On the eve of Yom Kippur, almost 300 years ago, an ancient Kabbalistic tome saved a small Caucasian Jewish community in Azerbaijan from certain death at the hands of the invading Persian army. The Persian conqueror swung his sword at the leader of the community, who protected himself with the ancient book. The sword hit the book and thus he was saved. Following the miraculous event, the fierce invader decided to spare the community.
A copy of the book with the clearly visible sword strike on it, is on display in an exhibition at a museum in the Jewish town of Krasnaya Sloboda (“red town” in Russian) in the Quba district in Azerbaijan, to mark the 290th anniversary of the founding of the town.
According to a booklet provided with the exhibition, the episode unfolds with the conquest of the region by Nader Shah, who later became one of the most powerful and influential rulers of Persia.
In 1733, on a Friday night, a few days before Yom Kippur, Nader Shah's army approached the town of Qusar, today in Azerbaijan. Nader Shah’s attitude towards Jews was brutal. He killed many of them during his conquests, others he forced to convert to Islam.
Indeed, the Jews of Qusar were terrified at the approach of Nader Shah's army, after he had earlier destroyed a nearby Jewish community.
It was an early hour of the morning, right after the morning prayer, as the head of the community Rabbi Reuven, the son of Rabbi Shmuel, sat in the courtyard of the synagogue in Qusar, and taught his congregation the laws of Yom Kippur and the high holy days from an ancient Kabbalistic book and from the book of the Zohar.
Nader Shah was at the head of his army when they arrived at the Qusar synagogue intending to kill all the Jewish men and take the women and children captive.
According to the description in the exhibition booklet, the commander of invaders brought up his cohorts to the synagogue intending to wreak havoc in the town and abduct the women and children and do with them as he pleased.
As soon as the Persian cavalry entered the synagogue, Nader Shah rode straight to the leader of the congregation who was holding the Kabbalistic book, drew his sword and struck at the rabbi’s head. But Rabbi Reuven protected himself with the book. Nader Shah’s sword struck the book and the rabbi was saved.
According to the tale, Nader Shah the Mighty was perturbed at what had happened and decided to have mercy on the Jews of the town. "On behalf of the book, I have comforted and I will not do you any more harm," said Nadir Shah, according to the legend.
The exhibition with many historical items including traditional clothing, Judaica and documents, unfolds the unique history of the Mountain Jews of Azerbaijan. The exhibition, organized by the Mountain Jewish Heritage Center, marked the 290th anniversary of the founding of Krasnaya Sloboda.
Jewish settlement in the region has been maintained continuously for more than 2,600 years. Krasnaya Sloboda was established with the special permission of the local Azeri ruler and its residents were protected by him.
About 8,000 Jews currently live in the region. To this day, three synagogues operate without the need for security and two Jewish schools operate in Krasnaya Sloboda.
Igor Shaulov, director of Krasnaya Sloboda’s Mountain Jewish Museum said, "This special book, a copy of which is regularly displayed in the museum, tells the long history of the Jewish presence in Azerbaijan, which preserved and protected the Jews who lived in its territory and helped them maintain their identity and culture, and observe the holidays and heritage. And even more so, even today, this history is doing everything to allow us, Mountain Jews, to preserve the Jewish tradition."
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