Berakhot 56a — the Talmud in English

The Roman emperor said

Rome [who had been occupied with war against the Persians]

to Rabbi Joshua ben Hananiah:

you Jews

say

about yourselves

that you are exceedingly wise. Tell me, what will I see

[see]

in my dream?

Rabbi Joshua said to him:

Rabbi Joshua

You saw

in your dream,

that the Persians were darkening you

[performing royal service before you]

and taking you captive

[and capturing you],

and making you pasture

vermin with a golden staff

[they appoint you to pasture vermin with this golden staff].

The emperor contemplated it

the emperor

the entire day, and in the evening he saw

so in his dream! And as we found above, that a person is shown only what is in his heart’s thoughts.

King Shapur said

[the king of Persia]

to Shmuel: You say that you are exceedingly wise. Tell me, what will I see in my dream?

He said to him: You saw

in your dream,

that Romans came and took you captive

in captivity,

and they made you grind hard date pits with golden millstones

[they would force you to grind hard date kernels in golden millstones].

He contemplated it the entire day, and in the evening he saw

so in his dream.

Bar Hedya, an interpreter

[one who interprets]

of dreams was; whoever gave him a fee

was

he interpreted it

his dream

for the better

[for good].

But whoever did not give him a fee

was

he interpreted it

his dream

for the worse.

Abaye and Rava saw

both of them

an identical dream,

and they came to Bar Hedya so that he would interpret their dreams.

Abaye gave him

to Bar Hedya

a dinar, whereas Rava gave him nothing

at all.

Abaye and Rava said to him,

Abaye and Rava to Bar Hedya:

Read to us

[recite before us]

in our dreams

the verse [Deuteronomy 28:31]

“Your ox shall be slaughtered before your eyes

and you shall not eat from it”!

To Rava he said:

Your dream’s interpretation is that the “ox” alludes to livelihood, and just as you saw it slaughtered and dead, so shall

your business be lost,

and your merchandise shall be ruined completely,

and it will not benefit

[be pleasant]

you to eat

any food

because of

the great

distress of your heart!

But

to Abaye he said:

the “ox” alludes to livelihood, and just as a “slaughtered ox” is satisfying food, so

your business will prosper, and it will not benefit you to eat because of

the great

joy

[happiness]

of your heart!

Further,

they said to him

Abaye and Rava to Bar Hedya:

read to us

in our dreams the verse [there, verse 41]

“You shall beget sons and daughters

and they shall not be yours, for they shall go into captivity.”

To Rava he said: It is destruction!

The verse will be fulfilled in you according to its plain meaning, for it is a bad future.

To Abaye he said: Your sons and your daughters

will be

numerous, and your daughters will be married to

men from

the world. And you will imagine in your face as if

they were

going into captivity!

They further said to him:

We were read

in our dreams the verse [there, verse 32]

“Your sons and your daughters shall be given to another people!”

To Abaye

he said: Your sons and your daughters

will be

numerous; you will say

to marry them

to your relatives, and

if

she

[your wife]

says

to marry them

to her relatives

[to her relatives],

and she will compel

and compel

you,

your wife,

and you will give them—

your sons and daughters—

to her relatives, who will be

in your eyes

as

“another people.”

To Rava he said: Your wife will die

[your wife will die].

And her sons and daughters will come into the hands of another woman

who will marry you after her. And as

Rava said in the name of Rav Jeremiah bar Abba, who said in the name of Rav: What is the meaning of that which is written, “Your sons and your daughters shall be given to another people”? This is the father’s wife,

whom he marries after the death of his first wife, and consequently the first wife’s children grow up with a stepmother, whose compassion for them is not like that of their mother who bore them.

Abaye and Rava further said to Bar Hedya:

We were read in our dreams

the verse [Ecclesiastes 9:7]

“Go, eat your bread with joy!”

To Abaye he said: Your business will prosper, and you will eat and drink and recite the verse from the joy of your heart!

To Rava he said: Your business will be lost; you slaughtered but did not eat or drink

because of your great distress,

and you recited it in order to laugh

[to dispel]

your fear.

Abaye and Rava further said to Bar Hedya:

We were read

in our dreams the verse [Deuteronomy, there, verse 38]

“You shall take out much seed to the field”

[and the end of the verse is, “but you shall gather little, for the locust shall consume it”].

To Abaye he said:

Your dream’s interpretation is

from its beginning

of the verse, namely, that your field will produce much seed.

To Rava he said:

Your dream’s interpretation is

from the end

of the verse, namely, that most of the produce that will grow in your field will not remain in your possession.

Abaye and Rava further said to Bar Hedya:

We were read

in our dreams the verse [there, verse 40]

“You shall have olive trees throughout all your borders”

[and its end is, “but you shall not anoint yourself with oil, for your olive will drop off”].

To Abaye he said:

Your dream’s interpretation is

from its beginning

of the verse, and according to its plain meaning, “You shall have olive trees.”

But

to Rava he said:

Your dream’s interpretation is

from its end

of the verse, namely, that you will not benefit from their oil.

