Elul is a Spooky Place

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I present here another piece of spooky Yiddish folklore from the esteemed folklorist YL Cahan. This one has an intriguing Elul connection...

32. About the “Great Minyen”

In Hrubeshoyv there was a minyen they called “the great minyen.” The men of the minyen were hidden tsadikim, or saints. Each one of them was a craftsman: tailor, shoemaker, porter, carpenter, blacksmith, and so on. After midnight, they used to meet in the small study house and occupy themselves with the holy Torah. One time they resolved that they must bring Moshiakh. 

About this the people were of two minds: some said that one of them had made a mistake with the mystical names of God, and that instead of bringing Moshiakh, they had brought Samoel [i.e. Satan the accuser or adversary] and thus their own damnation in fire. Others folks said that what happened was that the Baal Shem had found out about them and drove them away, as it wasn’t yet time, and Moshiakh mustn’t come yet. 

Even today, people say that the entire year, you cannot see their gravestones, but come Rosh Khoydesh Elul, they reappear. About the “great minyen” people tell many different stories. One time, someone stole the menorah, hanging lamps, and other treasures from the shul. They were unable to find the thief. The Jews of the minyen were overcome with worry. Then, one of the minyen members arrived in shul -- this was a carpenter—and took a drill to the place where the mezuze was hung. He drilled and hammered on the doorpost. Right away, a man with a hole drilled in his head came running, carrying all the stolen treasures from the shul.




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