A 19th Century Hebrew Harvest Augury from Yemen

James Irsay

[Footnotes] may be found at the end of the document, or opened in a new window.

From earliest times and in all places, divination has served as a recourse to those desiring a greater hand in, or forewarning of, their fate. This practice, and occult practices generally, operates from the changeless foundations of an ever-changing world, and remains vitally relevant through all times. Sudden disease, death, distress, desire, and desperation live on, exacting a heavy toll of life and spirit from every generation. The need to assuage the anxiety of uncertainty drives man from a world with no answers into a realm of divinely guided intuition. If the future thus revealed is a fixed certainty, decreed by the Most High Will, at least one may prepare oneself to face, or if possible avert, what lies ahead.

Divination may be broadly described as either active or passive. The active form involves positive human action, as in geomancy, the poking or drawing of a consciously unknown number of dots or strokes (depending on whether it is performed with a stick in the earth, or pen on paper) to arrive at oracular figures..

The passive form is generally some type of omen. One observes natural phenomena such as the flight of birds, cloud formations, or the apparent paths of heavenly bodies (astrology) and interprets these events according to a traditionally received body of knowledge.

From the number and character of extant manuscripts, dating from the middle ages to modern times, it is clear that residents of the southern Arabian Peninsula have long shown a deep preoccupation with divination. Such manuscripts, as well as magical manuscripts generally, serve to pass on and preserve ancient written and oral traditions which have remained essentially unchanged since the days of the Greek and Demotic magical papyri, which in turn can be traced back to Assyrian and Babylonian texts. Magic is a conservative occupation, and change is not desired, but rather accurate transmission through time.

hdvqnh dvS
Sod han-nikuddah (geomancy)
Yemen, ca. early 20th c. [1]

An augury for the coming seasons, and applicable to all years, is found in an incomplete Jewish manuscript comprising 25 small octavo leaves pertaining to practical magic[2] and various methods of divination, often with an agricultural slant. The script and paper clearly point to Yemen as the country of origin. The Temanic-Mashait[3] script, which shows great similarity to K'tav Rashi ,[4] is written in a clear, well-practiced hand in dark black ink, on the thick paper one often associates with Temanic manuscripts of the genre and period. The augury fills both sides of a single leaf. At some point in its history it was stitched together with short fragments of at least six other magical manuscripts in different hands, predominantly in the Judaeo-Arabic language[5]. The presence of superlinear vowel signs in several of these associated manuscripts, as well as the occasional use of Aramaic, further confirm the Temanic provenance. The augury and a few other sections are in Hebrew.

Establishing a date for the writing is difficult. Hebrew letter-form development over the past centuries is subtle in the Temanic-Mashait script, based as it is on a book hand. In addition, the often rough-looking magical manuscripts of the area, many written with sturdy pens on thick, earth-tone paper, exude a timeless atmosphere. They show signs of having lived a hard life along with their owners; the pages are often blotched and stained, and show evidence of frequent consultation. A manuscript penned only100 years ago may today resemble a veritable Dead Sea Scroll. The hands range from beautifully
formed scripts in neat straight lines, down to crude stick-letters thrown carelessly across the page.

mvlc trth
If put under ban in a dream
Yemen ca. 19th c.

hyr cvrl yimq hdvqnh dvS Amulet[6] for an evil spirit [7] Geomancy instructions
Yemen ca. 19th c. Yemen ca. 19th c.

The manuscript which features the augury includes portions on geomancy, divination through tequfot [8], predictions for rain, segulot [9], and an explication of several varieties of shem hammephorash [10].

We see reflected a society of Jews living on intimate but separate terms with Arab Muslims [11], sharing their land and language. The text includes a table of correspondences between the names of the Hebrew and Arabic [12] (Islamic) months. Original works by Arab authors are drawn from, including an excerpt concerning rain from "al-Zig al-Ilkhani" by Nasir al-Din al-Tusi (d. 672). A spirit of lively competition is demonstrated in a segulah to ruin a (Muslim?) neighbor's crops, utilizing "dust from 2 graves, one old and one recent" .

The augury predicts the weather and harvest output, as well as the general quality of life for the coming seasons. The predictions are based on the day of the arrival of the New Moon (Rosh Chodesh ) for the month of Shevat [13].

