Geniza Lab

Recto: Letter from a woman to her distant husband, al-Shaykh al-Muhadhdhab, who has been away for many years, urging him in various ways to return. She appeals to his charitable deeds; how the Jewish community has been bereft of his presence; and how at this rate, his children will only know him through those charitable deeds (8–11). She urges him not to listen to anybody else but to her only, "Get up! Rise! And earn the World to Come" (14–15). By repenting and returning he will also earn [the merit of saving] her life, "for as long as this continues, I have become very weak. Every hour I wonder if my weakness will increase. [If you return,] you will not have grief in your heart that you did not see me and that I did not pray for you before my death. I do not doubt in your love for me, as you must not doubt in my lasting love for you. Even if you have changed with the separation for all this time, and have been absent from my sight, my heart too has been absent" (17–23). She then reiterates her old age, her weakness, and her poverty. This letter is noted by Oded Zinger in his dissertation, p. 54, in the context of other letters from women to distant husbands. Verso: Judaeo-Arabic tafsir, Psalms 113:4–116:6 (Neubauer-Cowley Catalog). ASE.

Most of a long, very distressed letter from Menaḥem, writing in Fusṭāṭ/Cairo, to a business associate, whose family lives in Fustāṭ/Cairo and who has traveled. The details of the case are difficult to follow and merit deeper examination. Menaḥem's enemies have gotten the upper hand, and they are gloating to the utmost, and he has lost a great deal of money. In what remains of the letter, he first mentions the visit of Lu'lu' ("may the enemies of Israel perish"), who may be identical with al-Raqqī, to a prison (where Menaḥem had been held?). The entirety of the rest of the story has to do with the misdeeds of al-Raqqī and Ibn Kātib al-ʿArab, called "dogs" by the writer (they call him the same). The latter "stands in the middle of the markets [of Fusṭāṭ and Cairo] and hosts great gatherings (? maḥāfil), even greater than those of al-Raqqī. He said that I am his enemy and that I testified against him to the representative of the sultan" (r12–15, 29). Apparently the addressee normally has the ear of Ibn Kātib al-ʿArab, and so none of this would have happened if the addressee had not had to travel "for my sins" (r24–25). Menaḥem writes repeatedly that he is "in the fire" and that it would be better to be dead (r25–31, v21–25). His uncle (ʿamm) Abū l-Faraj is egging on al-Raqqī, standing in the market and "on the slaughterhouse" (?) and cursing Menaḥem and the addressee before the Jews and the Muslims. Abū l-Faraj is instructing al-Raqqī not to "appraise these pawns" (hādhihi l-ruhūnāt lā tuqawwimuhum) (does Menaḥem run a pawnshop?) (r32–36). The villainy of Abū l-Faraj goes deeper, for he "sits in the house with Yūsuf and his brothers and his children, dancing (raqṣ) and listening to music (ṭarab) (rm22–33). The installment of the story that continues on verso has to do with al-Raqqī's claim that he is owed 1000 nuqra (dirhams) by the addressee. Various legal documents and (false?) witnesses are produced (v1–15). Someone states, "This is how fortunes are lost because of slander" (v12). Menaḥem expands on his wretched state. He prays for God to command the "angel of my misfortunes" to relent. Every day ends with tears and with the melting of his liver, bit by bit (v19–32). He concludes by urging the addressee to come quickly and to seek aid from a powerful man ("kiss the feet for me of he whom you know," v33–34). He apologizes for the distressing matter contained in the letter (v35–37). R. David sends his regards and rebukes; R. Shelomo is well, recovering, back to his usual self; the addressee's wife and children are well (v37–40). In a postscript: "I heard that Muhadhdhab b. al-ʿŪdī is in critical condition and that wheat is expensive. May God have mercy." ASE

