{"id":49820,"date":"2019-02-19T17:46:09","date_gmt":"2019-02-19T15:46:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=49820"},"modified":"2022-09-14T11:35:36","modified_gmt":"2022-09-14T08:35:36","slug":"tefillin-two-black-snakes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/tefillin-two-black-snakes\/","title":{"rendered":"Tefillin: Two Black Snakes"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\u201cAnd you shall bind them as a sign upon your hand, and they shall be frontlets between your eyes.\u201d \u00a0(Deuteronomy 6:8)<\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

There are snakes and there are snakes.<\/span><\/p>\n

Eden\u2019s serpent, for example,<\/span>
\n<\/span>An anaconda emblazoned in flashy red, jungle green and peacock blue,<\/span>
\n<\/span>Was a master of speech<\/span>
\n<\/span>Who despite his lisp,<\/span>
\n<\/span>Knew how to entice and beguile his prey. <\/span><\/p>\n

But each morning when I pray,<\/span>
\n<\/span>I find a gentle black snake wound seven times around my forearm;<\/span>
\n<\/span>Her tail weaves delicately three times around my finger<\/span>
\n<\/span>As her head rests on my biceps<\/span>
\n<\/span>And nestles against my heart.<\/span>
\n<\/span>Her mate, who crowns my head,<\/span>
\n<\/span>Has no double tongue, but a double tail.<\/span>
\n<\/span>This pair of domesticated snakes, venomless and with no fangs,<\/span>
\n<\/span>Tame and faithful to each other,<\/span>
\n<\/span>Barely squeeze<\/span>
\n<\/span>And scarcely seem reptile;<\/span>
\n<\/span>They snuggle up to me like puppies,<\/span>
\n<\/span>Nudging and pushing me towards the heavens. <\/span><\/p>\n

At night my two pets sleep in a velvet bag;<\/span>
\n<\/span>After I waken them each morning<\/span>
\n<\/span>In silence they request I be their spokesman<\/span>
\n<\/span>And thank Him who fashioned us three<\/span>
\n<\/span>For enabling us to slide out of bed<\/span>
\n<\/span>And stand upright before Him. <\/span><\/p>\n

Farmers value black snakes<\/span>
\n<\/span>That eat mice and rats which infest their granaries and barns;<\/span>
\n<\/span>Does the snake on my head devour impure thoughts,<\/span>
\n<\/span>The snake on my arm swallow shameful deeds? <\/span><\/p>\n

In India, fakirs play flutes<\/span>
\n<\/span>To hypnotize cobras and make them dance.<\/span>
\n<\/span>But my two black snakes<\/span>
\n<\/span>In silence sing,<\/span>
\n<\/span>And as I sway<\/span>
\n<\/span>To their soundless music<\/span>
\n<\/span>In the morning dance of prayer,<\/span>
\n<\/span>Eden\u2019s serpent,<\/span>
\n<\/span>Deafened,<\/span>
\n<\/span>Slithers away.<\/span><\/p>\n

image:\u00a0Medieval arm-tefillin found in the\u00a0Cairo\u00a0genizah.\u00a0<\/i><\/a>By Julius H. Greenstone, Joseph Jacobs, Ludwig Blau, Emil G. 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