Authors: Nathan Erez
“Based on British law, which states that where the provisions of a will cannot be enforced as such, the estate is then apportioned for similar aims, the judges in Hong Kong ruled that since, at present, there is no way for the Third Temple to be built, in the interim the interest was to be used for religious and charitable purposes. Note the judges’ use of the phrase ‘in the interim’. In other words, the capital remains available for if and when the Third Temple is built.”
“And where is the capital at present?”
“There was no simple answer to this when it was in probate. The judges ruled that the capital be transferred to the Jewish community of Jerusalem. But which one? The Sephardi or the Ashkenazi? There was an all-out battle between the two groups. The Sephardic community claimed that since Madame Sassoon came from a distinguished Iraqi family - and the Iraqi Jews are all Sephardi - the money should go to them. The Ashkenazi Jews claimed that since all Jews are brothers, the money should be divided equally between the two communities. During her lifetime, she had been shunned by all, but after her death people suddenly declared themselves her best friends. This dispute dragged on for years, and both sides periodically sent representatives to Hong Kong – their traveling expenses to be deducted from the inheritance once the claims had been settled. In the end, it was decided that the Sephardic community would receive 70% of the interest and the Ashkenazi would receive 30%.”
“While all of this is fascinating,” said Elijah - his scholarly patience wearing dangerously thin - “how does Norman fit into the picture?”
“The heads of the Chinese crime syndicates, which are very much a part of Hong Kong as well, heard about the manuscripts which had somehow or other found their way here. These manuscripts are worth a fortune. My grandfather and Mr. Wang’s father once found an old crate full of manuscripts. You and Kim were merely messengers. Since your arrival, the situation has become too dangerous for you to remain here and finish your work.”
“One second, please. You’re under a totally mistaken impression. I’m not a businessman and don’t have the authority to negotiate with Mr. Wang or with anyone else. I’m a scholar of manuscripts, and was merely sent here to examine the manuscript and report my findings to Norman.”
“Indeed? And what conclusion have you reached?”
“The manuscript is a forgery,” Elijah lied.
“I knew it! I knew it! I’ve always known that the real manuscript was in my grandfather’s possession. Wang found a number of valuable manuscripts in the crate, but my grandfather had one manuscript of his own. He gave it to Rachel Sassoon for safekeeping. This manuscript had never been in the crate and was handed down in our family for four generations until it was given to my grandfather. My father told me it had been stored inside a silver sphere to keep it out of the hands of the fanatical Khalif Omar, the same khalif who had burned down the library in Alexandria. My father also told me that he had seen the place where Rachel and my grandfather had hidden the silver sphere, and he spelled out to me exactly where it is to be found. For years I thought it was nothing but a legend, and when I became a rabbi I believed it inappropriate for me to delve into the Kabbalah. And of course, as a rabbi, I could hardly go to the brothel and look for the silver sphere. It is possible that I am the only one alive today who knows where they hid the ball.”
“And I’m the only person in the world who can tell you if the manuscript is genuine or not,” responded Elijah, throwing out the bait.
“Let me call Lynne. We can drive there if it’s not too dangerous.”
“Back to the brothel?” said Elijah nervously. He knew about the criminals and their rule of always returning to the scene of the crime; and he was terrified of going back there. All he wanted was to head for the airport and take the 7:00 am flight out of town.
At the brothel the phone rang and rang, but no one answered.
“The place is obviously closed. There is no one there,” Rabbi Batzri said sorrowfully. He was consumed with the desire to get his hands on that manuscript, but of course it was only worth the effort if the manuscript did not turn out to be a forgery.
“I think I’ll take a cab to the airport,” proclaimed Elijah. “I’m so tired I’m afraid that if I fall asleep now I won’t get up in time for the flight. I might as well go to the First Class lounge and sleep there.”
“I’ll go with you,” said Rabbi Batzri, even though it was close to 4:00 am. He called a taxi service and ten minutes later a cab arrived. Rabbi Batzri mumbled something in Chinese. Elijah had no idea what he said, but he noticed that they stopped a few minutes later at the rear door of the brothel.
“I’ll be right back,” said the rabbi, as he swiftly climbed up the fire escape leading to the roof of the building. He came back down a few minutes later; he was obviously tense. The veins in his neck protruded angrily, and he was breathing deeply but unevenly. He had a package with him. In spite of the coolness of the night, he was perspiring. He ordered the driver to set off.