This is the fourth letter sent by Yonatan ha-Kohen b. David of Lunel to Moses Maimonides, writing in his own name but also all the sages of Provence. The letter discusses three topics. (1) They have succeeded in finding a translator for the Guide for the Perplexed, Shemuel b. Yehuda Ibn Tibbon. "Indeed [the Guide] would have been 'as a small stone in a heap of stones' (Proverbs 26:8) and 'as a lily among thorns' (Song of Songs 2:2), a book for the illiterate, if our Creator had not brought us one wise and enlightened in every wisdom, whose father taught him the language of the Arabs, the son of the wondrous sage, the elevated physician, Yehuda Ibn Tibbon ha-Sefaradi." Yonatan then gives a list of works that Yehuda Ibn Tibbon has translated: Sefer ha-Emunot, Sefer Ḥovot ha-Levavot, Middot ha-Nefesh, Mivḥar ha-Peninim (of Ibn Gabirol), the Kuzari, and Sefer ha-Diqduq and Sefer ha-Shorashim by Ibn Jannāḥ. Then, referring to the Midrash on 1 Samuel 3:3 ("the lamp of Eli had not yet gone out [when the lamp shone of] Shemuel ha-Ramati"), he returns to Shemuel the son of Yehuda who has started his career in the lifetime of his father and teacher. "He scraped the honey from the carcass of the lion into his hands (Judges 14:9), and fed us, with the tip of the pen in his hand, of the honey [from your lips] and the drops of myrrh from your fingers, and our eyes were illuminated to see what was concealed. Our eyes have not been sated with seeing, nor our ears with hearing, and our desire has grown [greater than] in the beginning, like the thirsty bird that has begun to drink when the cup is taken away, or like the nursing baby torn away from his mother's breast." (2) This leads to the second topic: they wish to be sent the third and final part of the Guide, which they have not yet seen. (3) The third matter is alluded to in a postscript, in which Yonatan repeats a request for the responsa to the 24 queries they had sent regarding the Mishneh Torah. The response of Maimonides, who neglected to respond to the first three letters, has been preserved (not in the Geniza). From the response, we also learn that this letter by Yonatan of Lunel was accompanied by a letter to Maimonides from Shemuel Ibn Tibbon. In it, he introduced himself, expressed his wish to travel to Egypt and meet Maimonides in person, and sought advice on some matters of translation. Verso contains three different text blocks. At the top, very faded, is the address, most of which Stern succeeded in reading with UV light (משה יצ בן . . . ר מימו[ן] זצל המגיד דבריו ליעקב חקיו ומשפטיו לישראל). Next, there are 11 lines in the hand of Moses Maimonides, likely his notes to himself and/or an assistant when he filed away this letter: "When the responsa to their queries were delayed from reaching them due to an illness [. . .], they sent this fourth letter requesting the responsa and the Guide, and this is the text of their letter. [. . .] the Guide, and let the delayed responsa be expedited." The word after "illness" is difficult to read. Stern suggests רבאני and the translation "divine mania." Baneth suggests ובאני, meaning "an epidemic illness." Finally, in a third hand, there is a date, which must have been added by a later owner: Monday, 2 Elul 1580 (=1269 CE), Shabbat Shofeṭim. Information largely from Stern's analysis, pp. 18–20 and 23. There are various editions, awaiting digitization. For an edition of the writing by Maimonides, and a general analysis of the place of this letter in his correspondence with the scholars of Provence, see Stern, "Maimonides' Correspondence with the Scholars of Provence," Zion 16 (1951), pp.18–29. ASE

