Chana Katz
If you ask someone how to get to the Ari synagogue, you might get asked
back: "The real Ari synagogue?" With two synagogues in
Tzfat (Safed) bearing the name of the holy Ari --
Rabbi Isaac Luria, only one, the Ari Sephardic Synagogue is where
the Ari himself learned and prayed. The other, the
Ari Ashkenzic Synagogue, was built two centuries after the Ari's
brief but powerful mystical sojourn in Tsfat.
Charming Walk
To reach the 700-year-old Ari Sephardic Synagogue -- and behold its
intricate, mystical craftsmanship and holy secrets -- one can follow winding
HaAri Street right from Ascent to the synagogue's original arched entranceway.
The ten-minute walk winds past charming, old stone houses on one side
and an uninhibited view of the hushed valley which leads to hovering Mount
Meron on the other, giving one the solitude and serenity to think about
the days when the holy Ari sat on a stone slab inside one of the synagogue's
anterooms and was said to have learned the most mystical, deepest teachings
of the Torah from Elijah the Prophet himself.
As the wind rustles through the tall olive and pine trees, the visitor
can look down to his right and see the graves from the "Old"
cemetery of Tzfat, where the Holy Ari and many of his famous associates
and disciples are buried.
The Caretakers
In no time you're standing in front of a large, two-story stone building,
looking at its arched stained glass windows. The synagogue actually was
built in 1301, nearly three centuries before the Ari came to Tzfat, and
it was originally called the Eliyahu HaNavi (Elijah's) Synagogue.
In the "Golden Age" of the kabbalists in the middle 1500's,
it was the most important of Tzfat's seventy synagogues.
Climbing about a dozen stairs to the stone courtyard with its two ripe-old
trees, one can hear voices of a rabbi and his student who study Torah
in a side room every day, their tables piled high with ancient books,
their voices carrying loudly as they discuss intricate details from the
day's learning.
[photo courtesy of
www.thirdtemple.com]
Their small "kollel" is -- perhaps sadly -- all that is left
of the weekday activity at the ancient synagogue. Except for Shabbat and
Festival services, the main sanctuary of the synagogue is locked. There
is, simply, not enough money or participants to keep the splendid synagogue
open for daily services, as there are no longer any houses (with the exception
of the new Bretzlav community) in this isolated area near the cemetery
at the bottom of the Old City.
But if one is lucky -- as Divine Providence would have it -- he or she
can come across one of the synagogue's members who will be happy to share
some of its secrets and history.
Earthquakes
Like many of Tsfat's ancient sites, the four powerful earthquakes which
jolted and devastated much of this town left their mark on the Ari Synagogue.
But unlike some of the other synagogues which were all but completely
destroyed, this synagogue was miraculously spared from major damage, except
for portions of its western wall.
The importance of this is that a visitor can actually view the synagogue
as it has stood for more than seven centuries, with only the modern renovations
restoring the site as closely as possible to the original.
The Holy Room
Perhaps the most revered spot in the Ari Synagogue is a small room just
left of the bima as you enter, where it is said that the Ari --
and only the Ari -- was visited by Elijah the Prophet, who revealed to
him the finest of fruits from the deepest, hidden orchards of the Torah.
"Take these two candles and light them in that room," says one
of the synagogue's members who happened to be there when a visitor arrived.
"It is a segulah to light the candle there and ask (pray)
for what you want."
It is said of this special room - and some say of the shul itself -- that
there was a time when one who entered it would die, until the noted Sephardic
rabbi and kabbalist known as Baba Sali entered the room and through his
spiritual powers was able to effect a change so that all could safely
enter. (For the full story,
click
here.)
Intricate Designs
The synagogue appears to have been designed with the lofty kabbalistic
concepts of the Torah in mind. For example, while most modern synagogues
have one "Aron HaKodesh" -- holy ark -- where the Torah
scrolls are stored, here at the Ari, there are four.
Why? Because of the kabbalistic connection to the four letters of the
holy name of G-d by which Jews call to Him in their prayers. The finely
detailed carvings around each ark show exquisite details rarely found
in today's workmanship.
Directly above the middle ark is a round stained glass window that is
said to be the original.
Nor is it coincidence that the floors are large white marble blocks bordered
by that special "Tzfat blue." According to kabbalah,
the earth is signified by the color white, and the heavens by the color
blue.
The platform from where the Torah is read is much higher than in modern
synagogues, requiring one to walk up six steps -- each step signifying
one of the regular weekdays. The reader stands at the seventh level --
just as on the seventh day, the Sabbath, we come to rest. Look closely
under each of the stairs leading up to the bima and you will notice intricate
wood craftsmanship.
The bima is located in the center of the large rectangular shul. Cushioned
seats on a stone ledge surround the outer wall of the synagogue, a stark
contrast from the rows of seats found in Ashkenazic synagogues.
The Well
One of the more interesting features of this synagogue is an ancient well
which was dug next to the bima when the synagogue was first built. It's
seven hundred years old, but if you are lucky to find someone to unlock
the wood covering over the well, you will see that it still is filled
with water.
Although the 16-meter deep by three-meter-wide well was used in days of
old to provide water for ritual hand washing and other needs, it is almost
ironic that the well, which is said to draw its water directly from the
Ari's mikveh, cannot be used today.
That is because the synagogue owes the local government some 12,000 shekels
in unpaid water bills. At one point the city even shut off the synagogue's
water but after enough protests, it was restored -- debt unpaid.
Antique-Lover's Dream
While in some ways the synagogue has become thoroughly modern -- such
as its installation of an air conditioning/heating system in 1995, there
are other features of this synagogue that will dazzle antique lovers.
One standout is the oversized wooden chair used during a brit milah
(ritual circumcision). Beautifully carved and preserved, the chair is
connected by two planks to a wooden crib that was just the right size
for the infant.
Bye For Now
Although the Ari Sephardic Synagogue is almost too quiet today, the
splendor and holiness of this synagogue hasn't diminished one drop --
almost as if it's waiting for the lively days of yore to be flowing with
new life again.
Buy books about Safed and the ancient masters of
Kabbalah at the Kabbala
Online Shop.
[Chana Katz, a former South FLorida journalist, lives in Tsfat. Her
articles on life in Israel have reached publications throughout the world.]
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