subject of many *chapbooks composed in Yiddish, Ladino,
and Judeo-Arabic dialects. All these legends testify not only
to the popularity of the prophet among all Jewish communities,
but also reveal the close affinity in Jewish folklore between
written and oral literature and customs (see *Elijah, Chair of;
*Elijah, Cup of). Many of the customs associated with Elijah
can be explained by etiological tales. Their setting is usually
an Elijah cave or shrine found on Mount Sinai, at Haifa, Alexandria,
Cairo, Damascus, Aleppo, etc. The miracles in these
tales, which are mainly of a healing nature, often give the name
and describe the origin of the cave. Elijah’s role in the circumcision
ceremony is not only associated with the “Chair of Elijah,”
but he heals and is the guardian angel of the newborn
Jewish child during the “critical birth” period (lasting at least
30 days from the date of birth). Numerous religious and secular
folk songs and dances testify to this fact. Many proverbial
sayings and aphorisms grew around Elijah’s name. The most
popular among them “until Elijah arrives,” used when referring
to a doubtful and unsolved matter, is similar to the folk
explanation of the word ּוקית (teiku), which is actually a form
of םוקית “let it stand,” “stalemate,” as a *notarikon consisting of
the initial letters of Tishbi yetareẓ kushyot u-ve’ayot “the Tishbite
(Elijah) will resolve difficulties and problems.” Though the
main stream of the Elijah folklore is associated with his socionational
and religious roles, the prophet – as is usual with
popular folk heroes – is also a protagonist in witty tales, folk
jokes, and humoristic stories. In these Elijah is identified with,
or is the guardian angel of, the simpleminded Jew who at the
end of the story is victorious; a factor which testifies to a type
of wishful thinking at the root of Jewish folklore.
[Dov Noy]
In Islam
According to the Koran (Sura 37:123–130), Ilyās (Elijah) was
one of the apostles sent to his people to admonish them to
fear God and not worship Baal. They, however, regarded him
as a liar. In Sura 6:85 he is mentioned among the righteous
ones, together with figures from the New Testament who included
ʿĪsā (Jesus). The commentators of the Koran and the
authors of Muslim legend enlarge upon this limited information
and explain that Ilyās lived during the days of Ahab and
Jezebel. They also add that he was the fourth generation (!) after
Aaron the Priest. In light of the Bible and the Midrashim
they shaped the figure of the prophet who wages war against
the worshipers of Baal and its priests, even though they occasionally
change the names of the characters: Ahab becomes
ENCYCLOPAEDIA JUDAICA, Second Edition, Volume 6 335