Letter from an older Maghribī traveler, in Alexandria, to his cousin, somewhere in the Maghrib. In Judaeo-Arabic. Dating: ca. 1100 CE. Evidently this letter was never sent. The writer has spent the last five years in Egypt attempting to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. He describes the various disasters of the years 1095–1100 to justify both why he has failed to reach Jerusalem and why too he has remained in Egypt instead of returning to his family and waṭan. First, he describes the chaos in Palestine under the Seljuq occupation ("many armed bands made their appearance in Palestine"). He next describes the 1095 siege of Alexandria in which the vizier al-Afḍal deposed Nizār and secured the caliphate for al-Mustaʿlī ("the city was ruined. . . the Sultan conquered the city and caused justice to abound"). He again prepared for travel "when God conquered Jerusalem at his [the caliph's] hands," i.e., in 1098, only to be foiled by the appearance of the Franks, who "killed everyone in the city, whether Jew or Muslim." The writer is confident that the Fatimids will retake Jerusalem this very year, so he intends to remain in Egypt until he sees Jerusalem or gives up all hope. The letter ends with the writer's protracted illnesses. Throughout these years, the land has been filled with epidemic diseases (wabā', aʿlāl, amrāḍ, dever). The wealthy became impoverished, "most people died," entire families were destroyed. The writer himself developed a grave illness (maraḍ ṣaʿb), which lasted one year, and was shortly followed by another grave illness, which has lasted four years and perhaps continues to the present day. "Indeed [true is] what the Scripture has said of the dreadful disease of Egypt (Deut. 7:15). . . . He who hiccups (yastanshiq) will not escape from it. . . . ailments and will die from them. . . . Otherwise, he will remain alive." Note that "yastanshiq" typically means "inhale" or "snuff" (e.g., water for ritual ablutions) rather than "hiccup." Information largely from Goitein's attached translation and notes, and Goldman, "Arabic-Speaking Jews in Crusader Syria" (diss.), pp. 38–42, where there is a thorough analysis of the letter's context and a discussion of the writer's penchant for hyperbole.

Letter from Labrāṭ b. Moshe b. Sughmār, in al-Mahdiyya, to his brother Yehuda b. Moshe b. Sughmār, in Fustat. Dating: July 30 (26 Av), 1057, based on Gil's assessment. (Gil dates ENA NS 18.35, written on 6 Elul, to the previous year. But both letters contain very similar congratulations on Yehuda's wedding, so perhaps they were sent two weeks apart instead of eleven months.) Labrāṭ opens with describing his great anxiety on account of his brother, because he had not received a letter from him all year. "My heart was preoccupied and I thought the worst, for he who loves is inflamed (muwallaʿ) with thinking the worst. On the eve of ʿAẓeret (Shavuʿot), Fityān and his associates arrived in a boat from Sfax to al-Mahdiyya. When I saw them, my soul almost left me and I went pale (? akhadhatnī ṣufra). I said to myself, perhaps they have news [of you]. . . . [Fityān] said, God bless him, that your letters were with him. I prostrated myself and thanked God for His favor" (r4–8). Labrāṭ then congratulates his brother on his marriage into a distinguished family (r10–19). He mentions a person of low morals whom he tries to avoid, but he recently had to go to this person's wedding in Sūsa (r19–21). When he returned to al-Mahdiyya, 'the boy' was sick (ḍaʿīf), and worsened, and almost died. Every day letters arrive from people in Sūsa, perhaps specifically from the man of low morals, blaming Labrāṭ regarding either this boy or that person's affairs (aḥwālihi). The next phrase is quite difficult, perhaps: "I considered that he was heedless (sahā), and I decided to completely despair of him (i.e., end the relationship). I am left with no eye to see light with, [and nothing] to take pride in, except for you, may God protect you (r21–24). (Gil reads it differently.) The remainder of the letter deals with business matters. The writer is much older than his brother. He asks him to fulfill his family’s duty by helping him with his business. He also mentions events in the Maghreb. Apparently there is a naval fleet besieging Sūsa. (Information in part from Gil, Kingdom, Vol. 4, #615.) See also Goitein, Med Soc III, viii, B, 1 no. 36. VMR. ASE.