One might be tempted to conclude that there is no element of chance involved in such an augury. It would rather seem to be a description of certain days, predetermined as the days of a wall calendar or almanac, and not subject to the whims of fate. Yet the New Moon's arrival must be confirmed by observation. At that time the moon, situated close to the sun, is visible for only a short time, and soon follows the sun below the horizon. It is not enough to know, based on previous experience, that somewhere below the horizon the moon is distancing itself from the sun, heralding a new month. The slim crescent must be observed by sight. If it is too close to the sun to be visible or if skies are cloudy, the New Moon may not be proclaimed, perhaps not before several overcast days have passed. In fact,16 days from the 30th day of the preceeding month are allowed for suitable conditions to prevail. And so, the augury has the flexibility requisite to an instrument of prognostication.

Through recorded history, the arrival of the New Moon has been considered noteworthy. Before the Babylonian exile (6th c. BCE) Rosh Chodesh was paired by Hebrews with the Sabbath as a day of rest, and when important days were enumerated, often took precedence [14]. It was announced by the High Priest, in later times by the Sanhedrin, and still later by a designated member of the synagogue congregation, largely in order to fix the precise days of festivals slated for the new month. The Blessing of the Moon, Birkat ha-Chodesh, has continued in synagogues to the present day, on the Sabbath preceding the New Moon, as has the New Moon's outdoor public sanctification, Kiddush Levanah, at the time of its subsequent appearance.

The new moon is symbolic of renewal, change, prophecy. When we gaze at the crescent moon, we are aware of the changes in its appearance we expect to observe through the month; its present implies its future. The phenomenon known as "gegenschein", the dim reflection of the earth's light juxtaposed with the bright crescent, completing the circle of the moon, may contribute to the new moon's oracular inference, in the sense of showing a glimpse of the future. The ceremony of Kiddush Levanah, described in the Babylonian Talmud [15], illustrates the prophetic nature of the event, which features a touch of sympathetic kabbalah ma'asit:

" ...one says 3 times, 'An auspicious omen, an auspicious omen, shall it be for all Israel' Turning in the direction of the moon, he jumps 3 times and exclaims 3 times, 'As I jump towards thee but do not touch thee, so if others should jump against me to hurt me they may not touch me. Let terror and dread fall upon them...'" [16]

Finally, every celebrant greets 3 of his fellows by saying and answering to each in turn, "Peace be with you" followed by, "Auspicious signs and good fortune unto us and to all Israel. Amen!" [17]
. This concluding utterance is clearly the model for the postscript of the augury's Hebrew recension [see below].

The Kiddush Levanah is most auspicious when Rosh Chodesh falls on the outgoing of the Sabbath, " when one is in an exhilarated mood, and well-dressed" [18] (in Sabbath clothes). It is proscribed on the Sabbath, being anciently associated with the profanation of that day for the sake of the New Moon:

"When the temple was standing they used to profane Sabbath for all the months, in order that the sacrifice [of new moon] might be offered on the right day. whether [the new moon] has been seen clearly or has not been seen clearly, Sabbath may be profaned on account of it If one who has seen the moon is not able to go on foot, he may be brought on an ass or even in a litter [on Sabbath]. If they [the witnesses] are likely to be waylaid, they maytake cudgels [to defend themselves]. [19]

The Sabbath was further profaned by the lighting of signal fires to relay to Jerusalem the news of the moon's appearance. [20] Similarly, it is "not good" to be born on the Sabbath, because the day must of necessity be profaned many times over to perform all the actions required for a successful birth.[21]

The dire predictions for the Sabbath in the augury may also show a self-referential character. The mere discussion or contemplation of one's livelihood (in this case, agriculture), including speculation as to its success or failure, is forbidden on the Sabbath, especially when the joy of the day might be compromised, and the augury sees to it that it will be! [22]

We find an antecedent, relative to the actual writing of our augury, in a manuscript in the British Museum written partly in Latin and partly in Anglo-Saxon, dating from before the Norman conquest. It is an example of a genre known as Supputatio Esdrae, or signs divinely revealed to the Prophet Ezra, and reads in part:

"If the kalends [23] of January shall be on the Lord's day [Sunday], the winter will be good and mild and warm, the spring windy, and the summer dry. Good vintage, increasing flocks; honey will be abundant; the old men will die; and peace will be made." [24]

A glance at the Yemen augury below will show that its text is directly related to the Supputatio Esdrae, adapted to Jewish life in a land of great hardship.