Elijah understood that there must be some major problem, but had enough sense not to engage Rabbi Batzri in any conversation. When they reached the airport, Rabbi Batzri paid the driver and got out of the cab with Elijah.
“I have the equipment to examine the manuscript with me,” said Elijah quietly.
Batzri responded immediately. “You have it with you? As you saw, I have my grandfather’s manuscript, and would like you to examine it. I’m willing to pay you whatever you ask.”
“You saved my life tonight. I wouldn’t dream of asking you to pay. It’s the least I can do for you.” Elijah knew that, if anything, he himself was willing to pay as much as was demanded just for the chance to examine the manuscript.
“Let’s go into the men’s lavatories. You can go into one of the stalls, while I stand guard outside.”
“Are you sure it’s safe here? I’d hate to be caught with my pants down.”
“While we’re in the airport we’re totally safe. That’s why I jumped at the opportunity of accompanying you here. The members of the Chinese Mafia are known to the local security forces. They do not find it easy to enter the airport.”
Once inside the stall, with the manuscript in his hands, Elijah forgot about the world outside. He was snug in his own little world. He peeled off the white cloth in which the manuscript had been wrapped. Fighting the manuscript’s tendency to curl itself up, he was able to spread it out before him. Yes, this had definitely been written by Nehemiah of Peki’in. He knew this script well by now and, to him, it was like receiving a letter from the past. He began to examine the script line by line. The first few lines were identical to those of the photocopy he had received at the institute and to the copy in Mr. Wang’s possession. Here again, there was a change in the seventh line! Elijah began to understand what was involved: each copy provided another hint. Elijah had no idea what it was, though, as he had not been educated on the Kabbalah. Up to now, there had been something about the
Even Shetiyah
. And there was an allusion to the heart of the world and to the spring. Here, though, the text was totally different.
By now, he was convinced that each of the seven copies contained a different hint, and that was why it was vital for Norman to acquire all of them. Only by obtaining all seven copies and comparing the seventh line of each could a full picture emerge. Now he understood why Norman was willing to pay any amount of money to obtain all seven manuscripts! Elijah photographed the manuscript, making sure to focus on the seventh line, and then rolled it up, wrapped it carefully in its cloth, and came out. Rabbi Batzri was waiting anxiously.
“It’s genuine!” ruled Elijah, and Rabbi Batzri almost kissed him in gratitude.
“I suggest that you offer it for sale to Norman,” said Elijah, as he handed the rabbi Norman’s business card.
Only once the plane had taken off and was safely in the air, was Elijah able to unwind a little. Now he was free to think back to the to-do list which he had found in the desk drawer. It seemed that days before Kim died, whoever had written the note had mentioned the need to take care of the Kim Foundation. That was the end of his tranquility!
In 638 C.E., which is the year 17 of the Hegira, the Arabs conquered Jerusalem, which was still called Aelia Capitolina. It was a bloodless conquest, in which Patriarch Sophronius surrendered without a fight. Sophronius, though, was only willing to surrender to the head of the Muslims, Khalif Omar ibn al-Khattab. Omar had arrived in Jerusalem from Syria, riding into Jerusalem on a camel and dressed simply in a camel’s hair garment, to show the modesty of a devout Muslim. According to Christian history, on the other hand, the garments he was wearing were filthy.
In consultation with a Yemenite Jew who had converted to Islam, Ka’ab al-Akhbar, the khalif decided to build a prayer hall on the Temple Mount itself. Ka’ab asked that it be built to the north of the Even Shetiyah - so that when the Muslims prayed in the direction of Mecca they would be facing the Even Shetiyah. After all, by tradition, that is the Foundation Stone of the entire world and it is from it that the world was formed. Thus, when Muslims bowed down in prayer they would be bowing down to the Temple Mount, where the Second Temple had stood. Omar was opposed to this idea, and mockingly claimed that Ka’ab was still thinking like a Jew.
In Omar’s days, Jerusalem’s lot improved tremendously. Omar destroyed nothing. He even permitted seventy Jewish families from Tiberias to settle in Jerusalem when they wished to, a decision which was praised by the Jews and condemned by the Christians.