Family letter from Natan b. Yehuda (Alexandria, ca. 1160) to Moshe b. Ṣemaḥ and his brother (Fustat), the writer’s cousins-in-law. Natan b. Yehuda reports that everyone in the house was ill because of a great epidemic of sweating sickness (wakham) in Alexandria. He praises the brothers for their munificence but also politely reminds them that it was time for them to marry and wishes that their mother may see their “joy”. (Information from Goitein notes and index card linked below and from Goitein, MedSoc, Vol. 3, p. 61 and p. 440n61 and Vol. 5, p. 113.)

Fragment of a letter on behalf of the lepers of Tiberias.

Fragment of a letter from the lepers of Tiberias, probably to Fustat.

Fragment of a letter from the lepers of Tiberias to Mukhtar and his brother.

Letter from Ḥalfon b. Netanʾel ha-Levi, in Alexandria, to Yiṣḥaq Ibn ʿEzra, in Spain. In Judaeo-Arabic. The letter deals with the death of Ḥalfon's brother and other notables and the series of disasters that struck Ḥalfon and the community. Dating: probably January 1140 CE (though Goitein originally believed it to be 1129 CE, he later revised his dating and Friedman agrees). (Information from Goitein and Friedman, India Book IV.) Goitein summarizes the letters as follows: "A perfect picture of the influence of emotions on physical and mental health is found in the long letter written by the noble India trader Ḥalfon b. Netanel nine months after his return to Egypt from a long sojourn in Spain. As expected from a man like him, he dedicates the first twenty lines to the praise of his gracious and learned hosts, whom he so greatly missed. Then he goes on to bemoan one after another the disasters that disturbed his mind: civil war, anarchy, the high cost of living in Egypt, the death of the Head of the Jerusalem Academy (which then had its seat in Cairo) and of several luminaries of the Jewish spiritual and social upper crust; hardly had the months of mourning for those passed when Halfon's misfortune was topped by the demise of his eldest brother, who was the president of the Jewish High Court of Justice. He found himself unable to act, even to supervise the unloading of his goods, and let the perishables rot. During his long stay in Alexandria his body and soul never enjoyed full health, but he was also unable to bring himself to go up to Cairo: how could he visit the place vacated by his brother? Family and friends came down to Alexandria to induce him to return home, but he did not find in himself nahḍa, energy, to do so. For this reason, he was also not in a position to send to his friends in Spain (mostly physicians) the pharmaceutical plants promised, for these were to be had only in the capital (the terminal of the India trade), not in the Mediterranean port. Nor for the time being was he in a frame of mind to continue writing the learned discussions that were started during his sojourn in Spain. He concludes with a refined twist; he really did not want to send this letter but he was overcome by yearning for his Spanish friends, and asks them, considering his state of mind, to overlook his shortcomings in style and script (in that order)." (Goitein, Med Soc V, pp. 243–44.)

India Book I, 17: Letter from Yehuda Ibn Sighmar, at Alexandria, to Nahray b. Nissim, at Fustat, from the year 1097. The letter contains three parts: First, blessings over Nahray's recovery from illness. Second, a survey of the dealings between Yehuda and Nahray, the details of which remain unclear. Third, the lawsuit of Moshe b. Labrat, the nephew of Yehuda, against Yosef Lebdi. Yehuda, the writer of the letter, was the intended recipient of the gift that Moshe b. Labrat sent with Lebdi from the west. It is clear that this letter was written before the first court session was held.

Letter from a son to his father; same writer and addressee as T-S 10J7.3 and T-S 13J21.13 and T-S 13J21.14. He reports that Abū Isḥāq has recovered from an illness; that he has sent several garments; mentions Abū l-Ḥasan and Abū l-Faraj; mentions potash (ushnān) in the upper margin; and mentions Sitt Abū l-Ḥusayn in the closing greetings. ASE.