Though Sunday is, in the Latin/Anglo Saxon (Christian) manuscript, an auspicious day, as Sunday is also auspicious, relatively speaking, in the Hebrew augury, it must be borne in mind that while Sunday is the Sabbath for Christians, that same day is the day following the Saturday Sabbath of the Jews. The Christian Sabbath carries none of the taboos associated with the Jewish Sabbath, and thus the auspiciousness of the day in the 2 texts is due to different, but related, reasons. The Sabbath itself is the source of auspiciousness in the Christian manuscript, while in the Jewish manuscript the auspiciousness is an indication of only the residual festiveness which directly follows the Sabbath, reflected in the suitability of the day following the Sabbath for the sanctification of Rosh Chodesh.

One may reasonably ask if the rays of the moon are understood to play a primary role in ensuing events. Does the crescent moon cause what follows, or merely announce it? Most Greco-Roman proto-scientists such as Pliny the Elder and Ptolemy, who lived in the first and second centurties respectively, believed that heavenly bodies rule the affairs of the material world. For the Pantheist Pliny, all nature including the heavens is God Itself [25]. Yet for the first century Jews Philo [26] and Josephus [27], the source of heavenly influence lay with a God who created the heavens and nature, while the stars and planets are intermediaries, actuators of His Will. The Jews understood that the heavenly bodies determine worldly affairs, based on their attributes and discreet powers. But the directing Mind behind those powers is the one God.

The augury purports to transmit the knowledge of "the wise men of Yavan" [28], that is, Greece. There is no reason to doubt the truth of the assertion. Prognostication of the weather through the observation of heavenly bodies, and astrology in general, are hallmarks of ancient Greek natural science. The Arabs translated and commented upon such works as Aristotle's Meteorologia (Ar: Kitab al-Athar al-'ulwiyah) from the Middle Ages, and continued to produce manuscripts in great numbers into the 20th century. The Jews translated and adapted these treatises for their own use, and rendered them into Latin for star-crazed medieval Europe as well.

The overall outlook of the augury is strikingly pessimistic. The predictions themselves almost negate its purpose; things are bound to be bad in one way or another. The augury confidently prophecies 85% in favor of deadly epidemics and "ruin [29]. On the one aforementioned relatively auspicious day, that following the Sabbath, the misfortune is merely loosed upon the flocks, rather than directly upon the people whose lives depend on them. While the Latin manuscript, representing a presumed original pagan version, allows for the eventuality of a perfect season (old men are supposed to die), this optimism seemed misplaced to the later Jews of Arab lands, and the scribe amended his copy accordingly [30].

A world rife with serious illness is depicted, with tuberculosis invoked twice by name [31], as well as eye infection and child mortality. The repeated mention of death among the women most likely refers to the dangers of childbirth. All this bespeaks of crowded and unsanitary living conditions, as endured by the Jews of "Arabia Felix". The single overriding message implied by the augury might well be "Abandon your fields and leave Yemen!" Indeed, many Yemenite Jews, oppressed beyond the original intent of their dhimmi [32] status, fled to Palestine long before the creation of the state of Israel; a mere handful remain attached to their homeland today. Mention in the augury of produce, livestock, and neighbors and family are intertwined, showing that sustenance of all life was seen as a single unified struggle. The post-script is poignant, in light of all that precedes it.

THE TRANSLATION:

verso recto
Portal : Thus say the wise men of Yavan:

If the New Moon of Shevat appears on the day following the Sabbath, the winter will be mild, and the spring will be rainy and wet. The harvest [34] will be dry, and the vintage beset by great winds. Fruit will be abundant, and there will be much honey and new wine, but the flocks will not prosper.

If the moon appears on the second day following the Sabbath, the winter will be mild and wet; there will be no spring. The harvest will be plentiful and sweet. After heavy rains, the harvest will be extended. Much tuberculosis, with many afflicted in every place. Sudden death, God forbid! There will be little honey.

If on the third day, there will be rain and heavy snowfall. [35]. Spring will arrive in the month of Iyyar [36]. The harvest will be fair, rainy and wet. Fruit will be deficient. Sudden illnesses. Much fruit will be ruined. Lamentation and loss among the women.

If on the fourth day, the winter will be hard. Spring will be wet and green, the harvest full and dry. Much corn and new wine, success and plenty in everything. Death among the women.

If on the fifth day, there will be no winter, and strong winds in spring. Harvest will be bountiful. Much ruin in the world. The vintage will be average.

If on the eve of the Sabbath, the winter will be long, spring and harvest dry. Fruit from the trees will be wanting, but fruit of the earth will be successful. The vintage will be dry, and new wine plentiful. Sickness of the eyes during much of the time. Destruction among the children and infants [37] .