The fate of Alexandria was different. Its library contained 700,000 books, or more properly, scrolls, for in those days there was no such thing as bound books with writing on both sides of the page. By all accounts, this was the largest, most comprehensive, and most famous library in the ancient world. Anyone who came to Alexandria was searched. If it was found that he had a scroll with him that did not exist in the library, it was confiscated and copied. The copy would be given to the owner, while the original would become part of the library. Most of the books in the library were in Greek, but there were books in other languages as well. The library did not merely collect books - the first translation of the Bible was undertaken under the patronage of the library’s wardens. The library also conducted many studies. One of its librarians was the first person to attempt to establish the size of the earth. Even though his calculations were wrong, they were relied upon by Christopher Columbus when he tried to persuade the King of Spain to underwrite his voyage. The library collected scrolls for about a thousand years, from Ptolemy I through the Roman governors and then the Byzantines.
Omar, who was evidently illiterate, was not impressed: “If whatever is found in these books is in the holy Koran, there is no need for them, and all we need is the Koran. If what is found in them is not in the holy Koran, there is certainly no need for them. In any event, the scrolls are to be burned.”
His orders were heeded and executed almost in full. For six months, hundreds of bathhouses in Alexandria were heated by the scrolls, which were used as fuel for their ovens. These included scrolls on mathematics and medicine, maps and drawings, letters and poetry. Hundreds of thousands of items went up in smoke. A thousand years of man’s quest for knowledge were destroyed in this unmitigated act of vandalism. However, the one minor consolation was that, as is so often true with any bureaucracy, the bureaucracy here was not overly efficient. Not everything went up in flames. A number of scrolls somehow survived the conflagration. For reasons unknown to us, one of the copies of the present scroll was not destroyed and was hidden in a silver sphere. The silver sphere was transported to Damascus, along with other valuables, and was added to the treasury of the Ummayah Khalifate, which then ruled the city.
The Ummayah Khalifate did not rule there for long. In 747 C.E., a freed Persian slave revolted against the khalif and installed his own family, the Abassids, as rulers.
The first Abassid ruler carried out a number of standard Middle Eastern practices to assure his rule. First, he had the freed Persian slave and a number of other radicals executed. Second, he strengthened his army, and third, he proclaimed Baghdad his new capital and transferred all the treasures he had looted from his predecessors to that city. Included in this was the silver sphere, which had been taken from the treasury in Damascus.
The khalifates were replaced by independent rulers, but Baghdad remained the cultural and social center of the entire Middle East. In its days of glory the population of Baghdad was in the millions, and it was known for its fabulous wealth. One of the khalifs had no fewer than four thousand concubines, while another had a carpet made which measured four hundred meters on each side, and was woven with gold, silver, and silk threads and embedded with rubies and diamonds. It was this legendary city that was ruled by Harun al-Rashid, he of the 1001 nights.
Baghdad’s luster was destroyed in a single month. In the 1250s, the Mongol tribes united under Hulagu Khan, grandson of Genghis Khan. The bearded, long-haired Mongol warriors rampaged through what is now Iran, moving westward. Within a few months they had crossed rivers and trampled, smashed and destroyed anyone who tried to impede their progress. Even the Assassins, in their mountain strongholds, were unable to hold them back. In January 1258, the Mongols advanced on Baghdad. The last khalif begged for fair terms of surrender or for mercy, but his request was rejected out of hand by the Mongols. On February 20, the city was taken by storm. It was burned to the ground, and all its wealth plundered. The emir and his entire family were executed. All the inhabitants of the city, numbering about a million at the time, were either slaughtered or sold into slavery. The fabled palaces were looted, the libraries destroyed, and all the houses torched. Whatever Omar had done to the library in Alexandria was amply repaid by what the Mongols did to Baghdad.
Among all the booty was the silver sphere. It was brought to Beijing, where Kublai Khan had established his new capital. Together with silver jewelry, gold platters, and dazzling silk paintings, the globe remained in its new abode for more than 700 years. Untouched, it survived rulers and dynasties. At first it was the Mongol dynasty, followed by the Ming and finally the Manchurian. In the Forbidden City, the beautiful sphere intrigued weak emperors, plotting eunuchs, and sly women of the court. However, its tranquility eventually came to an end.
In the days of Emperor Pu-Yi, the last emperor of China, many items of the royal palace vanished in a mysterious fashion. Often they disappeared along with the people who had been entrusted to guard them. The silver sphere somehow found its way to Hong Kong, where it was to be melted down for its silver content. However, the silversmith realized that it was hollow, and somehow, miraculously, the scroll was found before the sphere was placed in the furnace. The silversmith had a Jewish friend who bought the manuscript for a princely sum, and thus the scroll wound up in the colony’s Sephardic synagogue.