Letter from Natan b. Nahray, from Alexandria, to Nahray b. Nissim, Fustat. Probably 1063. Natan wrote the letter 10 days before Passover. The writer is upset because a deal (probably for spices and beads) did not go as expected. He blames Abu Zikri b. Menashshe. Also mentions a matter of inheritance in the Tahirti family. The writer’s son was sick and his sight was impaired. (Information from Gil, Kingdom, Vol. 3, #426) VMR

Letter from Avraham b. Abū l-Ḥayy, in Alexandria, to his brother Musa, probably in Fustat. Dating: Ca. 1075 CE. 10th of Elul, a few weeks after the death of the writer's father. Avraham writes that Abū l-Ḥayy died after his ~6-month illness. Avraham writes that his expenses amounted to 25 dinars. He had to give his turban as collateral; and he still owes 32 dirhams to various parties (r12–14). Avraham complains to Mūsā that ʿAllūn, who was in charge of the money of the family, refused to disburse any money without word from Mūsā, and then covered only a small part of the expenditure after Abū l-Najm Hilāl had intervened in the writer's favor. Avraham needs more money to pay the debts and expenses. Information from Gil, Kingdom, III, p. 574. ASE.

Letter from Abu Zikri the physician (in Jerusalem?) to his father Eliyyahu the judge in Fustat. Abu Zikri is terribly worried that he will die before seeing his father again, and he begs his father to forgive his offenses. He has sent many letters already with the same purpose. Apart from a hidden illness that he cannot divulge in a letter lest it fall into the hands of his enemies, he suffers from a weak liver, an enlarged spleen, indigestion, lack of appetite, and fatigue with the smallest exertion. He only goes to the market once or twice a week to obtain necessaries, and even that is with difficulty. ASE.

Business letter sent from Qayrawan by Efrayim b. Ismail, probably to Yaʿaqov b. Yosef b. Awkal in Fustat (Gil) or from Ifrīqiya by 'Alush b. Yeshua to Ismail b. Avraham in Egypt (Ben-Sasson). The letter deals mainly with merchandise and shipments of goods. Dated to the beginning of the 11th century (Gil) or the first third of the 11th century (Ben-Sasson). (Information from Gil, Vol. 2, p. 312 and from Ben-Sasson, p. 219)

Letter from Hārūn b. Sulaymān ha-Ḥaver al-Kohen to [...] b. Ṣadaqa(?) Ibn Shaʿya(?). In Judaeo-Arabic. Dating: Likely 11th century, on paleographic grounds. The writer opens with complaining about his ear illness (if that is what ʿalā aṣli udhnī means; same phrase as in MS Heb. e 45/75). Mentions a jar of rose petal jam (ward murabbā); silk; a mandīl; a Nisapuri thawb; Sulaymān; Ghulayb; and "al-jawhara." Needs further examination.

Letter from Nissim b. Shela to the teacher Yiṣḥaq b. Ḥayyim Nafūsī. In Judaeo-Arabic. Contains detailed information about the sending and selling of books. People mentioned include the shammash Thābit, the Ḥaver, someone's father-in-law (ḥammūhu) Abū l-Ḥusayn; and Abū Isḥāq al-Ṣayrafī—this last is the person with whom Nissim sent his previous letter along with the medicinal electuary (maʿjūn). He is eager to learn whether taking the electuary has made any difference in Yiṣḥaq's illness. He signs off with the phrase עתרת שלום ואמת.