If on the Sabbath, there will be a hard winter, with much wind. Spring will be dry. The harvest and vintage will be dry, the fruit destroyed with little remaining. Great losses to the flocks. Tuberculosis and sudden illness, flaming fires in the towns and fields, losses among the elders.

Life and peace upon us, and upon all Israel. And let us say,
"Amen"

Footnotes

1 The 2 lines of text read "I am thankful before You, Merciful and Gracious King, for You have restored (or: Who restores)." This perhaps served as a kavanah, or meditation, during the writing of the lines, reflecting the desired outcome of the inquiry. [All mss. illustrated are from the author's collection]

2 tisym hlbq - kabbalah maÐasit

3 Yemen (Nmit - Teman) semi-cursive. The Mashait style, which is not confined to Yemen, is that "generally used as a book-hand for non-Biblical, non-Talmudical and non-liturgical texts." (S.A. Birnbaum: The Hebrew Scripts, Leiden 1971. I:366)

4 isr btk - A Sephardic Mashait script used as a Rabbinic book font, identified with the printed works of Rashi. (Rashi was an Ashkenazic Jew, and did not write in a Sephardic script.)

5 ibry Nvsl - lashon Ðarvi

6 yimq -qameÐa. Text is instructions for the amulet writer.

7 hyr cvr - ruach raÐah. The page is written in Hebrew, though the first 4 words of the first line are the only words on that page which are not magic Names. The amulet continues on the overleaf.

8 tvpvqt - Solstices and equinoxes

9 tvlvgS pl. of hlvgS - segulah. Jewish magical remedies, generally involving the writing or speaking of magical Names, and the performance of some action, with instructions regarding wearing the amulet (eg. on the right arm, etc).

10 The "explicit" Names of God, called in the ms. Misdvqmh tvms - shemot ham-mekodeshim ("holy Names"), mainly derived from Biblical verses altered through kabbalistic methods.

11 From at latest the 2rd century CE, Jews migrated to Arabia from Palestine and made their way south to the Yemen.

12 Milaymsih isdc - chad'she hay-yishmÐa'elim

13 Tbs - Fifth month of the Jewish calendar.

14 Hos 2:11; Isa 1:14, et al. In the New Testament, cf. Col 2:16

15 b. Soferim XVII-XX.

16 b. Soferim XX:2.

17 Siddur Sefat Emet, New York (n.d.) 266. The modern Jewish prayerbook omits the opening wishes for luck ("an auspicious omen."), leaving it, in slightly different form (as above), to follow the greetings of peace.

18 b. Soferim XX:1; cf: b. Shab. 150a Kitzur Shulchan Arukh 90:4,6

19 b. Rosh hash-shana 21b, 22a. These actions are normally restricted on the Sabbath.

20 ibid. 23b

21 b. Niddah 38a-b; R. Yehudah ben Eliezer (he-Chassid): Sefer Chassidim (Bologna recension), Frankfurt 1924. 955

22 Kitzur Shulchan Arukh 90:4,6

23 The Roman New Moon, kalends, is equivalent to the ancient Greek noumênía. In antiquity, the kalends of January was announced by the Pontifex Maximus, in much the same spirit as was Rosh Chodesh by the High Priest or Head of the Sanhedrin.

24 Cotton Tiberius A, III: 34r, 39v. Cited in Thorndike: History of Magic and Experimental Science, New York 1923. I:677-8

25 Pliny the Elder: Naturalis Historia II, 1

26 De Monarchia I,1:14

27 Antiq. III,7:7

28 Nvi - cf. Gen 10:2

29 Nvdba - abbadon

30 It would be interesting to compare an Islamic recension, a possible immediate source for the Jewish.

31 tpcs - shachephet

32 Client people under Muslim rule, notably Christians and Jews.

33 Or "gate" (rys - shaÐar). Denotes a title page, or section heading in a book. Its Arabic equivalent is bab - bab, often found before each entry in Judaeo-Arabic manuscripts of segulot.

34 Harvest time.

35 While it does snow occasionally in Yemen's higher altitudes, this mention of heavy snows suggests a temperate provenance for the manuscript's source.

36 riia - Eighth month of the Jewish calendar. Spring generally begins during the previous month, NSin - Nisan.

37 Millvybv Midlib - Bay-yeladim u-baÐolelim. Ðolelim may also mean unborn children, as well as young unformed grapes or gleanings. (Jastrow: A Dictionary of the Targumim, The Talmud Bavli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature. 1051)

photos of Birzh (Birzhai) Lithuania, c. 1937, by Shmuel Evin