Abaye and Rava further said to Bar Hedya:

We were read

in our dreams the verse [there, verse 10]

“And all the peoples of the earth shall see

that the Name of the Lord is called upon you, and they shall fear you.”

To Abaye he said: Your name will go forth; you will be head of the academy,

and as a result

your fear will fall upon the world!

To Rava he said: In the king’s treasury

[the king’s treasury, into which only he enters “alone”]

there will be a breach

by thieves, and you will be suspected of this;

and you will be seized for

the sin of

thieves. And all the judges of the world

[“all the peoples of the earth”]

are a fortiori from you!

For if Rava is suspected of this, all the more so may we be suspected. And this is “and they shall fear you,” for because of your seizure, fear will fall upon the people.

And indeed, just as he said, so it happened:

the next day there was a breach in the king’s treasury. And

the king’s officers came and

seized Rava.

Further,

they said to him

Abaye and Rava to Bar Hedya:

We saw lettuce on the mouth of a barrel

[in our dreams we saw lettuce on the mouth of a barrel; and both of them were wine merchants].

To Abaye he said: It is doubled

[folded], your profit

in business, like lettuce

which is broad and doubled.

But

to Rava he said: It will be bitter

will be

your business, like lettuce!—

It will be bitter and hated by everyone, and they will not buy it.

Further,

they said to him

Abaye and Rava said to Bar Hedya:

We saw

in our dreams

meat on the mouth of a barrel!

To Abaye he said: Your wine is excellent

[your wine will be praised],

and everyone will come to buy meat and wine from you!

To Rava he said: Your wine will become strong

[it will turn sour],

and everyone will come to buy meat and eat it

the meat

with it

[with your wine, which became vinegar], for this was their practice, to dip meat in vinegar.

Further,

they said to him

Abaye and Rava said to Bar Hedya:

We saw

in our dreams

a barrel hanging from a palm tree!

To Abaye he said: Your business will be raised

[it will rise]

like a palm tree!

To Rava he said: Your business will become sweet

[it will become sweet]

like the dates

of a palm tree! Namely, your merchandise will be sweet to the buyers, because you will sell it cheaply.

Further,

they said to him

Abaye and Rava said to Bar Hedya:

We saw a pomegranate tree

[a pomegranate tree]

that was growing

[that had grown]

on the mouth of a barrel.

To Abaye he said: Your business will become expensive

[it will become costly]

like a pomegranate tree!

For you will sell it dearly, like pomegranates.

To Rava he said: Your business will be sour

[an expression of “sourness”]

like a pomegranate tree!

Your merchandise will be sour like pomegranates, and everyone will hate it.

Further,

they said to him

Abaye and Rava said to Bar Hedya:

We saw a barrel that fell into a pit.

To Abaye he said: Your business will be sought

[it will be sought]

and people will pursue it

and seek it!

As people say

people

“A loaf fell into a pit and was not found!”

Namely, it will be greatly sought, and there will not be enough of it for all who seek it.

To Rava he said: Your business will be lost

[your merchandise will be ruined]

and you will throw it

[and you will cast it]

into a pit!

Further,

they said to him

Abaye and Rava said to Bar Hedya:

We saw

in our dreams a young donkey

the son of a donkey standing at our heads

[at our head]

and braying!

To Abaye he said: You will be a king

[head of an academy]

and

you will lecture publicly.

And an amora will stand

[an interpreter]

over you,

to make your lecture heard to the public in a loud voice, like the braying voice of a donkey!

To Rava he said: The words

of

“the firstborn of a donkey” will be erased

[they will be erased]

from

the passages in

your tefillin!

Rava said to

Bar Hedya:

I saw for myself

the passages of my tefillin,

and it is there

these words are there and have not been erased!

Bar Hedya said to him

Bar Hedya:

The vav of “the firstborn of a donkey” was certainly erased from your tefillin!

That is, “the firstborn of a donkey” is written defectively, without a vav. In Rava’s tefillin it had initially been written “donkey” in full spelling, and afterward the scribe erased the vav.

Ultimately Rava went alone to him

Bar Hedya;

Rava said to him

Rava:

I saw

in my dream

that the outer door

[the external door] of my house

fell!

He said to him: Your wife will die

[she will die]! And the falling of the door alludes to this, because the woman guards the house like a door.

Further,

Rava said to him

Rava:

I saw my molars

[the grinding teeth]

and my teeth

[my teeth]

falling out

[which were falling].

He said to him: Your sons and your daughters will die!

Further,

Rava said to him

Rava:

I saw

in my dream

two doves flying!

He said to him: You will divorce two wives!

For a man’s wife is called a “dove,” as it is said [Song of Songs 5:2], “My dove, my perfect one.”

Further,

he said to him: I saw two heads of turnips

[heads of turnips]!

He said to him: You will swallow two clubs

[blows from a thick stick the size of a turnip head]!

You will absorb

[you will suffer]!

Rava went that day and sat in the study hall the entire day; he found those two blind men

[blind men],

who were quarrelling with each other

[who were fighting with each other].