Letter from Ṭoviya b. ʿEli, in a provincial town, to his cousin Natan b. Shelomo ha-Kohen, probably in Fustat. Dating: 1122–50, based on the dated documents of the addressee. The writer sends thanks for the forwarding of a prescription from one physician, Abū l-Bahā', and reminds Natan to obtain a second prescription from another physician, al-Amīn, both for his sick wife. The latter physician was perhaps a Muslim or Christian, since the addressee is asked to transcribe the prescription from Arabic to Hebrew (but cf. T-S 8J16.19 + T-S NS 323.13, in which a Jew is asked not to use Arabic script). "Favor your servant with the answer to be given by my lord al-Amīn, may his reward be doubled. Please transcribe for me the prescription into Hebrew letters.") As requested, Ṭoviya provides an elaborate update on the condition of his sick wife: "She has six attacks (fawra) during the day and four during the night. Perspiration (ʿaraq) overcomes her from the sockets of her eyes (maḥājīr ʿaynayhā) to her chest (fu'ādhā). Owing to the high fever (min ʿuẓm al-nār) she has a feeling that her neck first burns (iḥtaraqat) and then becomes cold (yabrud). At the same time, she suffers pain in her knees (wajaʿ rukab). Owing to her grave sufferings (min ʿuẓm al-alam) her menses (al-ṭamth) have stopped. Finally, because of her great anxiety (min kuthrat al-takarrub), she is affected by mild palpitation (rajīf yasīr) of the heart." The same illness is also described in an earlier letter (T-S 12.234). From a later letter (T-S 13J25.15) we learn that she eventually began to feel better. Information from Mediterranean Society, II, pp. 254, 255; V, p. 106. It is possible that no fever is described, only a sensation of burning (nār). It is also possible that the phrase "knee pain" (wajaʿ rukab) should be read "pelvic pain" (wajaʿ rakab), especially as the next sentence describes the menstrual changes brought on by excessive pain. In the margin, changing the topic, Ṭoviya asks for a loan of the piyyut שיר השירים אסלסל (a liturgical poem for the Seventh of Passover composed by Shemuel b. Hoshaʿna the Third) from 'the rayyis,' sends regards to family members, and reports that the family's situation was very difficult when the tax collector arrived on Purim.

Recto: Petition to Masliah Gaon from a woman wishing to have a divorce. Probably 1127 CE. Discussed in detail, with translation, in Oded Zinger's dissertation, pp. 201–02: 'Malīḥa bt. Abū al-Faḍl wanted a divorce. She claimed that her husband suffered from many illnesses and that his children from a previous marriage were irreligious. Malīḥa feared for the well-being of her children were she to die. We have a resolute petition written on her behalf to the head of the Jews, Maṣliaḥ ha-Kohen, informing him of the following: "I am the wife of Adam, the money changer. For the past eight months, I have asked repeatedly for divorce, but could not obtain it. I had thought that with the arrival of your most venerable presence, you would not postpone giving a ruling to me or to another (on my behalf) a single hour. He is a man afflicted with many illnesses and sicknesses. He has children far removed from religion and others. The servant fears lest what is sealed upon people (i.e. death) overtake him, or me. There is no assurance what will happen with him and with my children.1 By the divine law that you possess! Examine my state and quickly issue a verdict, whatever it may be.2 The servant appointed a representative, but from all that was done to the man; he said that he would not return to mediate between us. The servant is bashful, I do not have a tongue to speak with. By your parents! Examine my state and please liberate me.3 .... All that I want is the liberation of the servant, by any means necessary. And what the divine law obligates."4 We hear of Malīḥaʼs ultimate success in her bid for divorce in another document, T-S 8J5.4 2v. A four-line entry in a page from a court notebook records that on 28 June 1127, Malīḥa appointed Nathan ha-Levi b. Abraham as her representative to sue her husband. This short entry is followed by another entry recording an unrelated appointment of a representative. The next entry in the court notebook, however, records that on the very same day, a cantor who was one of the witnesses of the first appointment came to the court with two parnasim from the community. The three men declared to the court that they had made the symbolic purchase from Malīḥa confirming that she relinquished the entirety of her meʿuḥar and was willing to take an oath over her claims regarding the dowry. Her husband also made the symbolic purchase confirming that he had no claim over her. It appears that Malīḥa got her divorce.'5 Margins of recto, and verso: Copious jottings in Hebrew and Arabic script. It is unclear how much, if any, pertains to the main letter on recto. Shelomo ha-Levi b. Moshe is named. Many of the Arabic writings appear to be formulaic phrases from a letter to a dignitary (titled in one place Imam and Amir).