Rava went to separate them

[to separate them],

and they struck him

[they hit him]

two

blows,

they raised

[they lifted] the stick in order

to strike him

another blow.

He said

Rava:

It is enough for me

[what you have already struck me. For only

two

clubs

I saw

in my dream, and no more.

Ultimately Rava came

to Bar Hedya,

and gave him a fee

for interpreting his dreams, so that he would interpret them for good.

And he said to him: I saw a wall

[the foundation of the wall of my house]

that fell!

Bar Hedya said to

Bar Hedya to Rava:

You have acquired property without boundaries!

For the falling of the wall of your house is a sign that you will have broad and numerous lands without boundaries.

Further,

Rava said to him

Rava to Bar Hedya:

I saw the mansion

[his house]

of Abaye fall, and dust covered it

[the dust covered it], which flew up from the collapse of his house!

Bar Hedya said to

Bar Hedya to Rava:

Abaye will die

[he will die],

and his academy

Abaye’s academy

will come to you!

You will be its head.

Further,

Rava said to him

Rava to Bar Hedya:

I saw my mansion fall, and everyone came

and

took

from the collapse

one brick at a time!

Bar Hedya said to him

Bar Hedya: It is a sign that

your teachings

will be disseminated

[will spread and become publicized]

throughout the world!

Further,

Rava said to him

Rava to Bar Hedya:

I saw that my head split

[my head split],

and my brain covering fell

[and the membrane fell] from it!

Bar Hedya said to him

Bar Hedya:

Cotton came out from the pillow

[cotton came out from the pillow at your head].

Further,

Rava said to him

Rava to Bar Hedya:

They recited for me

[they read to me]

the Egyptian Hallel

[the Hallel that we recite on Passover night for the miracle of the Exodus from Egypt ]

in a dream!

Bar Hedya said to him

Bar Hedya: It is a sign that

a miracle will happen to you!

For this Hallel is recited in Nisan, and “Nisan” is called after the miracles that occurred in it.

Bar Hedya was going

Bar Hedya

with him

with Rava

on a ship

[in a boat],

he said

Bar Hedya in his heart:

With a man

like Rava

for whom a miracle is going to occur, why should I

sail? For I must be concerned lest the miracle of which he was informed in his dream now occur to him, the ship sink, and only he be saved while I drown!

As he was going up

[when he was boarding from the ship],

a book fell from him, and Rava found it

that book,

and saw that it was written in it: “All dreams follow the mouth!”

Rava said

Rava:

Wicked one, it depended on you

and the interpretation of all my dreams depended on your mouth.

And you caused me all this distress!

For you interpreted them for evil, when you could have interpreted them for good.

For all

the interpretations,

I forgive you, Bar, [

except ]

for

what you interpreted for me—that my wife would die, she who was

the daughter of Rav Hisda!]]

And Rava cursed him and said:

May it be the will that that man be delivered [

Bar Hedya ]

into the hands of the government, for they will not have mercy on him!

Bar Hedya said

:

What shall I do

to be saved from Rava’s curse? For

we have learned: “The curse of a Torah scholar, even

if it was said

gratuitously,

it

comes

and is fulfilled,

and all the more so

with the curse of

Rava, for he is cursing me justly,

since I caused him much anguish!”

He said: I will arise and go into exile;

I will go into exile.

For

after all,

the Master said: “Exile atones for iniquity!””

Bar Hedya arose

and

went into exile in Rome. He went and sat at the entrance of the chief treasurer [

the guardians of the treasury ]

of the king.

And that

chief treasurer saw a dream.

The chief treasurer said

to Bar Hedya:

I saw a dream: a needle entered my finger!

He said

to him, Bar Hedya:

Give me a zuz

and I will interpret it for you!

The chief treasurer did not give him

anything, and therefore

he did not say to him

Bar Hedya

anything.

Again

the chief treasurer said

to Bar Hedya:

I saw

in my dream

that a worm fell [

a worm ]

on two of my fingers. He said to him

Bar Hedya:

Give me a zuz

and I will interpret the dream for you

! And he did not give him, and

therefore

he did not tell him

the interpretation of the dream.

Again

the chief treasurer said

to Bar Hedya:

I saw

in my dream

that a worm fell [

a worm ]

on my entire hand.

Bar Hedya said to him:

It is a sign, that

a worm fell on all the silk garments [

expensive silk garments ]

of the king!

They heard in the king’s house

that the worm had damaged the silk garments,

and they brought the chief treasurer

and almost

killed him,

because he had not properly watched the king’s treasury.

The chief treasurer said to them

:

Why,

do I deserve death?

Bring this

dream interpreter,

who knew

when the worm’s damage began, when I told him my dream that a worm had fallen on two of my fingers.

And he did not tell

me its interpretation; but had he interpreted it for me then, when the damage began, it would have been possible to save them.

They brought Bar Hedya; they said to him: It is because of your zuz [

because of the zuz you demanded ],

and the chief treasurer did not wish to give it to you, and therefore you did not agree to interpret the dream, and it was found that because of this

they were destroyed [

[were damaged]

the silk garments of the king!